Gospel Eldership: Equipping a New Generation of Servant Leaders is by Robert H. Thune, who goes by Bob. New Growth Press published it in 2016. Thune is the founding and lead pastor of Coram Deo Church in Omaha, Nebraska.
Be clear about the audience before you buy. This is written for men who are considering, or being considered for, the office of elder in a local church, and for the pastors training them. An earlier version of this review pitched it as a general resource for Christian men wanting to serve their neighborhoods. That is not what it is for, and a reader with no interest in church leadership will not get much from it.
What the book does
Thune combines theological instruction with what amounts to a character examination. It is a series of essays, each followed by exercises and questions the reader is expected to sit with rather than skim. The point is to work on a potential elder at the heart level before he holds the office, not to hand him a job description afterward.
The recurring theme is gospel fluency: knowing the gospel well enough to apply it to your own sin in the moment, not just to explain it to someone else. Thune pushes candidates to identify their own idols and to notice where they are still performing for approval. It is uncomfortable by design.
How it is used
Built for one-on-one discipleship or a small group. In practice it works best as a pastor and a candidate working through it together over a few months, one section at a time, with real conversation about the exercises. Reading it alone and quickly defeats the purpose, because the exercises are the content.
Where it is strong and where it is thin
Strong on character, self-knowledge, and gospel motivation. This is the part most eldership material skips, and Thune is good at it.
Thinner on the mechanics. If your church needs help with polity, how many elders to have, how to handle a plurality, how to run a members’ meeting, or how to remove an elder, this is not that book. Pair it with something on church governance.
Who should read it
Pastors developing leaders, men in an elder candidate process, and men who are quietly wondering whether they should be. It is also worth reading if you are already an elder and have never been examined this way, which describes a lot of elders.
Bottom line
A short, pointed, character-first training resource for elder candidates. Buy it if you are in that process or leading someone through it. Do not buy it as general reading on Christian manhood, because it is aimed at a specific office.
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