Great Resolutions

About this podcast

Among God’s people there have always been some who have resolved to live to Him. In this podcast we take a walk through church history and examine the lives of men and women raised up by God as patterns for us today.

Past Episodes | View by Topic

Local Chinese women began to play a vital role in the spread of the gospel in the early 1920s because of social reforms in China. Boarding schools were established by missionaries where local Chinese women were educated so that they could help spread the gospel. These women were known as the Bible women. Dora Yu was one of the most well-known of these women. Dora held many gospel meetings and began to travel throughout many provinces as a prevailing witness of Christ testifying of His great love and wonderful salvation. Her words were powerful and caused many to be convicted and turn to Christ. In this podcast, we cover Dora Yu’s testimony and we end with the very interesting circumstances in which Watchman Nee’s mother and later Watchman Nee himself were saved in one of her gospel meetings.

In this podcast, we begin to consider the life of Dora Yu, the sister through whom Watchman Nee was saved. We take a look at her early life including her family life and education. Her story still resonates with us today, especially young people, because through all the ups and downs of human life God was able to mold a vessel useful to Him. Though she experienced many fluctuations and trials in her early life God was still able to produce someone who had dispensational value to Him.

In this podcast, we take a look at D.M. Panton’s classic book The Judgment Seat of Christ. This book provides an understanding concerning the three kinds of judgment that will take place at the Lord’s coming, with particular emphasis on the responsibility that a believer bears in their living and work after they are saved. What do we do after we are saved by faith? What responsibility do we bear in carrying out the work of God after we are born again? Is there a reward and punishment? Although a sober topic, D.M. Panton’s contribution to this subject served to clarify a number of verses in the New Testament that have often been the source of confusion concerning eternal security and the destiny of believers. A proper understanding of these “kingdom” truths can give us a firm foundation and a proper incentive in our Christian life.

D.M. Panton is most well-known for founding and editing the bi-monthly magazine The Dawn. He lived during a time of upheaval, the 1920s-1950s, and during that time, he realized that many Christians were not familiar with the teachings regarding the Lord’s coming and the kingdom. He was burdened to instruct, encourage, and incite other believers by the prophetic truths contained in the Scriptures. Through this little magazine, light and truth poured forth to many believers. In this podcast, we begin to consider the life and work of D.M. Panton. We consider why this well-educated man decided to give up a career in law to make known the truths concerning the Lord’s second coming, the rapture of the saints, and the coming millennial kingdom.

Can believers lose their salvation? Is salvation a free gift of God? Does our living, work and conduct matter after our salvation?  These matters can be confusing to new believers.  Robert Govett said we must come back to the Bible to have a balanced view.  In this podcast, we look at the truth of Christian reward and Robert Govett’s contribution in clarifying this truth for us.

Someone who pursues the truth is also someone who, despite the cost to his reputation and living, will obey the truth. We see this exemplified by Robert Govett. In this podcast we take a look at how the Lord raised up this servant. Many of the truths we enjoy today came at a cost, and in Robert Govett we have a pattern of how we should stand steadfast in bearing testimony for the truth.

This is the touching story of how Hudson Taylor persevered through sufferings and privations to fulfill the great commission. We chronicle some of the devastating losses and trials he suffered while in China, but only the Lord knows how much this faithful servant endured to plant the seed of the gospel. Hudson Taylor once said, “The highest service demands the greatest sacrifice, but it secures the fullest blessing and the greatest fruitfulness.” Looking at the number of believers in China today, we can say that Hudson Taylor was proved right.

Hudson Taylor’s work in the interior of China came to be known as the China Inland Mission. In this podcast we take a look at how this labor came to be and why it proved to be so enduring. We’ll see how the life Hudson Taylor lived shaped the foundation and mission of the China Inland Mission.

Taking the gospel into the interior of China in the 19th Century was a real challenge. Almost all missionary work in the mid 1800’s was consigned to the coasts of China, where there was easy access to ports and protection offered from troops stationed in those cities. The interior of China held many unknowns for missionaries. Conditions were unfamiliar and points of contact with foreigners in the interior were rare. However, Hudson Taylor’s burden for the lost in inland China prevailed over these concerns. In this podcast we take a look at this pioneering work that is still bearing fruit today.

Taking the gospel into the interior of China in the 19th Century was a real challenge. Almost all missionary work in the mid 1800’s was consigned to the coasts of China, where there was easy access to ports and protection offered from troops stationed in those cities. The interior of China held many unknowns for missionaries. Conditions were unfamiliar and points of contact with foreigners in the interior were rare. However, Hudson Taylor’s burden for the lost in inland China prevailed over these concerns. In this podcast we take a look at this pioneering work that is still bearing fruit today.

God moves primarily through persons, not movements. It may take God a long time to gain a person, but once God has the person, He has the way. In this podcast we take a look at Hudson Taylor’s formative years and the experiences that God sovereignly used to shape this vessel who would open up the interior of China to the gospel.

On Robert Morrison’s tombstone it is written, “After a service of twenty-seven years cheerfully spent in extending the kingdom of the blessed Redeemer…he sweetly slept in Jesus.” Anyone familiar with Morrison’s missionary endeavors in China knows that he often met with privation and hardship. Yet despite his outward circumstances, Morrison’s life stands as a record of someone who enjoyed the secret reservoirs of grace. At the end of his life Morrison could say, “Yes, tired in the work, but not of it. I delight in the work.” In this podcast we take a look at the sufferings and joy of a persevering pioneer in China.

One of the great accomplishments of Robert Morrison was his translation of the Bible into the Chinese language. As an early pioneer in the mission field, Morrison was observed closely by Catholic and Chinese officials. He was prohibited from teaching or preaching the gospel to any Chinese besides those who labored closely with him. God sovereignly used this to direct his energies toward translating the Bible into Chinese. Despite the outward frustrations to his translation work, Morrison must have known the promise in 2 Timothy 2:9 – but the word of God is not bound.  In this podcast we take a look at the hardship he faced while attempting to carry out the first complete translation of the Bible into the Chinese language.

China owes a great debt to Robert Morrison. He was the first Protestant missionary to pioneer a gospel work in a land that most Christians at the time deemed impenetrable. In terms of the gospel, his work looked unimpressive—he only managed to gain one solid convert by the end of his life. But God’s accounting is different from ours. Today in China the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life estimates that there are 67 million Christians in China. Robert Morrison was one of the faithful ones to sow himself as a seed into China. In this podcast we take a look at Robert Morrison’s life.

In August of 1806, five students from Williams College gathered in a meadow near the Hoosack River to discuss their burden for spreading the gospel abroad. Their meeting was suddenly interrupted by a thunderstorm and they were forced to take shelter under a nearby haystack. There they continued their fellowship and prayer for the spread of the gospel. This little meeting would later become known as the “Haystack Prayer Meeting” and is generally credited as being the birthplace of American foreign missions. In this podcast we take up their story and see why we as younger believers we should never despise our youth or what we can do for the Lord when we are young.

In this delightful episode we take a glimpse into Martin Luther’s married and domestic life. Katie Luther, Martin’s wife, is the subject of this podcast. After they each left the Romish practice of convents and monasteries, Martin, a former monk, and Katie, a former nun, settled down to enjoy a normal Christ-centered marriage and family life. We explore this side of Martin Luther in this week’s podcast.

The recovery of justification by faith was a great turning point in the history of the church. We may take it for granted today, but without it we would enjoy precious little of God’s salvation. In this podcast we take a look at this recovery and how it opened the way for the Word of God to assume its rightful position in our experience.

In this podcast we come to Martin Luther’s momentous break with the church of Rome. Sometimes history allows us to peer into the souls of men during their hour of trial and see them acting upon their convictions. In this episode we take a look at the events leading up to Luther’s final break with Rome and the stand he took at the Diet of Worms. Luther would serve notice to all those assembled at Worms that this was not a move of man but a move of God. We can truly say that Martin Luther fought the good fight.

In this week’s podcast we cover the fascinating story of how Luther, an Augustinian monk, came to know grace through faith in Christ. We begin with Luther’s encounter with the Bible in his monastery’s library. We then turn to Luther’s pilgrimage to Rome to see how the corruption and extravagance he witnessed there greatly disillusioned him. Finally, we take a look at his fear and hatred of the words, “the righteousness of God” and how this angst gradually turned to sweet delight when he realized that God justifies freely and not by works.

God uses all manner of things and persons to mold us into the kind of vessel that He needs for His up-to-date move. In this introductory podcast we take a look at young Martin Luther and the formative experiences that prepared him to boldly stand against the corruption of the church in the Middle Ages.

In this week’s podcast we take a look at John Huss’ martyrdom. His testimony sowed seeds that would spring up a century later to influence Martin Luther. Luther once said of him: “I was seized with a curiosity to know what doctrines this great heretic had taught. The reading filled me with incredible surprise. I could not comprehend why they should have burned a man who explained Scripture with so much discernment and wisdom.” Huss would later become a hero to Luther and many other reformers.

In this introduction to John Huss (1369-1415) we take a look at another faithful witness that God raised up during pre-Reformation times. God in his sovereignty was preparing the groundwork for the Reformation through men like Huss. In this podcast we examine the ways in which God’s sovereign hand was at work in world affairs and how this allowed for the spreading of the truth.

In the Middle Ages light began to break upon the church through John Wycliffe’s writings. The challenge for that time was how to spread these truths. In this final podcast on Wycliffe we take a look at some of the ways in which he and his followers pioneered the spreading of the truth and why his followers would come to be known as the Bible-men.

Today the Bible is widely available in many languages and formats. There’s even a good chance you have a version of it on your phone. But this was not always so. In this podcast we take a look at the man behind the first English Bible and the fierce opposition he encountered in attempting to translate it into the common man’s tongue.

During the Middle Ages the church was mired in superstition and corruption. It’s hard for us to appreciate the faithful testimony that John Wycliffe bore unless we have some idea about the time in which he lived. In this podcast we take a look at the desolate condition of the church at that time and how God preserved unto Himself some faithful witnesses.

Most of us are familiar with the name Martin Luther but we may not be that familiar with the name John Wycliffe. Two hundred years before the Reformation began God was already stirring in some of His faithful believers. In this introductory podcast we take a look at the life and times of John Wycliffe and why he would later come to be called the morning star of the Reformation.

Is it possible to live by faith in today’s age? Not only is it possible, it has been done. In this final podcast on George Muller we recount several stories from his life showing how he recovered the practice of living by faith.

Why were George Muller’s prayers so effective? And why does it seem that at times our prayers are ineffective? The secret lies in how we handle the Bible. In this podcast we take a look at George Muller’s hidden source of supply.

Watchman Nee once said, “Prayer is a kind of work. The experience of God’s children proves that prayer accomplishes greater results than any other kind of work.” In this podcast we take a look at George Muller’s prayer life and what lessons it holds for us today.

After his regeneration George Muller began to know the Lord’s life. In this podcast we look at the experiences George Muller had as a new believer that laid the foundation for his future service.

Many people consider George Muller a giant of faith, but his beginnings were anything but godly. In this podcast we take a look at the early life and conversion of George Muller.

The latter years of A.B. Simpson’s ministry were very fruitful though not without trial. He emphasized Christ as Savior, Sanctifier, Healer, and coming King. In this podcast we take a look at Simpson’s Fourfold Gospel.

n Christian work, workers are always seeking the Lord’s blessing in their work. As A.B. Simpson worked to serve the Lord throughout his life, he gradually came to seek the Blesser instead of the blessing. In this podcast we take a look at A.B. Simpson’s life of service.

Chances are you have sung one of A.B. Simpson’s hymns: I Am Crucified with Christ, I Have Come to the Fountain of Life, and Once it Was the Blessing are just a few. In this podcast we take a look at the life behind the famous hymns.

One of the remarkable things about D.L. Moody is that he was a very open and broad person. In his lifetime, he contacted many people from different walks of life. He also contacted different ages and stages–the elderly, children, and college students. In this podcast we take a look at some of these relationships and how they reflect on his life and work.

D.L. Moody, widely known for his unceasing labor in the gospel, was a person whose personal living was at the root of his work. Moody once said that before we talk to men, we should first talk to God. In this podcast, we take a look at D.L. Moody’s life and see how Moody’s person produced his work.

D.L. Moody, one of the great evangelists of the 19th century, is primarily known for his gospel preaching, but related to this, another great burden he had was for what he called the “slumbering church.” He was burdened that the church would rise up to preach the gospel. He once said, “I would rather wake up a slumbering church than a slumbering world.”

Not every believer has the gift of gospel preaching but every believer should possess the spirit of the gospel (the fire of the gospel). In this podcast we examine the life of a very ordinary brother named James M’Kendrick, an uneducated coal miner, who demonstrated the spirit of the gospel in his life.

In this podcast we take a look at the life of William Borden, son of a prominent millionaire, who gave his life to Christ as a young man. At Yale, his personal walk and his avid grouping of students for prayer and the gospel greatly affected his campus.

Before we speak to our friends about the Lord, we first need to pray to God concerning them. The gospel needs a hidden life of intercession. In this podcast we take a look at the importance of intercession and how it affected one young man, Hudson Taylor.

Throughout the centuries, among God’s people there have always been some who have made great resolutions in heart (Judges 5:15.) It benefits us greatly to know something of these saints who have gone before us. In this new podcast series we consider the value of knowing the biographies of biblical and historical figures in church history.