A Significant Ministry

Convinced he could move mountains, Taylor was often controversial with a spirit of faith. His strong common sense led him to grapple confidently with impossibilities.

Many areas of friction arose between him and the Methodist Board of Missions as he believed that the Methodist Churches established around the world should be independent of home control. His missions philosophy was close to that practiced by our contemporary U.S. Peace Corps where volunteers live and work directly with local people.

A man possessing powerful preaching skills, a commanding personality, extraordinary energy, and vital faith, his Spirit-filled holy boldness is reminiscent of the apostolic tradition. Restless by nature and rugged in character, he transformed the Christian reality from its Western and white-dominated world into a worldwide faith. He always thought positively believing a solution to any problem existed and that he could find it.

In a volume titled The Model Preacher (1857) Taylor affirmed five characteristics for effective ministry based on the "the Great Teacher's model for Gospel preaching." These he listed as 1) Clearness; 2) Earnestness; 3) Naturalness; 4) Literalness; and 5) Appropriateness. At least seven perspectives of Taylor's ministry appear to be sources for his success and each has high relevance for us today.

1. The Courage of His Location. He carried his message right into enemy territory just as Paul went to the synagogues and the market places. For us today this means we should move out to the secular community and be bold and aggressive in assertions with the media and use everything to Gospel ends from television opportunities to Rotary Club meetings.

2. The Clarity of His Message. He did not merely attack evil but focused on the simple proclamation of justification by faith in the grace of God. He would lay down an accepted truth and develop his new themes upon this. He avoided debate and argument in favor of the clear declaration of Gospel truth. Today we often spend too much time talking about what does not work in life and too little in declaration of how faith is so significant for all.

3. The Strength of His Conviction. He possessed an unlimited confidence in the power of the Holy Spirit to take the Word of God and effect a spiritual rebirth in lives of listeners as he preached. Today's preachers need to return to such a faith.

4. The Scope of His Vision. The breadth of his Christian interests ranged wide -- from a compassion for the hospitalized and for disadvantaged seamen to the planting of churches and the establishment of university education. Men and women today continue to look for leaders whose commitment to spiritual issues touches all of life and not just a portion of it.

5. The Dynamic of His Communication. His preaching embraced the simple skills of well-honed vocal abilities and the employment of identifiable life-situation illustrations. Too many of us ignore such requirements to our peril.