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Where have evangelicals been strongest?

In evangelism. In 1960 a small group came together in Montreux, Switzerland, to discuss the possibility of unity among evangelicals. After listening to several days of discussion and debate—and after much time together in prayer—I became convinced that evangelicals today would never get together except around one word: evangelism. That was the beginning of seed thoughts that led to the 1966 Berlin Congress, which in turn led to many regional congresses on evangelism (such as Amsterdam, Bogota, Singapore, Minneapolis), and later the 1974 Lausanne Congress on World Evangelism.

Where do you stand on the issue of Christian unity?

We must take seriously our Lord's prayer in John 17, "that they may be one as we are one." Someone has said the closer we get to Christ, the closer we get to each other. But already there is an ecumenism throughout the Christian world. Everyone who truly knows Christ is a member of the body of Christ—regardless of denominational label. When our Lord spoke through John to the seven churches of Asia, he rebuked them for their sins, but he did not tell them all to join the same church-that wasn't one of their failings. I have no problems working with anyone, under any label, as long as he knows the Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior and is living the life of a Christian disciple.

You seem to have taken a more "liberal" stance on some issues, while some evangelical. leaders, appear to be getting more conservative. How do you explain this?

I do not agree with that observation. The majority of evangelicals are not going in opposite directions. In fact, there is far more agreement among evangelicals today than possibly at any time in my lifetime. There are, perhaps, some differences on social and political questions that are more evident today because of our visibility. The pendulum swings back and forth on some of the social, economic, and political issues. But most evangelicals recognize they have responsibilities in these areas in certain contexts. I have been called "liberal" in some areas because of my stand on certain social issues; I have been called "conservative" theologically. I accept both labels, and believe that I stand in the mainstream of evangelicalism.

How do you assess the impact of the charismatic movement?

As I said, it has made a great impact on virtually all denominations. It also has brought together in a new way many Christians from various backgrounds and persuasions. Of course, there have been extremists in some places who have given it a bad name. I am encouraged to see many charismatic leaders stressing the need for deeper Bible study and balanced biblical doctrine. By and large it has been a positive force in the lives of many people.

What counsel do you have for maintaining financial integrity in religious ministries?

Many years ago I decided that one of the greatest testimonies we could ever have in our own ministry was total integrity in everything, including the reporting of numbers of those attending our meetings, and in financial matters. We therefore formed a strong board of directors and turned all finances over to them. It was only a few years ago, however, that we began to make our finances public-there simply was not the interest before. If I had any advice to give to my brethren in parachurch organizations, it would be that they have total integrity, strict accountability, and public disclosure of finances. I think we see all these in the way Paul handled the money he collected for the Jerusalem church.

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October (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50