John E Marshall: Life and Writings – A Review by Kenneth Macleod

John E Marshall – Life and Writings¹ is published by the Banner of Truth Trust and most of the book is taken up with a selection of papers delivered at various conferences. These papers begin with one on John Rogers, the first martyr in England during the time of Queen Mary. It ends with a quotation from John Foxe relating how his wife and ten of his children met him on the way to the stake:

This sorrowful sight of his own flesh and blood could nothing move him, but that he constantly and cheerfully took his death with wonderful patience, in the defence and quarrel of Christ’s gospel (p 106).

A later paper consists of a thorough analysis of the Puritan Walter Marshall’s excellent book, The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification. It includes some discussion of second-blessing teaching, which, says John Marshall, ‘thrives in a situation of inadequate and grossly deficient preaching of the gospel’. His next sentence is much more widely applicable:

In an age when many hear woefully inadequate gospel preaching, large numbers of people are brought to some kind of decision and some kind of experience which falls far short of true faith and repentance.

But he continues,

Instead of telling such poor creatures that they need to be converted, those who have preached this inadequate gospel say that what these ‘converts’ lack is some further experience which will remedy their present deficiencies (p 166).

Also included is an interesting paper on ‘Rabbi’ Duncan and assurance; and there is a useful discussion on the Christian and mental illness. The book concludes with two conference sermons which include robust comment on today’s religious situation

John Marshall was minister of a Congregational church in Hemel Hempstead for 45 years till his death in 2003. The book includes an interesting short biography by Rev John J Murray, in which, however, an occasional corrective comment would have been helpful.