Since its publication, The Trellis and Vine - co-authored by Tony Payne and Colin Marshall - has been widely commended for its articulation of a clear ministry vision: every Christian committing themselves to the task of making and growing disciples.
However, The Trellis and Vine proposed something more than just the conventional mantra of 'every-member ministry'. It proposed 'every-member word ministry'.
Naturally, readers had questions.
- What's the nature of this word ministry that all church members are expected to do? What does it actually look like?
- How does it relate to preaching? Is it doing a different thing?
- Is this just one option for growing a church? Or is it the right option? What does the Bible say?
- Even if we agree in theory, how do we make it a practical reality?
So Tony Payne set out to do more thinking and provide some answers. Nearly ten years and a PhD later, he has discovered two very surprising realities: firstly, how little theological reflection and writing there has been on this topic; yet, secondly, how extensively the Bible talks about it.
In Let the Word Dwell Richly, Tony Payne brings a new rigour and depth to the ministry mind-shift that will revolutionize the effectiveness of the ministry we pursue in our churches.
--
"I doubt I'll read a better book this year ... a gift to pastors and churches that I pray is widely read." - Mark Dever, pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, DC, USA
"The Trellis and the Vine was only the beginning ... Tony Payne now takes us to the beating heart of biblical disciple-making." - Champ Thornton, author and director of children and family resources at Crossway, Wheaton, IL, USA
