Book Review — Between Two Worlds

April 2, 2008

Between Two Worlds, by John Stott

I have heard many great endorsements of this book, and so I read this book with great eagerness.On the whole, I was not disappointed.But first I will share one difficulty I had with this book.The first chapter, in my opinion, could be troublesome for any non-preacher to read, and could even be harmful for preachers.The first chapter is devoted to a historical sketch of the significance of preaching in the life of the Church over the past two thousand years.  I actually enjoyed this, but there were several statements along the lines of this quote from Will Sangster: ‘Called to preach…could any work be more high and holy!…Is it possible to imagine a work comparable in importance with that of proclaiming the will of God to wayward men?’

Stott’s intention is to recover the dignity of preaching in an age where preaching has been greatly marginalized and belittled.In this respect, the opening chapter was good.Yet I fear that quotes like the one above give the impression that preaching or full-time ministry is really first class Christian living, while all other vocations are second class.This is disastrous for Christians to believe.Preaching is indeed a high and glorious calling…and so is being a garbage collector, if that is what God calls you to.When a preacher reads quote after quote telling him how high his calling is compared to all other callings, I fear it will implicitly make that preacher feel superior to his sheep, and therefore unable to really help them deal with the every day matters of life.So while I would encourage preachers and laypeople to read this book, I felt the need to mention that concern.

On the whole though, I deeply enjoyed this book.It was challenging yet it did not paralyze me with fear about writing my next sermon, which some books on preaching tend to do.Stott writes about how to pick a text, the process of writing the sermon, the importance of studying Scripture and culture, the use of illustrations and humor, and the importance of sincerity and earnestness, courage and humility.It is a terrific book for preachers, and also a good book for non-preachers to know what to be looking for from the pulpit week in and week out.

I recommend the book wholeheartedly; I would only encourage that you keep the first chapter in proper balance, so that the dignity of preaching would be preserved, without belittling the calling of the vast majority of Christians, who will never set foot in a pulpit.

Still three more books to comment on from last month, so I guess I will be doing these a bit slower than in previous months!

Posted by Larry | Filed Under Book Reviews, Seeking Him 

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