Journal Entry. 24th July, 2026. 1:38AM Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. Acts 8:4 I n modern Christendom, attendance upon the public worship of God is commonly accounted the chief evidence of Christian devotion, though it is often the least costly expression of a believer's profession. It asks but little sacrifice, exposes us to but little reproach for the name of Christ, and requires but little denial of self (I say modern, for it is different in mountain and tribal regions where believers sacrifice walking for hours for fellowship, barefoot through rivers and forests at the cost of life and limb, and back still without anything to eat) . Yet there is a solemn difference between assembling faithfully with the saints, according to the commandment of Scripture, and resting in that attendance as though it fulfilled the whole duty of the Christian life. I sometimes think of men such as Foxe or Purves, not writing of the theology of ...

Journal Entry. 9th of April. 4:26AM. Gleanings from reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. I would not openly demand your worship in the manner I once did of One with whom I had the displeasure of speaking in the wilderness. This fellow I truly hate, let me tell you of Him. In all the time I have been going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it, He is unlike any I have ever seen.  There was a time when He fasted for so long that I became convinced the opportunity had finally arrived. I waited through every day of weakness, every moment of hunger, expecting at last to find a point at which I can break Him. I know men. They always grow weary. They grow hungry. They grow afraid easily. Given sufficient pressure, they always bend. Given sufficient temptation, they always fall. So there I was, watching him as His body grew famished and His flesh weakened. And therein began my frustration. I appealed to His hunger, and He answered as though truth were ...

T oday, there is a danger that knowledge remains while power is forgotten. Theology itself is not the problem; it is a precious gift from God. Yet separated from the life-giving work of the Holy Spirit, it becomes a sword lying idle upon a table—finely crafted, perfectly formed, and yet accomplishing nothing apart from the hand that wields it. Truth was never intended merely to inform the mind, but to transform it, and bring men unto Christ, who alone giveth life, and convicts then into action. Knowledge, by itself, profits little unless it be translated into obedience. For this cause the Scriptures continually call men not only to hear, but to do; not merely to learn, but to walk worthy of that which they have learned. And in my experience I have seen that God is pleased to grant power chiefly in those doing. The strength to obey is often discovered upon the path of obedience itself. I have both seen and heard many desire power before action, certainty before obedience, and confid...

T he greater portion of Western Christianity hath, in many places, so complicated the simplicity of the Gospel and obscured the true nature of Christ's church that outward measures of success have openly replaced the weightier matters of spiritual life. Theology, though integral and necessary in its proper place , hath at times been elevated above a living and experiential love for Christ. Promotional programs, conferences, and the influence of putting celebrated ministers on pedestals have too often drawn centered attention than the quiet pursuit of individual holiness and the cultivation of purity among the saints. Thus it is possible for a church to increase in visibility while declining in spiritual vitality; to abound in activity while lacking devotion; to possess much knowledge while exhibiting little conformity unto Christ. For the true strength of a church is not measured merely by the multitude gathered within its walls, but by the degree to which its members love Christ,...

L et us consider for a moment several figures from Holy Scripture who, by many modern standards, would likely fail to acquire—or retain—a single sponsor, much less a membership roll. ~Noah would hardly be regarded as a candidate for a successful missionary model. For one hundred and twenty years he proclaimed righteousness to a generation rushing headlong toward judgment, yet the only ones who entered the ark with him were members of his own household. By contemporary metrics, the report would appear dismal: no movement, no growth, no measurable success.  ~Jeremiah likewise would fare little better. His ministry was marked by rejection, opposition, loneliness, and sorrow. His message ran contrary to the spirit of his age, and his faithfulness earned him few admirers and many enemies. One can scarcely imagine his field reports satisfying those who measure fruit solely by visible results. ~And then there is our Lord Himself. Judged by the standards of numerical growth and publi...

F or many years I have observed and assumed that the necessary trajectory of every established church was continual growth through the addition of members, because that is what every church is striving for. It has been implanted in me that to measure the validity of a church was to measure largely by how it increased, and everyone scurries about advertise its success by a display of its numbers. Yet with time I have come to see that such thinking owes more to corrupted assumptions than to the plain testimony of Scripture. We have sought to modernize the ark, adorning it with many colors, surrounding it with ornaments, spotlights, and glimmering displays, all in the hope of making it more attractive unto men. Yet in so doing, we have often mistaken embellishment for power. For the power never resided in the decorations surrounding it, but in the presence of God to which it pointed. And so it remains today. The more we trust in human enhancements to accomplish spiritual ends, the mor...

Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. Acts 8:4 W e have long observed that when a right knowledge of God travels from the head down to the heart, it moves the feet, and brings forth a courage most peculiar. It is not the boisterous boldness of a loud nature, but a 'fearful apprehension' of the Almighty that simply outweighs the trembling fear of men. We see this same Spirit in the scholars and heralds of old, who found that their deep study was but a fire that must eventually find a vent. Among them was Hugh Binning, the youthful professor, who left the safety of his parchment to speak plainly to thick crowds of common folk, laboring his very soul to death by the age of twenty-six. There was George Wishart, who forsook the academic life to stand atop the stone walls of Dundee, preaching between the living and the dying. He was a Scottish Protestant Reformer and one of the early Protestant martyrs burned at the stake as a heretic. ...

I t is our firm conviction that to carry the Word of Life outside the sanctuary walls—proclaiming it under the open heavens where every ear may hear—is a work that greatly edifies the redeemed and honors the Great Commandment of our Blessed Savior. Yet, we are aware of those who favor the rigid formalities of church tradition. There will be many "what abouts" that arise when we step out of the accepted line.  One professing Christian even warned me of that part of Scripture: “Why cast your precious pearls before swine?”  But I was a swine. And it was only when God, in His infinite mercy, moved His people to cast their pearls before such as I, that I was plucked from the mire and saved. It is therefore to meet these very anxieties that I will endeavor to show how the Spirit may move in the open air without abandoning the order of the Church that I have prepared these pages. Firstly, There be many arguments put forth both against house churches on the one hand, and the f...

T he street meeting is a necessary departure from that narrow and common notion which prescribes confining the movement of the Spirit within the walls of a building. It is a work of double grace for the benefit of souls: Firstly, the saints are gathered, under the heavens, together for edification and fellowship. Secondly, the Gospel is sounded in the midst of the public square. The entirety of the Holy Scriptures breathes with a missionary spirit ( Psalm 119:176, Isaiah 40:11, Jeremiah 50:6,  Ezekiel 34:11-12, 34:16, Zechariah 10:6, Mark 6:34,  Luke 15:4, 15:8, 15:24, 19:10, John 10:11, 14, 27, Hebrews 13:20, James 5:19–20, 1 Peter 2:25, Revelation 7:17 ) , revealing a God who is even now bringing to pass the glorious fulfillment of His Covenant: the bringing of a chosen people to Himself. In His sovereign mercy, He is pleased to redeem His elect unto Himself, not by the wisdom of men, but by the bold proclamation of the Gospel of Christ—a work most powerfully ...