It must not be forgotten that John Bunyan was, first and foremost, a pastor, and his magnum opus owes its very existence to pastoral concern. In the author’s apology – the least read part of the work – Bunyan explains why he set out to write his allegory in the first place. He compares himself to a fisherman or a fowler who is willing to go to great lengths to catch his game. His goal is the lure the reader into serious self-knowledge.
I trust none of my fellow ministers need to be convinced to read The Pilgrim’s Progress devotionally. You know its place and importance in the canon of spiritual classics. You’ve read it yourself. You’ve recommended it to others. You’ve alluded to it in sermons. You may have even taught it to a small group, a Sunday school, or your whole congregation at some point in your ministry. But let me encourage you to read it again through a new lens.
Over the course of the last two years I’ve had the privilege of teaching Bunyan’s immortal classic three times. And with each new reading I have been struck by how rich this devotional work is in pastoral theology. Memorable quotes and illustrations—both useful to pastors—can be found on nearly every page. But there is more here for those with the eyes to see it.
Though the central characters of the work are not pastors, ministerial figures play important roles in both parts I and II. Where would Christian have been without the aid of Evangelist, Help, Watchful, or the Shepherds of the Delectable Mountains? These pastoral figures play pivotal roles at critical moments in Christian’s journey to the Celestial City. And Mr. Great Heart, the central pastoral character of part II, plays a leading role in the narrative from the House of the Interpreter forward. He is a living embodiment of Bunyan’s pastoral theology. In short, The Pilgrim’s Progress simply assumes that pilgrims need pastors, and those of us who serve as pastoral guides have much to learn from his description of them.
The Paradigmatic Puritan Pastor
Evangelist is the first, most important, and most dynamic pastoral figure of part I. He comes to Christian’s aid in the City of Destruction as he mourns his burdened condition. He points him to Christ and the way of salvation (the Wicket Gate), and urges him to fly from the wrath to come. Such was his evangel. He comes Christian’s aid a second time at the foot of Mt. Sinai after he had been led astray by the lies of Mr. Worldly-Wiseman. After questing the wayward pilgrim, Evangelist rebukes him, then instructs him, and finally restores him and sets him back path to the Wicket Gate. Evangelist comes to Christian (and Faithful) one final time before they enter Vanity Fair. He praises them for their faithfulness and exhorts them to persevere in one of the most moving monologues of part I. Then, he warns them of what lies ahead. In these three episodes, Bunyan provides a remarkably full sketch of the work of ministry. Pointing burdened souls to Christ, recovering wayward pilgrims, warning the faithful of the cost of the discipleship—this is the work of the Christian pastor.
The House of the Interpreter contains another interesting pastoral image. The House is a place of instruction and preparation, and the Interpreter takes Christian through a series of rooms that illustrate critical theological truths. In the first room the Interpreter shows Christian the portrait of a “very grave person.” The narrator describes it as follows:
It had eyes lifted up to heaven, the best of books in his hand, the law of truth was written upon its lips, the world was behind his back; it stood as if it pleaded with men, and a crown of gold did hang over his head.
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