The church was a local entity a few years ago. In light of social, economic and technological flattening, we need to intentionally cultivate a real presence to the people around us. Mike helps us think critically about caring for our neighbors right around us.

Mike Cosper is a writer, speaker, and podcaster. In 2016, he founded Harbor Media, a non-profit media company serving Christians in a post-Christian world. He’s the host of Cultivated: A Podcast about Faith and Work, and is developing The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, a podcast about faith and culture. He’s the author of Rhythms of Grace and The Stories We Tell (both published by Crossway Books), the co-author of Faithmapping, and the author of the forthcoming Recapturing the Wonder: Transcendent Faith in a Disenchanted World (Intervarsity Press, coming in August). Prior to launching Harbor Media, Mike served as one of the founding pastors at Sojourn Church in Louisville, Kentucky, and launched Sojourn Music – a collective of musicians writing songs for the church. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife, Sarah, and their daughters Dorothy and Maggie.

1. What are practical ways we can love those around us?
2. Who are the three “prophets” Mike references, and what is their relationship to this topic?

Resources prepared by George Luke from Bethlehem College & Seminary.

The body of Christ is composed of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. How does our local church reflect that reality? Josh Davis explores this question in the following video.

Josh Davis is the Founder and Executive Director of Proskuneo Ministries. He is a multi-ethnic worship leader, clinician, songwriter, ordained minister, and music missionary. A third-culture person himself, Josh served as a missionary to the Dominican Republic before founding Proskuneo, a ministry that exists to bring nations together in worship. Josh is the co-author of the book Worship Together in Your Church as in Heaven. Josh lives with his wife and four children in Clarkston, GA where over 60 languages are spoken in a 1.5 mile radius.

1. What are some strategies for structuring our services so that our people think about their role within the global Body of Christ?
2. What are sacrifices that might need to be made so that the local church reflects multiple cultures in your congregation?

By cultivating a high view of ecclesiology, we see the significance and uniqueness of what it means when someone leads signing in the context of the local church.

Bob Kauflin is director of Sovereign Grace Music. Through conferences, seminars, and his blog, “Worship Matters,” he seeks to equip pastors, musicians, and songwriters in the theology and practice of congregational worship. Bob is the author of Worship Matters (Crossway). He also oversees the production of Sovereign Grace Music albums. Bob is currently part of a church plant in Louisville, Kentucky. He and his wife, Julie, have six children and an ever-growing number of grandchildren.

1. What is needed for the church to grow?
2. How do the descriptive images of “building” and “field” influence our view of the local church?

The complexities of navigating the intersection of church and culture have posed a major challenge for Christians through the ages. These complexities give rise to a host of questions, particularly for worship leaders in the local church. In this concluding panel discussion, Bob Kauflin, Mike Cosper, and Josh Davis seek to answer some of these questions related to the intersection between the church and the culture in worship.