Uncovering seven lessons from Scripture and the Puritans, John Carpenter applies the principles and practices that are often neglected by the church today but are key in making a church truly biblical. Drawing on his background as a scholar of Puritanism and years of planting and pastoring a church, Carpenter establishes each pillar on the Bible and shows, through Scripture and practical examples, how they work. Beginning with the tale of how an eyewitness account of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center shows us the perils of only seeing part of God's revelation, we see: why we must listen to what God says about himself; why we must understand that the gospel is not a self-help plan; why salvation is so simple that it can be reduced to a bumper sticker (""Jesus saves"") but is still so often misunderstood, leading to unconverted people leading churches; and why believers aren't called just to go to church but to be covenanted members of a specific church where they can be corrected by their pastors and where worship is centered on God, not on personalities, putting on a show, or attracting crowds.