J Stephen Yuille

How can sinners be righteous in God's sight? Is there a more important question than this? The answer is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. In a word, Christ does it all. He achieves righteousness in his obedience, and he satisfies God's offended justice by his death upon the cross. The implication is that we're completely passive. We simply receive Christ through faith and, as a result, "we become the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor. 5:21). Our faith pays nothing, merits nothing, and contributes nothing. That's exceedingly good news But what happens if we add something to this good news? Intentionally or not, we end up denying the sole sufficiency of Christ. This was the case among the churches of Galatia, and it is what caused the apostle Paul to put pen to paper and provide a powerful and persuasive defense of the gospel. In The Fullness of Time, Dr. J. Stephen Yuille traces Paul's defense and, in so doing, provides a soul-refreshing analysis of this glorious truth-Christ's sole sufficiency. Here indeed is the difference between feast and famine, fullness and emptiness, an eternity of joy and an eternity of sorrow.

In reference to Paul's epistle to the Romans, Martin Luther penned, "It is really the chief part of the New Testament and the very purest gospel, and is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes." The present volume guides us into this "precious" epistle, presenting to us the wonders of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here indeed is "daily bread" for the soul.

This ninth volume brings together nine of Perkins's lesser known practical treatises and, by so doing, introduces the reader to important facets of his religion of the heart. The Works of William Perkins fills a major gap in Reformed and Puritan theology. Though Perkins is best known today for his writings on predestination, he also wrote prolifically on many subjects. His works filled over two thousand large pages of small print in three folio volumes and were reprinted several times in the decades after his death. His complete works, however, have not been in print since the mid-seventeenth century.

Much of evangelicalism has forsaken a Word-based approach to Christian spirituality, so to help us recover a model of biblical piety, J. Stephen Yuille examines Thomas Manton's sermons on Psalm 119. Following a brief account of Manton as a leading Puritan committed to the ministry of the Word, Yuille leads us on a careful investigation of Manton's understanding of blessedness, the instrumentality of God's Word, and the practice of spiritual duties. At the foundation stands the conviction that as we love and obey God's Word, the blessed God communes with us by His Spirit, conveying sweet influences on our soul through His Word. Manton's spirituality of the Word is a timely remedy for the subjective mysticism that expects God to speak through inner urgings apart from His Word. Let us learn from Manton how to listen to the Bible as if we heard God speaking to us from heaven, rejoicing like those who find "great spoil" (Ps. 119:162).

Psalm 119 is noted for its call to delight in the word of God. But we must not fail to realize that this great psalm is also infused with great lament. In The Path of Life, J. Stephen Yuille follows the psalmist through his many ups and downs in order to see how he gives voice to the song in our soul. Here is comfort for bearing sorrow, strength for enduring difficulty, trust for facing uncertainty, and peace for overcoming anxiety. Even in his extremity, the psalmist finds joy in the blessed God. This is how Jesus persevered through trials and endured the cross. And in Christ, you too can take up this psalm, follow the path of life, and find blessedness in your seasons of lament.

Few figures in church history that died before the age of thirty have left such a lasting legacy as Robert Murray M'Cheyne (1813-43). His name is virtually synonymous with the pursuit of personal holiness. M'Cheyne was a living testimony to Scripture's command to ""let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity"" (1 Tim 4:12). His ardent praying, preaching, and progress in godliness continue to captivate countless Christians around the world. The model of piety found in M'Cheyne's life and ministry provides needed encouragement for properly understanding biblical spirituality. What was the main fuel of his spirituality? Love for Jesus Christ. In A Communion of Love, Jordan Stone argues that rightly understanding M'Cheyne's spirituality must begin with the fundamental issue of why he pursued the means of grace as he did, before reckoning with how he used those means. Such a reorientation reveals that loving communion with Christ was the all-consuming, driving force for M'Cheyne's vision of the Christian life. ""The life of the young nineteenth-century Scottish minister Robert Murray M'Cheyne left a lasting impression not only on his contemporaries but on the entire evangelical tradition. Now, in A Communion of Love Jordan Stone has provided a new generation with an outstanding study of M'Cheyne's life. Thoroughly anchored in careful research yet written in a style that makes the story accessible to all, this is simply a great read "" --Sinclair B Ferguson, Chancellor's Professor, Reformed Theological Seminary ""Any attentive reader of Robert Murray M'Cheyne will consider him their elder in the Lord though he died very young. This is because the array of Christian graces was so profoundly balanced and proportioned, seemingly undiluted, and were nourished by a fitting use of all the biblically prescribed means for growth in grace. . . . Read the book, admire the grace of God in the man, and grow in Christlikeness."" --Tom J. Nettles, Senior Professor of Historical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary ""Jordan Stone's A Communion of Love sets a new standard for studies of M'Cheyne. I simply cannot commend it highly enough. It is simultaneously a perfect entry way into the life and ministry of M'Cheyne, and the best treatment yet of his context and influences, as well as his distinctive emphases and animating principle. . . . Working through this volume will not only introduce the reader to an important figure of the nineteenth-century Scottish spiritual awakening, but also provide a rich devotional and theological reflection on the Christian life, as well as a correction to the shallow moralism and antinominianism than one often encounters in preaching today."" --Ligon Duncan, Chancellor/CEO Reformed Theological Seminary, John E. Richards Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology Jordan Stone is the senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in McKinney, TX. He is married to Emily and the father of six children.

Few figures in church history that died before the age of thirty have left such a lasting legacy as Robert Murray M'Cheyne (1813-43). His name is virtually synonymous with the pursuit of personal holiness. M'Cheyne was a living testimony to Scripture's command to ""let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity"" (1 Tim 4:12). His ardent praying, preaching, and progress in godliness continue to captivate countless Christians around the world. The model of piety found in M'Cheyne's life and ministry provides needed encouragement for properly understanding biblical spirituality. What was the main fuel of his spirituality? Love for Jesus Christ. In A Communion of Love, Jordan Stone argues that rightly understanding M'Cheyne's spirituality must begin with the fundamental issue of why he pursued the means of grace as he did, before reckoning with how he used those means. Such a reorientation reveals that loving communion with Christ was the all-consuming, driving force for M'Cheyne's vision of the Christian life. ""The life of the young nineteenth-century Scottish minister Robert Murray M'Cheyne left a lasting impression not only on his contemporaries but on the entire evangelical tradition. Now, in A Communion of Love Jordan Stone has provided a new generation with an outstanding study of M'Cheyne's life. Thoroughly anchored in careful research yet written in a style that makes the story accessible to all, this is simply a great read "" --Sinclair B Ferguson, Chancellor's Professor, Reformed Theological Seminary ""Any attentive reader of Robert Murray M'Cheyne will consider him their elder in the Lord though he died very young. This is because the array of Christian graces was so profoundly balanced and proportioned, seemingly undiluted, and were nourished by a fitting use of all the biblically prescribed means for growth in grace. . . . Read the book, admire the grace of God in the man, and grow in Christlikeness."" --Tom J. Nettles, Senior Professor of Historical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary ""Jordan Stone's A Communion of Love sets a new standard for studies of M'Cheyne. I simply cannot commend it highly enough. It is simultaneously a perfect entry way into the life and ministry of M'Cheyne, and the best treatment yet of his context and influences, as well as his distinctive emphases and animating principle. . . . Working through this volume will not only introduce the reader to an important figure of the nineteenth-century Scottish spiritual awakening, but also provide a rich devotional and theological reflection on the Christian life, as well as a correction to the shallow moralism and antinominianism than one often encounters in preaching today."" --Ligon Duncan, Chancellor/CEO Reformed Theological Seminary, John E. Richards Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology Jordan Stone is the senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in McKinney, TX. He is married to Emily and the father of six children.

Without minimizing the validity of the social, political, and ecclesiastical approaches to this field of study, Yuille affirms that the essence of Puritanism is found in its spirituality. He demonstrates this by turning to a relatively unknown Puritan, George Swinnock (1627-1673). At the root of Swinnock's spirituality was his concept of fear of God as the proper ordering of the soul's faculties after the image of God. This concept is pivotal to Swinnock's spirituality, because he viewed it as the Christian's true principles of practice. Yuille shows the prevalence of this paradigm among Swinnock's fellow Puritans, and sets it in a historical tradition extending back to Augustine through Calvin.