- Home
- Speakers
- J.B. Stoney
- Reception Unsectarian
J.B. Stoney
James Butler Stoney (May 13, 1814 – May 1, 1897) was an Irish preacher and Bible teacher whose calling from God within the Plymouth Brethren movement inspired a ministry of deep spiritual insight and gospel proclamation across nearly six decades. Born in Portland, County Tipperary, Ireland, to parents whose details are not widely documented—likely a modest Protestant family—he entered Trinity College, Dublin, at age 15 to study law. Converted in 1831 at age 17 during a cholera outbreak, crying out to God in fear of death, he abandoned law for divinity, though his youth delayed ordination, leading him to the Brethren through J.N. Darby’s influence in 1833. Stoney’s calling from God unfolded as he preached across Great Britain and Ireland, never formally ordained but recognized as a gifted minister by the Brethren. Based in London from 1868 after years in Ireland and Scarborough, his sermons—preserved on SermonIndex.net and in 13 volumes of Ministry by J.B. Stoney—called believers to a heavenly calling and intimacy with Christ, as seen in works like Discipline in the School of God and Letters of J.B. Stoney. Known for his fervent, Spirit-led preaching, he avoided eloquence to emphasize divine power, influencing saints through periodicals like A Voice to the Faithful. Never married, he passed away at age 82 in Wimbledon, London, after a fall in October 1895 sidelined him, dying peacefully while speaking of God, buried in an unmarked grave as per his wishes.
Download
Topic
Sermon Summary
The preacher delves into the concept of 'nepios' in the Bible, which refers to both physical and spiritual immaturity. This term is used to describe those lacking experience, untried, ignorant, or simple-minded, particularly in the context of Gentiles. The Apostle Paul and other biblical writers use 'nepios' to highlight the need for believers to grow in spiritual maturity, moving from being infants in Christ to spiritually mature individuals who can handle solid spiritual food.
Reception Unsectarian
My statement was, that if a godly clergyman presented himself for communion I should receive him, and though he returned to system, yet I should receive him again as I had received him before, not as if he were in fellowship, but as one desiring to break bread; but I added, he is now subject to discipline, and if he did anything in doctrine or practice to compromise the holiness of God's house, he would be dealt with accordingly and publicly. Now this is very different from the mode of action of those who assume open ground. They receive every Christian who is sound in faith and morals, that is their avowed terms of communion. They take no notice of where (as to association) they come from. They make no difference between saints in the Establishment or sects, and brethren. They do not see that Newton's heresy sprung up in the midst of brethren who assume to be on the ground of the church of God intelligently — hence there is a great difference as to moral standing between a saint in the Establishment or the sects and one from any company which is under discipline. All we ask for is jealousy for Christ in His own house. We receive a believer from the Establishment or the sects when assured that such an one is sound in faith and morals, while we do not receive one from [Open] "Brethren" (so called) unless he has absolutely cleared himself of all association with the defiled company. ... But the moment a Christian is received in the fellowship of the Lord's supper he is identified with all the privileges and responsibilities of the assembly, and therefore he is amenable to discipline. If a clergyman were received this Sunday, and returned to his church the following Sunday, the assembly could take no notice, but if he in any way in doctrine or by practice dishonours the Lord, even though he may have withdrawn from fellowship, yet as he was once in the fellowship he must now be put away as unfit for it.
- Bio
- Summary
- Transcript
- Download
James Butler Stoney (May 13, 1814 – May 1, 1897) was an Irish preacher and Bible teacher whose calling from God within the Plymouth Brethren movement inspired a ministry of deep spiritual insight and gospel proclamation across nearly six decades. Born in Portland, County Tipperary, Ireland, to parents whose details are not widely documented—likely a modest Protestant family—he entered Trinity College, Dublin, at age 15 to study law. Converted in 1831 at age 17 during a cholera outbreak, crying out to God in fear of death, he abandoned law for divinity, though his youth delayed ordination, leading him to the Brethren through J.N. Darby’s influence in 1833. Stoney’s calling from God unfolded as he preached across Great Britain and Ireland, never formally ordained but recognized as a gifted minister by the Brethren. Based in London from 1868 after years in Ireland and Scarborough, his sermons—preserved on SermonIndex.net and in 13 volumes of Ministry by J.B. Stoney—called believers to a heavenly calling and intimacy with Christ, as seen in works like Discipline in the School of God and Letters of J.B. Stoney. Known for his fervent, Spirit-led preaching, he avoided eloquence to emphasize divine power, influencing saints through periodicals like A Voice to the Faithful. Never married, he passed away at age 82 in Wimbledon, London, after a fall in October 1895 sidelined him, dying peacefully while speaking of God, buried in an unmarked grave as per his wishes.