The Early Church and Today is a collection of scholarly articles by an acclaimed specialist in early Christianity written for a broad audience. The topics taken from the New Testament and other early Christian literature are relevant for the church today. The articles are grouped in the following categories: Volume 1, church and ministry; Volume 2, Christian living, biblical interpretation, the restoration motif, religious liberty, and the book of Acts of the Apostles.

Sections include:

• "Ministry of the Word in the First Two Centuries"
• "The Authority and Tenure of Elders"
• "Women in the Post-Apostolic Church"
• "Baptismal Motifs in the Ancient Church"
• "Baptism in the Patristic Period"
• "When You Come Together: Epi to auto in Early Christian Literature"
• "Congregational Singing in the Early Church"
• "Jewish Religious Music in the First Century - Temple, Synagogue, House, and Sect"
• "Christian Living in a Pagan Society"
• "The Meaning and Significance of the Restitution Motif"

Everett Ferguson is a Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Abilene Christian University, where he taught Bible, Church History, and Greek from 1962-1998. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University. His honors include the Distinguished Service Award from the North American Patristics Society (2008), of which he was president 1990-1992, the Vestigia Award for Excellence in Early Christian Studies and Service to the Church from the Wheaton Center for Early Christian Studies (2010), and Christian service awards from Pepperdine University, Harding University, the Christian Chronicle, and most recently the Christian Scholars Conference (2010). Ferguson served on the Council of the American Society of Church History (1983-1985) and the Council of the Association internationale d'etudes patristiques (1995-2007). His editorial work includes three scholarly journals (Restoration Quarterly, The Second Century, and the Encyclopedia of Early Christianity). His books include Backgrounds of Early Christianity; The Church of Christ: A Biblical Ecclesiology for Today; Church History: From Christ to Pre-Reformation; Inheriting Wisdom: Readings for Today from Ancient Christian Writers; and the latest, Baptism in the Early Church. His publications for ACU Press include Early Christians Speak (volumes 1 & 2).

ISBN: 9780891125846

Pages: 438

Dimensions (inches): 9 x 6

Weight (pounds): 1.05