Charles Gardner reviews the newly published autobiography of legendary preacher JC Ryle.

Those wishing to be inspired and encouraged to stand up for Christ in these difficult times would do well to pick up a copy of a new book on legendary 19^th Century preacher JC Ryle.
Bishop J.C. Ryle’s Autobiography: The Early Years (edited by Andrew Atherstone and published by the Banner of Truth Trust) includes some wonderful old photographs, along with a selection of the tracts for which he became famous. It was originally written for his children in 1873 and never intended for publication.

The first Bishop of Liverpool, John Charles Ryle was one of the most influential evangelical clergymen of his time. His tracts were especially pithy, powerful and pungent – so unlike the often ponderous and long-winded literature of his contemporaries.

His voice continues to ring out down the generations, and is a timely wake-up call to a sleeping church.

Heaven to be Gained, Hell to be Shunned

Today, with evidence of apostasy all around as Christians come under tremendous pressure to conform to the world’s pattern of thinking, Ryle will stir your passions to renewed vigour and determination.

The book takes us to the end of his long ministry at Helmingham in Suffolk, where he wrote so many of his tracts. Some are included in the appendix and also speak to our time, like the one he wrote on the 1845 disaster at Great Yarmouth where 75 perished when a bridge collapsed during a circus event.

Today, with apostasy all around, Ryle will stir your passions to renewed vigour.

He reminded his readers in no uncertain terms that there was a Heaven to be gained and a Hell to be shunned, bluntly warning parishioners that they too could have been swept into eternity in a moment. And were they prepared to meet God?

Not Included: Israel’s Re-Gathering

Unfortunately not included in this otherwise fine record of a great ministry are messages on a subject close to his heart – the Bible’s teaching on the much-prophesied return of the Jewish people: first to their ancient land, and then to their Lord and Messiah.

I have visited the church at Helmingham myself and I quote from one of the many tracts I picked up there, written in the mid-19^th Century: “I believe that the Jews shall ultimately be gathered again as a separate nation, restored to their own land and turned to the faith of Christ (Messiah).”

And so it was, less than 50 years after he died in 1900, that the modern state of Israel was born! And a growing number of its people have since acknowledged Jesus as their Messiah.

Read the book, and stir your faith!

‘Bishop J.C. Ryle’s Autobiography’ (359pp, cloth-bound, 2017) is available from the publisher for £12.40 + P&P.

Monica Hill continues to look at the ministry gifts of Ephesians 4.

This article is part of a series. Click here to read other instalments.

“It was Christ who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:11-13, emphases added)

An evangelist is usually defined as one who has the ability to communicate the good news of the Gospel in meaningful and convincing ways to those who have not heard or understood it fully, with a view to people responding in faith, baptism and commitment to the body of Christ. Without evangelists, the Church would lose its calling and settle down to being just another community group.

The enabling aspects mentioned in Ephesians 4 include the ability to galvanise God's people in the area of evangelism, so that it becomes a prime factor in fulfilling the Great Commission of Matthew 28:16-20: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Old Testament Teaching

Evangelism is a New Testament concept – introduced to spread the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ widely across the nations. Neither evangelism nor the evangelist are mentioned in the Old Testament. Judaism is not a proselytising religion¹ – you are born into it. The religion is passed on from generation to generation and proof of ancestry (especially in the maternal line) is needed in order to be recognised as Jewish.

Without evangelists, the Church would lose its calling and settle down to being just another community group.

God-fearing Gentiles were acknowledged, and even one of the Outer Courts of the Temple was called the Court of the Gentiles. It was set aside for them to pray and was probably the one that Jesus cleared of money-changers (John 2:12) just before Passover, when he became very angry over its wrong use.

New Testament Teaching

Although there are only three references to an evangelist in the New Testament (Acts 21:8; Eph 4:11; 2 Tim 4:5), there are numerous references to people evangelising (euangelizo in Greek) in the book of Acts. This is referring to the spontaneous witness of ordinary believers who could not keep quiet.

Evangelism became of paramount importance following the stoning of Stephen, when Christians began to suffer great persecution (Acts 8:1). In fact, the more persecution there was, the more the Church grew! In the 2^nd Century AD, Tertullian commented: “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”. And certainly this was the way the early Church grew.

When the Christians were forced to leave Jerusalem following the stoning of Stephen, there was a significant change in recording this growth – from “the Lord added to their number” (Acts 2:47) to “the church…multiplied” (Acts 9:31 ESV). Even those with little mathematical understanding will be able to deduce how significant this was.

There are numerous references in Acts to the spontaneous witness of ordinary believers who could not keep quiet.

There were named evangelists in Acts 8: Peter and John after their visit to Samaria evangelised many villages on their way back to Jerusalem (v25); Philip evangelised the Ethiopian eunuch in the desert (v35) and then evangelised in all the cities as he travelled to Caesarea (v40). But the greatest growth was brought about by every believer sharing their faith.

Ministry vs General Calling

We are all called to be witnesses and should be brimming over with the Good News to share with others - although only some will be called to the ministry of an evangelist. But even they are dependent on God entering the lives of those they have introduced to the Gospel, because only God can bring that life-changing relationship into being.

Evangelists are single-minded and so full of the Good News that they are able to share it wherever they go - and in all situations. Paul even said “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Cor 9:16-19). It was his whole calling – he as so full of the risen Jesus that he could not keep quiet!!

In fact, only Philip, one of the Seven, is called an 'evangelist' (Acts 21:8), although Timothy is told by Paul to “do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim 4:5). Timothy took every opportunity to share Christ – so Paul probably meant that that Timothy was not to wait until people came to him asking questions.

But of course Paul is often seen as the model evangelist – the one who does not settle for too long in an area but is an itinerant tent-maker and church-planter. Our concept of evangelists usually accepts this definition - but there may be ways in which in future we need to change our mindset towards evangelism, in order to be more effective.

Evangelists are single-minded and so full of the Good News that they share it wherever they go.

In the ministry of Jesus, we can see all five ministry gifts mentioned in Ephesians 4, including that of an evangelist: in the synagogue at Nazareth he claimed that he was the fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy “to preach good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18).

Evangelists Today

Today, we have often taken evangelism out of the local church and assigned it to para-church organisations, who flourish, commending different types of evangelism. But this in many ways means that evangelism is seen as an optional extra – reserved for ‘professionals’ or those from an evangelical tradition.

Crusade evangelism with named individuals like Billy Graham or Luis Palau is still seen as a major (if not the main) form of evangelism, with seaside, street, marketplace or door-to-door outreach drawing church members away from activities with the faithful to become involved with not-yet-believers. But these kinds of evangelism rely on limited encounters. This does not mean they are not worthwhile, but they must be supplemented with the building of continuing relationships, which is so important. This is where the personal sharing of faith – or friendship evangelism - has been proved to be the most effective.

Ideally, every church member should be taught how to share their faith with others - and when and where. They should be prepared to share their faith especially in their links outside the church – say in the family, workplace, school, and even in prisons (although all of these are becoming more difficult). Surely the worst comment any believer can receive is “I did not know you were a Christian!”.

Evangelism is the most important gift for the continuity of the Church – we know in theory that ‘God has no grandchildren – only children’ but we are not very good at passing the baton on to others, and so there is a large gap in age within many of our churches.

We also often fail to recognise that the best evangelists are the newly converted – they still have non-Christian friends and the experience of conversion is a living daily subject with them – they are excited by everything that is opening up for them. Perhaps this was what was lacking in Ephesus (referred to in Revelation 2:1) – that the members had lost their first love. This enthusiasm and excitement for sharing the Good News with others should continue to be present in every member of the Body so that there is a living witness portrayed to the world.

We often fail to recognise that the best evangelists can be the newly converted.

But we also need to realise that evangelists are not pastors – and should not try to be – churches and believers do not grow up to maturity with just evangelism. Pastors and teachers are needed to take people to the next stage of discipleship and continue the work started by the evangelist. This is why all the five ministry roles are needed in the Church.

Finally, two or three illustrations that might help from the world scene:

• From South America – where one flourishing new church would not allow anyone to become a full member until they had brought someone else to Christ.
  
• From Singapore – where at one time, acceptance to membership in the Anglican Church required training which included a week on mission to share their faith with Muslims in neighbouring Malaysia.
  
• From the underground Church in China - where they could not build up large congregations as meetings of more than ten were restricted; they were in a way ‘forced’ to send their new converts out, and the Church flourished.
  

Next week we will be looking at the more familiar role of the pastor, which is indispensable in our churches today.

Notes

1 Proselytising is converting or attempting to convert someone from one religion to another. Islam is a proselytising religion – by force if necessary, whereas Christianity evangelises by love. In Islamic nations, conversion away from Islam is usually banned.

Monica Hill turns from the ‘natural’ gifts (Romans 12) to the ‘ministry’ gifts listed in Ephesians 4. This article is part of a series – click here for previous instalments. 

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:11-13)

We have already noted that there are four lists of the Spiritual Gifts given by the Holy Spirit in different epistles – Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Peter 4 (which concentrates on methods) and Ephesians 4. Each of them have additional teaching in the surrounding verses on how they should operate within the corporate body of believers – often relevant to that specific understanding of the gifts.

The Five-Fold Ministry

The five ‘ministry gifts’ listed in Ephesians 4 are surrounded by teaching on the place of these quite specific roles within the body. Two things stand out of which we need to take note:

1. First, ideally these gifts are meant to operate together, as a team – the five-fold ministry is an entity in itself, and all its gifts should be visible in the leadership of our churches and fellowships today. If Christian communities do not recognise these gifts in specific individuals, at least the principles and values of each should be adopted. Team ministry is not easy and needs to be embraced and worked upon. If this does not happen, one or other of these roles will inevitably take precedence. For example:
   1. For many centuries in the Western Church, pastors and teachers have been predominant, to the neglect of the other roles.
   2. Evangelists have often set up separate, para-Church organisations, and are often felt only to be needed for overseas work - which means that work among nominal Christians has been neglected.
   3. Apostles and prophets are still very rare, with many believing that apostolic ministry died out at the end of the New Testament era. Although they are now receiving more attention these ministries are often misunderstood and can create problems.
   4. Individual prophets in the style of the Old Testament were also relegated to history as it was anticipated that, with the coming of the Holy Spirit, the whole Church would become the Prophet to the nations. An understanding even of the role of the prophet, within fellowships and wider afield, is often missing.
2. Secondly, these roles are given to serve the Body and to help those to whom they are called, to enable all to grow to maturity and be found worthy of being called followers of Christ. They are not given to give status to individuals.

There is no mention of these gifts operating in this way in a worldly sense (unlike the ‘natural’ gifts of Romans 12). Apart from the role of a teacher they do not have secular counterparts, although the world has at times tried to pick up the same values and take them into secular occupations – but more of that when we look at each of them in detail. Leadership in the world is based on very different principles.

In this introduction we will be looking at the context of the introduction of Ministry gifts in the Body of believers and seeing how these gifts should operate.

The ministry gifts are designed to operate together to serve and build up the Body of Christ.

Lessons from Ephesus

The whole of Ephesians is concerned with building up the body of believers in Ephesus, from which we can learn so much. The epistle starts with an emphasis upon Christ as the Head of the whole Christian community - the Church, or (more accurately) the Body of Believers (Eph 1:22-23) (not the institutions), which is built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph 2:20-24) and is without any divisions, comprising one Body and one Spirit (Eph 4:4). Members are encouraged to “live a life worthy of the calling” (Eph 4:1), given various instructions on how to act (Eph 5-6) and finally encouraged to “put on the whole armour of God” (Eph 6:10-18).

It is worth noting that Paul has just given that beautiful prayer to God for his brothers and sisters in Ephesus (Eph 3:14-21) which is still such an encouragement to all who read it today. His next words express not only his own total commitment to the Father but his desire that all should “live a life worthy of the calling you have received”. The way to do this is to “be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace”.

The Priesthood of All Believers

Here is no definition of a hierarchy, an ‘us and them’ or a ‘pecking order’ as so often seen in our churches, but a recognition that we need each other (which is described more fully in 1 Corinthians 12). The sole purpose of these ministry roles is to serve the body of believers so that they can all become mature and be the front line of mission.

The New Testament Church operated as a ‘priesthood of all believers’ – they had a different vision from that practised in Judaism when the Temple was in operation and priests were in control and acted as mediators with God. But even after the birth of the Church and the early days of taking the mission worldwide, it was not very long before the established denominations re-introduced a priestly leadership into churches.

In the priesthood of all believers, there is no hierarchy or pecking order – just a recognition that we all need each other.

Many new movements have since tried to re-capture this concept of the priesthood of all believers, but far too often institutionalisation pushes them back into the need for strong leadership aligned with worldly principles.

The ministry gifts are essentially serving roles - encouraging and empowering others – so that everyone is encouraged to have that direct relationship with the Father themselves and can discern the truth – so that they are “no longer infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.”

Ingredients for Full Community Life

The ministries described in Ephesians can be seen as leading roles in the community, but they should also encompass vision, strategy and unity - all essential for any community’s survival. It is not a necessary requirement that the leader has to be the one who has the original vision, but he or she must embrace it and make it their own – just as everyone else in the body must; and likewise with the strategy and action that follows – these two aspects must both be embraced to help form a community and give it its raison d’etre. But often the ministry role also provides the glue that makes people stick together in unity.

Truth and love are essential ingredients to any community of believers – so that “we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph 4:15-16).

Unity is expressed in “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph 4:4-6).

In the next few weeks we will be looking at each of the specific ministry gifts given to the Body of believers – Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher - and exploring further the reasons for which they are given and the way they should operate and relate to each other.

Paul Luckraft interviews Michele Guinness, whose latest book on the remarkable life of Grace Grattan Guinness has just been published by Hodder & Stoughton.

Have you ever had a chance discovery that has delighted and enthralled you? Have you ever got round – at last! – to clearing out the attic, and found something from the past that has intrigued you and set you off on a new path?

A Captivating Discovery

Such an experience happened to Michele recently when, preparing for her husband Peter's retirement from his parish, she discovered in the attic a trunk of letters, diaries, journals and notebooks (some over a hundred years old) which had belonged to Grace Guinness, her husband's grandmother. Not only did these documents provide an illuminating insight into the life of an exceptional woman of the period, but they also shed further light on her better-known husband, Henry Grattan Guinness, the renowned speaker and evangelist.

Michele described how she was captivated and enchanted by what she read. These were not dusty old relics but fascinating accounts, written in an engaging and often humorous style. Suddenly, part of her family history came to life in an unexpected way.

The documents Michele discovered provide an illuminating insight into the life of an exceptional woman of the Edwardian period.

An Unconventional Marriage

Grace was born in 1876 into a strict Brethren family – her father was Charles Hurditch, a gifted speaker and evangelist. But she soon developed a mind of her own and a rather rebellious streak - though in a godly way! She was never going to be conventional, hence her very unconventional marriage to Henry Grattan Guinness, the great revivalist preacher and one of the leading lights of the evangelical awakening of 1854-56. When they married, she was just 27 and he was 68! How did this happen?

Henry's first wife, Fanny, had died and in his loneliness he regularly prayed for a new companion. God answered his prayers in a remarkable fashion. One night Henry dreamt of a young lady who came and sat on his knee and kissed him! Perhaps nothing unusual there – but in his case it actually happened! The young lady in question was Grace, and they soon married.

They only had a few years together. Henry died in 1910, aged 74, but not before two sons had been born, John and Paul, when Henry was aged 70 and 72 respectively.

Ahead of Her Time

After Henry's death, Grace remained devoted to his memory and never remarried, instead she struggled to support herself and her two sons. She had no fortune so had to find work which would never be easy in a society that frowned upon a well-bred single mother going out to work. Here her rebellious streak came to her aid. Ever-defiant of social customs she became a businesswoman who ran her own hotel and engaged in other activities previously thought unsuitable for an Edwardian lady. In many ways she was ahead of her time.

Grace was never going to be conventional – that shone through in her marriage and came into its own after her husband died, leaving her as the sole provider for two young boys.

Henry was one of leading lights in the historicist school of prophecy, meaning that he looked for the actual fulfilment of prophecy in historical events. Finding Henry's old Bible, full of written notes on Daniel and Ezekiel, showed how seriously he took such prophetic portions of Scripture. From this understanding he saw ahead to the key years of Israel's re-establishment, 1917-1948, though he did not live to see it. However, Balfour, whom Henry had met, was an avid reader of his work, and no doubt influenced by it.

At the time of their marriage he was writing one of his most famous works, The Approaching End of the Age: Viewed in the Light of History, Prophecy and Science. Grace became his amanuensis, even though she had to admit she found it difficult to spell apocalypse!

A Life of Devotion

Michele is very enthusiastic about what she has learnt from Grace's life and devotion. She lived through exciting and changing times and met several outstanding Christian leaders of the day, but there were many hardships too. She never grumbled about her struggles over money and work, or having to bring up two sons on her own. Her thankfulness and faith shine through - as does her humour, which kept her going in all she did.

Grace lived through exciting and changing times with many hardships, but her memoirs are full of thankfulness, faith and humour.

Grace was also a great reader and remained open to learning new things, even into her seventies. She constantly read the Bible and heard God's voice through this. But she also read The Times daily, and at least one book a week, keeping herself well-informed on current affairs and her mind active. She could comment eruditely on several topics, including science, music and literature, as well as theology.

Curiosity Sparked

Michele has come to appreciate Grace in a new way. Little was known of her until her writings came to light – inevitably, the main family interest had been in Henry. But once Michele realised what treasures had fallen into her lap, her curiosity was sparked and it became clear that this unique collection of writings should become better known.

The book is based upon memoirs, letters and diaries, but written up by Michele in the first person, weaving them into a narrative of her life. Grace was a woman who wrote in a frank and (for her time) sometimes risqué way about her life, love, hopes and fears. Michele's book captures all of that, as well as providing an interesting cultural and historical look at the lives of the Guinness family of that period and the background of the many Christian organisations that began at the time.

This book captures something of Grace's fascinating life and character, as well as providing an interesting window in on life in the Edwardian period.

Click here to read our review of Michele's book.

Ian Farley reviews 'Grace' by Michele Guinness (2016, Hodder & Stoughton, 380 pages, hardback, available from Amazon for £15.90)

It is often commented today that we are in a world which is changing rapidly and dramatically, especially in the field of technology. But Grace Grattan Guinness, born in the first rush of railways but when the horse was still the main form of transport, and yet dying after international flight had arrived, surely saw unimaginable change throughout her life.

Grace lived through the struggles of the Suffragettes and witnessed great changes to women's education and birth control. Also living through the height of the British Empire, she died in 1969, in the throes of its dismantling.

So how did a child raised in the revival of the mid-Victorian era, who lived through two world wars and on into the swinging sixties, actually think? What of faith when you are widowed after only seven years of marriage to a great evangelist and have two little boys to bring up alone? What of life when you need to do a day job and a night job in order to survive, especially in an era when well-bred women did not go out to work?

This is a marvellous book. Michele Guinness writes in the words of Grace herself and very successfully brings her to life. One can but weep with her as she struggles in her loss and laugh with her in older age as she surveys the antics of the modern world.

Depressed by the climate of Scotland and wondering how anyone can thrive in Leeds, Grace is not some pie-in-the-sky Victorian hero - she is a real woman, who faces real life in both joy and hardship and through it all finds God at her side. Her life is worth knowing. It can only cheer you on the way.

You can read more about Grace's story in our interview with her granddaughter-in-law, Michele Guinness.