Articles

It is rather audacious to claim that we are reformed. It can also be misleading when we call ourselves Reformed Churches. For this might imply that we believe that our denominations are truly reformed; or, even worse, that at some point in the past we were or became reformed and that the task of reform […]

He is a worshipper. His life revolves around his worship. Nothing stops him. There is no doubt about his worship. Everyone knows the object of his worship, because he cannot stop talking about it. Even the way he dresses and behaves declares his commitment to his cause. On a Monday morning he is full of […]

The following sermon, published as ‘The Personality of the Holy Ghost’, was delivered on Sabbath morning, January 21, 1855, by the Rev. C.H. Spurgeon, at New Park Street Chapel, Southwark. ‘And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth; […]

It is something of a commonplace in these days to read about the ‘psychology of conversion’ or the ‘anatomy of a soul’, and often enough what masquerades under such titles is but an onslaught on faith and a denigration of both conversion and the notion of the soul. It is in stark contrast to this […]

The following post, reflecting on the value and relevance of Francis Schaeffer’s A Christian Manifesto, appeared at Christ Over All and is used here with their kind permission. Francis Schaeffer wrote A Christian Manifesto in 1981, three years before he died. It is worth reflecting in general on this work, the cultural moment in which […]

The following is the text of Arnold Dallimore’s essay, Spiritual and Moral Conditions in England before the Revival which appears in Volume 1 of his George Whitefield: The Life and Times of the Great Evangelist of the Eighteenth-Century Revival. Righteousness exalteth a nation; but sin is a reproach to any people. Proverbs 14:34 I love […]

The Rev Kenneth A MacRae (1883-1964) exercised a powerful ministry over 50 years in the Free Church of Scotland and his memory lives on in the monumental work, Diary of Kenneth A MacRae, edited with additional material by Iain Murray.* He made a lasting impression on my early Christian life. I had correspondence with him […]

‘Why are you cast down, O my soul? … Hope in God.’ Psalm 43:5 David was in great trials and afflictions, for God allows his children to fall into long and great afflictions and troubles before his deliverance comes. It is implied in the text that David was reproving his soul for being cast down. […]

Kevin DeYoung’s recent World news article on evangelical compromise with LGBTQ is immensely helpful. DeYoung points out that such compromise is rarely, if ever, instantaneous. Rather, it manifests gradually, as truth is first omitted, then de-emphasised, and finally deemed to be beyond the pale. ‘Rarely do evangelical leaders and institutions leap all at once from […]

In the year that King Uzziah died, Isaiah the prophet saw the Lord, high and lifted up. There had been no king like Uzziah since the golden age of Solomon 300 years before. He had reigned for 52 years—the vast majority of the people did not remember any other king. It was a time of […]

What is biblical friendship? Drawing inspiration especially from the Proverbs, Paul Beardmore describes the nature, purpose, joys, and pitfalls of friendship. The following material was first presented in a Sunday School class at Grace Baptist Church, Carlisle, PA. Friendship, let alone biblical friendship, is largely absent from our culture today. The challenge of finding a […]

In Exodus 18 Moses spends a whole chapter on his father-in-law Jethro. I think it’s safe to assume that Moses didn’t promise to give him a prominent spot in his book in order to win brownie points with the in-laws! So why then is this chapter here? One of its main purposes is to do […]

Do you find yourself constantly surprised by the things that God says are important as you read through Scripture? I found this, yet again, just a couple of weeks ago when I came to preach on Exodus 16 and was confronted by a whole chapter about manna. More space is given to it in Exodus […]

It is a question worth pondering as to whether there is much serious prayer being offered up in our busy age. There is undoubtedly a welter of other things being attempted: files of paper are prepared on a host of topics; memoranda by the score are recorded; statistics are noted; committees are formed and then […]

In the book of Revelation the apostle John is taken up through an open door into the throne room of the whole universe. We watch through his eyes as the Lord Jesus appears before the throne of God and takes a scroll from the right hand of God. This densely-worded scroll contains God’s blueprints for […]

‘See Mary weeping.’ So runs the invitation in the Townend-Getty Easter hymn, See What a Morning. Mary has come to Jesus’ tomb on the morning of the first day of the week and stands outside it weeping. Why is she weeping? She gives us the answer herself: ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I […]

The other week I came across one of those sayings that sticks in your mind and makes you think: ‘An expert hits a target no-one else can hit; a genius hits a target no-one else can see.’ It struck me that there is a third level we could add: ‘the Lord hits a target no-one […]

Gentleness is tender strength. Without the tender heart, strength could do damage. Without the strong hand, tenderness could prove ineffectual. Gentleness, then, is a function of strength. There is nothing either harsh or weak about gentleness, but rather pity of heart and power of hand combined attractively and effectively. While it knows nothing of heartless […]

‘Query – a query for which I will not demand an answer – has one of you ever beaten the dust from the venerable copy of Poole which loads our library shelves? Yet as Poole spent no less than ten years in compiling it, it should be worthy of your frequent notice – ten years, […]

Why Baxter? His theology was not entirely sound. His desire to promote church unity sometimes betrayed him into seeking common cause with those who were far removed from the biblical faith. Although an able controversialist, he confesses: ‘I am too much inclined to such words in controversial writings which are too keen, and apt to […]

Later in 2022, the Banner will be re-issuing the Memoir of Alexander Moody Stuart by his son, Kenneth Moody Stuart. Principal John Macleod, in his Scottish Theology, commented that there were ‘few ministerial biographies that are better worth reading.’ Join the waitlist to be informed of when this inspiring title is released. This article is […]

It was my privilege to grow up in a home with Christian parents. There were things I knew before I truly believed them. And so it was that I sat in the second year of my middle school, probably about nine years old, listening to my teacher tell a joke about hell as part of […]

In the video below, join a pastor, a ruling elder, an intern, and a seminary student as they travel from Greenville, SC to a Banner Ministers’ Conference in Elizabethtown, PA. The US Ministers’ Conference is an annual event in Elizabethtown, PA, where men gather from a variety of ministerial vocations to worship God and sit […]

Perhaps you have been disappointed and distressed by tales in the past year of men, often prominent men, who have departed from the faith. Some have drifted from the truth, others have given themselves to particular sins, several have adopted crass fads and carnal fashions. In some cases, you were sadly unsurprised. In others, you […]

As Machen lay dying on New Year’s Eve, 1936, he wasn’t thinking about any of his many and considerable achievements throughout his life. He dictated a telegram to his colleague John Murray in which his last words are recorded, ‘I’m so thankful for [the] active obedience of Christ. No hope without it.’