Seventh Day Adventist Elder S Handbook

A Guide for Pastors, elders, volunteers and children's leaders parents and others in the local Church who wish to understand how to organize, a new children's ministry or strengthen an exsisting one.

Lester DeKoster is the retired editor of The Banner, weekly news magazine of the Christian Reformed Church. He is the former Director of Libraries for Calvin College and Seminary. He currently writes and publishes books on Christian living from the Reformed Calvinist perspective. Gerard Berghoef is the retired President of Widdicomb Furniture Company and a long time elder in the Christian Reformed Church.

This Oxford Handbook contains 39 original essays on Seventh-day Adventism. Each chapter addresses the history, theology, and various other social and cultural aspects of Adventism from its inception up to the present as a major religious group spanning the globe.

There is no higher calling than to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Nothing compares to knowing and following the Savior of the world. To know Him is to love Him, and to follow Him is a wonderful adventure. Still, the discipleship journey is full of pitfalls and snares that threaten to lead us away from the narrow path that leads to heaven. If the devil had his way, every Christian would be lulled to spiritual slumber or led into forbid­den paths that would steal the heart away from God. Therefore, even after we are baptized, it is imperative that we continue to grow into active and mature disciples of Christ. The Discipleship Handbook will benefit anyone seeking such an experience with Jesus. It may be used for personal study or in Sabbath schools, prayer meetings, small groups, or one-on-one settings. It is more than a book about discipleship. Rather, it contains everything needed for a six-month, Bible-based discipleship plan for Seventh-day Adventist churches and their members. The Discipleship Handbook was developed to ensure that the most essential areas of discipleship are covered. The devotional life, personal witnessing, church life, Christian lifestyle, and evangelism each receive special emphasis. For newer members, the 26 chapters of the Discipleship Handbook serve as the heart of 26 weekly meetings with a more experienced mentor.

Covering the Millerite movement of the 1830s and 1840s, sabbatarian Adventism prior to organization of the denomination, and the Seventh-day Adventist Church since its organization in 1861-63, this volume provides a comprehensive history of the denomination. The first major element of the book is a chronology of Adventist history that begins with William Miller's conclusion in 1818 that the Second Advent of Jesus would occur about 1843 and extends through the Science and Theology Conferences of 2002-04. The interpretive introduction that follows places the emergence of Adventism within the context of the Second Great Awakening, describes the development of sabbatarian Adventism from its early opposition to church organization to its highly institutionalized and bureaucratically structured contemporary form, and examines the denomination's geographical expansion from a small North American sect to a global church. The dictionary entries that constitute the bulk of the volume address individuals, organizations, institutions, and doctrines that have been important in the history of the church, including dissident movements and individuals who have emerged as critics of the denomination and its beliefs. Second, there are entries on the development and current situation of Adventism in many individual countries. Finally, thematic entries on such subjects as art, music, literature, health care, and women address other elements important to understanding church life. The dictionary entries are followed by a bibliography of scholarly and popular works published by the denomination, commercial and academic presses, and individuals and organizations.