CrossPoint Community News 01/28/2022

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

        This week, I’d like to introduce you to another Christian from time gone by. This one, you may have heard of, for his name is Matthew Henry. Born in 1662 to his Nonconformist minister father, Philip Henry, and his heiress mother Catherine Matthews, Matthew was a brilliant child. He was tutored at home until he was 18, but he was able to read by age 3 and was competent in Latin and Greek by age 9.
        He was converted to our Lord Jesus Christ under the preaching of his father at the age of 10. Throughout his teen years, he would go into his room to pray following sermons to ask God to “seal the Word and the spiritual impressions made to his heart.” (Wiersbe, 50 People Every Christian Should Know, p. 25). By the age of 25, he was ordained as a minister of the gospel.
        He spent 25 years serving the people of Trinity Church in Chester, England (even when churches in London invited him to be their pastor). More remarkable than his notoriety at the time was his regular daily schedule immersed in God’s Word and ministry. According to Wiersbe, “Matthew was usually in his study before five o’clock each morning, devoting himself to the preparation of his exposition of the Word. He had breakfast with his family and always led them in worship, reading and expounding some passage from the Old Testament. He then returned to his study until afternoon, when he would set out to visit his people. After the evening meal, he would again lead the household in worship, using a New Testament passage for his meditation… Often in the late evening, he would put in a few more hours of study before retiring.”
        He began work on his now-famous commentary on Nov. 12, 1704 (at the age of 42). He had finished his work on the Gospels and Acts by 1714, but then suddenly took ill and died in June of that year.
        His work was finished by other pastors and family members gathering notes and putting them together in what is now known as Matthew Henry’s Commentary. Charles Spurgeon suggested that all people read it through at least once in their lifetime. While it is not a commentary that dives into textual difficulties or theological debates, it is unsurpassed in its devotional and practical approach to Biblical exposition.
        I commend that you go to Netbible.org and look up whatever passage you want. Then go to the notes section and select “Matthew Henry” and you’ll find his commentary on any passage of Scripture. You might even find something you’ve heard in one of my sermons!