Who Was Jim Elliot?

Who was Jim Elliot and why is it important for us to know?

Jim Elliot

Philip James “Jim” Elliot (Oct. 1927-Jan. 1956) was born in Portland, Oregon from Scottish parents and even though his parents strictly enforced the rules around the house, they encouraged him to live for Christ. That phrase would never really go away. It didn’t take long before he realized that he wanted to be involved in a Christian ministry because his father, Fred Elliot, was a working minister with the Plymouth Brethren Church before moving to Oregon. In school, his extracurricular activity was full of writing, speaking, wrestling, school plays (drama) and after some of his teachers admired his acting abilities and his oratory skill, they suggested he be an actor but did not like the thought of a secular work. Like many of the Brethren before his day and in his day, they were non-resistance (conscientious objectors) and non-conformists and so was Jim Elliot. Elliot, like the Brethren, saw Jesus as a Man of peace who would not strike another. The Brethren Church has always had a “peace initiative” as part of their doctrinal beliefs which they base upon the New Testament including the teachings of Jesus, the sacraments of the church, and church discipline. For the Brethren, the Bible was their creed. Doubtless, these were sincere men and women in the church who took Jesus’ and the Apostle’s teachings quite literally and fully endeavored to follow the “primitive church” of the first century (e.g. Acts 2:42-47). That’s the background of Jim Elliot.

Wheaten College

Long before 1945, Jim Elliot felt compelled to enter a Bible college but finally did at Wheaton College in Illinois. Since he was a natural athlete, even before his high school days, he enrolled in the wrestling team but subjects such as philosophy, politics, and anthropology seemed pointless to him and of worldly interest. They didn’t seem right for a “Bible college.” He was deeply disappointed because he valued Bible study and biblical education as being of the highest priority. After his second year in college, Elliot and a friend of his, Ron Harris, took a missionary trip to Mexico where they worked with and lived with a local missionary. A year later, he happened to meet another missionary, this one from Brazil. After talking with him, he felt he had complete confirmation that he was supposed to go to South America and reach one of the unreached tribes there. It was at Camp Wycliffe where he learned how to translate an unknown language into words that he could communicate with them. When the missionary warned him about the Ecuadorian indigenous people, he told them that they were considered violent and dangerous to any outsiders, Elliot didn’t hesitate to think about the risks or dwell on his personal safety. He was that sure that it was God’s will.

The Beginning and End

Finally, Jim Elliot, and his friend Peter Fleming landed in Ecuador on February 21st, 1952 with plans to evangelize the Ecuador’s Quechua Indians. After ministering to the local Indians, he decided it was time to reach the tribe of Huaorani. Some had already made contact with them by flying over them and dropping gifts from a lowered basket and they thought they had gained access to them since a few came out to meet them and seemed friendly enough. With that encouraging sign, they decide to set up camp a short distance from where the Huaorani or the Waodani lived, but the next time they say the Huaorani, there were ten warriors who showed up and they were armed to kill and kill they did. They killed them all, including Jim Elliot and three other missionaries, Ed McCully, Roger Youderian, and his friend, Peter Fleming. Interestingly, one of the Bible verses in Elliot’s journal was Luke 9:24; “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Jim Elliot has made the supreme sacrifice; that of his own life, but in the performance of His Supreme Commander, Jesus Christ, Who gave the Great Commission. Today, after the death of the Christian martyr, Jim Elliot’s famous quote rings more true today than in the day in which he wrote it: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

Conclusion

Jim Elliot just couldn’t understand why more people didn’t become missionaries. He had little patience for those who refused to “go” into all the world, let alone next door. Jim Elliot comes to mind in reading John 15:13 where Jesus says, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends,” and fewer men had a greater love for witnessing for Christ and going into places that angels might fear to tread. He deemed and esteemed other men’s souls as more valuable than his life.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.