Maurice Roberts Resources

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 […]

According to an oft‑quoted saying of Francis Bacon, reading makes a full man, writing an exact man, and conversation a ready man. Experience shows the observant Christian that he was right. There is no ordinary way for a person to attain to fullness of knowledge in the things of God apart from a diligent application […]

The death of any of God’s saints is a bittersweet occasion. It is a bitter experience to lose from our fellowship those who love Christ. But it is a sweet comfort to know that they are with Christ in glory. This is how many of us now feel when we reflect on the godly life […]

It would appear that one of the many ways in which God punishes the sins of men and nations is to give them over at times to widespread perplexity and confusion. Life in a perfect world would be ideally simple. We should all instinctively seek first the glory of God and he would unfailingly supply […]

‘The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.’ — 2 Timothy 4:13 Paul is in prison and in a short time is to lose his life at the instigation of the Roman Emperor Nero. But in prison he invites Timothy to bring with him […]

It belongs to God to put the world right; the Christian’s first duty is to put himself right. In so doing the believer takes the first step towards influencing others for good. But it is a difficult and an unwelcome task and one in which he can expect little help or encouragement from others. Repentance […]

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 […]

There are not wanting here and there the signs that good Christians are suffering from a kind of spiritual metal-fatigue. In our fellowships iron rarely sharpens iron any longer. Much preaching that is orthodox lacks that ring of conviction which is needed to thrust it home into sinners’ consciences. A guilty tameness smothers our zeal. […]

One sometimes meets Christians who use scriptural words and thoughts with no more feeling than if they were licking stamps. They seem to belong to a religious world whose citizens live always north of the Arctic circle of emotion. Their spiritual affections are buried beneath yards of ice and snow. When they venture to talk about […]

Who is sufficient for the task of spiritual leadership? The man who leads Christ’s flock needs at least two rare qualities: a compassionate heart, and also nerves of steel. No one is well equipped to guide the saints of God on earth unless he has two seemingly contradictory sides to his character. He needs to […]

Rev. Maurice Roberts was born at Chester, England in 1938. He was educated at Durham University. After teaching Latin and Greek in secondary schools in Scotland, he studied theology at the Free Church of Scotland College, Edinburgh. He was the minister of Ayr Free Church of Scotland from 1974 to 1994, and then of the […]

Question: Is it any surprise to you that there is currently controversy in Reformed and Evangelical circles over the doctrine of justification, or did you see it coming? Rev. Roberts: I was rather slow in realizing the danger, probably because I ministered in a somewhat remote situation. So I did not see it coming, alas. […]

In November I visited South Korea. My main purpose was to take part in an Induction service of a Korean minister who for the past two years has been studying some of our Seminary courses by distance learning. The Rev Dr Y C Whang has also become known to our ministers by his attendance at […]

One of the duties of the Christian minister is to warn and prepare the people for new ideas about the Gospel, which are erroneous. Novel ideas are always pouring out of the mind of fallen man and in recent times there have been several new theories on which we need to keep a watchful eye […]

One area of life with which the Scriptures deal is marriage. A biblical definition of marriage is given in the Westminster Confession of Faith: ‘Marriage is to be between one man and one woman; neither is it lawful for any man to have more than one wife, nor for any woman to have more than […]

Maurice Roberts, Inverness. By ‘public prayer’ we mean prayer offered in the presence of a Christian congregation. This contrasts with prayer offered in secret or in the family, where a somewhat greater freedom may be appropriate and where the guidelines suggested here may be more relaxed. By ‘leading’ in public prayer we refer to that […]

Instead of rejoicing, our Lord broke out with violent weeping and He tells us why. It is because of things He knew. A Sermon of Maurice Roberts Reading: Leviticus 24: 10-23 "And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in […]

The subject before us relates to problems which we encounter in prayer. What do we really mean by prayer? The definition which we should be familiar with is that given by the Westminster Shorter Catechism. It is worth committing to memory: xPrayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to […]