• Month-to-view compact appointment wall calendar (W210mm, H420mm when open)
•  Each month features an attractive British artwork, with a quote from J. C. Ryle
• Calendar  features coupon codes to get 25% off a different Banner book each month

Bishop J. C. Ryle’s Autobiography

John Charles Ryle (1816-1900), first Bishop of Liverpool, was one of the most influential evangelical clergymen of the nineteenth century. A popular platform speaker and prolific tract writer, his books are still widely read across the globe.

This volume also includes many photographs from the Ryle family albums, never before published. Seven substantial appendices examine the Ryle Family Bible, Ryle’s schoolboy speeches, his conversion, his earliest evangelical tracts, and his final will and testament.

Large clothbound  |  392 pp.

J. C. Ryle: Prepared to Stand Alone

Although one of the most widely read evangelical authors of the nineteenth century, Ryle’s writings lost influence after his death. The world had moved on, as was supposed. Then, fifty years later a ‘rediscovery’ began. Research on his life was accomplished by able authors, and from a new wealth of material Iain Murray has put together a compelling biography. Ryle believed in definite doctrine, in a message which does not adjust to the times, in revival, and in the living Christ. He knew that all the great turning points of church history have been attended with controversy, and that ‘there are times when controversy is not only a duty but a benefit’.

J. C. Ryle’s life is convincing evidence that Christianity stands or falls depending on its relation to the word of God and to the Holy Spirit. That he is being read widely again at the present time gives hope of better days.

Large clothbound  |  275 pp.

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Features

–  Month-to-view compact appointment wall calendar (W210mm, H420mm when open)

–  Each month features an attractive British artwork, with a quote from J. C. Ryle

–  Calendar  features coupon codes to get 25% off a different Banner book each month

–   Improved design and functionality

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At one time, the Book of Psalms held a central place in the worship of biblically faithful churches. In many congregations, however, the Psalter has become neglected—not only are the psalms not regularly sung, but the public reading of them has been limited to occasions when the text of the sermon is taken from that part of Scripture.

But the Psalms were written for regular use in the community of God’s people assembled for worship. All the various workings of God’s grace in the life of his people call for celebration. Whether speaking specifically of the Messiah, or calling God’s people to confession, praise, or prayer, the Psalms summon the church to celebrate the bounties of God’s multi-faceted gifts.

O. Palmer Robertson here examines twenty-five psalms, reflecting the variety of messages and structures found across the entire Book of Psalms. The author argues that originally the Psalms were intended to be used with interactive congregational responses and his translations reflect this understanding.

This book aims to help congregations rediscover the riches of the Psalms in their fullness, that the full-orbed testimony of the Psalter, as it touches every experience of weal and woe in the life of God’s people, may again find a voice in the current worship of the church.

In reference to the introduction on page 4, the pdf of the psalms selected for this volume is available to download here.

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Heaven Taken by Storm, or, The Christian Soldier is a call to arms. In it Thomas Watson expounds and applies, in his own unique and much-loved style, the words of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 11:12: ‘And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.’ ‘Heaven,’ he says, is like a ‘town or castle that holds out in war, and is not taken but by storm. … Though heaven be given us freely, yet we must contend for it.’ What that means for the believer forms the substance of this book.

The author shows us the nature of this ‘holy violence’ – ‘resolution of will, vigour of affection, strength of endeavour.’ His aim throughout is to awaken the reader to the urgency of the gospel’s call. ‘Our work is great, our time short, our master urgent; we have need therefore to summon together all the powers of our souls, and strive as in a matter of life and death, that we may arrive at the kingdom above: we must not only put forth diligence, but violence.’

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Perhaps two of the most common reasons for men leaving the ministry today are moral failure and depression, or ‘burn-out.’ The two addresses in this booklet have been selected from C. H. Spurgeon’s well-known Lectures to My Students (also published by the Trust), with the hope that they will be of real practical help to pastors. ‘The Minister’s Self-Watch’ will help you guard your heart, life, and teaching. ‘The Minister’s Fainting Fits’ will supply much needed encouragement to persevere in the work the Master has given you to do.

‘May he in whose hand are the churches and their pastors bless these words to younger brethren in the ministry, and if so I shall count it more than a full reward, and shall greatly praise the Lord.’ — C. H. Spurgeon

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In the writings of J. C. Ryle (1816–1900), generations of readers have found faithful biblical wisdom and searching applications that aim at the heart. As the compiler of this anthology notes, ‘if there were two things that stand out like jewels in his crown, they were Ryle’s unflagging determination to tell us the terrible truth about ourselves, and to point us to Jesus.’

This topical guide to Ryle’s voluminous writings will provide a taste of his method and style, and will serve as a signpost to the different books from which these quotations have been drawn. For those already familiar with Ryle, it will serve as a reminder of the timeless wisdom and practical insights which were characteristic of his written ministry.

Ryle’s pastoral heart is evident throughout this anthology—he was a man whose habit was to speak the truth in love. As J. I. Packer observed, ‘his down-to-earth illustrations and rhetorical emphases gave a sense of the drama, the dangers, the challenges, glories and joys of life under the eye and the hand of the God of the gospel.’

Topics are arranged in alphabetical order, and cover a sizeable range of biblical, doctrinal, pastoral, and historical themes. A bibliography provides readers with information on sources and further reading.

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In The Two Prophets to Nineveh, James McCarthy guides readers on an exegetical tour through the prophetical books of Jonah and Nahum. When studied together, Jonah and Nahum offer a panoramic view of the whole character of God.

The oceanic breadth of God’s mercy poured out in Jonah stands in stark contrast to the volcanic heat of his wrath erupting from Nahum. We feel the soft petals of God’s grace in Jonah but the glistening razor’s edge of his law in Nahum. We cheer the salvation of a city in Jonah only to shudder at the annihilation of the same city a century later in Nahum.

The Two Prophets to Nineveh will help students of the Bible springboard from the familiar Jonah into the less familiar Nahum, seeing how both shine a heavenly spotlight upon the person and work of Jesus Christ.

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Chapters 24–27 of Isaiah have been described as his ‘Tale of Two Cities.’ Like Charles Dickens’ well-known novel, they speak of a terrifying urban convulsion which has widespread reverberations. But the difference between them is of course far greater than any similarity.

Dickens recorded the ‘Terror’ of the French Revolution that sent shock waves from Paris to London (and across Europe to the New World) to which he could only append the desirable possibility of a ‘resurrection-like’ renewal. Isaiah’s ‘two cities’ are an anticipation of ‘Babylon’ and the ‘New Jerusalem’ in John’s Apocalypse, and what he says about each is certain and everlasting.

The events of which Isaiah speaks take place ‘in [or] on that day.’ This is a recurring expression in chapters 24–27 of his prophecy. They refer to ‘the Day of the Lord’ and introduce acts of the Lord’s judgment and salvation. Following the text, these will be considered in seven sections or ‘movements’ with 24:1-20 providing a kind of ‘overture’ to the whole since it deals with both those realities.

Isaiah 24–27 is a magnificent display of ‘the Day of the Lord’ in judgment and salvation, and also of godly rejoicing and waiting for it in dark days. It comports with ‘the already and not yet’ of Christian living, and so Christians should find strength and comfort in these chapters as they look forward and upward to the Lord’s return and ‘the new world’ that God has promised.

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Nick Needham here draws pen portraits of twelve shapers of Christianity—those whose thought and writings have profoundly contributed to the way we think about our faith today. As the author notes, ‘we may well find that in becoming acquainted with them, we catch some glimpse of God’s truth and glory that was evident to them, yet which we perhaps do not see so clearly. Studying our Christian past can in this way become an eminently practical and spiritual discipline.’

‘Dr Needham relentlessly reminds us that history is His-Story, the story of God’s saving purposes in this world. This is a necessary, even vital, reminder that the unfolding of history is not haphazard, or determined by powerful personalities and socio-economic events. Our God reigns.’
—IAN HAMILTON

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One of the great strengths Christians carry through life is our assurance regarding the future. The church’s understanding of eschatology, or the ‘last days,’ goes far deeper than discussions of end-time chronology. Because Christ is risen from the dead, we need never fear death; because he is king over heaven and earth, we cannot be anxious about the fate of our world.

In this concluding book of his Texts that Transform series, Terry Johnson points us to an eternity of victory and praise that awaits every believer in Christ. But what of those who do not belong to him? Here we find our motivation to fulfil the Great Commission to ‘go and make disciples of all nations.’

Our hope is a certain one, for we know that ‘at the name of Jesus every knee [shall] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’

Table of Contents Expand ↓

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Of the many sermons which Calvin preached on the Book of Isaiah between July 1556 and August 1559, only eleven were published in his lifetime. Seven of them are newly translated here, all on Isaiah’s Fourth Servant Song (Isa. 52:13–53:12). In a series of stunning scenes which have no parallel in prophetic literature, Isaiah delineates the figure of one who is both sacrificial victim and God’s agent of salvation. In identifying the Servant with Jesus Christ, Calvin is at one with the witness of the universal church. In this memorable sermon series, the Reformer explores with sensitivity Isaiah’s contrasting themes of humiliation and exaltation, death and resurrection. At the same time, he demonstrates how great is the power by which God wrests victory from defeat, and how immeasurable is our debt to redeeming love.

Interview with the Translator

Read Robert White’s reflections on years of Calvin translation, along with his assessment of the work that remains to be done here.

Table of Contents Expand ↓

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In the forty years prior to these lectures, Scotland had been favoured with true revivals, for example, at Moulin in 1800; in Skye in 1814; in Arran in 1818; in Lewis in 1834; and at Kilsyth in 1839. This adds a special lustre to this book. It is no theoretical reflection on revival. Those who delivered these lectures knew what they wrote about. Indeed, it was “in consequence of… the time of refreshing” at Kilsyth that “it was thought expedient that a course of lectures should be delivered in Glasgow on the subject of Revivals of Religion, for the purpose of communicating right views and removing prejudices on that all-important topic.”

But it was no mere experience that formed these men’s views on revival. Indeed, references to contemporary events are remarkably few, either relating to revivals of the time, such as Kilsyth, or the momentous events which would lead to the formation of the Free Church of Scotland. Rather, it was theological conviction, born from a close study of Scripture and informed by church history which led these men to the views on revival that they held. And it is these timeless truths which are outlined in this volume.

—Donald John MacLean
from the Introduction

Related podcast episode

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The Epistle to the Romans is both a highly personal letter and an authoritative theological treatise, inspired by the Holy Spirit and penned by the Apostle Paul. It contains clear and simple truths which serve to comfort the most childlike believer, as well as intricate examinations of the purposes and mission of God.

Paul himself, having been changed from the persecutor Saul into an ambassador for Christ, is evidence of the saving and transforming power of God that he expounds in his letter. He anticipates the questions of Christians examining their faith throughout the ages, and rebuts errors and heresies with which we still grapple today.

Sinclair Ferguson meditates on the grace and tenderness of God which Paul so plainly and boldly proclaims, and painstakingly unravels the most complex passages. His is a reliable and experienced voice guiding ordinary Christians to the very heights of New Testament theology.

Let’s Study Romans is suitable for individual or group use, and includes a Study Guide to aid readers in grasping and retaining the logical progression of Paul’s thought.

Author Interview

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James Smith of Cheltenham is perhaps not a name you know. If you have seen it before, it may have been in a few particular places. You may have noticed a collection of devotions called The Believer’s Daily Remembrancer, one of the few productions of his pen still more or less available. You may have noted his name as one of the preachers on the occasion of the opening of the Metropolitan Tabernacle in 1861, when he preached a sweet sermon on effectual calling.

As well as serving in a number of churches, James Smith was a prolific writer, and his daily readings and devotionals in particular were highly esteemed and hugely popular. ‘My object,’ said our author, ‘is to lead the mind from self—to Jesus; from sin—to salvation; from the troubles of life—to the comforts of the gospel. My aim is to humble the sinner—and exalt the Saviour; to strip the creature—and place the crown on the head of God’s free grace! I cannot ascribe too much to Jesus—or too little to man!’

Some daily devotionals are longer, and demand a fair amount of time. Some are briefer, and take a few moments to read over. These golden nuggets of truth will take only a moment to consider, but will give you matter for a day’s consideration and comfort.

-Jeremy Walker from the Introduction

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When the aged J. C. Ryle announced he was to resign from the office of bishop of Liverpool, his friends encouraged him to publish a selection of sermons as a memorial to his sixty years of ministry, from country parson to diocesan bishop.

The resulting selection, chosen by one of Ryle’s colleagues in the Liverpool diocese, T. J. Madden, exemplifies the beating heart of biblical religion which epitomized Ryle’s approach to ministry. The title of the selection is taken from one of the sermons, and the themes covered in this volume will be found to equip readers, as they did their first hearers, to run the Christian race with endurance.

Themes such as regeneration, saving faith, righteousness, the character and privileges of the true Christian, the character of Jesus Christ, and heaven, among others, all serve to draw out the doctrinal teachings of the Scriptures, whilst applying those teachings to the practical realities of the Christian life.

Readers familiar with Ryle’s other works, including his Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, Holiness, Practical Religion, and Knots Untied to name but a few, will recognize in these sermons that same clarity of expression and practical wisdom which are a hallmark of his style.

In England, Ryle stands in the foremost rank of those who have held forth the word of life and fought the good fight of faith. He is one of the Lord’s standard-bearers of the late Victorian age. The ‘healthful spirit of God’s grace’ was upon him. Being dead he continues to speak.

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In Unveiling the Cross, Ross Blackburn examines the Isaiah 6 vision of the Lord, ‘high and lifted up,’ in the light of New Testament revelation. Why did this encounter affect the prophet’s life so radically? What did he understand of the One on the throne? How is this ‘Day of Atonement’ scene connected to other heavenly visions in the Bible? In discussing these questions, the author discourses with two classic works, Hugh Martin’s The Atonement, and Sinclair B. Ferguson’s The Whole Christ. His treatment of Scripture – from the origin of ‘uncleanness’ in Genesis to the Lamb on the throne in Revelation – is incisive and masterful. Each page magnifies the Christ of the cross, the Christ of the throne, and the Christ who intercedes for his people. It is impossible to encounter this Lord of Hosts and remain unchanged.

‘Ross Blackburn combines the well-honed and enviable skills of an Old Testament scholar who shares his learning without flaunting it, of a well-read theologian who leads readers to doctrinal riches, and a pastor who clearly loves and cares for Christ’s flock.  Unveiling the Cross is a richly textured and enriching work, written in a style that is as engaging as it is informative – in fact the very kind of book that simultaneously helps pastors expound Scripture (without doing the work for them!) and also enables all of us “ordinary” members to be both well taught and well nourished.’

—Sinclair B. Ferguson

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This helpful volume follows the doctrinal structure of the Shorter Catechism but expands each doctrinal point with a wide range of factual stories that illustrate or apply the teaching. Subjects like providence, prayer, and the Ten Commandments are illuminated with telling, moving, and sometimes fascinating narratives.

John Whitecross’s book stands out as a resource that will assist to memorably teach the catechism in a family, small group, or formal setting. First published in 1828, the book has been gently modernized.

Whitecross was a schoolmaster who knew how to gain people’s attention and help them retain what they learned. This book can also be recommended reading for children aged ten and over. It is a valuable treasury of illustrative matter for all those who have the responsibility of making biblical teaching interesting in home, school, or church.

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Those who are inclined to view Christian salvation as “fire insurance,” vital in eternity but irrelevant in this world, fail to understand the pervasiveness of Christian thought. Does ‘the mind of Christ’ extend beyond religion to what one may think of non-religious realms? Does taking ‘every thought captive’ include our thoughts about gender, sexual relations, marriage, family, children, and child-rearing? Indeed it does. Scripture addresses all these issues.

In this third book of the Texts that Transform series, Terry Johnson recounts his matured understanding of the place of family relationships in God’s plan – a plan which not only transforms the domestic sphere but highlights the essential role of marriage and family in the Kingdom of God.

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This product contains Volumes 3 and 4 of Collected Writings of James Henley Thornwell, the third volume may properly be entitled Theological and Controversial and the fourth, Ecclesiastical.

— From the editor’s preface.

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This product contains Volumes 1 and 2 of Collected Writings of James Henley Thornwell, the first volume may properly be entitled Theological and the second, Theological and Ethical.

Volume 1: Theological
The [first] volume contains sixteen lectures in theology. All these constitute his discussion of that portion of theology which relates to God and to moral government essentially considered, or to the same as modified by the Covenant of Works. To this volume, by way of appendix, are added his Inaugural Discourse, his Questions on the Lectures to his classes, his Analysis of Calvin’s Institutes and his examination questions thereupon. The next volume will discuss that portion of theology which relates to moral government as modified by the Covenant of Grace. These two volumes are not a treatise on theology written by our distinguished professor, but consist of all that he left behind him upon those topics, gathered together since his decease by the hand of friendship, and systematized as well as possible according to his conception of the science of theology.

Volume 2: Theological and Ethical
The sixteen lectures may be reckoned his very latest productions. Upon some of the topics in the second volume, what we have to present the reader will be some of his earlier writings; there is not one of them, however, but bears the same impressive genius—not one of them but his instinct with the same unction of the Spirit of truth and love. Accompanying what the second volume will contain upon the Doctrines of Grace, there will be found a partial discussion of the morals which necessarily flow out of those doctrines.

— From the editor’s preface.

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There are few things which any parent dreads more than the thought of outliving his or her child, or grandchild. The deaths of parents, friends, relatives and even one’s spouse are terrible indeed, but the death of one’s child possesses a peculiar kind of horror.

In four brief chapters, Peter Barnes draws on his own experience to offer help to those who have suffered such a loss. As he says in the Introduction, ‘This is not a work of apologetics, but a brief attempt to understand and work through grief, for myself, my family, and for any other readers. It has only heightened the sense of my own need to receive comfort myself. Such comfort can only come from the God who is our creator and our redeemer. The hope remains that God will use this book to minister to and bless any of his people who have suffered the agony of losing a child.’

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Of these Collected Writings of James Henley Thornwell, the first volume may properly be entitled Theological, the second, Theological and Ethical, the third, Theological and Controversial, and the fourth, Ecclesiological.

Volume 1: Theological
The [first] volume contains sixteen lectures in theology. All these constitute his discussion of that portion of theology which relates to God and to moral government essentially considered, or to the same as modified by the Covenant of Works. To this volume, by way of appendix, are added his Inaugural Discourse, his Questions on the Lectures to his classes, his Analysis of Calvin’s Institutes and his examination questions thereupon. The next volume will discuss that portion of theology which relates to moral government as modified by the Covenant of Grace. These two volumes are not a treatise on theology written by our distinguished professor, but consist of all that he left behind him upon those topics, gathered together since his decease by the hand of friendship, and systematized as well as possible according to his conception of the science of theology.

Volume 2: Theological and Ethical
The sixteen lectures may be reckoned his very latest productions. Upon some of the topics in the second volume, what we have to present the reader will be some of his earlier writings; there is not one of them, however, but bears the same impressive genius—not one of them but his instinct with the same unction of the Spirit of truth and love. Accompanying what the second volume will contain upon the Doctrines of Grace, there will be found a partial discussion of the morals which necessarily flow out of those doctrines.

Volume 3: Theological and Controversial
The third volume will contain an elaborate discussion of the canon, the authority of Scripture, papal infallibility, the mass, the validity of popish baptism, and the claims of the Romish church to be reckoned any church at all. In the discussion of popish baptism the author was led into a thorough consideration of the Christian doctrine of justification, and hence that whole argument might well be placed in the second volume. Connected as it was, however, by other ties with the Romish controversy, it was judged best, after mature reflection, to place it in the volume of the theological and polemic writings.

Volume 4: Ecclesiastical
In the fourth volume will be gathered whatever else Dr Thornwell has left behind him touching the question of the church.

— From the editor’s preface.

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Is this story relevant? Can we justify the time and expense of printing and reading books about the past when the present overwhelms the church of God? Truth, sin, grace, the ways of God with man—these are items of enduring significance. And they are what these biographical sketches are all about.’ — Christianity Today

Product Description

Of the many volumes written on the Great ‌Awakening which changed the course of American history in the 1740s, none is more interesting than Archibald Alexander’s classic account recorded in this volume. Taking as his starting point William Tennent’s unpretentious theological school (contemptuously called the ‘Log College’), Alexander proceeds through a series of rich biographical chapters to trace the ministerial work of the students who entered pastorates at a time when deadness and formality reigned. ‘Never, perhaps, had the expectation of reaching heaven at last been more general or more confident.’

With Alexander we relive the story of their subsequent toil and success – their preaching and spiritual passion, their experiences of the divine energy of the Holy Spirit, their flesh and blood failings are all graphically portrayed.

Whether we read of Gilbert Tennent of whom Whitefield said, ‘hypocrites must either soon be converted or enraged at his preachings’, or of Samuel Blair, ‘a great textuary who studied the sacred oracles above all other things’, or of Samuel Finley who believed that ‘nothing more helped digestion than a hearty laugh’ and whose glorious death makes unforgettable reading, Alexander holds and moves us throughout. And such was his intention. Commenting on the fact that ‘none of the distinguished ministers of that period, except William Tennent, senior reached the age of seventy; and some of the most able and successful among them did not even arrive at the age of forty’, he writes: ‘These men may be said to have lived fast. They did much for their Lord in a short time. Being burning as well as shining lights, they were themselves consumed while they gave light to others. Oh that a race of ministers, like-minded, burning with a consuming zeal, might be raised up among us!

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These two volumes are derived from Dr. Cunningham’s lectures to his Church History class at New College, Edinburgh between 1847–1861. Cunningham’s living faith, devout submission to God, clarity of thought, and reverence for the authority of the Bible make him well-positioned to comment on the relationship between the church and its theology.

The history of the Church is a history of God’s interaction with his people; Cunningham tells that story through the history of its theology, chronicling the theological tension between law and grace, sin and forgiveness, and Christ’s first and second coming.

Volume one covers the biblical view of the church, the church councils and the apostolic fathers, the development of the church’s central doctrines—such as the incarnation and the Trinity—as well as the rise of scholasticism, the Reformation, and the Council of Trent.

Volume two documents the development of the doctrines of justification and the atonement and the Arminian and the Socinian controversies. He also devotes lengthy discussions to Presbyterianism, Congregationalism, and the Free Church of Scotland.

Related podcast episode

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– John Calvin

Book Description

Translated from the French of 1562 by Robert White

Of the many sermons which Calvin preached on the Synoptic Gospels, only the first sixty-five were recorded and published, under the title Sermons on the Harmony or Concordance of the Three Evangelists, Matthew, Mark and Luke (1562). Eighteen of these sermons appear here, for the first time in English translation. They focus on the events of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee: his baptism, his testing by Satan, the calling of his first disciples, his teaching and his works of healing.

In consecutive sermons the preacher traces the drama of Jesus’ confrontation with the forces of darkness and unbelief, which make him a prophet without honour in his own country. For the time being, his identity as Messiah remains hidden. Already, however, he is filled with the Spirit of God who empowers and directs him; already Satan must contend with one stronger than he; already the poor have good news preached to them; already God’s kingdom is present in Jesus’ gracious words and mighty works.

These sermons, the last Calvin was to preach on a New Testament text, reveal the Reformer at his best: a lucid interpreter of Scripture, an engaging preacher, and a pastor passionate to present every soul in his care mature in Christ.

Interview with the Translator

Read Robert White’s reflections on years of Calvin translation, along with his assessment of the work that remains to be done here.

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Why should one have a high view of the visible church and its ministry? The short answer is, Because this is what the Bible requires. Jesus said ‘I will build my church.’ He charged the disciples to baptize their converts into the church and in the process teach them all of his commandments (Matt. 16:18; 28:18–20).

Bible texts not only transform one’s personal life, but also shape one’s outlook on the church–its ministry and mission. In Texts that Transform: Church and Ministry, Terry Johnson shows how the Bible determines our understanding of such things as a Christian’s calling in general, the specific role of the minister, the shape of public worship, the content of the church’s public services, and the character of the day on which those services are conducted. Why do we do what we do in life and ministry? Because these are the things that the Bible–the word of God–directs us to do.

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Book Description

In 1786, at the age of twenty-two, Alexander Stewart became parish minister of Moulin, near Pitlochry, Scotland. He was as yet unconverted. Sermons from those early years he would later denounce as ‘youthful trifles, produced in the season of ignorance and darkness, possessing nothing of the savour of the gospel, abounding in errors, fit only to be pitied, fit only to be destroyed.’ When the change came it deeply impacted not only his preaching but his congregation. At the time of his settlement in Moulin most were as ignorant of the gospel as he was. As he puts it himself, ‘The opinion of their own works recommending them to the favour of God, and procuring a reward from his bounty, was almost universal.’ Now they began to think as differently about such things as their minister did. Indeed, it was not long before Moulin was in the grip of a revival that resulted in many conversions.

James Sievewright’s biography, long out of print, is an invaluable account of the steps by which Stewart was led from darkness to light, of the revival that followed, and of Stewart’s subsequent ministries in Dingwall and in Edinburgh. It introduces us to David Black, the young evangelical minister who played a major role in Stewart’s conversion, and is enriched by a selection of the letters that passed between them. It shows us, too, what a remarkable and far-reaching ministry an unconverted minister may one day exercise if God should be pleased to save him.

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The Pilgrim’s Progress has been entertaining and illuminating readers for over three centuries, and there can have been few readers more expert about both the book and its meaning than C.H. Spurgeon. Here we have the greatest of nineteenth-century preachers setting forth timeless truths from Bunyan, with infectious enthusiasm about his favourite author. ‘The reason for his liking is not far to seek,’ writes Spurgeon’s son and successor in his Introduction. ‘They both loved “the Book of books.”’ Just so, today’s reader will come away from these chapters with a renewed appreciation not only of Bunyan and Spurgeon, but of the truth and wisdom of the Scriptures.

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The last words of a dying man are often worthy of being recorded. That is especially true of those spoken by Jesus Christ while dying on the cross. His seven last words have been called ‘the bright lights of heaven shining at intervals through the darkness’ and ‘the deep solemn tones which interpret the cross.’

Just seven ‘words’, yet what fullness they contain! As the author so ably shows, they present the full gospel of salvation.

Short, instructive, and deeply moving, Light from Calvary takes us to the cross that we might fix our eyes on ‘the Saviour of the world.’

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Few topics provoke more questions in the human heart than that of suffering. Paul Wolfe addresses this painful subject with both pastoral and personal experience. Here a struggling soul can find assurance that Christ is still near, still compassionate, and still safely shepherding the Christian through every dark valley. A clear and concise Q&A section addresses both practical and theological issues.

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Martin’s Guide, available for the first time in hardback, aims to help the would-be feaster access the nourishment available from the Puritans and their successors. That last word is significant, because the scope of Martin’s indexing work extended not merely to those in the 16th and 17th Century who might properly be called ‘Puritans’ but also to figures of the 18th to 20th centuries who have stood in the Reformed, evangelical tradition of the Puritans, both feeding on and developing their approach.

This is neither a scholarly apparatus nor a comprehensive guide to the corpus of Puritan writing. What it is, however, is a helpful orientation to a tradition, and a guide for those with an appetite to read the Puritans and their successors more, and to read them better. Those in search of what the Puritans had to say on specific topics and texts, and those eager for some direction in their reading, will be well served by the indexing labours of Robert P. Martin.

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The Diary and Journal of David Brainerd is of much more than merely historical interest. The first internationally recognized biography ever to be published, it has had a profound impact on successive generations of Christians around the world.

The Diary covers the period from April 1742 to October 1747, and although written as a private and personal record, was published in abridged form by the great New England pastor and theologian Jonathan Edwards in 1749.

Brainerd wrote the Journal, which covers the twelve months from June 1745 to June 1746, at the request of the Scottish Society for Propagating Christian Knowledge, which was supporting his missionary work amongst the indigenous peoples of North America. As Sir Marcus Loane has noted in They Were Pilgrims, ‘the Diary and Journal were each written for a distinct purpose, and each had its separate character. The Diary is a remarkable record of the interior life of the soul, and its entries still throb with the tremendous earnestness of a man who whose heart was aflame for God. The Journal is an objective history of the missionary work of twelve months, and its details are an astonishing testimony to the grace of God in the lives of men.’

Jonathan Edwards’ own ‘Reflections and Observations’ on Brainerd’s life, included in this volume, are, according to Iain H. Murray in his Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography, ‘among the most important descriptive pages on the Christian life which Edwards ever wrote.’

Between 1742 and his death in 1747 David Brainerd took the gospel to the North American Indians of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. He willingly ran any risk and accepted any hardship to fulfil his calling as a missionary. The amount of work which he achieved in such unpromising and difficult circumstances now seems almost incredible. Moreover his total dedication to the cause of making Christ known inspired the finest of missionaries who followed in his footsteps.

Few books have done so much to promote prayer and missionary action as The Diary and Journal of David Brainerd.

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Endorsements

‘Brainerd’s life is a vivid, powerful testimony to the truth that God can and does use weak, sick, discouraged, beat-down, lonely, struggling saints, who cry to him day and night, to accomplish amazing things for his glory.’ JOHN PIPER

‘I was much humbled today by reading Brainerd. O, what a disparity betwixt me and him! He always constant; I as inconstant as the wind.’  WILLIAM CAREY

‘Oh! blessed be the memory of that beloved saint! No uninspired writer ever did me so much good.’  HENRY MARTYN

Reviews

• Review by Kevin Macleod
• Review by Al Baker

We asked people how reading Edwards had benefitted them; this is what they said …

Here’s What You Said About Jonathan Edwards

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»El fin principal del hombre es glorificar a Dios
y gozar de Él para siempre«

—Catecismo Menor de Westminster

A través de esta nueva edición de la Confesión de Fe de ‌Westminster, y su respectivo Catecismo Menor, queremos invitar al pueblo cristiano hispano a continuar profundizando en aquellas verdades doctrinales que han llevado a la Iglesia, a lo largo de la historia, a glorificar a Dios. Estos documentos enriquecerán nuestra confesión del Dios trino que nos escogió, redimió y continúa santificando para así, gozar de Él para siempre. Además, hemos incluido algunos Credos cristianos universales para entregar más recursos que nos lleven a crecer en la fe que creemos y confesamos.

»La Confesión de Westminster y sus Catecismos son, por lo tanto, el fruto maduro de todo el movimiento de formación de credos a lo largo de quince siglos de historia cristiana y, en particular, la Confesión y sus Catecismos son la corona de la mayor época de exposición confesional, la Reforma protestante. Ningún otro documento similar ha concentrado en ellos, y formulado con tanta precisión, tanto de la verdad contenida en la revelación cristiana«.

—Profesor John Murray (1898–1975)

»La verdad que expresa la Confesión tiene el poder de moldear tu pensamiento; su enseñanza ampliará y aclarará tu comprensión. Además, y lo mejor de todo, la sabiduría pastoral de la Confesión de Fe te ayudará a vivir la vida cristiana con la perspectiva magníficamente expresada en la respuesta a la primera pregunta del Catecismo Menor que la acompañaba: glorificar a Dios y gozar de él para siempre».

—Sinclair B. Ferguson

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This mini-guide introduces the reader to this precious book. David Murray shows how the Psalms speak of Christ, whilst answering questions regarding the interpretation of some difficult passages. He explains how the Psalms ought to be used in worship, counselling, witnessing, and singing, so that believers might glorify and enjoy God each day.

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These thirty-eight meditations on Christ’s incarnation from the pen of C. H. Spurgeon are an ideal companion in the approach to the Christmas season. Indeed, they point believers just as emphatically toward the second advent of Christ, and so are a valuable guide at any time of year. Brief, powerful, and vivid, each ­devotional sparks renewed wonder at the grace of God in the incarnation of his Son.

Endorsements

‘Good Tidings of Great Joy takes us all by the hand to lead us to Christ. Here those who celebrate Christmas but privately realize they know too little about its significance will find a clear, straightforward, and attractive explanation of its real meaning. Here too, those who enjoy Christmas chiefly because they love Christ and want to know and love him better, will find encouragement and joy. And perhaps too some, who never celebrate “Christmas” and as a result are in danger of giving the incarnation far less attention than Scripture does, will find their affection for Christ rekindled or increased.’

-From the Foreword by Dr Sinclair Ferguson

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Book Description

Many twenty-first-century Christians ‌still read the works and love the memory of the remarkable Scottish brotherhood that included Robert Murray M‘Cheyne and Andrew and Horatius Bonar. But the name of Alexander Moody Stuart (1809–98), whom they all esteemed so much, has been forgotten. Yet it took only one encounter with his preaching for M‘Cheyne to say, ‘I have found the man.’

Now, this new edition of Alexander Moody Stuart: A Memoir will throw light on a life and ministry which were profoundly influential—a ministry in which Moody Stuart was, variously, a pioneer rural missionary in an island fishing community; a capable church planter in a growing city; a clear and searching preacher; a much-loved pastor; a caring husband and father; and a committed advocate for overseas missionary endeavour.

Alexander Moody Stuart’s long life and ministry encompassed many of the defining events and debates in the Scottish church in the middle and later nineteenth century, including that which led to the formation of the Free Church of Scotland in 1843. But far from being defined by these important debates, his ministry was principally marked by contemporaries for its deep spirituality, earnestness, and originality.

This well-paced and engaging memoir, partly autobiographical and completed by its subject’s eldest son, covers the life, work, friendships, and challenges of one who was fully engaged with the people under his spiritual care, and who was also a willing defender of orthodox belief in an age of rapid change in approaches to Scripture. As Sinclair B. Ferguson notes in the Foreword, ‘like Andrew Bonar’s memoir of M‘Cheyne, there is a touch of heaven about these pages.’

It is hoped that the republication of this long-forgotten book will go some way to lift Alexander Moody Stuart out of relative obscurity—a man who, in his allotted time and circumstances, exercised a deep and penetrating ministry of the word, the character and aroma of which contain much to stimulate and inspire those engaged in that same spiritual work today.

This fresh edition includes numerous illustrations and an extensive appendix containing several of Moody Stuart’s sermons and addresses, and other documents of interest.

Commendations

‘Long forgotten and hard to obtain, Alexander Moody Stuart is a book for any Christian to enjoy, and every Christian will find it richly instructive, graciously challenging, and wonderfully inspiring. And for ministers of the gospel it is quite simply a ‘must have’. While it ranks among the finest Christian biographies of a past century, the effect of reading it will be a fresh desire to love Christ more and serve him better in the present century.’

—Sinclair B. Ferguson

‌‘There are few ministerial biographies that are better worth reading than Moody Stuart’s Life by his son.’

—Principal John Macleod (1872–1948)
in Scottish Theology

‌‘He has poetry in his soul, and beyond that, a heart like that of Rutherford, fired with love to the altogether Lovely One.’

—C. H. Spurgeon (1834–92)
Pastor of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Baptist Church, London

‘I know not a greater master in spiritual analysis.’

—Dr John ‘Rabbi’ Duncan (1796–1870)

‌‘Few were honoured to wield an influence so profound and far-reaching.’

—Address from the Free Presbytery of Edinburgh upon
Moody Stuart’s ministerial diamond jubilee in 1897

‌‘… a man who was the first and earliest of a well-defined and very remarkable school of preaching; who was also its patriarch and survivor; and who, besides being the originator, was himself the most original man not only in that school but, according to my judgment, in the whole Scottish pulpit during the long span of his ministerial career.’

—Alexander Taylor Innes (1833–1912)
Lawyer, political and ecclesiastical adviser, and author

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Book Description

J. C. Ryle described Daniel Rowland (1711–1790) as ‘one of the spiritual giants of the eighteenth century.’ Lady Huntingdon considered him to be ‘second only to Whitefield.’ Howel Harris wrote of him, ‘In his pulpit he is second to St Paul,’ while others acclaimed him as ‘the greatest preacher in Europe.’ Yet he has been one of the least known leaders of that age.

The loss of manuscripts shortly after his death, the Welsh language barrier, and the fact that all his closest friends were also preachers rather than authors, all contributed to leave only a shadowy impression of his greatness. However, after many years of work, Dr Eifion Evans succeeded in breaking through a multitude of difficulties to present for the first time a full-scale biography of Daniel Rowland.

J. C. Ryle writes of Daniel Rowland, ‘Never, perhaps, did any preacher exalt Christ more. . . . No British preacher of the eighteenth century kept together in one district such enormous congregations of souls for fifty years as Rowland did.’ And Dr D. M. Lloyd-Jones asks, ‘Has there been preaching which has had anything like the effect of his preaching since those days?’

At death, when reminded that he had been instrumental in the conversion of thousands to Christ, Rowland protested, ‘It is nothing. I die as a poor sinner depending fully and entirely on the merits of a crucified Saviour.’

This volume is a record of revivals, friendships with other leaders, persecutions and divisions, and the birth of a new age for Wales. Amidst it all, Dr Evans excels in showing what made Rowland the preacher and the humble Christian that he was. Dr Evans’ volume not only fills a major gap in church history, it is an inspiring testimony to New Testament Christianity.

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There are two intended audiences for discourses on the Christian ministry: the pastor or elder who cares for the church, and his congregation who are called to willing and prayerful submission. In Gospel Ministry, a collection of nine sermons delivered in his fruitful later years, John Owen addresses both.

Whether expounding the role of the Holy Spirit in shaping the ministry, presenting the purposes of the church, savouring God’s care of his people, or warning against being ashamed of the gospel, Owen’s teaching is invaluable for any minister – or member – of the body of Christ.

This book is complemented by its companion volume, Gospel Life, which beautifully sets forth the foundational steps of faith in Christ, assurance, and humble walking with him.

N.B. The sermons in this volume have been selected from The Works of John Owen, Volume 9, and modernised.

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In Gospel Life, a posthumous compilation of thirteen sermons from the zenith of his preaching career, John Owen answers these questions with great compassion for the Christian who longs for growth and assurance. He draws on a wide range of Scripture to display the character of the Saviour, the acceptance of the Father, and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit. Finally, Owen addresses the death and eternal hope of the believer, offering encouragement to all who love Christ.

A companion volume, Gospel Ministry, expounds the calling of Christian ministers, and exhorts congregations to loving and prayerful church life.

N.B. The sermons in this volume have been selected from The Works of John Owen, Volume 9, and modernised.

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Book Description

Most experienced Christians are familiar with the Fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians. Love, peace, patience, and so on are often considered both gracious marks of true Christian character and ideals to aim for. But what do they look like when lived to the fullest?

This book answers this question by studying the fullness of the Fruit of the Spirit in the life of Christ. In a warm and engaging style, Jonathan Cruse examines these godly attributes in the Lord’s example, comparing them with our own faltering efforts at holiness, and shows how only the power of God himself can truly conform us to Christ. The work is his, not ours – and this is good news for all those who yearn for greater sanctification.

About the Author

Jonathan Landry Cruse studied theology at Westminster Seminary California. He is an author, hymnwriter, and the pastor of Community Presbyterian Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Jonathan is husband to Kerri Ann and a father of three.

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The church is not yours or mine. It belongs to Jesus Christ. The church is graciously called into being by him for the glory and honour of God’s name. As such, every local church must reflect God’s character and display God’s holiness. For that reason, life in a healthy, happy church always involves discipline—the thoughtful, deliberate, loving investment of each member in all the others for the glory of God and the good of the whole congregation.

Grievously, life in a fallen world means that sin creeps into and breaks out in the church of Jesus Christ. What ought a church to do when sin is uncovered in her midst? How do we respond in a way that shows our love to God and to one another? How do you love someone within the professing church who is unrepentantly sinning against God?

Such questions are often answered carelessly, fearfully, pragmatically, even unrighteously. When that is the case, it typically leads to disturbing confusion, advancing tension, increasing division, and even destruction. Further sin can erupt if offences are not faced humbly and graciously, if unrepentant sin is not addressed righteously and courageously.

Mercifully, the Head of the church has not left us in the dark. He teaches us how to sail through troubled waters so that we are not left in disarray after the storm has struck. He provides clear, wise, and effective commands and counsels for his people.

This booklet summarises the principles and the practices Christ has given for the holiness of his church. It sketches out the assumptions that lie behind church discipline, grounded in the identity of the church and activity of the church of God. It speaks to the nature of church discipline, in its more positive and negative aspects. It identifies love as the primary motive behind any discipline in the church. It looks at the God-ordained purposes of corrective discipline, and the reasons why a church might have to pursue this course. It offers practical advice as to how such discipline ought to be carried out in the church of Jesus Christ. It touches on both the necessary sting and the desired success of those actions by the church. It calls the whole church and her officers to consider our duty to act when the purity and peace of the church of God is threatened by unrepentant sin.

If the church is the household of God, if it is the body of Jesus Christ, if it is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, then we are called to be holy. We need to know how to pursue that calling as those committed to fidelity in our doctrine, purity in our life, and unity in our fellowship.

Author bio:

Jeremy Walker is the pastor of Maidenbower Baptist Church in Crawley, England. He also serves as the Book Reviews Editor of the Banner of Truth magazine.

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Book Description

‘Times of difficulty and of persecution have always been seasons in which God’s ministers shine with greatest lustre.’

These words from the memoir of Bridge contained in these collected Works of William Bridge serve to remind readers of the context in which William Bridge lived and worked.
Born in Cambridgeshire around 1600, Bridge entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1619, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1623 and a master’s degree in 1626, before serving as a fellow of the college.

He was ordained a priest in the Church of England in 1627, and served in Saffron Walden and Colchester in Essex, then becoming rector of St Peter Hungate in Norwich in 1632.
In 1636 he was forced to flee to Rotterdam in Holland because of Bishop Matthew Wren’s campaign against nonconformity. There he co-pastored a church with John Ward and then Jeremiah Burroughs.

Returning to England in 1641, the following year he was appointed a member of the Westminster Assembly, and proved himself a noted Independent. That same year he accepted a position as town preacher at Yarmouth, where he organized an Independent church, and formally became its pastor in the autumn of 1643. He laboured there until 1662, when he was ejected by the Act of Uniformity.

Bridge spent his last years at Yarmouth and Clapham, Surrey, where he died in March 1670.

William Bridge was an excellent preacher, able scholar, and prolific writer with a well-furnished library, but he was no ivory tower theologian. His parishioners viewed him as a charitable and candid pastor whose ministry helped many people.

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Also available, Sermons on Job, Volume 1 (eBook only) and Sermons on Job, Volume 2 (eBook only)

Endorsement

‘Dr Rob Roy McGregor’s translations of Calvin’s sermons have been received with great enthusiasm and gratitude.’ — DEREK THOMAS

Book Description

THE name of John Calvin (1509-64) is justly renowned in a number of contexts. The Reformation’s greatest systematic theologian, he was also a Christian strategist and transformer of society, as his enormous correspondence and his influence in Geneva bear witness. A prolific scholar, well-versed in the Latin of the academics, he also worked hard at communicating to ordinary men and women in his native French language.

Above all, Calvin was a pastor. Indeed, it has been said of him that he became a theologian in order to be a better pastor. Nowhere is that more clearly seen than in his sermons.

In 1549, the Campagnie des Étrangers, refugees who thought highly of his ministry, employed a professional scribe, Denis Raguenier, to record and translate Calvin’s sermons.

Thanks to the foresight of these sixteenth-century Christians we can still read the 159 sermons Calvin preached on the Book of Job on week-days in 1554-5. They abound in faithful and lively exposition, and remain one of the finest examples of evangelical preaching – faithful to the biblical text and thoughtfully applied to the individual and society.

In 1993 the Banner of Truth Trust reprinted a facsimile edition of Arthur Golding’s 1574 translation of Calvin’s sermons on Job. At that time the publisher expressed the hope that ‘Perhaps one day the massive work of retranslating Calvin from the original French into modern English will be done.’ That day has now well and truly come! Several new translations of Calvin’s sermons have recently been published (on Ephesians, Galatians, 2 Samuel 1-13, Acts 1-7, Gen. 1-20, The Beatitudes, Luke 1-2, etc.), and a new translation of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion (1541 ed.) has also recently been added to this impressive list of volumes. Now, thanks to Dr Rob Roy McGregor, all of Calvin’s 159 sermons on Job have been translated into modern, colourful, and vigorous English.

This third volume covers Calvin’s expositions of Job chapters 31-42.

About the Translator

Dr Rob Roy McGregor is a graduate of Erskine College and Columbia Theological Seminary, and was ordained to the Christian ministry in 1958 by Second Presbytery of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. Dr McGregor taught English, French, German, and Latin at Boys High School and Hanna High School in Anderson before earning the MA degree in French from the University of South Carolina and the PhD in Romance Languages from the University of Georgia. He is Professor Emeritus of French and Latin at Clemson University, with publications on Jehan Froissart, Albert Camus, Voltaire, Charles Baudelaire, and Jean Genet.

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Este libro cuenta la historia de la Reforma inglesa. Penetra detrás de la fachada del cambio político y actas del Parlamento, y trae a la luz el movimiento interno del Espíritu de Dios en hombres de corazón humilde y fe heroica. Su autor cree que había una mano que guiaba el timón de la Reforma, y que esta guía divina se releva de manera más clara a través de un estudio detallado de la vida y motivos de aquellos que fueron señalados como líderes del movimiento y maestros de su teología.

Los cinco hombres elegidos para este propósito fueron los más significativos de aquellos que dieron sus vidas en la causa de la Reforma inglesa. Bilney y Tyndale representan el movimiento en el reinado de Enrique VIII; Ridley y Cranmer dominan el estudio en el reinado de Eduardo VI. La vida de Latimer une a Bilney con Cranmer y abarca todo el periodo desde los primeros días de la conversión en los Halls de Cambridge hasta los martirios triunfantes en los fuegos de Oxford. Los cuarenta años, desde el 1516 hasta el 1556, durante los cuales estos hombres encontraron y siguieron a Jesucristo fueron los años en los que la Reforma inglesa fue acunada y nutrida para la gloria de Dios.

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Book Description

During his earthly life Jesus had many critics and enemies who sought to discredit him and sometimes trap him in his own words. They said, for example, that he had threatened to destroy the temple, that he was a blasphemer and that he acted in league with the devil. On one occasion some religious leaders ‘grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners”’ (Luke 15:1). However, what they intended as an attack gives expression to gospel truth – Jesus did and does welcome sinners; as the apostle Paul wrote, ‘The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’ (1 Tim. 1:15). The Gospel According to Christ’s Enemies looks at such attacks in Scripture and also considers contemporary attacks on Christianity which express truths that their speakers do not intend. The book leads us to the gospel according to Jesus Christ himself.

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This compact edition of the Westminster Confession of Faith is ideal for individual or group study. The Introduction by Sinclair B. Ferguson places the Confession in its own time and place, yet shows that far from being a mere historical document, it remains a deeply helpful and mind-shaping guide to the unchanging teachings of the Christian faith.

‘The truth the Confession expresses has the power to shape your thinking; its teaching will both stretch and clarify your understanding. In addition—and best of all—the pastoral wisdom of the Confession of Faith will help you to live the Christian life with the perspective magnificently expressed in the answer to the first question of the Shorter Catechism that accompanied it—glorifying God and enjoying him for ever.’ — Sinclair B. Ferguson

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A pastor of forty years who has throughout his ministry found the Puritans to be a great source of spiritual encouragement, David MacKinnon presents here 366 extracts from the works of the Puritan pastor Richard Sibbes, which may be used each day of the year by readers as an aid to devotion.

Each extract has been carefully selected, and a suitable accompanying Scripture text provided at the start of each daily reading. Occasional antiquated words in the original have been updated, and overly long sentences have been shortened, but all with a view to retain Sibbes’ flow and meaning for present-day readers.

For those who have never encountered Sibbes before, this volume will serve as an excellent introduction. All will find in these daily readings spiritual refreshment for the soul, coming from one who in his day was known, appropriately, as the ‘heavenly doctor.’

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Theodore Beza’s course of activity was, in the words of the author, ‘long and brilliant.’ He presided over the Reformed church in the French-speaking countries of Europe for many years, and was its recognized counsellor and leader in times of peril. His friendship with John Calvin, and also with the French king, Henry IV, ensured that his influence in both church and state was not insignificant— indeed, Beza’s was a career rich in incidents and dramatic interest.

As Paul Wells notes in his Introduction to this new edition of Baird’s life of Beza, ‘some plants flourish in the shade of mighty trees.’ Theodore Beza was such a plant—a significant ‘Reformer in the wings’ who became a major actor in the development of the magisterial Reformation and the spread of the Reformed faith in France.

Beza stepped into the shoes of Calvin as the spokesman of French Protestants in the diaspora, and as the figurehead of a refugee church—a church faced with theological error, and opposition from the powers that be. Beza’s work remains a model of faithfulness under duress for believers worldwide in comparable situations today—it is for that reason that this new edition of his Life has been published.

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Book Description

Samuel Miller (1769–1850), was a faithful pastor, who became a founding father and a professor of Princeton Theological Seminary. He had a deep commitment to the church and an abiding interest in seeing ministers trained ably for her service — an interest which led to him writing this book.

As Dr. Jonathan Master notes in his Foreword to this edition of Miller’s work, ‘public prayer is the priority on Paul’s mind when considering public worship.’ Despite this priority, today public prayer has in some churches a diminishing place in corporate worship.

Ministers especially need instruction in public prayer — Samuel Miller understood this need in his day, and so much of what he wrote remains pertinent to the practice of an edifying ministry in the present.

This volume is replete with insights into the vital place of public prayer in worship, and of sound advice as to how progress may be made in this aspect of pastoral ministry.

This edition includes a Foreword by Dr. Jonathan L. Master, President of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Taylors, South Carolina, USA.

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Book Description

Mary, the mother of Jesus; Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus; and Mary Magdalene all feature prominently in the gospel narrative. But what can Christians learn from the faith displayed by these women?

In these moving and engaging chapters, Alexander Moody Stuart draws out their characters and helps readers learn from each one’s relationship to Jesus. Perhaps too often known only at the surface-level, these three women, brought into sharper focus by Moody Stuart’s reflective and often vivid portrayals, have much to teach us about the faithful Christian life.

Moody Stuart’s preaching and teaching were marked by a keen sensitivity to the human condition and its needs, combined with challenging practical application. This, linked with a deep tenderness and love, well-qualified him to write The Three Marys.

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