Friday, July 29, 2011

John Stott: A Role Model for Evangelical Thought, Living


“I’m not certain that John Stott would want people to remember him,” said John Stott Ministries President Benjamin Homan.

Those puzzling words about the man described as the architect of the evangelical movement in the 20th century make sense when you talk to more people who knew him. One of the most popular words used to describe Stott, who passed away Wednesday at age 90, is humble.

“Over and over again as people have described their interactions with John Stott, it is one of humility, and one of not pointing people to himself but to Jesus,” Homan said from Colorado. “The ministries that he began were never about promoting his works or his teachings. They have been about drawing the Church’s attention to the work of Christ around the world, how the Church is growing and how it needs to grow in depth and maturity around the world. I think he will be remembered as a global Christian.”

The English Anglican clergyman was born, raised, and lived within eight blocks and served only one church in central London his entire life, but his books and ministries have impacted millions of people worldwide. The prolific writer, who authored over 50 books, was a theologian who could explain the core beliefs of Christianity, the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ, in a clear and powerful way.

His 1958 classic, Basic Christianity, has been translated into 63 languages.

InterVarsity Press Publisher Bob Fryling said of Stott in a statement: “He was a pastor-teacher whose books and preaching not only became the gold standard for expository teaching, but his Christian character was a model of truth and godliness.”

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