Resources

James Bannerman was a son of the manse, his father being minister of the Cargill, Church of Scotland, congregation in Perthshire. James Bannerman was ordained and installed as the minister of the Ormiston, Church of Scotland parish in 1833 and in 1843, the year of the Great Disruption, he left the Church of Scotland for […]

The Christian church on earth is always, in a sense, in exile. Whatever the incidental identities of her members may be — whether of nationality, race, class, or gender — their ultimate identity is that they are in Christ and belong to him. Compared to the ephemeral categories that human cultures have created for distinguishing […]

On October 28, 1949, twenty-two year old Jim Elliot, then completing his studies at Wheaton College, Illinois, wrote in his journal: He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. In less than seven years he had given his life as a missionary in Ecuador, attempting to […]

The United States is in big trouble. Our foreign policy is in shambles. There is geo-political instability all over the globe – China, Russia, the Middle East, Isis, Al Queda. Things on the home front continue to go from bad to worse – racial unrest, the embrace of same sex marriage and the disenfranchisement of […]

John Murray, the great 20th-century theologian, once spoke to the children in his Sunday School on the surpassing value of The Shorter Catechsim,1, 2, 3 saying, Now everyone of you children should know The Shorter Catechism from the beginning to the end without a mistake by this age. Now that’s without joking at all. At […]

A review by Peter Barnes of J. C. Ryle’s Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots.1 No one has written more simply, more graciously, and more helpfully than J. C. Ryle, and the 21 chapters which constitute the full edition of Holiness (the enlarged 1879 edition which expanded the 1877 edition) reveal Ryle at his […]

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold new things have come (2 Corinthians 5:17). Elvis Presley was already a huge rock and roll star when he sauntered into the Sun Records studio in Memphis in December, 1956. Jerry Lee Lewis was gaining fast on Elvis’ […]

A review by Mignon Goswell of Iain H. Murray’s Amy Carmichael: ‘Beauty for Ashes’ – A Biography.1 Iain Murray has written yet another compelling biography, this time about Amy Carmichael, missionary to India, whom Murray believes is ‘not known as she used to be’. As Murray read more of Amy Carmichael’s writings he became convinced […]

. . . there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, and freeman, but Christ is all and in all (Colossians 3:11). The so-called Charles Spurgeon of America, John Lafayette Girardeau, was born in 1825 on James Island, South Carolina into a French Huguenot family. He was reared in […]

Many people have asked me about the effect of the recent events in France1 upon our ministry amongst the ethnic minorities. The answer is that our Muslim friends are more open than ever to the gospel. Most Muslim are embarrassed by what had happened, not only in France, but also the horrible beheading of Christians. […]

Have you ever read Ezekiel 16? If not, stop now and do so. There are surely few more disturbing chapters in the Bible. Ezekiel has been commissioned by God to bring his word of judgment to his faithless covenant people, a judgment that would culminate in the overwhelming devastation that Babylon would bring to Jerusalem […]

Be faithful until death (Revelation 2:10). We know next to nothing of persecution in the western church. This may be changing. Might we learn steadfastness from the church at Smyrna? Smyrna was one of the great cities of Asia Minor. It enjoyed westward winds which brought gentle breezes from the Mediterranean Sea and it was […]

Robert Murray McCheyne died a young man, yet his achievements were broad, and his significance is consequently substantial and diverse. The focus for this paper is the ‘Life and Sermons’, and therefore I will focus particularly on McCheyne the preacher. His importance in this area is more than sufficient to justify serious and sustained attention, […]

‘Iain Murray’s latest work is a brief, accessible biography of Carmichael, I knew I had to give it a go. I’m glad I did.’ – Tim Challies on Amy Carmichael – ‘Beauty for Ashes’: A Biography. In the Notes below are links to selected online reviews of Banner titles, mostly posted March/April 2015. The views […]

One thing I love about Alaska is the pioneering spirit of independence evident in so many people here. ‘Do it yourself’ is just a way of life for many Alaskans. But this mind-set doesn’t carry over very well to a Christian’s relationship to the church. Many Christians have left traditional churches in favour of forming […]

Satan would have none of it. The Lord had said to him, ‘Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.’ But Satan thought he knew better. He had Job all figured out: ‘Does Job fear God […]

An edited edition of the closing sermon at the Banner of Truth Ministers’ Conference, Leicester, 2015. The citizens of the United Kingdom are being bombarded with messages from its political parties in the light of the coming General Election. Seven of the party leaders recently debated on television for two hours. ‘We want to save […]

A few summers ago, I had the privilege of working on a proofreading/editing project for the Banner of Truth, a project which has very recently resulted in the four glossy volumes of The Works of John Newton.1 There was, however, nothing ‘glossy’ about the two 5-inch binders stuffed with paper and the slew of Word […]

Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Fight the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12). George McClellan was born in Philadelphia to a prominent family of high society. His father was a prosperous surgeon and well respected leader of the city. George was an educational prodigy. By the time he was […]

The following is closely based on an article published in the Southern Baptist Journal of Theology, Volume 18, number 2 (Summer 2014), with selected references. The Trust’s publications on Whitefield include The Life and Times of George Whitefield by Robert Philip,1 George Whitefield by Arnold Dallimore, Volumes 12 and 2,3 and Select Sermons of George […]

A few evenings a week, after the younger children go to bed, my eldest, Chloe, and I sit on the couch and we read a good book together. I’m not talking about a Little House on the Prairie book or Anne of Green Gables book, though I’m sure we will do that too, one of […]

An extract from Chapter 7 of From the Mouth of God: Trusting, Reading, and Applying the Bible, by Sinclair B. Ferguson.1 About one third of the New Testament is made up of Letters, thirteen of them written by Paul, three by John, two by Peter, one each by James and Jude, and one other anonymously […]

This is the final week of the Banner mini-documentary release. These short documentaries (about 5-6 minutes each) are designed to inform you, or to remind you, about the work of the Banner of Truth Trust. Is there more to the Banner than books? What makes a Banner conference unique? What is the Banner Bookfund? Watch […]

The news came to us late last year. A beloved brother and friend in our Hudson Taylor Ministries family in China had passed away. His name was Ma Zhi Jia. We knew him affectionately as ‘Brother Ma’. The news of his death came as a very big surprise to all of us. There were many […]

In the 1600’s a special relationship developed between John Owen (1616-1683), and John Bunyan (1628-1688). Although they were both English Puritans, there were some striking differences between the two men. And yet they were good friends. You might call them the Puritan odd couple. Bunyan had little education. He spent time in the army, and […]