ONE: UNITY IN DIVERSITY
A personal journey
By Steve Clifford
Monarch. 256 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 0 857 218 193
Charles de Gaulle was said to have complained about the difficulty of governing a country that had 246 varieties of cheese.
Serving as General Director of the Evangelical Alliance (EA) must often feel similar, and it is for this reason that Steve Clifford’s book is well worth reading. The clue is in the subtitle – ‘a personal journey’ – and the book is refreshingly different in several ways.
First, in terms of its scope. In addition to the expected themes and biblical reflections, there are chapters on marriage, family, ethnicity and gender, each tackled with insightful candour.
Wise words
There are wise words about the importance of godly character in these close relationships and what that means for leadership in church life and Christian ministry. The same applies to the practical reflections on differences within the generations, across ethnicities, and on men and women working together – there is a healthy integration here, a commitment to godly living across all areas of life.
Biblical essentials
Second, in terms of its attitude. The founding fathers of the EA not only produced a clear evangelical Basis of Faith but also a set of ‘Practical Resolutions’, which articulated issues of attitude and behaviour amongst evangelicals – much less well known, more’s the pity, but an essential biblical and practical perspective that is essential in church life. Throughout the book, Steve Clifford demonstrates how following biblical guidelines for godly attitudes must always accompany theological debate and doctrinal fidelity.
Third, in terms of its personal tone. Perhaps the most significant element of the book is the accounts of the personal impact of disagreement amongst evangelicals (including amongst close friends), the challenges of failure, the pain of fracture in the evangelical family, and the joy of seeing initiatives flourish across the UK as evangelicals work together.
Demanding discussions
Steve has been at the heart of many of the demanding discussions across the evangelical family in recent years, and this personal record of the ups and downs of the experience – with its transparency, wisdom and grace – is much to be welcomed, and provides us with a personal account that is well worth reading.
