The Influence of the Church on the Local Community

The church is called to be the agency through which God is not only known but through which his kingdom is also advanced. This book, therefore, is an attempt to examine the church’s influence on communities through social justice practices as part of advancing the gospel of the kingdom of God. The book brings out results of a study about a congregation’s significant impact on a local community through varied social justice programs. The book also provides relevant recommendations on how such initiatives can be improved for a more effective kingdom-driven ministry to local communities. It is hoped that the example of J. Jireh Ministry Church provides a case worthy of emulation by other churches, congregations, and similar faith-based community organizations for ministering to social justice needs at the local level.

Abraham G. Ndung'u holds graduate degrees in spatial planning and practical theology from University of Nairobi, Tongji University, and Ashland Theological Seminary. In his quest for authentic praxis in social justice, the author is an ardent advocate for a "participatory socially just city." An ordained Anabaptist minister, Ndung'u is also a chaplain, professor, and faith-based community organizer, passionate about bringing to bear the kingdom of God in the lives of ordinary folks.


Wyndy Corbin Reuschling is Professor of Ethics and Theology at Ashland Theological Seminary in Ashland, Ohio. She is author of Reviving Evangelical Ethics: The Promises and Pitfalls of Classic Models of Morality (2008) and coauthor of Becoming Whole and Holy: An Integrative Conversation about Christian Formation (2010).