Charles Spurgeon, the great Baptist preacher of 19th-century London, is remembered today as the prince of preachers. However, the strength of Spurgeon's ministry went far beyond simple rhetorical skill. With a foundational commitment to the Bible, Spurgeon fearlessly taught the doctrines of grace and tirelessly held forth the free offer of salvation in Jesus Christ. In short he was a firm believer in the truth of the gospel and the power of the gospel to save.

In The Expository Genius of John Calvin, Dr. Steven J. Lawson delves into the practices, commitments, and techniques that made John Calvin, the great Reformer of the 16th century, such an effective preacher during his long pastorate at Saint Pierre Cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland. Dr. Lawson identifies 32 distinctives of Calvin's preaching, providing comments from Calvin's writings, quotations from Reformation scholars, and examples from Calvin's own sermons to reinforce his points.

From the pulpit at Westminster Chapel in London, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones set a new standard for faithful and passionate preaching - a standard that continues to be relevant today. Lloyd-Jones was a physician by training and had begun a promising career in medicine before sensing an irresistible call to preach. Surrounded by theological liberalism, he began a pulpit ministry that would exert profound influence on both sides of the Atlantic.

To present an example of intentional, faithful, and passionate Christian living, Dr. Steven J. Lawson paints a portrait of 18th-century pastor and theologian Jonathan Edwards, who structured his relationship with God by composing and following 70 heart-searching resolutions. Edwards, often remembered for his sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, is revealed here as a man with a heart for God's glory above all things.

For 300 years, The Pilgrim's Progress has remained perhaps the best-loved and most read of devotional fictions. In plain yet powerful and moving language, Bunyan tells the story of Christian's struggle to attain salvation and the Gates of Heaven. He must pass through the Slough of Despond, ward off the temptations of Vanity Fair, and fight the monstrous Apollyon. In Part II, his wife and children follow the same path, helped and protected by Great-heart, until for them, too, "the trumpets sound on the other side."

Early in the 16th century, legislative decree in England controlled people's access to the scriptures and prohibited an English Bible. But theologian and linguist William Tyndale was determined to provide his fellow countrymen with scripture they could read. In The Daring Mission of William Tyndale, the latest addition to the Long Line of Godly Men series, Dr. Steven J. Lawson traces this daring mission, which was ultimately used by God to ignite the English Reformation and would cost Tyndale his life.

Unless God helps us, there is no hope, Captain Morris yelled over the roar of the storm. Hudson Taylor had to agree. Indeed the Dumfries might sink this very day and he would never live to see the shores of China, a land whose people he was certain God had called him to. Hudson survived his perilous maiden voyage to his beloved China. With his heart set in determined obedience to God, Hudson overcame persecution and almost overwhelming personal losses to bring God's truth to the "ripe harvest fields" of China.

William's amazing journey to India would prove to be just the beginning of a missionary quest filled with hardship and heartache as well as tremendous victories. Often referred to as "the father of modern missions", William Carey displayed a single-minded determination to set his face like a flint to the task of bringing the gospel to those lost in darkness. His life of service and sacrifice is a guidepost to Christians of all generations.

Suddenly, Corrie's (1892-1983) ordered life was lost in the insanity of war. With bravery and compassion, her family and countless other Dutch citizens risked everything to extend God's hand to those innocents marked for certain execution in a world gone mad. Corrie ten Boom's life of determination, faith, and forgiveness in the face of unimaginable brutality and hardship is a stunning testimony of the sustaining power of God.

Jim and Pete turned to see the Auca men, their deadly spears raised, running toward Nate, Ed, and Roger. Jim stood in the river, his hand on his pistol. Should he defend himself? He already knew the answer. Each man had promised the others that he would not save himself by killing those they had sought out in Jesus' name. Jim Elliot and his coworkers surrendered their lives in Ecuador's jungle, trusting that their sacrifice would not be in vain.