MLJ on the Puritans

You have to love this:

The puritans put their emphasis upon a life of spiritual, personal religion, an intense realisation of the presence of God, and a devotion of the entire being to Him.

p460 vol 2 of bio

MLJ on Sin and Sinners

You will never make yourself feel that you are a sinner, because there is a mechanism in you as a result of sin that will always be defending you against every accusation. We are all on very good terms with ourselves, and we can always put up a good case for ourselves. Even if we try to make ourselves feel that we are sinners, we will never do it. There is only one way to know that we are sinners, and that is to have some dim, glimmering conception of God.

MLJ on Revival

Lloyd-Jones, preaching on Mark 9:29 ('And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer"').

We must become utterly and absolutely convinced of our need.

We must cease to have so much confidence in ourselves, and in all our methods and organizations, and in all our slickness.

We have got to realize that we must be filled with God's Spirit. And we must be equally certain that God can fill us with his Spirit.

We have got to realise that however great 'this kind' is, the power of God is infinitely greater, that what we need is not more knowledge, more understanding, more apologetics . . . no, we need a power that can enter into the souls of men and break them and smash them and humble them and then make them anew.

And that is the power of the living God. And we must be confident that God has this power as much today as he had one hundred years ago, and two hundred years ago, and so we must begin to seek the power and to pray for it. We must begin to plead and yearn for it. 'This kind' needs prayer.

MLJ on the Presence of God

Make it the central thing of your life to gaze upon God, to arrive at a knowledge of Him that will be intimate and personal, a communion with Him that will ravish your heart and cause your soul to rise up to Him. Seek His face, and go on seeking it.