Rediscovering Bunyan: The Journey of Faith and Community

Bunyan is telling us the way of salvation. And for Bunyan in the seventeenth century, the way of salvation begins with conviction of sin. Unless you understand sin, unless you understand the weightiness of sin, the gravitas of sin, unless you have a conviction of sin and sinfulness then the doctrine of salvation makes no sense. [00:07:18]

The Bible then has convicted him of the danger of his position. Now, Bunyan was born in 1628 to Thomas and Margaret Bunyan in a little village called Elstow in Bedfordshire and about a mile or so outside of Bedford itself in Bedfordshire. And John Bunyan was raised in very humble circumstances. [00:09:34]

He will be under this conviction of sin for 18 months. He is on his way to salvation. He’s on his way to the cross but he will be under this burden, this conviction of sin for 18 months. It's very important to understand Pilgrim's Progress because one of the questions that is often been asked of Pilgrim's progress is why does Bunyan takes so long for Christian to get saved? [00:15:48]

And Christian then, he’s not yet a Christian of course, he’s actually called Graceless. We learn this later, his name is changed to Christian. And he says “Sir, I perceived by my book in my hand,” he’s talking to evangelist, “that I am condemned to die and after that to come to judgment and I find I’m unwilling to do the first nor able to do the latter.” [00:17:48]

He says to him, he gives him a parchment roll and there was written on this parchment roll “Fly from the wrath to come.” And we read: “The man therefore read it and looking up upon Evangelist very carefully said, ‘Whither must I fly?’ Then said Evangelist pointing with his finger over a very wide field ‘Do you see yonder Wicket Gate?’ [00:18:41]

The man said ‘No.’ Then said the other, ‘Do you see yonder shining light?’ He said ‘I think I do.’ Then said Evangelist ‘Keep that light in your eye and go up directly thereto, so shalt thou see the gate at which when thou knockest it shall be told thee what to do.’ So I saw in my dream that the man began to run. [00:19:16]

Now, he had not run far from his own door but his wife and children perceiving it, began to cry after him to return. But the man put his fingers in his ears and ran on crying ‘Life! Life! Eternal life!’ So he looked not behind him but fled towards the middle of the plain.” Well, that’s how Bunyan sets the scene in the opening two or three pages of Pilgrim's Progress. [00:19:39]

It's a scene of this man, Christian, actually called Graceless, and he is running with his fingers in his ears away from his wife and children and the City of Destruction and he's running, he doesn't quite know where, towards a light that is shining but he’s carrying this enormous burden upon his back. [00:20:07]

Well, this is a road trip. This is a great journey. It's a tale told in a style that is very familiar to us and especially I think in 2012 when we are living in an age in which fantasy literature is again very popular, and the Lord of the Rings, Tolkien, is another road trip beginning in one place and ending in another. [00:20:40]

And so for the next, I don’t know how many, but for the next number of sessions, we’re going to look at Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress and see the journey that this man Christian makes to find salvation. [00:21:17]

Bunyan’s narrative begins with a man burdened by sin, living in the City of Destruction. This man, initially named Graceless, embarks on a journey towards salvation, driven by a deep conviction of sin. Bunyan emphasizes that understanding the weight of sin is crucial for comprehending the doctrine of salvation. [00:07:28]

The story is rich with allegorical characters and places, such as Worldly-Wiseman and the Valley of Humiliation, which have permeated English literature and common speech. Bunyan's own life, marked by humble beginnings and a tumultuous period during England's civil war, deeply informs the narrative. [00:04:00]