What do you think?
Rate this book
What is an Evangelical?
Dr Lloyd-Jones became deeply concerned with what he believed to be subtle but real shifts in commitment to the biblical gospel. His three addresses at the I.F.E.S. Conference in 1971 drew attention to this.
Paperback
First published August 1, 1992
4 people are currently reading
163 people want to read
About the author
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
344 books592 followersDavid Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a Welsh Protestant minister, preacher and medical doctor who was influential in the Reformed wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminster Chapel in London. Lloyd-Jones was strongly opposed to Liberal Christianity, which had become a part of many Christian denominations; he regarded it as aberrant. He disagreed with the broad church approach and encouraged evangelical Christians (particularly Anglicans) to leave their existing denominations. He believed that true Christian fellowship was possible only amongst those who shared common convictions regarding the nature of the faith.
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones was married to Bethan Lloyd-Jones
Books about D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: https://www.goodreads.com/characters/...
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones was married to Bethan Lloyd-Jones
Books about D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: https://www.goodreads.com/characters/...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
December 1, 2024
Lloyd-Jones argues for a defining of who an evangelical is in an era filled with doctrinal compromise. Lloyd-Jones tries to define a “big tent” of people who see Scripture as their final and sole authority, while allowing for differences on secondary issues. To do this, one walks a fine line, and I would argue that Lloyd-Jones, at times, draws the circle too narrow. Nonetheless, his arguments are often brilliant and deeply rooted in history, though he himself does not see history as an infallible guide.
December 27, 2025
A very thought-provoking book. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones does a good job in carefully explaining what it means to be an evangelical, without leaving out the controversial topics. The evangel is known for being “entirely subservient to the Bible,” is “always watching” “because there is a right and a wrong way,” “distrusts reason” but is not “anti-intellectual,” “takes a particular view with regard to the sacraments,” “takes a critical view of history and tradition,” “is always ready to change and ready to act on his beliefs,” “is a man who simplifies everything,” “is always concerned about the doctrine of the church,” “puts [a tremendous emphasis] upon the rebirth,” “is always pietistic,” puts a great “emphasis on holiness in personal life and in church life,” “always gives primacy to preaching,” and is “always concerned about evangelism.”
January 10, 2019
In 1971, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones gave a series of three lectures for the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. In 1992, those lectures were printed and published for the first time. In these lectures he addresses one big question: WHAT IS AN EVANGELICAL? He answers many other questions along the way--for example, why a definition matters, what doctrines are essential to the faith and which doctrines are secondary, why denominations have a tendency to shift away from evangelical, how you can safeguard against false doctrines creeping subtly into your faith, your church, etc.
Lloyd-Jones speaks with a zealous urgency, and with good cause as time has revealed. What was true of the times in 1971 was equally true of 1992, though one could argue that the state or condition had worsened considerably. The book is still incredibly relevant and timely in 2019.
He starts his lecture at 'the very beginning.' Why do we need to define--to clarify--what it means to be evangelical? The answer goes back to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Sin. A short little word that is hardly ever popular. He argues that because the church consists of humans, of sinners--though redeemed sinners, though bound-for-glory sinners--it has a tendency to stray, to wander, to fall asleep, to stop watching and guarding, to shift and change with the times. (Also, of course, not every single person who attends church or belongs to church is a Christian, there will always be a handful of wolves clothed as sheep in our congregations.) Denominations, institutions, schools, colleges, boards, organizations, publishing companies should be careful to keep guard and stay true. Just because they were doctrinally sound when they were founded, when they were started, doesn't mean that they will never waver and lose their way.
Lloyd-Jones writes,
There is a process at work, because of sin and evil, which tends to produce not only change but even degeneration...It is always a subtle and slow process...The change is almost imperceptible... The really dangerous man is the man who introduces some very slight or very subtle change. (11)
He spends some time discussing the necessary but tense balance between unity and division. It is important that there be some division--between truth and error--but it should not be taken to extremes. When the church is so focused on unity that anything and everything goes--that is a dangerous place to be. Likewise when the church is so divided over every single little thing--no matter how trivial--it's not good or healthy. The church should not spend its time, its energy, its focus on attacking one another.
There are doctrines that are absolutely essential to the faith. All true believers will believe, affirm these essential doctrines. These are the doctrines where no compromises should ever be allowed. To change these doctrines to fit with the times, to fit with the latest scholars, to fit with the popular philosophy of the day is to lose one's way, to fall away from truth and begin sliding deeper and deeper into heresy.
There are also doctrines that are secondary to the faith. These secondary doctrines are important, but, not essential to the faith. Lloyd-Jones points out two examples: mode of baptism and predestination.
Much time is spent defining what an evangelical believes and what an evangelical rejects. It's important, he points out, that the definition includes positives and negatives. We affirm this, this, and this. We reject that, that, and that.
The book is worth seeking out and reading.
Quotes:
The church, though she has been reformed, must be constantly re-formed, semper reformanda. Always reform! The church is always to be under the Word; she must be; we must keep her there. You must not assume that because a church started correctly, she will continue so. She did not do so in the New Testament times; she has not done so since. Without being constantly reformed by the Word the church becomes something very different...And we have got to do this with the term evangelical. Every generation has got to examine this for itself. (30)
We are concerned about the souls of men and women. We are here to spread the good news of salvation and to win people out of darkness into light. That is why we should be so careful about the truth, and always contend for it. (35)
The evangelical starts with the Bible. He is a man of the Bible. He is a man of the Book. This is his only authority and he submits himself in everything to this. (35)
We have got to keep our eye on these two sides: what men do not say, and what they add on, over and above what we regard as the true faith. (41)
Another characteristic of this evangelical is that he is a man who is always watching...and he is always watchful, of course, because the Scripture teaches him to be so. (43)
You will always find in evangelical circles that there is great emphasis on the study of the Bible, personal and corporate, that great attention is paid to expositions of the Scripture and to prayer. Prayer is vital in the life of the evangelical. (58)
Lloyd-Jones speaks with a zealous urgency, and with good cause as time has revealed. What was true of the times in 1971 was equally true of 1992, though one could argue that the state or condition had worsened considerably. The book is still incredibly relevant and timely in 2019.
He starts his lecture at 'the very beginning.' Why do we need to define--to clarify--what it means to be evangelical? The answer goes back to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Sin. A short little word that is hardly ever popular. He argues that because the church consists of humans, of sinners--though redeemed sinners, though bound-for-glory sinners--it has a tendency to stray, to wander, to fall asleep, to stop watching and guarding, to shift and change with the times. (Also, of course, not every single person who attends church or belongs to church is a Christian, there will always be a handful of wolves clothed as sheep in our congregations.) Denominations, institutions, schools, colleges, boards, organizations, publishing companies should be careful to keep guard and stay true. Just because they were doctrinally sound when they were founded, when they were started, doesn't mean that they will never waver and lose their way.
Lloyd-Jones writes,
There is a process at work, because of sin and evil, which tends to produce not only change but even degeneration...It is always a subtle and slow process...The change is almost imperceptible... The really dangerous man is the man who introduces some very slight or very subtle change. (11)
He spends some time discussing the necessary but tense balance between unity and division. It is important that there be some division--between truth and error--but it should not be taken to extremes. When the church is so focused on unity that anything and everything goes--that is a dangerous place to be. Likewise when the church is so divided over every single little thing--no matter how trivial--it's not good or healthy. The church should not spend its time, its energy, its focus on attacking one another.
There are doctrines that are absolutely essential to the faith. All true believers will believe, affirm these essential doctrines. These are the doctrines where no compromises should ever be allowed. To change these doctrines to fit with the times, to fit with the latest scholars, to fit with the popular philosophy of the day is to lose one's way, to fall away from truth and begin sliding deeper and deeper into heresy.
There are also doctrines that are secondary to the faith. These secondary doctrines are important, but, not essential to the faith. Lloyd-Jones points out two examples: mode of baptism and predestination.
Much time is spent defining what an evangelical believes and what an evangelical rejects. It's important, he points out, that the definition includes positives and negatives. We affirm this, this, and this. We reject that, that, and that.
The book is worth seeking out and reading.
Quotes:
The church, though she has been reformed, must be constantly re-formed, semper reformanda. Always reform! The church is always to be under the Word; she must be; we must keep her there. You must not assume that because a church started correctly, she will continue so. She did not do so in the New Testament times; she has not done so since. Without being constantly reformed by the Word the church becomes something very different...And we have got to do this with the term evangelical. Every generation has got to examine this for itself. (30)
We are concerned about the souls of men and women. We are here to spread the good news of salvation and to win people out of darkness into light. That is why we should be so careful about the truth, and always contend for it. (35)
The evangelical starts with the Bible. He is a man of the Bible. He is a man of the Book. This is his only authority and he submits himself in everything to this. (35)
We have got to keep our eye on these two sides: what men do not say, and what they add on, over and above what we regard as the true faith. (41)
Another characteristic of this evangelical is that he is a man who is always watching...and he is always watchful, of course, because the Scripture teaches him to be so. (43)
You will always find in evangelical circles that there is great emphasis on the study of the Bible, personal and corporate, that great attention is paid to expositions of the Scripture and to prayer. Prayer is vital in the life of the evangelical. (58)
April 18, 2019
Great little book adapted from a series of lectures MLJ gave to the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. Here he lays out the importance of defining precisely what we mean by the term "Evangelical", the importance of definitions in general, the need for the Church to be ever vigilant against heresy (even when it makes us unpopular), and then lays out his specifics on what he thinks should be the defining markers of an Evangelical.
While I didn't agree with all of his points, I overwhelmingly agreed with 98% of them. I'm guessing some people would read this and think, "Wow, Lloyd-Jones sounds like a fundamentalist!" And MLJ wouldn't care.
While I didn't agree with all of his points, I overwhelmingly agreed with 98% of them. I'm guessing some people would read this and think, "Wow, Lloyd-Jones sounds like a fundamentalist!" And MLJ wouldn't care.
December 30, 2013
This series of three sermons delivered in 1971 (and reprinted here from a larger collection of sermons) addresses the question: What is an evangelical? Lloyd-Jones is quick to emphasize the seriousness of this question and the necessity of clearly defining what we believe and why it matters. In our day, the ecumenical idea still resonates with many, falsely promising commonality where none exists. This brief book helpfully points out the truth with powerful clarity and conviction.
August 15, 2014
A robust theological definition of Evangelicalism in the face of the variety of contemporary visions of evangelicalism. Lloyd-Jones argues that for the sake of the ongoing spread of gospel, the Evangelical movement needs to remain theologically faithful to the Biblical gospel. I agree with Lloyd-Jones' concern, and his theological position, but I suspect the label "Evangelical" may be beyond saving.
April 12, 2021
Lloyd-Jones was more enjoyable than I’d expected. This book is based on three lectures he gave at a conference in 1971. Though there is nothing formally stated about the ecumenical disagreements between MLJ and Stott/Packer, there are echoes of it in statements like this: The greater danger today is not so much the narrow schisms and division over tertiary matters, but the ecumenical spirit of the age (18).
Per the work itself, Lloyd-Jones launches into his lectures from the book of Jude who wrote, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3). Lloyd-Jones felt his situation was very similar to that of Jude. An issue of urgency had arisen which compels him to consider the whole of the faith and defend it urgently (8).
In lecture 1, Lloyd-Jones highlights how just because a thing begins right, doesn’t mean it will continue so. Believers ought not give up on unity, but commit to it (John 17), yet without yielding to loose thinking. Change is oftentimes subtle and works from the periphery inward. Institutions that began well often later began to drift, just as men drift in a similar manner. Think of the Ivy League institutions and divinity schools that have nothing left of biblical Christianity beyond their name. “There is a process at work because of sin and evil, which tends to produce not only change but even degeneration” (10).
Ultimately, the Christian should be a person who is careful with the truth and who contends for it so as to win souls out of darkness.
Per the work itself, Lloyd-Jones launches into his lectures from the book of Jude who wrote, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3). Lloyd-Jones felt his situation was very similar to that of Jude. An issue of urgency had arisen which compels him to consider the whole of the faith and defend it urgently (8).
In lecture 1, Lloyd-Jones highlights how just because a thing begins right, doesn’t mean it will continue so. Believers ought not give up on unity, but commit to it (John 17), yet without yielding to loose thinking. Change is oftentimes subtle and works from the periphery inward. Institutions that began well often later began to drift, just as men drift in a similar manner. Think of the Ivy League institutions and divinity schools that have nothing left of biblical Christianity beyond their name. “There is a process at work because of sin and evil, which tends to produce not only change but even degeneration” (10).
Ultimately, the Christian should be a person who is careful with the truth and who contends for it so as to win souls out of darkness.
September 13, 2018
In some places brilliant. In a lot places full of oversimplification. He warns of the error of too narrow a definition of an evangelical and then defines evangelical to be something so small that it would be unwise to adopt the term.
Evangelicals are against (not balanced in these, but against them) scholarship, liturgy, ecumenical work, tradition, etc. Not much clarity in outright rejection of a bunch of things that are necessary even if outworking of the centrality of regeneration. If he is making a point about priorities he fails. He throws the baby out with the bathwater.
Doug Wilson's book "Against the Church," is much more clarifying and helpful.
Evangelicals are against (not balanced in these, but against them) scholarship, liturgy, ecumenical work, tradition, etc. Not much clarity in outright rejection of a bunch of things that are necessary even if outworking of the centrality of regeneration. If he is making a point about priorities he fails. He throws the baby out with the bathwater.
Doug Wilson's book "Against the Church," is much more clarifying and helpful.
January 24, 2023
De entre o meu top 5 de teólogos que dedicarei minha vida à estudá-los, com certeza Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones está. Admiro com grande estima sua submissão à Bíblia, sua coragem em denunciar os erros de sua época e seu amor por Deus.
A actualidade deste livro que foi escrito em 1971 é espantosa. Aqui Martyn nos lembra da necessidade de separarmos as águas e esclarecer quem realmente é um evangélico.
“Quero tentar mostrar-lhes que a situação actual é tal que não devemos tomar o termo evangélico por líquido e certo. Temos que redescobrir o seu significado. Temos que defini-lo de novo. E devemos estar prontos a lutar por isso e a defendê-lo.”
March 27, 2020
These three lectures from the Doctor are clear, compelling, and full of conviction. I appreciate Lloyd-Jones' concerns about doctrinal indifferentism as well as his distinction between primary and secondary doctrines—though I do disagree with him on some of the ways in which he categorizes which doctrines belong in which category.
November 29, 2024
I enjoyed the content of the book, though I didn’t agree with every argument, nor did he define adequately many of the terms he used. Though I’m familiar with church history, I still had to do a decent amount of research as I read to keep up with the people and topics he mentioned. Insightful, interesting, and overall helpful!
December 26, 2024
If only for its unique place in church history, you should read this sermon. It will take you under an hour and, in my opinion, will convince you that there are many slept-on distinctives that comprise an honest definition of evangelicalism - especially when that term is so misunderstood our current religious-political climate. 1st time read. 4/5.
August 31, 2018
A brief but important overview of what an evangelical is in our time and age. Read this book if you want to know more about evangelical Christians!
September 15, 2018
Read so long ago I had forgotten I even read it. Jones is always engaging and earnest, but I suspect my views on the subject would differ a bit.
Going to give it a three.
Going to give it a three.
January 30, 2019
Good food for thought. Lloyd-Jones is quite narrow on many things. He never gives a clear definition of "evangelical" but details many key characteristics. Perhaps he includes too much?
April 22, 2019
Can't recommend this book enough.
February 4, 2023
Fantastic primer on what an evangelical is and is not. Perfect for a new believer.
Read
April 26, 2013I finished the book in one sitting. Awesome book, a compilation of three lectures! It's a must read for every CHristian, especially those in the evangelical circle as DM Jones clearly describes the underlying meaning of being evangelical. There's more, it gives me a new insight on how to look at the Armenian-Calvinist debate over soteriology-- a burning issue that gives me headache for quite a while.
March 7, 2016
Dr Martin Lloyd-Jones lucidly explains what an Evangelical is and how that identity is under pressure from various perspectives. Very helpful distinction between essentials and non-essentials enables us to avoid legalism and to work for unity in diversity in a healthy way.
July 7, 2012
Terrific!
August 7, 2013
I like how this book gives you essentials and non-essentials
Read
March 19, 2014Helder boek, punten worden duidelijk gemaakt. Eenmooie lakmoesproef om te ontdekken hoe 'evangelical' je bent.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews