When the Church Was a Family Recapturing Jesus' Vision for Authentic Christian Community

by Hellerman, Joseph H.

• ISBN13: 9780805447798
• ISBN10: 0805447792
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-08-01
• Publisher: B&H Academic

Summary

Spiritual formation occurs primarily in the context of community. But as the modern cultural norm of what social scientists call "radical American individualism" extends itself, many Christians grow lax in their relational accountability to the church. Faith threatens to become an "I" not "us," a "my God" not "our God" concern. When the Church Was a Familycalls believers back to the wisdom of the first century, examining the early Christian church from a sociohistorical perspective and applying the findings to the evangelical church in America today. With confidence, author Joseph Hellerman writes intentionally to traditional church leaders and emerging church visionaries alike, believing what is detailed here about Jesus' original vision for authentic Christian community will deeply satisfy the relational longings of both audiences.

Author Biography

Joseph H. Hellerman is professor of New Testament at Biola University in La Mirada, California, and helps pastor Oceanside Christian Fellowship in nearby El Segundo. He holds degrees from Biola (Master of Divinity and Master of Theology, Old Testament) and the University of California (Bachelor of Arts in English and Masters of Arts in English and History of Christianity).

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
The Group Comes First	p. 13
Family in the New Testament World	p. 34
Jesus' New Group	p. 53
The Churches of Paul	p. 76
The Church in the Roman World	p. 97
Salvation as a Community-Creating Event	p. 120
Life Together in the Family of God	p. 144
Decision Making in the Family of God	p. 163
Leadership in the Family of God	p. 182
Conclusion	p. 205
Name Index	p. 231
Subject Index	p. 232
Scripture Index	p. 233
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