One way or another, leaders emerge in the life of every church. Most pastors want to be intentional about developing and shaping those leaders themselves, but they rarely have the time and to do it. So leaders spring up, often without deep roots in the gospel, and they struggle to guide the church.

The biblical task of leading a church requires more than good management principles or sound theology. If the gospel truly is "the power of God for salvation" (Romans 1:16) and is constantly "bearing fruit and growing" within us (Colossians 1:6), then each elder must be strong in the gospel. That's the vision and the goal behind Gospel Eldership.

Gospel Eldership combines theological training with spiritual formation in order to shape future (and current) leaders at the heart level. It walks future leaders through the biblical concept of servant leadership and the primacy of character before looking at the specific duties of elders. Gospel Eldership helps develop men who know their own heart idolatry and how the good news of the gospel applies to it and who have a sense of "gospel fluency" so that they can swiftly, effectively, and clearly apply the gospel to others. Gospel Eldership is designed to intentionally raise up the type of men who can and should lead God's church.

Gospel Eldership treats the role of elder carefully and biblically and is written from a theologically complementarian viewpoint. With practical exercises to help put concepts to work in real-life situations, Gospel Eldership can be used in one-on-one discipleship or in a small group setting and is appropriate for use in any church--from the smallest church plant to the largest church-planting church.

Thune, Robert H.

Robert H. Thune, MA (Reformed Theological Seminary), is the lead pastor of Coram Deo, a gospel-centered church he planted in 2005 in Omaha, Nebraska, after serving as a megachurch college pastor and a Campus Crusade staff member. He is the coauthor of The Gospel-Centered Life, The Gospel-Centered Life for Teens, and The Gospel-Centered Community, and the author of Gospel Eldership. Bob and his wife, Leigh, have four children.