Tribute to Bruce Milne

"Bruce Milne's legacy in service of the church will be of great value - as Derek Tidball notes in this moving and comprehensive tribute. Inter-Varsity Press is honoured to have published Milne's invaluable Know the Truth (which was a vital lifeline for me as a young theology student!), whilst his expositions in the Bible Speaks Today series continue to serve pastors, and serious students of the Bible. Our prayers are with his family, and I look forward to celebrating Bruce's life in tuning in to his memorial service later this month."

- Thomas Creedy, Publishing Director.

Bruce Milne (1940-2025) was an outstanding Bible expositor and preacher. Thankfully, the fruit of his preaching was not confined to those who heard him in person, since many benefitted from his rich writings. He saw them as an extension of his teaching ministry.

After ministry in Scotland, and a PhD under the supervision of Prof. T. F. Torrance, Bruce was appointed to teach doctrine at Spurgeon’s College, London, before emigrating to be Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church, Vancouver. In Vancouver he led a large downtown congregation with its varied spiritual and social ministries, all anchored in systematic Biblical exposition. He modelled the role of the pastor-teacher. While there his global influence grew in the evangelical and Baptist world though his publications and travels. He always had a global perspective and commitment.

I first got to know him in his early days at Spurgeon’s when we used to meet as a small group of pastoral theological educators from the London evangelical colleges. He was always warm, encouraging, and full of gentle wisdom. He exuded confidence in the gospel, knowing its power to save. Whenever we met subsequently after his move to Canada, he was always the same.

In 1982 IVP published his ‘Handbook of Christian belief’ under the title, Know the Truth. In his Foreword, J. I Packer wrote, ‘It is a privilege to commend so sensible, clear and fruitful an overview of basic Christian belief.’ The book covered basic doctrine from the authority of Scripture, through the doctrine of the trinitarian God, sin and salvation, the church and onto the last things, in a digestible but never simplistic manner. It was a prime example of his gift as a teacher. Furthermore, in successive editions, Bruce demonstrated an awareness of contemporary debates and cultural issues. It was lively, not frozen doctrine, which he made available; scholarly, biblical, gentle and contextual.

Packer, the doyen of teachers and writers of evangelical doctrine, says he has used the book as a resource in his theology classes. I, too, have used it over several years as a resource to teach a doctrine class in a local church with very positive results. The book has proved deep enough to use in a theological college and accessible enough for those in a local church who have no academic theological background. Bruce had the rare gift of being able to embrace a wide audience in his teaching.

Bruce’s gift as a biblical expositor were fully evident in The Message of John, in IVP’s Bible Speaks Today New Testament series. The volume fully lived up to the aim of the series. Abreast of relevant scholarship, here was a deep and devotional exposition of the gospel which gave me, and I’m sure countless others, many fresh insights into the gospel that I had studied in Greek for my finals! It led to a deeper appreciation of Jesus. Reading it, you could hear him preaching much of it. And in this way, it became a model for other preachers.

Having heard him lecture on the last things at a conference in London, I asked him to contribute the volume on The Message of Heaven and Hell, in the BST themes series. He willingly consented, convinced of the need to recover a sense of the eternal. At the same time he quipped that it was typical to be asked to write on the two places he had not yet visited. A rich exposition of twenty key passages setting out the biblical theology of human destiny were duly produced. The various controversial aspects of this doctrine were presented in a fair, eirenic and model spirit even as he affirmed classical evangelical position on the topics. To the delight of any editor the manuscript was submitted on time with little follow-up required. Here was a biblical grounding for vital topics that few preachers tackle, or, at least tackle, sensibly!

His passion for the local church as the showcase of the gospel were evident in two shorter books published by IVP, We belong Together and Dynamic Diversity. He also wrote on The End of the World (Kingsway) and a commentary on Acts published by Christian Focus Books. His writing and ministry generally owed much to the support of his wife, Valerie.

Among his diverse congregation in Vancouver were a number of the staff of Regent College, and the theologian Stanley Grenz from the neighbouring Carey Theological College. When Stanley died, Bruce was asked to preach at his Memorial Service.* Towards the end of his sermon, which was a masterful exposition of 1 Corinthians 15:3 & 4, he referred to Bunyan’s Mr Valiant for Truth passing on his sword to those who would succeed him. Stan, he said, had laid down his sword at a young age. Bruce challenged his audience to pick up that sword and respond to the call of God ‘to wrestle to articulate God’s truth in this day and time, to write, to preach, to witness, to inspire the people of God, to build the church of Jesus Christ in this generation.’  Bruce laid down his sword on 27^th December 2025 after a long and fruitful life. What joy he would have to know that a younger generation had picked up the sword he himself has now laid down.

Derek J. Tidball

*The sermon is reproduced in Revisioning, Renewing, Rediscovering the Triune Centre: Essays in Honor of Stanley J Grenz, eds. Derek J Tidball, Brian S Harrison and Jason S Sexton, 433-440, Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2014.

Photo: Jennifer Friesen