Mark Jones, who has an excellent blog on Thomas Goodwin, had a late entry for the Lloyd-Jones contest. Since I only got two entries originally I told him he could submit his to receive a copy of the Eusebeia issue on Lloyd-Jones. Here is his entry below:
Standing in the Westminster Chapel pulpit where the ‘Doctor’ used to preach, I wondered what it must have been like to have sat in the rows listening to Martyn Lloyd-Jones thunder down (and up) to his hearers the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, I never had the privilege of hearing him preach, except on cassette tape which, still wonderful, can never replace the real thing. Lloyd-Jones’ influence on me, then, has come through his books; and what an influence they have been!
The very first words I read of Lloyd-Jones have remained firmly entrenched in my memory ever since. It was when I read ‘To me the work of preaching is the highest and greatest and most glorious calling to which anyone can ever be called’ that I realized the magnitude of the task to which I hoped to aspire. Those words are on the front cover of his wonderful book, Preaching & Preachers. In that book, the mind of the greatest preacher of the twentieth century revealed to me what preaching really is; it is a burden from God, a message that goes forth with authority that seeks ‘make alive’ both God’s Word and the sinner who hears the Word. It is not lecturing or pulpiteering, but an organic display
of God’s power; a power that can only be attributed to the Holy Spirit. And certainly that must be the principal reason for Lloyd-Jones’ effectiveness as a preacher. In a day and age where there is much lecturing going on from the pulpits of today’s churches, I can’t help but pray that God would raise up many more Lloyd-Jones’ who can bring back to life the ‘art of prophesying’.
Besides the aforementioned book, the other work I wish to mention is Lloyd-Jones’ ‘spiritual classic’, to use John Stott’s phrase, Studies in the
Sermon on the Mount. There is no other book on my shelves that has been read and re-read as that book. It is worn, highlighted, and underlined from the first to the last page. The reason for this has to do with both the style and the content. As you will no doubt know, Lloyd-Jones had a very conversational way of writing (most of his books had been transcribed from sermons he had
preached). I felt as if he was speaking directly to me. There was none of the pedantic nonsense that we see from so many so-called books on theology. Instead, we had a man speaking in such a way that you couldn’t help but feel gripped by the insight of his words. Lloyd-Jones doesn’t make his points as quickly as A.W Pink, for example. But, like a true physician, methodically brings you to see the problem and solution.
I don’t always agree with Lloyd-Jones, but that’s what makes me so indebted to him. He’s a man whose faults, and they are certainly there, are not hidden. But even amidst these faults, the graces and talents of this man stand even taller. Oh that the Lord would raise up another Martyn Lloyd-Jones!
Thanks Mark for the great entry! Mark will receive the same issue that Crawford and Tim received earlier. Remember, if you are interested in receiving this issue of Eusebeia dedicated to the life and thought of Lloyd-Jones then please contact me. The issue is $10 CAD.
Posted by allenmickle 
Working out Salvation with Fear and Trembling 