The Colporteur: Log College Audio

John Miller Wells - Southern Presbyterian Worthies: Daniel Baker, The Evangelist (1936) . . . Southern Presbyterian Worthies, by John Miller Wells, tells the stories of several pastors who ministered in the old Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS). This episode is a reading of his chapter on Daniel Baker, one of the greatest revival preachers of the 19th century. He pastored and preached across the country, and ended his life in Texas, laboring for the gospel of Jesus and the building of a college to train ministers of the gospel for Texas. Baker is a man who needs to be remembered, and Wells' brief biography wonderfully introduces us to this giant of evangelistic preaching.

John Miller Wells - Southern Presbyterian Worthies: John Leighton Wilson, The Foreign Missionary (1936) . . . Southern Presbyterian Worthies, by John Miller Wells, tells the stories of several pastors who ministered in the old Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS). This episode is a reading of his chapter on John Leighton Wilson, a foreign missionary in Africa, missionary statesman, and secretary/coordinator of foreign and home missions for the PCUS from 1861 until 1885. His story is one that has been forgotten, but he needs to be remembered as a man of faith and action who led the church of Jesus Christ to pursue the salvation of the lost to the four corners of the globe. (Typically, this podcast posts a picture of the author of the work read; in this case, the picture is actually of Wilson.)

Archibald Alexander Hodge - The Day Changed and the Sabbath Preserved (1877) . . . In this short tract, published the year he arrived at Princeton Seminary to assist his father Charles Hodge in teaching systematic theology, A. A. Hodge sets forth a clear biblical, theological, and historical case that the Lord's Day is the Christian Sabbath day, in spite of the change from the seventh day of the week to the first day.

Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield - Imitating the Incarnation (1913) . . . This sermon by "The Lion of Princeton" unfolds both the theology and the import of Paul's magisterial description of the selfless love of the eternal Son on God in Philippians 2:5-8. Warfield's provocative exposition is challenging on many levels, but in the end he will leave you longing to be more like Jesus is His self-giving sacrifice.

James Henley Thornwell - Antinomianism (1840) . . . Thornwell was one of the most influential theologians in the 19th century American Presbyterian Church. This little piece was an appendix to a reprint of Robert Traill's classic work on justification, which Thornwell published as a tract. In it, Thornwell shows how the gospel is opposed to both legalism and lawlessness, and how justification and sanctification are linked together in the plan of salvation.

Daniel Dana - The Importance of Seriousness for a Minister (1840) . . . Daniel Dana (1771-1859) was a Presbyterian pastor in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. This piece was originally an article in the American Quarterly Register. In it, Dana speaks to the reasons why a minister must be serious, the nature of a minister's seriousness, and the influence and effect of his seriousness. This topic is generally unknown in our day and age, thus it is well worth thirty minutes of your time.

Moses Drury Hoge - Portraitures of Four Pastors (1892) . . . Moses Drury Hoge (1818-1899) delivered this biographical address on the eightieth anniversary of First Presbyterian Church in Richmond, Virginia, discussing briefly the lives of John Holt Rice, William Jessup Armstrong, William Swan Plumer, and Thomas Verner Moore.

A Conversation with Dr. John Fesko about Henry Boynton Smith . . . Caleb Cangelosi, the founder of Log College Press, interviews Dr. John Fesko (Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at RTS in Jackson, MS) about the theology of Henry Boynton Smith (1815-1877), a New School theologian at Union Theological Seminary in New York. This interview was recorded on May 7, 2020, during the COVID lockdown.

A Conversation with Rev. Brian Peterson about Jonathan Dickinson . . . Caleb Cangelosi, the founder of Log College Press, interviews Rev. Brian Peterson (pastor of Surfside PCA in Myrtle Beach, SC) about the life and ministry of Jonathan Dickinson (1688-1747), one of the most significant early American Presbyterians. This interview was recorded on April 22, 2020, during the COVID lockdown.

John Gresham Machen - Christianity and Culture (1913) . . . This article from Volume 11 of the Princeton Theological Review was originally an address on “The Scientific Preparation of the Minister”, delivered September 20, 1912, at the opening of the one hundred and first session of Princeton Theological Seminary, and in substance (previously) at a meeting of the Presbyterian Ministers’ Association of Philadelphia, May 20, 1912. John Gresham Machen (1881-1937) explores the relationship between piety and knowledge, or Christianity and culture, challenging the church to engage in the practice of consecration of culture to the Lord of all things rather than exalting either culture or Christianity to the destruction of the other.

Thomas Cary Johnson - You Should Be Missionary (1897) . . . This article from The Union Seminary Magazine No. 4 (March - April 1897) was originally a part of a seminary course on Missions taught by Thomas Cary Johnson's seminary course (1859-1936). He gives eight reasons why every pastor should be missionary in spirit and should seek to make his people a missionary people.

John Lafayette Girardeau - Christ’s Pastoral Presence with His Dying People (1896) . . . This sermon on Psalm 23:4 by John Lafayette Girardeau (1825-1898) comforts the saint nearing death by showing how the ministry of the Good Shepherd takes away our fear of death.

A Conversation with Dr. Miles Smith IV about George Armstrong’s The Summer of the Pestilence . . . Caleb Cangelosi, the founder of Log College Press, interviews Dr. Miles Smith IV about George Armstrong's book The Summer of the Pestilence, written about a yellow fever plague that struck Norfolk, VA, in 1855. This interview was recorded on April 14, 2020, during the COVID lockdown.

Joseph Ruggles Wilson - Inaugural Address at Columbia Theological Seminary (May 23, 1871) . . . Joseph Ruggles Wilson (1822-1903) was inaugurated as the Professor of Pastoral and Evangelistic Theology and Sacred Rhetoric at Columbia Theological Seminary on May 23, 1871. His inaugural address focuses upon the power of the pulpit, and the necessity of seminaries to train men to wield that power with all possible efficiency.

Drury Lacy - A Letter to One Afflicted (1804) . . . Drury Lacy (1756-1815) wrote this letter to an old acquaintance who was struggling with a lack of assurance of grace. Its content will encourage anyone who walks in spiritual darkness and longs to know the truth of God's love for them in Christ.

Archibald Alexander - Counsels of the Aged to the Young (1852) . . . Archibald Alexander (1772-1851), the first professor at Princeton Theological Seminary, gives twenty pieces of advice and counsel to younger believers. A great listen with your children and grandchildren!

Moses Hoge - Ministerial Piety (1810) . . . Moses Hoge (1752-1820) preached this sermon on I Corinthians 9:21 to the Synod of Virginia, exploring the nature of piety for a gospel minister.

Thomas Ephraim Peck - The Spirit of Presbyterianism (1881) . . . Thomas E. Peck (1822-1893) delivered this discourse on the nature, history, purpose, worship, discipline, and ministry of Presbyterianism at the 50th anniversary celebration of Columbia Theological Seminary.

Thomas Smyth - A Charge to James Henley Thornwell and Francis Patrick Mullally (May 4, 1860) . . . Thomas Smyth (1808-1873), pastor of Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston, SC, gave this charge on the occasion of the ordination of Mullally and the installation of Thornwell and Mullally as co-pastors of First Presbyterians Church of Columbia, SC. The charge is rich in explanation of a pastor's calling, and tender in its address to the uniqueness of the situation.

B. B. Warfield - The Religious Life of Theological Students (1913) . . . This classic address by Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (1851-1921) to students at Princeton Theological Seminary powerfully explains how piety and the pursuit of knowledge ought to go hand in hand.

Archibald Alexander - Farewell Address (1812) . . . Archibald Alexander (1772-1851) gave this address to his congregation at Pine Street Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, PA, when he was appointed as the first Professor of the newly formed Princeton Theological Seminary.

William Swan Plumer - Family Worship . . . In this short pamphlet, William Swan Plumer (1802-1880) gives heads of households nine rules for making family worship profitable.