John Lancaster ran a great race and finished well
Elim’s General Superintendent, Chris Cartwright, pays tribute to the life and ministry of outstanding Elim minister John Lancaster, who died in October 2022.
At a moving thanksgiving service at Bridge Community Church, Leeds, Elim people gave thanks for the life and ministry of John Lancaster. John was loved across the Elim movement, having influenced countless lives for Christ over his 97 years, not least through his regular column in Direction.
John Lancaster was one of those ministers whose reach and influence carried way beyond Elim. His classic book ‘The Spirit Filled Church’ contains commendations from no less than Michael Green, David Pawson and Reinhard Bonnke.
That remarkable shortlist alone, from across the spectrum of the Christian church, reveals so much about the respect in which he was held as a pastor, preacher, teacher and author. He was regarded as a leader who seemed to always balance the passion of Pentecost with the strength and security of Scripture.
John came from Petersfield in Hampshire, where he first came to faith. As a young Christian during World War II, he served in the Royal Air Force, stationed for a period at St Athan in South Wales. Whilst there, he attended the City Temple in Cardiff.
John’s strong and active faith soon came to the attention of the minister, PS Brewster, who encouraged him to play an active part in the life of the church. This he did, including leading a young men’s Bible class. Years later, John would serve in national leadership alongside the legendary ‘P.S.’ and they would become firm friends.
John’s period during RAF service in South Wales is revealing. Even in this large and vibrant church, he stood out. As a strong Christian, his character and love for Christ were such that he was a great example, keen to encourage and strengthen others. Those qualities would never leave him.
On leaving the RAF in September 1946, he entered the Elim Bible College in Clapham. Graduating the following summer, he was appointed to his first church in Letchworth, moving on to Loughborough and Clapham before his ordination in September 1951.
That same year he married Dorothy, and they began 63 years of married life together, being appointed to the Elim church and then meeting in Bayswater and Holland Park. This fellowship would move back into Kensington Temple in the 1960s as Elim re-acquired the building following the death of George Jeffreys.
In 1957 John moved to the Elim church in Eastbourne. Here he would enjoy his longest period of pastoral ministry as the church flourished. Respected Anglican evangelist, Professor Michael Green, was also in Eastbourne at the time. He writes in the foreword to John’s book The Spirit-Filled Church:
“I knew and greatly respected John Lancaster when we were both young ministers in Eastbourne... Now he exercises major leadership within the Elim Church in Britain. And this book reveals the same wisdom, warmth and breadth of sympathy which marked him then.”
During this time, John began to play a growing part in the wider Elim movement. He was appointed to the Executive Council in 1969, serving on the Executive for 23 years. He became a regular writer for Elim’s Weekly magazine, The Evangel, and a lecturer at the Elim Bible College.
He authored a number of books, including ‘The Pastor’s Casebook’ reflecting his lifelong desire to equip ministers for the realities of pastoral ministry. He served on multiple national committees and boards and was elected to the office of President of Elim for the Year 1973-74, taking him on a year-long tour of Elim churches across the UK.
In 1977 John moved to Bridge Street, Leeds, serving as minister for five years. John’s colleagues on the Executive Council had wanted him for years to become the Editor of the Evangel. John had constantly said no. Though he was a gifted writer, he loved nothing more than pastoring the local church. In 1982, however, they prevailed upon him to become full-time National Communications Director.
By the summer of 1984, he was keen to get back to pastoring and moved to pastor the Elim Church in Northampton. For the first 18 months, he continued editing Elim’s weekly Evangel alongside pastoring the church.
After six years of progress in the Northampton church, John was asked in 1990 to move to the City Temple, Cardiff, the church he had first attended as a young RAF serviceman. The Cardiff Church welcomed him with open arms.
Alongside Pastor Eric Gaudion, for four years, John ministered in Cardiff during a time of considerable change and in a season of renewal across the wider church. He challenged the church to be open again to the fresh wind of the Holy Spirit. Despite facing fierce criticism from some quarters, John showed great strength and courage to stand by his conviction that the spirit was moving afresh.
As a mature and seasoned minister, his ability to bring together biblical balance alongside spiritual fervour encouraged a fresh generation of leaders to step into what God was doing.
John took his official retirement from the Elim ministry in November 1994. Yet retirement was not really in his DNA! Returning to Leeds, making his spiritual home in Bridge Street, John began an immensely fruitful season, continuing preaching, teaching and writing. He agreed to write what would become his much-loved monthly column for Direction magazine during this time.
As we remember John, we pay tribute to a life marked throughout by deep devotion, great grace and rare humility. He would usually not be the loudest voice in the room, but he was often the one most listened to. Elim has been the richer for him, and we owe him a huge debt of gratitude.
During Elim’s Centenary Year in 2015, we commissioned filmmaker James Chapman to capture the story of Elim. James interviewed John for the film and was so moved by spending time with him that he recorded two video shorts where John simply speaks to the camera looking back at the past and forward into the future.
These short videos are beautiful and moving and are a powerful testimony of a man of unshakable faith, of deep love for Christ and his church and guided by the conviction that God, who first called Elim into being, will lead and empower us into the future.
Heaven alone will reveal the fulness of John’s life and ministry, but we thank God for him. John Lancaster ran a great race, finished well, and now received his ‘well done, good and faithful servant’!
Reflecting on Elim's past
Paisley Productions
Looking to the future
Paisley Productions
More clips of John Lancaster can be seen in Defining Moments - 100 years of the Elim Pentecostal Church, available on the Elim history page.
A spiritual statesman
John Lancaster was a huge figure in my life as a young minister. He was song leader in my grandfather’s crusades and a close friend of our family. He proposed to his wife Dorothy while at our home when I was just a very small child.
In the first book I wrote some 40 years ago, I dedicated it to my wife Marilyn, “for being the right inspiration and to John Lancaster for being the inspiration to write.”
John Lancaster was an outstanding spiritual statesman, a profound teacher, a great pastor and a prolific writer. He impacted multitudes of people in his long and fruitful ministry.
John Glass, former Elim General Superintendent
Our greatest theologian
At the time of his death, John Lancaster was the longest-serving Elim minister. He served our movement from 1948-2022, a total of 74 years. He was arguably Elim’s greatest theologian and lectured on Systematic Theology at our Bible college for over 30 years.
He was a historian as well as a theologian. But first and foremost, he was a family man and a pastor. He was a Christian gentleman and a valued friend. He was a great mentor, ready to provide valued advice, but always in response to an approach.
I will miss his counsel and friendship. Thank you, and good-night Mr Lancaster, we will meet again in the morning.
Maldwyn Jones, official Elim historian
This article first appeared in the December 2022 edition of Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.
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