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Now Available … By popular demand … I have a “new” book out!

By Jeremy Myers
1 Comment

Now Available … By popular demand … I have a “new” book out!

Skeleton Church PaperbackDue to many requests, one of my more popular books, Skeleton Church, is now available as a paperback! Go here to get it on Amazon.

This book has helped thousands of people understand what the church is, and more importantly, how we can ALL live and function together in unity, just as Jesus wanted.

So whether you are in a house church, mega church, or you’re “done” with church … whether you are in a mainline or evangelical church … this book will help you understand what Jesus Christ is building in the world, and how you can both be a part of it and allow others to be their part.

I am pretty excited that this book is now available as a paperback because this makes it more accessible to more people so that more Christians can now live like Jesus in the world.

But that’s not all … As part of preparing this book for publishing as a paperback, it has been edited, revised, and expanded, and now includes a study guide with each chapter, which makes it perfect for small group discussions.

And … that’s not all! Along with updating the book and adding the study guide, I have also created an accompanying online course around the book. The course sells for $97, but when you join my online discipleship group, you can take the course for free.

And there’s more! If you join any of the discipleship levels and take the Skeleton Church online course, you will be able to download a PDF copy of the newly revised and expanded book at the end of the course.

So here is what you need to do:

Skeleton Church Online Course

  1. Buy a copy (or several) of the paperback books from Amazon for yourself (or for your small group study).
  2. Join one of the discipleship levels of RedeemingGod.com
  3. Sign up for the Skeleton Church online course (There are 6 lessons with 3 hours of teaching.)
  4. Go out and live as the church in this world!

Be looking for more books and online courses from me in 2017!

God is Redeeming Books Bible & Theology Topics: be the church, Books by Jeremy Myers, Books I'm Writing, Close Your Church for Good, defining church, definition of church, go to church, Skeleton Church

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Help me Title my Next Book!

By Jeremy Myers
20 Comments

Help me Title my Next Book!

My next book should be out within the next month or so, but I am really having trouble giving it a title. So I thought you could help!

Oh, and by the way, if you want to get this next book for free, make sure you have signed up to get updates through my email newsletter. That is how I let people know that the free books are available. By way of saying “Thank you,” I will send you “Skeleton Church” just for signing up.

book title

My Next Book Has No Title (yet)

My next book is about two different things.

The first part of the book is about transforming the practice of baptism and the Lord’s supper to something that more accurately reflects the symbolism and significance of these events when they were first done by Jesus.

The second part of the book is about willingly sacrificing our God-given and constitutional rights for the sake of others. It is not uncommon for people (even Christians) to sue others because their “rights” were violated. I often wonder what would happen if, for the sake of the gospel, rather than sue people over our rights, we followed Paul’s advice in 1 Corinthians 6:7: “Why not rather be wronged?”

You might say “What a strange mixture for a book.”

Yes, but when you think about it, they go together quite nicely. Christians get up in arms whenever anybody messes with the “rites” of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and we get up in arms whenever anybody messes with our legal “rights,” such as the right to free speech, the right to practice our religion, or the right to bear arms.

Do you see where I am going? In our efforts to protect our “rites” and our “rights” we are ruining our witness and destroying the clarity of the gospel. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not about defending our religious rites or our legal rights, but about sacrificing everything for the sake of others.

If you want to read a rough draft of the content of this book, check out the sections on this page: “Close Your Church for Good” about “Giving up Your Rites” and “Giving Up Your Rights.”

What Book Title Do You Suggest?

what is the book titleSo, with all of that in mind, does anybody have any suggestion for a book title? Here is a brainstorm list of my own:

  • Dying to your rights
  • Die to Your Rites/Rights
  • No Rights to your Rites
  • Give up your Rites/Rights
  • The Right Rites
  • Getting our Rites Right
  • Dying to Religion and Empire
  • You have no rights/rites
  • Don’t Fight for your Rights/Rites
  • No Rights to your Rites
  • The Religious Rites
  • You Have the Rite to be Wrong
  • Am I Rite? Am I Right?
  • Brighter Americans: Not Clinging to our Guns and Religion
  • Divine Rites to Unholy Rights
  • The Right to Give Up (Thanks Jim Davey!)

You don’t have to choose from these. Make up your own, and suggest it in the comment section below! Use the share buttons to invite others to give their input.

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: blogging, Books by Jeremy Myers, Close Your Church for Good, close your church for good, publishing, rights, rites, writing

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The True Service of the Church

By Jeremy Myers
17 Comments

The True Service of the Church

I recently received an encouraging email from Ward Kelley, a long-time reader of this blog and someone I consider an “online” friend. I asked his permission to share his comments with you…

Good morning. I got up this morning and decided I would read your book Put service back into church service. As I have been struggling with the whole idea of what church really is…I find that your writings in this area the most applicable to my station in life. Pages 66-68 concerning church programs and their need for a finite life, and of feeding “Jim Handley’s” family while he found a job struck a chord with me.

be the church help othersLast month my wife — the social creature with a big heart that she is — met a couple through a woman’s prayer group at the church we attend who was pouring out her heart about their impending homelessness. We took them out to dinner to assess their situation and after finding out they had not approached the church for assistance I suggested they request aid through the church benevolence fund.

She approached the church by phone, though they had been attending for some time, seeking $1,500.00 to help them move into an apartment. The finance leader of the church, without even so much as a conversation, said that a check for $250.00 would be left at the front desk for her. Something is better than nothing, of course, but the woman felt that since the man had not cared enough to inquire into their situation, that he did not care about them as people. She felt he was dismissive, and the $250, while very generous, was not nearly enough to actually provide any help to their actual crisis.

I called and left message for the finance pastor and received no call back so I cornered him at church. I asked him if he could fill in some blanks for me concerning this family and he had no facts. He stated they got calls all the time for money and couldn’t get the details on every one. I am aware this happens as I was involved with benevolence at a previous church. When I reminded him that they were not strangers but part of this church’s family… He couldn’t get away from me fast enough.

Is this how we are to treat family?

So I decided to take matters into my own hands.

helping others get homes

I got more deeply involved searching out cheaper home alternatives for them and found several. Then I arranged a meeting to discuss in more depth with the husband his budget, and alternatives for them to live. My wife and I made it know that we were willing to help them bridge the gap with some financial and other assistance till they were back on their feet.

It was obvious that the work we did and the personal care we gave meant a lot to this family. My wife and I enjoyed it immensely as well!

Why didn’t the church do this for them?

Though of course, as you point out on your blog, since my wife and I “are the church” I suppose “the church” did help out this family…

In the end, the man decided to move his family in with his father rather than take one of the alternative routes I offered. A week later he asked for $300 to help with the transition. Had the finance pastor spent 15 minutes with this couple, listening, showing compassion, and guiding them biblically, he could have accomplished this in the name of the church.

Ironically this same finance pastor was busy preparing a “Church Event” of outreach to poor children in the community where they came to the church for free health and dental checkups, and haircuts. I cynically suggested to my wife that this was subliminally designed as a membership drive… Like so many churches they are expending massive time and money on programs to bring people in the front door, while they lose even more out the back door by not truly loving or caring for the people who are already there.

Again, a few weeks ago my wife found a young couple living in a tent behind a strip mall. She began by helping them by driving them around, and bringing them over to shower and wash their clothes. In subsequent conversations I believe that they are Christians … yet young and immature in the faith. Last week a storm blew through, knocked their tent down and soaked all their meager belongings, so they have been in our home since then. Some friends of ours offered to allow them to live in a travel trailer in their yard till they got back on their feet. We met last night as a group to decide a game plan for this young couple. My friend is also struggling with his role in the “church,” and is finding this sort of approach to be much closer to the way of Jesus.

Not all relationships are instant success stories!

Of course, it is critical to remember that even when serving others in such tangible ways, lives are messy, people change slowly, and there are numerous setbacks and we walk with people through their difficulties.

Take, for example, the couple that recently moved into our home with us. They were within one day of having the trailer ready to move into … and blew it.

The guy (James) took a day off from his contracting job to go over and finish the job. He decided that since he was off work that it would be a good day to buy a case of beer and get plastered. Once drunk he managed to get into a fight with the trailer owner’s son in law who was helping him. Needless to say, after being given a warning during our sit down meeting not to cause any drama … he was told never to come back.

After spending the night at an emergency department with him I directed my wife to take Mandy up to the local extended stay and pay for their first week.

It is frustrating in one sense working with dysfunctional people, even more so when they claim to be born again. Living in the south, everyone has biblical knowledge, and can talk a good game … but the discipleship, the love, the need to serve Christ are not present. We are going to continue to assist them, rides to work, church, grocery, etc. I reasserted to my friend and wife that sometimes serving Christ, and people, can get messy.

We don’t love and serve others for thank you’s or recognition, but to serve Christ.

Anyway, I think your writings in this and other books about the church are spot on. It is a struggle to make the transition, but I wanted you to know that your writings encourage me on to finding my place in the body of Christ, whether others find in unconventional or not.

Ward Kelly

Thank you, Ward! Your email is not only an encouragement to me, but to many others who are trying to follow Jesus in similar ways.

Here is a video from Keith Green that Ward sent along later which reminds us of this point:

Do any of you have similar stories to share about how God is using you to “be the church” in your neighborhood and community? Feel free to share them in the comments below!

God is z Bible & Theology Topics: be the church, Close Your Church for Good, Discipleship, homeless, love like Jesus, put service back into the church service, Theology of the Church

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Last Day to Download My Newest Book

By Jeremy Myers
5 Comments

Last Day to Download My Newest Book

Church is More than Bodies Bucks and BricksIn case you missed it earlier this week, my newest book has been released, and you can download it for free from Amazon through today (June 7, 2014).

The book is called Church is More than Bodies, Bucks, and Bricks, and is about how church has nothing to do with how many church members we have, how big our building is, or how large the church budget.

People who are subscribers to my email newsletter already received a free PDF copy of the book earlier this week, so if you are a subscriber, check your email! Otherwise, you can  download a copy from Amazon

Want a Free Paperback Copy?

I am also trying something new with this book. Lots of people prefer paperback copies of books (I know I do), and so I am making those available for free as well. I just ask that you cover the cost of printing and shipping the book ($6.95).

So if you want to get a free paperback copy of this book, you can go get them at Redeeming Press.

And hey, would you mind doing me a favor? Could you use the sharing buttons below to tell others about this free ebook? Let them know on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or wherever else you hang out online. Thank you! I really appreciate it.

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: Books by Jeremy Myers, church is more than bodies bucks and bricks, Close Your Church for Good, free books, free ebooks

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The Church that Risks

By Jeremy Myers
6 Comments

The Church that Risks

Parable of the TalentsIn the Parable of the Talents, a master gives money to three of his servants and instructs them to invest the money while he is away. We know the rest of the story.

One servant turns his talent into ten, another into five, and the third plays it safe and buries his talent in the ground.

When the master returns, he is pleased with the first two servants, but upset with the third.

The master says that if servant was afraid of losing the money, he should have at least put it in the bank to earn interest.

Take Big Risks!

What most of us fail to remember today is that in those days, even putting money in the bank was a risky endeavor.

They did not have Federal Deposit Insurance for up to $250,000. If a bank went out of business, or a shady banker ran away with the money, the depositors lost everything.

So we can somewhat understand the fear of this third servant. He wanted zero risk. He feared to make any mistakes with his master’s money.

So he buried it.

What if We Lose Everything?

I sometimes wish that this parable had a fourth servant, one who put the money at risk and lost it all.

[Read more…]

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: Close Your Church for Good

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