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Remembering John Stott - born 100 years ago!

On this day, exactly 100 years ago, one of the well-known Evangelical Christian leaders, John Stott was born. John Stott has been known to many Christians mostly through his books and to those that lived in the pre-World War 1 and 2 era's as well the post-world War era's through his preaching both in person and through electronic media. The Time magazine ranked Stott among the 100 most influential people in the world. John Robert Walmsley Stott was born on 27 April 1921 in London, England. His parents were Arnold and Emily Stott. Stott got converted after  hearing Eric Nash deliver a sermon "What Then Shall I Do with Jesus, Who is Called the Christ?" Nash discipled Scott in the Christian Faith as well as in Christian Leadership. Stott studied modern languages at Trinity College, Cambridge. Whilst at University he was active at the Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union.

In terms of Ministry, Stott was ordained as a deacon in 1945 and became a curate at All Souls Church, Langham Place (1945 -1950), then rector(1950-1975). Stott became increasingly influential on a national and international basis. In 1969 he founded Langham Partnership International and in 1982 the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity, of which he remained honorary president until his death in 2011. During his presidency he gathered together leading intellectuals to shape courses and programmes communicating the Christian faith into a secular context. The Langham Partnership International was founded with the vision that every pastor in every church is equipped to preach the Bible, Stott was also a prolific writer with over 50 books having been written in his lifetime.

My interaction with Stott has been mainly through his books and recently through listening to his sermons online. I came across the books of Stott when I was a member of the University Christian Fellowship whilst studying at the University of Zambia in Lusaka, Zambia. Some of the titles that I remember reading were:

  • Basic Christianity: This clearly written book made me to be grounded in the basics of the Christian Faith.
  • Baptism and Fullness: The Work of the Holy Spirit Today: This book helped me get a clearer Biblical understanding of the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit at a time when I had been influenced by Charismatic teachings during and after my secondary school that taught on Baptism of the Spirit as a second blessing with evidence of speaking in tongues. 
  • The Cross of Christ
Later I have come across and acquired these other books by Stott:
  • Understanding the Bible
  • Why I Am A Christian
  • Your Mind Matters: The Place of the Mind in the Christian Life
  • Issues Facing Christians Today
  • Evangelical Truth: A Personal Plea for Unity and faithfulness.
In thanking God for the life of Stott, we need to be encouraged to be Christian men and women who are committed to the Bible and it's application in the whole of our lives. We should also strive to use the power of literature to spread the Gospel and God's truth. 

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