1945 HT: Dan Graves In China, Eric Liddell asked his students if they believed Christ’s Sermon on the Mount. When they said they did, he would say “let’s add it on to the end of the Apostles Creed and when you finish saying the Apostles Creed say, ‘I believe in the Sermon on the Mount’.” This…
1636 HT: Dan Graves Not many pastors rise at 3 A.M. to be sure they have sufficient time for God and their people. Samuel Rutherford was one who did. Thus it came as a great blow to him when he was compelled to leave the folk he loved. Rutherford had published an Apology of Divine Grace against…
1678 HT: Dan Graves Next to the Bible, John Bunyan’s allegory of a pilgrim toiling toward the Celestial City is the best-selling Christian book ever written. Like the King James Bible, Pilgrim’s Progress gave the English language many phrases. “Vanity Fair,” for example, became the title of William Makepeace Thackeray’s best-known novel and of a British magazine.…
1688 HT: Dan Graves An estimated eighteen thousand Scots Covenanters died for their faith between 1660, when the Restoration made Charles II monarch of England, and 1688, when the “Glorious Revolution” brought William III and Mary to the throne. Covenanters believed that Jesus, not any earthly king, was head of the church. For this they…
1497 HT: Dan Graves NEXT TO MARTIN LUTHER, one man did more than all others to create Lutheran theology. That was Philip Melanchthon, who was born on this day, 16 February 1497 in the little town of Bretten, Germany. Someone noted that the time was six minutes after 7 p.m. He had godly parents, his father…
Of his latest article about Scottish missionaries, Paul James-Griffiths of Christian Heritage Edinburgh writes, “Usually I write shorter articles of about 600-700 words, but I just could not do justice to Mary Slessor, the missionary who went to Nigeria, with so few words. This time, I’m guilty of writing over 2,000 words! I hope you don’t mind.…
1860 HT: Christian History Institute James Hudson Taylor became a Christian at seventeen through reading a tract, and determined to become a missionary to China. In preparation for this he studied Mandarin, Bible languages, Latin, and medicine. He arrived in China in 1854 and was greeted by two catastrophes in quick succession—a fire destroyed his…
1717 HT: Diane Severance Throughout their history, the Welsh have been great singers; and hymns have been among their favorite songs. One of their most popular hymns is “Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah.” Crowds at rugby matches or other gatherings have been known to break out singing it. On this day, February 11, l7l7 was born…
1555 HT: Dan Graves All John Hooper wanted to do was to pray. He went to bed at five the evening before, then rose early, on this day, February 9, 1555, so that he might pray in the early hours of the morning. When it was light, he asked that no one be allowed into his…
356 HT: Christianity.com The historic Christian faith was forged in turbulent times and under perilous conditions. The creeds and doctrines that shaped our Christian identity emerged from intense theological battles. There were times of physical violence in the process of defining the central teachings of the faith. For example, the question of exactly who Jesus was. Here…