The Evangelist’s Notebook
John Peters
Reflections written by Ted Hutchin
This book examines the position the church is on today and what evangelists might think and do about it. I began the book with great expectations but came away disappointed at the end of the first chapter. This was a great ego trip for the author. His personal story which started the book was a great advertisement for the “I” culture, but I found it rather patronising. I have no idea why it is there, but having started on such a low note, I thought perhaps that the rest of the book would illuminate the life of an ‘evangelist in training’. The answer, as it turns out, is rather a bit of a curate’s egg – good in parts, very good in some, but overall I am not sure. It is probably an excellent example of how one person’s style of writing creates a problem for at least one reader
So Chapter two – all doom and gloom the church in decline (though only by the measures of declining congregation numbers which is about the least relevant metric it is possible to have). There are some good observations such as “We should focus on Jesus crucified and risen and on the gift of the Spirit freely given to all who believe. These are our essential truth claims”. (p29) Yes but there is more to it than that, but at least this is a great starting point. I did like the thought of evangelists as people who “..do not and should not be expected to wait forever for churches to release them”. (p31) I did agree with the notion of trying, failing, and then trying again. I would like to think that my ministry as an evangelist would show an upward curve of performance, with even the odd high spot.
Chapter three moves to the gospel and to the fact that “…we need to be sure that it is in fact the authentic gospel we are preaching.” (p33) This might seem rather obvious, but the history of the church is littered with those whose knowledge and understanding of the gospel was limited to say the least, and in some cases just plain wrong. Peters makes the statement “so the gospel is a declaration of the facts about Jesus – who he is and what he has done for us – but also the gospel IS Jesus – his present power to make effective in our lives what he made real in Galilee and Capernaum” (p41) Actually Kafa Nahum is in Galilee.
He then goes on to confirm the observation made by Luke, “…for Luke personal encounter with Jesus is indispensable to the proclamation of the gospel, because the gospel is all about the person of Jesus”. (p42) This is a very powerful statement, which means that that if we are not proclaiming this personal encounter then there is no evangelism. People must be able to hear us proclaim the gospel, but they must also see the presence of Jesus in our lives. Proclamation without demonstration is of little value. This whole chapter places the gospel at the heart of the work of an evangelist and rightly so.
At the end of the chapter there is an interesting claim, “I believe it is better for churches to be led by apostolic evangelists assisted by pastors – and not the other way round”. (p66) All entrepreneurs would understand this point. They are risk-takers, they challenge the status quo, they seek the edge, and they want to win. Once they have done their bit entrepreneurs move on, others maintain what has been created. Now a period of stability is required, but again after a while there is, once more, the need for the entrepreneur to shake the whole thing up again. As someone who is an entrepreneur, I have a great deal of sympathy with this idea, although I am also aware of the many pitfalls and dangers of such a process – but then the goal is worth the effort and worth the risk?
Peters goes on to discuss a number of key aspects concerning the evangelistic life. The lifestyle and the impact of the world in which we live, the culture into which we proclaim the Good News, and the importance of preaching the Gospel in the cultural setting of today and not Judah of two thousand years ago are discussed and raise key points about who we are as evangelists, and what our mission is.
This is coupled to a discussion about the role of the Holy Spirit. Peters states that “without the power of the Spirit we will never be effective evangelists” (p104) He goes on to state that “We cannot hope to preach Jesus unless we are empowered by the Spirit of Jesus.” (p105) This leads to a fundamental understanding of the Trinity. It is only in the reality of God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, that our message becomes truly alive.
The book continues through a discussion about evangelism and preaching followed by an attempt to place the whole subject into context – the real world.
I completed the book having enjoyed parts enormously, having learned a great deal, found no little inspiration in some passages and insights, but for me the whole thing was conditioned by the first chapter.
This is a good book and worth reading. It does cover a wide area and does it well. The reflections are good in parts, less so in others. It gave me food for thought which is probably what it was supposed to do. Equally I am sure that there will be other books that will have the same positive effects, without the negatives.
