William Bagshawe, The Apostle of the Peak. Price 90p. plus postage.
This book, published by the Banner of Truth Trust, gives a very clear idea of the state of things during the despotic reigns of the two last Stuart kings, Charles II and James II and how very difficult it was to keep the lamp of truth burning when, in high places every effort was made to conform to a religion which was not based on the Bible. Bagshawe was the son and heir of a 17th century country squire, but he was prepared to leave all that this meant for the ministry of the Gospel, and the persecution which that entailed at a time when the true gospel was held as of no account. He was instrumental in founding a dozen churches and was a leading spiritual force in the Derbyshire Peak District, travelling hundreds of miles a week through a roadless country. He turned his home into a Presbyterian Academy where many young men were trained to go out with the gospel. He adhered strictly to the doctrines of the Westminster Standards in spite of the Popery of Charles II and the still more bigotted Popery of James II, by which he sought to re-convert Britain to Romish rule. Thus James II endeavoured that “all the precious fruits of the reformation would be lost, and the people once more plunged into ignorance and superstition,” so recalling to the whole nation the persecutions of Mary Tudor, and the fires of Smithfield.
After the Great Ejection, Bagshawe did much good by preaching in barns, houses of the gentry which were opened to him, the open air under the blue canopy of heaven, or wherever he could find an audience, and with such success that the solitary place and the desert blossomed as the rose and as the garden of the Lord. He found the people steeped in great ignorance but a great many of them became trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord. It ought to be stated that Bagshawe’s ministry began in the State Church, but it was after he became a Non-conformist that his labours were greatly blessed. The author of the book gives an instance of this in what happened in the village of Bradwell which, like many another hamlet in the Peak district, lay in spiritual death. With Bagshawe’s arrival, the village experienced a veritable awakening. His proclamation of a Saviour who justifies the most hardened sinners, did the work, and the voice of the preacher and the prayers of his supporters could be heard behind shuttered windows and bolted doors. Before the year expired the miners of that village had erected a sturdy Presbyterian meeting-house, which became the first place of worship in Bradwell.
Bagshawe, however, was destined to see better days. William III came from Holland as the great Protestant deliverer and freedom was granted to those who endeavoured to worship God according to His Word, to do so. Bagshawe outlived William III, and composed and preached his last sermon at the time of the death of that illustrious sovereign. On his death-bed he disclosed to a friend that the doctrine of the imputed righteousness of Christ was his constant support.
The book is to be had in the Free Presbyterian Bookshop, 160 Pitt Street, Glasgow, C2. We wish it a good circulation.
J.C.
Romans by Dr D. M. Lloyd Jones. Banner of Truth Trust. Price £1.25.
In his preface to this book, the Doctor explains why he begins his series on Romans with chapter 3 and not chapter 1. Personally, I would have preferred that he had followed the divinely inspired Apostle and had begun at the beginning. That apart, the volume forms a valuable contribution to the church as an exposition of Romans 3:20 to 4:25, in which the doctrines of the atonement and justification by faith alone, are handled in an able and lively manner. Indeed, the several sermons contained in this book afford ample evidence of a keen, clear, spiritual grasp of the doctrines of free grace, combined with aptness of illustration and great plainness of speech. The author has a definite gift for exposing and exploding both the plausible modern heresies and the false substitutes for true piety so common in our day. This he does with gravity and fidelity, yet without rancour. Repetition there is, and plenty of it; but it is not vain repetition any more than was the Apostle’s: it is rather the outcome of two factors:— (a) A God given conviction of the superlative importance of the glorious themes he is privileged to set before his fellow sinners; and (b) his knowledge of the reluctance and inability of the natural man to evaluate these things aright.
We heartily recommend the reading of this first volume on the Romans, and look forward to the publication of the second volume soon, God willing.
FRASER MACDONALD.