For more information about In Church As It Is In Heaven or to purchase a copy, click here. Follow Jamaal on Twitter here.

Q&A with Jamaal Williams

Evan: Tell us about yourself?

Jamaal: Personally, I am a native of Chicago, IL. I am married to Amber, and we are proud parents of five beautiful children. Besides ministry and family, my passions include the 90s Chicago Bulls, reading, and leadership.

From 2008-2015, I pastored a historic African-American church called Forest Baptist Church in Louisville. In 2016, I accepted the call to become the lead pastor of Sojourn Church Midtown. It is a growing multi-ethnic and multi-generational church. In addition, I also serve as the president of Harbor Network.

Evan: What led you to write this book?

Jamaal: For Timothy Paul Jones and I, there are three burdens that led us to co-author this book. 

First, it is due to life experience. We both felt a call to help Christ’s church lean into its multi-ethnic identity. I’ve had the joy of being the son of the black church, being an associate pastor while in college at a multiethnic church plant, and pastoring a historic African-American church for eight years before becoming a pastor that seeks to grow in multi-ethnicity. Timothy likewise brings his experience from pastoring several congregations in Missouri, Oklahoma, and South Dakota. He is also a fellow pastor at Sojourn Church Midtown and a professor of apologetics.

Second, we are both convicted that God desires local churches—where appropriate—to be multi-ethnic, multi-socioeconomic, and multi-generational. We believe this reality was a powerful apologetic in the earliest centuries for the church and for today.

Lastly, our core conviction is that the gospel has the capacity and power to build multi-ethnic, multi-socioeconomic, and multi-generational churches. And we have seen God do it in the past. We are both convinced that God can still grow churches today.

Evan: What did you enjoy about the process and writing it with Timothy Paul Jones?

Jamaal: It is a joy to collaborate with Timothy Paul Jones on this particular project. I have particularly enjoyed working with Timothy as we share the same conviction regarding God’s multiethnic vision for the church. In addition, due to our different life experiences and our work as pastors at Sojourn Church Midtown, we get to learn from each other in the writing process.

Evan: What do you hope readers take away from In Church As It Is In Heaven?

Jamaal: In essence, we hope that our readers will understand that the gospel has the capacity and power to create ethnically diverse communities and churches. As Christians, we are called to practice the future reality of heaven here and now by pursuing a multi-ethnic, multi-socioeconomic, and multi-generational kingdom culture. No matter what context you find yourself in, you have a place and a role to play. Every Christian has a responsibility to contribute to this biblical vision of a multi-ethnic kingdom culture around the throne of Jesus (Rev. 7), even if you minister and serve in a homogeneous area as a leader. We are all called to disciple the next generation, carry the gospel across cultures, and disciple believers from every culture, nation, tribe, and tongue.

Thank you Dr. Williams for doing the Q&A! I met Jamaal on campus at SBTS. He has always been very kind. Thankful for him and his friendship! Continue to pray for him, his family, Sojourn Church and the Harbor Network.

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Evan Knies is an elder of North Hills Church in West Monroe, LA. He is husband of Lauren and father to Maesyn. He is a graduate of Boyce College and Southern Seminary.