“We do not come to the Bible to discover whether it is true; we come to discover its meaning and its teaching, and therefore I say the only hope is that we preach its message to the people. We must preach it to them as the Word of God.”

How Can We See A Return To The Bible? by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Kept Pure Press, 2024. Paperback, 40 pages, $9.99.

On October 24, 1961, the late D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones called his church and nation back to the Holy Bible. The call was issued publicly in the Royal Albert Hall in London at a National Bible Rally that had been organized by the Evangelical Alliance.

I personally heard this call over forty years later while reading a transcript of the address in the book “Knowing the Times” published by Banner of Truth Trust. The call truly is timeless and its continued influence upon my life and ministry compelled me to make it more readily accessible to a new generation of Christians.

Thanks to the kind permission of Banner of Truth, “How Can We See A Return To The Bible?” is now available in booklet format. Due to its convenient size, it is ideal for distribution on the literature table at church or for neighborhood outreach campaigns. Case discounts will be available through the publisher, Kept Pure Press.

Lloyd-Jones stated two distinct purposes at the outset: Commemorating the publication of the Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible and calling the people of his land back to scripture’s self-attesting and supreme authority.

Early in the address, Lloyd-Jones diagnosed the effects of a century’s worth of humanistic philosophy in the churches, colleges, seminaries, and in society as a whole; concluding that all of the dysfunction and even the wars of the twentieth century could be traced back to a spiritual downgrade in the previous century:

“We must not come to the Bible to find out whether it is true or not; we must come to find the meaning of the truth that is there. That has been the fatal error of this so-called Higher Criticism that has come to the Bible to find which part is true and which part is not. The moment you do that you are already wrong, irretrievably wrong!” 

“We do not come to the Bible to discover whether it is true; we come to discover its meaning and its teaching, and therefore I say the only hope is that we preach its message to the people. We must preach it to them as the Word of God.”

Having identified these root causes of the apostasy he was personally witnessing, Lloyd-Jones proceeds to address the futility of different attempts that were being made to “reach” modern man. Particular attention is given to the pseudo-solution of simply updating the language of the Bible:

“Men no longer read the Bible not because they cannot understand its language, but because they do not believe in it. They do not believe in its God; they do not want it.”

“Their problem is not that of language and of terminology; it is the state of the heart. Therefore, what do we do about it? It seems to me there is only one thing to do, the thing that has always been done in the past: We must preach it and our preaching must be wholly based upon its authority.”

This impassioned address concludes with an earnest appeal to take up scripture, to preach it in the power of the Spirit, and to trust God to make it effectual; not only for the gathering and perfecting of the saints, but also for the benefit of society.

Our nation also needs to be called back to the Holy Bible, and we pray that this timeless message from the late D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones will be heard and humbly received by a new generation of Christians.

Christian McShaffrey is a Minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and is Pastor of Five Solas Church (OPC) in Reedsburg, Wisconsin. He also serves as Stated Clerk of the Presbytery of Minnesota and Wisconsin.