Articles

I overheard someone asking a newcomer at the Westminster Conference if he were enjoying the conference. There was a pause and then a thoughtful, ‘. . .yes’. Not a resounding, ‘You bet!’ A considered response as though it was turning out to be not the kind of conference that he was expecting. It is not […]

I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you? –Acts 19:15 Paul’s ministry in Ephesus was truly remarkable. I love reading about it in Acts 19. It always inspires me with what God can do through men filled with the Spirit who consecrate themselves to Christ, willing to live for him and […]

There is usually an interesting story behind an important word in any language. This is certainly true of our English word ‘gospel’. The Greek word evangel, which it now translates, at first meant the reward of good tidings given to the messenger who brought it. In process of time this meaning became altered and the […]

Just as it is written: ‘Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.’ What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.’ It does not, therefore, depend on man’s desire […]

I was at the opening of a new church building in London on Saturday November 17. Its opening is at a time when Britain is currently experiencing Ash Dieback, a disease of ash trees caused by a fungus. It was first identified in the UK in 2012 and is now widespread. Over the next few […]

The following article is taken from chapter eight of Rhett P. Dodson‘s new book, Marching to Zion. * * * Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labour in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and […]

In a world which invites us to constantly publicise ourselves, self-description heavily outweighs self-knowledge. Social media and celebrity culture invite us to write our own label and then live up to it, whether or not we have thought through how psychologically accurate or even morally appropriate that description might be. Twitter asks us to compose […]

‘Behold, now is the acceptable time. Behold, now is the day of salvation.’ — 2 Corinthians 6:2 I tried to show last week that many of us in the Reformed and Calvinistic world are woefully weak in asking for the order in our preaching and one-on-one evangelistic work. I know some are very quick to ‘get […]

November 11th 2018 marked the one hundredth anniversary of the ending of World War One. It had been confidently anticipated that the conflict would be over by the Christmas of 1914. Instead, it dragged on for over four years and proved to be by far the bloodiest conflict in human history to that point. By war’s […]

In his perfect wisdom and kind grace God has given to his church, from the dawn of time, great and godly leaders. We need only think of Abraham, the father of all who believe, Moses the man of God, and David the man after God’s own heart. Almost the whole of one lengthy chapter in […]

David Brainerd was an 18th Century American missionary of Reformed beliefs. We say American but Brainerd lived before the Declaration of Independence and so, like his contemporaries, thought of himself chiefly as an Englishman. The struggle between the colonial powers of England, France, and Spain raged throughout his lifetime. In his short life, he travelled […]

The following is an abridged extract from Flavel’s great treatise A Blow At the Root; or The Causes and Cure of Mental Errors. The complete work can be found in Flavel’s Works, vol. III pp. 419-492, 1820 edition. Flavel is one of the richest of the Puritan writers. JOHN FLAVEL (c. 1628-1691) An error is any […]

It is the centenary of the end of the First World War. Let us remind ourselves of that fearful period in British history of valiant courage, self-sacrifice, unimaginable suffering and death. What can we learn from it? Five of the Causes that Triggered the War 1. Mutual Defence Alliances Countries throughout Europe made mutual defence agreements […]

Just a couple of weeks ago, Steve Burchett and I loaded up his van and drove to Oklahoma from Kansas City for retreat with the leaders of a well-known international ministry I won’t name. The trip was pleasant, but when we arrived after several hours, the gate of the retreat center was only partially opened […]

‘If Spurgeon has been a blessing to your soul, would you consider writing a brief testimonial,’ they said. Not an easy task, because Spurgeon has been such a blessing to me, but to begin with, there are the Sermons, in which Spurgeon takes a small phrase of Scripture and uses it as the key to […]

I remember group projects in high school and college. They normally did not go well. Either a brainiac, an egomaniac, or a sluggard usually messed things up. Too many people contributing to one common project caused things to just not be as good as if one person is doing a project. The reality is, most […]

From as early as I can remember, books, poetry, and literature have mattered to me a great deal. That interest intensified in my teens, and eventually led me to study English as a single honours subject at university — I had no career plans back in those care free, fee-free, days of undergrad education! Lurking […]

Jacques Lefevre has been variously called ‘The Pioneer of the Reformation in France’, ‘The Patriarch of the Reformers in France’ and ‘The Founder of the French Reformation’. Why then is so little written and known about a man to whom such titles are given by historians? There are two probable reasons. Firstly, the dreadful persecutions […]

‘The Reformation from Popery in the sixteenth century was the greatest event, or series of events, that has occurred since the close of the canon of Scripture; and the men who are really entitled to he called the ‘Leaders of the Reformation’ have a claim to more respect and gratitude than any other body of […]

The arrival of the Autumn season, with the month of October in particular, ushers in a host of events, decorations, recipes—even scents—for occupants in the Northern hemisphere. Many prepare their homes both outside and in, eager for what the season will entail, while reflecting on what past Autumns have brought. This is especially true for […]

To read John Owen on the doctrine of the atonement is to encounter a unique exercise in biblical theology being channelled through rigorous reason. In The Death of Death Owen’s full rhetorical and logical prowess is on display. He handles the opposing viewpoints of his theological interlocutors with sincerity, but also with a rational severity […]

‘These men who have upset the world have come here also.’ — Acts 17:6 How do we motivate the millennial generation to take up the challenge of world evangelization? As I wrote last week, many define the millennial generation as those born between 1980 and 2000. In the United States roughly 75 million millennials were […]

This is considered the height of being contemporary and ‘really communicating’ to modern man. We are being urged to interweave pictures and videos during our sermons. If a new preacher is tempted to use a projector, I would suggest that you do it just occasionally at first. Don’t think that you are obliged to do […]

Augustine, the son of a Roman official, was born at Tagaste in North Africa in A.D. 354. Endowed with brilliant talents, strongly motivated by vain glory and the desire of praise, he was by the age of nineteen studying and teaching rhetoric in the ancient city of Carthage. Here, with his mind bent on the […]

‘Do not grieve the Holy Spirit’ –Ephesians 4:30 | ‘Do not quench the Spirit’ — 1 Thessalonians 5:19 | ‘Insulting the Spirit of grace’ –Hebrews 10:29 |’Repent. . . be baptized. . . receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’ — Acts 2:38 After his resurrection and just prior to his ascension, the Lord Jesus gathered his disciples and […]