Topic Archives: Christian Living

One of the most outstanding ‌biblical commentators since the Reformation is John Brown (1784–1858), the grandson of John Brown of Haddington. Brown occupied the chair of exegetical theology in the United Secession Church and then in the United Presbyterian Church. His exegetical commentaries (The Trust has published his Discourses and Sayings of Our Lord, Galatians, […]

The following was preached by John Owen on 26 September, 1680. The sermon can be found in a new Puritan Paperback, Gospel Life, and in Volume 9 of The Works of John Owen (Sermons to the Church). ‘I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. —1 Cor. […]

The life of faith is rarely straightforward and uncomplicated. Every moment of every day we have to contend with ‘the world, the flesh and the devil.’ Added to this triumvirate of enemies, there is the reality that our circumstances often seem in opposition to God’s promises. These hard facts are one reason why Christians should […]

A Sermon DELIVERED ON SUNDAY MORNING, APRIL 1, 1855, BY THE REV. C. H. SPURGEON, AT EXETER HALL, STRAND. ‘The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him; but his bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of […]

A Sermon DELIVERED ON SUNDAY MORNING, APRIL 1, 1855, BY THE REV. C. H. SPURGEON, AT EXETER HALL, STRAND. ‘The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him; but his bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of […]

A Sermon DELIVERED ON SABBATH MORNING, MARCH 11, 1855, BY THE REV. C. H. SPURGEON, AT EXETER HALL, STRAND. ‘For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.’—2 Corinthians 1:5. SEEK ye rest from your distresses ye children of woe and sorrow? This is the place where ye […]

He is a worshipper. His life revolves around his worship. Nothing stops him. There is no doubt about his worship. Everyone knows the object of his worship, because he cannot stop talking about it. Even the way he dresses and behaves declares his commitment to his cause. On a Monday morning he is full of […]

The following sermon, on the Remembrance of Christ, was delivered on Sabbath evening, January 7th, 1855, by the Rev. C.H. Spurgeon, at New Park Street Chapel, Southwark. ‘This do in remembrance of me.’—1 Cor. 11:24. IT seems, then, that Christians may forget Christ. The text implies the possibility of forgetfulness concerning him whom gratitude and […]

‘Why are you cast down, O my soul? … Hope in God.’ Psalm 43:5 David was in great trials and afflictions, for God allows his children to fall into long and great afflictions and troubles before his deliverance comes. It is implied in the text that David was reproving his soul for being cast down. […]

In Exodus 18 Moses spends a whole chapter on his father-in-law Jethro. I think it’s safe to assume that Moses didn’t promise to give him a prominent spot in his book in order to win brownie points with the in-laws! So why then is this chapter here? One of its main purposes is to do […]

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 […]

‘See Mary weeping.’ So runs the invitation in the Townend-Getty Easter hymn, See What a Morning. Mary has come to Jesus’ tomb on the morning of the first day of the week and stands outside it weeping. Why is she weeping? She gives us the answer herself: ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I […]

The other week I came across one of those sayings that sticks in your mind and makes you think: ‘An expert hits a target no-one else can hit; a genius hits a target no-one else can see.’ It struck me that there is a third level we could add: ‘the Lord hits a target no-one […]

Perhaps you have been disappointed and distressed by tales in the past year of men, often prominent men, who have departed from the faith. Some have drifted from the truth, others have given themselves to particular sins, several have adopted crass fads and carnal fashions. In some cases, you were sadly unsurprised. In others, you […]

Picture life as a journey, a journey from birth to death. We are born, we live, and we die. That’s how it was for Jesus. Life was a journey for him too. When he made our nature his own, he made our journey his own as well. At both the beginning and the end of […]

To help us in the dealings of our lives we should have such a conception of God as not to limit him in our thoughts. When we are in extremity we must not tie him to this thing or to that thing. He can make matter out of nothing. Why should we limit the unlimited […]

Why bother coming to the prayer meeting? In the pecking order of many congregations, it is somewhere below the much-lamented evening service. In the priorities of too many Christians, it seems to have little value. It’s the one we can afford to miss. It’s the one to which we don’t, or maybe wouldn’t, take our […]

If you would strengthen your faith to suffer great and hard things, study much the book of the Revelation, which is a standing cordial for the relief of the saints, in anti-christian times; and study and read and commend to your children, the Book of Martyrs, where you have examples to the life of the […]

One of the most difficult things at present for the Reformed Christian is to strike a balance between yesterday and today. This is not perhaps surprising. The Reformed Christian believes that in the sixteenth century the Reformers recovered the biblical faith, and that no Protestant ministry has excelled that of the seventeenth century. Reformers and […]

While the metaphorical bucket of cold water may not be a distinctively British phenomenon, it certainly seems to be an outlook that many here have perfected, and doubtless others besides. Some cultures and societies seem easily enthused. In some places you could give people the chance to go out and hit themselves with wet sticks […]

One consequence of the individualism that blights the modern evangelical is the loss of what the Puritans called the Christian man’s calling. This loss is partly a cause and partly a result of the present impotence, and derives from the idea that people are primarily non-material beings with non-material1 needs and throw-away bodies. Creation is […]

The following is an extract from Thomas Manton’s commentary on Jude. * * * Of all graces, love needs keeping. Why? (1) Because of all graces it is most decaying (Matt. 24:12, Rev. 2:4). Flame is soon spent, graces that act most strongly require most influence, as being most subject to abatement; we sooner lose […]

In the opinion of many, next to the Bible itself, the very best tool for family worship is The Child’s Story Bible by Catherine F. Vos. It is now back in print. Banner of Truth has republished it in cloth binding, beautiful paper and print with a marker to use as the pages are turned […]

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 […]

There are several instances in Scripture when people make the wrong calculations or use the wrong measures. Samuel is in danger of doing so when he looks at David’s older brother, Eliab, while searching for the Lord’s anointed. He looks at his appearance and his stature, and is tempted to conclude that he has found […]