''The Purpose Driven Church: Growth Without Compromising Your Message & Mission'' is a 1995 book by

Rick Warren Richard Duane Warren (born January 28, 1954) is an American Southern Baptist evangelical Christian pastor and author. He is the founder of Saddleback Church, an evangelical megachurch affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention in Lake Fore ...

, founder and senior

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

Saddleback Church Saddleback Church is a Baptist Evangelical multi-site megachurch, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, located in Lake Forest, California. It is the largest church in California, and one of the largest in the United States of America. ...

Lake Forest, California Lake Forest is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 85,858 at the 2020 census. Lake Forest incorporated as a city on December 20, 1991. Prior to incorporation, the community had been known as El Toro. Following a vote in 20 ...

, United States.

Summary

The book is targeted to pastors and church leaders and advises them to base their ministry on God's purposes, not their own ideas of ministry, hence the term "Purpose Driven". Warren suggests that these purposes are

worship Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. It may involve one or more of activities such as veneration, adoration, praise, and praying. For many, worship is not about an emotion, it is more about a recognition ...

fellowship A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

discipleship In Christianity, disciple primarily refers to a dedicated follower of Jesus. This term is found in the New Testament only in the Gospels and Acts. In the ancient world, a disciple is a follower or adherent of a teacher. Discipleship is not the ...

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

, and

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

, and that they are derived from the

Great Commandment The Great Commandment (or Greatest Commandment) is a name used in the New Testament to describe the first of two commandments cited by Jesus in , , and in answer to him in : Most Christian denominations consider these two commandments as, toge ...

(''Matthew 22:37–40'') and the

Great Commission In Christianity, the Great Commission is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples to spread the gospel to all the nations of the world. The Great Commission is outlined in Matthew 28:16– 20, where on a mountain i ...

(''Matthew 28:19–20''). Warren writes that every church is driven by something. Tradition, finances, programs, personalities, events, seekers and even buildings can each be the controlling force in a church. But he believes that in order for a church to be healthy it must be built around the five

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

purposes given to the church by

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. "The issue is church health, not

church growth The Church Growth Movement is a movement within evangelical Christianity which aims to grow churches based on research, sociology, analysis, etc. The Church Growth Movement started with a passion for the Great Commission, and seeing people come to ...

!" declares Warren. "If your church is healthy, growth will occur naturally. Healthy, consistent growth is the result of balancing the five

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

purposes of the church." He proposes that church leaders ask of themselves, "What is our purpose?", "Why do we do what we do?", "What should we be doing?", and "How will you do that?" In this book Warren provides a guide to answer these questions on how to do church. He further suggests that following the principles he outlines in the book will enable a church to grow. The author emphasizes an intentional people-building process. He says, “If you will concentrate on building people, God will build the church.” The teaching of ''The Purpose Driven Church'' was derived from Warren's own experience in leading

from its founding in 1980 to over 10,000 in worship attendance in its first fifteen years, becoming one of the fastest growing churches in America during this time.

Reception

The book was a

bestseller A bestseller is a book or other media noted for its top selling status, with bestseller lists published by newspapers, magazines, and book store chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and specialties (novel, nonfiction book, cookb ...

a few weeks after its publication. The ''Purpose Driven Church'' has been translated into over 30 languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German. It is listed in ''100 Christian Books That Changed the Century'' and has been given many awards. For example, in 1996 and 1997, the book was the

Evangelical Christian Publishers Association The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) is an international non-profit trade association whose member companies are involved in the publishing and distribution of Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to ...

(ECPA) ''Christian Book Award Winner'' for the US. In 2002, the ECPA awarded it the Gold Medallion Award. The book and its author have received numerous reviews in the mainstream press and have been the subject of much support and criticism in Christian blogs and newsletters. In a May 2005 survey of American pastors and ministers conducted by

George Barna George Barna (born 1954) is the founder of The Barna Group, a market research firm specializing in studying the religious beliefs and behavior of Americans, and the intersection of faith and culture. From 2013 - 2018 he served as the executive ...

, it was voted as the second book most influential on their lives and ministries, behind ''

The Purpose Driven Life ''The Purpose Driven Life'' is a bible study book written by Christian pastor Rick Warren and published by Zondervan in 2002. The book offers readers a 40-day personal spiritual journey and presents what Warren says are God's five purposes for h ...

'', a subsequent book by Warren.

Influence

The book was the origin of the annual conferences called "Purpose Driven Conference".Anugrah Kumar
"Pastor Rick Warren to Host Purpose Driven Conference This Month After 10 Years"
christianpost.com, US, June 20, 2016

References

External links

Rick Warren

Saddleback Church

Pastors.com

Purpose Driven Life

Purpose Driven
{{DEFAULTSORT:Purpose Driven Church, The 1995 non-fiction books American non-fiction books Books by Rick Warren Evangelical Christian literature