Book Reviews

The God who knows everything about himself has by no means told us all. There are many things that remain a secret, known only to himself. Much, we may be sure, has been passed over in total silence. And when he has spoken, he has told us only a very little. The mysteries of Christianity […]

Calvin’s sermons on Paul’s epistle to Titus have been available in the form of a facsimile of the 1579 edition of Calvin’s sermons on the letters to Timothy and Titus. This new translation by Robert White, however, has the pleasing effect of making them more accessible to the modern reader, as well as more portable. […]

A remarkable book has appeared entitled With Mercy and With Judgement and with a sub-title, Strict Baptists and the First World War. It is written by Matthew J. Hyde. Dr. Hyde is a research scientist and a minister among the Strict Baptist Churches. He has done years of research into the stories of the soldiers, […]

The occasion of this book of David Randall’s on A Sad Departure is the recent departure from the Church of Scotland of forty or so ministers and an (unspecified) number of other office-bearers and members. The book provides a rationale for this departure. The author was one of the ministers who separated from the Kirk […]

This ‘splendid work . . . should be read by all exercised Christians’. Rev Murdoch Campbell (whose own books were largely devotional) wrote this assessment of Scottish Theology around the time it was first published. It might seem strange to emphasise that all exercised believers should read this type of book. At first glance, the […]

Those who know what it is to say of Christ, ‘I sought Him but I found Him not’, will find much which resonates with their experience in this work by Sibbes; it is taken from volume 6 of Sibbes’ Works. In the early part of the book he deals with Mary’s experience of seeking, and […]

This is a modern English translation by Dr Rob Roy McGregor from the French text and first published by Banner in 2009.There are 49 sermons in all on chapters 1 to 11:4 and they were preached in Geneva between September 1th 1559 and January 23rd 1560. The words of Calvin come fresh and clear even […]

This is a new translation by Robert-White of four sermons by John Calvin (JC). First published in 1552, the original title (in English) was ‘Four sermons of Master John Calvin, entreating of matters very profitable for our time, with a brief Exposition of Psalm 87.’ Included here are three letters by JC, one of the […]

This is a book that frankly you wish didn’t have to be written but which you are glad has been. It became necessary because of the recent developments in the Church of Scotland which have seen the denomination reject the authority of Scripture and its biblical roots and accept the ordination of ministers who are […]

A review by Bob Thomas of Preparation For Ministry.1 Carl Trueman calls this book ‘A brief but brilliant book on ministry’, and so it is. Allan Harman’s wisdom gathered over half a century’s involvement in theological education, more latterly as Professor of Old Testament and then Principal of the Presbyterian Theological College, Melbourne, is distilled […]

‘a great little book … delightfully simple … [appendices] incredibly helpful for pastors and ministerial students.’ – Carl Trueman on Allan Harman’s Preparation For Ministry. In the Notes below are links to selected online reviews of Banner titles, mostly posted October/December 2015. The views expressed are of course those of the respective bloggers/reviewers. For each […]

A review by Stephen J. Tracey of Sinclair B. Ferguson’s From the Mouth of God: Trusting, Reading, and Applying the Bible.1 One old Scottish preacher on visiting members of his congregation would habitually ask, ‘What portion of God’s word did you read today?’ It was a wise question for two reasons. First, it was an […]

A review by Julian Bull of Media Gratiae’s multimedia presentation Logic on Fire: The Life and Legacy of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones.1 Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones has been described by some as the ‘greatest preacher of the 20th century’. His ministry at Westminster Chapel in Buckingham Gate, London spanned the years from before WWII to the end […]

A review by Brian Garrard of John Calvin’s Sermons on the Epistle to the Ephesians.1 These sermons by John Calvin (JC) were first published in 1562 and were in French. An English translation by Arthur Golding appeared in 1577, followed by a revision by Leslie Rawlinson and S. M. Houghton in 1973. JC is justly […]

A review by Donald Mackay of The St Andrews Seven: The finest flowering of missionary zeal in Scottish history by Stuart Piggin and John Roxborogh.1 This is a reprint of a book that first appeared in 1985. A Korean edition was published in 2002. The claim implicit in the subtitle of the book is not […]

A review by Gervase N. Charmley of John Knox, by Jane Dawson (Yale University Press, 2015), 384 pages, clothbound, ISBN 978-0-30011-473-7, £25/$45. John Knox was born in either 1514 or 1515, and so this period has called forth a welcome variety of works celebrating, or at least commemorating, the Scottish Reformer. This handsome volume, standing […]

‘it is now possible for multitudes of individuals from all generations and from all over the world to reap the benefits and blessings of God’s gift to His church in the form of the life and ministry of one of His most able preachers.’ – Julian Bull on the Media Gratiae multimedia presentation Logic on […]

A review by Christine Farenhorst of What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? by Kevin DeYoung (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015), paperback, 154 pages. Over the last number of summers, Thursday nights have been designated for downtown evangelism in Kitchener, Ontario. With a regular team of five or six people, we stood on a corner, […]

A review by Greg Goswell of His Love Endures For Ever: Reflections on the Love of God, by Garry J. Williams (Nottingham: IVP, 2015), 192 pages, paperback, ISBN 978-1-78359-283-8. Garry Williams teaches at London Theological Seminary and Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. In his latest book he provides a doctrinal and devotional exploration of the love […]

A review by David Campbell of What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? by Kevin DeYoung (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015), paperback, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-43354-937-3. If we could withdraw to the proverbial desert island the problems created by homosexuality might easily be among the many left behind us. Such a withdrawal is for most […]

A review by Dr Stephen Westcott of the Trust’s new one-volume edition of The Church of Christ: A Treatise on the Nature, Powers, Ordinances, Discipline, and Government of the Christian Church by James Bannerman.1 This formidably sized volume, originally published in 1869, covers a wide ranging and vitally important subject: the origin, nature, organisation and […]

A review by Ryan M. McGraw of Catechizing Our Children: The Whys and Hows of Teaching the Shorter Catechism Today by Terry L. Johnson.1 Catechizing is often a missing ingredient in the discipleship of covenant children today. Many parents reject catechizing by pitting it against Bible memorization. Yet those making this objection fail to realize […]

A review by David Campbell of Sermons of the Great Ejection.1 This collection is a revised and reset edition of the 1962 publication which marked the tercentenary of the Great Ejection in August l662. It consists of sermons, memorials, and brief biographies of seven English non-conformists first published in 1662 as An Exact Collection of […]

A review by Trevor Scott of The Korean Pentecost and the Sufferings which Followed, by William Blair (1876-1970) and Bruce Hunt (1903-1992).1 The first part of the book, by Dr William B1air, gives an account of a great revival in the Korean church in 1907. In the summer of 1832 the first Protestant missionary, Charles […]

A review by Jim Eshelman of Media Gratiae’s multimedia presentation Logic on Fire: The Life and Legacy of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones.1 Who was Dr. David Martyn Lloyd-Jones? If you have never read the official biography of ‘The Doctor’ by Iain Murray, or if it has been over 30 years since you have read that biography, […]