But they co-opted a term that anyone who follows Jesus — whatever their theological label — can legitimately wear. And I, for one, refuse to allow them to tell me that because I do not agree with some of their theology I am not a genuine evangelical.

A frequently heard term in political discourse these days is “evangelical Christians.” Because of its many uses around the world, however, it is difficult, if not impossible, to give a definition of the term that would fit all users.

“Evangelical” comes from combining the Greek words “eu” (which comes into English as “ev”) and “angellion.” Together, they mean “good news” or “good message.” The New Testament Gospels, as books about Jesus’ life and ministry, are “good news” about what God was doing in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth — beginning a renewal and transformation of the entire Creation.

The New Testament writers assumed that Christians, by living in keeping with Jesus’ instructions and example, were to embody God’s new creation in their ordinary daily lives. No human being, of course, is able fully to embody the characteristics of the new creation by his or her own power. But the New Testament writers believed that, within the limitations of human imperfection, the Holy Spirit makes such an embodiment possible to at least some degree.

Among the earliest writers to call themselves “evangelicals” after the western Middle Ages were the 16th century followers of Martin Luther. They used the word for their expression of Protestantism over against that of the Catholic Church, which they believed did not teach and practice the true Gospel. Still today in Germany, “Evangelicals” refers primarily to Lutherans.

In the United States, most Christians who refer to themselves as evangelicals are conservatives who use the term to set themselves apart from other Christians (fundamentalists on the one hand and liberals and moderates on the other), implying that those others at least do not practice genuine Christianity.
Read More

[Editor’s note: the original URL (link) referenced in this article is no longer valid, so the link has been removed.]