#6 Lloyd-Jones on the Christian Life
Meyer, Jason C. Lloyd-Jones on the Christian Life: Doctrine and Life as Fuel and Fire. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2018. 272 pp.
Summary of the Contents
Author, Jason Meyer, sets out in the book, Lloyd-Jones on the Christian Life: Doctrine and Life as Fuel and Fire, to tell and inspire other Christians about the God-fearing life of Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Moreover, Meyer seeks to accomplish a more specific goal in his work: to remind Christians “that according to Lloyd-Jones, the Christian life is doctrine on fire” (p. 21). While Meyer was only a child when Lloyd-Jones passed into glory, he effectively accomplishes his goal of leaving Christians inspired by the great doctor, logician, preacher, and theologian. He accomplishes his goal of leaving readers on fire for the Lord.
Part one of Meyer’s biography, “The Doctor,” tells of the time and life of the doctor. Exploring the Doctor’s context is essential in relating to his life. It tells of five critical stages in his life. The first stage focuses on Lloyd-Jones's birth, childhood, and eventual arrival at St. Bartholomew's Hospital in London, where he was trained in medicine. The second stage focuses on the Doctor’s conversion and call to ministry. He had been converted at Westminster Chapel, the same chapel where he would later come to pastor. Around the same time, he had been treating people of all classes in London and began to struggle with the idea “that he was helping people get well so that they could simply go back to sinning” (p. 36). He, therefore, knew that he was called to serve the Lord vocationally and moved back to Wales with his new wife, the physician Bethan Phillips, to begin his ministry at the Bethlehem Forward Movement Hall in Sandfields, Aberavon (p. 36). The third stage of the Doctor’s life recalls the events leading up to and during the Doctor’s ministry at Westminster Chapel. At the end of 1938, the Doctor resigned from Bethlehem Forward Movement Hall due to vocal struggles. Still, he received a letter offering to share the preaching at Westminster Chapel for six months. Because the Doctor considered his time at Westminster temporary, he applied to become the principal at Bala Theological College. Again, his application was providentially denied, and he became the official associate pastor at Westminster. Eventually, the lead pastor retired, and Lloyd-Jones took up the mantle. He served at the chapel for 30 years before retiring in 1968 (pp. 38-41). The fourth stage of the Doctor's life takes place after his retirement at the age of 68. During this time, he spent a tremendous amount of time editing and publishing sermon manuscripts and preaching around the globe at locations such as Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, where he preached sixteen lectures (p. 41). The final stage of Lloyd-Jones's life sees him nearing heaven, or “the glory,” as he liked to call it (p. 41). On March 1, 1981, the Doctor had his homecoming, and his earthly body returned to Wales one last time. His gravestone read the Scripture he first preached from: “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (p. 42).
The second part of the book, “The Doctor’s Doctrine,” examines the Doctor's doctrines. Meyer thoroughly analyzes the Doctor’s views of the Trinity, justification, sanctification, ecclesiology, and eschatology. The next section of the essay will examine Meyer's analysis.
The third part of the biography, “The Christian Life,” is much like the previous section. Chapters have titles that carry theological weight but are also helpful practices. The topics of this section include “The Word” (pp. 125-138) and “Prayer” (pp. 139-150), among other informative practices of the Christian life.
Meyer tells of the legacy of Lloyd-Jones in the final part of the biography, “The Doctor’s Legacy.” In this section, Meyers tells about the effects and process of the Doctor’s ministry in his day. He also explains why Lloyd-Jones is relevant to the church’s situation today.
Analysis of Lloyd-Jones’ Theological Distinctives
Meyer provides a constructive analysis of Dr. Lloyd-Jones’ doctrine in the second part of the biography. Perhaps the most important or heaviest of the doctrines he handles is the Doctor’s theology of the Trinity. He looks at each Person of the Trinity and Their work. For God the Father, Meyer talks about the Doctor’s views on general revelation, special revelation, God’s infinity, God’s attributes, and God’s names. To start, he claims that the Doctor began his famous lectures on doctrine with the topic of general revelation and special revelation. He states that “biblical inspiration… defines [Christians] approach to doctrine in general and functions as [their] frame of reference. The Doctor believes that general revelation is a genuine source of knowledge concerning God, but general revelation is incomplete without the fullness of God’s self-disclosure in Scripture” (pp. 45-46). Therefore, according to the Doctor, the approach to God’s revelation should be done in a specific order. First, the general attributes of God should be savored. God is infinite, incomprehensible, and inaccessible (p. 46). Once these three attributes, among other attributes that God shares with humanity (p. 49), are understood, “God draws even nearer to [Christians] with the revelation of specific names” (p. 46). In the Doctor’s doctrinal lectures, he mentions thirteen different names of God, and “each name is an expression of an aspect of God’s character.” For example, Meyer quotes Lloyd-Jones and says, “[t]o declare the name of God is to tell the truth about God” (pp. 51-52).
Another area Meyer focuses on when talking about God the Father is the area of God’s eternal decrees or “things which God determined and ordained before He had done anything at all” (p. 53). From the beginning, God ordained an unchangeable plan for his creation. He planned every event that came or will come to pass, and he did so unconditionally and sovereignly. These decrees of God are efficacious, meaning they accomplish exactly what He had in mind when He first planned them. For example, “the salvation of men and women… was determined by God before the foundation of the World” and was accomplished by God’s Son (pp. 53-54).
The next chapter focuses on the Person and work of Christ, God the Son. The doctor believed that God must intervene to save humanity because of the fall and original sin (p. 61). The Doctor held to orthodoxy in all things concerning Christ. He believed in the incarnation and thought it was a central doctrine to understanding the Trinity (p. 63-64). He acknowledged the virgin birth, the hypostatic union, the two individual natures of Christ, and the work of Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King (pp. 66-70). Lloyd-Jones believed that God the Father planned the salvation of humanity and Christ accomplished it (p.43), but the Spirit had a role to play as well.
The third chapter of this doctrinal section of the biography, “Power from on High,” concerns itself with the Person and work of God the Holy Spirit. The Doctor felt that the Spirit was often neglected in the church; therefore, he treated the Spirit as equally essential and of equal deity and glory as God the Father and God the Son (p. 76). The Doctor believed that the Spirit is called “Holy” because his chief work is to produce and inspire holiness (pp. 76-77). While that is part of the Spirit’s general work, Lloyd-Jones also believed that the Spirit has a place in the redemptive work. The Holy Spirit also works “regeneration in applying redemption to [Christians]” (p. 80). Meyer notes that the Doctor considered this special work of regeneration the most important doctrine alongside the atonement, for Christians cannot understand the atonement without being regenerated by the Spirit (p. 81).
The next chapter demonstrates the Doctor’s belief in justification and sanctification. Lloyd-Jones believed these two doctrines depend upon the Person and work of Jesus (p. 92). God first declares Christians righteous through Christ’s work at the cross by imputing and ascribing Christ’s righteousness to them by faith (p. 93). Once made instantaneously justified, the process of sanctification begins. Lloyd Jones describes this process of sanctification as “an inner cleansing by the Holy Spirit and a process that transforms [Christians] from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18) so that [they] progressively become conformed to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29)” (p. 94).
The following chapters focus on Lloyd-Jones doctrines of the church (ecclesiology) and the end times (eschatology). In the chapter on the church, Meyer tells of the Doctor's view that the church is both visible and invisible. He also distinguishes the kingdom of God and the church, Biblical unity and ecumenical unity, and right and wrong marks of the church (p.103-104). Meyer clarifies specific views of the Doctor in terms of ecclesiology, such as the Doctor believing in the Sacramental unity and means of grace of the administration of Sacraments alongside the Word stating, “a sacrament is an outward, visible sign of an inward, spiritual grace” (p. 107-108). In the chapter on eschatology, Meyer makes it clear that the Doctor believed the study of the end times is from when Christ first came to his second (p.115). He divided this study into two topics. First, there are the individual destinies of Christians. Second, there is the destiny of the whole world (p. 116). However, the Doctor never takes a specific stance in his lectures and instead provides various viewpoints for considering his congregation without dogmatism (p. 116).
Analysis of Lloyd-Jones’ Successes, Failures, and Difficulties
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a man of much success. Not only did his preaching ministry rival Spurgeon’s due to both men having very similar styles and patterns (p. 40), but the Doctor’s achievements are also commendable. During Lloyd-Jones’ time at Bethlehem Forward Movement Hall, Meyer “estimates that over five hundred people were converted and joined the church in the eleven years Lloyd-Jones ministered” (p.38). These conversions include the salvation and conversion of the Doctor’s wife, Bethan, who states that “God graciously used [the doctor’s] morning sermons to open [her] eyes and show [her herself] and [her] need” (p. 37). The Doctor also had the opportunity to preach to many people from different walks of life. He saw drunkards, prostitutes, and even spiritist mediums convert to Christ (p. 37).
A struggle that revealed the success of the Doctor includes the prevailing view of the time that the church needed more of what the world wanted: drama, music, and other things of the world. However, the Doctor did not accept these suggestions and continued preaching Christ alone (p. 37). On June 28, 1931, he testified to this resilience to preach Christ in all his attractiveness. The Doctor exclaimed, “[t]he business of preaching is not to entertain, but to lead them to salvation, to teach them how to find God” (p. 38). This struggle revealed itself again when World War I began. The attendance at Westminster Chapel dwindled from over two thousand to a hundred and fifty. The salary of the Doctor was greatly reduced due to fund limits. On a specific occasion during the bombings of London, Westminster was shaken by a bomb, and dust fell on the Doctor from the ceiling. He continued preaching to the few who attended church that day (p. 39). Due to the low congregational number of the church, people began to wonder if the numbers could be reclaimed without again resorting to the ways of the world. Again, the Doctor combated this new theological liberalism and did not stumble. He continued to preach Christ, and God continued to build His church (p. 38).
The Doctor’s legacy most definitely included courage in the face of criticism from every angle. He held fast to Reformed theology and the power and work of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers. He experienced opposition from Pentecostal and charismatic movements and opposition from stone-cold Calvinists who thought his emphasis on the role of the Spirit was too great. He combated both in charity and recognized the unity of the Spirit and traditional Reformed theology (p. 223).
While Lloyd-Jones had many successes, Appendix 2 gives insight into one of his supposed failures. Before 1966, the Doctor saw a crisis on the horizon on the topic of denominationalism and asked the question, “Do [Christians] believe in a territorial church or a gathered church of saints?” (p. 235). The question led to an interdenominational conference in the United Kingdom in 1966. The famous pastors and theologians, John Stott and J.I. Packer disagreed with The Doctor in this situation. However, they both participated in the Church of England, a territorial denomination. The situation is still debated to this day, and faithful Christians are on both sides of the argument.
Personal Application and Key Lessons Regarding Christian Leadership and Life
I found the book’s third section to be extremely helpful in terms of Christian life. Meyer analyzes the Doctor's views on various practices of the Christian life, such as prayer and Scripture reading. The Doctor had a very high view of both of these practices and even said, “[i]f you really believe that just to read a few verses and a short comment on them in a matter of five minutes, and to have a brief word of prayer, is adequate for your day, then I say that you do not know anything about the wiles of the devil” (p. 125). The quotation really stuck out because I have often tried to get away with little devotional time. However, I know that the devil is working overtime to try to come between Christ and me, and, as the Doctor posits, much more is required than a few minutes of reading and prayer to combat the devil’s vices. In truth, much of the Christian life and spiritual warfare happens in the quiet time of believers. They come to know and adore God and Christ through Scripture and prayer and prepare for battle with the enemy. The Doctor knew this and demonstrated it by reading the bible prayerfully, wisely, and corporately (pp. 131-138) and practicing prayer by admitting its difficulty, enjoying the communion it brings with God, pleading the promises of God, and obeying the Spirit in prayer. I wish to practice these things as diligently and doxologically as the leader Lloyd-Jones practiced them regularly.
Lloyd-Jones also placed a significant importance on the life of the Spirit in the life of believers. No matter the area of life, believers are to evidence themselves through the power of the Holy Spirit to the world. Lloyd-Jones states that “[w]e are not mere theorists or philosophers but that we preach the power of God. And we prove that there is a power in the Gospel by showing what we are in work, in business, in profession, and in the home” (p. 165). All of these areas are where leadership is done. The Christian ought to lead in work, in business, in profession, and most of all, in the home to his or her family. I wish to emulate this belief of the Doctor in every area of my life. I want to lead through the power of the Spirit and the Gospel in school, work, relationships, and ministry to prove my dependence upon God and salvation’s goodness.
Overall, Lloyd-Jones has taught me much about the Christian life and Doctrine. Both of these things serve as “fuel and fire” in the ministry and worship of God. These things ought to increase our doxology, and I believe I have learned that and more from the great Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones.
