Iain Murray Stats
· Born:
April 19, 1931, of Scottish parents, in Lancashire, England
· Church

·
Author, specializing in Church History and Biography from a Reformed perspective, and Editorial Director of Banner of Truth Trust

·
Education:
King William’s College, Isle of Man, and the University of Durham
· Denomination:
Presbyterian
· Theology:
5-point Calvinist, Paedobaptist, Covenant, Amillennial
   
 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 




Biographical Sketch

Iain Hamish Murray was born (of Scottish parents) in Lancashire, England, April 19, 1931, and educated at King William’s College, Isle of Man, and the University of Durham. Prior to university he held a commission in the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) who were then engaged in the suppression of an insurgency in the jungles of Malaya. Converted to Christ at the age of seventeen, after upbringing in a larger liberal denomination (the English Presbyterian Church), he became assistant minister at St John’s, Summertown, Oxford in 1955, where the Banner of Truth magazine began. The influence of this magazine (edited by him until 1987) was to be greatly enlarged when, with Jack Cullum, he founded the Banner of Truth Trust in 1957. Initially intended to supply out-of-print Reformed and Puritan authors for Britain, the Trust’s publications were soon selling in forty countries, with an office established at Carlisle in the United States in the late 1960s.

Murray remained director of the Banner publications until 1996, combining this with serving Grove Chapel, London (1961-69), and St Giles, Sydney (1981-83). Since the latter charge he has remained a minister of the Australian Presbyterian Church although living chiefly at Edinburgh (the head office of the Banner of Truth) since 1991. A turning point in his life was a call from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones in 1956 to assist him at Westminster Chapel, London. This he did for three years and without which the Banner publications could not have begun. His closeness to Lloyd-Jones led, after the latter’s death, to the writing of D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The First Forty Years 1899-1939 (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1982), and D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The Fight of Faith 1939-1981 (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1990). When asked how much he owes to Lloyd-Jones, Murray replies that the indebtedness is too great to calculate.

During the 1970s, and after his return to the UK from Australia in 1991, Murray has been often in the United States on speaking engagements and two of his best-known books, Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography(1987) and Revival and Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism 1750-1858 (1994), reflect his close interest in American church history. While authoring several biographies (John Murray, A.W.Pink and John Wesley), Iain Murray’s main intention has been to use history to recover commitment to the doctrines of Scripture, particularly the doctrines of grace. He did this first in The Forgotten Spurgeon (1966), and again in Pentecost—Today?The Biblical Basis for Understanding Revival (1998). More general is his Evangelicalism Divided: A Record of Crucial Change in the Years 1950 to 2000 (2000), which, despite its controversial nature, became one of his best-selling hardbacks. Almost all his titles have been published by the Banner of Truth and remain in print.

Marriage, Murray believes, is the next most important event to conversion, and Jean Ann Walters, whom he married in 1955, has been and remains the first influence in his life. They have five children and ten grandchildren.

Since retirement from the everyday work of the Banner of Truth Trust, Murray has both continued to write and been able to visit and help Christians in various parts of the world. The friendship of Christians in several nations are counted by him and his wife as one of their greatest privileges and encouragements.

Bibliography

A Scottish Christian Heritage

Australian Christian Life from 1788 : An Introduction and an Anthology (1988)

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The First Forty Years (1982)

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The Fight of Faith (1990)

The Forgotten Spurgeon (1966)

Spurgeon and the Church of England (1966) — a booklet

Jonathan Edwards : A New Biography (1988)

The Life of Arthur W. Pink

The Life of John Murray: Professor of Systematic Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1937-1966 (1984)

The Puritan Hope : Revival and the Interpretation of Prophecy, (1971)

Revival & Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism 1750-1858 (1994)

Spurgeon v. Hyper-Calvinism: The Battle for Gospel Preaching (1995)

Pentecost Today?: The Biblical Basis for Understanding Revival (1998)

Evangelicalism Divided: A Record of Crucial Change in the Years 1950 to 2000 (2000)

Diary Of Kenneth MacRae : A Record of Fifty Years in the Christian Ministry (1980)

The Invitation System (1960)

Letters Of Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1992)

Should the Psalter be the Only Hymnal of the Church? (2001)

The Reformation Of The Church: A Collection of Reformed and Puritan Documents on Church Issues (1965)

The Unresolved Controversy: Unity with Non-Evangelicals (2001)

Wesley and Men Who Followed

Old Evangelicalism – Old Truths for a New Awakening

The Happy Man: The Abiding Witness of Lachlan Mackenzie (1979)

 

MP3 Messages From Iain Murray
From the Berean Beacon Audio Page

History
C.H.Spurgeon
George Whitefield A Spur To The Minister
John Knox
Life Of John Newton 1
Life Of John Newton 2
Life Of Robert L. Dabney
Life Of Tyndale And The Reformation
Life Of William Jay
Life Of William Tyndale
Preaching In The 19th Century
Survey Of The Rediscovery Of Reformed Truth
Thomas Hooker And The Doctrine Of Conversion
Ashbel Green
Assurance Controversy In New England In 1636

Preaching
Faith Rooted In Need
Conditions For Powerful Preaching
Evil Communications Corrupt Good Manners
Nature Of The Resurrection Life
Preaching In Decay And In Revival
Promise To The Powerless
Religious Fanaticism
Spiritual Religion
To Me To Live Is Christ
A Prized Relationship
Chief Cause ForDecay In TheChurch


Revival
History Of Revival 1740-1851 1
History Of Revival 1740-1851 2
History Of Revival 1740-1851 3
History Of Revival 1740-1851 4
History Of Revival 1740-1851 5
Reformation And Revival 1
Reformation And Revival 2
Reformation And Revival 3
Reformation And Revival 4

Author Related Links

Banner of Truth Trust
Iain Murray Audio Page MP3s