From the Heart of Spurgeon

Jesus, the King of Truth (S1086)

Like many of his eminent spiritual forefathers, Spurgeon is very much a theologian of the Holy Spirit. His communion with, relish for, and dependence on the Spirit of God is often prominent in his sermons, and that is itself a reflection of his whole life. This sermon is concerned with a full and rich trinitarianism, for he wants to ensure that the Holy Spirit receives his proper prominence and honour as the third Person of the Godhead. Concentrating on his title as Paraclete, the preacher first explains that name, and then—under pressure of time—turns to the particular nature of the comfort which he brings. His concluding observations bring the matter to bear upon both believers and unbelievers, holding out joy and hope to all who would honour and rely upon the Holy Ghost. The sermon is an antidote both to unscriptural notions of the person and work of the Holy Spirit (with particularly short shrift given to the wilder claims) and to a diminishing of him in the eyes and hearts of his people.

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The Paraclete (S1074)

Like many of his eminent spiritual forefathers, Spurgeon is very much a theologian of the Holy Spirit. His communion with, relish for, and dependence on the Spirit of God is often prominent in his sermons, and that is itself a reflection of his whole life. This sermon is concerned with a full and rich trinitarianism, for he wants to ensure that the Holy Spirit receives his proper prominence and honour as the third Person of the Godhead. Concentrating on his title as Paraclete, the preacher first explains that name, and then—under pressure of time—turns to the particular nature of the comfort which he brings. His concluding observations bring the matter to bear upon both believers and unbelievers, holding out joy and hope to all who would honour and rely upon the Holy Ghost. The sermon is an antidote both to unscriptural notions of the person and work of the Holy Spirit (with particularly short shrift given to the wilder claims) and to a diminishing of him in the eyes and hearts of his people.

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My Prayer (S1072)

Much of this sermon seems to bubble out of the preacher’s heart, gushing forth with less of structure but more of force. It is not without organisation, but his first point concerning the believer’s frequent need of quickening or enlivening is a swirling catalogue of need, flitting from thought to thought as he considers just how dependent we are on the Lord for his mercies. From human need he turns to divine grant, identifying the God of heaven as the one from whom all these mercies flow, and the channels down which he sends them. Spurgeon points us to the way of obedience, before reminding us of the particular seasons in which we might particularly seek this stirring in our souls by the Holy Spirit. As so often, Spurgeon’s style seems to suit the mood of his sermon, the rhythm and arrangement of his words carrying us along even as readers, prompting us to go to our gracious God for his revitalising influence.

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Behold the Lamb (S1060)

Spurgeon never goes very far Christ Jesus, in all his sermons or in any sermon. Here he is in his element as a preacher of the gospel of his Saviour: “It is mine to preach a Saviour in whom I believe, whom having not seen I love. I am looking to him now for everything, even as I would have you do. I see in him superlative beauties which I wish you to see, and I worship a divinity in him which I desire you to worship. I preach not to you an unknown God, or an untried Saviour.” You can hear the man’s heart bubbling over with joyful faith which he longs to share, and in such a sermon we come close to the heart of Spurgeon, and see something reflected in him of the heart of Christ for sinners. Revelation, contemplation, instruction and adoration run on each other’s heels through the sermon, and I trust will take root in our hearts as we consider it.

Untrodden Ways (S1057)

This is, in some ways, a sermon about fear. The introduction is fascinating, setting the scene for what follows by tracing out some of the ways in which change and novelty can disturb and unsettle certain people in particular, with the fears that can dominate some of God’s people. Spurgeon responds with words of consolation, direction, and expectation. The whole is marked by realism about the experience of the saints, compassion toward those who struggle, courage in the face of opportunities and difficulties, and pastoral sense and straightforwardness about not succumbing to our fears. Distinctly helpful is his sense of the blessings that await in moving forward into new spheres, even with their challenges—the eagerness with which we can anticipate good things, and the anticipation that in all that comes to pass, our Lord Jesus shall be magnified in our eyes. In a time that seems to be marked by anxiety and even anger among God’s people, when many cling thoughtlessly to what they think they know even at the expense of good things they have not yet known, Spurgeon’s counsels come with timely force to our hearts.

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Intercessory Prayer (S1049)

The people of God ought to pray for saints and for sinners. Spurgeon’s text to enforce this duty is the last phrase of Psalm 141:5, drawn from the Authorised Version: “For yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities.” Acknowledging the difficulty of the phrase in the original, Spurgeon takes it in the form in which he finds it in his Bible, and applies it in those two simple directions. In praying for the saints, he teaches us to think in terms of obligation, honour, excellence, and extent. If this first of his two points takes the lion’s share of the space in the sermon, the second part probably wears the crown of intensity, for here the preacher pleads with his congregation to pray for the lost, bringing only a few but fiery reasons for them to do so. Prayer holds a vital place in Spurgeon’s estimation of his own walk with God, and in his estimation of the life and labour of any faithful and fruitful church. It both feeds into the work of the saints, and flows out of it, stirring us to the very labour which sends us back to the throne of grace for strength and for blessing. At one point, Spurgeon asks, “Do you not think, dear brethren, that if we were each one required upon the spot to give an account of his attention to this excellent duty, we should most of us need to be ashamed? May I venture to put the question to every Christian here, have you rendered to God and his church your fair proportion of intercessory prayer?” Assuming that the question receives the same answer today as it did in 1872, I trust that this sermon will prove as useful now as then.

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A Persuasive to Steadfastness (S1042)

This sermon is an estimation and celebration of faith, with an exhortation to it. “How is it possible for the preacher to say too much about faith, or to extol this grace too highly!” asks Spurgeon in his opening sentence. The focus of the sermon is on what it means to be a partaker of Christ. Having set forth something of the sense of that, Spurgeon spends time pressing home the solemn and searching question of whether or not we are truly partakers of the Lord Christ. In his customary fashion, Spurgeon pushes this deep into the conscience of his hearers. Then he subjects us to an unerring test of our participation in Christ—our holding steadfastly to the beginnings or foundation of our confidence. And so Spurgeon points us back to Christ, back to Christ as we first closed with him and clung to him, refreshing our spiritual sight and sense. Not lacking in warnings, but full of sweet encouragements, this sermon opens with the note of faith and closes with the eye of faith fixed upon the Lord.

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The Real Presence, the Great Want of the Church (S1035)

Spurgeon’s Christianity is marked by a deeply personal and experiential affection for the Lord Jesus Christ. Although the expression of that may be somewhat coloured by his context, the foundation of it is thoroughly biblical. One of the ways in which Spurgeon expresses that affection is in the rich and emotive language with which he speaks of Christ. That shows itself often in his handling of the Song of Solomon, a portion of God’s Word in which Spurgeon delights, and a further revelation of Spurgeon’s naturally Christ-centred reading of the Old Testament. Reading it in the Puritan manner, primarily if not entirely as an allegorical expression of the love between Christ and his church, in this sermon he uses his text to underline the importance of the presence of Christ with his people, and the yearning we have—or should have—to know his nearness with us. You may not always find Spurgeon’s handling of the text compelling, but I hope you will find the theme of the sermon valuable.

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The Joy of the Lord, the Strength of His People (S1027)

This is the last sermon in the volume for 1871, and it was preached on the last day of that year. While Spurgeon very rarely preaches sermons in sequence, he often shows his awareness of sermons recently preached, and of the response that people make to them, often drawing in new themes or reiterating previous ones in order to make a pastoral or polemical point. He does have a penchant for preaching from multiple texts on occasion, as he does here. This particular sermon builds on the previous Lord’s day’s sermon, and the promise of joy to come. It zeroes in on the joy that the saints possess, its divine origin and practical value, holding out the blessings to all those who would take them. It is worth remembering that, while Spurgeon is emphatic, insistent and repetitive in his calls for Christian energy and endeavour, he never unyokes that calls from a deep and happy awareness of what God has done for his people in Christ Jesus, and how our ongoing relationship with God in Christ is the source of all our cheerful strength. It is a good sermon with which to close a year, and a good sermon for any time in the year.

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Household Salvation (S1019)

If you are expecting this to be a polemical blast against infant sprinkling, think again. Of course, Spurgeon remains throughout an unembarrassed Baptist, but his concern is primarily positive: to allure and to encourage us to long for and to labour for true family religion. In five points, Spurgeon walks through his text, showing a whole family hearing, believing, baptised, serving, and rejoicing. He closes with earnest pleas to all who have any family responsibility to plead with and pray for those over whom the Lord has given them authority and influence. He paints a beautiful picture of the rapid rush of gospel faith through that little community of the household, and urges us to hope for it and to pursue it. We acknowledge that, even among Reformed or Particular Baptists, there are some slight differences of emphasis in this matter, such as the point at which one might baptise a believing child, but Spurgeon gives us a good reminder that—far from disparaging or denying family religion—Baptists ought to be at the forefront of promoting and pursuing it. This sermon offers a delightful spur to that end.

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