The Prodigal Church: A Gentle Manifesto against the Status Quo
Overview
In The Prodigal Church, Jared Wilson challenges church leaders to reconsider their priorities when it comes to how they “do church” and reach people in their communities, arguing that we too often rely on loud music, flashy lights, and skinny jeans to get people in the door. Writing with the grace and kindness of a trusted friend, Wilson encourages readers to reexamine the Bible’s teaching, not simply return to a traditional model for tradition’s sake. He then sets forth an alternative to both the attractional and the traditional models: an explicitly biblical approach that is gospel focused, grace based, and fruit oriented.
Top Highlights
“Do you see what has happened? The family has not been won to a church. They’ve been won to a menu of attractive goods and services.” (Page 36)
“This is not an argument for a more traditional church so much as it is an argument for a more biblical one.” (Page 18)
“But the problem, as many of us see it now, is that this message of the cross appears to have gotten lost despite our best intentions, contrary to plan, obscured in the well-meaning zeal to remove the unnecessary barriers.” (Page 27)
“Pragmatism is the way of thinking that says, ‘If it works, let’s work it.’” (Page 50)
“The unintended message is that worship is not for God but really for the worshiper. Which raises the question, Who are we worshiping?” (Page 32)
- Title: The Prodigal Church: A Gentle Manifesto against the Status Quo
- Author: Jared C. Wilson
- Publisher: Crossway
- Print Publication Date: 2015
- Logos Release Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Church
- ISBNs: 9781433544613, 9781433544644, 9781433544620, 9781433544637, 143354461X, 1433544644, 1433544628, 1433544636, 143354461
- Resource ID: LLS:PRDGLCHRCHSTTSQ
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-10-01T07:34:00Z
Reviews
2 ratings
Steven Blader
4/1/2024
Tim Kuhn
6/15/2023
Having been in a market driven consumer church a few years, I found this to be accurate and encouraging. I found the challenge to focus on the Lord, preach the gospel and stop treating church like it's a business very refreshing. If you are a part of a large church that uses the techiques in this book, this will be a hard challenging read. I do wish more people would think through what Wilson has written and really pray about the concerns he brings up. Somewhere we traded relying on the Lord for something else.
