J.C. Ryle: Prepared to Stand Alone

J. C. Ryle's life has only to be heard about once to be remembered. His 84 years (1816-1900) included remarkable contrasts - the promise of a fortune, then the poverty of a bankrupt; a Suffolk country pastor, then bishop of the leading seaport of the British Empire. But there was a still greater change - from the successful youth at Eton and Oxford, who did not pray or read his Bible till he was 21, to the Christian 'bold as a lion for the truth of God's Word and his Gospel'. A much-loved evangelical author of the nineteenth century, Ryle's influence waned after his death. The world, it was supposed, had moved on. Then, fifty years later a 'rediscovery' of the man and his message began. Research on his life was accomplished by able authors, and from this wealth of material Iain Murray has put together a compelling biography. Ryle believed in the living Christ, in definite doctrine, and in a message which does not adjust to the times. His life is convincing evidence that Christianity stands or falls depending on its relation to the word of God and to the Holy Spirit. That he is being read widely again at the present time gives hope of better days.