Resources

LIFE AND CHARACTER OF STEPHEN CHARNOCK by William Symington Stephen Charnock, B.D., was born in the year 1628, in the parish of St. Katharine Cree, London. His father, Mr. Richard Charnock, practiced as a solicitor in the Court of Chancery, and was descended from a family of some antiquity in Lancashire. Stephen, after a course […]

THE CHURCH IN NORTHERN RUSSIA In a recent edition of the Spectator (28 July 2001) Anne Applebaum describes a visit to Vortuka, north of the Arctic Circle where roses do not grow. There are no daisies or lilies; no sunflowers or geraniums, just a few wild flowers which spring up in the very short, very […]

KNOWING AND SERVING GOD A personal testimony (For over twenty years Neil Richards has had a most blessed ministry in Wheelock Heath Baptist Church in Cheshire. He has finally retired from the pastorate, and this is the letter he wrote to his beloved congregation at the end of July 2001). In the Evangelical Magazine of […]

BOOK REVIEW WHAT’S SO AMAZING ABOUT GRACE? by Philip Yancey, (Zondervan, 1997) “Grace [is] ‘the last best word,’ the only unsullied theological word remaining in our language.” (p.232) So writes Philip Yancey in his book What’s So Amazing About Grace? Other words, like love and charity, for instance, have all but lost their original theological […]

The Puritans and Revival Christianity by Iain Murray Following as it did so closely upon the Reformation it is not surprising that the Puritan movement in England believed so firmly in revivals of religion as the great means by which the Church advances in the world. For the Reformation was itself the greatest revival since […]

THE RICHES OF SPURGEON ONE While the true greatness of a preacher will only be revealed at Christ’s tribunal, I would join my opinion with those of many others who make the earthly judgment that Charles Spurgeon was the most effective and useful of preachers since the days of the Apostles. Yes, as highly as […]

Towards the end of his life the great 18th Century Baptist preacher John Gill became rather weak and unwell. It was suggested to him by his deacons that he might benefit from the help of an assistant pastor. He did not take kindly to the suggestion. ‘I’ve read plenty in the Bible’ he is reported […]

It is very odd how difficult it seems for some persons to understand just what Calvinism is. And yet the matter itself presents no difficulty whatever. It is capable of being put into a single sentence; and that, one level to every religious man’s comprehension. For Calvinism is just religion in its purity. We have […]

SHOULD WOMEN SERVE IN MILITARY COMBAT? Does the church have Scriptural warrant to claim that women should not serve in military combat? The Orthodox Presbyterian Church officially thinks so, but delegates to the OPC’s 68th General Assembly in Grand Rapids in June were hardly unanimous in their decision. Instead, a study committee commissioned to examine […]

THE GRACE AND DUTY OF BEING SPIRITUALLY MINDED DECLARED AND PRACTICALLY IMPROVED. by John Owen Found in Volume 7 of the Works, and published by the Banner of Truth Trust. To be spiritually minded is life and peace. Romans 8:6 Set your affection on things above. Colossians 3:2. LONDON: 1681. Prefatory Note An Outline:- Preface […]

THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD Prof. John Murray 4 volumes of his Selected Writings are published by Banner of Truth The sovereignty of God I take to be the absolute authority, rule, and government of God in the whole of that reality that exists distinct from Himself in the realms of nature and of grace. It […]

The Death of Thomas Bilney by J. H. Merle D’aubigne; [Thomas Bilney, ‘whose conversion had begun the Reformation in England’ was, in God’s hands, the instrument of Hugh Latimer’s conversion. The story of his life ‘in strength and weakness’, leading to his martyrdom in 1531, is eloquently recorded in The Reformation of England, volumes 1 […]

AN ARGUMENT FOR LEARNING By Pastor Jim Elliff Wise men store up knowledge…Proverbs 10:14a One of the immense edifices on the skyline of Christian history over the last hundred years was the eminent leader, Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones (1899-1981). He is noteworthy not only because he was a great preacher and the pastor of Westminster […]

A Sermon of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Romans 10:3 “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.” “Saving Faith” An Exposition of Chapter 10, published by The Banner of Truth Trust: 1997 1.800.263.8085 (pp.28-39). “For they being ignorant of […]

The 23rd American Banner of Truth Conference on the eastern part of the nation took place in Messiah College, Grantham, Pennsylvania, May 29-31. This has been its venue for over ten years having met in such places as Memphis and in Grand Rapids in the past. As the English Swanwick conferences share that centre in […]

The old streets of the ancient town still resonate with the sounds of traffic and commerce. But now, in the twenty-first century, the traffic consists of motorcycles and Citroens; and the commerce includes not only food markets, but computer stores and Internet services. And amidst the hustle and bustle and the mix of old and […]

Gentlemen. I have long looked for a suitable opportunity of acknowledging an old debt to a favourite author of mine. But when I proceed to pay a little of that old debt today, I am not to be supposed to put any of you into that same author’s debt. All I wish to do is […]

For years before the Second World War and for another 15 years afterwards the one shop in the United Kingdom which stocked and distributed Reformed literautre from the USA was the Evangelical Book Shop of Belfast. This was through the energy and vision of W.J.Grier, that holy happy pastor and one of the first trustees […]

BUSINESS HINDRANCE A MEMBER of my congregation, a young man who was an apprentice, became attentive to the subject of religion; and, finally, his convictions became very distressing. I had many conversations with him. It all appeared to be in vain. He continued in his distress, without hope, and almost in despair. One day he […]

“Depth of mercy! can there be Mercy still reserved for me?” John Newton was born in 1725 in London. His mother who was a godly woman and who taught him to pray as a child, died when he was only seven years old. He had only two years at school and at the age of […]

At the end of the Banner of Truth ministers’ conference in Messiah College, Grantham, Pennsylvania, on June 1, Sherman Isbell took me to Baltimore airport and on the way we called in at the Green Mount Cemetery to visit the grave of Dr J. Gresham Machen. He is buried next to his parents and his […]

One of the most staggering verses in the Bible is surely Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who are the called according to his purpose.” What is so breath-taking is the scope of Paul’s conviction, “in all things,” and the unbounded assurance […]

by Dr Mary Haynes A few years ago, I was working on a mobile clinic in western Kenya. Returning from one of our many tours, we found a desperately sick woman lying across the road. Her condition was critical so we drove her to the nearest government hospital, five hours away. When we arrived she […]

Roger Beckwith A Sermon preached at the Burial service of the Reverend John Herbert Algar, vicar of St Martin and St. Paul, Tipton, at St Paul’s church, on 19th February 2001 My text is the concluding verse of the lesson just read in the Prayer Book Burial service, 1 Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, […]

J. C. RYLE The apostle Paul says, “Approve things that are excellent” (Philippians 1:10) I. EVANGELICAL PRINCIPLES 1. The Absolute Supremacy of Holy Scripture Show us anything, plainly written, in that Book, we will receive it, believe it, and submit to it. Show us anything contrary to that Book, and however specious, plausible, beautiful and […]