The Reformed Faith

Lloyd-Jones' Theology Misrepresented

2012-03-03T21:34:00.001Z

It was stated today that DMLJ believed in 'limited atonement.' This is very strange indeed and downright untruthful. Just read the following paragraph from my book on DMLJ, please:

One of the things that struck me having some 40 years ofreading the Doctor’s wonderful sermons, was the fact that I never found himanywhere preaching the high Calvinist doctrine of limited atonement. If there are people reading this book who canshow me where Dr Lloyd-Jones taught this idea, I’d be very interested. But I have not found it in any of hispublished sermons. I was a bit worriedabout this because the assumption was that he actually held this doctrine andbelieved it. But nowhere have I readthis in any of his published sermons. The facts are otherwise. Forexample, when Dr R. T. Kendal, one of Lloyd-Jones' successors, was minister inWestminster Chapel in London, he had contact with Dr Lloyd-Jones while theformer was working on his doctorate, and sought his views on John Calvin’s theologyof the atonement. Dr Alan C Clifford, inhis book on Philip Doddridge, The Good Doctor, (Charenton Reformed Publishing,Norwich, 2003:273, 274), states that when Dr Lloyd-Jones conducted his ownexamination of Calvin’s commentaries, he expressed surprise in finding “howfrequently universalistic Calvin’s statements were.” During a two-week period, Dr Lloyd-Jonesphoned Dr Kendal repeatedly, and in excited tones, exclaimed, “I’ve foundanother one!” During one such discussionwith Kendal, referring to the doctrine of limited atonement, he confessed, “Inever preached it, you know … only once on Rom.5:15 and I was in greatdifficulty when I did so.” Mrs BethanLloyd-Jones was present when he said this to Kendal, and interjected, “I havenever believed it and I never will.” DrLloyd-Jones was quite clear on this particular theological point.

In addition, please read these statements, in his own words, which make the opposite case:

10. “But here in thispassage with which we propose to deal this evening, we find a strangelimitation. Here we find this Person –whose ministry was characterised above all else by the wideness of its scopeand the hope He held out for all – here we find Him stating quite definitelythat for a certain class of persons, there is no hope whatsoever!” (41).

11. “...but remember,if you believe that Christ had to die on the cross to save you, it means ofnecessity that you were in a dreadful condition and plight that nothing butthat death could possibly save you.” (56).

12. “Well, what wasthat gospel? Just this, that Jesus Christ,is the Son of God, that in dying He cancelled the power of sin and wiped outthe sinful debt of humanity and that by the power of the His Spirit a man canbe created anew and start upon a new life which is an eternal life.” (63).

13. “Some appear asif they had never done any wrong, as if they had no need to repent and had noneed for Christ to die for them on Calvary.” (85).

14. “But look at Hisdeath for a moment and consider it as an expiation for the sin of the wholeworld.” 87).

15. “Well, thosesufferings were enough, according to John, for all. Listen! ‘He is the propitiation for our sins; but not for ours only, but alsofor the sins of the whole world,1 Jn.2:2.’ The whole world!” (88).

16. “But listen tothe words of our Lord Himself as He calls from the cross, ‘It isfinished’. The sins of the whole worldHe had borne upon Himself …” (88).

17. “The sacrificewas completed. It was indeed finished,once for all, world without end!” (88).

47. “Yes! God so loved the world that he gave his onlybegotten Son, Jn.3:16.” (198).

48. “...this greatsalvation that is offered to us by God is to the natural man something which isinherently incredible.” (201.

49. “In view of thefact that salvation is of God and therefore supernatural, although we cannotunderstand it, it holds out a hope for all. … There is literally hope forall. ...It is God’s work, and because itis God’s work, it is possible for all and can be offered to all. ...There is literally hope for all.” (203).

50. “The gospel justasks you to allow God to forgive you, to pardon you, to cleanse you, to fillyou with a new life by believing that he sent His only begotten Son into theworld, to live and die and rise again in order to make all that possible.” (204).

51. “...there He wasin the house of Simon, full of power, yea more, full of love to mankind whichmade Him long to exercise and use that power for their welfare.” (206).

52. “Or do yourecognise in Him the Son of God come down to earth, the Saviour of yoursoul?” (212).

53. “Listen to Him asHe tells you that He has died for you, that He has reconciled you to God, thatyour past can be blotted out, and that your eternal future is safe.” (221).

54. “The great point,surely, is that there is hope for all, that God’s love extends even to thepublicans and sinners.” (227).

55. “What new hopefor mankind appeared in Him!” (228).

56. “There was not,and there never had been, any hope for the hopeless in the world before JesusChrist came. He alone taught the possibility of a new start and a newbeginning.” (229).

57. “...the gospel isnot something vague and general, but something to which definite conditions areattached.” (232).

58. “The love of Goddoes not merely talk about a new beginning, it makes a new beginning. ‘God so loved the world that He gave.’” (237).

59. “…realise thatthis is the very Son of God come to earth to deliver us.” (250).

60. “They followChrist solely to serve their own ends, and not because He is the Son of God,and the Saviour of the world.” (264).

62. “It is there [inthe Christ of the cross] that the whole of humanity is focused. He is the representative of the whole ofhumankind. He died for all.” (278).

74. “He had met theGod who was offering him pardon for his failure, who assured him that he wouldplace his hand upon him, who gave him there a vision of his own future as thefather of the nation, the father ultimately of our Lord Jesus Christ who was tobe the Saviour of the world.” (31).

75. “…God in hisinfinite love had actually sent his only begotten Son into the world to liveand die and rise again in order to make a way of salvation and in order thatGod might reconcile the world to himself.” (47).

76. “He came to diefor our sins and to open the door of heaven for us.” (83).

77. “We shall not diebecause he has died for us and accomplished a perfect atonement in ourbehalf.” (84).

78. “The Saviour ofthe world was not born in Jerusalem, he was born in Bethlehem.” (124).

79. “They did notknow it but the Saviour of the world was about to come into their verymidst.” (124).

80. “…go to the Jesusof Nazareth, the Son of God and you will be cured. He can remove your guilt because he hasalready taken it away.” (127).

81. “Go to Him, thatis all you have to do, He is the all-sufficient Saviour, He is ‘the power ofGod unto salvation unto everyone that believeth,’ Rom.1:16.” (127).

Now, on the basis of these statements, most of which were taken from his evangelistic sermons where he was speaking to unsaved sinners, did he believe in limited atonement as understood by Owenites? Assuredly not. He believed that Christ died effectually for the elect but sufficiently for the whole world.

In other words, no matter who or what the person is, if he believes in Christ, he will be saved.

Jesus' Brothers and Sisters

2012-03-02T15:57:00.001Z

INTRODUCTION

As we have seen, the long ‘silence’ between Our Lord’s infancy and His manhood is interrupted only by His visit to Jerusalem and His appearance before the Temple teachers at the age of twelve (see Lk. 2: 41ff). On returning to Nazareth, Luke tells us that Jesus was ‘subject’ to His ‘parents’ and that He matured intellectually and physically (see vs. 51-2). Beside Mary and Joseph, ‘relatives and acquaintances’ (v. 44) would have met Jesus. Although the information is meagre, it is nonetheless useful and important.

In case we are tempted to think that Jesus had a lonely childhood, the evidence indicates the presence of other children in the family circle. At a later period after the beginning of His ministry, they—at least the boys (!)—are even named. Teaching in the synagogue during a return visit to Nazareth, astonished and offended listeners said, “Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” (Mk. 6: 3). Since Joseph is not mentioned, he was possibly dead by now. Probably trained by Joseph, Jesus ‘the carpenter’ possibly ran the family business with His brothers after their father’s death.

MARY'S MARRIAGE AND MOTHERHOOD

More importantly, Mark’s evidence suggests that those mentioned were Jesus’ half brothers and sisters. In other words, after His own miraculous birth, Joseph and Mary— as husband and wife—had other children in a normal, natural way. Matthew’s account of Christ’s birth surely indicates this: ‘Joseph … took to him [Mary] his wife, and did not know her [in a marital sense] till she had brought forth her first born son’ (Matt. 1: 24-5; for ‘know’, see also Gen. 4: 1). While the use of ‘till’ does not necessarily imply that a previously non-occurring event took place afterwards (see Gen. 28: 15; 1 Sam. 15: 35; Ps. 110: 1; Ps. 112: 8; Matt. 12: 20), the reference to ‘brothers and sisters’ of Jesus makes it difficult to deny in this case. This view is strengthened by the fact that Matthew calls Jesus Mary’s ‘first born son’. This seems to imply that other children followed.

EARLY CHURCH CONTROVERSY

Such a view has not commanded general agreement. The identity of these ‘brothers and sisters’ was hotly debated among the early Church Fathers of the 3^rd and 4^th centuries. First, some—including Origen, Clement of Alexandria and Epiphanius—argued that they were children of Joseph by a previous marriage. Thus they had no blood-relationship with Jesus. Second, Jerome and Augustine (of Hippo) argued that these ‘brothers and sisters’ were really ‘cousins’. Third, Helvidius – taking a more natural view of the evidence - taught that they were true siblings of Jesus.

In reply to the first view, there is simply no evidence for it in any of the Gospels. In reply to the second view, the Greek words translated as ‘cousin’ (anepsios, see Col. 4: 10, NKJV and sungenis, see Lk. 1: 36, AV) are not used of the ‘brothers’ of Jesus. In Mark 6: 3, Jesus is called their ‘brother’ (Gk: adelphos). Two other significant statements confirm this. First, when Jesus was teaching on a previous occasion, Mary and His brothers (and possibly His sisters) sought His attention. We read: “Look, your mother and brothers (Gk: adelphoi) are outside seeking you” (Mk. 3: 31-2). Second, when relating the attitude of Jesus’ brothers to His claims, John states that ‘even his brothers (Gk: adelphoi) did not believe in him’ (Jn. 7: 5).

NATURAL BROTHERHOOD

It is often claimed that ‘brother’ may be used in a broader sense than a sibling. This is quite true. The Israelites were to regard one another as ‘brethren’ (Heb: achim; see Gen. 14: 12, 14; Num. 32: 6), a fact confirmed in the New Testament (see Acts 13: 26). Furthermore, fellow Christians—irrespective of family or ethnic grouping—viewed one another as ‘brethren in Christ’ (see Col. 1: 2). However, these are derivative and metaphorical uses of ‘brother’ (Heb: ach; Gk: adelphos). Obviously, the very first and thus source example of the word in Genesis 4: 2 can only mean ‘brother of the same womb’. As we have seen, if ‘brother’ is used in a wider sense of ‘relatives’ or ‘kindred’, moledeth (Hb) and sungenis (Gk) rather than ach and adelphos are the words used.

It is also said that if Mary had other sons beside Jesus, Our dying Lord would not have placed His mother in the care of the Apostle John (see Jn. 19: 27). In view of the fact that—at that time—‘his brothers did not believe in him’ (Jn. 7: 5), Jesus clearly wished believing John rather than unbelieving brothers to care for her. What became of his ‘sisters’ we simply do not know. They were probably married and busy caring for their children in Nazareth or elsewhere by then.

SPIRITUAL BROTHERHOOD

Happily, ‘his brothers’ were eventually converted. They were members of the early Church together with Mary (see Acts 1: 14). The Apostle Paul supplies us with two important details about one of them. First, he tells us that the risen Lord Jesus ‘was seen by James’ (1 Cor. 15: 7). Second, Paul refers to him as ‘James, the Lord’s brother’ (Gal. 1: 19). Since Jewish Christians were ‘brothers of Christ’ in both ethnic and spiritual senses, Paul must mean that James was a ‘blood (half) brother’ as well.

Furthermore, of all Our Lord’s ‘brothers’, the career of James in the New Testament is important. After the Apostle John’s brother James was martyred by Herod (see Acts 12: 2), James - probably ‘the Lord’s brother rather than the Apostle James ‘the son of Alphaeus’ (Mk. 3: 18) - was a leader of the Jerusalem church (see Acts 15: 13). He was also the likely author of the Epistle of James. Instead of describing himself as an apostle, the author calls himself ‘a servant’ (literally ‘a slave’ from Gk: doulos). (James ‘the son of Alphaeus’ would have followed apostolic usage in his introduction had he been the author.)

LESSONS LEARNED

First, unless there is something basically sinful about marriage, there is no reason to imagine that Joseph and Mary simply lived as brother and sister after the birth of Jesus. God’s gift of marriage was also available to them (see Heb. 13: 4). Apart from being the mother of the unique Son of God, Mary was also an example of motherhood in being the mother of Joseph’s sons and daughters. This is her lasting legacy to the Church, not as a ‘Mediatrix’ or ‘Queen of Heaven’ but as a dear sister in Christ. Although he and Luther seemed reluctant to question the idea of Mary’s perpetual virginity, John Calvin rightly corrects the unbiblical errors of Rome’s view of Mary:

How necessary this warning became, in consequence of the gross and abominable superstitions which followed later, is known well enough. For Mary has been made Queen of Heaven, the Hope, the Life and Salvation of the world; and in fact, their insane raving went so far that they just stripped Christ and adorned her with the spoils. And when we condemn those accursed blasphemies against the Son of God, the Papists call us malicious and envious. Nay, they spread the wicked slander that we are deadly foes to the honour of the holy virgin. As if she had not all the honour that belongs to her without being made a goddess! As if it were honouring her to adorn her with sacrilegious titles and put her in Christ’s place! It is they who do Mary a cruel injury when they snatch from God what belongs to Him that they may deform her with false praises (Comment on John 2).
Second, just as physical descent from believing parents does not – of itself – make us Christians, even being a half brother to Christ did not convey spiritual life and privileges. Just as Mary trusted Christ for salvation (see Lk. 1: 47), so her other children were only Christians by faith in Him. Even James boasted no other relationship with Jesus than that enjoyed by all other believers (see Jas. 2: 1). Since Jesus is the ‘elder brother’ of all who believe (see Heb. 2: 17), may we rejoice in this precious saving spiritual relationship with Him. Irrespective of any other privileges or disadvantages, all may share this ‘belonging’ in the family of God. Amen!

Supplied by Rev. Dr Alan C. Clifford, Norwich Reformed Church

What Is Lloyd-Jones Doing Today?

2012-03-02T14:51:00.002Z

An interesting question! He prayed for an abundance entry into the Kingdom of God. As a child of God, he is now in the nearer presence of his Saviour whom he preached with such power and conviction. He is worshipping and adoring the Lord Jesus Christ, looking on His immaculate beauty. Do I hear him talking to Paul and Moses and Jeremiah? Do I see him prostrate before the Throne of the Ineffable? Can I hear him singing hymns of praise in that melodious Welsh male voice? Is he enjoying himself today? Yes. And he is enjoying himself primarily because he is enjoying being in the nearer presence of Christ.

Do I see him having fellowship with John Calvin and Martin Luther? He now moves over to where George Whitefield is, and with him the Wesley brothers, John and Charles. Beside them is Richard Baxter and Daniel Rowland. What a wonderful company of saints. And look, over there is John Owen now discussing with Richard Baxter, each humbled by his respective theological inaccuracies, limitations and spiritual coldness.

Jonathan Edwards comes over to DMLJ, and they start talking about Christ's glory in man's dependence on His grace for eternal salvation. Samuel Rutherford joins in as he speaks about the sheer loveliness of Christ his Redeemer. Philip Doddridge appears and signs joyfully in praise of his great Saviour. Oh, what would one not give to be there with such spiritual giants! Howell Harris and Christmas Evans and Evan Roberts are mixing with the glorified spirits in heaven, and DMLJ makes his way over towards them. Even in heaven Welshness does not seem to be eradicated.

Do I hear Cum Rhondda striking up? Yes, and Martyn is in the front row of the singers, singing his holy heart our in praise of God for His great salvation. They sing heartily and enjoy holy fellowship with each other, and with Christ.

Then there are numerous Christians there in that great company which no man can number and whose names we do not know; but they are all well known to God. He has given them the same abundant and warm welcome that the great received. And for the first time ever, they are indisputably and in reality "all one in Christ Jesus."

Oh, come, let us adore Him!

True Calvinism Challenged

2012-03-02T14:28:00.001Z

I am convinced of definite atonement for the salvation of the elect, but with Murray, Macleod, DMLJ, et al, I hold that Christ in His death did something for the non-elect. So I would describe myself as a full 5-pointer and I can only do that by holding to the efficiency of Christ's death for the elect/sufficiency for the whole world paradigm; Owen et al are but 4.5 point theologians. With Calvin and DMLJ et al, and to be truly reformed and biblical, we must hold to the biblical balance without any negative interference from the influences of medieval scholasticism such as that promoted by Aristotle, and embraced by Owen.

I find it amazing that Owen could say he would give up all his great learning if only he could preach like Bunyan. Perhaps that's why there are so many ineffective preachers in today's dead churches - many, nay, most prefer Owen to Bunyan, the scholastic theologian to the Gospel preacher! It is sad that Banner chose Owen rather than Baxter as it epitomising personality. And LTS chose the name of Owen for it theological research centre rather than a well-known evangelistic preacher such as Whitefield. And that is not to disparage much of Owen's works.

The Westminster standards are but subordinate standards, and Geoff Thomas confirmed to me that the 1689 Baptist confession is but subordinate to Scripture, alluding to the real possibility of abuse by reformed ministers who make it the touchstone of orthodoxy. I have no major problem with the WCF so far as it goes; my big concern is that it does not go as far as Scripture goes. The clogging influence of Aristotelian logic as promoted by Owen is seen in this otherwise excellent historical theological document. Prof. John Barclay used to describe it as the "queen of confessions," and the "most mature" of all the confessions written post-reformation; yet in his prayers and teaching, and, with Calvin, referred to Christ as the 'Saviour of the world.' This used to enrage me - until I started to read Calvin for myself. Second-hand religion has not served me well over the years.

Why are there so many chameleon-type ministers in the church today? All the churches have them - I know from experience. I am reminded of Paul's face to face encounter with Peter (Gal.2:11) where so many ministers today are what they are depending upon the company they are in. They are to be blamed for not being true to their convictions. We used to ridicule ministers who, when going to preach on supply, used the announcements to determine which sermon they would preach - if there was a prayer meeting, they'd use the Gospel sermon; if not, then another, which is no Gospel. Sadly, we have not shed that way of working.

Let us be concerned that we do not follow that destructive pathway. It is all too easy to fall into that Satanic trap, and he can trip us up so easily.

Ishare annoyance at those who misrepresent the views of other good men who have made their mark on the Christian church throughout history. Their cold and lifeless orthodoxy is not reformed, whatever else they may call it. And if it is not truly reformed, it cannot be biblical. Calvin's theology has been distorted to a serious degree, as has DMLJ's. Such misrepresentation "in the house of his friends" is deplorable. There is a predisposition to squeeze everything into a particular theological mould, a great danger of systematic theology, but a danger that can be diverted by a careful reading of the Scriptures, a sound biblical theology, and a steady reading of God's greatest Gospel preachers in history. . As J C Ryle so wisely said, 'men can be more systematic in their theology than the Bible.'

For further information on DMLJ, please visit here.

"Reformed" Ministers Resent LLoyd-Jones Soteriology

2012-03-01T22:23:00.001Z

I always find it amazing that so many 'reformed men' read and benefit from the Doctor, yet do not want those who hold the same views to preach for them. Of course, they would not want Calvin to preach in their pulpits either. Do such men have blinkers on their eyes when they read the Doctor's evangelistic sermons, or are they living in some kind of fool's paradise? Give me the man who is true over the man whom pretends to be one thing but is altogether something different, any day.

Lloyd-Jones self-defined as an evangelist, the very thing many of these men are not. They wrongly imagine that if they can preach and get very few, if any, conversions, they are somehow faithful to the Gospel. According to DMLJ, they are not. They are not evangelicals - the very name says otherwise; they are not Calvinists; and they are certainly not reformed.

Where have these false ideas come from? Who has been feeding these ministers on a theological diet of evangelical liberalism (see how even language fails me in describing these men)? Their theological professors? Some thinking evangelicals seem to think so. Is it because they approach the Scriptures with a predisposition that precludes allowing Scripture to speak out its own saving message? Where has this filter come from? Who has blinded their eyes so that they do not see the truth?

I think I know why Owenism is the preferred filter: it's because the WCF is Owenite rather than Calvinistic, or biblical. I believe that Owenism is the greatest contributor to liberalism in the churches and more so than the German theologians. One just has to look at generations of PCI ministers who all signed the WCF, claiming that this is what they believed. The ministers I had in my home congregation were all WCF men, but there was no Gospel preached by most of them. Look at the elders within PCI who have destroyed many good men, and were backed by the denomination. Some of them have not even read the WCF, yet claim the right to rule in the congregation.

I can remember the minister of the Nazarene church I attended near Leeds, and who was brought up in a Scottish Presbyterian manse, saying to me that WCF religion stultifies Gospel preaching and evangelism. I disagreed with him then, but on reflection, I think he was correct in his assessment. I am not in any way advocating Arminianism, but what I am saying is that we must get back to authentic Calvinism if we are to see the theological fogs lift and the glorious Gospel of Christ being heralded across the country.

Yet far too many men are more concerned about maintaining their current ministerial position than challenge the status quo. It is refreshing to hear that some men are prepared to do that, and these are probably the men who are more spiritually aware than are others and seek to do something about it. I agree that we must do the right thing, but the right thing is not always what any particular denomination says it is. I think it was Maurice Roberts who said he preferred a living Arminian church to a dead Calvinist one (whatever a 'dead' Calvinist church actually is). I agree with Roberts' point. Was St Peter's in Geneva a 'dead' reformed church? Hardly. Just read Calvin's evangelistic sermons to see and feel the force of truth on the conscience.

I also think that denominational leaders know how dangerous it is for ministers to do their own thinking, so they have used the devil's invention of multiplying committees, and then putting those most vulnerable to critical thought on these committees to keep them from developing their theological convictions - especially if their convictions just might challenge the "accepted wisdom" received by tradition from the fathers.

Any comments?

Lloyd-Jones Anniversary 1st March

2012-02-29T22:54:00.000Z

1st March marks the day on which Rev. Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) entered heaven. His legacy to the Christ church is inestimable. On Saturday, a conference will be held in Larne, Co Antrim, NI, to mark this event. Speakers will include Rev. Dr Geoff. Thomas and Rev. J. J. Murray.

You might also want to read my book on the Doctor which you can purchase at this website. Make sure you get your copy and read how one minister found DMLJ, and the influence he had on his life and ministry.

Church and Gospel Failure

2012-02-29T22:28:00.002Z

That the Gospel is needed more than anything else in Northern Ireland has been demonstrated again with the launch of a report into the extent and depth of division that still remains in our society. The division is along religious lines - Protestant vs. Catholic. Sectarianism is still alive and well in Ulster.

What is the reason for this? There is the fundamental issue of human responsibility for our behaviour. But there is also the responsibility of the Church to preach the Gospel faithfully and passionately. There is the responsibility upon the Church to engage in vigorous evangelism.

But what has been done instead? The church has continued with her ecumenical activities and at the same time has failed to evangelise those in their catchment areas. The Gospel which is God's power for the salvation of everyone who believes has been withheld for perishing sinners.

Indeed, the entire ecumenical enterprise engaged in by the Community Relations Council has been an abysmal failure, an enterprise that shares the backing of the main churches.

There must be a wholehearted return to the passionate preaching of the Gospel by all the Christian churches in Northern Ireland. Our country needs to feel the power of the Gospel in a new way, a way that will bring about radically changed lives. Inventing new ways of dealing with the problems of sectarianism that ignores the Gospel are doomed to fail. Any new approach must be Gospel based and its realistic teaching put in place.

The LLoyd-Jones 31st Anniversary

2012-02-28T22:56:00.000Z

1st March will be the 31st anniversary of the arrival of Dr David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) in glory. This eminent servant of Christ lived for and served the Lord while in this world and glorified Him in his ministry.

I had the privilege of hearing him preach in the flesh at a midweek service in Leeds while studying there, and what an honour it was. To hear the greatest preacher in 20th century Britain was something I will never forget.

For forty-plus years I have been a student of DMLJ and have benefited greatly from his books. I have prepared a personal appreciation of the Doctor which has now been made available to the wider reading public. You can get your copy of the book at this link.

In addition to the personal appreciation, I have appended a section which runs to about half the book, detailing DMLJ's understanding of the Gospel. For many, DMLJ was viewed as an Owenite, as a preacher who held to Westminster theology. Nothing could be further from the truth, however.

You will discover things about DMLJ's theology, or soteriology, that will surprise you. In fact, what you will discover about DMLJ's soteriology is that it is authentically Calvinistic. He preaches the same Gospel as did John Calvin. Calvin's ministry was so blessed by God that many were savingly converted to Christ and the city of Geneva and St Peter's church thoroughly reformed according to the Word of God. DMLJ saw many sinners converted to Christ over many years of faithful ministry. Both these ministers are reminiscent of Richard Baxter of Kidderminster who evangelistic labours saw that entire town transformed by the grace of God.

In stark contrast stands the ministry of Anglican-turned-congregationalist, Dr John Owen. He is not now to have had any conversions during his long ministry. To some people, lack of conversions is a mark of a faithful ministry. How wrong can a person be! DMLJ's preaching exhibited a biblical balance that is nit just admirable but to be copied by every Gospel preacher in the church.

The book demonstrates clearly, and in the Doctor's own words, what it was he preached - and it was a message that God honoured.

As the 31st anniversary of his death approaches, why not get your copy of this book and read, in his own words, the Gospel he declared for six decades.

The Unbeliever's Irony

2012-02-24T21:15:00.001Z

Have you ever wondered why it is that those 'church Christians' - as opposed to true Christians - who hate the Gospel, hate all preaching about or of the Cross and the blood, hate to hear about the death of Christ for their sin, without fail attend the Lord's Supper regularly? And what is the Lord's Supper about? It is about Christ's death on the Cross for the sins of the world. It uses the physical elements of bread broken and wine poured out to preach the death of the Saviour for the world, yet they hate the Cross.

I think the answer is that many within nominal churches, that is, churches that do not know or preach the everlasting Gospel, are so steeped in romish sacramentalism and sacerdotalism that it matters little to them what the sacrament means and implies so long as they 'take' it. They do not believe that Christ's death and resurrection trusted in personally will save them and take them to heaven, but they do believe that the sheer mechanical taking of the Supper does. That is unadulterated romanism.

Nor does it seem to dawn on such deluded church members that unless and until they enjoy communion (fellowship) with Christ on a daily basis rules out their having communion with Him at the table. This romanising of the Christian faith by the churches must be acknowledged and repented of immediately, if times of refreshing are to come from the presence of the Lord.

Any comments?

New LLoyd-Jones Book on Diesel Ebook Store.

2012-02-22T18:45:00.000Z

My new book on Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones is now available on Diesel Ebook Store and may be accessed there.

Please visit this site and have a look. Did you know that you could earn yourself a small amount of money by writing a review of this book? It is small but after a few reviews, you will then be able to buy yourself a book.

MARRIAGE UNDER ATTACK - OUR NATION UNDER JUDGEMENT

2012-02-22T16:33:00.001Z

Don't play politics with marriage

Marriage is unique
Throughout history and in virtually all human societies marriage has always been the union of a man and a woman. Marriage reflects the complementary natures of men and women. Although death and divorce may prevent it, the evidence shows that children do best with a married mother and a father.

No need to redefine
Civil partnerships already provide all the legal benefits of marriage so there's no need to redefine marriage. It's not discriminatory to support traditional marriage. Same-sex couples may choose to have a civil partnership but no one has the right to redefine marriage for the rest of us.

Profound consequences
If marriage is redefined, those who believe in traditional marriage will be sidelined. People's careers could be harmed, couples seeking to adopt or foster could be excluded, and schools would inevitably have to teach the new definition to children. If marriage is redefined once, what is to stop it being redefined to allow polygamy?

Speak up
People should not feel pressurised to go along with same-sex marriage just because of political correctness. They should be free to express their views. The Government will be launching a public consultation on proposals to redefine marriage. This will provide an opportunity for members of the public to make their views known.

SIGN PETITION HERE

Peter Saunders:
TEN REASONS FOR REJECTING HOMOSEXUAL ‘MARRIAGE’.

1. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman
Throughout history in virtually all cultures and faiths throughout the world, marriage has been held to be the union of one man and one woman. Marriage existed thousands of years before our nation began and has been recognised in our laws as the ‘voluntary union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others for life’ (Hyde v Hyde 1866). The UN Declaration of Human Rights (article 16) recognises that the family, headed by one man and one woman, ‘is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State’. It is not up to governments to redefine marriage – but simply to recognise it for what it is, and to promote and protect it as a unique institution.

2.Same sex couples already have civil partnerships
Virtually all the legal rights of marriage are already available to same sex couples through civil partnerships so there is no need to redefine marriage to include them. The President of the Family Division has even described civil partnerships as conferring ‘the benefits of marriage in all but name’. Such a move would also inevitably lead to calls to open civil partnerships to opposite sex couples on the basis of ‘equality’. But marriage and civil partnerships have been designed for two very different types of relationship and should be kept distinct. It is not and should not be ‘one size fits all’.

3.Redefining marriage without consultation is undemocratic
None of the political leaders who are supporting the legalisation of same sex marriage announced it as a priority in their election manifestos. There is already a huge amount of opposition to the move and pressing ahead with legalisation will lead to considerable dissension and division. Legalising same sex marriage to appease a small minority is wrong and it should not be foisted on the British people without proper consultation about whether rather than how it should be done.

4.Equality does not mean uniformity
In a free democratic society we accept that many human activities are not open to everybody. Not everyone is allowed to drink alcohol, drive a car, buy property, cast a vote, own a firearm, attend university, visit Buckingham Palace or participate in a 100m women’s Olympic event. This does not mean that those who are not eligible for these activities are in any way denigrated or demeaned, but just that there are eligibility criteria. Same sex couples do not fulfil the eligibility criteria for marriage, which should be reserved for the voluntary union of one man and one woman for life.

5.Protecting traditional marriage safeguards children and society
Stable marriages and families headed by a mother and a father are the bedrock of society and the state has a duty to protect the uniqueness of these key institutions. Though death and divorce may prevent it, children do best when raised by a married mother and father. Whilst single parents or same sex couples may do a good job in raising children, social policy has to be concerned with what is normally the case, and children have a right if at all possible to have a married mother and a father involved in their upbringing. In general the evidence shows that marriage provides a stability for adults and children which is hard to beat in terms of outcomes. There is considerable evidence to show that marriage leads to better family relationships, less economic dependence, better physical health and longevity, improved mental health and emotional well-being and reduced crime and domestic violence. By contrast sexual freedom and relationship breakdown cost Britain £100 billion annually and other models of the family have not been shown to have the same stability as traditional marriage. Same sex marriage, in comparison with marriage, is an unproven and experimental social model.

6.Marriage is a unique biologically complimentary relationship
Marriage is the only legal union which can naturally lead to children. It takes both a man and a woman to produce a baby. The fact that there is a natural link between sexual intimacy and procreation is what makes marriage distinctive and different. Redefining marriage will undermine this distinctness and difference and risks normalising the technological instrumentalisation of reproduction and increasing the number of families where there is confusion of biological, social and family identity.

7.Redefining marriage will be complex and expensive
Redefining marriage could cost £billions and involve amending hundreds of pieces of government legislation. Introducing same sex marriage is a legal can of worms which cannot be achieved without changing the common and legal definition of the word marriage and other words which define it. (eg. ‘husband and wife’, ‘consummation’ and ‘adultery’). These changes will inevitably change the definition and nature of marriage for opposite sex couples by trying to accommodate these two very different kinds of relationship under one legal umbrella. According to an assessment done for gay rights group Stonewall by a former civil servant, the cost of implementing one favoured option would be around £5 billion. This figure relates to a theoretical increase in straight couples taking up the opportunity of civil partnerships, with knock-on implications to their entitlement to pension and tax benefits. This is simply not a priority for government at a time of economic recession as it will confer no new rights.

8.Schools will be forced to teach about the new definition of marriage
Under existing education law schools will be required to teach children that marriage can be between a man and a woman, between two men or between two women. This will confuse children whose parents may wish to teach them according to their own values and worldview. Those parents who object could be undermined in their children’s eyes, stigmatised as homophobics and bigots and prevented from full involvement in schools.

9.Redefining marriage will not stop with same sex marriage
In Mexico same sex marriage was followed by two year fixed term marriage. In Canada legalising same sex marriage has led to supporters of polygamy demanding in the courts for their unions to be recognised. If the legal definition is changed to accommodate same sex couples other minority groups with a vested interest (eg. Muslims, Mormons, Bisexuals and Polyamorists) will have a much stronger case to argue for the legalisation of polygamy and group marriages. The best defence against this is to keep the legal definition of marriage unique and distinct – ‘one man, one woman, for life’.

10.Redefining marriage will lead to faith-based discrimination
We have already seen a rising tide of discrimination against people who support traditional marriage as a result of the legalisation of civil partnerships coupled with new equality legislation. If same sex marriage is legalised, faith-based employers who provide special health benefits to married employees would be required by law to extend those benefits to same-sex ‘spouses’. They would also face lawsuits for taking any adverse employment action - no matter how modest - against an employee for the public act of obtaining a civil ‘marriage’ with a member of the same sex. Faith-based adoption and fostering services that place children exclusively with married couples would be required by law to place children with persons of the same sex who are civilly ‘married’. Marriage counsellors from faith backgrounds would be denied their professional accreditation for refusing to provide counselling in support of same-sex ‘married’ relationships. All these moves would place faith groups in the invidious position of being forced to act against their consciences or face marginalisation, exclusion and litigation and would further fuel social fragmentation, sectarianism, antagonism and civil unrest.

“What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder”
Mark 10:9.

Book Available From Major Book Seller.

2012-02-22T16:25:00.001Z

Diesel eBook Store has now listed my book, Calvin and Courage - Under the Cross, for sale. Please visit this website to check it out.

This book contains an address the author gave at a theological conference in NORFOLK in 2009, to commemorate the birth of the Genevan reformer, John Calvin (1509 - 1564).

CONFESSING CHRIST

2012-02-22T16:16:00.001Z

If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the Word of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Him. Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.

MARTIN LUTHER

(1483-1546)

There can be no doubt in anyone's mind that the professing church in our country (UK) has failed lamentably to truly confess Christ and the Gospel. She is deafeningly silent on the matter of gay marriages, sodomy, the threat from Islam, and a host of other issues. Luther is right: the church today has hidden herlight under a bucket, and the world is going to hell as fast as its feet can carry it.

John Calvin on the Atonement

2012-02-20T16:44:00.001Z

The teaching of JohnCalvin on the atonement has given rise to considerable controversy on thenature and extent of the atonement. Works by such eminent scholars as A. C.Clifford, B. G. Armstrong, Paul van Buren, R. T. Kendal, Isaac Watts, PhilipDoddridge, John Newton, E. Calamy, J. Bellamy, J. Edwards, Thomas Chalmers,Ralph Wardlow, J, Bunyan, and J. C. Ryle; also Luther, Melanchthon, Bullinger,Latimer, Cranmore, Coverdale, and Calvin himself, plus some Westminster divinessuch as Richard Baxter, on the one side of the debate, and Jonathan Rainbow,Jim Packer, Paul Helm, Roger Nicole, Carl Bangs, plus a significant number ofthe Westminster divines, to name but a few are on the other side of thecontroversy.

Claims and counter-claims have been made, each assertingthat he has understood the mind of Calvin, and faithfully represents it.

But given the discrepancy between these views, each side canhardly be correct. The interesting thingis that those who would describe themselves as “authentic Calvinists,”represented by the scholars mentioned in the first section of the paragraphabove, have succeeded in drawing their theological views directly from Calvin’swritings, while those in the other school – the high orthodox, or scholastic,theologians, of whom the puritan Dr John Owen is a fine representative - tendto draw heavily on medieval Aristotelian philosophy to help them argue theircase, though they might deny this.

The remainder of this article will be available very soon on Smashwords.com and search for Hazlett Lynch. You will also see on that site other interesting information products, some of which are free for you to take.

Irish History From A Christian Perspective

2012-02-19T14:24:00.001Z

This is probably the first attempt to write a history of Ireland from a theological perspective, and I encourage you to get the first part of this ongoing study. Please visit this link for further information and see how this will work from the introductory chapter.

The upcoming chapters will follow this plan and it will be very exciting to see just what the impact of this approach will be. It will certainly put Irish History into a perspective that is not normal for history writing.

Political Forgiveness For An Apology From Terrorists

2012-02-19T14:10:00.003Z

To find out how theology can be applied to concrete situations, please visit this website for further information.

This study in reconciliation sets out the arguments for and against granting amnesty for apology for those who have committed some of the worst crimes in human history. It analyses it from a victim's perspective. Checked by the teaching of Scripture, this book will set you thinking about issues where wrong has been done, and what the biblical and Christian way forward is for concerned.

This current proposal smacks of amnesty for truth, which is in itself an immoral proposal.

Reconciliation and Victims of Terrorism

2012-02-19T14:06:00.002Z

If you are interested in finding out more about a subject of international importance, may I refer you to this website.

The Book seeks to analyse and address current reconciliation thinking in war-torn Northern Ireland by subjecting it to the teaching of the Bible. False reconciliation, argues Dr Lynch, is very dangerous because it creates a false sense of security. Myths around current reconciliation thinking and practice are exposed and answered, and an understanding of true and lasting reconciliation proposed.

Peter - Filled With The Holy Spirit

2012-02-14T15:02:00.001Z

Calvin: "...Luke wanted to show that Peter was strong only because he was filled with the Holy Spirit," (Sermons on Acts, p.129). Standing before the mighty Jewish Sanhedrin accused of the healing of the lame man, Peter and John made their defence statement. That statement was a reaffirmation of the fact that it was Jesus of Nazareth, Whom they crucified, who raised this lame man to full physical agility, not them. They gave Jesus all the credit and glory for this mighty act of healing.

But what empowered Peter to speak like this, being an ignorant and uneducated man, was his being "filled with the Holy Spirit." This is not the first time Peter experienced this infilling of the Spirit. It happened before on the Day of Pentecost when God poured out His Spirit on the apostle's preaching. Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit. But this was not the last time this happened to the apostle. Every time he had something significant to do for Christ, he was endued with "power from on high." When the groups of believers were met together after Peter and John had been released from the 71-strong Sanhedrin, they prayed to the sovereign Lord and were all filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter included (Acts 4:31).

Calvin is correct: we are weak and inform when we are deprived of Him.

But there is much more to this than just help when we need it. This is a special filling for a special purpose. And it is this that preachers need more than anything else today. We have all our theology and correct doctrine; but we do not have the Spirit in power. We can preach well-constructed sermons, but have no power. We can woo congregations with our weepy concluding stories, but no power. It is power we need, power to live, power to preach, and power to witness to Christ in every situation. Without this heavenly enabling, all our preaching and witnessing are in vain.

The preachers of old were men who knew the filling of the Spirit in great measure. Think of men like John and Charles Wesley, George Whitefield, Daniel Rowlands, Jonathan Edwards, R. M. McCheyne, etc. They knew the Spirit's power on their lives and ministries. How we need to know that today.

Let us pray to the sovereign Lord that all Gospel preachers will be Spirit-filled men, and that when they stand up to preach, it will be "in demonstration of the Spirit and of power."

A Pastor With GUTS!

2012-02-13T11:50:00.000Z

This is absolutely great ! ! !

Prayer given in Kansas at the opening session of their Senate. It seems prayer still upsets some people.. When Minister Joe Wright was asked to open the new session of the Kansas Senate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this is what they heard:
Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.
We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.
We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.
We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare..
We have killed our unborn and called it choice.
We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem....
We have abused power and called it politics.
We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.
We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.
We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.
Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free.

Amen!

The response was immediate. A number of legislators walked out during the prayer in protest. In 6 short weeks, Central Christian Church, where Rev. Wright is pastor, logged more than 5,000 phone calls with only 47 of those calls
responding negatively.. The church is now receiving international requests for copies of this prayer from India , Africa and Korea .
Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on his radio program, 'The Rest of the Story,'and received a larger response to this program than any other he has ever aired. With the Lord's help, may this prayer sweep over our nation and wholeheartedly become our desire so that we again can be called 'one nation under God.'
If possible, please pass this prayer on to your friends.... 'If you don't stand for something, you will fall for everything.'
Think about this: If you forward this prayer to everyone on your e-mail list, in less than 30 days it would be heard by the world.

Slavish Adherence

2012-02-12T22:41:00.000Z

"...we must beware of a slavish adherence to old forms," preached Dr Lloyd-Jones in his Ephesians sermons (Vol.8, p.289). How often has DMLJ not pressed this point! And the apostle Paul warned about the same kind of thing. Yet we tend to become enslaved by what are good things - old forms of ding things, old ways of thinking, old practices that once had great significance but now are no more than of historical significance.

For example, why are some churches today asking congregations to stand for prayer? True, the Scottish covenanters stood for prayers, with the backs of members turned to the minister. Why was this done? Because at that time, Christians were persecuted relentlessly so while prayer was being offered by the minister, at least some of the worshippers kept their eyes open to watch for potential attack.

Is this relevant in today's church situation? Hardly. But some Christians have to keep the tradition going on, a "tradition of men," as Peter called it, and for no apparent reason; certainly their is no spiritual or theological reason for such a practice. But to do otherwise would be to take these Christians out of their comfort zone, and leave them confused.

We need to beware of the traditions of men, and well did DMLJ warn the churches against such a practice. How easy it is to adopt like practices, such as, the way Presbyterians all seem to sit in the back pews of a church, etc. Slavishness to a particular translation of the Bible, or to the insistence that women cover their heads for worship, or do not wear 'men's clothing,' or the exclusive use of Psalms in the public worship of God, etc; the list could go on interminably.

Once we succumb to any 'old form' is a sign that we have been defeated by the devil, according to DMLJ. So watch out. Stay alert. And dont become a slave to anything or anyone but Christ and His truth.

Limited Faithfulness To Scripture

2012-02-12T21:28:00.003Z

It is not in the least surprising to realise that some reformed preachers emphasise the particularity of atonement to the point where it becomes suffocating. These men are so tied in to confessional Christianity that they are hampered in what they can offer to a sinful humanity, or more specifically what they have to offer to sinful men. If the only thing they have to offer sinners is the offer of salvation through faith in Christ alone, then the mere offer is useless. These dear brothers are so hampered and restricted in their preaching of the Gospel.

But when these same men only quote those verses of Scripture in part in order to support a particularly philosophical interpretation of the Bible, then they have plunged to a new depth. Christ did not only "taste death," which is how the verse was quoted recently; He tasted death "for every man," (Heb.2:9). The latter part of the verse does not suit those who hold to scholastically restricted atonement teaching, so they leave out that part of the verse that teaches that!

Or again, another preacher quoted, "God was in Christ reconciling to Himself." The big problem is that Paul did not say that in 2 Cor.5:19. What he said was "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself." But this extremely reformed preacher deliberately omitted the words the world, clearly because he held to limited atonement.

It is so sad that men are prepared to squeeze the Gospel to fit a human template just because they are working to a particular agenda. Adherence to some confessional dogma is much more important to these men than adhering to Scriptural data, which is the correct methodology.

Now when reformed men resort to that kind of unfaithfulness, there is little hope of any change within the church, certainly not so far as reform is concerned.

If you are of a reforming disposition and conviction, please covenant with me to work for the reform of the church so that we might see again times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.

Listen to Calvin.

2012-02-10T17:08:00.003Z

I discovered this in Calvin's second published sermon in his Acts series.

"For many will be found who will say they have faith, but of they look into their hearts, they will find they foolishly believe they have that faith which they truly believe they have simply because they think they do. Just let some slight hint of testing arise, and they are overwhelmed," (pp.14,15).

How many there are who are exactly like that! Because they think they have faith, they must therefore have it! Because someone else, some religious official, accepts they have faith, they must have it. The applications are many. And those who fall into this category are so overwhelmed by the realisation that they do not have the faith they thought they had that they then take it out on the minister.

Cheap profession-ism is killing the church, but few seem to care about this departure either.

The more I read Calvin, the more timely are his thoughts and expositions. He is so contemporary despite having preached these sermons in the mid 1550s. The seeds of application just jump out at you. he is a delight to read and be ministered to by.

"Think on these things."

See also my book on Calvin's Gospel Preaching by clicking here.

Another book that might be of interest to you is here. Please buy your copy and tell your friends to get themselves their copy.

Owenism Under The Microscope

2012-02-09T21:17:00.002Z

Despite the many good things that Owen has written, I am afraid that his influence within the churches has been pernicious rather than helpful. Owenism cuts the umbilical cord of biblical evangelism. It could be argued that this is because these men have not understood the essence of Owen's theology; or it might also be that they have, and it is now like a noose around their necks with the attendant fear that the non-elect might be saved under Gospel preaching! How ridiculous can things become! I think also that Owenism is so focussed on predestination and election that there is really no need for Gospel preaching at all!

I am also convinced that only those who adopt an Owenite position on matters relating to the Gospel will be welcome to preach to many of their congregations. I think Owenism allows unbelievers to remain undetected within the church as visible and only the spiritually discerning can identify this.

That is why I love John Calvin, the reformed evangelist, so much. He yearns for souls to be saved, longs to see sinners come to Christ and pleads with them to leave their life of sin and trust the only Saviour of the world. He knows the Gospel so well, and refuses to complicate it with the clogging influences of medieval scholasticism. He allows the Scripture to speak out its own plain message to the perishing world. He holds out the only life-line there is to all the world, begging them to come in. Owenites appear to believe that the Gospel and Gospel preaching is unnecessary - as some of your people have told you, and the same impression is given by many ministers. The Owenite Gospel is essentially 'another Gospel,' (Gal.1:6, 7), which is not another. If we are to return anywhere, it must be to the Gospel as preached by Calvin and Baxter, and the faithful followers of Christ.

Maybe I am rambling here, but do you see any merit in what I am saying? Will a return to authentic Calvinism save the churches and the Gospel in the churches? I am convinced it will! And how we need such a return, and need it urgently!

How sad and frightening is our church situation in Ulster! What a judgement awaits those who have failed so dramatically to present Christ alone as the means and ground of salvation for all repenting sinners! Unless God intervenes, Ulster churches will decline even further. Members are being fed a diet of clinically detached and sanitised Bible Studies which are passed off as sermons and messages from God. If the true saving Gospel is not everywhere apparent in our sermons, they do not honour God or glorify Christ.

I leave these few rambling thoughts with you for your consideration and to be reflected upon. If we can see what our theology is doing, and the negative effect it has had on the churches, then I think we may have hit upon the one thing that will improve the spiritual condition of many within the church and the whole church as well; it will re-focus our minds and hearts on true and rigorous evangelism; it will lead to the conversion of 'covenant children;' and it will be instrumental in the reformation and reviving of the church as she is today.

May God bless you all abundantly in all you do in His holy service.

For further examples of Calvin's Gospel preaching, please visit here. This paper was delivered at the 2011 Amyraldian Association Conference in Attleborough, NORFOLK. It expounds Calvin's evangelistic approach and the content of the Gospel he so powerfully declared. Here is authentic Calvinistic evangelistic preaching.

Owen's Negative Influence on the Churches

2012-02-09T17:57:00.001Z

Having reflected on the influence of Owen within the reformed churches in Northern Ireland with their inordinate emphasis on covenant children, there is surely a reason why this is the case. The reason might not be obvious to many people in the churches, but I think a stab at understanding this unfortunate state of affairs must be made. The fact that there is so little Gospel preaching within the denominations would suggest to me a possible explanation, and its this. Because the great Puritan theologian, Dr John Owen, did not have any reported conversions from his ministry but was deemed to be faithful to the Word/Gospel, that in some way justifies non-Gospel preaching that is clear and pointed and direct in those churches that have adopted Owen as their mentor, because God will bring the covenant children to faith in His own time. For them, being a covenant child equals being a Christian. Therefore, covenant children are not urged to come to Christ, to repent, to trust the Saviour, and the need to be 'born again' is not emphasised, nor is it welcome in many congregations - pure and mixed alike.

Because the great John Owen was not a 'successful' evangelist like Baxter et al, the position seems to be that so long as a man is faithful to the Word of God, conversions do not matter (really). Good, mature and spiritual Christians are leaving their churches because the Gospel is not being preached with clarity and conviction, the emphasis being on the covenant children, an idea that is substituted for the Gospel of Grace. Many hearts are broken by this retrograde development within evangelical and reformed churches. How can any church claim to be a reformed church if it does not preach the mighty Gospel which is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes? Is it because the preachers do not believe in their hearts the message they are preaching, therefore it comes across as a cold lecture of sorts? Or is it because they do not see the eternal danger of covenant children who die without Christ that they decline to make the Gospel clear? Perhaps it could be termed in another way: these 'reformed' preachers have not themselves been gripped by the awfulness of the hell that awaits every unconverted sinner. In this way they are buttressing the old theological liberalism of the major denominations which they rightly criticise.

How sad and frightening is the church situation in Ulster! What a judgement awaits those who have failed so dramatically to present Christ alone as the means and ground of salvation for all repenting sinners! Unless God intervenes, Ulster churches will decline even further, and be lost. Members are being fed a diet of clinically detached Bible Studies which are passed off as sermons and messages from God. If the true saving Gospel is not everywhere apparent in our sermons, they do not honour God or glorify Christ.

The question arises: is the Gospel absolutely dispensable for the salvation of sinners? Is there another way of salvation apart from, and beside, the Gospel of God? Reformed evangelicals and Arminians are convinced that there is no other way of reconciliation with God except through faith in Christ alone. But the 'neo-reformed' men, why, they hold to a different Gospel which is no Gospel at all. They believe that the covenant alone, and membership in it, saves the sinner. There is no need for this 'new birth' business that Jesus and Peter and Paul preach.

For further information on issues that are germane to this subject, please visit here.

A PRAYER FOR HER MAJESTY ON THE OCCASION OF HER DIAMOND JUBILEE

2012-02-07T20:16:00.002Z

A PRAYER FOR HER MAJESTY ON THE OCCASION OF HER DIAMOND JUBILEE

For use in churches
ALMIGHTY, Eternal and ever-gracious God, grant Your protection to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, that She might continue faithful to Her coronation oath to maintain the Protestant Reformed Religion established by Law. May She do all in Her power to maintain the sovereignty and unity of the United Kingdom. Thus may She be delivered from every appearance of treachery and the mischievous endeavours and alien cultures of foreign powers such as the Pope of Rome and the Islamic ideology. May Her Majesty and Her ministers be granted wise discernment, just and faithful policies and continuing felicity for the remainder of Her reign, until She at length renders an account to the King of kings and only Saviour of the world, our Lord Jesus Christ when He returns to judge the world in righteousness. Amen.
_____________________________________________________________________
The Revd Alan C. Clifford, BA, MLitt, PhD
Norwich Reformed Church
"http://www.nrchurch.co.nr"

Worldly Worship

2012-02-07T20:12:00.000Z

It appears that none of the major denominations in Northern Ireland is free of worldly worship, made to masquerade as contemporary Christian worship. The world is steadily infiltrating the evangelical church with a force that seems to be unstoppable. How can this be? There is only one answer: the Church has admitted into membership people of a worldly disposition, and they bring with them their worldly ambitions. What better place can the gifted find to promote their talents than in the Christian church! And the church not only allows such to happen but actually encourages such a travesty within the hallowed precincts of God's House.

And do you know happens also? The preaching of the Word has to be curtailled in order to facilitate the performing musicians. How sad. How unacceptable. When will the church's teaching elders see what is happening and call an immediate halt to this perversion? When will church leaders take a clear and uncompromising stand against all such transgressions of biblical norms?

Is there anyone out there who is concerned enough to take a stand against this rot that is blighting otherwise good ministries?

Reconciliation - A Study In Greek.

2012-02-06T20:11:00.000Z

Apokatallasso is regarded by scholar as the strongest Greek word for 'reconciliation.' The prefix, apo, means from, indicating the state to be left behind; and katallasso, to reconcile. In this compound word, there is explicitly and clearly something to be left behind before a restored relationship can be created. In other words, for reconciliation to be brought about, there must be a separation from what was before to what is now new. A man cannot bring that which caused the estrangement in the first place with him into the new relationship. It could be argued that the crime or sin committed must be placed on the table and then left behind decisively and deliberately before a renewed relationship can be established.

Katallage refers to a change that is brought about by the death of Christ. The blood of Christ satisfied God's justice, and , through faith, this death of Christ changes a man, making him a friend with whom God can now have fellowship without any compromise of God's justice or holiness.

Diallassonai is another Greek word that bears on the meaning of reconciliation. Here, dia denotes transition and movement, and allassomai mean to change. It is to change ones feelings towards something or someone; to reconcile oneself to an otherwise problematic situation, and/or become reconciled. The term applies to a quarrel where the fault may be two-sided or one-sided. The context usually always shows which it is, and where the enmity lies.

James Denney - A Study Abstract

2012-02-06T19:56:00.000Z

Scottish theologian James Denney, DD, made asignificant contribution to New Testament scholarship with his books, numerousarticles, lectures and correspondence. Study reveals that his theology has been influenced by philosophy,not least in the place he has given to empiricism. It can be demonstrated how, overall, this has had a negative impact on histheology, resulting in his practice being superior to his theory (theology) insome places, notably, in his doctrine of the Scriptures, revelation, and theHoly Spirit. Nor has his understandingof eschatology escaped this influence.

Giventhe historical climate in which he grew up and taught, it is not surprisingthat he imbibed the humanism that emanated from Germany scholarship. His tendency towards existentialism and hiscriticisms of theological liberalism were noted, especially that promoted byAlbrecht Ritschl.

Denney’sdoctrine of the inspiration of Scripture is examined along with his understandingof the Holy Spirit, Whom he does not think is a Person in the same way as theFather and the Son are Persons. Oneconclusion drawn from this discovery is that much more attention must be paidto the work of the Holy Spirit in formulations of the doctrine ofScripture. This lack has adverselyaffected Denney’s doctrine of Scripture.

Research recognises and demonstrates that Denney’s handling of Scripture issuperior to his doctrine of Scripture, a fact for which we must begrateful.

Calvin And Lloyd-Jones Unwelcome!

2012-02-06T19:52:00.000Z

There is such an antipathy to the authentic Gospel within reformed evangelicalism today that it is doubtful whether men like John Calvin, Richard Baxter, Edmund Calamy, Jonathan Edwards, Joseph Bellamy, John or Charles Wesley, Robert Murray McCheyne, J. C. Ryle, Thomas Chalmers, or even Dr Lloyd-Jones himself would be welcome in their pulpits. There is such a antipathy to true and vigorous evangelism that many in today's compromised church prefer to lull their people to sleep rather than awaken them with the alarming sound of the Gospel. They want peace in the church at all costs - and I mean 'at all costs!' If this is to be maintained by a watered-down message, so be it. A good minister is one who can keep all church members on board, whether or not they are regenerate.

But here's the issue: if a preacher in the mould of Calvin and Lloyd-Jones were to come into their pulpits - and all in between - and preach a searching and disturbing message, there would be a riot. That's what happened when George Whitefield or John Wesley preached the Gospel. Our congregations will not have such preaching! They want to be left alone in their spiritual doldrums, and not be made to think seriously about spiritual matters, and definitely not those spiritual matters that relate to their own souls and relationship with Christ. People who do not want to meet with God in His Word cannot on any supposition be regarded as Christians. They want away as far as they can get from God.

But a truly authentic gospel ministry disturbs the peace, such as was preached by the men mentioned above, and the churches simply do not want that.

The New Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones Book

2012-02-06T19:37:00.002Z

It would be profitable if those who seem to be exercised by this matter did as I did and extracted every statement the Doctor made that indicates that he believed in limited atonement. This would clear up the matter once and for all. I wish them well!

Having neither seen nor read the book, some people have already made up their minds that the book as well as the Doctor's theology/soteriology is unsound. That is regrettable, because until the contents of the book are actually read and the accuracy of the references checked out from the original sources, people cannot possibly come to such an unwarranted conclusion. Basic integrity demands that the book is read first before coming to any conclusion about it's contents.

I think there is a great tendency within evangelicalism for Christians not to do their own thinking or to carry out their own research. There is an incipient Roman Catholicism abroad within reformed evangelicalism in which Christians simply take as true whatever the "bishops" within that constituency say is the truth.

So what will this book achieve? It will provide possibly a stepping stone for evangelicals who are interested in discovering the truth about what DMLJ believed, taught and preached about the Gospel's content, and that can only be good for our precious faith.

I have been appalled at the way reformed evangelicals have resorted to what could be termed 'dishonesty' to maintain and promote their faith. The view that confessions can usurp the supreme place in the life of the Church was confirmed in a old edition of the Banner of Truth magazine when the writer lamented the fact that some reformed men, while affirming that they held the Scriptures to be the supreme standard of faith and conduct, and confessional formulations to be subordinate, actually and in practice made what is subordinate into the supreme. For such men, it mattered only secondarily what Scripture plainly taught, while what the confessions said was paramount. This is precisely my position.

I think reformed evangelicals need to return to the position where in actual fact and practice the Scriptures are our supreme and only final authority in all matters of faith and worship, not any man-made formulations. Confessions have their place, undoubtedly, but they are NOT Scripture.

This was DMLJ's often repeated position, and it's mine, too.

If anyone reading this post wants to review the book, available at this site, I would ask that they check my extracts from DMLJ's own writings/sermons, my use of which I trust they will find to be accurate, and then if they disagree with what the Doctor said, so be it and then say so in their review.

When In ROME - George Buchanan

2012-02-02T20:11:00.003Z

Michael J. F. McCarthy (1863/4-1928)

Subtitled:

The Suppressed Writings Of Michael J. F. McCarthy

From the Foreword:

"George Buchanan's study of the life of Michael J. F. McCarthy was a major undertaking of his tragically short life. ... George was a man of quiet and sober disposition, not given to ostentation or show. He was a man who never volunteered his opinions without due consideration. George was a man of Ulster, and his concerns were Ulster concerns. He was a Protestant, by which George understood not some nominal commitment to a church or dioctrinal formulation, but a heartbeat after holiness. George's faith ran deep and was taken wth great seriousness. That is why George Buchanan identified himself with a number of the smaller Protestant denominations throughout his lifetime. Such matters had to be thought about seriously, and commitments were not to be entered into lightly. And so it was with this great undertaking, a study of the life of the controversial early twentieth century writer, Michael J. F. McCarthy.

George travelled widely, and closely researched the books, pamphlets, newspaper reports, and lesser minutiae that would help to piece together the life and labours of one of the most challenging, but also most neglected, literary figures to appear on the Irish scene during the Home Rule era.

What Michael J. F. McCarthy observed about Ireland, and the conclusions to which he was driven by these observations, provide the three great themes of this book.

The book was written by George; the draft manuscript, the material of the book, lay contained within a series of computer discs. It fell to others to retrieve all George's research materials, together with the draft manuscript, and edit the text in such a way as to reveal the value of George's industry, and to bring into the light of day the story which it was George's burden to tell."

This book about lawyer M. J. F. McCarthy, who authored some eighteen books on Ireland, is now available to the general reading public. Students of Irish Politics and Roman Catholicism - he was vehemently anti-clerical - will benefit from this book. Anyone with an interest in Ireland or in things Irish will find this book a very disturbing eye-opener.

One of the traits of Irish life has been the natural tendency to suppress information that would inform the world the truth about what went on in that priest-ridden and secretive society. This is seen currently in the utterly disgraceful pandemic of clerical child sex abuse that hits the news headlines every week in Northern Ireland. Remember, this has been suppressed for generations, but is now very much in the public domain.

McCarthy likens the Protestants in Ulster to the French Huguenots who were bitterly persecuted by the Catholic King Louis XIV of France in the seventeenth century. This is gripping and compulsive reading, and highly informative.

The recommended cover price is £5.95, but any of my readers who is interested can get their copy from me for £5.00 (p&p extra; for postage and packing within the UK, please add £1). To get your copy of this limited edition publication, please email me at HazlettLynch [at] btopenworld.com with your details so that delivery can be made as soon as possible.

The EU Indoctrinates Our Children

2012-02-01T21:07:00.000Z

The EU has virtually conceded that the majority of people in the UK would want out of the Union at the earliest opportunity. Adults will have the right to vote on this issue when the time comes, but the children and youths have not that right at present.

So what does the EU do? Exactly what the Presbyterian Church in Ireland did about two decades ago when it had lost its battle to stay within the WCC and other ecumenical involvements because the adults had the voting power to make the church withdraw its membership from that cocktail of religious viewpoints and practices. having lost the battle with the adults, the youth department set about an indoctrination programme that would in effect teach them that there was only a few little insignificant doctrinal differences between Presbyterians and Roman Catholicism, and that they ought not to be afraid of meeting with them in 'fellowship,' thus leading to inter-marriage, and the eventual upbringing of any offspring as Catholics.

Our children are being taught in the schools, through EU produced propaganda, that our membership in the EU holds many positives for our lives. But when you look behind it and realise that the EU is a top heavy Roman Catholic institution, it is very clear where this Parliament will take every nation that is part of it. Our religious freedom to worship and serve God will be seriously curtailled and it will become a crime to evangelise, as it is in some places today. This is a full frontal attack on our Evangelical and Protestant faith. But many cannot see it, at least not many within the churches can see it.

Do you want that? Now is a good time to write to your MP or MEP and ask what exactly is going on.

CHRIST NOT MUHAMMAD

2012-02-01T11:38:00.000Z

These words from Dr Alan C. Clifford were never more urgently needed than they are today:

With a continuing and growing assault on our Christian heritage, never was there a greater need to get to grips with the truth of the Bible text: “No man ever spoke like this man” (John 7: 46). This was the response of amazed men who heard Christ. What truths explain their astonishment?

1. NO MAN EVER SPOKE LIKE JESUS CHRIST

And why? He was no ordinary man. He was perfect and sinless. He is the ‘God-man’ (Matthew 1: 23); ‘God manifest in the flesh’ (1 Timothy 3: 16); The Eternal ‘Word made flesh’ (John 1: 14).

Thus, He spoke words of truth, purity, love, kindness and compassion. He spoke with divine unction, grace and authority. No one else, before or since, ever spoke like Him. He is Creator, King, and Lord of the Universe.

On the other hand, Muhammad was an ordinary man. He was imperfect and sinful. He spoke words of error, impurity, hate and cruelty.

2. NO MAN EVER LIVED LIKE JESUS CHRIST

His life backed up His words. In lip and life, He was perfectly consistent. He brought blessing, healing, comfort and joy to people. His many miracles confirmed His deity.

His tender touch declared the compassion of God. He liberated women from the abusive treatment of selfish men. He rejected violence as a method of spreading His message. No life has ever been lived to match the life of Jesus Christ.

On the other hand, Muhammad's life contradicted many of his more noble sayings. His life is not a good example for ‘private character’. His claims cannot compare with Christ’s. Spreading his message by the sword, he brought violence and bloodshed to those who refused to submit to his ‘Allah’. He humiliated women. His tenderness was reserved chiefly for his own sexual indulgence, and his stomach (according to wife, A’isha).

3. NO MAN EVER DIED LIKE JESUS CHRIST

While His life and preaching angered the religious establishment of His day, nothing could justify the hatred directed at Him. He was guilty of no sin. Expressing God’s mercy to us hell-deserving sinners, Jesus, Saviour of the world, died for our sins.

He died, ‘the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God’ (1 Peter 3: 18). In His agonizing crucifixion, He breathed nothing but love and kindness to His enemies. Such dying! Such love!

On the other hand, Muhammad died, burdened by his own guilt. Sadly and tragically, his death did not terminate his cruel conquests. Others perpetuated his vicious legacy.

4. NO MAN EVER BLESSED THE HUMAN RACE LIKE JESUS CHRIST

His impact on history is not just the effect of a perpetuation of His memory. Jesus rose from the dead! He lives! The Gospel is the greatest blessing the world has ever known! It has brought forgiveness, love, joy and peace. Christ has mended broken hearts and lives. He has given hope to those in despair. Through Him, the light of heaven has dispelled the darkness of death.

He has liberated individuals and nations. The Gospel has delivered people from ignorance, slavery, poverty and degradation. All that is truly good, noble, pure and beautiful comes from Him (even if apostate believers - crusading Roman Catholics and deity-denying Protestant Liberals - have corrupted His truth). Christ’s resurrection influence continues still where He is accepted, trusted and served.

On the other hand, Muhammad died, to rise no more, except to be judged by Christ when He returns. His tomb is not empty. His legacy is ignorance, cruelty, fear and oppression. The continued influence of his teachings is a threat to all that Christ represents.

In conclusion, the case for Christ and against Muhammad is compelling in every respect. Assessed by every test that may be devised, there is simply no competition. So let us all respond as did the men in our text! May we all acknowledge, believe, trust, love and surrender to the incomparable Christ. May we all rejoice in Him, and seek to make Him known throughout the world.

I am well aware that many in the secular West desire Christ no more than they desire Muhammad. Therefore, I must warn them. Even if they never suffer from some jihadic atrocity, they will stand before the judgement seat of Christ, when He returns to judge the world in righteousness (see 2 Corinthians 5: 10).

While opportunity remains, come to Christ! If you are a Muslim, renounce Muhammad, and come to Christ! Then, everything I have tried to express will become wonderfully and experientially true.

How Missionaries Are Promoting An Islamised Gospel

2012-02-01T11:37:00.000Z

By Joel Richardson
In the world of questionable and sometimes downright silly Bible translations, one would think that it couldn’t get any worse
After all, we’ve seen the “In da beginnin’ Big Daddy created da heaven an’ da earth” Ebonics Bible, as well as the “Apostle’s Log” Star Trek English paraphrase Bible. In a more serious effort, the New Oxford Annotated Bible was created in part by pro-”gay” and feminist scholars in order to set forth a more “gay” revisionist interpretation of Scripture.
But now there is a major controversy developing as the latest altered Bibles are being created by organizations that most would think of as being more conservative and reasonable. At the forefront of the controversy are the Wycliffe Bible Translators, the Summer Institute of Linguistics and Frontiers, all of which are producing Bible translations that remove or modify terms which they have deemed offensive to Muslims.
That’s right: Muslim-friendly Bibles.
Included in the controversial development is the removal of any references to God as “Father,” to Jesus as the “Son” or “the Son of God.” One example of such a change can be seen in an Arabic version of the Gospel of Matthew produced and promoted by Frontiers and SIL. It changes Matthew 28:19 from this:
“baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”
to this:
“cleanse them by water in the name of Allah, his Messiah and his Holy Spirit.”
A large number of such Muslim-sensitive translations already are published and well-circulated in several Muslim-majority nations such as Bangladesh, Indonesia and Malaysia.
According to Joshua Lingel of i2 Ministries, “Even more dramatic a change is the Arabic and Bangla (Bangladesh) translations. In Arabic, Bible translations err by translating ‘Father’ as ‘Lord.’ ‘Guardian.’ ‘Most High’ and ‘God.” In Bangla, ‘Son of God’ is mistranslated ‘Messiah of God’ consistent with the Quran’s Isa al-Masih (Jesus the Messiah), which references the merely human Jesus.”
In response to these translations, many within the evangelical missions movement as well as many former Muslim converts and indigenous Christians from countries where these translations are being used, are indignant. After numerous appeals have been rejected, a petition has been launched to call for the end to the translations.
More than 3,000 already have signed up.
While the organizations that are promoting these translations are adamant that replacing such terms as Father with Lord or Master best conveys the inspired meaning of the text, many of the indigenous Christian leaders from the countries where these translations are being promoted are broadly rejecting the translations.
The indigenous believers see the introduction of these American-made translations with which they so strongly disagree as a form of American cultural imperialism or colonialism.
According to Turkish pastor Fikret Böcek, such new translations are, “an all-American idea with absolutely no respect for the sacredness of Scripture, or even of the growing Turkish church.”
According to the testimony of one leader from a church in Bangladesh, one of the most problematic aspects of this development is that it gives fuel to the often-heard Muslim claim that Christians are liars who change their Bibles to deceive Muslims. Once a Bible translation is well established within any country, the introduction of such radically different translations reinforces the Muslim charge and undermines trust in the Christian community.
According to Lingel, who can be contacted at info@i2ministries.org, the crisis in translation methodology is largely due to “a postmodern literary bias” that has crept into some translation circles in recent decades. Such translations would seem to demand that the divine author of the Bible change rather than the Muslim reader.
“But Jesus demanded that many of his listeners change,” says Lingel, explaining that instead of demanding that Muslim readers change their understanding of God, these translations seem to convey that God must accommodate the religious prejudices of Muslims.
“Lingel is also the co-editor of a new book, “Chrislam: How Missionaries Are Promoting an Islamized Gospel,” which represents the first major response against Muslim-sensitive translations as well as the larger movement often referred to as the “Insider Movement” or “Chrislam.”
According to reports, of the roughly 200 translation projects Wycliffe/SIL linguists have undertaken in Muslim contexts, about 30 or 40 remove the terms father and son with reference to God and Jesus.
Lingel’s response is quite direct, “These projects need to be defunded.”
Yet according to a recent Forbes “200 Largest U.S. Charities” report, the Orlando-based Wycliffe Bible Translators USA is the third most well-funded religious charity in the states.
Proponents of the Insider Movement claim that this method of reaching Muslims is bearing great fruit. Opponents, however, point out that the so-called converts within the Insider Movement remain “hidden” within their Muslim culture, continue to attend mosque, pray like a Muslim, acknowledge Muhammad as a prophet, the Quran as inspired, and make the Muslim credal confession, known as the “shahada.”
Some now claim that there are as many as 300,000-1.2 million new “Insider believers” in Bangladesh. But one former Insider who left the movement and speaks out in Lingel’s Chrislam book reports that the number of insiders couldn’t be more than 10,000. According to this source, many of the claims are greatly exaggerated so as to bring in more funding from wealthy American missionary organizations.
“Other former Insiders have reported publicly that many Insiders are really Muslims who will do whatever it takes for the jobs and money they are offered by pro-IM ministries to feed their families,” Lingel says.
Further questioning the funding and support of well-known Christian organizations of this movement, Lingel recounts, “I have consulted with the leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention on missions and evangelism among Muslims at various times… [Who] stated that there are tens of thousands of Isa al-masih jamaats, or ‘Jesus congregations,’ in northern Africa. But the members of these jamaats call themselves Muslims, do not believe in the Trinity and believe Muhammad is a prophet of God. Are they Christians or Muslims? Why talk about them in terms of missionary success?”
In response to what many Christians see as a heretical movement based on deception, Lingel’s i2 Ministries is in the process of completing a video-based university called Mission Muslims World University, with 40 of the most experienced professors from around the world teaching courses in Muslim ministries, Islamic Studies, apologetics, evangelism and discipleship.

The Calvin/Owen Theological Relationship

2012-02-01T10:24:00.000Z

It would be very interesting to discover what current scholarship on the Calvin/Owen theological relationship is finding out. This is an issue that I am very interested in learning as much about as possible. It is also very important to keep abreast with what current reformed and evangelical scholarship is saying, and more importantly to discover if modern scholarship and the historical theologians whose work is being studied, really do believe in the perspicuity of the Scriptures without feeling the need to squeeze its teaching into some/any manmade mould so that it produces a predetermined result. Logic is a good servant but a very bad master when it comes to maters theological. Given that Owen was involved in drawing up the WCF, which is an Owenite rather than a Calvinistic document, and given that much reformed and evangelical scholarship is embedded within confessional church bodies, its conclusions will be very revealing.

You can discover some excellent resources at Charenton where Dr Alan C Clifford's excellent scholarly treatise on the above issue is available for study. Also, here you will find other works that explore the Calvin legacy.

You might also be interested in Calvin as a pastor; if so, please visit this site.

CARTWRIGHT, CALVIN AND THE EXTENT OF THE ATONEMENT

2012-01-30T12:58:00.000Z

CARTWRIGHT, CALVIN AND

THE EXTENT OF THE ATONEMENT

Dr Alan C. Clifford

First-time students of English Puritanism soon discover Calvin’s profound influence on his ‘English sons’. The pioneer and leader Thomas Cartwright (1535-1603)provides very specific evidence in this respect in his presentation of the Gospel as well as his principles of presbyterian church order.

When asked for guidance in theological study, he predictably emphasised ‘the study of the Scripture itself’. After insisting that students should remember ‘the saying of our Saviour Christ, that you take no man to be your father or rabbi here upon earth [cf. Matt. 23: 7-10], he did not exclude the writings of ‘the friends and patrons of the Truth’. That said, Cartwright stresses that biblical theology must take priority over systematic theology. Thus, without questioning the use of biblical commentaries, he is careful to place such before theological treatises: ‘I would esteem also that the commentaries might be read before the other works, for that by them the Holy Scripture (from whence all sound knowledge is drawn to judge all other doctrine by) is made more familiar unto us’.

It is striking to see this criterion operating when Cartwright provides a list of worthy authors. His recommendations predictably include Greek and Latin ‘doctors’ among the ‘old writers’, and Augustine in particular. Among the ‘new writers’, he mentions Martin Luther, Martin Bucer, Peter Martyr and other reformers. For works ‘wherein the whole body of the Doctrine of the Gospel is professed to be taught’, he unsurprisingly recommends ‘Mr Calvin’s Institutes’ and ‘Mr Beza’s Confession’. However, placing commentaries before treatises, Cartwright places Calvin at the top of the list: ‘I would content myself amongst the new writers with Mr Calvin’ because ‘for the shortness (brevity) he useth he departeth not far from the reading of the text itself’.

This crucial criterion probably explains the similarity between Cartwright’s and Calvin’s phraseology regarding the extent of the atonement. Just as Calvin generally preferred the New Testament’s universal language to even the ‘sufficient for all, efficient for the elect’ formula (which he still occasionally affirmed), Cartwright seems happy to adopt Calvin’s universalism rather than Beza’s particularism:

A Christian [having] sinned never so oft (as who doth not daily offend God) yet whensoever he returneth unto God by true repentance (which consisteth of inward contrition and a sure faith in Christ Jesus) he is assured by the Word of God to recover and receive again the grace, favour and mercy of God (which through his disobedience he had worthily lost) and immediately to enjoy full, absolute and perfect remission and forgiveness of all his sins, through Jesus Christ, in whom he reposeth all his faith, trust and confidence of salvation. The Gospel assureth him no less saying:

So God loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life [John 3: 16, Cartwright’s version].
... What shall I say of Peter, Christ’s Apostle? Had not he a sure knowledge of Christ, endued with the Holy Ghost and grace from above? And yet after this, he had such a fall, [and] he did most cowardly and shamefully forsake and deny Christ, not without blasphemy. But he went forth and wept bitterly, ... and by faith he returned again unto Christ, knowing His mercy to be infinite and without measure; Christ appeared unto him (to his great comfort) after He rose again from death to life. ... And then Peter became a strong Champion, setting forth Christ to be the only Saviour of the whole world, preaching and openly confessing Him before all men, without any fear.

Such universal language is equally evident elsewhere:

It is no small bondage of Christian men’s consciences to compel them to number all their sins particularly [to the priest], with all due circumstances of time, person and place: and how many times every sin was committed... [the Papists] think that their confession is the cause of forgiveness of their sins: by reason whereof, they blot out the blessed benefit of the passion and death of Christ our only Saviour: which is the only obtainer of grace and mercy, for the sins of all mankind... For sure it is, that to God, no man is able to satisfy for sin: for that satisfaction hath only our Saviour Christ wrought in his painful passion and death.

Clearly then (on this evidence at least), Cartwright seems to be an ‘authentic Calvinist’, insisting on a ‘method’ which placed Holy Scripture before human systems. What a pity the Westminster Confession of Faith failed to reflect this!

Man's Alienations

2012-01-27T09:57:00.001Z

Rev. Dr Francis A. Schaeffer wrote:

"From the Christian viewpoint, all the alienations ... that we find in man have come because of man's historic, space-time fall. First of all, man is separated from God; second, he is separated from himself, thus the psychological problems of life; third, he is separated from other men, thus the sociological problems of life; fourth, he is separated from nature and thus the problems of living in the world, for example, the ecological problems. All these need healing."

These perceptive words of analysis from Schaeffer remind us that a very big Gospel of salvation is needed to deal with the very big problems of man. And that is exactly what God has provided for us in the Gospel - something which is "the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believers," Rom.1:16.

Let us pray that God will demonstrate that His Word really is what it claims to be - the only message of salvation for the world.

Let us rejoice in this great message of salvation, which truly is good news for the world.

Grow in Knowledge

2012-01-26T21:00:00.004Z

If you are interested in reading more information products about matters that matter, please visit here.

There you will find all my recently published books, two of which are free to download immediately. The others are also well worth getting and studying.

If you go to Google and type in Smashwords Hazlett Lynch you will find a listing of all my publications.

PURITANS’ PROGRESS by Dr Alan C Clifford

2012-01-26T19:32:00.002Z

A 350th Anniversary Commemoration of the Norwich & Norfolk Ministers Ejected
from their Churches by the Act of Uniformity, 1662.Dr Alan C. Clifford

"Remember those ... who have spoken the Word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct - Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and for ever." (Hebrews 13: 7-8)

"Without the preaching of the Word, we can never have faith...Whosoever doth not believe is damned, and none can believe without a preacher. If then we will have the people of the Lord to be saved, let them have preachers...bestow your labour, cost and travel to get them. Ride for them, run for them, stretch your purses to maintain them. We shall begin to be rich in the Lord Jesus."
John More (c.1545-92) St Andrews, Norwich

INTRODUCTION (1)
The National background:

THOMAS CARTWRIGHT - The Father of Puritanism

WHAT WAS PURITANISM?
We begin by reminding ourselves that Puritanism was a religious movement in the Church of
England. It demanded a more thorough application of New Testament principles to the
problems posed by the semi-reformed Anglican Church. The Puritans argued that partial
reformation had taken place in England. The Bible had relevance for the Church’s worship
and government as well as her doctrine. Failure to apply biblical teaching was a failure to
recognise the extent of biblical authority and the sovereign rule of the Lord Jesus Christ in
His Church. Elements of puritan thinking were seen in the teaching of John Wycliffe (1324-
84), William Tyndale (martyred 1536) and John Hooper, Bishop of Gloucester (martyred 1555).
However, the real father of English Puritanism was Thomas Cartwright. His life and labours
relate to matters which are still of vital importance for Christians today.

EARLY LIFE AND CONVERSION
Thomas Cartwright was born about 1535 in Hertfordshire, possibly at Royston. His family
and religious origins are shrouded in obscurity. He entered Clare Hall, Cambridge in 1547,
the year of the accession of King Edward VI. In November 1550, Cartwright became a scholar
at St John’s College. In the following year, Thomas Lever was appointed as the new master of
the college. This man was a decided Protestant and a powerful preacher. When Mary became
queen in 1553, Lever and twenty-four fellows resigned rather than compromise their faith.
Cartwright himself did not leave at this time. Very probably because he was not truly
converted to Christ. However, he did leave in 1556, a fact which probably dates his
conversion a little earlier.

After the accession of Queen Elizabeth I in 1558, Cartwright was restored to the college by Dr
James Pilkington, the new master, in 1562. The new religious settlement found Cartwright
and many others disappointed. The Queen seemed content to leave matters as they had been
under Edward VI. The Reformation was not carried through according to Scriptural
principles.

ELOQUENT PREACHER
In 1562, Cartwright became a fellow of Trinity College. He was now known as an eloquent
preacher, an able scholar and a brilliant debater. When Queen Elizabeth visited the university
in 1564, a debate was held in her presence. Cartwright was chosen to oppose the motion ‘Is
monarchy the best form of government; is the frequent change of laws dangerous?’ The
Queen was not pleased to hear Cartwright argue that the sovereignty of God did not need the
support of earthly monarchs! In those days, such arguments were dangerous.

The return of the Marian exiles (those who had fled to Geneva and Frankfurt during the reign
of Mary Tudor) occasioned discussion about the ‘ha1f-way-house’ of the English Reformation.

As a result of three sermons preached by Cartwright in the college chapel, the scholars and
fellows of St John’s and Trinity - over 300 of them - appeared at the service without their
surplices. Exchanging the chapel missals and breviaries for their Genevan Psalters and
Service-books, they also pulled down the altar in the chapel. Other matters to do with worship
and the entire structure of the established Church of England began to be freely and openly
questioned.

SEVERELY CENSURED
In this highly charged atmosphere, Cartwright left Cambridge to become chaplain to the
Archbishop of Armagh. The two men shared the same views. Cartwright returned to
Cambridge in 1567 and, two years later, he was appointed as Lady Margaret Professor of
Divinity. He began to denounce the constitution and hierarchy of the Church of England. His
lectures on the Acts of the Apostles were widely influential. Many of the student hearers were
to become eminent puritan pastors in years to come. Cartwright’s sermons were opposed by
John Whitgift, later Archbishop of Canterbury. Cartwright was by far the superior preacher,
and St Mary’s Church was regularly filled when he was preaching. The sexton even removed
the windows for the benefit of the ‘overflow’ congregation.

Cartwright was severely censured by those in authority, including Grindal, Archbishop of
York. In a letter to Lord Burghley, the Chancellor of the University, the otherwise puritansympathiser
Grindal complained that “the youth of the university, who are at this time very
toward in learning, frequent his lectures in great numbers, and therefore are in danger of
being poisoned by him with love of contention and liking of novelties, and so becoming
hereafter not only unprofitable, but also hurtful to the church.”

FAITHFULNESS
Cartwright’s faithfulness to Scripture and undoubted courage even cost him his DD, his
candidature being vetoed by Dr May, the Vice-Chancellor of the University. A prohibition was
also placed on the issues under discussion. Cartwright has been accused of abusing his
position. Ought he not to have shown more loyalty to the Reformed Church of England? The
same charge was levelled at Luther regarding the Church of Rome. No, there was nothing
‘unethical’ in showing greater loyalty to God’s Word than to human authorities. Friends
accordingly defended Cartwright’s exposition of the Scriptures, denying also any justice in the
charge that he was encouraging sedition. Appealing to Lord Burghley, a letter signed by
eighteen leading academics gives us a very full picture of Cartwright’s personal and
professional character:

We know that his religion is sincere and free from blemish: for he has not only
emerged from the vast ocean of papistical heresies, and cleansed himself with
the purest waters of the Christian religion, but, as at a rock, he strikes at those
futile and trifling opinions which are daily disseminated. He adheres to the Holy
Scriptures, the most certain rule of faith and practice. We know that he has not
passed these limits. He is well skilled both in the Latin and Greek languages,...
He has also added that of the Hebrew tongue... He is esteemed by foreigners,
whose state of exile is rendered less painful by the sweetness of his disposition
and learning, and who do not hesitate to compare him to those whose fame is so
illustriously spread among the foreign nations. Though we who beg this from you
are but few, yet we ask it in the name of many: for there is scarcely any man
who does not admire and love him, and who does not think that he ought by all
means to be defended. If therefore, you wish well to the University, you cannot
do anything more useful, gratifying, or acceptable, than to preserve Cartwright to
her.

THE SIX PROPOSITIONS
However, in 1570, Cartwright was deprived of his professorship. In 1571, the year the sworn
enemy of the Puritans Dr Whitgift was appointed as Vice-Chancellor, he also lost his
fellowship. These events were the result of Cartwright’s outspoken opposition to the Church of
England, summed up in the famous six propositions. In essence, these were:

1. Archbishops and archdeacons should be abolished.

2. The church’s officers should be modelled on the New Testament.

3. Every church should he governed by its own minister and elders.

4. Ministers should be responsible for one church, not many.

5. No man should solicit for a church appointment.

6. Church officers should be chosen by the church, not the state.

After the university regulations were changed to prevent men of Cartwright’s outlook being
appointed, Cartwright himself left Cambridge for Geneva where Theodore Beza had succeeded
John Calvin as the Reformation leader. Beza had the highest regard for Cartwright’s abilities
and godliness, declaring to one of his English correspondents, “Here is now with us your
countryman, Thomas Cartwright, than whom, I think the sun doth not see a more learned
man.” Friends in England regretted his absence, and Cartwright was encouraged to return to
England in 1572.

WISE ADVISER
His advice was sought concerning negotiations with Catherine de Medici over Queen
Elizabeth’s possible marriage to the Duke of Anjou. Cartwright’s opinion was clear and
uncompromising: “I am fully persuaded that it is directly forbidden in Scripture that any who
profess religion according to the Word of God should marry with those who profess religion
after the manner of the Church of Rome.” This was far from mere academic advice since 1572
was the year of that crescendo of suffering for the Huguenots in France - the St Bartholomew
Massacre of 24 August. However, while Queen Elizabeth deplored such an atrocity abroad,
she was involved in rigorous suppression of the Puritans at home.

THE PURITAN CASE
In the same year, two London clergymen, John Field and Thomas Wilcox, published their
famous Admonition to Parliament, urging the kind of Presbyterianism Cartwright had
advocated. These good men were sent to Newgate. Cartwright visited the men in prison, and
he supported them by writing A Second Admonition to Parliament. Highlighting the heart of the
Puritan case, Cartwright asked, “What, I pray, have they done amiss? They have published
that the ministry of [the Church of] England is out of square.”

Recalling Bishop Cox of Ely’s view that the English Church should have an ‘English face’,
Cartwright complained that more regard was being paid to the Queen’s injunctions and the
Bishops’ canons than the Bible, or rather “the Bible must have no further scope than by these
it is assigned.” Her Majesty preferred liturgy-parroting priests to Gospel preachers: three or
four per county were quite enough! Cartwright continued, “Is this to profess God’s Word? Is
this a reformation? We say the Word of God is above the church; then surely it is above the
English Church, and above all the books now rehearsed. If it be so, why are they not
overruled by it, and not it by them?”

INTIMIDATED
Outraged by such audacity, the authorities issued a warrant for Cartwright’s arrest in June
1573. How extraordinary was Elizabethan ‘political correctness’. While the Queen welcomed
the Huguenot refugees to England (doubtless for the economic benefits these industrious
people brought), ‘Huguenot cousin’ Cartwright and his friends were proceeded against!
Thoroughly intimidated by this experience, he escaped to the continent, first to Heidelberg
and then to Antwerp where he became minister to an English congregation. In 1576,
Cartwright visited the Channel Islands to assist the Huguenot churches in their organisation.
In all this toil and travel, he even found time to marry the sister of a friend, a godly woman
who was to comfort and encourage him to the end. Since the climate in Antwerp adversely
affected his health, Cartwright secretly returned to England in 1585 contrary to the Queen’s
wishes. Though arrested and sent to the Fleet prison by the Bishop of London, he was
released on the Queen’s instructions.

ROMAN CATHOLIC BIBLE
After 1577, Cartwright - who rarely enjoyed good health - had declined to publish anything
that might be ‘offensive to her majesty or the state’. However, when the Roman Catholic
Rheims version of the New Testament was published in 1582, many were alarmed at the anti-
Reformation propaganda of its contents. After approaching Theodore Beza for advice, the
Queen and her ministers - following the Genevan reformer’s glowing recommendation -
reluctantly commissioned Thomas Cartwright to undertake a refutation. By 1586, he had
reached Revelation 15 in a critical analysis of the Roman Bible. However, since Roman
Catholic and Anglican errors were unavoidably exposed, Archbishop Whitgift then forbad
Cartwright to proceed with his work. This prevented the publication of A Confutation of the
Rhemists Translation (1618) until after the author’s death. One is tempted to say that the
Anglican establishment succeeded in curbing the Puritans - albeit temporarily - whereas the
mighty Spanish Armada of 1588 failed to conquer Protestant Britain.

A PURITAN CRANMER
Many of Cartwright’s puritan brethren were dismayed that he should yield to the
Archbishop’s order so readily. Dr Sutcliffe, Dean of Exeter accused him of cowardice.
However, other factors besides his health explain his compliant attitude. Between them, the
Queen and her Archbishop were a pretty formidable duo! Had it not been for them,
‘Cartwright’s influence on the Church of England might have been decisive’ wrote Dr Leland
Carson. Unlike the Welsh separatist John Penry who, martyred in 1593, left a wife and four
little girls, Cartwright’s life ended relatively quietly. ‘He was a puritan Cranmer,’ concludes Dr
Carson, ‘with much of Cranmer’s learning and of Cranmer’s shrinking from hardship, and it
was not given him to redeem the past by sharing Cranmer’s fate, i.e. martyrdom.’
Cartwright’s latter years were spent in Warwick. He was appointed master of a hospital
founded there by the Earl of Leicester. However, he frequently preached in the town and
neighbourhood. It is said that he was the first to introduce extemporary praying in public
worship, an important development which took place at this time. Thus the Book of Common
Prayer was often set aside. But there were limits to Cartwright’s Puritanism. Believing in
gradual reformation and avoiding extremism, he never agreed with separatism.

INWARD STRUGGLE
Whether or not Dr Carson’s verdict is fair, perhaps Cartwright’s remarks on Peter’s fall are
evidence of an inward soul-struggle:

What shall I say of Peter, Christ’s Apostle? Had not he a sure knowledge of
Christ, endued with the Holy Ghost and grace from above? And yet after this, he
had such a fall, [and] he did most cowardly and shamefully forsake and deny

Christ, not without blasphemy. But he went forth and wept bitterly, ... and by
faith he returned again unto Christ, knowing His mercy to be infinite and
without measure; Christ appeared unto him (to his great comfort) after He rose
again from death to life. ... And then Peter became a strong Champion, setting
forth Christ to be the only Saviour of the whole world, preaching and openly
confessing Him before all men, without any fear.

Certainly, Cartwright’s courage returned in measure in his last decade or so. Indeed, his
sympathy with puritan activities in Northamptonshire and Warwickshire in 1590 brought him
into further conflict with the authorities. He was again committed to the Fleet prison. He
appeared before the Court of the Star Chamber in 1591 which Lord Burghley likened to the
Spanish Inquisition! Through his efforts and the good offices of King James VI of Scotland
(our future James I), Lord Burghley was successful in obtaining Cartwright’s release.

LAST YEARS AND DEATH
Shortly after his release, Cartwright visited Cambridge once more where he preached to large
congregations. In 1595 he again visited the Channel Islands, accompanying Lord Zouch, the
new governor of Guernsey. In 1598, Cartwright returned to Warwick, where his last years
were spent in comfort and peace. Cartwright preached his last sermon on Christmas Day,
1603 from the text ‘Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall
return unto God who gave it’ (Eccl. 12: 7). Two days later, after spending two hours on his
knees in the morning while in great pain, he told his wife that “he found wonderful and
unutterable joy and comfort, God gave him a glimpse of heaven before he came to it.” And so,
this faithful if fearful champion of the Lord died on 27 December 1603. He lived to see an
increasingly popular acceptance of principles which he had striven so manfully to proclaim.
Parliament abolished the Church of England in 1642. By the time of the Civil War and the
Westminster Assembly (1643-9), fragmentation and intolerance among the Puritans sowed
the seeds of confusion and failure. After the execution of King Charles I in 1649, Oliver
Cromwell’s Protectorate saw civil and religious progress. However, with the ‘backlash’ of the
Restoration in 1660 came the demise of Puritanism. Charles II’s infamous Act of Uniformity of
1662 drove about 2000 Puritan ministers into a religious and social wilderness. Cruel
persecution only ended with William and Mary’s Toleration Act of 1689. The effects of 1662
and a fragmented Nonconformity are sadly still with us. Had the English Puritans followed
some of the more moderate features of the French and Dutch Reformed Churches,
Cartwright’s pioneering labours might have had happier consequences.

CHRIST-EXALTING LEGACY
That said, what do we conclude from the life and labours of Thomas Cartwright?

1. He was a man of solid Scriptural principle. He saw more clearly than most the implications
of the authority of the Bible.

2. He feared separatism and sectarianism. He rejected the arguments of Robert Browne’s A
Treatise on Reformation without Tarrying for Any. Whilst his warnings about endless
fragmentation still have relevance, he was a man of his time in believing in a state church. He
was also authoritarian and inclined to intolerance.

3. His version of Presbyterian church government avoided the hierarchical idea. He sought to
balance the independency of the local congregation with the need for a wider, visible unity.

4. He teaches us to take seriously the Lordship of Christ in His Church, expressed through
the authority of the Scriptures in the energy of the Holy Spirit. This is surely his foundational
legacy.

5. He also exemplified the three purities of Puritanism - purity of doctrine, purity of worship
and purity of life. Whatever difficulties might attend Cartwright’s legacy, the Christian Faith
cannot survive if these primary purities are ever forgotten.

6. He inspired a nationwide puritan vision. Cities and towns across England felt the godly
influence emanating from Calvin’s Geneva via Cartwright’s Cambridge. Norwich is a typical
example, where John More and other puritan brethren declared the Gospel so effectively.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Edmund Calamy, An Account of the Ministers, Lecturers, Masters and Fellows of Colleges and
Schoolmasters, who were Ejected or Silenced after the Restoration in 1660. By or before, the Act
for Uniformity. Design’d for the preserving to Posterity, the Memory of their Names, Characters,
Writings and Sufferings (London, 1713)
Benjamin Brook. The Lives of the Puritans, 3 vols (London, 1813)
Daniel Neal, The History of the Puritans, 5 vols (London, 1822)
A. H. Drysdale, History of the Presbyterians in England (London, 1889)
M. M. Knappen, Tudor Puritanism: A Chapter in the History of Idealism (Chicago, Phoenix ed.,
1965)
C. G. Bolam, Jeremy Goring, H. L. Short, Roger Thomas, The English Presbyterians: From
Elizabethan Puritanism to Modern Unitarianism (London, 1968)
H. C. Porter (ed), Puritanism in Tudor England (London, 1970)
Patrick Collinson, The Elizabethan Puritan Movement (Oxford, 1991)
Muriel McClendon, The Quiet Reformation: Magistrates and the Emergence of Protestantism in
Tudor Norwich (Stanford, 1999)
Patrick Collinson, John Craig, Brett Usher (eds), Conferences and Combination Lectures in the
Elizabethan Church, 1582-1590 (Woodbridge, 2003)
Matthew Reynolds, Godly Reformers and their Opponents in Early Modern England: Religion in
Norwich c.1560-1643 (Woodbridge, 2005)

For further information on Dr Clifford's other writings on historical and theological subjects, lease visit this site. When ordering please quote the code HL.

Dr John Calvin

2012-01-26T15:49:00.002Z

John Calvin (French: Jean Cauvin; 10 July 1509 - 27 May 1564) was the most influential French theologian and pastor during the sixteenth century Protestant Reformation in Europe. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530, around which time he was converted to Christ. After religious tensions provoked a violent uprising against Protestants in France, a reality that was to feature in French history later against the Huguenots, (or French Protestants who were mainly Presbyterians), Calvin fled to Basel, Switzerland, where he published the first edition of his seminal work, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, in 1536.

In that year, and by a most strange convergence of circumstances in which God's hand was evidently at work, Calvin was recruited by William Farel to help reform the church in Geneva. The city council resisted the implementation of Calvin and Farel's ideas, and both men were expelled. At the invitation of Martin Bucer, Calvin proceeded to Strasbourg, where he became the minister of a church of French refugees. He continued to support the reform movement in Geneva, and was eventually invited back to lead its church.

Following his return, Calvin introduced new forms of church government and liturgy, despite the opposition of several powerful families in the city who tried to curb his authority. Calvin came to see that the current arrangements for the government of the church did not reflect the biblical model, nor was the liturgy faithful to Scripture. This was in 1553, and during this time, the trial of Michael Servetus for heresy took place which resulted in the latter being burned at the stake for his denials of clear Scriptural teaching. This was accompanied by the violent opposition of the Libertines who attempted to harass and threaten Calvin. However, since Servetus was also condemned and wanted by the Inquisition, outside pressure from all over Europe forced the trial to continue. Following an influx of supportive refugees and new elections to the city council, Calvin's opponents were forced out. Calvin spent his final years promoting the Reformation both in Geneva and throughout Europe.

Calvin was a tireless polemicist, apologetic writer, preacher, pastor, commentator, letter writer and theological giant who generated much controversy. He also exchanged cordial and supportive letters with many reformers, including Philipp Melanchthon and Heinrich Bullinger. In addition to the Institutes, he wrote commentaries on most books of the Bible (except Revelation), as well as theological treatises and confessional documents. He regularly preached sermons throughout the week in Geneva. Calvin was influenced by the biblical teaching and also, and subordinately, by the Augustinian tradition, which led him to expound the doctrine of God's sovereignty of God in the salvation of the human soul from death and eternal damnation. He saw the very heart of the his theology, from man's side, as being faith, not predestination, a fact that is everywhere present in his sermons.

Calvin's writing and preachings provided the seeds for the branch of theology that bears his name. The Reformed and Presbyterian churches, which look to Calvin as a chief expositor of their beliefs, have spread throughout the world.

For more information on Calvin as a compassionate pastor and strong church leader, see this website, where Calvin's dealing with Servetus and with the Libertines is discussed.

Moise Amyraut

2012-01-26T15:47:00.002Z

Moise Amyraut, also known as Amyraldus, was born at Bourgueil, in the valley of the Changeon in the province of Anjou. His father was a lawyer, and, preparing Moses for his own profession, sent him, on the completion of his study of the humanities at Orléans to the university of Poitiers.

At the university he gained his BA degree (of laws). On returning home from the university, he passed through the city of Saumur. Having visited the pastor of the Protestant church there, he was introduced to Philippe de Mornay, City governor. Impressed by young Amyraut's ability and culture, they both pressed him to change course from law to theology. His father advised him to read over Calvin's Institutions, before finally determining on what course to follow. He did so, and decided for theology.

He moved to the Academy of Saumur, studying under the Scottish theologian, John Cameron, who came to regarded Amyraut as his greatest scholar. He acquitted himself well in his studies, and was in due time licensed as a minister of the French Protestant Church. However, contemporary civil events hindered his advancement. He remained for two years in his first church in Saint-Aignan, Maine. His colleague, Jean Daillé, who moved to the church at Charenton in Paris, advised the church at Saumur to secure Amyraut as his successor, which it did. At the same time, Saumur University had intentions on him to become professor of theology. Two other churches, Paris and Rouen, also contended for him, but to no avail.

Amyraut was appointed to Saumur in 1633, and also to the professor's chair. Amyraut soon gave to French Protestantism a new direction, and in that was true to the teaching of John Calvin.

He published his Traité des religions (Treatise Concerning Religions) in 1631; and from then onward he was an acknowledged leader in the church. He died on 18 January 1664.

For further information on this whole issue, please visit here.

Richard Baxter

2012-01-26T15:45:00.001Z

Rev Richard Baxter (1615-1691) ministered in Kidderminster for almost twenty years. His preaching power and clarity were proverbial, and the Gospel he declared was applicable to all the world. He believed in and preached universal atonement, namely, that Christ died for the sins of all the world, but he did not believe in universal salvation.

He once famously said, "I preach as never sure to preach again, as a dying man to dying men."

For more information on Rev. Richard Baxter, please click here.

Repentance.

2012-01-26T15:40:00.003Z

The Lord Jesus Christ tells us why He came; it was not to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. repentance is not for good people, but for bad people, sinners. It is not for upright people, but for the rebellious. The call of the Saviour is directed to specific types of people - sinners. The Bible through Paul tells us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," therefore all are sinners.

What does that tell us? That true repentance is a crucial part of the religion, not of an innocent person, but of a sinner. The call to repentance is of no avail to those who see themselves as totally innocent. It has no bearing on them whatever. It is something that is produced in the heart of the sinner which is utterly indispensable to the character of the true Christian. Since the Christian sins daily, continually, he needs to be repenting of his sin daily, continually.

If this is so, why is this not required before people are accepted into full church membership? Why is it that they only have to say they are Christians i many places for them to be accepted as such by the eldership? No repentance, no church membership. Would your church tolerate such a biblical stance?

Man - Lost But Great.

2012-01-26T15:29:00.000Z

From the biblical perspective, man is, at one and the same time, both lost and great. He is a responsible human being, responsible primarily to God for all he is and does. Because he is responsible, he effects history both positively and negatively. He can make an enormous contribution to history because he is great. That greatness can show it in actions that promote the greater good of society, or its downfall. Man is responsible for sowing the seeds of new ideas and thoughts, and when these germinate and take hold and grow, they bring in change. It may be a long time in the seeing, but it will come.

We are responsible, then, for what we sow. Is it good, or is it bad? What kind of seed thoughts are we sowing around us?

Dead Preaching Unacceptable!

2012-01-26T15:23:00.003Z

Something struck me today when travelling on the bus to Belfast, and I want to share this with you now. Why are some/many lectures so utterly boring? And why is so much preaching so dead and dull as well? This thought struck me: lecturing degenerates into a boring exercise because lecturers see it as mere presentation of facts, and no more. Some preaching is also like that therefore it is as dry as dust.

But the only thing, humanly speaking, that keeps preaching and lecturing fresh is when it is viewed as an urgent and relevant message from the living God, through the preacher, to the people to whom he is declaring the Gospel.

Spiritual Sayings

2012-01-25T21:06:00.002Z

Preach the Gospel, and, if necessary, use words!

Often attributed to St. Francis, but not traceable to him
.

She Who Kneels Before God
Can Stand Before Anyone

....author unknown

The Paradoxical Commandments

2012-01-25T21:04:00.001Z

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered; Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've got anyway.

This gets to the heart of true Christian living. It is a reversal of all that's natural to us. This goes right against the grain. It shows that the mathematics of grace simply do not add up to what we would expect to be a good result.

No Fool!

2012-01-25T21:02:00.004Z

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.

Jim Elliot, christian missionary, explaining his motivation to go to a headhunter tribe to share the Gospel. They killed him, but the tribe later heard the Gospel, received Christ, and was totally transformed.

This is surely one of the most challenging statements ever spoken by a man. We tend to give what does not costs us too much, and what we do not want anyway; we hold on to what we cherish, therefore we often lose what is most precious to us.

Stay Focussed.

2012-01-25T21:01:00.004Z

He who interrupts the course of his spiritual exercises and prayer is like a man who allows a bird to escape from his hand; he can hardly catch it again.

Author: St. John of the Cross

This is a timely warning from an old writer. Too frequently we allow unnecessary interruptions to our devotions and prayers, and the thought occurred to me, What does God think of being placed second (at best) to these other concerns?

Sort Out Your Thoughts

2012-01-25T17:44:00.004Z

Because all truth is God's truth, and because God's common grace enables even the ungodly to do good work, I have decided to mention to you a book which might well be of assistance in getting your mind sorted out. Christians can as easily get themselves into a mental muddle as anyone else, especially when they try to sort out their future life and work.

So I mention this book, Sort Out Your Thoughts, which can be accessed at this website. It can be downloaded immediately.

I trust the contents are based on sound Christian principles, and I trust also that it will help you get what you want in life.

Homosexuality Is Sin!

2012-01-25T11:51:00.003Z

Your article on the conference on homosexuality held recently at Orangefield Presbyterian Church, Belfast, raises a few critically important but apparently forgotten issues.

First, homosexuality is a sin like any other sin, and must be properly named as such. It is a perversion of God's plan for marriage and the relationship between a man and a woman for life.

Second, homosexuality, when properly named as a sin, can be forgiven by our most gracious God.

Third, divine forgiveness must be offered to those involved in this sin with the promise that everyone who repents of his/her sin and trusts Christ alone for forgiveness and salvation, will be pardoned. Does the church today believe in forgiveness for sin, this sin? Or is this a 'preference' that needs no repentance and therefore no forgiveness?

The church of Jesus Christ must exhibit simultaneously God's holiness and God's love. She must maintain His standards and display His compassion. But the church has no right whatever to even suggest that homosexuality is but another acceptable sexual orientation that is on a par with a proper relationship between a man and a woman for life. If the Church believes that Paul got it all wrong in Rom. 1, then let her come out and say so. But if she believes he got it right on this issue, then she is duty bound and honour bound to uphold the biblical standards despite all opposition.

I think the real problem is that the churches no longer know what a Christian is, how a sinner becomes a Christian, or how a Christian is to be defined. The only thing they seem to be interested in are 'professions of faith.' They do not see that entry into the Christian life is via a 'narrow gate,' according to Jesus Christ, and continues until death along this 'narrow road.' It starts 'narrow' and it stays 'narrow.' That 'narrow gate' is repentance toward God for sin, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, the church ought to be evangelising all those who got themselves caught up in the sin of homosexuality, and seeking to win them for Christ. But she cannot water down our faith by saying that the 'profession of faith' of those who hold on tenaciously to what the Scriptures describe as an abomination, is acceptable for church membership. That would be like saying that a man can use the foulist of language, including blaspheming the precious and holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and still be regarded as a Christian and church member. There is forgiveness for that man if he repents of his sin and turns in faith to Christ, but not otherwise.

Sadly, the church has been fatally infiltrated and negatively affected by 'the world,' to such an extent that she no longer knows what she believes.

Get Back To The Past.

2012-01-24T19:26:00.001Z

A local church pastor visited me today, and he was saying that so many Christians are living in the past, in the 'good old days' when revival was being experienced in our churches. I said that I disagreed, and argued that the problem with today's church is that it has not re-visited the past frequently enough. The church of today simply does not know its Christian history, and is therefore ignorant of what God has done in the past by His Spirit.

Thankfully, he agreed and saw the point I was making. We need to re-learn our history of the Christian Church, and become more familiar with it so that we can see what good He did then, and be inspired to plead with Him to do it again in our day. We need to return to the greatest days of the Church's history, and learn from those days when God was working mightily by His Spirit, back to the Reformers and Huguenots, to the Covenanters and Puritans, back to the days of the great Methodist Revival in these islands (British isles) and to the Great Awakening in America. Ignorance of the past is what leaves us vulnerable to mistakes in the present and future. In order to go forward properly and with conviction, we need to go back to the days when God visited the churches and poured out His blessings upon them.

For further information on some aspects of those great days, please visit here.

Lloyd-Jones - The Twentieth Century Baxter.

2012-01-24T13:26:00.000Z

There is great confusion, proffered mainly by his friends, over the theological orientation of Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. To many, he is a convinced Owenite, or follower of Dr John Owen. To the undiscerning, he believed and preached the doctrine of limited atonement, because to be truly reformed you must believe in and declare the doctrine of limited atonement. Not so for Lloyd-Jones, as my book makes abundantly clear.

Others believed that the Doctor did not hold that Christ died for all men without exception, and are convinced that because his books were published in the main by the reformed publishing houses, he did not preach a Gospel that has relevance for all men. But he did!.

Still others thought that Lloyd-Jones held that Christ did not die for all, despite his frequent quoting of Heb.2:9. He believed and preached that Christ is the Saviour of the world, that He died for all humanity, for mankind, and for the human race.

If you question these assertions, then please get my book on Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones at this website. At least half of the entire book is a listing of all the quotations that I could find in his evangelistic sermons published to date.

Lloyd-Jones was Baxterian through and through so far as his soteriology, or doctrine of the atonement, is concerned. And Baxter followed Calvin and Amyraut; so, therefore, do Dr Lloyd-Jones.

But don't take my word for it. Get my book and check out the references for yourself. You'll be glad you did.

Lloyd-Jones Anniversary.

2012-01-24T13:11:00.001Z

On 1st March 2012, Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones entered glory and went to be with the Saviour he loved and served so well. That there will be beneficiaries publishing their appreciation of the man goes without saying. My appreciation of his written ministry in particular crosses at least four decades, and I have published those lessons that I learned from him in my newly published book.

Those lessons - spiritual, theological, pastoral and ecclesiastical - have been a mainstay of my life and ministry over some 35 years, and they are now available here to the Christian public for the very first time.

Please support my ministry by getting your own copy now.

Lessons From LLoyd-Jones

2012-01-24T12:54:00.001Z

"Dr. Lloyd-Jones was not another young minister fresh out of a liberal theological college, trimming his message to contemporary opinion and the prejudices of his congregation. He was determined to preach the message with the crystal clarity in which it had come to him. That was too much for some of the congregation and they left. But in their place - slowly at first - there came increasing numbers who were gripped by the truth, the working class of South Wales. The message brought them, and the Holy Spirit converted them. There were no dramatic appeals, just a young man with the clear message of God's justice and his love, which brought one ‘hard case’ after another to repentance and conversion.

The church in Aberavon grew with the steady stream of conversions. Notorious drunkards became glorious Christians and working men and women came to the Bible classes which he and his wife conducted, to learn the doctrines of their new-found faith. Around South Wales other churches that were often starved of sound teaching and of preaching which dealt with the world as it was (in the depth of the great slump), invited him to their pulpits. His reputation grew across the Principality and beyond."

Let this account of the greatest biblical preacher in the UK in the twentieth century encourage all those who are in the preaching/pastoral ministry. Ministers who have made any impact for the Gospel have always faced almost insurmountable problems and opposition. But remember this: the person who is most vicious in his/her opposition is the most likely candidate for conversion. I have seem this in my ministry, and in the ministry of others. These people kick hard against the Gospel because that Gospel has come very close to them; it has impacted their lives in a way that they never knew before. So close is Christ to them that in His amazing grace

they could be in the Kingdom in the twinkling of an eye.

Until that time comes, they can make life exceedingly difficult for the faithful Gospel minister, and for his family. But God is faithful and will not allow his servants to suffer beyond what they are able to bear, but will, with the temptation, opposition, persecution, make a way of escape, so that they are not destroyed by it.

That is the kind of organic growth we want to see in the churches. We pray to that end.

Baxter's Kidderminster Today!

2012-01-24T11:41:00.001Z

On a recent visit to Kidderminster, England, the town in which the celebrated Puritan, Rev Richard Baxter ministered in the seventeenth century, I was amazed at how ignorant the local people regarding their greatest son. The first ‘sign’ of Baxter was at Baxter United ReformedChurch; I asked if this was the church thatBaxter preached in, and was met with ignorance.

To the Parish church of St Mary and All Saints, I strolled, and the over-ruling providence of God allowed me inside. What a joyful and humbling experience it was just to be there. I could easily imaginethe place filled to capacity with earnest hearers and seekers after Christ asBaxter applied the Gospel as understood and taught by Calvin with clinicalprecision to men’s consciences.

I went to the New Meeting House where the Unitarian church meets, andsaw thepulpit (dated 1621) from which he preached “the unsearchable riches of Christ,”(Eph.3:8).

To read a fuller story, may I refer you to Baxter. It is truly amazing how the mighty town and churches of Kidderminster have fallen into unfaithfulness, apostasy, unbiblical ecumenism. May God have mercy on that town and on our country.

Mission and Baptism

2012-01-23T12:17:00.000Z

Mt.28:18-20 are familiar verses. They are used by our Baptist friends to teach the necessity of adult (believer's) baptism by total immersion. Within the context, this is right and proper. Where they go astray is when they apply this teaching to covenant families, and refuse to give to the children born into covenant families the God-appointed sign and seal of the covenant - baptism. They require them to wait until they themselves believe, after which they must be baptised by total immersion.

In Mt.28, the nations knew nothing of God's gracious covenant, or covenant of grace, which He entered into with Abraham (Gen.15). Covenant people stand in a totally different spiritual position to the nations which did not know God. They have privileges that others do not have. So a distinction has to be made between the children of covenant parents and those of parents who are not in the covenant.

Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Parting Words.

2012-01-23T12:10:00.002Z

In an article by his son-in-law, Lord Fred. Catherwood, the following insight into the Doctor's thinking and faith is given.

"In1979 illness returned and he had to cancel all his engagements. He waseven-minded about the prospect of preaching again. He had seen too many mengoing on well after they should have stopped. In the spring of 1980 he was ableto start again, but a visit to the Charing Cross Hospital in May revealed thathis illness demanded more stringent treatment which kept him from preaching.Between wearing sessions in hospital, which he faced with courage and dignity,he carried on working on his manuscripts and giving advice to ministers, but byChristmas he was too weak for this. To the end, however, he was able to spendtime with his biographer (his former assistant, lain Murray).

Towards the end of February 1981, with greatpeace and assured hope, he believed that his earthly work was done. To hisimmediate family he said: 'Don't pray for healing, don't try to hold me backfrom the glory.' On March 1st, St. David's Day and the Lord's Day - he passed onto the glory on which he had so often preached to meet the Saviour he had sofaithfully proclaimed."

My own personal appreciation of this servant of Christ is published here. I never met the man, though I had met Sir Freddie Catherwood (as he then was, if my memory serves me well) while a student at Leeds Poly (as it then was), though I did hear him preach in Leeds in 1973.

More Publications For You.

2012-01-21T19:04:00.002Z

For those interested in my other publications, please go to the Smashwords website.

Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones

2012-01-21T18:02:00.003Z

I discovered a very interesting thing today, and it was this. If you go to Smashwords.com and then type in the name of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, you will find ONLY ONE BOOK that matches the search term. Smashwords has now published in excess of 90,000 books on a wide range of subjects, amounting to some 1.7 million words. It has more than 16,000 authors. Yet only one book has been published by Smashwords on Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Surely that fact commands attention on your part.

Why not have a look and see what it is; then, with your appetite whetted, you can proceed to get your own copy.

Education Is Cheap; Ignorance Costs!

2012-01-18T19:58:00.001Z

The surest way to repeat the mistakes and errors of the past is to remain ignorant of them. If you want to make sure that the church remains in her moribund condition, just live life at you have been doing.

But if you want to be informed about issues of truth, issues that are foundational to life itself, then you owe it to yourself to be better educated. Education does not cost as much as ignorance!

May I refer you to my new book on Dr D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, my mentor and teacher of many years; and he being dead still speaks to me through his written and recorded messages.

I therefore refer you to the website where you can get your own copy of this remarkable book. All of the information is brand new; it records my own personal reflections on DMLJ's teaching, and how it helped me, and sometimes hindered me. It also has a section (about 50% of the entire book) that deals with his understanding of the Gospel message as it pertains to the atonement. This has not been done before - to the best of my knowledge. So get this book and read it, and tell others about it. There is a message here that has to be got out to the multitudes, and we must do our part in spreading the word.

Will you help in this?

Calvin and Courage - Under the Cross

2012-01-18T17:03:00.002Z

Available for download from today, this brand new ebook, written by the author, is long-awaited. Delivered as one of the papers at the Amyraldian Association Annual Conference in Attleborough, Norfolk in Spring 2009, to mark the 500th anniversary of the birth of the reformer fro Geneva, John Calvin (1509-1564), this paper shows a side to Calvin that is not readily known - his warm-heartedness and compassion. Sadly, some Calvinists, by their attitude, have portrayed Calvin as an ogre, and have painted him in a light that is simply not a true reflection of the man himself.

This book demonstrates the heart of Calvin in a way that some might not recognise. Yes, he could be firm when circumstances demanded it, and he was. Read how he dealt with Michael Servetus, the Catholic heretic who opposed and undermined true doctrine in several aspects such as the doctrine of the Trinity, which he denied, infant baptism of covenant children, etc. See the reformer's resolution when faced with the violent and immoral Libertines. But, then, in contrast, see him minister to the young ministerial students who were facing martyrdom at the stake for their faith.

The true Calvin just has to be seen to be appreciated and loved. It is so sad that Calvin has been misrepresented in the house of his friends, resulting in Christians dismissing the great reformer out of hand. Visit here and read about a well-balanced Calvin, and your admiration of him will grow by leaps and bounds.

This chapter, contributed by the author, is taken from the book, "John Calvin 500 - A Reformation Affirmation," and is used with permission of the publishers, Charenton Reformed Publishing, Norwich. If you want to read all seven papers, then visit the publisher's website here.

New LLoyd-Jones Book Making An Impact.

2012-01-18T13:33:00.000Z

It gives me great pleasure to report that the author's book on Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones is gaining the attention of the Christian reading public, with the first sales coming in yesterday.

To secure your copy, click here.

This unique book deals with how one minister experienced the Doctor's preaching, and the help and inspiration that gave him.

It also does what no one else has done - it extracts more than 320 quotations from the Lloyd-Jones evangelistic sermons that demonstrate that theologically and soteriologically, he followed Calvin and Amyraut and Baxter rather than John Owen. This will be new to may DMLJ followers, but facts are stubborn things that do not easily give way to speculation.

Click here and discover for yourself a wealth of evangelistic material that will inform your thinking, and hopefully set your soul on fire for Christ and His mighty Gospel.

On the left hand panel of the site, you will find other books by me, two of which are free to download, and the others are priced at a minimum price.

Philip Doddridge - Book Sale!

2012-01-18T13:20:00.002Z

Dr Philip Doddridge
(1702-51)
Read about ‘The Good Doctor’, one of England’s greatest Nonconformists.
A highly-acclaimed tercentenary biography of 2002 is now available at half price
[£5+p&p].
For more details, click on the link.

50% off this excellent book from the pen of Dr Alan C Clifford - not to be missed. Available while stocks last.

The Grand Place, Brussels, and Martyrdom

2012-01-17T23:58:00.001Z

I have had the privilege of visiting many different countries as part of my recent work,and one of the most beautiful places is the Grand place in Brussels, Belgium. Every time I visit the city, I always make a point of going to this outstandingly beautiful location. I would have stood looking up at those high spires and admiring the magnificant architecture, and marvelled at how the workers ever achieved such a fete.

However, just today (17th Jan 2012), I earned that that place has a somewhat different notoriety, because it was at this exact place in Brussels that made its mark on the great Protestant Reformation in Europe in the sixteenth century. Let Dr F. A. Schaeffer tell the story:

When Luther had begun his preaching, he received word about the first Protestant martyrs. Some monks had read his work, turned to his way of thinking, and were burned alive in the Grand Place in Brussels. The spot is still marked where they died. And the story is told that when Martin Luther heard about it, he began to walk the floor and he said, 'I can't go on. I can't do it anymore. because of me other men are being killed. I can't go on!' Then as he wrestled with it, he understood that because it was truth, no matter what the cost to himself or anybody else, he must go on.

Schaeffer continues, "Thank God, Martin Luther marched straight forward - the reformation went forward."

The next time I visit the Grand Place in Brussels, while still admiring its beauty and magnificence, I will remember those godly men who died for Christ and his Gospel.

Courage Under The Cross

2012-01-17T23:44:00.002Z

The author of this blog has today published on the internet his latest book, "Courage Under The Cross In Troubled Times." This book was written at a very tense and dangerous time in the South Armagh area of Northern Ireland and during the worst years of the terrorist campaign there. He was responsible for conducting two of the three funerals of two of the elders who died in that terrorist outrage against a small Protestant Pentecostal church in Darkley. In the weeks that followed, he preached a series of sermons that were designed to encourage that beleaguered and vulnerable people who lived in that area that became known as "Bandit Country."

The fruits of his labours are made available as an ebook and may be ordered here.
Please visit the site by clicking on the highlighted link above, and buy this little book. You will be glad you did!

Is God Pleased With Today's Preachers?

2012-01-17T13:46:00.002Z

This is a most pertinent question to ask; and it is even more pertinent to answer. Is God pleased with the preachers in the modern church? When Christian people are frustrated with what passes for preaching today, how is God feeling and what is He thinking about it all? Let me put it like this: if you believe that God is a holy God and that He is there, do you think He can take it lightly when people spread over the face of the earth and move among God's people, and say, "This message is straight from God," when they are speaking only for themselves? This tells us that it is perilously possible for a preacher to speak only for himself and from himself, perilously possible?

What makes is infinitely worse is when these preachers contradict what God says clearly in His Word. He has revealed His own heart and mind in the Scriptures, in propositional form, yet they seem to disregard what God has said and have made up a message of their own that they then pass off as the Word of God.

Now, do you expect God to take this lightly? What isd He? Is He really an old grey-headed and grey-bearded man sitting in a rocking chair in heaven, blind and hard of hearing, and totally oblivious to what is going on in His church? Well, think again.

Preachers With No Message.

2012-01-17T13:35:00.001Z

How can any preacher affirm that he is bring the Word of God to his congregation when God has not spoken to him? Just because a minister enters the pulpit and serves up a talk to his people does not in any way mean that he got that message from the Lord.

In Jeremiah's day, prophets spoke and prophesied in the name of the God who did not speak to them. Where did their message come from? From their own selves? From their own reading and learning? Out of which pit did it emerge? They have come and spoken in the name of God, and they have said, 'God says...' but God has not spoken to them or given them a message. They are messageless messengers! They did not receive a Word from the Lord.

What have they done, then? They have dished up what are no more than their own words for the people. Their own ideas have been welling up within them, and they have been merely echoing the words of others. They have done their reading by way of preparation, but all they could give their people are the echoes of what others have said or written. Sermons today are exercises in regurgitation of others ideas. But there is no "word from the Lord." These men come and say, "This is the Lord's word for you today," but it is not! It is the message of man.

All such preachers are under the judgement of God for claiming to speak for Him when He has given them nothing to say.

Unsent Preachers

2012-01-17T13:27:00.001Z

In the days of Jeremiah the prophet, we find times that are an exact mirror of our own times. In the country at large, there is great wickedness; and in the church there is even greater wickedness.

Jeremiah talks authoritatively about prophets who have not been sent by God, therefore do not and cannot preach the Word of God. Jer.23:21, God says through Jeremiah, "I have not sent these prophets, yet they run." They are busy day by day on rweligious and church business, but they have not been sent by Me. They are doing their own thing, and following their own bidding. How busy they are at their church work.

But what they have not realised is that the God they purport to serve disclaims that He has sent them. So what on earth are they doing, running when they have not been sent? Who sent them, then? Did they send themselves? But that's not 'sending' in any real sense. Whose will are they doing? What an uncomfortable issue to face up to.

The Doctor's Influence

2012-01-16T22:07:00.003Z

New book on Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones's influence on the author of this blog is available here. Please have a look and buy it for yourself and when you have read it, write a review and place it on the Smashwords website.

As the 31st anniversary of his death comes around on 1st March 2012, learning how one man was influenced by Dr Lloyd-Jones will help you to appreciate his ministry a bit more. See the book at Hazlett Lynch.

True believers

2012-01-16T21:54:00.000Z

Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones stresses that you cannot be a Christian unless you believe certain specific things, certain specific truths about our Lord Jesus Christ. A Christian is a believer, a man who believes certain facts, certain verities. But its not just an intellectual thing, this believing. Believing is also a commitment of ourselves to the One in Whom we believe. It is about trust, about entrusting ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour. It is about receiving Christ, and receivine the Holy Spirit. You cannot be Christian without the Holy Spirit (Rom.8:9). Impossible.

Nor can you be a Christian without the new birth. Church tries to pretend that you can, but it is impossible. Except a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God, preached Jesus. The vital thing is not are we members of churches, but are we full of faith in these things?

Government Laws Discriminated Against Evangelicals

2012-01-16T16:34:00.000Z

The Act of Uniformity of 1662 was the occasion that led to the great ejection of many of England's greatest preachers and pastors from their charges. This Act demanded that every minister within the Church of that time accept completely the Anglican Book of Common Prayer in every jot and title. While ministers had no real objection to the contents of the Book of Common Prayer, they did object to the imposition of this Book of Prayer for use in the churches.

Whether the ministers, more than 2,00 of them, were ejected by the church authorities, or, as Prof. A. M. Renwick states, "heroically resigned their livings," is a matter to be researched. But the fact remains, that 2,000 and more ministers of the Gospel found themselves outside the national church because of sheer pig-headedness of the church authorities. Presbyterian, Independent and Baptist minsters were nolnger welcome in the English church.

In addition, the Corporation Act (1661), the Five Mile Act (1665), and the Test Act (1673), placed every Englishman who was not also an Anglican churchman, including the servants of the Gospel, under serious disability. This ecclesiastical discrimination paved the way for even greater errors to enter the church, and ushered in the great apostasy that has bedevilled that church ever since.

Trusting In God’s Unfailing Goodness

2012-01-16T15:39:00.001Z

There is the principle of trust in God’s unfailinggoodness, in good times and in bad. When Fontaine was unable to find a living as apreacher/minister, he would not make himself a burden to others, and consideredways of providing for his family. InBarnstable, he worked as a manufacturer of textiles (a trait that was deeplyembedded within this family), and as an importer/exporter of textiles, while inIreland, he set up a fishing company, commenting that he “was a preacher whohoped to become a fisherman, the opposite of the apostles.” Each of these ventures was blessed with ameasure of success, but due to circumstances beyond his control, each left himpoverty-stricken. Yet he nevercomplained, and with grace he accepted both the good times and the bad as fromthe Lord.

In the church, God, in his sovereign grace, at times blessesthe ministry of the Gospel in quite spectacular ways; believers are encouragedand built up in their most holy faith, and sinners are converted toChrist. What lovely times they are! How sweet are those times when newlyconverted sinners come to you and tell you that God has dealt savingly withtheir souls. To hear the sound of a newconvert’s first words of prayer in the prayer meeting is indescribable. We can give God all the praise and glory forthese special times of blessing. This issummer time in the church.

But when the winter arrives, and things are not proceedingas we think they should; or when active opposition to the Gospel begins toraise its ugly head; or when 'believers' are doing all kinds of “dirty tricks”against the minister, well that’s a different story. It is easier to see the hand of Satan at workin these times, than it is to see the over-ruling providence of God rolling outhis sovereign and mysterious purposes for the church. Yes, we can accept the good times from theLord, but we have difficulty accepting the bad times from him. We need to learn from Fontaine thatglorifying God means accepting whatever his providence supplies. Remember, it is his “provide–ance” for us,for our good, for our ultimate salvation, and for his eternal glory. Fontaine learned this from experience, andstands as a ‘real time’ example and inspiration to us today.

That’s very difficult to accept at times. To have your most precious thing removed fromyou, is extremely difficult to accept. And to see the invisible hand of our good Father at times like this ismost challenging. Only by accepting thegood and the bad from our Father can we know the peace of God ruling in ourhearts.

350 Anniversary of the Great Ejection.

2012-01-16T13:30:00.001Z

Over the next weeks and months, I hope to post articles on the men who were ejected from their pulpits by the largely apostate church of England in 1662. More than 2000 faithful pastors were removed from their charges by that church. In the Anglican ministry there were men of Presbyterian conviction, Independents and baptists. The result of this was a great purging of the church of those intolerable factions - the preachers of the everlasting Gospel. That church has paid very highly for such uncalled for action against the servants of Christ.

Recorded sermons?

2012-01-16T13:26:00.001Z

What do you think of the practice of recording services/sermons? It can be one of the best ways of spreading the Word that is offered today, and why should we not use this technology to preach the Gospel?

However, there is a down-side to this practice; or rather not so much the practice itself as the way it is discounted by many Christians today. What I mean is this: very often when sermons are being listened to on CD, etc, the auditors do not have the same awareness of listening to God's Word as they wold have of sitting in church. They can beak into conversation, thus lose the drift of the message.

I would counsel that when listening to a sermon of CD or on DVD, take a few moments of recollection, reminding yourself that you are about to listen to God's Word, and give it the attention that you would give to it of you were in church.