Bannerman’s *The Church of Christ*¹

1. Introduction

Rev A W MacColl

These articles deal with a theological work which, more than any other, gives a comprehensive treatment of the whole field of ecclesiastical theology, from the Scottish Presbyterian position. It is James Bannerman’s treatise entitled The Church of Christ. A native of Perthshire, born in 1807, Bannerman was initially a minister in the old Established Church and played a fairly prominent part in the Evangelical Party before the Disruption, joining the Free Church at its foundation in 1843. Bannerman was widely regarded as an expert on ecclesiastical issues, Church history and Church law, and in 1849 was appointed to the chair of Apologetics and Pastoral Theology at

¹The first section of a paper delivered at this year’s Theological Conference.

New College, Edinburgh. He held this position until his death in 1868. He is recorded as having been a man of impressive bearing, with a commanding voice and a powerful intellect.

Bannerman also wrote a treatise on the doctrine of the plenary verbal inspiration of the Scriptures and helped to edit the four volumes of William Cunningham’s Works along with his New College colleague, James Buchanan. The Church of Christ, however, is his great legacy to theological literature. It comprises the course of lectures which he gave to fourth-year students in Pastoral Theology. It is arranged in four parts dealing, first of all, with the nature of the Church itself; then with the power of the Church; thirdly, with the functions which the power of the Church is involved in, and finally, with the mode of governance of the Church. As we can see therefore, the bulk of the work is devoted to an analysis of the power Christ has vested in His Church, and we might say at the outset that Bannerman’s 1000-page discussion forms a very full and comprehensive analysis indeed.

Clearly, it would be far too much to endeavour to summarise all of Bannerman’s arguments in one paper. While the treatise has its own “grave and stately eloquence”, it is nevertheless dense, though Bannerman’s writing style is not quite as involved as the writings of his New College colleague, William Cunningham. Again, like many of Cunningham’s writings, Bannerman’s work deals largely with principles rather than with detailed exegesis – that is, interpretation – of particular passages of Scripture. As Robert Candlish indicates in the Preface, the method adopted here is mostly a mapping out of the terrain for students to explore for themselves by means of further reading and reflection. But in the places where Bannerman does handle particular parts of Scripture, his exegesis – like Cunningham’s – is masterly for penetration and balance.

We will therefore confine ourselves to considering some of the leading features of the work. The main emphasis will be on the first two sections, which deal respectively with the nature of the Church and the power of the Church. We will also highlight certain features of the Romish controversy, in light of the five-hundredth anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation of the Church of Christ from the impurities of Popery.

By way of introduction, Bannerman notes that the Bible does not speak merely to individuals. Rather, it speaks very largely to the society of believers, who constitute one collective body. The existence of such a body of believers “is not an accidental or voluntary union which has grown up of itself” but has been intended by God from the very beginning. “Without the existence of a Church, or of a body of believers, very much of what is contained in the Bible would be unintelligible, and without practical application”. Two

features stand out in the biblical descriptions of the Church: firstly, it is the body of Christ and, secondly, it is the earthly dwelling-place of the Spirit.²

What is meant in Scripture by the term Church? The Greek word ecclesia basically means an assembly gathered together from a multitude. It is similar to the Hebrew term translated congregation. In this case, the Church has been “called out” from the world through the gospel to the fellowship and worship of God. Five different but closely allied meanings of the term church can be gathered from Scripture:

1. It is used to describe the whole body of the faithful: for example, Ephesians 5:25: “Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for it”. Christ’s promise that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church is “language which plainly refers to the society or association of all those who had believed or should believe in Him” (p 7).

2. The name church may apply to the whole body throughout the world of those that outwardly profess the faith of Christ. “This outward society of professing Christians is frequently spoken of and delineated in Scripture under the term Church.” It is spoken of in Acts when the Lord added to the Church daily such as should be saved; and in Corinthians and Ephesians, where lists of office-bearers are given, these officers being the “outward provision which God has made for the order and government and edification of the Church”. The figure of the vine and the branches indicates a “two-fold union” to Christ, one with living, fruitful branches and the other “a dead or mere external union” (pp 9-11).

3. The term church may refer to a body of believers in any particular place, associated together in the worship of God. The New Testament contains abundant examples of particular gatherings of believers denominated as churches in their particular localities, even down to the smallest groups who met together in private houses.

4. The term church is given to a number of congregations associated together under a common government, for example, the Church at Jerusalem. Bannerman, following the Westminster Form of Presbyterian Church Government, holds that “no one building could have contained the many thousands of believers that crowded Jerusalem at the time, in the fullness of a Pentecostal harvest; nor is it possible, except under the influence of some misleading theory, to believe that they formed no more than one congregation. . . . When we read of the Church at Jerusalem, we find the term applied, not to a single congregation of believers, but to a plurality of congregations, connected together as one body or Church by means of a common government” (p 14).

²J Bannerman, The Church of Christ, Banner of Truth, 2015 reprint, pp 1-3. Other references to this book are given in brackets in the body of the article.

1. The body of professing believers in any place, as represented by their rulers and office-bearers, are called “the church”. In Matthew 18, there is recourse to “tell it to the Church” in cases of offence where redress has not been obtained privately or before two or three witnesses. This usage is rooted in Jewish Synagogue terminology and is thus employed “to denote the rulers or office-bearers of the Christian society” (p 15).

From the first sense of the word – the whole body of the faithful – all the others are derived. The whole body of the faithful in every generation is the fundamental idea which underlies the whole biblical view of the Church. Of course, differences have emerged as to the validity of these descriptions of the Church. On the one hand, Romanists deny the invisible Church; while on the other hand, we have the Independents who tend to deny the doctrine of the visible Church. This shows the need to have the right understanding of what Scripture actually means by the word church (p 18).

It is very important to bear in mind that, while the invisible Church is the fundamental source of the idea of the Church, yet in studying ecclesiology we must largely deal with the visible Church – whether viewed as universal, local, under a shared government or as represented by its office-bearers.

Now, the Church is a divine institution, originating with Christ, not with man. It is neither a voluntary association (the Voluntary theory) nor a creature of the state (the Erastian theory). The Church of Christ is a spiritual institution; “in its primary character it is a spiritual instrumentality for working out the spiritual good of man”. The era of the New Testament Church therefore “is emphatically that of the manifestation of the Spirit”. Bannerman goes on: “In the Divine appointment of a spiritual society, distinct from and independent of the state, God has taught before our eyes the grand and vitally important lesson of the fundamental distinction between things civil and things spiritual; and has made provision that the Christian Church, His own appointment, shall never become either the tyrant or the slave of the kingdoms of men” (pp 26-29).

With regard to Church-state relations, Bannerman outlines the view that “an alliance can be formed between the two, without sacrificing on the one side or the other their independent character or public functions and on which it may be their duty to act in concert for the promotion of certain common ends”. While it is necessarily the duty of the state to recognise the true religion, since Christ is the Head over all things to the Church, he suggests that it is not so clear if it is the duty of the state to maintain or endow a particular Church at all times (pp 103, 132-4). He points to the example of Christ before Pilate appealing to the claims of truth as the real warrant for the Church to demand recognition of its teaching and protection by the civil powers

(pp 171-2). Furthermore, Bannerman often draws heavily on the writings of George Gillespie, whom he holds in the highest esteem as an ecclesiastical theologian. He argues, as Gillespie does, for the separate identities of Church and state in Israel under the Old Testament (pp 127-132).

Book Review

The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit, by George Smeaton, published by the Banner of Truth Trust, hardback, 389 pages, £16.00, available from the Free Presbyterian Bookroom.

Smeaton begins this excellent work by highlighting that the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is as much an article of a standing or falling church as the doctrine of justification by faith. In considering God’s great work of redemption, we must begin with the electing love of the Father, and proceed to the redeeming love of the Son, but we must not fail to include the love of the Holy Spirit in applying the redemption purchased by Christ and in sanctifying the soul. Smeaton shows how the glorious revelation made of the Trinity in the scheme of redemption is in accordance with the divine method in every instance. All divine works are from the Father, through the Son and by the Holy Spirit. Smeaton was afraid of a cold intellectualism which despises the need for the Third Person of the Trinity to apply redemption and to continue to bless the Word of God to the hearts of those who read and hear. At the same time, he does not fail to stress the fact that the work of the Spirit and the Word of God, while distinct, ever go together.

He deals with the doctrine in three sections. First there is the biblical testimony from Genesis to Revelation. He shows how the Holy Spirit was given before Christ came, but that the degree to which He was given from the day of Pentecost on was so superior that it could be said of that day: “It was the opening of the river of the water of life, which shall flow on for ever”. The second section is a theological discussion of the doctrine of the Person of the Holy Spirit and then His work in anointing Christ, inspiring Scripture, regenerating sinners, sanctifying saints and establishing and strengthening the Church. Then finally he gives a historical review of the doctrine as handled by the Church since the days of the Apostles.

In all this, Smeaton is at pains to point out that this emphasis on the Spirit’s work is not at the expense of Christ’s role as the living and active Prophet, Priest and King of the Church. He shows, for example, the significance of the Father sending the Holy Spirit in Christ’s name, “which implies that the Spirit, previously forfeited and withdrawn from mankind in consequence of

sin, should, on the grounds of Christ’s merits and intercession as the Mediator, be sent by the Father for all the purposes of His redemption”.

The book is rich in experimental Christianity. When speaking on the work of the Spirit in effectual calling, Smeaton observes that although “the mode in which the Spirit produces faith cannot, in all its outlines, be fully comprehended by believers in this life, of one thing there can be no doubt: He takes out of the heart every hindrance and obstruction, pleasantly persuades the judgement, and gently binds the will – nay, works in us both to will and to do”.

This work is widely recognised as a classic on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. It will be appreciated by those who have an appetite for theological works, and it would make them long for a fresh outpouring of the blessed Spirit, to make the wilderness of their heart and of the Church to blossom as the rose, even to blossom abundantly.

(Rev) I D MacDonald

A Time to Remember and Reflect¹

Rev Donald MacLean

The close of the old year and the opening of another is a time to remember gratefully the many mercies bestowed on us and to reflect solemnly on our future prospects. For this duty, human wisdom is altogether insufficient. Divine teaching is necessary. Thus Moses, the man of God, prayed, “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Ps 90:12). The empty places by the fireside in many of our homes, which last year were occupied by those now in the eternal world, are eloquent reminders that here we have no continuing city. This world is not our abiding place, but we sojourn as our fathers did before us – the end of our journey being the eternity from which there is no return. There we must stand before the God who gave us our being and by whom the actions of men are weighed.

As we cross the threshold of another year, we have many reasons for praising Him who is the sustainer of all things. For the health and strength granted us, for the many who were sick and are now raised once more to walk in the land of the living, for the opening of His liberal hand, whereby all our necessities have been provided for – all praise is due alone to Him of whom the psalmist said, “O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! In wisdom hast Thou made them all: the earth is full of Thy riches” (Ps 104:24).

Gospel ordinances have still been continued among us. In the gathering

¹The first of the pastoral letters that Mr MacLean wrote to his congregation in Portree. It is dated 1 January 1950 and is printed here with some editing.

gloom of a backsliding age, the banner unfurled by our fathers in 1893, as a witness on the side of Christ and His Truth, is still, we humbly believe, displayed in the parish of Portree. This is an inestimable blessing, for “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God” (Mt 4:4). May the gospel be made precious to young and old, that they may “buy the truth and sell it not”, and so “cleave to that which is good”, abstaining “from all appearance of evil”! “Though our iniquities testify against us” and “our backslidings are many”, He has not as yet removed His candlestick from us. “For He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers that they should make them known to their children” (Ps 78:5). Truly He may say of us: “What could have been done more to My vineyard, that I have not done in it?” (Is 5:4).

Yet none of these things considered separately, nor all of them taken together, will avail us anything in view of eternity, unless by the blessing and power of the Holy Spirit they bring us to repentance. “Despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” (Rom 2:4). They are happy this New Year’s Day who have godly sorrow for sin; who, by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, have come to see sin as an abominable thing; who are mourning because of their lack of the spirit of prayer, their lack of spiritual-mindedness and zeal in the Lord’s cause; who are thus driven out of every earthly refuge and every carnal hope, and led to embrace the Divine Redeemer, of whom the Apostle testified, “When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom 5:6).

For them there is now no condemnation. God is the portion of their inheritance, and with David they may say, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage” (Ps 16:6). Although poor in themselves, they are rich in Christ, who is their Prophet, Priest and King, their advocate and forerunner within the veil. “For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Heb 9:24).

Let us therefore, during this coming year, set our faces to seek the Lord. “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found” (Is 55:6). “His blessed and His gracious face seek ye continually” (Ps 105:4). May the Holy Spirit be poured upon our families and congregation so that it may be said of Zion: “This and that man was born in her” (Ps 87:5). “Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants, and Thy glory unto their children. And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us; and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it” (Ps 90:16,17). “The Lord bless thee and keep thee: the Lord make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; the

Lord lift up His countenance upon thee and give thee peace” (Num 6:24-26).
With best wishes for your spiritual and temporal welfare.

Notes and Comments

Anti-Smacking Bill

Despite excluding it from their manifesto, and assuring the electorate that a smacking ban would not be “appropriate or effective”, the Holyrood Government is now endorsing a bill which, if passed in parliament, will threaten parents with criminal action if they are found smacking their children. The Scottish Government says it will “ensure the proposals become law” after the idea was put forward by Green MSP John Finnie, in a private member’s Bill. The Scottish Labour Party is also promising its backing, so unless MSPs refuse to toe the party line, it seems inevitable that the bill will be voted on to the Scottish statute book.

This continued obsession with political correctness follows on from the controversial Named Person Scheme which was challenged by the Christian Institute under a judicial review. In its original form, that scheme was set to intrude heavily into ordinary parents’ lives as they tried to bring up their children in a loving manner, and this latest move is no less invasive.

An online commentator echoed the fears of many parents when he stated, “A smacking ban would be deeply worrying and an attack on parental sovereignty and familial privacy”. He adds, “Smacking is not violence or assault . . . the intention is to discipline and educate. Violence is a physical act designed to belittle and hurt. Parental smacking is the opposite of that.” He concludes, “The consequences of the bill will be dire. Loving parents will suffer.” The Herald columnist Kevin McKenna commented that a “ban carries the risk of depleting the resources of already hard-pressed social workers in their attempts to deal with real abuse of vulnerable children”, adding, “The law as it stands on protecting children from abuse is good, and it works”.

A recent poll revealed how much the Edinburgh administration is out of touch with its own people on this, as on many other issues. The majority of Scots do not want the bill to become law: 74% said smacking should not be a criminal offence; 78% fear that vital police and social work resources will be deployed needlessly; 75% believe that it is the parents who should decide whether to smack their children or not, and 66% are clear that it is sometimes necessary to smack a disobedient child. These figures themselves should give our Government cause for concern.

However, we need to go beyond human opinion and hear God’s Word. Proverbs 13:24 tells us: “He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes”, and again the inspired penman instructs us, “Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die” (Prov 23:13).

Commenting on these words, one writer states, “If a parent refuses to discipline an unruly child, that child will grow accustomed to getting his own way. He will become, in the common vernacular, a spoiled brat. The Lord uses discipline to reveal our sin to us. This is also how parents reveal the truth of our need for a Saviour to their children. When a child does not feel the consequence of his sin, he will not understand that sin requires punishment”. He goes on to explain that “the word rod indicates a thin stick or switch that can be used to give a small amount of physical pain with no lasting physical injury”. The writer stresses that “a child should never be bruised, injured or cut by a physical correction,” and emphasises, “The Bible warns that parents should never abuse the power and authority they have over their children while they are young, because it provokes the children to righteous anger”, adding, “physical discipline [should be] always done in love, never as a vent to the parent’s frustration. It is also just one part of discipline and should be used when the child shows defiance to a clear limit, not in the heat of the moment”.

Sadly the Scottish Government is once again ignoring biblical principles and putting unwarranted constraints on parents. If this bill succeeds, parents may be afraid to restrain their children, potentially resulting in crime increasing as the fear of punishment is removed. New Zealand outlawed smacking in 2007 and a Family First spokesman there said, “The law has had a ‘chilling’ effect on parenting and, rather than tackling rotten parents who are abusing their children, it has targeted well-functioning parents. We would warn Scottish parents that this law will harm and rip apart families.” Be Reasonable Scotland, backed by The Christian Institute and The Family Education Trust, are presently working hard lobbying Holyrood. We can only hope and pray that they will succeed in their efforts and that this bill will be thwarted.

KHM

Baby Murdered by Homosexual Adoptive Father

A homosexual man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for the murder of an adopted baby girl. The man and his homosexual partner, to whom he is “married”, had been looking after the baby for eight months from September 2015. The adoption was finalised in May 2016 and the baby was murdered two weeks later. The girl had two fractures to her leg by November

2015, and a series of injuries, including damage to her eyes, thereafter. She died after a few days in hospital from having been shaken and deliberately thrown on the ground. She was aged 18 months. At the trial, neighbours testified to hearing the man shouting furious obscenities at the child on previous occasions. Social workers had routinely visited the home six times between September 2015 and April 2016, but neither they, nor the neighbours, nor the homosexual partner had expressed any concerns, nor had the man admitted that he was unable to cope with the child. The two men also have another adopted child.

The care of children who require fostering or adoption (in this case the mother was a drug-addict) is exceedingly difficult, but the difficulties are made worse by the use of homosexual couples for the purpose. God created man male and female, and He did so for both theological and practical reasons. A motherly and patient woman might have stopped the child crying, which this furious man was apparently unable to do. The child should not have been given to a homosexual couple in the first place. DWBS

Christianity in the Middle East

We gather from a well-informed source that Christianity (of the Coptic variety) is flourishing in Egypt, notwithstanding the persecution: “when they burn down a church, the congregation doubles”. There is a similar enthusiasm for Christianity in Iran, in the face of persecution. Meanwhile Middle-Eastern Christians in parts of Britain are active in seeking the conversion of their Muslim compatriots. Generally the doctrinal and ecclesiastical position of the Coptic Church is very far from biblical, yet the above shows that Islam is not having everything its own way, although such news is little reported. DWBS

Protestant View

Church of Scotland Moderator and Rome

The current Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Rev Derek Browning, visited the Pope in Rome while en route to Wittenberg to celebrate the five-hundredth anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation in Germany. To those nominal Protestants committed to the ecumenical movement, the visit to Rome might have seemed nothing more than a charitable and appropriate gesture after five centuries of division between Rome and the Protestant Churches. To those who have their eyes open to the true antichristian nature of Romanism, however, it can only be regarded as one

further concession to the false claims of the Pope for recognition as the world-wide leader of Christianity.

In his address to the Church of Scotland delegation, the Pope mentioned that the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church were on an ecumenical journey towards full, visible unity and that the “mutual purification of memory is one of the most significant fruits of this common journey”. It is a solemn and sad day for Scotland when the memory of the impurities of Romanism – and the cost of standing against her falsehoods and tyranny at the Reformation – have obviously been forgotten by the national Church.

The Church of Scotland ought to be seeking repentance for its departures from the biblical teachings of the Reformation rather than desiring to find common ground with Rome. We rejoice in the memory of the noble stand taken by Martin Luther for the Word of God and we long for the day when the Protestant Churches will return to the pure gospel doctrines he preached along with Calvin, Knox and others. Of course, the Roman Catholic Church claims never to have changed, but this only demonstrates that it remains as much the enemy of truth today as it was in Luther’s days. AWM

Church Information

Induction of Rev Donald Macdonald to Staffin Congregation

Although the weather was inclement, making travel somewhat difficult, the Staffin church was almost full for the happy occasion of the induction of Rev Donald Macdonald to the pastorate of our Staffin congregation. Some visitors had travelled considerable distances from the mainland and other islands to be there; also present were people from other denominations. It was gratifying to see so many people gathered but especially to witness the Staffin congregation, in the kind ruling of the Lord, provided with a pastor after a short vacancy of 14 months. Some time after their previous pastor for 15 years, Rev W A Weale, was translated to Halkirk, the congregation approached Rev D Macdonald, North Uist, desiring him to be their pastor. In due time, Mr Macdonald was led to accept the call of the Staffin congregation to be their minister. There is rejoicing when a vacant congregation obtains a pastor, but one feels for any congregation which loses a pastor and one seeks that the Lord will provide for it.

The evening began with the Western Presbytery meeting in the church; it found there were no objections to Rev D A K Macdonald’s life and doctrine and proceeded with the induction. Before public worship commenced, Rev W A Weale, Rev R MacLeod, Rev K M Watkins and Rev H I MacKinnon

were associated with the Presbytery. The Moderator of Presbytery, Rev I D MacDonald preached suitably from Acts 13:2: “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them”.

At the conclusion of this part of the worship, the Moderator called Mr Macdonald to answer the questions to be put to ministers at their induction. When the pastor-elect had answered them satisfactorily and signed the Formula, the Moderator, in the name of the Presbytery, inducted Mr Macdonald to the pastoral charge of the Staffin Congregation and the brethren present gave the newly-inducted pastor the right hand of fellowship. Rev A E W MacDonald then addressed Mr Macdonald appropriately from the Word of God, “Be thou faithful unto death . . .” (Rev 2:10). Rev D A Ross addressed the congregation from Hebrews 13:7: “Obey them that have the rule over you”.

Rev W A Weale was invited to speak and expressed his joy that the congregation now had Mr Macdonald as their pastor and wished them and their new minister much of the Lord’s blessing. Rev R MacLeod, in his remarks, directed pastor and people to look to the Most High for the supply of all their needs. Messages of good wishes from other ministers of the Church were read. Afterwards the newly-inducted pastor went to the front door of the church to be welcomed by the congregation.

Most of us were able to attend the sumptuous buffet prepared by the congregation. The people having dined, the congregation then showed their appreciation of their Interim Moderator, Rev I D MacDonald, and of their new pastor, Rev Donald Macdonald, by presenting gifts to them. Both ministers fittingly replied by warmly thanking the congregation. Thereafter the large gathering slowly dispersed and in the good care of the Lord returned to their homes safely, some not arriving until the following day.

We look to the Lord graciously to bless this new ministry by bringing many sinners to have a saving interest in Christ and by feeding the Lord’s people with the finest of the wheat. We also pray that Mr Macdonald will be blessed in his preaching throughout the congregations of our Church, and that he and Mrs Macdonald will be given the health and strength for the many and varied duties before them. “The Lord of us hath mindful been, and He will bless us still” (Metrical Psalm 115:12).

(Rev) Donald A Ross, Clerk of Presbytery

College and Library Fund

By appointment of Synod, the second of the year’s two special collections for the College and Library Fund is due to be taken in congregations in December.

W Campbell, General Treasurer

The Free Presbyterian Magazine

2017

Volume 122

Editor:
Rev Kenneth D Macleod

Thou hast given a banner to them that fear thee,
that it may be displayed because of the truth (Psalm 60:4)

Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland

| Acknowledging God
Charles Bridges | 308 | Church Information | 31,64,96,128,160, 192,224,256,288,320,352,379 |
|————————————————————–|—–|————————————————————————–|————————————————–|
| All Things Together for Good (1)
Robert Haldane | 328 | Congregational Contributions for 2016 | 126 |
| Bannerman’s The Church of Christ: | | Disciples Watching, The
Hugh Martin | 12, 41 |
| 1. Introduction
Rev A W MacColl | 368 | Editorials: | |
| Book Reviews: | | Abundant Provision | 224 |
| Bible Alphabet Busy Book, A
Alison Brown | 28 | After 500 Years | 288 |
| Bible Names
Alison Brown | 27 | Christ’s Ambassadors | 128 |
| Bishop J C Ryle’s Autobiography | 155 | Christ’s Ambassadors Need Prayer | 160 |
| Church of Christ, The
James Bannerman | 91 | Does God Dwell with Sinners? | 352 |
| Doctrine of the Holy Spirit, The
George Smeaton | 372 | God Who Sent Moses, The | 192 |
| Elijah, Prophet of God
B A Ramsbottom | 27 | “He Preached Christ” | 32 |
| From the Mouth of God
Sinclair B Ferguson | 59 | Marriage – God’s Gift | 256 |
| I Shall Not Die but Live
Douglas Taylor | 218 | “Mighty God, The” | 64 |
| Introducing Tyndale | 251 | Unending Blessing | 1 |
| Knots Untied
J C Ryle | 185 | View from Inverness, A | 320 |
| Knowing God and Ourselves
David B Calhoun | 345 | “Where Art Thou?” | 96 |
| Lord’s Day, The
T Boston, J Fisher, J Kennedy | 58 | Effectual Calling: | |
| Mysteries of Christianity, The
T J Crawford | 314 | 5. Conclusion | 21 |
| Practical Religion
J C Ryle | 282 | Rev D A Ross | |
| Preparation for Ministry
Allan Harman | 60 | Enoch’s Prophecy and the Response
Henry Law | 148 |
| Puritan Theology, A
Joel Beeke and Mark Jones | 26 | Evidences of Preparedness for Heaven
Thomas Case | 115 |
| Puritans Day by Day, The
compiled by H J Horn | 120 | Finished Work Foretold, A
J C Ryle | 309 |
| Steps Towards Heaven
J C Ryle | 283 | Free Offer of the Gospel, The: | |
| Way to True Peace and Rest, The
Robert Bruce | 344 | 1a. What Is It? | 47 |
| Christ as Judge – Some Lessons
Thomas Boston | 53 | 1b. Controversies Surrounding the Gospel
Offer | 76 |
| Christ’s Humiliation – Some Lessons
Thomas Boston | 19 | 2. The Biblical Grounds for the Gospel Offer | 115 |
| Christ’s Temptations – Some Lessons
David Mitchell | 248 | 3. The Atonement and the Gospel Offer
Rev A W MacColl | 139 |
| Christian and the World, The
Rev Donald Beaton | 169 | God’s Command and Noah’s Faith
A S Patterson | 241 |
| Christian’s Desires, The
Henry Venn | 215 | God’s Forgiveness and Ours
Ashbel Green | 213 |
| | | How Are Believers Sanctified?
John Dick | 209 |
| | | Last Letter, A
Lance Corporal Angus Cattanach | 23 |
| | | Letter to a Young Minister, A
S Simpson | 244 |
| | | Looking Around – in 1901
“Looking unto Jesus”
A S Patterson | 82 |
| | | Looking to the Cross
J C Ryle | 304 |
| | | Love to Christ or the World?
Richard Sibbes | 337 |
| | | Luther and the Reformation: | |
| | | 1. “A Delusion of the Devil” | 14 |
| | | 2. All Was Omission, Sin and Impurity | 43 |

| 3. Being Pointed to the Saviour | 72 | Prayer: | |
|——————————————————-|————————————————–|————————————–|—————————————|
| 4. Professor and Preacher | 104 | 1. An Expression of Desire | 177 |
| 5. In Rome | 142 | 2. What Is the Basis for Prayer? | 205 |
| 6. Called to Study the Word | 180 | 3. The Spirit of Prayer | 235 |
| 7. The Helplessness of Man and the Omnipotence of God | 200 | 4. Different Kinds of Prayer | 278 |
| 8. “I Hope that the Lord Will Deliver Me from Fear” | 237 | Rev D Macdonald | |
| 9. A First Set of Theses | 266 | Protestant View | 28,60,93,125,
159,219,284,348,378 |
| 10. Forgiveness for Sale | 300 | Review Articles: | |
| 11. The 95 Theses | 331 | Faith in Hebrews 11 | 111 |
| 12. Reaction to the 95 Theses | 364 | Seeking a Better Country | |
| J H Merle d’Aubigné | | by Rev D MacLean | |
| Mankind’s Fallen State
John Newton | 339 | reviewed by Rev N M Ross | |
| Many Mansions, The
J C Ryle | 108 | J C Ryle | 86 |
| Motives and Advice for Ruling Elders
Thomas Boston | 311 | J C Ryle by Iain H Murray | |
| Mysterious Saying, A
J C Ryle | 176 | reviewed by Roy Middleton | |
| New Testament Circumcision
Robert Stewart | 276 | Sanctification – Submission to God
John Dick | 172 |
| Notes and Comments | 29,62,93,121,157, 187,220,252,285,316,349,376 | Sermons: | |
| Obituaries: | | Blessedness of Trusting in God, The
Archibald Alexander | 292 |
| Mr John Buchanan, Uig | 173 | Christian Friendship
Thomas M’Crie | 3 |
| Miss Ina Macdonald, North Uist | 174 | Christ the only Sufficient Sacrifice
George Innes | 163,195 |
| Mr R J MacLeod, North Tolsta | 90 | Christ’s Continual Intercession
Robert Gordon | 131 |
| Opening of Vova Clinic, The
Rev J R Tallach | 310 | Day of Salvation, The
C H Spurgeon | 35,67 |
| Our Mission Work
Rev J MacLeod | 55 | How to Make Religion Our Business
Thomas Watson | 323,355 |
| Outlines of Sermons: | | Marriage Feast The
R M M’Cheyne | 259 |
| Saviour of the Lost, The
John Kennedy | 153 | “No Continuing City”
Donald Cargill | 99 |
| Unsearchable Riches, The
John Kennedy | 216 | Unity of the Spirit, The
Rev D W B Somerset | 227 |
| Persevering in Religion
Richard Sibbes | 273 | Spirit of the Age, The
Rev Donald MacLean | 49 |
| Personal Piety: | | Thoughts on the Sabbath
James Bannerman | 80 |
| 3. Encouragements and Helps
Rev Alexander McPherson | 19 | Time to Remember and Reflect, A
Rev Donald MacLean | 373 |
| Pharisee and the Publican, The
David Brown | 271 | Union with Christ
John Newton | 54 |
| Pleading with God
A Moody Stuart | 119 | Zimbabwe Update
Rev I D MacDonald | 361 |