Mr Alexander
Just over a month ago, on 13th January 2023, the Rev. Eric Alexander passed into glory. Mr Alexander (as I learned to call him) was one of the greatest english-speaking preachers of the 20th century. He had a profound influence on a generation of new ministers in Scotland, saw many conversions to Jesus Christ and shaped the lives of many students stepping out into life. And yet, to my surprise, few younger men that I know in ministry today have even heard of him.
I first came across him as a new convert to Christ in Glasgow in 1980, in my second year at uni. I had just been converted through the evangelistic work of the Navigators. When Sunday came round, my new friends invited me to join them at “the Tron”. I had no idea what “the Tron” was - it sounded weird for a church, but kind of “cool”.
When I got there, to my surprise, it was packed out. The Tron, or to give its full name, St George’s-Tron Parish Church, had capacity for about 800 people filling up the ground floor and a u-shaped balcony. There was almost standing room only. The stewards struggled to find spaces for us to sit - and students are always late.
I soon found out why this impact. Not simply that the singing was marvellous, which it was, and the sense of gravity that infused the service, but that the preaching was of a kind I had never heard before. To explain: my experience of Church Scotland ministry was as a kid growing up in Ayrshire where I was sent to Sunday School by my parents or went once a year to the school thanksgiving service at the local church. And I have to say, it was boring. Singing was dreadful, preaching was dull and lifeless. “Why would anyone choose to go?”, I used to think growing up.
But now… Here was a man who was not telling stories with a moral application. He was preaching the gospel! He explained it fr
om the Bible passage and did so with vigour and energy. All Mr Alexander’s powers seemed to be employed to convince and persuade - passion, vocabulary, simplicity, logic. It was filled with Jesus Christ, enabled us to get a sense of the glory of God and the joy of knowing Jesus Christ. It was gripping and left you wanting more of the Saviour. I had never gone to two Sunday services in my life, but like everyone else I could not stay away. Why would anyone stay away or just go to one service when you could have two? So that became my pattern for nine years - go to both services and in time start going to the midweek prayer meeting and Bible study.
There was nothing fancy about the ministry at the Tron. It did the basics well - Sunday worship and corporate prayer. It supported missionaries across the world. Young men training for the ministry and the mission field sought refuge, advice and training from Mr Alexander who gave liberally of his time. He always had time for students and the work of UCCF particularly.
I think I became a ”calvinist” under his ministry without realising what that was. He never used that term in preaching. But it was clear that he held to the five “solas” of the Reformation. For me, his ministry was infused with a sense of the glory and sovereignty of God in salvation and in providence. He taught newcomers how to come to Christ. He taught believers to trust the goodness of God in every circumstance.
He was not party-spirited and did not trumpet “presbyterianism” though he was a presbyterian and lamented the sad state of the Church of Scotland. But he was ecumenically-minded in the good sense of the word, always encouraging people in the faith even though he disagreed with them on secondary points.
He had a mischievous sense of humour which often came out in unexpected places. Once at a prayer meeting, Mr Alexander was giving some notices before prayer, one of which was to warn the congregation that there would be a “larger ladies’ meeting” later in the week for some reason, going on to explain through giggles that the meeting was not just for “larger ladies”. Thankfully, he often restrained this side of his personality for spiritual good of all.
I often mention to people that Mr Alexander’s ministry has affected me more than people know. During my 9 years at the Tron, I confess that there were times when I got a bit cocky about the ministry. As well as Mr A there were other regular preachers: David Ellis, Sinclair Ferguson and a number of other other occasional men of top quality. But as young students we could still have those ridiculous conversations about who was a better preacher than whom. Little did I know the rich fare from which I could dine spiritually. Like a silly child, I could become picky. Only when I left Glasgow to pursue a career in engineering in England in 1989 did I come to realise what I had lost.
When I began to think about ministry myself in the late 1990s, my model for ministry and the character of a minister was shaped by my experiences during those days in Tron. There are of course dangers in that - like the returning exiles weeping over the new-build temple who secretly think as they work “Is it not as nothing in your eyes?” (Haggai 2:3). It is easy to get discouraged about the present state of things and hanker after the “glory” days of the past. That could distort the ministry with an incessant seeking to grow a crowd, to create an “event” and an “experience” at worship. It takes some maturity, I realise, to remember that “The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former” (Haggai 2:9). Whatever has gone before, not matter how great, is small compared to what is to come. Our job is to fix our eyes on the ultimate prize and be faithful where we are. Let God give the increase as he sees fit.
That means that while not seeking to recreate what I experienced in the Tron, there are certain principles that matter in any ministry:
Keep to the Bible. We are called as ministers to teach the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). That does not mean necessarily consecutive expository ministry (verse-by-verse, chapter-by-chapter etc) but it does help to have that structure to help disciples see the flow of Scripture. The lion of Scripture should not be caged.
Everything to God’s glory. We can be tempted to bring God down to our level in our minds and only think about him that way - he’s our buddy, pal, etc But he is the Sovereign Lord over all, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
Christ as central. Lead people to Jesus who has condescended to us. He is our mediator, our gateway, our life, our truth. He must be central, not simply tagged at the end in an evangelistic appeal. That’s hard, but he is everything.
The passing of Eric Alexander in one sense marks the end of an era. We may mourn our loss. But we continue to look to the “latter glory”.