{"id":26178,"date":"2015-05-19T10:27:21","date_gmt":"2015-05-19T15:27:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/\/us\/?p=26178"},"modified":"2015-05-19T10:51:32","modified_gmt":"2015-05-19T15:51:32","slug":"works-john-newton-review-megan-colby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/us\/resources\/book-review-resources\/2015\/works-john-newton-review-megan-colby\/","title":{"rendered":"‘The Works of John Newton’ – A Review by Megan Colby"},"content":{"rendered":"

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<\/em>.1<\/a><\/sup> There was, however, nothing \u2018glossy\u2019 about the two 5-inch binders stuffed with paper and the slew of Word<\/em> documents with scattered, only partly-legible letters and characters that I was given that summer. In fact, I was greeted with this: MEMOIRS ,i \u2022 . , , ‘OF t\u2022 TH.\u2022E’REV: JOHN NRW .. T,ON . My job over the next couple of months was to sort through all the mistakes that are made when an old text is scanned into a modern computer. Since the completion of that part of the project, many others have laboured over Newton\u2019s works to re-typeset, annotate, re-index, and design the stunning new set of volumes that is now available from the Banner of Truth.<\/p>\n

It is important to note that this new four-volume set is not an abbreviated version of the six-volume set that was published some time ago. Rather, it contains all of the texts that previously comprised Newton\u2019s Works<\/em>, plus more. See the Publisher\u2019s Note in Vol.1.2<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

I would like to highlight a few collections of sermons, letters, and other texts that particularly stood out to me and that demonstrate the variety of content in Newton\u2019s Works<\/em>. First, the biographical and autobiographical information on Newton\u2019s life, from his adventures on the high seas to his ministries in Olney and London, opens Vol. 1.<\/p>\n

Secondly, the Olney Hymns<\/em> by Newton and his friend Cowper (Vol. 2) are excellent tools for teaching children God\u2019s purposes and promises as revealed through Bible stories. For example, Hymn 39 of Book I (p. 617) recounts the story of Elisha and the floating axe, and concludes with this stanza:<\/p>\n

Not one concern of ours is small,
\n\tIf we belong to him;
\n\tTo teach us this, the Lord of all
\n\tOnce made the iron swim.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The wonderful series of sermons on the texts of Handel\u2019s famous Messiah<\/em> (Vol. 3) points to the importance of Scripture above all earthly embellishments, and Newton\u2019s love letters to his wife (Vol. 4) are beautiful in their illustration of his affection for her and, most of all, for Christ. Finally, \u2018A Monument to the Memory of Eliza Cuningham\u2019 (Vol. 3) is a very moving account of Newton\u2019s 14-year-old niece, whose testimony on her deathbed is a challenge to all of us, though especially to young people, to be ready to meet the Lord.<\/p>\n

John Newton is easily one of the best known and loved of our Christian heroes. Yet, I would wager that many of us know little more than the slave-trade-to-\u2018Amazing Grace\u2019 part of his life and writing. Let me highly recommend that you consider purchasing a set of his collected Works<\/em> and get to know him better. In doing so, you will be faithfully directed to the One who ordered all the events of Newton\u2019s life and who remains the same yesterday, today, and forever.<\/p>\n

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