Learning from History

Posted on September 8, 2026 
Filed under for your prayers, Theology

David Cook shares some important lessons from our not-so-distant history –

“In 1961 my father, at the age of 46, became a follower of Jesus Christ.

Within a week my mother stood at his side, having been converted at an evangelistic business dinner.

My father led us back to the local Presbyterian church at which his grandfather had been a foundation elder. My dad was soon to become an elder at that church and was in the vanguard of promoting involvement in the forthcoming Billy Graham meetings in Sydney in 1968.

However, such was the state of the church, enduring a long history of liberalism, involvement in the Graham meetings was opposed and any advertising of the event was resisted.

The minister at the time was an immigrant whose English was not good, and though orthodox, was not influential and was overshadowed by other more liberal leaders in the church.

I heard many preachers at that time whose theological commitment was liberal and was greatly helped to recognise it for the poison it was and to resist it, by our local youth leader.

Here is what I remember about it …”

– Read it all at The Expository Preaching Trust.

Illustration: J I Packer, Billy Graham, Marcus Loane, Graham Miller (below), Broughton Know, John Chapman (below), T C Hammond.