Left Behind Fantasy
The Ten Commandments: Their Meaning Today
Facing Life’s Ups and Downs
The Church in Today’s World
The Church Under the Cross
Modern Shapers of Baptist Thought in America
The Journey to the Undiscovered Country: What’s Beyond Death?
A Pastor Preaching: Toward a Theology of the Proclaimed Word
The Pulpit Ministry of the Pastors of River Road Church, Baptist (editor)
The Last Words from the Cross
Lord, I Keep Getting a Busy Signal: Reaching for a Better Spiritual Connection
Overcoming Sermon Block: The Preacher’s Workshop
A Revolutionary Gospel: Salvation in the Theology of Walter Rauschenbusch
Holidays, Holy Days, and Special Days
A Positive Word for Christian Lamenting: Funeral Homilies
The Forgotten Beatitude: Worshipping through Stewardship
Star Thrower: A Pastor’s Handbook
A Pastoral Prophet: Sermons and Prayers of Wayne E. Oates (editor)
The Abiding Presence: Communion Meditations
Which Voice Will You Follow?
The Difficult Sayings of Jesus
Beginning and Ending a Pastorate
Conversations with My Grandchildren about God, Religion, and Life
The Rebirth of the Church
Responding to the Call
to Christian Discipleship
William Powell Tuck
Energion Publications
Gonzalez, Florida
2020
Copyright © 2020, William Powell Tuck
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations marked Moffatt are from the James Moffatt, A New Translation of the Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments. New York: Doran, 1926. Revised edition, New York and London: Harper and Brothers, 1935. Reprinted, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1995.
Scripture quotations marked TEV are from the Good News Translation in Today’s English Version-Second Edition. Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
Scripture Quotations marked Phil or Phillips are from The New Testament in Modern English, Copyright © 1958 by J. B. Phillips.
Scripture quotations marked NEB are taken from the New English Bible, copyright © Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press 1961, 1970. All rights reserved.
Some Scripture quotations are the author’s own translation.
ISBN: 978-1-63199-509-5
eISBN: 978-1-63199-514-9
Energion Publications
PO Box 841
Gonzalez, FL 32560
http://www.energionpubs.com
With appreciation to
Bluefield College
where they encouraged me
and helped equip me educationally
as I began my preparation to serve as a minister
Table of Contents
1 Let God Kindle a Fire Within 1
4 In the Power of the Spirit 41
5 The Task of the Church Today 49
7 The Rebirth of the Church 73
9 The Ministry of the Church 99
10 Addressing the Gospel to Young Adults:
11 The Gospel’s Challenge to Young People:
An Open Letter to Bill as He Leaves for College 121
14 My Dream For The Church: A Summary 157
Preface
The Christian Church is in a time of transition, evolving, transformation, re-evaluation, and some say even dying. Some churches have indeed died, and their buildings have now been transformed into restaurants, museums, art galleries, motels, schools, parking lots, or just torn down. I have served as an interim pastor in several churches that could seat five hundred or more in their sanctuary
