Brownlow North: His Life and Work is a biography written by K. Moody Stuart and published by the Banner of Truth. This is a very nice, compact biography of a great 19th century evangelist written by a 19th century minister.
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Brownlow North: His Life and Work
This little biography consists of 15 chapters that add up to just over 300 pages long. It’s one of Banner of Truth’s smaller, more compact books, so it’s a quick 300 pages. Brownlow North is not a very popular name, but perhaps that is one of the factors that makes this book so neat. North was just an ordinary man who loved the Lord Jesus and wanted to tell many others about Him.
After Stuart gives an account of North’s earlier years in chapter one and his conversion in chapter two, he jumps into North’s “first private efforts to win souls” in chapter 3. Perhaps many in the Reformed camp don’t think too highly of tracts, but reading about North’s desperate desire for others to know Christ, and how this led him to begin handing out tracts to others despite his fears, I’m ready to hand them out myself! This is exactly why biographies are so helpful in the Christian life. Sometimes all it takes is reading of another flawed Christian attempting great things for God’s glory to get our motivations and desires increased for the same.
Chapter seven is on North’s letters, and the reader is sure to enjoy reading these. Each letter oozes with love for Christ! Chapters 8 and 9 are excellent theological chapters on the topic of preaching. North’s solid theology showed forth in his preaching. He majored on the following theological points in his sermons:
- God is (the existence, personality, and presence of God);
- It is written (the inspiration and divine authority of Holy Scripture);
- You are immortal (the immortality of the soul and the eternal duration of spiritual life and death);
- Born again (the necessity for the Spirit’s work on the intellect, affections, and will);
- Faith and feeling (the doctrine of justification by faith).
You can see how these points could easily flow nicely when evangelizing or preaching an evangelistic sermon. North’s sharp theological mind aided his evangelistic efforts.
The remaining chapters masterfully capture the efforts of North in taking the Gospel to many different places in Scotland, England, and Ireland. There are also many accounts of remarkable cases of conversions. There is no doubt that the Lord powerfully used Brownlow North!
Conclusion
This book is an exhilarating read, one that will be very difficult to put down. I hope that many will take up this tremendous little biography and benefit from it. All Christians could use the encouragement that is found in this book. I highly recommend this to any and all Christians. Tolle lege, take up and read!
Disclaimer: My thanks to Banner of Truth for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Matt became a joyful follower of Jesus at the age of 21. He is very grateful to be a husband to Lindsey, and a father to four boys. He is an ordained minister (teaching elder) in the PCA. He previously served as a pastor of biblical counseling and is currently a corporate chaplain in southern Delaware. Matt received his Master of Divinity degree in Biblical Counseling from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and holds an advanced certification in biblical counseling from the Association of Biblical Counselors. In his free time, he loves playing with his boys, traveling with his wife, and reading (and buying!) books.
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