Captivated by the Gospel: Eric Liddell
Minister's Letter: July 2024
Dear Grace Church,
The sun is finally shining. Summer has come. We have been rummaging through our drawers for our shorts and sunglasses.
And tomorrow is already August! I’d just like to remind you all of a few events happening in August.
We are having our annual summer BBQ on 10th August. We’d love to see you there. If you’d like to bring something to help out, there will be a sign up sheet at the Bible table on Sunday to sign up. Also, if you want to bring family or friends, they’d be more than welcome.
Also, we will be hosting a series of The Next 10 Years meetings over four Thursday nights at the Playhouse, beginning 8th August. We will be considering the Mission, Vision and Priorities of Grace Church.
“There was an ungainly frenzy about him. Liddell swayed, rocking like an overlooked express train, and he threw his head well back, as if studying the sky rather than the track… His arms pumped away furiously and his knee-lift was extravagantly high, like a pantomime horse.”
This is the way Duncan Hamilton described Eric Liddell’s unorthodox running style. Yet it is not for this distinctive stride that the ‘Flying Scotsman’ is remembered. This summer marks 100 years since he won the 400 metre race at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. Many others won medals at that competition but their names have not been etched into the pantheon of greats. What made him stand out and cause his story to be told in Hollywood?
Liddell had originally been selected to compete for Britain in the 100 metre final. When learning that one of the heats was to take place on the Sunday, and that the day would not be changed, he withdrew. In the lead up to the Games, he was unpopular with the British Olympics Association, the Press and the wider public. Yet he was unrelenting. Liddell was a devout Christian and was persuaded that the Lord’s Day was to be reserved solely for worship and gathering with the church.
In the end, he opted to run in the 400 metres. After two years training for a specific race, he has to retune his body and mind for a longer distance with just five months preparation. He had only ever competed in two 440 yard races and never at a high level. On 11th July, he crossed the line in 47.6 seconds, winning both the gold medal and setting a new world record.
The fortitude of his faith has shone brightly over the last century as many have admired his obedience to God, refusing to back down in the face of great public pressure. Yet it is not that I want to highlight. Many reading this letter will know of this story through Chariots of Fire, the Oscar winning film. What many others won’t know much about is what happened next to Liddell.
Liddell could have not only cemented but magnified his fame in the aftermath of Paris. But the only thing he had on his mind was to go to China. He had grown up in Tientsin, China, the son of Christian missionaries. And his desire after University was to return to that country to proclaim the good news about Jesus to the people of that nation.
I’d like to just focus on the end of his time in China. A long way from the glory of Paris, Liddell’s final years were spent in a Japanese Prisoner of War camp. Liddell spent 694 days in the internment camp. There was little food, space or sanitation. He was assigned the role of maths and science teacher to the children in the camp. But he also preached at worship services, taught Bible classes, and organised sports events to entertain and occupy minds.
Liddell had written a book entitled Discipleship, which he frequently worked through with other interns in the camp. As illness sapped his body of strength and vigour, he continued to teach the book. One day as he taught chapter 3, “Surrender to God’s Will”, to one lady, he had a stroke. He was tended to by his close friend, the Scottish nurse Annie Buchan. His final words to her, moments before his death, were, “It’s complete surrender.”
We have been digging into Hebrews 10 over the last few weeks. The following chapter is known as the ‘Hall of Faith’. In it, Moses is described as preferring “disgrace for the sake of Christ” over all the glittering “treasures of Egypt” (Hebrews 11.26). Liddell ran that same race as Moses pursuing the reward that does not perish. He could have stayed in Scotland, building up his athletic accomplishments, drinking in the glory. Yet he traded it to travel thousands of miles away in complete surrender to God.
This is a picture of what a life captivated and enchanted by the gospel looks like. It is saying that what the world offers is nothing compared to knowing Christ Jesus and following him (Philippians 3.8).
So as the Olympics fills our screens and newsfeeds, let’s enjoy the thrill of competition like Liddell did. But let’s also remember that even a gold medal is fleeting and let’s hold fast to our confession of hope, knowing it results in a reward that cannot be shaken and will never be taken from us.
In Christ,
Ciarán R. Kelleher
July Treat
Eric Liddell’s favorite hymn was ‘Be Still My Soul’:
One of our closest neighbours in our family of churches in Charleston Community Church. This video is a few years old but offers a decent taster for what the congregation is like. Please do pray for them.