Stop Launching Churches! Instead, Covenant Together
By Nathan Knight | 9Marks Journal: Church Mergers and Plants | 07.17.2015I think we should stop talking about “launching” new church plants and instead refer to them “covenanting” for the first time.
Getting into the Weeds of Church Membership and Baptism with Bobby Jamieson and Jonathan Leeman
By B. Jamieson, J. Leeman | 07.08.2015What is baptism? What does baptism mean? Is it simply an individual’s declaration that they now belong to Jesus? Is it a sign and seal of the new covenant, just as God intended circumcision to be a sign and seal of the old? And what does all of this have to do with church membership? Is church membership for everyone? Only baptized believers? Baptized believers and their children?
50 Quotes from Bobby Jamieson’s New Book “Going Public: Why Baptism Is Required for Church Membership”
By Matt Smethurst | 07.07.2015“After trusting Christ, baptism is the first thing faith does. It’s how faith shows itself before God, the church, and the world. Baptism is where faith goes public.”
Mailbag #8: Confidentiality among Elders; Meaningful Membership; Can an Elder Be Single?; and Young Earth Creationism
By Jonathan Leeman | 05.04.2015—How should elders practice confidentiality? —Can an elder/pastor be single? —How do I make membership more meaningful at my church? —Should young earth creationism be a test of orthodoxy?
Book Review: Searching for Sunday, by Rachel Held Evans
Review by Ray Ortlund | 04.28.2015I am not confident that, if I took this book to heart and swallowed its Christianity whole, I would be ready to stand before God on that great and final day.
The Doctrine of the Church in a Post-Indiana America
By Jonathan Leeman | 04.10.2015The doctrine of the church is about to prove itself as important as ever in the history of America. Churches where that doctrine is weak, I fear, will soon look like what Proverbs calls a city without walls.
Mailbag #3: Plagiarizing Pastor, Membership Interview
By Jonathan Leeman | 03.20.2015My pastor is plagiarizing. What should I do?
Introducing the 9Marks Mailbag
By A. Duke, J. Leeman | 03.04.2015Introducing a new feature on the 9Marks site.
Life, Ministry, and Books with Tim Keller—Part 1: Life
By M. Dever, T. Keller | 02.09.2015Mark Dever interviews Tim Keller about his conversion, what led him to New York City, why the cultural gap between generations has exponentially grown in recent decades, and much more.
Book Review: Jonathan Edwards & The Church, by Rhys Bezzant
Review by Tyler Durham | 01.12.2015Edwards’ approach, as illustrated in Bezzant’s book, tries to strike the right balance between the two extremes of out-and-out pragmatism and culturally deaf fundamentalism.
Church Membership in Theory and Practice with Ligon Duncan
By L. Duncan, M. Dever | 01.09.2015Should the everyday Christian care about something as old-fashioned and outmoded as church membership? Does its practice make sense in contexts without church discipline? Isn’t it just a “Baptist thing”? Mark Dever interviews Ligon Duncan about all this and more in the latest 9Marks Leadership interview: “Church Membership in Theory and Practice.”
Why I’m Glad My Church Hunting Is Over
By Samuel D. James | 12.08.2014My season of church hunting was a spiritually and emotionally challenging time, one that became harder the longer it lasted.
Don’t Give Up Meeting Together
By Michael Kelley | 12.02.2014In an affluent and relatively free society, safe from persecution based on religious preference, what might keep us from continuing to show up?
Why We Need the Church
By Jenny Manley | 11.20.2014The statement “I love Jesus; I just don’t care for the church” does not make sense when we understand the church is a gift given to the people of God for the glory of God.
If You’re Thinking About Leaving a Church . . .
By Mark Dever | 09.30.2014Do everything within your power to reconcile any broken relationships.
