Itinerant Preaching

Christianity began as a small movement in a vast, often hostile Roman Empire. How did it grow? What factors contributed to it eventually becoming the dominant religion of the empire? Moreover, what can be learned from the early church as the culture reverts back to hostile paganism? In this sermon on Acts 8:4 titled “They Went Everywhere Preaching,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones highlights the vital importance of men like Peter, Paul, and the other apostles as they preached the good news around the empire. Interestingly, he notes the role persecution played in the spread of the gospel. However, Dr. Lloyd-Jones specifically points to the witness and testimony of ordinary members of the Christian church as being a means God regularly uses to spread the truth about Christ. Dr. Lloyd-Jones comments on how often the Holy Spirit uses ordinary Christians to preach the word. He emphasizes that the spread of the gospel comes by the preaching of the word, not just talking about oneself. Christians must consider today how God has used ordinary men and women in ordinary conversation, preaching the extraordinary message of Christ to evangelize the world. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones teaches why “gossiping” the gospel is of such great importance.

What creates many problems in church? In this sermon on 1 Corinthians 14:23–24 titled “The True Church,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states that what causes so many problems in church is that Christians do not know what the church is. Because they do not know what the church is supposed to be, they have conflict and divisions. Throughout this letter, the Apostle Paul addresses many of the issues by pointing them to what God has made the church to be. He tells them that the church is about the preaching of the word of God and the mutual building up of believers. When Paul comes to the issue of spiritual gifts, he tells them that as members of Christ’s body, they are to love one another and put each other first. This radical ethic of love ought to inform all Christians of how they live with one another, and how they are to love one another. Spiritual gifts are not for oneself; they are so that each person can help others and build up the body of Christ. This is a great message that is vital to all believers.

What has gone wrong in the church today? In this sermon on 1 Samuel 4:21-22, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that the answer is found in the church’s loss of the sense of the glory of the presence of God. The church is like God’s ancient people, the Israelites, who often strayed away from God. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that when the Israelites lost the Ark of the Covenant to the Philistines, this was because they failed to look to God’s glorious presence. They became enamored with the trappings of religion and missed what it means to know and love an awesome God. The church today is often no different. For when Christians look to institutions and politics to reach the world, they lose sight of the very God they say that they seek to proclaim. When the church has been the most impactful in the world it is when they were overcome with a sense of God’s glorious presence. This recognition of God’s glory ought to transform all believers and empower them to take the gospel to the whole world. For the church is at its weakest when it is concerned with itself and its own glory. But Jesus Christ shows us that we are to seek to glorify God and know Him truly and only then can the church serve as God has called it.

Why is it such a terrible thing to reject the gospel? In this sermon, “So Great Salvation,” from Hebrews 2:1–4 titled Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones expounds on humanity’s need of salvation and what happens if one rejects it. Salvation is such a weighty matter because of its source: God. If anyone says no to salvation, then they say no to the God who has offered salvation to all who believe. This is why it is such a dangerous thing to spurn God’s gracious gift that He has put forward in Jesus Christ. But those who do accept salvation are given the greatest possible blessing: eternal life and peace with God. The gospel is God’s ultimate gift of grace that alone can free people from sin and judgement. This sermon calls each and every one to examine themselves and ask the question: “have I accepted God’s gift of salvation? Am I trusting in Jesus as my only hope?” This is not an inconsequential question, but it is the most important question anyone can ask, for with the great gift of salvation comes the great penalty for rejecting it.

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones served as one of the greatest preachers of his time; however, before he was called to the ministry, Dr. Lloyd-Jones was one of the most respected medical doctors of his time; at one point being the head doctor to the Royal family. In his sermon on body, mind, and spirit, Dr. Lloyd-Jones expresses his concern over the increasing number of psychological illnesses in the medical field. As a speaker at the Christian medical fellowship conference, Dr. Lloyd-Jones provides his solution to the rising depression rates that are crippling the British nation. He first states how the relationships between doctors and their patients is not what it used to be. Doctors no longer visit the homes of patients and therefore, do not have the same intimate relationships with them. This lack of intimacy between the doctor and patient severely hinders the doctor’s ability to diagnose the root cause of one’s psychological illness/depression. This often results in doctors having to take a universal stance on psychological illnesses. According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones there are four opinions on psychological illness that doctors can hold to. The first is that mental illnesses aren’t actually real and that patients must simply toughen up (Muscular Christianity). The second holds that people can take medication’s to help with their illness but are ultimately doomed to a life of depression. The third holds that every Mental illness is spiritual and can be mended with spiritual acts. The fourth believes that Mental illness is spiritual but cannot be solved by Christianity. With this said, Dr. Martyn Lloy-Jones summarizes the four opinions with two basic questions. Is mental illness physical or spiritual? He then expands on these two questions in part B of the sermon.

An address given at the Christian Medical Fellowship Conference in 1974. Due to its length; this address covers 2 CDs.

Why do we praise God? Why do we worship him and gather together so often? In Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ sermon on Hebrews 2:1-4, he explains why we worship God in such a way. To answer such questions, Dr. Lloyd-Jones first explains what Christianity is. Many people think that Christianity is simply an activist movement for World Peace and philanthropy; however, that simply is not the case. Dr. Lloyd-Jones states that although good deeds are often associated with Christianity, the purpose of the Christianity is to spread the gospel of salvation. It is the mission of the Christian to spread God’s great salvation to the ends of the earth. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states that the reason the masses have not been converted is because we have failed to show them the greatest thing in the world, the gospel of salvation. But many ask the question, how will we get people to listen and value this Gospel as it truly should be? The only way to do this, is to show them their need for salvation. If an unbeliever has no need for salvation, then why should he care for it. To present the gospel of salvation in all its due glory and power, the unbeliever must be made aware of his sin. It is necessary to tell the unbeliever that he is sinful and deserves eternal banishment from the presence of God. Only once this is made clear can the gospel of salvation be presented. Only then will the unbeliever see the true love of God for sending his one and only son to die on our behalf. As Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states, “ The gospels true greatness can be seen only when we realize that the omnipotent God became a simple human for our sakes.”

How do you know that you are a Christian? What is a Christian and what does it mean to be a Christian? In this sermon on Romans 1:11-17, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones answers these questions which are perhaps the most important questions ever. He begins by confronting the fact that we are living in an age of utter confusion, especially in the Church. People claim to be Christians while completely contradicting Scripture in everything they do. That is why it is so important to be certain what a Christian really is. Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that Christianity can be defined in verse 14 of Romans 1; A Christian is a debtor to both the Greeks and the Barbarians, the wise and the unwise. A Christian is someone who has something that others do not have, and feels the need to give it to everyone. They are not someone who hopes and is looking to find the meaning of life and the purpose of life, they are someone who has already found truth, has joy in it, and feels the need to share it with others. Dr. Lloyd-Jones then goes on to tell an analogy about a man who has the cure for a deadly disease in their pocket, and sees a man who has this disease. This man feels the need and urge to give this cure to the other man in need. A Christian is the same because they have the answers in their pocket and feel the need to share it with everyone around them. A Christian does not just feel this need to share it with the intellectual, but also the uneducated, because they all are in desperate situations without Christ. They do not only share it with people who are interested in having this truth, but also with people who have no interest in it at all. Dr. Lloyd-Jones concludes by explaining that the Christian not only has hope, but can give a reason for the hope within him.

In the words of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, “the reformation changed the entire course of history.” In his sermon on Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, Dr. Lloyd-Jones explores the Reformation in its entirety. In this sermon on Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, he begins by looking into the time before the Reformation. Prior to Martin Luther, the world was controlled entirely by the Catholic Church. Everything from religion, to science, to warfare was under the iron fist of the Roman Catholic Church. That is until Martyn Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of a Catholic Church and began the Reformation. Luther was at this time a Catholic monk and teacher. As Dr. Lloyd-Jones puts it, he did not originally want to break away from the Church of Rome. All he wanted to do was expose the unbiblical sale of indulgences. However, as Luther studied further in the psalms and epistles, he discovered that we are saved, not by works, but by faith. Luther challenged the doctrine of the Catholic church, saying they practiced things that did not correspond to the Bible, but the Church turned a blind eye. Ultimately, Luther left the Catholic Church for it was too power hungry and profitable to abandon its works based model of salvation. Luther, with only the power of God’s word itself, would then go on to lead the Reformation. Martin Luther’s effect on Christianity would be so great that even today we can see its consequences. However, Dr. Lloyd-Jones does not stop there. He also covers the non-historical importance of the Reformation. He asks the questions, “What is a Christian?” and “How does one become a Christian?” But most importantly, what can we learn from Luther’s one-man stand against the largest organization of his time? To this, Dr. Lloyd-Jones replies, “When everything else is gone, the city of God remaineth.” With God, we can do all things; so like Luther we should fear nothing when we are doing the work of the Lord.

In Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ sermon on the Scottish Reformation, delivered at Usher Hall in Edinburgh in April 1960to mark the 400th anniversary of the Scottish Reformation, he emphasizes the importance of looking to our past for answers in the present. Many Christians today lobby against using past precedents to teach us, either saying that the past has nothing to teach us in this different time or that the history of the church should not be brought up, lest it cause acrimony. In response to these claims, Dr. Lloyd-Jones states that first, we are not different in nature or being to the men and women of the Reformation and therefore, cannot dismiss their accomplishments, and second, that the past should be explored and understood rather than suppressed. With this said, Dr. Lloyd-Jones demonstrates the two ways that one can view the Scottish Reformation. The first way is to simply explore the events that took place in the Scottish Reformation. The second is by using the actions and events that took place to further our walk with God today. So, what exactly can we learn from the Scottish reformation? Dr. Lloyd-Jones states that the best way to do so is by looking at the men who led such a movement. But who were these men? Well, these were godly men who believed in the sovereignty of God and the need to worship him. These were men who realized Christ’s sacrifice and dedicated their lives to him because of it. For example one of the key figures in the Scottish reformation, John Knox, demonstrated fearless resistance towards the mighty Catholic Church. Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that Knox did not stand up against the Church by his own power, but by the power of God. John Knox realized the absolute greatness of God and consequently preached with power. So, we must ask ourselves, Where is the God of John Knox? Where is this God that can give us such power? To this, Dr. Lloyd-Jones replies, he is here and present, just as he was in the time of John Knox. And if we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we have the same God, we must only realize his greatness and react accordingly.