{"product_id":"9781630877156","title":"The Diffusion of Ecclesiastical Authority: Sociological Dimensions of Leadership in the Book of Acts","description":"The Diffusion of Ecclesiastical Authority explores the leadership of the church in Acts from a sociological perspective. Two primary models emerge from a sociologically informed investigation of first-century Greco-Roman and Jewish religious leadership: \"manager-leader\" and \"innovator-leader.\" An examination of seven passages in Acts reveals that the leaders of the early church, although initially conforming to cultural expectations, are best described as innovator-leaders whose counter-cultural actions resulted in the empowerment of new leaders and the advancement of the gospel. Through the use of fictive kinship language, the voluntary sharing of authority, the fostering of a sense of mutual dependence on God as the common patron, and the redefinition of what is honorable, the leaders in Acts consistently enabled others to share authority in the church.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Wipf \u0026 Stock Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47130716733680,"sku":"9781630877156","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781630877156_p0.jpg?v=1763671319","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781630877156","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}