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Cell Church Reading List and Bibliography

Resumen de libros

Book Recommendations

By Joel Comiskey

2015

If you want to know what cell church books I recommend, just look at the books I ask pastors to read in preparation for our coaching times. I coached one group of pastors over a three year period, and each month we would review one book together. I tried to give these pastors the total cell church picture, so I first asked them to read “general” cell church books. I brought in more specificity with each passing month. The monthly reading list was completed over a three year period, and these particular pastors read 33 books! Even though I stopped meeting with this partiular group of pastors, I’ve been updating this list for those who want to go deeper.

READING ORDER

  1. Church without Walls, Michael Green, editor, (Paternoster Press)
  2. Biblical Foundations for the Cell-Based Church, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  3. Making Disciples in the Twenty-First Century Church, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  4. The Cell Church, Stockstill (Regal Books). Read my review
  5. Successful Home Cell Groups, David Cho ( Logos)
  6. Where Do We Go from Here, Neighbour (Touch Publications)
  7. Reap the Harvest Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  8. The Apostolic Cell Church, Lawrence Khong (Touch Singapore)
  9. The Second Reformation, Bill Beckham (Touch Publications)
  10. The Second Reformation, Stage 2, Bill Beckham (CCS Publishing)
  11. 2000 Years of Small Groups, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  12. The Cell-Driven Church, Billy Hornsby (Fire-Wind)
  13. Prepare Your Church for the Future, Carl George (Revell Books)
  14. Passion and Persistence, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  15. House to House, Larry Kreider (House to House)
  16. The Church that Multiplies, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  17. The Church in Many Houses, Steve Cordle (Abingdon Press)
  18. Where are We Now? The Small Group Movement and its Models Beckham, Bill (Touch Glocal Publications)
  19. Redefining Revival, Bill Beckham (Touch Publications)
  20. The Challenge of the Cell Church, Philip Potter (The Bible Reading Fellowship)
  21. Cells for Life: Home groups–God’s strategy for church growth, Ron Trudinger (Bridge Publishing)
  22. Myths and Truths of the Cell Church, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  23. Biblical Foundations for Small Groups, Gareth Icenogle (InterVarsity Press)
  24. Leadership Explosion, Joel Comiskey(Touch Publications)
  25. Home Cell Group Explosion, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  26. The 8 Habits of Highly Effective Leaders, Dave Earley (Touch Publications)
  27. How to Lead a Great Cell Group, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  28. Live, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  29. Encounter, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  30. Grow, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  31. Appointment with the King, Joel Comiskey (Chosen Books)
  32. Share, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  33. Lead, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  34. Discover, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  35. The Spirit-filled Small Group, Joel Comiskey (Chosen Books)
  36. Burnout-free Small Group Leadership, Michael C. Mack (Touch Publications)
  37. Groups of Twelve, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  38. From Twelve to Three, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  39. Home Groups for Urban Cultures, Mikel Neuman (William Carey Library)
  40. When the Church was a Family, Joseph Hellerman (B&H Academic)
  41. Heirs Together, Daphne Kirk (Kevin Mayhew Ltd)
  42. Shouting in the Temple, Lorna Jenkins (Touch Ministries International)
  43. Reconnecting the Generations, Daphne Kirk (Kevin Mayhew LTD)
  44. Children in Cell Ministry, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  45. Youth in Cell Ministry, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  46. How Do We Get There from Here, Scott Boren (Touch Publications)
  47. The Naked Truth about Small Groups, Randall Neighbour (Touch Publications)
  48. Small Groups and Established Churches, John W. Ellas (Center for Church Growth)
  49. Making Cell Groups Work Navigation Guide Boren, Comiskey, Neighbour, Beckham (Touch Publications)
  50. Preparing the 21st Century Church: Shattering the American Paradigm, Les Brickman (Xulon Press)
  51. Turning Members into Leaders, Dave Earley (Touch Publications)
  52. How to be a Great Cell Group Coach, Joel Comiskey (Touch Publications)
  53. World’s Greatest Small Group, Michael Mack (Small Group Leadership, LLC)
  54. You Can Coach, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  55. Coach, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  56. Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders, Bill Donahue and Greg Bowman (Zondervan Publishers)
  57. Dance with Me, Daddy, Rob Campbell (Xulon Press)
  58. Church Planting Movements, David Garrison (WIGTake Resources)
  59. Houses that Changed the World, Wolfgang Simson (Paternoster Publishing)
  60. Organic Church, Neil Cole (Jossey Bass)
  61. House Church and Mission, Roger Gehring (Hendrickson Publishers)
  62. House Church Networks, Larry Kreider (House to House)
  63. The Relational Disciple, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  64. The Connecting Church, Randy Frazee (Zondervan). Read my review
  65. Making Room for Life, Randy Frazee (Zondervan)
  66. The Relational Way, Scott Boren (Touch Publications)
  67. Community that is Christian, Julie A. Gorman (Baker Books)
  68. Small Group Evangelism, Richard Peace (Fuller Seminary Press)
  69. Small Group Outreach, Jeffrey Arnold (IVP Connect)
  70. Loving the Lost: The Principles and Practice of Cell Church, Laurence Singlehurst (Kingsway)
  71. Reaching College Students through Cells, Highland Baptist College Ministry (Touch Publications)
  72. The Celtic Way of Evangelism, George G. Hunter III, (Abingdon Press)
  73. Recovery Cells, Dr. Michael Erickson (Tate Publishing)
  74. The Forgotten Ways, Alan Hirsch (Brazos Press)
  75. Revolution, George Barna (Tyndale House Publishers). IMPORTANT: Read my review first
  76. Home Cell Groups and House Churches, C. Kirk Hadaway, Stuart A. Wright, Francis M. Dubose (Broadman Press)
  77. Church without Walls, Jim Peterson (NavPress)
  78. Cell Church Planter’s Guide, Bob Logan and Jeannette Buller (ChurchSmart)
  79. Helping You Build Cell Churches, Larry Kreider (House to House)
  80. The Multiplying Church, Bob Roberts (Zondervan)
  81. Planting Churches that Reproduce, Joel Comiskey (CCS Publishing)
  82. The American Church in Crisis, David T. Olson (Zondervan)
  83. Christ’s Basic Bodies, Ralph Neighbour (Touch Publications)
  84. The Small Group Leader’s Toolkit, Dave Earley (Touch Publications)
  85. Small Group Leaders’ Handbook, written by a small group (IVP Connect)
  86. Small Group Vital Signs, Michael Mack (Touch Publications)
  87. Small Groups, Big Impact, Jim Egli, Dwight Marble (Churchsmart Resources, 2011)
  88. Real Life Discipleship, Jim Putman (Eerdmans, 2010)
  89. Leading Small Groups in the Way of Jesus, Scott Boren (InterVarsity, 2015)

While reviewing the book, I ask the pastors the following questions:

  1. What was the author trying to say in the book? What was his or her objective in writing the book? (sympathetic to the author)
  2. What were the strong points?
  3. What were the weak points?
  4. What lessons did you learn? How were you changed as a result of reading the book? What will you now do differently as a result of reading the book?

The following list is what I include in the syllabus that I hand out in my cell church seminary courses.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL LIST

PRIORITY BOOKS

  • Comiskey, Joel.
    • The Church that Multiplies. Moreno Valley, CA: CCS Publishing, 2007. Pp. 183. ISBN: 978-0979067938.
    • Leadership Explosion. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2000. Pp. 188. ISBN: 1-880828-23-5.
    • How to Lead a Great Cell Meeting. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2001. Pp.130. ISBN: 1-880828-27-8.
  • Cordle, Steve.
    • The Church in Many Houses. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2005. Pp. 136.
  • Earley, Dave
    • Eight Habits of Highly Effective Leaders. Houston, TX: Touch Publications 2001. Pp. 135. ISBN: 1-880828-34-0.
  • Green, Michael, editor
    • Church without Walls. Carlisle, United Kingdom, Paternoster Press, 2002, Pp.133. ISBN: 1-84227-139-3.
  • Stockstill, Larry
    • The Cell Church. Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1998. Pp. 136. ISBN: 0 8307-2072-3.

VERY IMPORTANT BOOKS

  • Beckham, William
    • The Second Reformation. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 1995. Pp. 253. ISBN: 1-880828-90-1.
  • Boren, Scott.
    • How Do We Get There from Here? Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2007. Pp 410. ISBN: 0-9788779-1-8
  • Cho, David
    • Successful Home Cell Groups. Gainesville, Florida: Bridge- Logos Publishers, 1981. Pp.171. ISBN: 0-88270-513-X.
  • Comiskey, Joel
    • Home Cell Group Explosion. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2002. Pp. 178. ISBN: 1-880828-42-1.
    • How to be a Great Cell Group Coach. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2003. Pp. 139. ISBN: 1-880828-47-2.
    • Planting Churches that Reproduce. Moreno Valley, CA: CCS Publishing, 2009. Pp. 183. ISBN: 978-0979067969.
    • Reap the Harvest . Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 1999. Pp. 226. ISBN: 1-880828-13-8.
    • The Relational Disciple. Moreno Valley, CA: CCS Publishing, 2009. Pp. 159. ISBN: 978-0979067990.
  • Donahue, Bill
    • Leading Life-Changing Small Groups. Grand Rapids, MI: ZondervanPublishingHouse, 1996. Pp. 191. ISBN: 0310-20595-6.
  • Frazee, Randy
    • The Connecting Church. Grand Rapids, Michigan: ZondervanPublishingHouse, 2001. Pp. 253. ISBN: 0-310-23308-9.
  • Garrison, David
    • Church Planting Movements. Bangalore, India: WIGTake Resources, 2004. Pp. 362. ISBN: 0-9747562-0-2.
  • Gehring, Roger
    • House Church and Mission. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publisher, 2004. Pp. 408. ISBN: 1-56563-812-3.
  • Gorman, Julie
    • Community that is Christian. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 2002. Pp. 262. ISBN: 0-8010-9145-4.
  • Icenogle, Gareth
    • Biblical Foundations for Small Group Ministry. Downers Grove, Illinois, 1994. Pp. 396. ISBN: 0-8308-1771-9.
  • Khong, Lawrence
    • The Apostolic Cell Church. Singapore, Touch Ministries International, 2000. Pp. 221. ISBN: 981-04-1259-2.
  • Kreider, Larry
    • House to House. Ephrata, PA: House to House Publications, 1995. Pp. 184. ISBN: 1-880828-81-2
  • Mack, Michael
    • Burnout-free Small Group Leadership. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2009. Pp. 115. ISBN: 978-0-982535219.
  • Neighbour, Ralph.
    • Where Do We Go from Here. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2001. Pp. 397. ISBN: 1-880828-17-0.
  • Neighbour, Randall
    • The Naked Truth about Small Groups. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2009. Pp. 256. ISBN: 978-0978877965.

HAVE IN YOUR LIBRARY BOOKS

  • Astin, Howard
    • Body and Cell. Mill Hill, London: Monarch Press, 2002. Pp. 174. ISBN: 1-85424-577-5.
  • Beckham, William
    • Redefining Revival. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2000. Pp. 254. ISBN: 1-880828-26-X.
    • Where are We Now? The Small Group Movement and its Models ( Houston, TX: Touch Glocal Publications, 2005), pp. 193.
  • Boren, Scott
    • The Relational Way. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2007, Pp. 277. ISBN: 0-9788779-0-X.
  • Bunton, Peter
    • Cell Groups and House Churches. Ephrata, PA: House to House Publications, 2001. Pp. 114. ISBN: 1-886973-45-8.
  • Campbell, Rob
    • Dance with Me, Daddy. Xulon Press, 2003. Pp. 220. ISBN: 1-591604-95-8.
  • Cole, Neil
    • Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2005. Pp. 237. ISBN: 0-7879-8129X.
  • Comiskey, Joel
    • Appointment with the King. Grand Rapids, MI: Chosen Books, 2002. Pp. 175. ISBN: 0-8007-9304-8.
    • From Twelve to Three. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2003. Pp. 139. ISBN: 1-880828-41-3.
    • Groups of Twelve. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 1999. Pp. 182. ISBN: 1-880828-15-4.
    • Making Cell Groups Work Navigation Guide. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 2003. Pp. 617. ISBN: 1-880828-48-0. (William Beckham, Scott Boren, and Randall and Ralph Neighbour also contributed to this book).
    • Passion and Persistence. Houston, TX: Touch Publications. Pp. 158. ISBN: 0-9752896-1-6
  • Donahue, Bill and Greg Bowman
    • Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Pp. 135.
  • Finnel, David
    • Life in His Body. Houston, TX: Touch Publications, 1995, Pp. 160. ISBN: 1-880828-87-1
  • Frazee, Randy
    • Making Room for Life. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Pp. 191. ISBN: 0-310-25016-1
  • Galloway, Dale
    • 20/20 Vision. Portland, OR: Scott Publishing, 1986. NO ISBN.
  • George, Carl.
    • Prepare Your Church for the Future. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 1992. Pp. 220. ISBN: 0-8007-5365-8.
  • Hadaway, C. Kirk, Stuary A. Wright, and Francis DuBose
    • Home Cell Groups and House Churches. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1987. ISBN: 0-8054-6944-3.
  • Hamlin, Judy
    • The Small Group Leaders Training Course. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress, 1990. ISBN: 0-89109-308-7.
  • Hornsby, Billy
    • The Cell-Driven Church. Mansfield, PA: Fire Wind, 2000. Pp. 214. ISBN: 1-883906-47-4.
  • Hull, Bill
    • The Disciple Making Pastor. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 1988. ISBN: 0-8007 1608-6.
    • The Disciple Making Church. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 1988. ISBN: 0-8007-1641-8.
  • Kreider, Larry
    • House Church Networks. Ephrata, PA: House to House Publications, 2001. Pp. 120. ISBN: 1886973-48-2
  • McBride, Neal
    • How to Build a Small Groups Ministry. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1995. Pp. 204. ISBN:0891097694.
  • Neumann, Mikel
    • Home Groups for Urban Cultures. Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 1999. Pp. 197. ISBN: 0-87808-281-6.
  • Potter, Phil
    • The Challenge of the Cell Church. Oxford, UK: The Bible Reading Fellowship, 2001. Pp. 175. ISBN: 9-781841-012186.
  • Putnam, Robert.
    • Bowling Alone. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster, 2000. Pp. 541. ISBN: 0-684-83283-6.
  • Simson, Wolfgang
    • Houses that Change the World. Emmelsbull, Germany: C & P Publishing, 2002. Pp. 303. ISBN: 1-85078-356-X.
  • Zdero, Rad
    • The Global House Church Movement. Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 2004. Pp. 147. ISBN: 087808-342-1.