Few topics provoke more questions in the human heart than that of suffering. Paul Wolfe addresses this painful subject with both pastoral and personal experience. Here a struggling soul can find assurance that Christ is still near, still compassionate, and still safely shepherding the Christian through every dark valley. A clear and concise Q&A section addresses both practical and theological issues.

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Book Description

The Diary and Journal of David Brainerd is of much more than merely historical interest. The first internationally recognized biography ever to be published, it has had a profound impact on successive generations of Christians around the world.

The Diary covers the period from April 1742 to October 1747, and although written as a private and personal record, was published in abridged form by the great New England pastor and theologian Jonathan Edwards in 1749.

Brainerd wrote the Journal, which covers the twelve months from June 1745 to June 1746, at the request of the Scottish Society for Propagating Christian Knowledge, which was supporting his missionary work amongst the indigenous peoples of North America. As Sir Marcus Loane has noted in They Were Pilgrims, ‘the Diary and Journal were each written for a distinct purpose, and each had its separate character. The Diary is a remarkable record of the interior life of the soul, and its entries still throb with the tremendous earnestness of a man who whose heart was aflame for God. The Journal is an objective history of the missionary work of twelve months, and its details are an astonishing testimony to the grace of God in the lives of men.’

Jonathan Edwards’ own ‘Reflections and Observations’ on Brainerd’s life, included in this volume, are, according to Iain H. Murray in his Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography, ‘among the most important descriptive pages on the Christian life which Edwards ever wrote.’

Between 1742 and his death in 1747 David Brainerd took the gospel to the North American Indians of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. He willingly ran any risk and accepted any hardship to fulfil his calling as a missionary. The amount of work which he achieved in such unpromising and difficult circumstances now seems almost incredible. Moreover his total dedication to the cause of making Christ known inspired the finest of missionaries who followed in his footsteps.

Few books have done so much to promote prayer and missionary action as The Diary and Journal of David Brainerd.

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Endorsements

‘Brainerd’s life is a vivid, powerful testimony to the truth that God can and does use weak, sick, discouraged, beat-down, lonely, struggling saints, who cry to him day and night, to accomplish amazing things for his glory.’ JOHN PIPER

‘I was much humbled today by reading Brainerd. O, what a disparity betwixt me and him! He always constant; I as inconstant as the wind.’  WILLIAM CAREY

‘Oh! blessed be the memory of that beloved saint! No uninspired writer ever did me so much good.’  HENRY MARTYN

Reviews

• Review by Kevin Macleod
• Review by Al Baker

We asked people how reading Edwards had benefitted them; this is what they said …

Here’s What You Said About Jonathan Edwards

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When discussing the ‘last things,’ what often comes to our minds is the book of Revelation and its striking visions – and often unhelpful speculation about their details. David McKay focuses instead on the Bible’s clear message about things to come: the Lord’s return, the certainty of judgment, the resurrection, and the reality of eternity. In doing so he returns to the real purpose of God’s revelation – providing comfort, warning, and strength to endure.

About the Author

David McKay is Professor of Systematic Theology, Ethics and Apologetics at the Reformed Theological College, Belfast, and Minister of Shaftesbury Square Reformed Presbyterian Church in Belfast. He is the author of An Ecclesiastical Republic (1997), The Bond of Love (2001) and A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Humanity (2021) and has contributed to a number of theological journals and books. He is married to Valerie.

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Christians have long recognized the book of Psalms to be the great handbook of the spiritual life. Martin Luther thought of it as the Bible in miniature, and John Calvin prized it as ‘an anatomy of all parts of the soul.’

This mini-guide introduces the reader to this precious book. David Murray shows how the Psalms speak of Christ, whilst answering questions regarding the interpretation of some difficult passages. He explains how the Psalms ought to be used in worship, counselling, witnessing, and singing, so that believers might glorify and enjoy God each day.

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Book Description

Many twenty-first-century Christians ‌still read the works and love the memory of the remarkable Scottish brotherhood that included Robert Murray M‘Cheyne and Andrew and Horatius Bonar. But the name of Alexander Moody Stuart (1809–98), whom they all esteemed so much, has been forgotten. Yet it took only one encounter with his preaching for M‘Cheyne to say, ‘I have found the man.’

Now, this new edition of Alexander Moody Stuart: A Memoir will throw light on a life and ministry which were profoundly influential—a ministry in which Moody Stuart was, variously, a pioneer rural missionary in an island fishing community; a capable church planter in a growing city; a clear and searching preacher; a much-loved pastor; a caring husband and father; and a committed advocate for overseas missionary endeavour.

Alexander Moody Stuart’s long life and ministry encompassed many of the defining events and debates in the Scottish church in the middle and later nineteenth century, including that which led to the formation of the Free Church of Scotland in 1843. But far from being defined by these important debates, his ministry was principally marked by contemporaries for its deep spirituality, earnestness, and originality.

This well-paced and engaging memoir, partly autobiographical and completed by its subject’s eldest son, covers the life, work, friendships, and challenges of one who was fully engaged with the people under his spiritual care, and who was also a willing defender of orthodox belief in an age of rapid change in approaches to Scripture. As Sinclair B. Ferguson notes in the Foreword, ‘like Andrew Bonar’s memoir of M‘Cheyne, there is a touch of heaven about these pages.’

It is hoped that the republication of this long-forgotten book will go some way to lift Alexander Moody Stuart out of relative obscurity—a man who, in his allotted time and circumstances, exercised a deep and penetrating ministry of the word, the character and aroma of which contain much to stimulate and inspire those engaged in that same spiritual work today.

This fresh edition includes numerous illustrations and an extensive appendix containing several of Moody Stuart’s sermons and addresses, and other documents of interest.

Commendations

‘Long forgotten and hard to obtain, Alexander Moody Stuart is a book for any Christian to enjoy, and every Christian will find it richly instructive, graciously challenging, and wonderfully inspiring. And for ministers of the gospel it is quite simply a ‘must have’. While it ranks among the finest Christian biographies of a past century, the effect of reading it will be a fresh desire to love Christ more and serve him better in the present century.’

—Sinclair B. Ferguson

‌‘There are few ministerial biographies that are better worth reading than Moody Stuart’s Life by his son.’

—Principal John Macleod (1872–1948)
in Scottish Theology

‌‘He has poetry in his soul, and beyond that, a heart like that of Rutherford, fired with love to the altogether Lovely One.’

—C. H. Spurgeon (1834–92)
Pastor of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Baptist Church, London

‘I know not a greater master in spiritual analysis.’

—Dr John ‘Rabbi’ Duncan (1796–1870)

‌‘Few were honoured to wield an influence so profound and far-reaching.’

—Address from the Free Presbytery of Edinburgh upon
Moody Stuart’s ministerial diamond jubilee in 1897

‌‘… a man who was the first and earliest of a well-defined and very remarkable school of preaching; who was also its patriarch and survivor; and who, besides being the originator, was himself the most original man not only in that school but, according to my judgment, in the whole Scottish pulpit during the long span of his ministerial career.’

—Alexander Taylor Innes (1833–1912)
Lawyer, political and ecclesiastical adviser, and author

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Book Description

J. C. Ryle described Daniel Rowland (1711–1790) as ‘one of the spiritual giants of the eighteenth century.’ Lady Huntingdon considered him to be ‘second only to Whitefield.’ Howel Harris wrote of him, ‘In his pulpit he is second to St Paul,’ while others acclaimed him as ‘the greatest preacher in Europe.’ Yet he has been one of the least known leaders of that age.

The loss of manuscripts shortly after his death, the Welsh language barrier, and the fact that all his closest friends were also preachers rather than authors, all contributed to leave only a shadowy impression of his greatness. However, after many years of work, Dr Eifion Evans succeeded in breaking through a multitude of difficulties to present for the first time a full-scale biography of Daniel Rowland.

J. C. Ryle writes of Daniel Rowland, ‘Never, perhaps, did any preacher exalt Christ more. . . . No British preacher of the eighteenth century kept together in one district such enormous congregations of souls for fifty years as Rowland did.’ And Dr D. M. Lloyd-Jones asks, ‘Has there been preaching which has had anything like the effect of his preaching since those days?’

At death, when reminded that he had been instrumental in the conversion of thousands to Christ, Rowland protested, ‘It is nothing. I die as a poor sinner depending fully and entirely on the merits of a crucified Saviour.’

This volume is a record of revivals, friendships with other leaders, persecutions and divisions, and the birth of a new age for Wales. Amidst it all, Dr Evans excels in showing what made Rowland the preacher and the humble Christian that he was. Dr Evans’ volume not only fills a major gap in church history, it is an inspiring testimony to New Testament Christianity.

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There are two intended audiences for discourses on the Christian ministry: the pastor or elder who cares for the church, and his congregation who are called to willing and prayerful submission. In Gospel Ministry, a collection of nine sermons delivered in his fruitful later years, John Owen addresses both.

Whether expounding the role of the Holy Spirit in shaping the ministry, presenting the purposes of the church, savouring God’s care of his people, or warning against being ashamed of the gospel, Owen’s teaching is invaluable for any minister – or member – of the body of Christ.

This book is complemented by its companion volume, Gospel Life, which beautifully sets forth the foundational steps of faith in Christ, assurance, and humble walking with him.

N.B. The sermons in this volume have been selected from The Works of John Owen, Volume 9, and modernised.

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Book Description

Most experienced Christians are familiar with the Fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians. Love, peace, patience, and so on are often considered both gracious marks of true Christian character and ideals to aim for. But what do they look like when lived to the fullest?

This book answers this question by studying the fullness of the Fruit of the Spirit in the life of Christ. In a warm and engaging style, Jonathan Cruse examines these godly attributes in the Lord’s example, comparing them with our own faltering efforts at holiness, and shows how only the power of God himself can truly conform us to Christ. The work is his, not ours – and this is good news for all those who yearn for greater sanctification.

About the Author

Jonathan Landry Cruse studied theology at Westminster Seminary California. He is an author, hymnwriter, and the pastor of Community Presbyterian Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Jonathan is husband to Kerri Ann and a father of three.

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The church is not yours or mine. It belongs to Jesus Christ. The church is graciously called into being by him for the glory and honour of God’s name. As such, every local church must reflect God’s character and display God’s holiness. For that reason, life in a healthy, happy church always involves discipline—the thoughtful, deliberate, loving investment of each member in all the others for the glory of God and the good of the whole congregation.

Grievously, life in a fallen world means that sin creeps into and breaks out in the church of Jesus Christ. What ought a church to do when sin is uncovered in her midst? How do we respond in a way that shows our love to God and to one another? How do you love someone within the professing church who is unrepentantly sinning against God?

Such questions are often answered carelessly, fearfully, pragmatically, even unrighteously. When that is the case, it typically leads to disturbing confusion, advancing tension, increasing division, and even destruction. Further sin can erupt if offences are not faced humbly and graciously, if unrepentant sin is not addressed righteously and courageously.

Mercifully, the Head of the church has not left us in the dark. He teaches us how to sail through troubled waters so that we are not left in disarray after the storm has struck. He provides clear, wise, and effective commands and counsels for his people.

This booklet summarises the principles and the practices Christ has given for the holiness of his church. It sketches out the assumptions that lie behind church discipline, grounded in the identity of the church and activity of the church of God. It speaks to the nature of church discipline, in its more positive and negative aspects. It identifies love as the primary motive behind any discipline in the church. It looks at the God-ordained purposes of corrective discipline, and the reasons why a church might have to pursue this course. It offers practical advice as to how such discipline ought to be carried out in the church of Jesus Christ. It touches on both the necessary sting and the desired success of those actions by the church. It calls the whole church and her officers to consider our duty to act when the purity and peace of the church of God is threatened by unrepentant sin.

If the church is the household of God, if it is the body of Jesus Christ, if it is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, then we are called to be holy. We need to know how to pursue that calling as those committed to fidelity in our doctrine, purity in our life, and unity in our fellowship.

Author bio:

Jeremy Walker is the pastor of Maidenbower Baptist Church in Crawley, England. He also serves as the Book Reviews Editor of the Banner of Truth magazine.

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Book Description

During his earthly life Jesus had many critics and enemies who sought to discredit him and sometimes trap him in his own words. They said, for example, that he had threatened to destroy the temple, that he was a blasphemer and that he acted in league with the devil. On one occasion some religious leaders ‘grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners”’ (Luke 15:1). However, what they intended as an attack gives expression to gospel truth – Jesus did and does welcome sinners; as the apostle Paul wrote, ‘The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’ (1 Tim. 1:15). The Gospel According to Christ’s Enemies looks at such attacks in Scripture and also considers contemporary attacks on Christianity which express truths that their speakers do not intend. The book leads us to the gospel according to Jesus Christ himself.

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Book Description

A pastor of forty years who has throughout his ministry found the Puritans to be a great source of spiritual encouragement, David MacKinnon presents here 366 extracts from the works of the Puritan pastor Richard Sibbes, which may be used each day of the year by readers as an aid to devotion.

Each extract has been carefully selected, and a suitable accompanying Scripture text provided at the start of each daily reading. Occasional antiquated words in the original have been updated, and overly long sentences have been shortened, but all with a view to retain Sibbes’ flow and meaning for present-day readers.

For those who have never encountered Sibbes before, this volume will serve as an excellent introduction. All will find in these daily readings spiritual refreshment for the soul, coming from one who in his day was known, appropriately, as the ‘heavenly doctor.’

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Theodore Beza’s course of activity was, in the words of the author, ‘long and brilliant.’ He presided over the Reformed church in the French-speaking countries of Europe for many years, and was its recognized counsellor and leader in times of peril. His friendship with John Calvin, and also with the French king, Henry IV, ensured that his influence in both church and state was not insignificant— indeed, Beza’s was a career rich in incidents and dramatic interest.

As Paul Wells notes in his Introduction to this new edition of Baird’s life of Beza, ‘some plants flourish in the shade of mighty trees.’ Theodore Beza was such a plant—a significant ‘Reformer in the wings’ who became a major actor in the development of the magisterial Reformation and the spread of the Reformed faith in France.

Beza stepped into the shoes of Calvin as the spokesman of French Protestants in the diaspora, and as the figurehead of a refugee church—a church faced with theological error, and opposition from the powers that be. Beza’s work remains a model of faithfulness under duress for believers worldwide in comparable situations today—it is for that reason that this new edition of his Life has been published.

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Book Description

Samuel Miller (1769–1850), was a faithful pastor, who became a founding father and a professor of Princeton Theological Seminary. He had a deep commitment to the church and an abiding interest in seeing ministers trained ably for her service — an interest which led to him writing this book.

As Dr. Jonathan Master notes in his Foreword to this edition of Miller’s work, ‘public prayer is the priority on Paul’s mind when considering public worship.’ Despite this priority, today public prayer has in some churches a diminishing place in corporate worship.

Ministers especially need instruction in public prayer — Samuel Miller understood this need in his day, and so much of what he wrote remains pertinent to the practice of an edifying ministry in the present.

This volume is replete with insights into the vital place of public prayer in worship, and of sound advice as to how progress may be made in this aspect of pastoral ministry.

This edition includes a Foreword by Dr. Jonathan L. Master, President of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Taylors, South Carolina, USA.

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Book Description

Mary, the mother of Jesus; Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus; and Mary Magdalene all feature prominently in the gospel narrative. But what can Christians learn from the faith displayed by these women?

In these moving and engaging chapters, Alexander Moody Stuart draws out their characters and helps readers learn from each one’s relationship to Jesus. Perhaps too often known only at the surface-level, these three women, brought into sharper focus by Moody Stuart’s reflective and often vivid portrayals, have much to teach us about the faithful Christian life.

Moody Stuart’s preaching and teaching were marked by a keen sensitivity to the human condition and its needs, combined with challenging practical application. This, linked with a deep tenderness and love, well-qualified him to write The Three Marys.

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Book Description

Translated from the French by Robert White

When Calvin says that he would not have spoken of election had Scripture not led the way, we need not doubt his word. If he defends the doctrine with vigour, it is because it runs as an unbroken thread through both Old and New Testaments. Like the doctrines of providence, atonement and the new birth, it is a doctrine of sovereign grace.

Calvin did not invent election: it is a doctrine which belongs to the universal church. Its importance for him lies in the fact that it anchors the work of redemption, not in our feeble powers of will, but in God’s inexplicable love for sinners, and it traces that work to a determination freely made in heaven before the world began.

The present volume offers a variety of sources, newly translated from the French, which throw fresh light on Calvin’s doctrine of election. In place of his more formal works such as the Institutes from which the doctrine is usually derived, texts have been selected which were intended for oral delivery to a largely non-specialist audience. The tensions inherent in the doctrine, such as God’s mercy versus his justice, are honestly acknowledged and answered. Throughout, appeal is made not to philosophical speculation but to God’s revealed word. To depart from Scripture, the Reformer holds, is to enter a labyrinth from which there is no way out.

There is no hint of bookishness in the texts presented here. This is theology for Everyman – clear, comprehensive and rich in practical application. And it leads, as all good theology should, to the praise of God’s glory.

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Book Description

Paul’s words in Galatians 6:14, ‘Far be it for me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,’ highlight how central and personally significant the cross of Christ is to Christians. Jesus himself saw the cross as his divinely appointed destiny. As he began to experience the unimaginable agony that lay before him, he said, ‘Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour”? But for this purpose I have come to this hour’ (John 12:27).

In Words from the Cross Ian Hamilton places Jesus’ seven expiring words of grace and hope in their wider biblical context and explores their theological, pastoral, and evangelistic significance. The short chapters encourage us to reflect and meditate on the love of God which is ‘the fountainhead of the gospel’ (John Owen) and bring us to devote all we are to the Saviour who gave his all for us.

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Book Description

John Aaron provides here a fresh account of Thomas Charles’s life, presented against the backcloth of his day and age, and in the light of Charles’s extensive network of correspondents, both Welsh and English.

In Wales, the popular picture of Thomas Charles (1755–1814) had traditionally been of the man who gave a Bible to Mary Jones; who was the ‘Father of the Sunday School’; and who was behind the formation of the British and Foreign Bible Society. But in modern Wales this picture has almost completely faded. No biography of Charles has been published in English or Welsh since 1908—this is the first for over a hundred years.

This new biography covers many aspects of Charles’s life that deserve to be extensively known, including, among others, his long and frustrating courtship of Sally Jones; his early connections with evangelicals in the Church of England, including John Newton and Henry Thornton; the immense and rapid spread of his schools; the revivals which took place under his preaching; his editorial labours over the text of the Welsh Bible; and his leadership of the Calvinistic Methodist Connexion.

Thomas Charles’s writings revealed his spiritual maturity and wisdom. His balance of Christian doctrine, experience, and practice was remarkable. In this wide survey, John Aaron does not shrink from acknowledging both the strengths and weaknesses of his subject, and also seeks to engage with Charles’s scholarship and theology. Here is a book to inform, stir, and inspire.

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To ask and answer the question ‘Why were our Reformers burned?’ could not be more pertinent to the times in which we live, according to Roger Carswell in his Introduction to this edition of J. C. Ryle’s tract on the English Reformers.

This is a booklet that needs to be read carefully and prayerfully. Its aim is not to lead anyone to smug self-righteousness or complacency. To understand the error of a theological system ought to stir within us compassion and winsome boldness towards those who are caught up in it.

We ought to feel deeply thankful to God for those who lived and laid down their lives for the truth of the gospel. The world was not worthy of them: they took up their cross and followed their Saviour. We need to understand why the Reformers of the sixteenth century lived and died as they did, and in our times cultivate a similar, costly commitment to the truth of the gospel.

This booklet is an extract from Ryle’s Five English Reformers and Light from Old Times.

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The North of Wales in the 1770s was one of the least Christian parts of Britain. The next three decades brought a transformation akin to that of the apostolic era and at the centre of the change was Thomas Charles, ‘the Lord’s gift to North Wales’.

Debarred from the pulpits of his own denomination, and dependent on his shop-keeper wife at Bala, Charles quietly became the leader of the people (‘Calvinistic Methodists’) whose God-anointed witness gathered thousands to the gospel. This astonishing advance involved Bible distribution, the use of circulating schools, preaching, and publishing. More than all these things, there was an outpouring of the Spirit of God and the most enduring lessons of the period have to do with the quality of spiritual life which was then recovered.

This volume, first published in 1838, shows us both what that life was in Thomas Charles’ own experience and how wisely he taught it to others.

Charles’ main characteristic, said Edward Morgan (his editor), was his large measure of love and humility. His life itself, ‘with heaven in his face’, as men said, was a sermon.

For insight into real, biblical Christianity this book will always be one of the classics of evangelical literature. John Elias’ verdict of many years ago remains true, ‘Whatever proceeds from Mr. Charles is excellent’. This was one of the last books in the hands of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones before his death and it led him to conclude that Thomas Charles ‘is definitely one of the most neglected of the spiritual leaders’.

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This is a pastoral, thoughtful, encouraging, challenging and, above all, radically God-centred book. The thirty brief but compelling chapters remind us that this world is not our home, that our destiny is ‘a city that has foundations whose designer and builder is God,’ and that we are called to live world-engaging, Christ-glorifying lives. It also highlights a most important aspect of the gospel’s message – the cosmic nature of Christ’s redemption, from its beginning in the wake of Adam’s tragic fall in humanity’s first home, the garden of Eden, to its consummation in the new heavens and new earth.

Here is a call to all Christians to live as pilgrims, pressing onwards and upwards to our eternal home.

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Podcasts

• Mark Johnston Discusses This World Is Not My Home with Theology on the Go

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According to J. C. Ryle, next to praying there is nothing so important in practical religion as Bible reading. God in his mercy has given us a book ‘which is able to make us wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus’ (2 Tim. 3:15). By reading the Bible we may learn what to believe, what to be, and what to do; how to live with comfort, and how to die in peace.

Can anything, therefore, be more important than being in possession of a Bible? However, to have a Bible is one thing, to read it is quite another. Happy is the one who not only has a Bible but who reads it, obeys it, and makes it the rule of one’s faith and practice!

In this little book Ryle clearly explains why we ought to value the Bible highly, to study it regularly, and to make ourselves thoroughly acquainted with its contents.

This book consists of material extracted from Ryle’s Practical Religion, which is also published by the Trust.

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The Psalms of Ascents (Psalms 120-134) were sung by Israelites as they made their way to Jerusalem for the annual feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. As pilgrim songs, they provide a way for believers to express their fears, needs, and aspirations as they journey through this life.

These psalms are also the songs of Jesus. In Marching to Zion you will discover how these ancient songs of Israel affect our faith today, point us to the future, and help keep our eyes on Christ every step of the way.

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On the night of his betrayal, Jesus Christ revealed the deepest concerns of his heart to his disciples. The hours he spent that evening, with his disciples in the upper room, left an indelible impression on the apostle John. Thereafter he never ceased to be amazed by the fact that ‘our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ’.

Nowhere in Scripture is this privilege more fully expounded that in Chapters 13 to 17 of John’s Gospel. John’s record of Jesus’ words and actions takes us into the inner sanctuary of the Christian’s relationship to God. We hear of the mystery of the Trinity, the reality of union with Christ, and the glory which belongs to the Son. Here, in the time of crisis, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ shines forth in all its glory.

In these pages, Charles Ross (who belonged to the same school of Scottish evangelicals as Robert Murray M’Cheyne and the Bonars) shows how all of God’s wisdom and knowledge are revealed in Jesus Christ. The Inner Sanctuary is a little known treasure of biblical exposition and an outstanding aid to increased devotion to Jesus Christ.

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Why Read Church History? is written by a man who is passionate about his subject. With infectious enthusiasm he outlines a number of important reasons why every Christian should develop a keen interest in what God has done in the past. He ably demonstrates the practical value of understanding church history, points out some of the pitfalls to be avoided, and gives useful advice about how to get started. The booklet concludes with recommendations for further reading.

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‘I have often said that Dr. William Childs Robinson was the greatest scholar I had the privilege of studying under. I believe that I took every elective that he offered and would say that his theological influence on my thinking was greater than that of any other teacher. I have quoted him more than probably all of other professors combined.’– D. JAMES KENNEDY

Book Description

A minister of the Presbyterian Church in the United States for more than sixty years, William Childs Robinson’s career spanned the great events of twentieth-century history from the Great Depression to the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights movement. These were difficult years for America and for Protestant Christianity in America. In this book, David Calhoun tells of how Robinson tirelessly laboured to arrest the Southern Presbyterian Church’s slide toward a liberal theological position and preserve the old Calvinism that had marked the church from its beginning. In seminary classrooms, in pulpits across the South and beyond, and in the courts of the church, Robinson’s voice was heard “pleading for a Reformation vision” based on faithfulness to Scripture and supported by the testimony of Reformers, English Puritans and Scottish Covenanters.

There then follows a selection of twenty-three articles from Robinson’s pen which show something of the breadth and depth of Robinson’s vision. In them one sees a man who exercised an all-round ministry as evangelist, pastor, church historian, and theologian, equally at ease writing on such diverse subjects as “The Saviour of Sinners”, “Under His Wings”, “The Theological Emphases of the Old Columbia Seminary”, and “The Trinity: God in Action”. Though unsuccessful in halting the church’s decline into theological liberalism, Robinson’s long years of ministry influenced successive generations of students and ministers, many of whom preserve his legacy by pleading for the same “Reformation vision”.

Review

• Review by Stephen Westcott
• Review by Greg Goswell
• Review by Alan Hill
• Review by Roy Middleton

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‘This book is well worth reading, … the merits of the study are that it is biblical, usually there are plenty of references to support an assertion, and the book proceeds by exegesis of verses and passages; it is practical, the aim being so to expound the doctrine as to promote the experience; it is well set out with headings and sub-headings, so that the substance is not lost in vagueness, and the reader is not lost in complexity…’– J.A. MOTYER

‘A thorough and moving work on the place of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer…’– THE AUSTRALIAN CHURCH RECORD

Book Description

From the author’s Preface: ‘To the subject discussed in the following pages, the author earnestly bespeaks the prayerful consideration of the Christian reader. It cannot occupy a position too prominent in our Christianity, nor can it be a theme presented too frequently for our contemplation. All that we spiritually know of ourselves, all that we know of God, and of Jesus, and his Word, we owe to the teaching of the Holy Spirit; and all the real light, sanctification, strength and comfort we are made to possess on our way to glory, we must ascribe to Him. To be richly anointed with the Spirit is to be led into all truth; and to be filled with the Spirit is to be filled with love to God and man.’

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Review

• Review by Terry Delaney

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

According to Jonathan Edwards, heaven will be a world of holy love. God himself is the source of this love, and in heaven he will impart it perfectly to all his people. Edwards unfolds the nature, expression, effects, and enjoyment of this best of all the gifts God ever bestows on those who believe. From Jonathan Edwards’ Charity and Its Fruits

We asked people how reading Edwards had benefitted them; this is what they said …
Here’s What You Said About Jonathan Edwards

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‘I have long admired the historical/theological writings of Dr. David Calhoun (of Covenant Seminary) because he has the rare gift of combining historical accuracy, wide and deep cultural perception, theological insight and best of all, the fragrance of Christ and his gospel. His most recent volume on the first century of Columbia Theological Seminary (then in South Carolina), 1828-1927 exhibits all of these qualities in a beautiful combination.’– DOUGLAS F. KELLY

Book Description

A few blocks from the First Presbyterian Church of Columbia, South Carolina, is a fine antebellum mansion, the Robert Mills Historic House, named for the man who designed it. The house, beautifully restored, with Regency furnishings, marble mantelpieces, and sterling silver doorknobs and locksets, reflects the wealth and culture of Ainsley Halt, the man who briefly owned it. More fitting, however, would be desks and tables and books of the professors and students of Columbia Theological Seminary, which made the house its home for almost a hundred years. The rooms of the main floor were the classrooms, where George Howe trained generations of Southern ministers in biblical exegesis, where James Henley Thornwell taught Calvin’s Institutes, where John Adger explained the sacraments and church polity, and where John Girardeau set forth the great themes of Reformed theology. It was in one of these rooms that two students organized the Society of Inquiry on Missions in February of 1831.

On the top floor was the library-many of its books lovingly collected in Europe by Thomas Smyth, pastor of Charleston’s Second Presbyterian Church. Woodrow Wilson said that in the little chapel, originally the mansion’s stables, he had heard some of the greatest examples of eloquent and powerful preaching. In that chapel the Southern Presbyterian Book of Church Order was hammered out. A later Columbian beautifully wrote that ‘the Book of Church Order for a church which glories to acclaim [Christ] alone as King who was cradled in a manger, was composed in a house built for a carriage stable’ (William Childs Robinson, Columbia Theological Seminary, p. 94).

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Reviews

• Review by Barry Waugh
• Review by Barry Shucksmith
• Review by Gary Steward
• Review by Kenneth D. Macleod

The post Our Southern Zion appeared first on Banner of Truth UK.

‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

The Puritan preacher Richard Sibbes (1577-1635) really knew how to awaken and invigorate faith, love and joy in Christ in the hearts of his hearers. Taking Paul’s words in Philippians 1:23,24, Sibbes ably shows that we will only begin to desire Christ above all else when we sense how much he loves us sinners, how much he has suffered for our forgiveness, and how unfathomably kind and merciful he is and has been. We love him, because he first loved us (I John 4:19).

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How do Christians come to the certainty that the Bible is the Word of God, and gain an understanding of His mind and will from it? How do they acquire the ability to pray, and lead others in prayer? how are they comforted and supported in all the difficulties they meet? And how can the church be led, taught and guided aright, when Christ is not here on earth?

According to the great Puritan leader John Owen, the answer to all these questions is the same: by the gracious and powerful work of the Holy Spirit.

He it is who convinces, assures, teaches, comforts and equips the church and all its members for all the work they are called to do. In an age when many think Christianity is nothing more than human effort, based on fallible human conclusions, Owen calls the church back to divine certainty and divine resources.

The style in which the Puritans wrote can present difficulties for modern readers, but this updated abridgement by Dr. R.J.K. Law will allow Owen to speak to Christians today on a theme which remains as vitally important for the well-being of the church in the twenty-first century as it was when Owen first wrote.

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In this abridged and easy to read edition of John Owen’s classic work Of Temptation, the famous Puritan theologian opens up Matthew 26:41, carefully explaining what temptation is and what is involved in entering into it.

He then shows how Christ teaches two means for Christians to use to guard against this danger, namely watching and praying: ‘These two’, Owen says, ‘comprise the whole endeavour of faith for the soul’s preservation from temptation’, and he insists that it is the duty of every believer to follow diligently Christ’s instructions to avoid falling into temptation.

Owen helpfully applies his teaching, showing us how we can know whether we have entered into temptation, what practical steps should be taken to preserve our souls from entering into it, how to identify those particular times when people tend to enter into temptation, and the best ways of watching the heart itself.

Sinclair B. Ferguson has written: ‘Many of Owen’s readers have come away from reading him on such themes as temptation and indwelling sin feeling that Owen knew them through and through.’ However, not only do Owen’s penetrating insights open up areas of need in our own hearts, they also open up correspondingly profound assurances of grace in the Lord Jesus Christ.

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How should the Christian assess the contemporary claims about spiritual gifts? In Signs of the Apostles Walter Chantry describes the worldwide spread of the charismatic movement and discusses its significance. He believes God is still working in the world today. But it is his conviction that miraculous powers are no longer placed in the hands of individual men and women.

Every recorded instance of the reception of miraculous power in the New Testament Church occurred through the ministry of an Apostle. Now that the canon of Scripture is complete, the pursuit of all the spiritual gifts of the apostolic age can only proceed upon the basis of a failure to recognize the sufficiency and finality of the Bible.

This short work is written with clarity and vigour. It carefully distinguished some kinds of charismatically-inclined Christians from others. It poses questions with which every Church member is faced. Chantry’s answers tally with those of the greatest leaders of the Church during the Christian centuries. From Psalm 85 he outlines the true character of revival, and closes the book with material drawn from the Great Awakening of the 18th century.

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

Samuel Ward explains the immense value of faith, not only as the gateway to salvation and life everlasting, but as the key to a joyful and triumphant life in this present world. In every sense Christians should be those who live by their faith. Adapted and paraphrased from The Sermons of Samuel Ward, by Richard Rushing.

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

Drawn from Baxter’s famous work, The Reformed Pastor, and arranged topically as a month’s supply of brief daily readings, the maxims and meditations in this little book will not only challenge but encourage the gospel minister to pay careful attention to himself and to the flock in which the Holy Spirit has made him an overseer (Acts 20:28). With an introduction by J.I. Packer.

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‘Prayers on the Psalms is a triple treasure to me. It was edited by my beloved mentor David B. Calhoun, who is truly a gift to the church, it is drawn from the great Scottish Psalter of 1595 and the translated French prayers of Huguenot pastor martyr Augustin Marlorat, and it is based on the Psalms God has given his church to sing and pray in joy and tears. Read it devotionally and pray it passionately.’ — LIGON DUNCAN

‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’ — SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

The Scottish Psalter of 1595 was unique in that it contained a series of prayers on the Psalms. Regarded as ‘one of the little-known devotional treasures of the Scottish Church’ these prayers breathe the spirit of humble confidence in God in the midst of trouble and persecution. Presented here in slightly updated form as Prayers on the Psalms they are sure to suggest much matter for prayer in public, private, and family worship.

Below is an example of how one pastor, Ligon Duncan, uses the prayers for personal devotion:

Reviews

• Review by Mary Bartholomew
  

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

The Puritans believed in the reality of the Devil and in his deadly antagonism to the souls of men. To keep us in our lost and condemned state he employs two devices against us: he persuades us that repentance is easy and believing in Christ is impossible. Brooks masterfully uncovers Satan’s devices and skilfully prescribes the Bible’s remedies against them.

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

The ancients believed that there were as many sins of the tongue as letters in the alphabet, while the Apostle James described the tongue as ‘a world of iniquity’. The Puritan preacher, John Flavel, was often grieved by the language used by professing Christians. Here he warns against several forms of sinful speech and points to the Spirit’s ‘excellent way to season our words, and keep them sweet and sound… (Col. 4:6).’

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

Richard Sibbes always sought to get under the superficial layer of his listeners’ behaviour and deal with their hearts, affections and desires. In The Tender Heart, he explains that those who are tender-hearted do not simply desire salvation; they desire the Lord of salvation himself. Only when a person is brought to love the Lord with heart-felt sincerity will they begin to hate their sin truly instead of merely dreading the thought of God’s punishment of it.

Reviews

• Review by Alan Hill

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

In his constant warfare against the church the devil loves nothing better than to sow the seeds of discord and division. The Puritan Thomas Brooks lamented, ‘Our own woeful experience is too great a proof of this.’ How can we counter this devilish ploy? Brooks outlines a twelve-point action plan and teaches us that United We Stand, Divided We Fall is a fitting motto for every Christian soldier.

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

Anger is God’s good gift to help us resist all that is wrong. But anger may itself be sinful. Richard Baxter gives valuable and practical advice on how to recognize and overcome this sinful anger in all its forms. Adapted and paraphrased from Richard Baxter’s Christian Directory by Richard Rushing.

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‘To read the work of a Puritan doctor of the soul is to enter a rich world of spiritual theology to feed the mind, heart-searching analysis to probe the conscience, Christ-centred grace to transform the heart, and wise counsel to direct the life. This series of Pocket Puritans provides all this in miniature, but also in abundance.’– SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

Often considered a modern phenomenon, binge drinking is in fact an age-old problem. John Flavel, a Puritan minister in the naval port of Dartmouth, England, pulls no punches as he confronts the sin of drunkenness head on. Flavel’s treatment is a highly relevant exposé of the soul-destroying evils of this ‘detestable sin’.

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It is the duty of all Christians to remember those faithful men from whom they heard the gospel of Christ. For those of Scottish descent no Christian leader deserves more to be remembered than John Knox. Born in Haddington around 1514, he took his stand for the Reformation alongside that ‘blessed martyr of Christ’, George Wishart. Assured of God’s call to the ministry of the Word while at St. Andrews, Knox endured many hardships in bringing the gospel’s message to a people in great spiritual darkness. Under God’s blessing he was instrumental in transforming the nation and his stamp, though somewhat faded, still bears its impress upon the Scottish people, both at home and abroad.

Commemorating the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Knox, this little book will encourage readers to not only remember the man but also consider the outcome of his life and imitate his faith.

Note: There are 3 chapters in this book, all of which have been previously published in other Banner titles. If you already own The Puritans, Knowing the Times, and Scottish Christian Heritage, then you already have access to the chapters in this book.

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Review

• Review by Ewan Wilson
• Review by Alan Hill

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Many who are conscious that their spiritual experience and vitality have sadly declined have only a hazy notion of the nature and causes of their condition. The kind of searching analysis which would help to clarify their thoughts and concentrate their sense of conviction is largely absent from the contemporary pulpit and from the Christian literature of the day.

But such help is available, and can be found in works like Octavius Winslow’s Personal Declension and Revival. It discusses the areas of life in which backsliding takes place, examines the consequences, and in the concluding chapters points to the Lord who is the restorer and keeper of his people.

The passage of time since this book was first published in 1841 has not diminished its value, and the fact that it has been frequently reprinted eloquently testifies to its continuing spiritual usefulness.

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Few subjects have received less attention from contemporary Christian writers than that of apostasy. The idea that professing Christians may prove not to be true Christians is, in many respects, too serious a prospect for our facile age. But, for John Owen, such avoidance of the issue was itself a pressing reason for writing on it at length and in great depth of spiritual analysis. His exposition is a masterpiece of penetration and discernment.

Now, in this modernised abridgement of Owen’s work, Dr. R. J. K. Law makes its powerful teaching readily accessible to modern readers. Some will find its pages deeply soul-searching; others will be struck with the clarity of Owen’s insight; all will find a work which wounds in order to heal.

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Review

• Review by Terry Delaney.

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‘I shall never cease to be grateful to. . .Richard Sibbes who was balm to my soul at a period in my life when I was overworked and badly overtired, and therefore subject in an unusual manner to the onslaughts of the devil. I found at that time that Richard Sibbes, who was known in London in the early seventeenth century as “The Heavenly Doctor Sibbes” was an unfailing remedy. . . The Bruised Reed. . . quietened, soothed, comforted, encouraged and healed me.’ — D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Book Description

Richard Sibbes (1577-1635), one of the most influential figures in the Puritan movement during the earlier years of the seventeenth century, was renowned for the rich quality of his ministry. The Bruised Reed shows why he was known among his contemporaries as ‘the sweet dropper’.

The Bruised Reed is now issued for the first time in a smaller format in the Puritan Paperbacks series. Some of the language and punctuation have been modernized to make the work more accessible.

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Reviews

• Review by Nick Roark
• Review by Derek J. Brown (TGC)

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John Owen believed that communion with God lies at the heart of the Christian life. With Paul he recognized that through the Son we have access by the Spirit to the Father. He never lost the sense of amazement expressed by John: ‘Our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ’. In this outstanding book he explains the nature of this communion and describes the many privileges it brings.

Communion with God was written in a day, like our own, when the doctrine of the Trinity was under attack and the Christian faith was being reduced either to rationalism on the one hand or mysticism on the other. His exposition shows that nothing is more vital to spiritual well-being than a practical knowledge of what this doctrine means.

Until now, Communion With God has been read by only small numbers of Christians with access to the 275 closely-printed pages in The Works of John Owen. Now Dr. R. J. K. Law has produced a splendidly readable abridgement of one of the greatest Christian classics of all time, bringing Owen’s rich teaching to a much wider readership.

Review

• Review article by Ian Hamilton

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More well known for his Reformed Pastor, Richard Baxter was the outstanding pastor of Kidderminster. Dying Thoughts is his exposition of Paul’s words in Philippians 1:23: ‘For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ, which is far better.’ Benjamin Fawcett who made this abridged version of the original work wrote, ‘The Dying Thoughts of Mr. Baxter chiefly present to our view what every Christian may attain, and what it is the highest interest, as well as the indispensable duty of every Christian to aspire after.’

In this little book, we see Baxter wrestling with his own doubts and fears as he faces eternity, jealously examining his own heart, anxious to test his own sincerity, taking nothing for granted. Baxter wanted to die with every grace in his soul in full vigour. A man of life passions as ourselves, his Dying Thoughts provides much needed counsel, strength and comfort because it deals with the same conflicts, complaints and desires which fill our own hearts.

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‘These pages are indeed – as we sense from Owen’s preface and from the work itself – his own “last will and testament” – an heirloom to those fellow believers and close friends who, in turbulent times, gathered together under his ministry. It remains an encouragement to us to “consider Jesus” (Heb. 3:1).’ — SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON

Book Description

In The Glory of Christ, here abridged and made easy to read, we have the great Puritan pastor and theologian John Owen at his richest and most mature. Here he writes about Jesus Christ, the heart of the gospel. Owen himself tells us that the substance of the work began in his own private meditation and study and only later was shared with his congregation. Here, then, is a master theologian writing about the things, or better, the person, nearest to his heart. The work itself was composed almost at the end of Owen’s life and first published in 1684, the year after his death. Indeed, the material in chapters fifteen to seventeen of this abridgement appeared for the first time in the second edition of 1696, having been found among Owen’s papers only after his death but clearly intended as the closing section of the work.

On the day of Owen’s death (24 August 1683) William Payne, a minister in Saffron Walden who had accepted responsibility for seeing the manuscript of this work through to publication, visited him in Ealing (now part of London) to share the good news that Meditations on the Glory of Christ was now going through the press. Owen’s biographers record his memorable and beautiful reply:

I am glad to hear it; but, O brother Payne! the long-wished-for day is come at last, in which I shall see that glory in another manner than I have ever done, or was capable of doing in this world.

It is clear from these pages that Owen had already seen the glory of Christ from afar and pondered long on its significance. His teaching is well-suited to bring us to share in his longing to know Christ better, to see his glory more clearly and to serve him more faithfully. It is the conviction of the publisher that many readers will discover this book to be one of the hidden treasures of Christian literature and will return to it again and again for instruction and spiritual refreshment.

Reviews

• Review by Joshua Mills

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To Thomas Watson, the Lord’s Supper was a visible sermon, a mirror in which to gaze on the sufferings and death of Christ. ‘God, to help our faith, does not only give us an audible Word, but a visible sign.’ But more than this, the Supper was a time in which to partake of the benefits of Christ’s death by faith, to be fed and cherished by the Lord in his own banqueting house, and to obtain a foretaste of the glory which will be fully realized only in heaven. Watson’s aim was to stimulate greater love to Christ in His people, and to enhance their appreciation of the Supper as a spiritual feast for all believers. His fine exposition shows the rich provision made in the Supper for all who love the Lord, while it also lays bare the emptiness of all mere sacramentalism.

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Thomas Chalmers wrote that Owen’s book on Spiritual-Mindedness holds ‘a distinguished rank among the voluminous writings of this celebrated author’. For him three features made it very special:

-The force with which it applies truth to the conscience.
-The way Owen plumbs the depths of Christian experience as a skillful physician of the soul.
-The uncovering of the secrets of the mind and heart so that the true spiritual state of the reader is discovered.

This book began life as a collection of meditations on Romans 8:6, which were written for the author’s own benefit during a time of illness. Alarmed by the subtle power the world exercises over the mind, Owen shows us how to really live by raising our thoughts above all earthly objects and setting them on ‘things above, where Christ is’ (Col. 3:1)

A favorite book of William Wilberforce, it contains some passages which are not surpassed in all of Owen’s writings. It comes from the pen of a tender-hearted pastor whose only purpose is to encourage the believer in the ongoing battle against sin. So if you feel overwhelmed by the power of worldliness then this is definitely the book for you!

Review

• Review by Brain Garrard
• Review by Alan Hill

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