Articles

‘Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.’ — Genesis 15:16 We find in Genesis 15 that Yahweh Elohim reaffirms His covenant with Abram (Genesis 12:1-3), saying that He will be Abram’s shield and great reward. He would have a son and his descendants […]

There’s a well worn quotation – often wrongly attributed to Mark Twain – which goes along the lines of ‘by the age of seventeen I realised that my father knew nothing. By the age of twenty one I was amazed at how much he had learned’. Regardless of who coined this phrase, it carries a […]

It’s exam-time. Over the next few weeks most of the youngsters who attend the church will be sitting exams of one sort or another. SATS, GCSEs, A levels, university assessments, music exams. . . From early childhood into our twenties, we face one daunting educational hurdle after another and some of us then go back […]

My late Dad bought me a pair of Grenson shoes for my wedding, solid and sensible footwear. They can be buffed to guardsman standard, but are stiff and inflexible and uncomfortable. I wore them to his funeral after my wedding, and have only worn them when I’m conducting funerals in the fourteen years since. Along […]

No doubt readers of New Life are well aware of my love for the work of the Banner Of Truth Trust. There is a good reason for this. As a student for the ministry I was one of the many victims of a broad, liberal ‘theological education’. I didn’t exactly fall for it ‘hook, line […]

More than 300 men in ministry gathered at Yarnfield Park Conference Centre in the British Midlands for the 2018 Banner of Truth Ministers’ Conference, 23-26 April on the theme Ministers of Christ. They came from all over the UK and many other countries around the world. The weather outside was dark and foreboding, with steady rain […]

There are the usual things I believe and say about any conference, for example, that its ethos is bigger that the messages. Each conference emerges from a certain constituency and reflects its values and beliefs, but when its constituency changes, this is reflected in the rearrangement of emphases in the conference. We also believe that […]

John Calvin wrote many commentaries, and many sermons. The Banner of Truth publishes a large collection of both. In the video below, watch as Derek Thomas briefly describes how Calvin’s sermons are different from his commentaries, who they are intended for, and why you should read them. Then, click here to take advantage of this […]

It used to be a feature of a Sunday afternoon that a letter would be written to missionaries, absent friends, or children away in college. This was the practice of Dr. Cornelius Van Til of Westminster Theological Seminary, especially writing to the mother of Bob Den Dulk whose godliness and wisdom he greatly admired. Then […]

‘. . . they began dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset the world have come here also.”‘ –Acts 17:6 When Paul the Apostle answered the Macedonian call and travelled from Troas to the Roman province of Macedonia, to the city of Philippi, God did a great […]

Of all the societal and psychological changes brought on by the dominance of social media, one of its most interesting effects is on our language. Headlines have been replaced by hashtags as a means of capturing the essence of a story, and terms can be coined, duplicated and globally disseminated in a matter of minutes. […]

The Great Commission stands at the centre of Christianity as the command of the risen Lord Jesus Christ for his church to proclaim the name of God in the world for the sake of all nations and God’s glory among them. The church fulfils the commission by making disciples of Christ, teaching them to observe […]

It’s probably true — though I can’t prove it — that every Church Prayer Meeting will have people in attendance that do not pray. We all know what it’s like to be in a meeting with those ‘awkward silences’. Not only that, it’s probably every minister’s goal to get everyone praying. It’s the ministerial equivalent […]

Roger Hitchings talks to us about the books that have impacted his life and faith. * * * The book that I am currently reading… Actually, I am reading two. The first is The Gospel Focus of Charles Spurgeon by Stephen Lawson. This is part of a series of books that are all quite excellent. The […]

‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing…teaching…’ –Matthew 28:19, 20 There is a long history of Christians, on both the political right and left, who find themselves being seduced by Babylon, the political spirit of the age. The seduction is real, but it often goes unnoticed, slowly gaining a grip on our […]