Though I have not been able to give this book the time it deserves, I have spent an hour or so working through Ministry by the Book by Derek Tidball. The concept for this book is interesting and helpful. Tidball essentially builds a pastoral theology by examining pastoral roles as they are presented and handled in books throughout the New Testament.
One great benefit of the book is the stages of ministry that Tidball examines throughout the New Testament, for instance, chapter six is titled, Paul: Ministry in an infant church and subtitled The ministry of a founding father. I see this book being very beneficial for people in any stage of ministry. Further, I believe that this book is stronger than others because it is built primarily upon expositions of scripture rather than on the experiences of a pastor in a particular situation.
Of course, a challenge that Tidball faces in the book is faithful exposition as he seeks to form fit his chapters around texts and specific facets of pastoral ministry. Admittedly, I’ve not spent enough time in the book to give it a full review, but all in all, I think he does a good job and I would recommend this book. I expect to refer to it in the future for research and the way that the book is divided should make it a very valuable resource.
