Balanced Christianity

John R. W. Stott (1921-2011) was known worldwide as a preacher, evangelist and communicator of Scripture. For many years he served as rector of All Souls Church in London, and he was a principal framer of the landmark Lausanne Covenant (1974). His many books, including Basic Christianity and The Cross of Christ, have sold millions of copies around the world and in dozens of languages. Stott was honored by Time magazine in 2005 as one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World."

"This book is thoughtful and thought-provoking. Any book that seeks to cause Christians to re-evaluate their rightness over other well-meaning believers is a blessing to the church."

"'Balance' for John Stott is not about a neutral middle. Instead, it is the vigorous act of faithful both/and living—frequently holding to two extremes rather than sliding to one or the other. This short book is a classic example of Stott's passionate desire to uphold an evangelicalism that does not fall prey to oversimplifications and immature stereotypes but instead displays and articulates a more mature discipleship. This approach, he argues, reflects the Scriptures themselves and enables the kind of thought, relationships and actions that bear witness to Jesus Christ in a complex world. Though first written for a different time, his words are still poignant and provocative."

"I read this book standing in a bookstore as a college student. When done I bought it, took it home, read it two more times over the course of the year, and then somehow I lost it—no doubt because I loaned it to a friend. In this book John Stott first opened my mind to the delightful joy of truths we cannot always resolve but to which we can commit ourselves in tension. Stott writes here of balance, and as a person he exhibited it. In your hands is one of the great tracts of twentieth-century evangelicalism. Savor it."