Letters From Alistair Begg

Dear Friend,

It so happened that this past weekend I was in the UK during the celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. I was speaking at a conference in the town of Kilmarnock, which is in Ayrshire. It was there, in 1956, that I stood with my mum and waved my Union Jack as the Queen passed through town. For the past sixty-six years I have enjoyed the privilege of being one of her subjects.

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Dear Friend,

Learning how to swing a golf club successfully is not easy, but it is straightforward. One of my heroes, Byron Nelson, entitled his autobiography How I Played the Game. In 1945 he won 18 tournaments, 11 of them consecutively. The key to his success lay not in spectacular displays of individual talent but in his ability to “do the basics” well and with consistency. As in golf, so too in marriage: it is not easy, but it is straightforward, and learning to “do the basics” is vitally important.

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Dear Friend,

Today The Times of London announced, “Ilkley, West Yorkshire, named best place to live in the UK 2022.” The article declared that the town, with its top-class schools, a buzzing high street, and breathtaking views, offers everything you need.

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Dear Friend,

Have you ever wondered how you would have reacted to the discovery of the empty tomb? If you are tempted to believe that you would have assembled the scattered disciples and led them in the singing of “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today,” then you are in a class of your own! When Mary Magdalene announced to the bewildered disciples, “I have seen the Lord!” the news did not inspire faith. Instead, John tells us, “on the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews…”

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Dear Friend,

In 1976, when I was assistant to Derek Prime at Charlotte Chapel, Bruce Milne was a guest speaker for a special weekend. I can still recall his sermons and the manner in which they were delivered. As a young man, hoping to learn how to preach, I paid careful attention, as he provided a model of humility, clarity, and warm persuasiveness. In due course, he moved to Canada to lecture alongside the late J. I. Packer at Regent College. His best-known book has been a staple diet for the leadership here at Parkside. Know the Truth is of immense help in understanding basic Christian doctrine. The very fact that, half a century on, we are offering it to you this month suggests that it is already a classic.

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Dear Friend,

I have recently, for a variety of reasons, been thinking about the seventh verse of Hebrews chapter 13, which reads, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.” A couple chapters earlier, the writer gives a list of the names of “people of old” who “received their commendation” (11:2) because they lived trusting in God’s Word and promises. They serve as a “great cloud of witnesses” so as to encourage us to keep on looking to Jesus.

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Dear Friend,

Happy New Year!

It feels strange for me to greet you in this way, since I am writing in December. I must admit that I have very strong traditional views when it comes to the passage of one year into the next. It is customary here in Ohio for people to say “Happy New Year” at any point in time leading up to the first day of January. Instinctively, I refrain from returning the greeting. I should explain.

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Dear Friend,

“Jesus is a real problem,” I said to a man I had just met in a hotel lobby. He was sitting with his wife and two very attractive children. When I learned that he was from India, I told him how much I had enjoyed my visits to his homeland.

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Dear Friend,

Jonathan Edwards was born on October 5, 1703, in East Windsor, Connecticut. Regarded as the greatest theologian and philosopher of British American Puritanism and a forerunner of the Great Awakening, he is best known for his sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” which he preached in 1741 following George Whitefield’s tour of the Thirteen Colonies.

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Dear Friend,

It never once occurred to me when I was a boy that I would one day be called to pastoral ministry. My ordination in October of 1976 established me on a course from which, by God’s grace, I have never thought to change. The two years spent in the company and under the tutelage of pastor Derek J. Prime laid the foundation for all that has transpired. To this day, the example he provided continues to challenge and inspire me. For thirty-eight years, the Parkside family has displayed a long-suffering affection for me, and the privilege and responsibility of doing what I do keeps me alert and hopefully growing in grace.

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