Lesen, Lernen, Leben

3L stands for 'lesen, lernen, leben' (which in German means 'to read, to learn, to live'). It is the name of a Christian publishing company based in Freidberg near Frankfurt.

The company was founded to publish books with an emphasis on biblical theology and to encourage Christians in the pews to study theology and the Bible.

Jorg Muller, a German pastor who has trained at the London Theological Seminary, acts as the editor. The management side is handled by Friedhelm Anhuth, who worked for many years in Britain for the Mercedes-Benz company, and attended Hook Evangelical Church in Surbiton. EN was able to interview Jorg ...

EN: From where did the vision for 3L come?

JM: It really came from what several people experienced in England through the ministry of the churches there. These were Germans who went to England to work, study English or go on holiday, and who experienced British church life, sitting under the ministry of people like Brian Edwards, Selwyn Morgan or Lloyd-Jones, and heard expository preaching ministries. They were greatly helped by this type of ministry, grew under it and went home with English literature to read. However, the problem was in giving English literature to German Christians not capable of reading English.

A company is born

EN: What were you yourself doing in England?

JM: I was converted in England. In 1978/79, while I was still at school. I came over to study English and was converted through the family with whom I stayed. They introduced me to their pastor in Cardiff and gave me three books to read: one Spurgeon title, John Murray's Redemption, Accomplished and Applied, and a commentary on Romans. Later I attended Carey Baptist church in Reading when Selwyn Morgan was the pastor, and regularly received tapes. That's how I was introduced into Reformed circles. I never personally met Lloyd-Jones, but it was only a year or so later that I was introduced to his books which had a great influence on me. That's how my interest grew and so I started studying theology in Germany. I intended to continue my studies with the focus more on preaching and on pastoral ministry and so I decided to go to the London Theological Seminary.

EN: How did you get to know Friedhelm?

JM: Friedhelm and his wife had been members of Hook Evangelical Church and in God's providence we got in contact two years ago. This was a crucial time for the publishing work.

But to begin where everything started. On one of Omri Jenkins's many visits to Warburg, where I had started a church with the support of the European Missionary Fellowship, Omri and I shared our common vision for literature work and started talking about a work in Germany. He said that it was quite wrong for me to have all those English books on my bookshelves and not be doing anything about it.

The main step was when we formed the Wartburg Trust for publishing Christian literature, in 1987. In 1999, we came to the crucial point which I just mentioned, when we either had to go forward or step back, when suddenly someone, who had just resigned from his job and wanted to give his life to the ministry of publishing literature, rang us out of the blue. That person was Friedhelm!

The Bible in Germany

EN: What is wrong with preaching in the German churches generally, that made you feel you needed to bring this emphasis through literature?

JM: It is not Bible-centred, it is not God-centred, and it can't be God-centred without being Bible-centred.

EN: Can you describe it?

JM: First of all, it is not expository preaching. You've got a verse of Scripture, but it's attached to the sermon either at the beginning or at the end with very little connection and often the Scripture is not expounded and no relevant application made. There are certainly some churches where exposition is being done But really much of the preaching revolves around human need rather than God.

EN: What is the effect of non-expository preaching on the congregation?

JM: The congregation would be more or less subjective in their faith, the 'feel-good' type of Christian life. If you don't feel good in your faith, and don't find enjoyment, discipleship takes second place in your life.

EN: Do German Christians have Bibles in front of them when they listen to preaching?

JM: No. I am always overjoyed when I see that happening in my own church, but that is not a normal practice. It used to be done in Germany, from what I have heard from older people, but certainly since the 1960s that tradition has been lost.

EN: What is the effect on the spiritual health of Christian people?

JM: I have just heard from a leading person in the German Baptist Union that divorce, sexual immorality and homosexuality are rampant. This used to be tackled but not any more. It's being overlooked by the church leaders and he is criticising the fact that there is no church discipline and the witness of the church is being marginalised. Obviously that has to do with the whole idea of the authority of Scripture guiding and defining our personal life. Bible-centredness having been lost, the God-centredness of life has been lost.

EN: Is there a struggle concerning the authority of the Bible in Germany and the German churches at the moment?

JM: Quite definitely. Most would not believe in the inerrancy of Scripture. Inerrancy would be regarded as a fundamentalist approach which has very negative connotations in Germany. Most evangelicals shy away from that, even within the German FIEC.

New style

EN: The Wartburg Trust started in 1987. How did 3L come out of that?

JM: It was more or less a business decision, because with the Trust and with the growing work, publishing under a company gave increased business freedom and many more opportunities. That's why we solved some problems by forming a company. The Wartburg Trust still exists as a charity, but the business is being run by 3L.

EN: What happened in 2000?

JM: Before then we published just eight books, including titles by Lloyd-Jones and John Blanchard. In June 2000 we got a new logo and a new style for our books. The covers are really attractive and people have commented on how modern they are in a very positive sense and that has certainly helped. We have reorganised and restructured the whole work so that Friedhelm is there for the business and management and I am now able to concentrate on the manuscripts.

We are now able, for the first time, to get a five year project plan out. Depending on sales and funds we have the ambitious plan to produce ten to 15 books each year. Our main distributor is Hanssler, the largest Christian distributor in Germany. There are two other companies who now take our books and through them we are selling a lot of books into Brethren circles. We've also now got a distributor in Austria.

EN: So how would you describe the take-up since July 2000?

JM: Sales this year have been very very good. The sales of commentaries, like translations of the Welwyn Commentaries from Evangelical Press, are encouraging. They are a new kind of thing for us. Germans would normally regard commentaries as being heavy and academic and not for the average person. It's not only our ministry to bring books to the people, but also to train, teach and encourage Christians to read, for example, the Welwyn Commentaries so that ordinary Christians get a grasp of the Bible itself and, through that, biblical teaching. The same holds true for other more theological books.

Future looking bright

EN: Do you have a vision for the future - how do you hope to see the 3L work develop?

JM: That's all in the Lord's hands. But the vision is that it should grow into a self-financed publishing house with at least three people being employed to do the work. This is our first full business year and the immediate aim is that by the end of this year we should be able to employ Friedhelm full time so he can give his time wholly to the publishing work to get it a step further.

EN: So how would you like Christians in England to think about 3L?

JM: I think the main thing is to pray for the general Christian scene in Germany. Spurgeon said Germany was made unbelieving by her preachers. I think it is relevant to say that Germany will only be made believing and be a thriving Christian nation when there is an improvement in the preaching ministry of the churches. So pray for the pastors. If anyone wants to sponsor books that we can send out to all pastors, tremendous. They need good books to be good preachers of the Good News. Pray and send our books to German friends! Pray for our work. Satan tries to intervene and there are so many things that can go wrong .

EN: Would you like to move on to having German authors?

JM: The way ahead will be to have a growing circle of friends - and the first 3L conference in April was certainly one step forward. It was initially thought of as a conference where we could get to know some of those who have been very supportive over the years. Friedhelm and I were in touch with many people on the phone or through correspondence and we thought it important to meet and encourage one another. Coming from various church backgrounds, we wanted to give a face to 3L. Because of the focus on the importance of preaching, we always wanted to have a preaching conference so that people realise what we are getting at. It was a tremendous encouragement.

More information from 3L Verlag GmbH, Pfingstweide 38, 61169 Friedberg, Germany.
Email: verlag.3L@t-online.de

A Christian publishing venture for Germany