Knots Untied - Ryle - III - Chapter 3

Required reading
Knots Untied by JC Ryle (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapter 3 (Private judgment).

My summary
Today Ryle looks at the right of private judgement of what is taught.

Firstly he teaches the right, duty and necessity of private judgement

Secondly Ryle shows us the duty and necessity of keeping a firm hold upon God's truth.

Then three points of application follow:
(i) arm yourself with a thorough knowledge of the written Word of God;
(ii) take special care to try every Roman Catholic doctrine by the written Word of God;
(iii) make sure that you have laid hold personally upon Christ's truth for yourself.

What grabbed me
Excellent advice about being discerning when listening to teachers: 'But suppose that, to cut matters short, we resolve to believe whatever our minister believes. Once more I ask, Where is our security against error? Ministers are not infallible, any more than Churches. All of them have not the Spirit of God.  The very best of them are only men. Call them Bishops, Priests, Deacons, or whatever names you please, they are all  earthen vessels. I speak not merely of Popes, who have promulgated awful superstitions, and led abominable lives. I  would rather point to the very best of Protestants, and say, "Beware of looking upon them as infallible, beware of thinking of any man (whoever that man may be) that he cannot err." Luther held consubstantiation; that was a mighty error. Calvin, the Geneva Reformer, advised the burning of Servetus; that was a mighty error. Cranmer and Ridley urged the putting of Hooper into prison because of some trifling dispute about vestments; that was a mighty error. Whitgift persecuted the Puritans; that was a mighty error. Wesley and Toplay in the last century quarrelled fiercely about Calvinism; that was a mighty error. All these things are warnings, if we will only take them. All say, "Cease ye from man." All show us that if a man s religion hangs on ministers, whoever they may be, and not on the Word of God, it hangs on a broken reed. Let us never make ministers Popes. Let us follow them so far as they follow Christ, but not a hair s breadth further.'

I hope no one will never take my word for anything, but always test it against the word of God.

Next week's reading
Read Chapter 4 (The thirty-nine articles).

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.