The Crucifixion of Ministry: Surrendering Our Ambitions to the Service of Christ
"Every pastor and Christian leader needs to read this book--about once a year. It is a much-needed wake-up call to remember what we all so often forget: it's Christ's ministry, not ours, and for his ministry to manifest itself through us, we must first die to ours. Written with clarity and passion, there is much here that is theologically rich, spiritually challenging and practically relevant. The North American church today desperately needs to heed the message of Andrew Purves's book." (Stephen A. Seamands, professor of Christian doctrine, Asbury Theological Seminary)"Andrew Purves has peeked inside our ministerial closets. He has pulled aside the façade of our pastoral garb. He exposes the fear and exhaustion so many of us feel but none admit. Then he offers us pastors the real hope found in reconnecting to the true Source of all ministry. The church would be transformed if pastors dared to read, and practice, this book." (Gerrit Dawson, senior pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Baton Rouge)"I have been in Professor Purves's classes as he lectured on this theology of pastoral ministry. I watched our seminarians move from dismay to embracing it as a surprising new vision of ministry. It was like witnessing the crucifixion and resurrection, which is his point. I have been a pastor long enough to know that without this vision of what Jesus Christ is doing in human lives, no one will last long in the ministry." (M. Craig Barnes, pastor, Shadyside Presbyterian Church, and Meneilly Professor of Ministry, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary)"This book is exactly what we in pastoral ministry have needed for a long time: 'strong medicine' to not only keep us from the burnout so many are facing in our time, but also, and primarily, to enable us to thrive in the service of Jesus Christ. Andrew Purves takes us into the heart of ministry, into the heart of the only ministry that actually 'works,' into the ministry of the risen Jesus, and teaches us how to participate in Jesus' vicarious humanity and, in union with him, to cooperate with Jesus' ongoing work in and for the world. As I read these pages, everything in me cries, 'Yes! This is the way to live and serve.'" (Darrell Johnson, associate professor of pastoral theology, Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia)