Adventure of Faith: Reflections on Fifty Years of Christian Service

Michael Green is one of Britain's leading evangelical churchmen, a gifted evangelist, pastor and theologian. He has also been an author of considerable standing for many years, and his early books "Man Alive" and "Runaway World" were a great help to me personally during the time when, as a student, I became a Christian and began studying the Bible for myself. "Adventure of Faith" is not so much an autobiography as a very personal look at no less than sixteen aspects of spirituality and today's church in which Michael Green combines personal experience and testimony with his wonderful gifts of acute analysis and clear vision. In Part One (four chapters), entitled "Faith and Nurture" Michael tells us about his own spiritual beginnings: his conversion, his introduction to Christian discipleship and missions and his first steps in Christian ministry. Very graciously (and honestly) he tells us not only about his positive experiences but also about his mistakes, including the difficulties he had in his marriage. He does not stick to strict chronological order, but takes various events from his life as springboards to point out important spiritual truths such as the need for a clear proclamation of conversion, for care-taking groups for young Christians, etc. In Part Two (three chapters), entitled "Faith and Work", Michael describes his work as a parish priest, his work at two leading theological colleges (in London/Nottingham and at Regent College in Vancouver). He also offers a review of some of his own books, a complete list of which can be found at the end of "Adventure of Faith". As might be expected, Michael has some fascinating insights into both the functioning of the local church and the needs of theological education in today's world. Part Three (three chapters) is entitled "Faith and Outreach" and contains some of Michael's most brilliant writing. The chapter on "Postmodernism" offers fascinating insights into today's cultural climate and into the way in which we Christians can act and react to this. Michael Green would not be himself if he did not see such developments as opportunities to win others for Jesus Christ! He also describes his life as an evangelist here, making point after point about how evangelism should be done, preferably either within the local church or as an inter-denominational mission. In his chapter on "Leadership" Michael gives one or two hair-raising (but nameless) examples of bad leadership that he has encountered, but then goes on to list some of the great leaders he has encountered and to elucidate why they were or are so great: E. J. H. Nash, G. Sheldon, John R. W. Stott, Billy Graham, Jim Houston, Alister McGrath, Lesslie Newbigin, David C. K. Watson, Bishop Chiu Ban It and his successors Moses Tay and Datuk Yong Ping Chung. Michael concludes the chapter with a summary of qualities that mean true Christian leadership. The very top of the list is "total loyalty and commitment to Jesus Christ" (p. 227 f.), follo