Association

by Ryan King, Andrew King

The New Testament is filled with imagery illustrating the co-operative efforts of Christian individuals within their local church: working together as many members we are a building, body, and bride. Each of these images depict relationships of partnership, co-operation, and a sense of mutual responsibility. But what about relationships between churches? Should a church associate with other like minded local churches?

219 pages, Unknown Binding

Published October 1, 2021

About the author

Librarian Note: This profile contains multiple authors.

Reviews

[Jonathan Ginn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful read dealing with a subject that's noticeably absent from the literature and discussions found in most 9Marks circles (the person who gave me this book jokingly quipped that Association is Dever's "missing tenth mark"). Certain chapters may be more tightly written and argued than others, but despite some minor unevenness and an admittedly niche focus on UK churches (with one chapter devoted to some developments in Italy and Peru), the work as a whole makes a fairly convincing case for local church associations and gives 9Marks-influenced American readers such as myself some great food for thought.

Lastly, one unintended benefit of reading this book is that I have been inspired to explore more of the writings of British evangelicals. There are many in the game right now whom I've never heard of, and they're doing good work and putting out quality projects worth looking into.

[Holland Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book to learn about how Baptist churches in the U.K. work together in revitalization efforts. I was astonished at how amazing their cooperation is and I have also seen it first hand. I really hope the isolationist tendencies in the majority of American churches will decrease, because associations are not only just healthy accountability, but they are also a Christ given joy.

[Ed Creedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some rather niche discussion around a particular association, it broadly an excellent treatment of the subject, and a much needed appeal to think through interchurch relationships in a biblical and genuine way.