Christian Biography

John Charles Ryle (1816-1900)

I have been reading J.C. Ryle’s biography That Man of Granite With the Heart of A Child by Eric Russell. Russell writes in a popular style, and the book is very accessible. There is one particular truth that rises out of the book: God’s grace, at work in Ryle’s personal difficulties made him the man he was.

Ryle’s father went bankrupt when he was a young man. With his father’s collapsed businesses went the life the younger Ryle had dreamed of having. He wanted to become a politician and leading citizen of his community, and prior to his father’s ruin, was well on his way of seeing the dream become a reality. But it was not to be.As he put it, he and his family woke up one summer morning just as they always had, and went to bed that night completely ruined.

Faced with humiliation and abject poverty if he didn’t get an income right away, he became a Church of England minister. Ryle’s own admission was that he entered the ministry for no other reason than that he was qualified by virtue of his Oxford degree and he needed to earn a paycheck immediately.

Those may seem strange circumstances indeed for the commencement of a immensely influential ministry, but God used Ryle in profound and marvelous ways to reach England and beyond. His calling may have been borne of personal necessity, but who can look at its fruits (a series of pastorates, eventually becoming the first Bishop of Liverpool) and say that God was not in it?

His father’s bankruptcy was not Ryle’s only set back. His first wife died not long after the birth of their daughter. His second wife had poor health and died from Bright’s disease, fairly early into their marriage, again leaving him with several young children.

Ryle wrote about the strain all these events placed on him. The pressure was intense. He marveled that the series of events didn’t do him in.

The crucible of personal trial tried the “metal” of Ryle’s mettle–and it seems that a refined, polished Christian character emerged from the crucible and its flames. Ryle emerged from difficulty stronger, more confident in the power of Almighty God to sustain Him, and totally reliant on God’s mercies for daily life.

Ryle said he sometimes had to pray very often about the need for God to continually protect him from personal bitterness. God seems to have preserved him from it, but we will probably never know how hard the struggle within Ryle was. At least we can say this–we all have to make decisions about how we let life’s hard blows affect us.

J.C. Ryle chose the better part, and trusted the Trustworthy One through it all.

One interesting thing about Ryle: he was extraordinarily successful author in his life, but he set aside the royalties of the books to pay back his father’s debts. He truly was an extraordinary man.

The biography is published by Christian Focus, and can be obtained through Reformation Heritage Books in paperback for under $11.

Andrew W. Blackwood (1882-1966)

I suppose that Andrew W. Blackwood is not so much a theologian as he was a Presbyterian pastor and professor of pastoral ministry. His long career included both pastoring and teaching–with teaching stints at Princeton Seminary, Temple University, and Louisville Presbyterian Seminary. Blackwood comes out of the Evangelical tradition, and his attention to the Scriptures and the seriousness in which he writes about them shows his idea of the Bible was indeed high. Blackwood wrote several key books on preaching, pastoral ministry and worship. He wrote several books in a series entitled “Preaching From…”. Included in this series is Preaching From Samuel, which really is a fine homiletical commentary, and Preaching From the Bible. I was first exposed to Blackwood’s writing when I was an undergraduate at a small Baptist college, when I read The Fine Art of Public Worship. This book captivated my attention and I find myself reading back through it at least once a year. There is much helpful material here. Blackwood was a masterful writer. His style was, well, pastoral. He wrote in a gentle, persuasive manner, and his books are extraordinarily didactic, but not at all in a patronising way. Blackwood comes across as a patient, experienced professor who holds up pastoral ministry in a high way, and exalts the work of the pastor as Preacher. Blackwood honored Scripture and honored the ministry of the Gospel. Young pastors should especially look for The Growing Minister and Planning A Year’s Pulpit Work. I believe his works deserve continued attention and reading today from aspiring and current pastors.

A fine biographical and scholarly analysis of Blackwood’s teaching can be found at http://www.preaching.com/resources/past_masters/11563902/archive4/, where Mark E. Yurs writes an excellent piece on Blackwood.

The Rev. Benjamin Keach. This file is believed to be in the public domain. If this is incorrect, please contact me and I will delete it immediately.

Benjamin Keach. Pastor and Hymnist, 1640-1704.

Benjamin Keach was a British Baptist pastor, serving for over 30 years as the pastor of the Baptists at Horse-lie-down. Keach is best remembered for his work to introduce hymn singing to his congregation. At the time, virtually all Protestant churches declined to sing hymns of human composition, preferring instead to sing metrical versions of the Psalms. They did so in part because the hymns in existence at the time of the Reformation were closely associated with the Church of Rome, and thus many Reformers were uncomfortable with these hymns. Some Reformers (such as Zwingli) took the radical step of abolishing congregational singing altogether. Most did not go that far, however, and simply advocated the exclusive use of the Psalms as the songs used in congregational singing.

Keach of course appreciated and loved the Psalms, but felt that hymns could be a useful addition to Protestant worship. He composed approximately 300 hymns and published them in a congregational hymnal in 1691. His approach was to urge augmentation of Psalm singing with hymn singing. This move was not readily accepted, and it took time for Baptists (and other Protestants, for that matter) to adopt hymn-singing as congregational pratice. Keach’s church used the hymns when they celebrated the Lord’s Supper and in services intended for praise and thanksgiving.

He was also among the English Baptists who subscribed to the Second London Confession of Faith (1689). Keach’s assent to this confession put him squarely in the stream of Baptists who stood with the Gospel Men of the Protestant Reformation. The Second London Confession is modeled somewhat after the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646), one of the most well-known Puritan confessions of faith. It differs from the Westminster Confession in that it calls for baptism by full immersion, for confessing believers only, and urges the congregational form of church government. Holding these views meant that Keach endured opposition from the Church of England, which was not tolerant of dissent during this period. Many histories document that Keach was pilloried because of his teaching, and arrested more than once.

His portrait (above) shows the pulpit attire customs that virtually all Protestant clergymen of the era followed–black gowns for preaching and white tabs falling down in front. Judging from the portraits of the times, this remained the fashion for Baptist preachers and others well into the 1800s.

This image of Thomas is from the dust jacket of one of his books. I believe it is in the public domain. If not, please contact me and it will be deleted.

W.H. Griffith Thomas. Pastor and Professor, Dates:1861-1924.

Thomas was born in Shropshire in England in 1861. His father died when he was a young man, and as a result, Thomas’s family struggled economically. Getting an education was put on hold. But Thomas didn’t give up on it. After he felt a call to the ministry, he studied at night, and worked his way through college. Long, hard hours in study paid off for Thomas and he eventually earned a doctorate in divinity.
Thomas served as a parish pastor for many years, and then he became leader at Wycliffe Hall, at Oxford University, which was a college for training ministers. At the conclusion of his ministry there, Thomas moved to Canada to become a professor of the Old Testament. He taught for many years on this subject, while also lecturing and preaching throughout North America. Following his retirement from Wycliffe College, he moved to the United States, again lecturing and preaching all over the country. He and some fellow Christians joined together to found Dallas Theological Seminary in Texas, but Thomas’ untimely death in 1924 prevented him from taking part in the new seminary.
His many books include commentaries on Bible books (including, but not limited to, Genesis, Luke, Matthew, Acts, Hebrews, and Romans), studies on theological subjects (The Principles of Theology, The Holy Spirit of God), writings on the Christian life (How We Got Our Bible, Grace and Power, The Christian Life), and the ministry (The Work of the Ministry).
Many of Thomas’ works are not in print any longer (however, his study of the Pentateuch is still available: Through the Pentateuch Chapter by Chapter), but they can be easily found in used book stores, and some are available on line. Every one of his books has a strongly evangelical message, and encourages greater devotion to Almighty God, His Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
W.H. Griffith Thomas’s life stands as a monument to the rich rewards hard work joined with the blessings of God pay. Thomas did not let obstacles prevent him from becoming a keen student of God’s Word. Hard work, and persistent, sincere prayer were blessed of God in his life, and in turn, he became a great blessing to others.

Augustine of Hippo. Chief Pastor of Hippo and Theologian, Philosopher and former pagan, Dates: A.D. 354-430

For every person who has prayed for a loved one to be saved for a long time, Augustine is an example of why they should not lose hope.  Augustine’s mother, Monnica, prayed for nearly 30 years for him to be converted.  There were plenty of times she might have despaired of this, because Augustine resisted her prayers and lived an immoral lifestyle for many years. Nonetheless, the grace of God caught up with Augustine, and he was remarkably saved and he renounced his former worldliness, becoming a Christian minister.

Augustine was born in North Africa, in the modern day country of Algeria. He was brought up in the church by his mother, but she did not have the support of her husband to raise Augustine as a Christian. When he became a teenager, Augustine began to live with a woman and he fathered a child when he was eighteen. After his education, he became a philosopher and teacher of public speaking. He moved to Rome, then to Milan in Italy. He prospered in his career and lived a promiscuous life. Despite his mother’s objections, and became a follower of Mani, a Persian cult. During these years, he allegedly prayed to God, “Lord, grant me chastity and continence, but not yet.”

However, he met a pastor named Ambrose, who began to help Augustine see the error of his ways. Under the influence of Ambrose, and in answer to all his mother’s prayers, Augustine was converted in 386, and baptized in 387. Augustine soon became a pastor himself and applied his considerable intellectual skills to the ministry of writing. He also became the chief pastor (bishop) of the city of Hippo, near his native city.

His best known books are The Confessions of Augustine (an account of his conversion and afterwards), The City of God (which explains his view of the spiritual kingdom of God, and how it differs from a political kingdom), and On The Trinity. On the Trinity contains Augustine’s work on the doctrine of the nature of the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Augustine also wrote a polemic piece, Against Pelagius, which was a book about free will and the sovereignty of God. Pelagius taught that people were basically good, deep down. Pelagius taught that since people were basically good, they could approach God on their own, without God having to draw them by the Holy Spirit. Augustine said that people were not basically good, using the writings of Paul to teach this…see Romans 3:10-18, 23. Augustine believed that if God’s Holy Spirit did not convict us and draw us, none of us would ever come to God. Augustine’s writings were important to the leaders of the Protestant Reformation, and continue to be today.