1. The Nature of the Church
   1. Defining the Church
      1. Confusion Regerding the Church
      2. The Empirical-Dynamic Definition of the Church
      3. The Biblical-Philological Definition of the Church
   2. Biblical Images of the Church
      1. The People of God
      2. The Body of Christ
      3. The Temple of the Holy Spirit
   3. Special Problems
      1. The Church and the Kingdom
      2. The Church and Israel
      3. The Visible Church and the Invisible Church
      4. The Time of Inception of the Church
   4. Implications
2. The Role of the Church
   1. The Functions of the Church
      1. Evangelism
      2. Edification
      3. Worship
      4. Social Concern
   2. The Heart of the Ministry of the Church: The Gospel
   3. The Character of the Church
      1. Willingness to Serve
      2. Adaptability
3. The Government of the Church
   1. Forms of Church Government
      1. Episcopal
      2. Presbyterian
      3. Congregational
      4. Nongovernment
   2. Constructing a System of Church Government for Today
4. The Initiatory Rite of the Church: Baptism
   1. The Basic Views of Baptism
      1. Baptism as a Means of Saving Grace
      2. Baptism as a Sign and Seal of the Covenant
      3. Baptism as a Token of Salvation
   2. Resolving the Issues
      1. The Meaning of Baptism
      2. The Subjects of Baptism
      3. The Mode of Baptism
5. The Continuing Rite of the Church: The Lord's Supper
   1. Points of Agreement
      1. Establishment by Christ
      2. The Necessity of Repetition
      3. A Form of Proclamation
      4. A Spiritual Benefit to the Partaker
      5. Restriction to Followers of Christ
      6. The Horizontal Dimension
   2. Points of Disagreement
      1. The Presence of Christ
      2. The Efficacy of the Rite
      3. The Proper Administrator
      4. The Appropriate Recipients
      5. The Elements to Be Used
   3. Major Views
      1. The Traditional Roman Catholic View
      2. The Lutheran View
      3. The Reformed View
      4. The Zwinglian View
   4. Dealing with the Issues
      1. The Presence of Christ
      2. The Efficacy of the Rite
      3. The Proper Administrator
      4. The Appropriate Recipients
      5. The Elements to Be Used
      6. The Frequency of Observance
6. The Unity of the Church
   1. Arguments for Unity of the Church
      1. Biblical Teachings Regarding the Unity of Believers
      2. General Theological Considerations
      3. Practical Considerations: A Common Witness and Efficiency
   2. Conceptions of the Nature of Unity
      1. Spiritual Unity
      2. Mutual Recognition and Fellowship
      3. Conciliar Unity
      4. Organic Unity
   3. The History and Present Status of Ecumenism
   4. Issues Raise by Evangelicals
      1. The Theological Issue
      2. The Ecclesiological Issue
      3. The Methodological Issue
      4. The Teleological Issue
   5. Guidelines for Action