Editorial
Christ Our Righteousness
Understanding Holy Scripture
Psalm 130
Preaching the Gospel
Christ's Prayer for Unity
Sovereign Mercy
Making our Calling and Election Sure
Books
Letter
For each one of us the day is coming when we shall come face to face with God. Family, friends, neighbours, work-mates, fellow-worshippers and every one else shall all have gone and we shall be closed in alone with Him. To those with no faith in Christ this prospect is terrifying, but to those with a good hope through grace it brings great comfort.
Among the terrified will be those familiar with the Bible's contents but unacquainted with the Bible's God. Among the comforted will be many who have little Bible knowledge but who trust, love and obey Him.
Let us see to which class we belong.
One test probes our enthusiasm. Some of us are noted for vigour and zeal in whatever we undertake. If some charitable cause touches our sympathy, how readily we donate to it. If some worth-while church programme is mooted, how willingly we support it. Yet when God calls us to draw near to Himself, are we reluctant to go to Him? Does our enthusiasm evaporates like the morning cloud?
Another test regards our conversation. Are we as ready to speak about God as we are about trivial worldly matters? If some-one mentions the decree of God, do we rush into an Infra- or Supra-lapsarian stance rather than tremble at our inclusion in that decree and anxiously strive to make our calling and election sure? Or when Christ's Second Coming is broached, do we brace ourselves for a clash with some imagined or real pre-, post- or amillenial opponent, rather than exclaim in wonder, "I shall see Him! With these very eyes I shall gaze on Him! And I shall be like Him and with Him for ever"?
A third test involves our evaluation. Do we esteem, love and adore the Person of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ more than anyone and anything else in heaven or on earth?
The tragic truth for many of us, dear friends, is that our interest in spiritual things is utterly unreal. The personal elements of appropriation and desire and delight are almost, if not altogether, absent.
O may we seek grace to be thoroughly convinced that knowledge of all theology is no substitute for knowing God, finding ourselves among God's elect, being able on good grounds to say, "He loved me, and gave Himself for me," and having deep within us the sincere desire to be with Him. For far sooner than we think, we shall all be ushered into that awesome realm where we shall see Him face to face.
'For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that
believeth.' (Rom 10.4)
In the second verse he gives them this praise: they had a zeal for God. In the third verse he declares their error: their zeal was not according to knowledge, for being ignorant of God's righteousness, they went about to establish their own righteousness. This was their error: they knew not that righteousness which is of faith, but only their own righteousness, which is by the works of the law.
In our text the apostle teaches that the law leads men to Christ, the only Author of righteousness to all who believe in Him.
The word 'telos', here translated 'end', is interpreted in three different ways, all orthodox and useful:
(a) Christ is the perfection of the law. This is true, for the law without Christ is a dead letter (2 Cor 3.6). How shall a dead letter put life into a man? So, until a man gets the life-giving Spirit of Christ he is no more a Christian than a dog or a horse. The law may indeed prepare us for life, but we shall never live till Christ is preached to us in His Gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation (Rom 1.16) and the word of life. Happy is that soul to whom Christ, the perfection of the law, preaches a word of mercy. Happy and thrice happy was Peter, for when Satan thought him his own, then Christ looked on him (Luke 22.61). The word in the original means that He 'looked in into' Peter. Though a man's heart were covered with a breast-plate of steel, the merciful eye of God will see through all. This was Peter's salvation, that Christ the perfection of the law was near him and converted him (John 21.18). For these and infinite more perfections Christ our Saviour may be called the perfection of the law.
(b) Christ paid tribute to the law that we might go toll free. All being finished by Him (John 19.30), the law was content, and permitted all her spiritual prisoners to come out of that spiritual prison in which there is no water, not so much as one drop of spiritual comfort. This was as great a tribute as ever was paid since the world was founded. The men of Jabesh Gilead paid the tribute of their right eyes to the cruel King Nahash (1 Sam 11.2). But what if all the eyes of the world should be thrust out in comparison of God's blood and the sacred life of Jesus? It is a small matter to have an eye thrust out, but to be thrust under the infinite weight of the wrath of an angry God...who can bear it? It made Christ Himself to cry, 'My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?' (Matt 27.46).
Use 1. Let us all here learn to love the Lord Jesus Christ. If a man had bought another man from the gallows with his silver, the bought man would dearly love his buyer. Behold here the Son of God has bought us from hell fire, not with His silver, but with His blood. Who then shall not love Him?
Use 2. Let us also learn here that the price of man's redemption is great. O man, you consider not what the life of a soul cost the Lord Jesus Christ. Lost creatures that we once were, let us now remember that if Christ had not paid our tribute, no-one in heaven or earth would have dared to be surety for us. If anyone or anything else had come to pay our debts, the justice of God would have throttled us all with these words of rigour: 'Pay me that which you owe.' (Matt 18.28). But blessed be Jesus Christ for ever more, who has taken us out of justice's hands by paying so great a debt. To Him be glory for ever.
(c) But I incline to follow those who interpret 'Christ is the end of the law' to mean that Christ is the One for whose sake the law was given, whether ceremonial or moral. This the apostle clearly declares in Galatians 3.24 - 'the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ.' The law could not perfect us itself, but became a schoolmaster to train us up to the knowledge of Christ; that by it, we being convinced of our own unworthiness, might seek our justification and righteousness in Him.
A good schoolmaster, as you know, must have two things: a tongue to teach and a rod to correct. The law has both. The ceremonial law is like a tongue to teach us. The moral law has a rod to correct us.
The ceremonial law teaches men Christ by types and figures. This law could not let men see Christ Himself. But as an ambassador before the marriage of his king carries his portrait to his bride, so the ceremonial law brought the picture of Christ till He came Himself to betroth us to Himself in righteousness (Hos 2.19). Consider how the two goats portrayed Christ (Lev 16). The first, on which the lot fell, was offered for a sin-offering, and as such was carried outside the camp and burnt - skin, flesh, bones and dung. Even so Christ, the end of this law, on whom the Lord's lot fell, was taken outside the camp to Golgotha (Matt 27.33), where He was burnt, not with a coal-fire, but with the unspeakable heat of God's wrath - flesh, bones and soul, with the dung of our iniquities.
As for the other goat, the scape-goat, it was not a figure of us who have escaped the wrath of God, but it was a type of Christ, the end of this law, onto whose head all our iniquities were transferred and confessed (Lev 16.21), and so He was banished to bear them away. The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all (Isa 53.6). The goat never groaned under its burden, which was only a ceremonial load; but Christ our Redeemer sweat blood in His agony when the infinite wrath of God was laid on His sacred shoulders (Luke 22.44). His burden was not ceremonial, but so real that He was bruised by it (Isa 53.5).
And as the ceremonial law teaches men to go to Christ, so the moral law scourges and urges men to go to Christ, the end of this law. The greatest scourge of the moral law is its curse against all who are not perfectly righteous in themselves (Gal 3.10). Now what shall a man do to escape this most fearful curse? Surely there is no other refuge but to run to Christ, the end of the law.
By all this you may see how Christ is the end both of the ceremonial and of the moral law. The only end for which both were given was to bring men to Christ Jesus, the only Saviour of this lost world.
Why does your soul come to Christ? Not for silver or gold. The law does not pursue you for such things. They would never pacify the law. But you come to get the gift of righteousness. If you had a righteousness of your own, the law would never pursue you; but as soon as it sees you naked of righteousness, it never ceases to pursue you till you are covered under the righteousness of Christ.
See in what sense Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. As soon as His righteousness is obtained, the sword of justice is put up into its scabbard, and the law becomes your friend because God is pleased and pacified. O righteousness of Christ, you are precious! O most glorious righteousness, where are you to be found? It is not in the earth, nor in the sea, nor in man. Where then shall it be found? Where shall light be found but in the sun? So righteousness is to be found only in the Sun of Righteousness (Mal 4.2). He only is the true Melchizedek, king of righteousness (Heb 7.2).
As for man, if you seek righteousness in him, you will find only a cry. 'I looked for righteousness', said the Lord, 'but behold a cry' (Isa 5.7) - a cry of sin, a cry of crying sinners, who cry for vengeance. It is only in Christ that saving righteousness is to be found. Only He brought it from heaven to earth, that He might be the end of the law for righteousness to every one who believes.
Use 1. Let us learn what we should chiefly seek from Christ in our prayers. Let us seek neither gold nor silver, but His glorious righteousness. This is Christ's own counsel: 'Seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these [other] things shall be cast to you. '(Matt 6.33). Many, like the dog [in Aesop's fable], gaping after the beguiling reflection, lose the substance. For what are the best things cast to men but reflections? What but unrighteous mammon? (Luke 16.11). Without this righteousness of Christ these things are but abominations in God's eyes.
Use 2. Let us cleave to Him and wait on His service. Many courtiers spend their days wearing and wearying themselves for trifles from their princes, which death takes from them. This is the height of their hopes at court. But those who seek God and His righteousness receive grace and glory. He covers us with His righteousness. Let us therefore resolve to serve this righteous Lord. Lord, so bore our ears [ref. Exod 21.6] that we may both hear this and do it. Amen.
Use 3. Let us highly esteem this precious pearl of righteousness. It is our treasure. Let our hearts be where it is. And let us keep it clean by a holy and spotless life.
Use 4. Let us not seek righteousness in any other than Christ. There is righteousness in Christ sufficient for all who believe. Let those who lack faith seek righteousness in themselves or in the merits of dead saints: this is papistry. Papists have no faith. Indeed, they are the great enemies of faith; and therefore Christ is not the end of the law for righteousness to them. And though they shall never be justified without His righteousness, what do they care? These new-coined pharisees can justify themselves. But before whom? Before men, but not before God.
But if we lay our sins on the head of Christ our Scape-goat, He will carry them away to a desert where they shall never be seen. But He will not bear our imagined righteousness. If men lay on His head the pride of their own righteousness He will push them away. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, not to men who are righteous in their own conceit, but to every one who believes. The Lord be our righteousness, that one day we may stand before the Son of Man.
This is the world's great jubilee. The Jews under the law had a great jubilee every fifty years. On that day all debts were cancelled and every man returned to his own possession. Christ's day was the world's jubilee. It was never heard by Gentiles till He came. Abraham, father of the Jews, saw His day and was glad (John 8.56). What if Japhet, with his forlorn and banished Gentiles, had seen His day? O what joy and gladness! O what Hallelujahs had been heard among the nations!
But behold here a great blessing to every one who believes, whether Jew or Gentile, rich or poor. To every one this is the world's jubilee. In Christ's day all the world's debts were cancelled, and every man in every nation might return to his old possession, which had been sold by Adam when he transgressed the Lord's commandment. Here began the Catholic Church, in every nation, to every one.
Yet not to every one absolutely, but to every one who believes. There is no righteousness for you, O man, unless you believe. If you lack faith to believe, it had been better for you to have been born without a soul! Faith is not in all, but happy is the man who believes. Whether rich or poor, Christ's righteousness is his, for it is to every one who believes. If a beggar believes in Christ he shall be saved. If a king believes not there is nothing but hell for him. Our God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10.34). If Christ had been the end of the law for righteousness to the wise, or rich, or noble, then the simple and poor would have remained comfortless. But blessed be God: it is not so. God has least respect to those whom the world respects most.
So here Christ's righteousness is to every one who believes. If a king will come to Christ with true faith, he shall be welcome, notwithstanding all his worldly pomp and glory. If a ragged beggar comes, he too shall be welcome, with all his rags of poverty. Though he were like Lazarus, full of putrefying sores, the Lord Jesus shall take him in His arms. This is the privilege of every one who believes.
Use 1. No man can be saved without faith; for Christ is righteousness to no-one but him who believes. Let every one of us then strive to get faith; and to increase our faith by hearing, reading, praying, meditating night and day in that Word which is the power of God unto salvation (Rom 1.16). O man, if you would have faith, you must love sermons. Go to them preparedly; hear them attentively; for 'faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.' (Rom 10.17). What pains should we suffer to get that faith by which our souls are justified (Rom 5.1) and sanctified (Acts 26.18). By faith we live. By faith the righteousness of Christ is ours. All that the saints ever did or suffered with honour was by faith (Heb 11).
Therefore, brethren, build up yourselves on your most holy faith (Jude 20). And if you have it not, never rest until you get it. How dare we go to bed without faith? What if death should take us away before we wake? Those who lack faith have no share in Christ Jesus (John 13.8; 2 Cor 6.15). If we have no faith we are in Christ's eyes nothing but infidels. Christ will never acknowledge us. But Christ's great desire is that men should believe in order to get His righteousness. To this end He guided Thomas from wound to wound till he came to the hole of His heart. There Thomas cried, 'My Lord, and my God!' (John 20.28). Even so, O man, Christ sets forth all His wounds, that you be not faithless, but believing (John 20.27). He will have us Christians indeed and altogether, and not almost, like Agrippa. An almost Christian shall almost be saved; that is, not saved at all (Acts 26.28).
Use 2. If Christ is our righteousness, let us live righteously. Let our faith be seen in good works. Let us beware of sin, for sin hinders the soul from believing. Let us therefore stand in awe, and not sin (Psa 4.4); for saints keep God's commandments (John 14.15; 15.10), and keep the faith of Jesus (Rev 14.12). Those who care not to keep God's commandments will never keep faith. So Paul said, 'I have kept the faith', but it was after he had 'fought a good fight' (2 Tim 4.7). If we fight this fight and keep this faith, then the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give us a crown of righteousness (2 Tim 4.8). To Him be glory for ever. Amen. (Adapted)
Many books have been written purporting to show us how to understand Holy Scripture. Indeed, the study of the principles governing the understanding of Holy Scripture has been raised to a science, known as hermeneutics. Its aim is to bring out of the Biblical text the meaning which the original writers intended to convey and which their original readers were expected to gather from it. This aspect of hermeneutics is called exegesis, from a Greek verb meaning 'to guide.' But in order to exegete Holy Scripture one must have a good grasp of the original Biblical languages, the types of literature represented in the Scriptures, the historical and geographical conditions under which the Biblical authors wrote and some insight into their characters and life settings.
And this is only the groundwork! Once Scripture has been exegeted its message needs to be related to today's readers and applied to their and our hearts and lives. This aspect is called exposition and application. If exegesis belongs to the sphere of Biblical scholars (Calvin called them 'doctors' or 'teachers'), exposition and application is the work of pastors and preachers. The one belongs to the theological hall, the other to the pulpit.
Today many 'helps' are available to Bible students (and we should all be Bible students) - concordances, lexicons, Hebrew and Greek tutors, Biblical word studies and so on. Yet very few of the Lord's people have the capacity to make use of them. Some of us have little or no aptitude for languages, while others of us are not studious by nature. Indeed, the vast majority of believers throughout the ages have been simple, uneducated people who would have found the apparatus of Biblical Hermeneutics too cumbersome to even consider taking up, even if they had heard of it. Thankfully, the Lord, who cares more for His people than even the best of His under-shepherds, has provided such helps as we can use with confidence. As the Westminster Confession says: 'Those things which are necessary to be known, believed and observed for salvation are so clearly propounded and opened in some place of Scripture or other, that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them.' (1.7)
What are these helps?
1. First, there is the faithful translation of Holy Scripture.
Here again the Westminster Confession has ordinary people in mind. After speaking of the original Hebrew and Greek Scriptures, it goes on to say: 'But because these original tongues are not known to all the people of God, who have right unto and interest in the Scriptures, and are commanded in the fear of God to read and search them, therefore they are to be translated into the vulgar language (ie native tongue) of every nation unto which they come, that the Word of God dwelling plentifully in all, they may worship Him in an acceptable manner, and through patience and comfort of the Scriptures may have hope.' (1.8) How many of us are aware that the people of England during the Reformation period were nurtured almost exclusively on two books: the Holy Bible and Foxe's Book of Martyrs? Tyndale's translation, and after it the Authorized or King James Version, remain unsurpassed to this day, despite every attempt to revise or improve on them.
2. Then again, we are reminded of the guidelines bequeathed us by that noble translator of Scripture, Miles Coverdale: 'It shall greatly helpe ye to understande Scripture if thou mark not only what is spoken or wrytten, but of whom, and to whom, with what words, at what time, where, to what intent, with what circumstance, considering what goeth before and what followeth.' Were we all to study Scripture in context, both remote and immediate, as Coverdale suggests, no doubt we would see every bizarre interpretation banished from our foolish minds once and for all.
3. Thirdly, we have specific Scripture warrants and precedents to pray for light every time we study the Word. "Open Thou mine eyes," cried the theologian-king, "that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law." (Psa 119.18) "Teach me Thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path," he cries again. (Psa 27.11) The same God who inspired Holy Scripture illuminates our hearts that we may understand Scripture. Of great value in this connection is Thomas Cranmer's beautiful Prayer Book Collect: 'Blessed Lord, who has caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant that in such wise we may hear them, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of Thy Holy Word we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which Thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.' Here, notes Dyson Hague, 'the prayer in regard to the Bible is focussed into one passionate unity of burning desire.' If we are in earnest to know all the will of God for His glory and our salvation, the spirit of this prayer, if not the letter, will always be in our hearts. Another prayer, by Augustine of Hippo, is hardly less appropriate: 'Lord,' he cried as both learner and teacher, 'let me not be deceived in Thy Scriptures, nor let me deceive out of them.' Surely, with the Spirit of Truth to guide us, we shall not stray from God's intended meaning. And wherever we remain in the dark about some passages, let us wait on God, who has promised to reveal all to us in His good time.
4. In the fourth place, we are given specific promises that we shall not be left to our own devices. "The meek will He guide in judgment: and the meek will He teach His way," (Psa 25.9) is only one of many such promises we should plead at the throne of grace. Let us then pray for meekness; then, that He would fulfil this gracious promise to us. We are also promised that when we seek to live up to the light we already have, we shall understand the doctrine, especially the doctrine of Christ. (John 7.17)
5. As a further help to understand the Scriptures we would recommend the regular reading of the best expository and applicatory sermons available to us. Sermon volumes by Luther, Calvin, J.C.Ryle, R.M.McCheyne, W.G.T.Shedd, Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Boston and the 'Cripplegate' Puritans, to name no others, are superb helps to both understanding and applying the things most surely believed among us. In almost every case, they begin with a brief exegesis or setting of the text in its context. Then they state the main doctrine of the text or passage. This leads in turn to a faithful exposition of that doctrine, followed by the most direct application to our consciences, hearts and lives. Find time (and if you cannot find time, make time) to read, pray over and practice a sermon a week. With God's blessing, your path will shine more and more unto the perfect day. "In Thy light shall we see light."
6. Sixthly (to limit ourselves only to the most general helps), a group of 'Six Questions to be Asked and Answered of every Passage and Verse of Scripture' by James Packer may be invaluable to keep us along the right lines. They are these:
(1) What do these words actually mean?
(2) What light do other Scriptures throw on this text? Where and how does it fit into the total Biblical revelation?
(3) What truths does it teach about God, and about man in relation to God?
(4) How are these truths related to the saving work of Christ, and what light does the Gospel of Christ throw on them?
(5) What experiences do these truths delineate, or explain, or seek to create or cure? For what practical purpose do they stand in Scripture?
(6) How do they apply to myself and others in our own actual situation? To what present human condition do they speak, and what are they telling us to believe and do?
7. Lastly, let us remember that whenever we open the Scriptures we are meeting directly with our God. It was not without reason that our Reformers called the Bible 'the face of God.' If Horatius Bonar could write of the Lord's Supper: 'Here, O my Lord, I see Thee face to face,' how much more may we say it of the Holy Scriptures. Christ the Living Word, by His Spirit in the Written Word, is (as the old divines used to say) the 'trysting place' between God and His people. Here we draw near to God with reverence and godly fear. Hear we say to Him: 'Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth.' And here we believingly expect Him to teach us what we are to believe, and show us how we are to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. May we all cry to Him for this spirit.
Analysed by John Owen
1. Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.
2. Lord, hear my voice; let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.
3. If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?
4. But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.
5. I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.
6. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.
7. Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the LORD there is mercy and with him is plenteous redemption.
8. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
The design of the Holy Ghost in this psalm is to express, in the experience of the psalmist and the working of his faith, the state and condition of a soul greatly in itself perplexed, relieved on the account of grace, and acting itself towards God and his saints suitably to the discovery of that grace unto him: a great design, and full of great instruction.
And this general prospect gives us the parts and scope of the whole psalm, for we have:
I. The state and condition of the soul therein represented, with his deportment in and under that state and condition, in verses 1, 2: "Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD. Lord, hear my voice; let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications."
II. His inquiry after relief. And therein are two things that present themselves unto him; the one whereof, which first offers the consideration of itself to him in his distress, he deprecates, verse 3: "If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?"
The other he closeth withal, and finds relief in it and supportment by it, verse 4: "But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest he feared."
Upon this, his discovery and fixing on relief, there is the acting of his faith and the deportment of his whole person:
1. Towards God, verses 5, 6: "I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning."
2. Towards the saints, verses 7, 8: "Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities."
Professor Duncan said, that in desiring and aiming at the conversion of sinners and the edification of saints, it was of great importance that they should have a distinct idea of what the conversion of a sinner means. He thought it was, in a great measure, owing to the want of this that a number of those disorders in practice and errors in doctrine, to which Dr. Cunningham had referred, might be traced. Next to, and closely connected with, an earnest desire for the salvation of souls, and a constant expectancy (which cannot be too strongly inculcated), was the right and Scriptural understanding of what they aimed at when they desired and expected a sinner's conversion.
Conversion was not merely to be understood as a turning from one thing to another thing, but as the turning of an absolutely lost sinner to the God of free and sovereign grace. It was therefore of great importance in existing circumstances, and at all times, that their minds and spirits should be under the sober regulation of revealed truth. And while different suggestions had been thrown out as to the means of promoting these ends, one deeply important question for them to consider was, 'What was the improvement or the amelioration of those means which they were already employing under the authority of the Word of God, which ought to be adopted in their present circumstances?' The question was not only, 'Should there be more preaching?' but 'Should there be better preaching?'
Here he begged to refer to the earnest admonition given by Dr. Malan at the Assembly in Glasgow, to beware of Arminianism. He (Dr. Duncan) did not believe that Arminianism existed in their own Church. But he could not disguise from his own mind, that of late years, at least previous to the Disruption, (he knew not how it may have been since, for they could not expect to get rid of all these evils in a day), since evangelism had become more fashionable, it had become more indefinite and diluted; and if this does not amount to Arminianism, it is a rounding of the corners of that which is called Calvinism, but which I believe to be Jehovahism; it was a rubbing off and a smoothing down of the salient points of Calvinistic doctrine into something which, if it was not Arminianism, was a kind of doctrine with which all who are called Calvinistic evangelicals and Arminian evangelicals could agree. Now this was just the beginning of the evil, it was the letting in of waters, the dilution of the gospel; and the dilution of the gospel would very soon lead to the perversion of the gospel. He remembered an anecdote of a poor man and his wife in England, who were labouring people. They attended a dissenting minister, who, in the course of his ministrations, recommended a Commentary on the Bible. These poor people accordingly laboured to be able to purchase one, and were at last able to do this. After perusing it for some time, the man asked his wife what she thought of the Commentary. "Why," said the wife, "we used to read the Bible in the evening, and it seemed to do us good; and now that we have got the Commentary, it is very good, no doubt, but I do not think it does us so much good. The Bible did us good like a glass of wine, but the Commentary does us good like the same glass of wine in a pail full of water."
Dr. Duncan reminded them that zeal for God's glory should be ever uppermost in the minds of His servants. When they urged sinners to repentance, the character and claims of Jehovah should be laid as the basis for it. This was the basis of all revelation: Jehovah, He is God. That was a doctrine not only of the Old Testament, but set forth and explained in the New Testament, where He was set forth as working all things after the counsel of His own will.
The doctrine of man's Fall - his total fall, not merely from virtue and righteousness, but his total alienation from Jehovah, and the consequent loss of all internal good, his entire separation from Jehovah God, out of which came the doctrine that the fall was a total ruin, ought to be much insisted on.
The doctrine, too, of the Trinity, ought not only to be referred to, but set forth in their whole preaching, in its relation to the manifestation of God's glory in the salvation of sinners. Their preaching should be the gospel of the Triune God. The doctrine of the Trinity should be ever taught, though not ever formally taught.
The doctrine of the Person of Christ, which gives glory and excellence to the work of Christ, should be brought forward, not salvation merely, but the glorious Saviour Himself, and that not only for the sake of guilty sinners' salvation, but for the exhibition of the Divine character, that it was worthy of God to save sinners for such a Saviour.
Man's total apostasy from God, his total depravity, would lead to the exhibition of what alone can be, in an apostate's condition, any comfort or support, the love of Jehovah. It opened such a deep wound that nothing but a Saviour, as a Saviour for an absolute sinner, dead in trespasses and sins, could heal it. God should be proclaimed as the sole Creator, Christ as the entire Saviour, not the Redeemer only, but the Quickener also, not the author of faith only, but the perfecter and finisher of faith.
The doctrine of Man's Impotency, of his total inability to bring himself back to God, should be held up. The opposite doctrine, the doctrine of man's ability to convert himself, countenances the absurdity that man is to return to a dependence on Jehovah by the belief of a certain independence, which is not only absurd, but also dishonourable to God. It would not do to tell a man that he may come to Christ, but that he must come. Some, indeed, would have man to do all, though he could do nothing; and others would have him to do nothing, because all was done for him. As long as I am told that I must come to God, and that I can come, I am left to suppose that some good thing, or some power of good remains in me, and I arrogate to myself that which belongs to Jehovah. The creature is exalted, and God is robbed of His glory. If, on the other hand, I am told that I cannot come to God, but not also that I must come, I am left to rest contented at a distance from God, I am not responsible for my rebellion, and God Jehovah is not my God. But if we preach that sinners can't come, and yet must come, then is the honour of God vindicated, and the sinner is shut up. Man must be so shut up that he must come to Christ, and yet know that he cannot. He must come to Christ, or he will look to another, when there is no other to whom he may come; he cannot come, or he will look to himself. This is the gospel vice, to shut up men to the faith. Some grasp at one limb of the vice and some at the other, leaving the sinner open; but when a man is shut up that he must and cannot, he is shut up to the faith, shut up to the faith, and then would he be shut up in the faith. God is declared to be Jehovah, and the sinner is made willing to be saved by Him, in His own way, as sovereign in His grace.
Many may dislike this doctrine as harsh and severe, but it is because they view God's sovereignty apart from His grace. They spoke of the sovereign God, but why not of the sovereignty of grace? For himself, he felt comfort when shut up to this truth, that God was sovereign, and His grace sovereign, for though he was a sinner, an absolute sinner, Jehovah had said, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy." This doctrine came like heaven's own thunder, and struck down all human dependence. It came upon a man as lost, as the very chief of sinners, and depending solely on God's will; and then, oh how blessed to know the sovereignty of grace.
It struck him down when he read, "The Son quickeneth whom He will." His mind fixed on the "whom He will," and he was undone, because it did not depend on his own will, but on the will of another. But he read again and found that it was the Son that quickeneth whom He will, and this raised him from the dust, because the Son, on whose sovereign will his salvation depended, was the same "Jesus Christ who came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief." It was of importance that the truth which gave such glory to God, which alone could comfort, because it alone brought man down, be declared; that Jehovah's glory be exhibited; and that men be made to feel their own emptiness so that they may see Christ's sufficiency, and Christ's yearning heart over sinners.
On what had been said as to the mode of preaching, he should say not a word, as he was sure all were convinced that it was not by might nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord. If God gave the desire, and sent His servants forth with His glorious Word impressed on the heart and conscience, He, who had given His Word for that very end, would accompany it with demonstration of the Spirit. Having appointed these means, and ordained them, He would give grace to apply them; and he (Dr. Duncan) believed that Jehovah had this end in view, and the more so when they were feeling their infirmities and sins.
Scripture often asserts that man is the slave of sin. What it means is that his mind is so far removed from God's righteousness that he thinks of, deeply desires and undertakes nothing that is not evil, perverse, iniquitous and sullied; for the heart, having drunk its fill of sin's venom, can emit nothing but sin's fruits. However, we must not think that there is some violent necessity driving man to sin. He sins with the full agreement of his own will, and he does it eagerly and in line with his own inclinations.
The corruption of his heart means that man has a very strong and continuing hatred of the whole of God's righteousness. In addition, he is devoted to every kind of evil. Because of this he is said not to have the free power of choosing between good and evil - which is called free will.
It has been ably and seriously argued that such passages, especially the last, implies that all Christian churches should merge into one visible, world-wide Church. Thus each would lose its own identity as the lesser would be absorbed into the greater. Furthermore, it is argued, such a Church would require a universally-recognized Head, while refusal to enter such a merger would constitute schism.
We would do well to remind ourselves that such a concept of Church Unity originated, not with Holy Scripture, but with the 'Church Father' Cyprian. Significantly enough, Cyprian did not base his doctrine of Church Unity on any 'unity texts', but on Matthew 16.18 - "The Lord says to Peter, 'I say unto you, that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.'" "He 'builds his church' on him, and to him he gives his sheep to be fed: and although he confers an equal power on all the apostles, yet he has appointed one throne and by his authority has ordained the source and principle of unity.' (De Catholicae Ecclesiae Unitate. 4.) It is a short step from this to claim the pre-eminence of the Bishop of Rome and the apostolic authority of bishops. This claim is re-affirmed in the recent Catholic Catechism: 'It is through Christ's Catholic Church alone [ie as governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him]...that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained. It was to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is the head, that we believe that our Lord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant, in order to establish on earth the One Body of Christ into which all those should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the People of God.' (Catechism of the Catholic Church. 1994. 815,816.) In this external form the whole concept of Church Unity was developed through the centuries until it became part of the very warp and woof of many people's thinking. That it is so today needs little proof. Almost every apostate Protestant church and denomination declares it. There is in fact no ecclesiastical halting-place on the sliding scale downwards between a thorough-going Reformed Protestantism and the 'baptized paganism' of Rome.
But is this the unity for which our Lord prayed? We think not; for:
1. First, our Lord prayed for the unity of all who believe on Him through the apostles' testimony. As Thomas Manton says: 'Though Christ doth enlarge the object of his prayers [ie beyond the immediate disciples], yet he still keepeth within the pale of the elect... He doth not pray for all, whether they believe or no, but only for those that shall believe.' This 'believing in Christ' implies 'confidence and reliance' on Him alone for salvation. Indeed, it springs from 'a lively sense of our own misery and the wrath of God due for sin.' Moreover, it entails casting ourselves 'upon Christ for grace, mercy and salvation.' It is nothing less than a venturing on Christ as He is revealed in the Word of God. No modern ecumenical programme includes these elements.
2. Secondly, it is a unity analogous to that between the Father and the Son. It is therefore a spiritual unity. George Hutcheson places this union in two points: (a) its inexpressible intimacy; (b) its mutual delight. Thus 'the union of believers prayed for by Christ is not every combination or consent, even of saints, nor a conjunction in any sinful course, but it is an union in God and in the ways of God.'
3. Thirdly, it is a unity of purpose. As the Father and Son are of one mind, so all the members of the true Church are of one mind. That is, they seek to show forth the unique glory of the only true God and, as far as possible, to be 'of one mind, one doctrine, one opinion, one heart and one practice' (J.C.Ryle) with all other believers. See 2 Peter 1.1. No unity that lacks this purpose is the unity for which our Saviour prayed.
4. Fourthly, it is a unity of life. Just as it is one holy and blessed life that the Father and the Son enjoy, so those for whose unity Christ prayed are given that eternal, spiritual, supernatural life which brings them into union and communion with God. This means that by His sovereign grace all believers are brought within the one covenant of life and so are made one in Christ Jesus, their sole covenant Head. Without this, the most perfect outward form of unity is no more than a beautiful corpse.
5. Fifthly, it is a unity in love. As the Father loves the Son and the Son the Father, so a mutual love pervades the one Church of the living God. Though imperfect here, even in the best, nevertheless it binds the Lord's people together, whatever their denomination, race, social standing, skin and political beliefs. And it does this in a way that no outward unity can ever accomplish. Psalm 133, so often sung by little cliques to describe themselves, beautifully expresses this aspect.
6. Sixthly, it is a unity that will impress men of this world. Many seek to evade this clause. Yet Christ expressly says: "that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." That is, when the world sees the people of God not divisive and divided, 'but one in judgment, heart and life', then it will begin to believe that Christ 'must really be a Saviour sent from God.' (Ryle). All experience confirms this. 'How much,' says the Puritan George Newton, 'our blessed Saviour and His Gospel suffer by the hot contentions of those who call themselves saints.' On the contrary, how quickly are worldly men convinced by the claim that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour when they see how much His people love each other.
In conclusion, it is clear that the unity for which our Saviour prayed is quite different to the unity engineered by present-day ecumenists. The Church of Rome boasts that true Christian unity resides in her communion alone. One has to read only a few pages from Peter de Rosa's Vicars of Christ or Pascal's Provincial Letters to see the hollowness of such a boast. Those apostate Protestants who thirst after Papal Primacy cannot possibly see 'the King in His beauty', even though He dwells in 'the land that is very far off.' (Isa 33.17) If they did, they would be satisfied with Him and His Headship.
But are Reformed believers any better? Thousands love the name 'Reformed' but hate the reality. Hundreds swear allegiance to the Reformed Confessions but wander into some By-Path Meadow at the slightest temptation. They say to Christ in effect: "We will eat our own bread and wear our own apparel, only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach." (Isa 4.1) Were Christ not satisfied with the travail of His soul, He would surely weep over Britain, as He once wept over Jerusalem. O when shall we reflect in our own hearts, lives and relationships the unity for which our Saviour prayed?
In these words the Lord in the plainest manner claims the right to give or to withhold His mercy according to His own sovereign will. As the prerogative of life and death is vested in the monarch, so the Judge of all the earth has a right to spare or condemn the guilty, as may seem best in His sight. Men by their sins have forfeited all claim upon God; they deserve to perish for their sins - and if they all do so, they have no ground for complaint. If the Lord steps in to save any, He may do so if the ends of justice are not thwarted; but if He judges it best to leave the condemned to suffer the righteous sentence, none may arraign Him at their bar. Foolish and impudent are all those discourses about the rights of men to be all placed on the same footing; ignorant, if not worse, are those contentions against discriminating grace, which are but the rebellions of proud human nature against the crown and sceptre of Jehovah. When we are brought to see our own utter ruin and ill desert, and the justice of the divine verdict against sin, we no longer cavil at the truth that the Lord is not bound to save us; we do not murmur if He chooses to save others, as though He were doing us an injury, but feel that if He deigns to look upon us, it will be His own free act of undeserved goodness, for which we shall for ever bless His name.
How shall those who are the subjects of divine election sufficiently adore the grace of God? They have no room for boasting, for sovereignty most effectually excludes it. The Lord's will alone is glorified, and the very notion of human merit is cast out to everlasting contempt. There is no more humbling doctrine in Scripture than that of election, none more promotive of gratitude, and, consequently, none more sanctifying. Believers should not be afraid of it, but adoringly rejoice in it.
[C.H.Spurgeon]
"Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge, etc." — 2 Peter 1.5, 6
If thou wouldest enjoy the eminent grace of the full assurance of faith, under the blessed Spirit's influence and assistance do what the Scripture tells thee, "Give diligence." Take care that thy faith is of the right kind - that it is not a mere belief of doctrine, but a simple faith, depending on Christ, and on Christ alone. Give diligent heed to thy courage. Plead with God that He would give thee the face of a lion, that thou mayest, with a consciousness of right, go on boldly. Study well the Scriptures, and get knowledge; for a knowledge of doctrine will tend very much to confirm faith. Try to understand God's Word; let it dwell in thy heart richly.
When thou hast done this, "Add to thy knowledge temperance. Take heed to thy body: be temperate without. Take heed to thy soul: be temperate within. Get temperance of lip, life, heart, and thought. Add to this, by God's Holy Spirit, patience; ask Him to give thee that patience which endureth affliction, which, when it is tried, shall come forth as gold. Array yourself with patience, that you may not murmur nor be depressed in your afflictions. When that grace is won look to godliness. Godliness is something more than religion. Make God's glory your object in life; live in His sight; dwell close to Him; seek for fellowship with Him; and thou hast godliness; and to that add brotherly love. Have a love to all the saints: and add to that a charity, which openeth its arms to all men, and loves their souls. When you are adorned with these jewels, and just in proportion as you practise these heavenly virtues, will you come to know by clearest evidence your calling and election. "Give diligence," if you would get assurance, for lukewarmness and doubting very naturally go hand in hand. [C.H.Spurgeon]
Night of Weeping - When God's Children Suffer by Horatius Bonar. 160pp. Pbk. £4.99.
This beautifully-produced compilation of eight of Edwards's sermons sets forth true marks of saving grace in distinction from their counterfeits. In a day when 'easy believism' is blindly leading many down into the pit, few authors are more likely to be used by God to awaken and change them into true believers than the calm, faithful and stately Edwards. The collection contains a most searching sermon on Hypocrites, a glorious one on Election, while the last two sermons on the believer's state in glory simply ravish the longing soul. Edwards stands squarely in the New England tradition of preaching the Moral Law to break up sinners' legalistic and carnal security before showing them Christ crucified as the only cure for their souls. And he is careful at all times to ensure that the honour and majesty of God are in no way impugned by their salvation. What a privilege to have such heart-searching and uplifting truths preached to us once more!
God's Polished Arrow: W.C.Burnsby Michael McMullen. 352pp. Hdbk. £9.99.
This movingly-written and beautifully-bound biography, journal extracts, letters and sermon notes of one confessedly 'saved by a sovereign and infinitely gracious God' indicates time and again what God is pleased to do through a man wholly devoted to His service. 'The people were bent down beneath the Word like corn under the breeze, and many a stout sinner wept bitterly,' is typical of the fruit of Burns's holy, loving and zealous sowing. M'Cheyne's observation, too, on returning to his congregation who had sat under Burns's ministry, that his people 'felt that they were praising a present God,' is noteworthy. Perhaps even more so is the remark that 'to the Chinese he became as a Chinese that he might gain the Chinese' and the fact that Hudson Taylor considered Burns a model missionary and his own chief human mentor. The book contains many more good things (such as the influence of Burns's praying father and his David-and-Jonathan friendship with M'Cheyne) which frequently brought this reviewer to tears. What more can we say?
The Beauties of Boston ed. Samuel McMillan. Reprint of 1831 edition. 616pp. Hdbk. £19.99.
For all who feel daunted at the prospect of purchasing and reading all twelve volumes of Boston's works, here is a fine representative selection. Divided into sections with such appealing titles as 'Scripture', 'Prayer', 'God', 'God's Decrees', 'Believing in Christ' and 'Election', it helps us to grasp how John Duncan could describe Boston as 'a commonplace genius' at whose feet he would love to have sat to learn how to get true religion. Boston is a master in Israel. The quality of 'majestic energy' felt in his preaching is not lost in print. Besides, McMillan's avowed aim in publishing this compendium, to counteract 'the leaven of the Arminian scheme', makes it as relevant today as in 1831. A personal note may not be out of place: the late Thomas MacRae, your reviewer's elder in Dumbarton, though only a gardener by occupation, absorbed all twelve volumes of Boston and took great pleasure in handing each volume to his minister as he finished it. It was his copy of Boston's Fourfold State, snatched from a burning brazier on Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, that formed the basis of a modern Dutch translation of this masterpiece of experiential theology.
Calvin and the Sabbath by Richard Gaffin. 172pp. Pbk. £9.99.
In this study of Calvin's understanding of the 4th Commandment this Westminster Theological Seminary Professor compares the Reformer's beliefs to those of his contemporary Reformers and assesses them in the light of Scripture. In so doing, he draws on the whole corpus of Calvin's writings, answering very convincingly the question: "Is Calvin's teaching pharisaic, liberal or ambivalent?" As a result Gaffin comes up with some surprising and remarkably spiritual conclusions. In passing, he observes just how many present-day scholars reach 'findings' totally contradictory to each other, yet they all claim the good man's name for themselves! Two things, however, we must remember: Calvin 'was a very meticulous and fair-minded exegete' (Praamsma) and 'internal conflict in Calvin is highly improbable.'(Gaffin) Lastly, Gaffin does find 'certain deficiencies' in Calvin's views, deficiencies due to his 'failure to reckon adequately with the Sabbath institution as a creation ordinance.' Perhaps this will teach us not to be enslaved to the views of any man, however beloved and esteemed in the Church of the living God. A valuable study.
God Chose To Save by Joseph Bianci. 96pp. Pbk. £4.95.
This popular, thematic approach to the topic of the presentation of the Gospel has both strengths and weaknesses. Its strengths lie in the author's avowed Calvinism and simplicity of style. Its weaknesses consist in its simplistic treatment of a problem that has divided theologians for centuries. For example, Bianci fails to distinguish between the gracious invitations of Scripture and the kind of Arminian approach that conceals our inability to believe. Also no mention is made of counting the cost or of the need to receive Christ if we would be right with God. As such it show hyper-Calvinistic tendencies. Despite these shortcomings, the book unequivocally condemns 'decisionism', attributes all our salvation to divine election and casts us as helpless and hell-deserving sinners at the feet of a sovereign and merciful God.
The Book of Origins by Philip Eveson. 592 pp. Pbk. £11.95.
This sizable commentary has much to commend it, especially its careful explanation of Biblical terms and its keeping of the Saviour before our eyes as the One to whom all the events in Genesis move. Its lucid layout is attractive, while the practical implications drawn from the text are very valuable. The wrath of God, seen in the fall, the universal flood and the confusion of tongues at Babel, is fully recognized alongside the golden thread of mercy that runs through God's covenant dealings with His chosen. The author is, however, unprepared to state that the six days of creation are precisely the same as our twenty-four hour days, plumping for 'six successive days similar to our own.' This is a great blemish.
Meet The Real Jesus by John Blanchard. 224pp. Pbk. £7.95.
This revision of Will The Real Jesus Please Stand Up is unsatisfactory as an apologetic for the reliability of the Bible and the uniqueness of Christ. For one thing, its author takes the broadest view of what represents Christianity, including 'Godspell' and 'Jesus Christ Superstar' as samples. For another, he subjects Scripture to 'a bibliographical test', placing it alongside other ancient documents. Then again he unintentionally undermines the reader's confidence in the Biblical text by admitting textual discrepancies and defending the Codices Vaticanus and Sinaiticus, as if he has never heard of the Received Text or God's providential preservation of His Word or the writings of Burgon, Miller and Scrivener. Furthermore, the tone of parts of the book is irreverent; eg. 'Saint or sinner? Christ or crank? Messiah or madman? Demented or divine?' while many chapter headings refer to our Lord as 'The Man who...' All this is done to appeal to the reader, who is invited to become a jury member, to consider the evidence and then pronounce a verdict. Meanwhile God's holy, inerrant and authoritative Word (which demands our instant trust) is made to wait, much like a prisoner in the dock, for him to pronounce in its favour. So despite much Biblical content in this apologetic, its method is unBiblical and therefore fundamentally flawed. Its use of the N.I.V. also does not help the case.
Through Many Dangers by Brian Edwards. 320 pp. Pbk. £7.95.
By contrast, this is a superb revision of the first edition of the author's biography of John Newton. This reviewer found it compelling reading.
We have also received Baptism by Brian Russell. 126 pp. Pbk. £4.95 which seeks to place the Reformed Baptist position within the Covenant of Grace, and The Local Church - A Living Body by John Keith Davies. 272 pp. Pbk. £8.95.
A Guide To Prayer by Isaac Watts. 186pp. Hdbk. £5.95.
This reviewer found himself torn between the author's counsel to see prayer as an intimate conversation with our heavenly Father and his laying down so many rules for prayer. One becomes so busy attending to the rules that the spontaneous intimacy is lost. Yet there are so many good things to observe here: keeping a balance between the various parts of prayer, avoiding slovenliness in voice and gesture, realizing that prayer is a grace as well as a gift, depending on the Holy Spirit to activate and regulate our prayers, seeking spiritual-mindedness as a prerequisite for prayer, and holding God in great reverence, even when He is our Father. While Watts urges us always to employ the mediation of Christ in our approaches to God, one is ever mindful of his siding with the minority in Salters Hall (1719) when he voted with the Arian-inclined minority who refused to make acceptance of the doctrine of the Trinity necessary for salvation. Despite its sane, sober and Scriptural treatment, therefore, for my money the guidelines of the Westminster Puritans and Reformed commentators on the Shorter Catechism (such as Vincent, Watson, Flavel and Boston), along with Bunyan on Prayer, are better value.
Selina - Countess of Huntingdon by Faith Cook. 478 pp. Hdbk. £19.95.
Here we have an outstanding Christian biography. Faith Cook is a superb writer whose easy style conceals the depth of research that goes into her writing. Set within the context of the 18th century Evangelical Revival, the life of this gracious aristocrat is told in all its many-hued variety - her total commitment to Christ, burning burden for souls, traumatic childhood, faults and failings, deep grief over the death of her children and a wayward son, her trials through being let down by those she trusted, her zealous labours for the kingdom of Christ, and much else, leave us feeling both edified and rebuked.
As a bonus we are given telling insights into the characters of the main instruments God used in the Revival: George Whitefield, John and Charles Wesley, William Williams, Howell Harris, Daniel Rowlands, William Grimshawe, John Fletcher and others with whom the Countess enjoyed fellowship. We are also given a clearer understanding of her 'Connection' churches and the work of the college at Trevecca, as well as the Calvinistic-Arminian controversy of the day. Yet it is her indiscriminate love of souls and sanctified entrepreneur-ship that stand out above all else. Perhaps the remark of King George III (who was not the madman present-day theatricalists make him out to be) indicates the countess's real worth: "I wish," he said, "there was a Lady Huntingdon in every diocese in my kingdom." Doubtless, as Thomas Wills wrote after her death, tens of thousands will bless God throughout eternity that she existed. We are grateful to Lady Catherwood for 'bullying' Faith Cook into undertaking this excellent project.
Works of Thomas Brooks. 6 volumes. c500 pp each. £14.95 each.
Volume 1, which this reviewer received, contains some of the best of this outstanding Puritan's writings: Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices, Apples of Gold, The Mute Christian Under The Smarting Rod and A String Of Pearls. It comes from the heart of a great physician of souls and 'speaks to our case' more often than we can retell. When so much religious trash appears on the shelves of Christian book-shops today, investment in the whole set would be well repaid.
Authentic Christianity - Sermons on the Acts of the Apostles, Vol 2, Acts 4-5. by D.M.Lloyd-Jones. 328 pp. Hdbk. £15.95.
This sermonic treatment of Peter's and John's defence before the Sanhedrin, the church's prayers for the fulfilment of Psalm 2, the vibrant self-denying life of the early church and God's judgment on the lying of Ananias and Sapphira is both dramatic and soul-searching. Everything appears as if enacted again before our eyes, while the application to both heart and life is characteristically searching. At the close we are left in no doubt that the main difference between the pristine discipleship of the Jerusalem church and our own sickly caricature of Christianity is the reigning and sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit in the former and the lack of it in ourselves. A spiritual tonic.
From our good friend Dr Joel Beeke we have received The Beauties of Ebenezer Erskine (Focus Publications), 600 pages of spiritual delights, beautifully bound, at £19.95; Volume 10 of the new facsimile edition of Joseph Caryl's massive 12-volume Practical Observations on Job. 863 pp., and a most valuable booklet by Dr Beeke entitled Bringing the Gospel to Covenant Children. 43 pp. Pbk., the first in a projected series on Family Guidance. All these are highly recommended, though the light print of Caryl on Job is not always easy to read.
Martin Luther as Prophet, Teacher and Hero by Robert Kolb. 279pp. Pbk. £12.99.
In this fascinating and scholarly historical study, a Lutheran Seminary professor traces the process by which Luther became a 'cult figure' in the century between 1520 and 1620, first as a man with Elijah-like prophetic authority from God, then as an authoritative settler of disputes over the meaning and practice of Scripture, finally as national hero and liberator of his country from popish tyranny.
The material he amasses is enormous, ranging from the early identification of Luther as the angel of Revelation 14, through his disciples' appeal to him to settle all disputes, to the reprinting of his works at Wittemberg, Jena and Eisleben. Along the way, Kolb notes such adulation afforded him by Spangenberg (Luther was the 'only true interpreter' of the Word of God), Gallus and Amsdorf (who 'equated Luther's teaching with Christ's'), along with the numerous commemorative medallions struck, portraits painted, broadsides printed, biographies written, 'Luther slept here' signs hung, pulpits sculpted, and Reformation anniversaries celebrated in his honour, defiantly describing him either as the pope's plague or the successor of Paul and Augustine, and much else besides. The hymn-writer Martin Rinckart even planned a series of plays based on his life, featuring Sir Martin (Luther), Sir John (Calvin) and Pseudo-Petrus (Pope).
Kolb's masterly survey serves both to warn us against the kind of idolatry that puts even a great religious reformer in the place of Christ and to remind us of the enormous influence under God that Luther has wielded on history. For both lessons we should be sincerely thankful.
Your reviewer's task is made relatively easy by the sheer spiritual quality of the titles he receives from this publisher.
Altogether Lovely by Jonathan Edwards. 231 pp. Hdbk. N.P.
Just as there is a holy beauty in the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, so there is in those who make the heart's response to Him the most important aspect of their lives. Such an one was Jonathan Edwards. What a sweet savour of Christ do these sermons exude! How lovingly does this master in Israel dwell on the only Saviour's personal perfections and redeeming grace! And some of the sermons are over thirty pages long! If their original hearers sat as rivetted to their preaching as this reviewer did to their reading, how blessed they must have been! And what a rebuke to some present-day preachers, who confine themselves to a measly twenty minutes (and less) instead of being so full of matter that their problem is knowing when to stop! A minister I know once preached on the beauty of Christ. After the service a hearer came to him with tears streaming down his face. "I began to take notes," he said, "but I got such a fill of the Saviour that I have written only three lines." O that we could come away from each service with our hearts full of Christ!
The Crook in the Lot by Thomas Boston. 168 pp. Hdbk. N.P.
Here is another master in Israel explaining to us why God puts a crook in our lot; ie adversity in our lives. His aim is to display the sovereignty and wisdom of God in all our afflictions, and in this he succeeds. Having tasted much affliction and received much comfort himself, Boston can minister with deep understanding and tender sympathy to others passing through fiery trials. This edition of a most precious book is enhanced by the inclusion of a brief memoir of the author, an outline of the work and a study guide. As with all S.D.G. publications, it is beautifully produced.
Spiritual Comfort by John Colquhoun. 391 pp. Hdbk. N.P.
One cannot speak too highly of this little-known but eminent Scottish divine. His rich experiential study of spiritual melancholy and its cure should be a vade mecum to all who suffer long dark nights in their soul. Yet like a faithful surgeon, Colquhoun (who as a youth walked fifty miles to obtain a copy of Thomas Boston's Human Nature in its Four-fold State) does not spare us when sloth, negligence, deliberate sinning and failure to exercise our graces bring on our spiritual distress or barrenness. How salutary is the scalpel of such a surgeon!
[The following letter was written to his wife by Christopher Love, a Presbyterian minister condemned to death by Cromwell for alleged complicity in a plot against the government. It was penned from the Tower of London on the day he expected to die. Ed.]
July 15, 1651
My Dearest Beloved,
I am now going to my long home, yet I must write thee a word before I go hence and shall be seen no more. It is to beg thee to be comforted in my gain and not to be troubled in thy loss. Labour to suppress thy inward fears now that thou art under outward sorrows. As thy outward sufferings abound, let thy consolations in Christ also abound. I know thou art a woman of a sorrowful spirit. My time is short; I have but a few words of counsel to give thee, and then I shall leave thee to God who careth for thee and thine.
1. While thou art under desertions, labour rather to strengthen and clear up thy evidences for heaven than question them. 2. Remember a faith of adherence or reliance on the Lord Jesus brings thee to heaven, though thou want the faith of evidence or assurance. 3. Labour to find that (and more also) in God which thou hast lost in the creature. 4. Spend not thy days in heaviness for my death. If there were knowledge of things below or sorrow in heaven, I should grieve to think my beloved should mourn on earth. 5. Lie under a soul-searching ministry. I know thou art not a spongy hearer, sucking in foul water as well as fair. God hath given thee a good understanding, to be able to discern things that differ. As the mouth tastes meat, thy ear trieth words. 6. Be conversant in Christian meetings and much in the exercises of mortification, in fasting and prayers, yet have respect to the weakness of thy body and thy present condition. 7. Have a care of thyself and babes. God will take care of thee and them. I can write no more; farewell, my dear, farewell, farewell.
My dear, I beg thee to be satisfied. My heart is greatly comforted in God. I can quietly submit to the good pleasure of His will, and I hope thou dost so also. I am delivered by the determinate counsel of God; the will of the Lord be done. Read for thy comfort when I am dead and gone Jeremiah 49.11 and the beginning of 12; Isaiah 9.6-8; Psalm 5.6 and 146.9; 2 Corinthians 4.17-18; and Hebrews 12.6-7. These are the last words written by thy dying, yet comforted husband,
Christopher Love
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