About Neil

In full-time ministry for over 40 years, Neil Silverberg has served as Senior Pastor, Bible teacher, author, and cofounder of Masterbuilders, an organization that provides leadership training and church oversight to a network of New Testament churches throughout the U.S. His Jewish heritage as well as his dedication to Biblical study have contributed to his unique ability to illuminate the Old Testament as the basis for understanding the New. He has been a father to four generations of pastors and church leaders through his one-on-one discipling and mentoring.

Born in 1953, he was raised in a Jewish home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a teenager, he moved to Miami, Florida where he first heard the Gospel from the lips of his brother Perry who was saved and delivered from drug use by the power of God. After seeing the transformation of his brother in 1971, he surrendered his life to his Messiah. Immediately, he sensed a call to the work of God and began preparing for it.

Four years after attending his first church in Miami Beach, he became the Senior Pastor. Since that time, Neil has served in pastoral ministry of several churches in Michigan, Alabama and Tennessee. It was in his various pastoral roles over forty years that he learned the value of discipling relationships and began to mentor men that God brought to him. Over several decades, Neil has had an impact on Christian leaders who were personally mentored by him.

Early in his ministry, demands for his teaching ministry grew and he began to travel widely both in the U.S. and abroad. Neil is a gifted teacher with a deep knowledge of Scripture whose teaching gift has helped many to see Jesus come alive in the Scriptures. Since the first day God called Neil, he sought to imitate the example of Apollos who was “mighty in the Scriptures” (Acts 18:24). For over forty years he has diligently given himself to the careful study of God’s Word which has allowed him to gain a life of rich insights into the Scriptures. Neil carries a special burden to help believers see Jesus Christ come alive in the written Word.

In 1996, Neil, along with Pete Beck, brought together several church leaders and formed a network of churches called Masterbuilders, which is grown over the years, and of which Neil presently serves as team leader. Frequently traveling among the churches, Neil not only teaches God’s Word, but also trains leaders.

A major component of Neil’s present ministry is the time he gives to training men, not only in the local church, but also throughout the Masterbuilders’ network of churches. Thus, he continues to this day to influence a new generation of Christian leaders.

Neil’s recorded teachings continue to be in demand. He is the author of four books including For Truth’s Sake: Restoring a Passion for Truth to the People of God, a book detailing the loss of biblical authority in the Church and how to restore it, and From the Fold to the Flock, an exposition of the Parable of the Good Shepherd as providing a basis for the vital contribution of small group ministry. He continues to write books, blog, and record new teaching. He is a gifted musician and has recorded two music albums; Deep Calls to Deep and One New Man, both containing songs he has written.

In recent years, Neil has developed a burden to help leaders grow in their understanding of the Gospel of grace. He is especially concerned with those who are led astray after various teachings promising a restoration of true Christianity and is currently working on two books; one dealing with the Hebrew Roots Movement entitled Shadow and Substance: The Hebrew Roots Movement and Gospel Identity, and What is the New Covenant, a work exploring the richness of the New Covenant.

Neil is married to his wife Shelly and they have three sons. He presently lives in Knoxville, Tennessee where he continues to exercise his teaching ministry in a local church as well as is sent out to exercise a wider ministry among many churches.