Yearly Archives: 2018

Almost two years ago I shared 15 reasons why visitation is good for your Pastor (you can read it here). At the time it was so fulfilling to talk to people about what I’d written, both online and in the real world, and to feel a sense of conviction about my own pastoral practice in […]

‘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 […]

Jeff Kingswood and Bill VanDoodewaard tell us why they come to the Banner of Truth Ministers’ Conference.

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 center 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 […]

The links to all the 2018 UK Banner Ministers’ Conference live stream videos and recorded addresses will be listed here during the conference. Go here to find all videos from the conference   Conference Schedule Eastern Standard Time Monday, April 23 12:15pm – Opening Sermon – Geoff Thomas 3:15pm – Expository Preachers – Steve Lawson Tuesday, April […]

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 […]

The links to all the 2018 UK Banner Youth Conference live stream videos and recorded addresses will be listed here during the conference. Go here to find all videos from the conference  (For Youth Conference videos, please click the ‘View All’ button under ‘Uploads’)   Conference Schedule Eastern Standard Time Friday, April 21 2.45pm – Seeing […]

‘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 […]

I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh. — Romans 9:1-3 (ESV) […]

It has long been observed that the eye sees all else but not itself. As a preacher, I am sometimes called upon to use a translator. Issues like accents and mannerisms are raised, and my default position is that I have none. It is everybody else who has an accent and some unusual mannerisms. As […]

First time attendee Samuel Beaulieu talks about his time in Elizabethtown, PA, attending the 2017 US Banner of Truth Ministers’ conference. Are you interested in attending the 2018 Banner of Truth Ministers’ Conference? Standard registration ends this month – click here to register.

Sidney Joseph Hickman, a beloved deacon at Hope Chapel, Blackboys and Ebenezer Chapel, Horam, for over fifty-one years and a member of the church for over sixty-four years, passed to his eternal rest on Lord’s day evening, March 19th, 2017, aged 97 years. He served on the Committee of the Gospel Standard Societies for fourteen […]

We must not forget the self sacrifice of one man who on March 23, 2018, gave his own life so that one particular person might live. It happened in the old French town of Carcassonne, and many have prayed for the gospel church in that town for decades. Then on Friday 23rd March an Islamic […]

Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. –Acts 2:38 Perhaps this heading takes you by surprise. You have come to know, over many years from my writing and preaching, that this is not […]