The Spurgeon Fellowship Journal

Book Review
The Deliberate Church
by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander

Every now and again a ministry book emerges that is a stark departure from the pragmatic methodological pablum that is so often the rave within the pastoral circles of the day. The Deliberate Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander is just such a book. It is a breath of fresh air for pastors incessantly bombarded by a purpose-driven this or a seven-steps to that. The subtitle of the book says it all: Building Your Ministry On The Gospel. What a novel concept!

The title of the book may lead one to believe that this is just another plug-in program to lead a church to exponential numeric growth. However, by admission, this is not the focus of the book. Dever writes in the forward: “We’re not claiming that any of this stuff is original with us; it’s not a ‘fresh take’ or a ‘unique approach’- it’s not innovative . . . It’s not something you can just plug into your church and press PLAY . . . It’s not a quick fix . In other words, don’t expect to read this book, implement its suggestions, and see immediate, observable results” (p. 20). The methodology of the Deliberate Church may be summarized as follows: churches must be “deliberate” in the Word (and the gospel, in particular) in order to ensure growth and functionality.

The content of the book does not provide a program to be replicated, but gives an overview of almost every topic regarding church ministry so that a minister may analyze and critique his own pastoral situation. It is divided into three main sections: 1) “ Gathering the Church,” which deals with foundational ministry principles, church membership, clarification of the gospel, and church discipline; 2) “ When the Church Gathers,” which discusses the role of the pastor, different types of services, the regulative principle of worship, music, and the sacraments; and 3) “ Gathering Elders,” which speaks to qualified leadership, staffing, decision-making, and elders’ meetings.

Throughout the book, the reader is reminded that the gospel of Christ and our methodology as ministers may never be separated: one’s theology regarding the good news influences how one goes about building a church; the gospel alone must shape and evaluate any ministry method we use; and faithfulness to the gospel must be our measure of success, as opposed to immediately observable results. This understanding sets the tone for all that follows.

One thing that makes this book helpful and practical are sections entitled “Think Tank.” These “Think Tank” sections are comprised of three or four questions specifically designed to prompt rumination over the material discussed, and to question, in turn, why we do what we do in gospel ministry. I recently led our elders through this process and it proved beneficial as we evaluated our paradigm for ministry.

I will touch briefly on a couple of sections that are well worth the price of this book. The first of these sections is entitled “Beginning the Work.” How many of us, as pastors, have assumed the congregation has a rudimentary understanding of the gospel and the Christian life? Dever challenges us to make no such supposition: “Assumption on our part too often leads to presumption on theirs” (p. 43). He warns that if we continue in ministry with the blissful assumption that people understand the gospel and the sanctified Christian life, we cordially allow them “to presume their own conversion without examining themselves for evidence of it – which may amount to nothing more than blissful damnation” (p. 43).

This exhortation reminds us of being determined to “know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” . . . that our speech and message should not be with “plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Co. 2:4) . . . that our hearers’ faith “might not rest in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God” (1 Co. 2:5). Dever adds, “What you win them with is likely what you’ll win them to. If you win them with the Gospel, you’ll win them to the Gospel. If you win them with technique programs, entertainment, and personal charisma, you might end up winning them to yourself and your methods (and you might not!), but it’s likely that they won’t be won to the Gospel first and foremost” (p. 44). Dever goes on to suggest ways to facilitate a healthier and growing church centered around the Gospel, such as: cultivating trust through preaching and teaching, and working at clearing membership rolls.

A second thought-provoking section discusses the “Regulative Principle” as applied to the corporate worship service. The Regulative Principle asks: “Are the components contained in our corporate worship warranted by the Scriptures?” Dever here offers a great paradigm for the Regulative Principle as it applies to corporate worship: “Read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, see the Bible, and sing the Bible”. How many times have we been guilty of “audience response” being the barometer of a “good” worship service? The worship of the golden calf provoked great response in the people, but it wasn’t what God prescribed. Dever calls ministers back to the plumb line of Scripture to establish our prescription for worship.

There is not enough space to record the all the advantages of this book. You may not agree with all of its contents but, as has already been stated, it is not a plug-in system with guaranteed results. It is a tool by which pastors may evaluate the “whys” and “what fors” of their ministry. You will find no gimmicks in this book. It is, in my opinion, a must read for every pastor and elder board.

David Thommen, M.Div., serves as Pastor of Estacada Christian Church in Estacada, OR.


	Book Review The Deliberate Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander Every now and again a ministry book emerges that is a stark departure from the pragmatic methodological pablum that is so often the rave within the pastoral circles of the day. The Deliberate Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander is just such a book. It is a breath of fresh air for pastors incessantly bombarded by a purpose-driven this or a seven-steps to that. The subtitle of the book says it all: Building Your Ministry On The Gospel. What a novel concept! The title of the book may lead one to believe that this is just another plug-in program to lead a church to exponential numeric growth. However, by admission, this is not the focus of the book. Dever writes in the forward: “We’re not claiming that any of this stuff is original with us; it’s not a ‘fresh take’ or a ‘unique approach’- it’s not innovative . . . It’s not something you can just plug into your church and press PLAY . . . It’s not a quick fix . In other words, don’t expect to read this book, implement its suggestions, and see immediate, observable results” (p. 20). The methodology of the Deliberate Church may be summarized as follows: churches must be “deliberate” in the Word (and the gospel, in particular) in order to ensure growth and functionality. The content of the book does not provide a program to be replicated, but gives an overview of almost every topic regarding church ministry so that a minister may analyze and critique his own pastoral situation. It is divided into three main sections: 1) “ Gathering the Church,” which deals with foundational ministry principles, church membership, clarification of the gospel, and church discipline; 2) “ When the Church Gathers,” which discusses the role of the pastor, different types of services, the regulative principle of worship, music, and the sacraments; and 3) “ Gathering Elders,” which speaks to qualified leadership, staffing, decision-making, and elders’ meetings. Throughout the book, the reader is reminded that the gospel of Christ and our methodology as ministers may never be separated: one’s theology regarding the good news influences how one goes about building a church; the gospel alone must shape and evaluate any ministry method we use; and faithfulness to the gospel must be our measure of success, as opposed to immediately observable results. This understanding sets the tone for all that follows. One thing that makes this book helpful and practical are sections entitled “Think Tank.” These “Think Tank” sections are comprised of three or four questions specifically designed to prompt rumination over the material discussed, and to question, in turn, why we do what we do in gospel ministry. I recently led our elders through this process and it proved beneficial as we evaluated our paradigm for ministry. I will touch briefly on a couple of sections that are well worth the price of this book. The first of these sections is entitled “Beginning the Work.” How many of us, as pastors, have assumed the congregation has a rudimentary understanding of the gospel and the Christian life? Dever challenges us to make no such supposition: “Assumption on our part too often leads to presumption on theirs” (p. 43). He warns that if we continue in ministry with the blissful assumption that people understand the gospel and the sanctified Christian life, we cordially allow them “to presume their own conversion without examining themselves for evidence of it – which may amount to nothing more than blissful damnation” (p. 43). This exhortation reminds us of being determined to “know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” . . . that our speech and message should not be with “plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Co. 2:4) . . . that our hearers’ faith “might not rest in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God” (1 Co. 2:5). Dever adds, “What you win them with is likely what you’ll win them to. If you win them with the Gospel, you’ll win them to the Gospel. If you win them with technique programs, entertainment, and personal charisma, you might end up winning them to yourself and your methods (and you might not!), but it’s likely that they won’t be won to the Gospel first and foremost” (p. 44). Dever goes on to suggest ways to facilitate a healthier and growing church centered around the Gospel, such as: cultivating trust through preaching and teaching, and working at clearing membership rolls. A second thought-provoking section discusses the “Regulative Principle” as applied to the corporate worship service. The Regulative Principle asks: “Are the components contained in our corporate worship warranted by the Scriptures?” Dever here offers a great paradigm for the Regulative Principle as it applies to corporate worship: “Read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, see the Bible, and sing the Bible”. How many times have we been guilty of “audience response” being the barometer of a “good” worship service? The worship of the golden calf provoked great response in the people, but it wasn’t what God prescribed. Dever calls ministers back to the plumb line of Scripture to establish our prescription for worship. There is not enough space to record the all the advantages of this book. You may not agree with all of its contents but, as has already been stated, it is not a plug-in system with guaranteed results. It is a tool by which pastors may evaluate the “whys” and “what fors” of their ministry. You will find no gimmicks in this book. It is, in my opinion, a must read for every pastor and elder board. David Thommen, M.Div., serves as Pastor of Estacada Christian Church in Estacada, OR.

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