David Putman

Across North America, many pastors are excited to see churches growing as they achieve their mission to connect the message of the gospel with the community at large. Still others are equally frustrated, following the exact same model for outreach but with lesser results. Indeed, just because a "missional breakthrough" occurs in one place doesn’t mean it will happen the same way elsewhere.

One size does not fit all, but there are cultural codes that must be broken for all churches to grow and remain effective in their specific mission context. Breaking the Missional Code provides expert insight on church culture and church vision casting, plus case studies of successful missional churches impacting their communities.

"We have to recognize there are cultural barriers (in addition to spiritual ones) that blind people from understanding the gospel," the authors write. "Our task is to find the right way to break through those cultural barriers without removing the spiritual and theological ones."… (altro)

I agree with what the authors are saying - present the gospel message in a manner the people you want to reach will accept. You might not present it the same way to an 80 year old grandmother as you would a 20 year old Hispanic man. However, I argued with him throughout the book and felt frustrated. I left with as many questions as I had at the beginning and while church plants are great - I have no confidence it will work in our denomination, the way we do church, in rural communities. We do not encourage lay ministers, I don't like video linkups, and you will probably never get enough members in a rural community for a new church to support a pastor by itself.… (altro)

NCLA Review -Pastor David Putnam has a unique approach to the burgeoning desire among Christians to focus on Jesus rather than on teachings about Jesus or rules for Christian behavior (which Putnam refers to as “religion.”) Inviting readers to “rediscover the simplicity of Jesus,” he begins each of 23 brief chapters with a Bible verse, a one-line common assumption of “Toxic Religion,” followed by a statement he feels reflects the contrasting “Jesus Way.” He usually begins with a personal anecdote and elaborates on the insight he gained. Each chapter ends with questions and/or suggested actions for the reader. The book reads like a chat with a good friend who knows more about Jesus and his time than you do. Yet you sense Putnam is walking the same road you are; you are fellow learners. Hopefully readers awakened to Putnam’s perspective and dedication will continue to question “toxic religion” after they close the cover. Rating: 3 —DKW… (altro)