Category Archives: Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Special thanksgiving to the Father

October 12, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear son.” Colossians 1:12,13

Suggested Further Reading: Luke 11:14-22

What an achievement was that, when, with their flocks and their herds, the whole host of Israel went out of Egypt, crossed the Jordan, and came into Canaan! My dear brethren, the whole of it was not equal to the achievement of God’s powerful grace, when he brings one poor sinner out of the region of sin into the kingdom of holiness and peace. It was easier for God to bring Israel out of Egypt, to split the Red Sea, to make a highway through the pathless wilderness, to drop manna from heaven, to send the whirlwind to drive out the kings; it was easier for Omnipotence to do all this, than to translate a man from the power of darkness into the kingdom of his dear Son. This is the grandest achievement of Omnipotence. The sustenance of the whole universe, I do believe, is even less than this—the changing of a bad heart, the subduing of an iron will. But thanks be unto the Father, he has done all that for you and for me. He has brought us out of darkness; he has translated us, taken up the old tree that has struck its roots ever so deep—taken it up, blessed be God, roots and all, and planted it in a goodly soil. He had to cut the top off, it is true—the high branches of our pride; but the tree has grown better in the new soil than it ever did before. Who ever heard of moving so huge a plant as a man who has grown fifty years old in sin? Oh! What wonders hath our Father done for us!

For meditation: “Our Father…Thy kingdom come” (Luke 11:2). Pray for the spoiling of Satan, the salvation of sinners, the sanctification of saints, the second coming of the Sovereign.

Sermon no. 319

12 October (Preached 15 January 1860)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Instability

October 11, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel.” Genesis 49:4

Suggested Further Reading: 2 Peter 3:14-18

Who are these unstable ones? When they were boys they could never complete a game; they must always be having something fresh; and now they are just as childish as when they were children. Look at them in doctrine: you never know where to find them. You meet them one day, and they are very full of some super doctrine; they have been to some strong Calvinist place, and nothing will suit them except the very highest doctrine, and that must be spiced with a little of the gall of bitterness, or they cannot think it is the genuine thing. Very likely next week they will be Arminians; they will give up all idea of a fixed fate, and talk of free-will, and man’s responsibility like the most earnest Primitive Methodist. Then they steer another way. “Nothing is right but the Church of England. Is it not established by law? Ought not every Christian to go to his parish church?” Let them alone; they will be at the most schismatical shop in the metropolis before long. Or if they do not change their denomination they are always changing their minister. A new minister starts up; there is no one, since the apostles, like him; they take a seat and join the church; he is everything to them. In three months they have done with him; another minister rises up some distance off, and these people are not particular how far they walk; so they go to hear him. He is the great man of the age; he will see every man’s candle out, and his will burn on. But a little trouble comes on the church, and they leave him. They have no attachment to anything; they are merely feathers in the wind, or corks on the wave.

For meditation: Do you recognise yourself here? If not, guard your own stability carefully. But if you do, realise that we are not supposed to remain babes in Christ, but are to grow up (Ephesians 4:14,15). Perhaps you are not sure whether Spurgeon is describing you; one question may help you decide—who has the rule over you? (Hebrews 13:7,17).

Sermon no. 158

11 October (1857)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Self-examination

October 10, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” 2 Corinthians 13:5

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:23-32

“Examine:” that is a scholastic idea. A boy has been to school a certain time, and his master puts him through his paces—questions him, to see whether he has made any progress,—whether he knows anything. Christian, catechise your heart; question it, to see whether it has been growing in grace; question it, to see if it knows anything of vital godliness or not. Examine it: pass your heart through a stern examination as to what it does know and what it does not know, by the teaching of the Holy Spirit. Again: it is a military idea. “Examine yourselves,” or renew yourselves. Go through the rank and file of your actions, and examine all your motives. Just as the captain on review-day is not content with merely surveying the men from a distance, but must look at all their equipment, so look well to yourselves; examine yourselves with the most scrupulous care. And once again, this is a legal idea. “Examine yourselves.” You have seen the witness in the box, when the lawyer has been examining him, or, as we have it, cross-examining him. Now, mark: never was there a rogue less trustworthy or more deceitful than your own heart, and as when you are cross-examining a dishonest person—you set traps for him to try and find him out in a lie, so do with your own heart. Question it backward and forward, this way and that way; for if there be a loophole for escape, if there be any pretence for self-deception, rest assured your treacherous heart will be ready enough to avail itself of it. And yet once more: this is a traveller’s idea. I find in the original Greek, it has this meaning: “Go right through yourselves.”

For meditation: Is self-examination a foreign concept to you? It should be done as least as regularly as we observe the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:28); God is able to assist us in our self-examination (Psalm 26:2; 139:23,24).

Sermon no. 218

10 October (1858)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Grieving the Holy Spirit

October 9, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30

Suggested Further Reading: Isaiah 63:7-19

The Spirit of God is in your heart, and it is very, very easy indeed to grieve him. Sin is as easy as it is wicked. You may grieve him by impure thoughts. He cannot bear sin. If you indulge in lascivious expressions, or even if you allow imagination to dote upon any lascivious act, or if your heart goes after covetousness, if you set your heart upon anything that is evil, the Spirit of God will be grieved, for thus I hear him speaking of himself. “I love this man, I want to have his heart, and yet he is entertaining these filthy lusts. His thoughts, instead of running after me, and after Christ, and after the Father, are running after the temptations that are in the world through lust.” And then his Spirit is grieved. He sorrows in his soul because he knows what sorrow these things must bring to our souls. We grieve him yet more if we indulge in outward acts of sin. Then is he sometimes so grieved that he takes his flight for a season, for the dove will not dwell in our hearts if we take loathsome carrion in there. A cleanly being is the dove, and we must not strew the place which the dove frequents with filth and mire; if we do he will fly elsewhere. If we commit sin, if we openly bring disgrace upon our religion, if we tempt others to go into iniquity by our evil example, it is not long before the Holy Spirit will be grieved. Again, if we neglect prayer; if our closet door is cobwebbed; if we forget to read the Scriptures; if the leaves of our Bible are almost stuck together by neglect; if we never seek to do any good in the world; if we live merely for ourselves and not for Christ, then the Holy Spirit will be grieved.

For meditation: If we are grieving the Spirit, it is absolutely impossible for us to obey the command to “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18).

Sermon no. 278

9 October (1859)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The sons of God

October 8, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God; And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together.” Romans 8:16,17

Suggested Further Reading: Ephesians 1:11-23

The believer is to be the heir, I say, not merely of God’s works, not simply of God’s gifts, but of God himself. Do we not talk of his omnipotence?—his almightiness is ours. Do we not speak of his omniscience?—all his wisdom is engaged in our behalf. Do we not say that he is love?—that love belongs to us. Can we not glory in that he is full of immutability, and changes not?—that eternal unchangeablenesss is engaged for the defence of the people of God. All the attributes of divinity are the property of God’s children—their inheritance is built upon them. He himself is ours. Oh what riches! If we could say this morning, that all the stars belong to us; if we could turn the telescope to the most remote of the fixed stars, and then could say with the pride of possession, so natural to man, “That star, a thousand times bigger than the sun, is mine. I am the king of that inheritance.” If we could then sweep the telescope along the milky way, and see the millions upon millions of stars that lie clustered together, and cry, “All these are mine,” yet these possessions were but a speck compared with that which is in the text. Heir of God! He to whom all these things are but as nothing, gives himself up to be the inheritance of his people. Note yet a little further concerning the special privilege of heirship,—we are joint heirs with Christ. That is, whatever Christ possesses, as heir of all things, belongs to us. Splendid must be the inheritance of Jesus Christ. Is he not very God of very God, Jehovah’s only begotten Son, most high and glorious?

For meditation: The prayers of our glorious joint heir regarding our glorious joint inheritance (John 17:9,10,24).

Sermon no. 339

8 October (Preached 7 October 1860)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Conversion

October 7, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.” James 5:19: 20

Suggested Further Reading: 2 Corinthians 2:5-11

The poor backslider is often the most forgotten. A member of the church has disgraced his profession; the church excommunicated him, and he was accounted “a heathen man and a publican.” I know of men of good standing in the gospel ministry, who, ten years ago, fell into sin; and that is thrown in our teeth to this very day. When you speak of them you are at once informed, “Why, ten years ago they did so-and-so.” Brethren, Christian men ought to be ashamed of themselves for taking notice of such things so long afterwards. True, we may use more caution in our dealings; but to reproach a fallen brother for what he did so long ago, is contrary to the spirit of John, who went after Peter, three days after he had denied his Master with oaths and curses. Nowadays it is the fashion, if a man falls, to have nothing to do with him. Men say, “he is a bad fellow; we will not go after him.” Beloved, suppose he is the worst; is not that the reason why you should go most after him? Suppose he never was a child of God—suppose he never knew the truth, is not that the greater reason why you should go after him? I do not understand your excessive pride, that won’t let you go after the chief of sinners. The worse the case, the more is the reason why we should go. But suppose the man is a child of God, and you have cast him off—remember, he is your brother; he is one with Christ as much as you are; he is justified, he has the same righteousness that you have; and if, when he has sinned, you despise him, in that you despise him you despise his Master. Take heed! You also may be tempted, and may one day fall.

For meditation: Discipline should not be lax or non-existent (1 Corinthians 5:1-2). But it is possible to go to the other extreme and overdo it.

Sermon no. 45

7 October (1855)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Fast-day service

October 6, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.” Micah 6:9

Suggested Further Reading: Nehemiah 1

This world is not the place of punishment for sin; not the place; it may sometimes be a place, but not usually. It is very customary among religious people, to talk of every accident which happens to men in the indulgence of sin, as if it were a judgment. The upsetting of a boat upon a river on a Sunday is assuredly understood to be a judgment for the sin of Sabbath-breaking. In the accidental fall of a house, in which persons were engaged in any unlawful occupation, the inference is at once drawn that the house fell because they were wicked. Now, however some religionists may hope to impress the people by such childish stories as those; I, for one, renounce them all. I believe what my Master says is true, when he declared, concerning the men upon whom the tower of Siloam fell, that they were not sinners above all the sinners that were upon the face of the earth. They were sinners; there is no doubt about it; but the falling of the wall was not occasioned by their sin, nor was their premature death the consequence of their excessive wickedness. Let me, however, guard this declaration, for there are many who carry this doctrine to an extreme. Because God does not usually visit each particular offence in this life upon the transgressor, men are apt to deny altogether the doctrine of judgments. But here they are mistaken. I feel persuaded that there are such things as national judgments, national chastisements for national sins—great blows from the rod of God, which every wise man must acknowledge to be, either a punishment of sin committed, or a premonition to warn us to a sense of the consequences of sins, leading us by God’s grace to humble ourselves, and repent of our sin.

For meditation: Reflect and pray over the state of the nation and its standing before God (Proverbs 14:34).

Part of nos. 154-155

6 October (Preached 7 October 1857)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Fear not

October 4, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” Isaiah 41:14

Suggested Further Reading: Psalm 8

Behold the heavens, the work of God’s fingers; behold the sun guided in his daily march; go ye forth at midnight, and behold the heavens, consider the stars and the moon; look upon these works of God’s hands, and if ye be men of sense and your souls are attuned to the high music of the spheres, ye will say, “What is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou visitest him?” My God! When I survey the boundless fields of heaven, and see those ponderous orbs rolling therein—when I consider how vast are thy dominions—so wide that an angel’s wing might flap to all eternity and never reach a boundary—I marvel that thou shouldst look on insects so obscure as man. I have taken the microscope and seen the insect upon the leaf, and I have called him small. I will not call him so again; compared with me he is great, if I put myself into comparison with God. I am so little, that I shrink into nothingness when I behold the almightiness of Jehovah—so little, that the difference between the microscopic creature and man dwindles into nothing, when compared with the infinite chasm between God and man. Let the mind rove upon the great doctrines of the Godhead; consider the existence of God from before the foundations of the world; behold him who is, and was, and is to come, the Almighty; let the soul comprehend as much as it can of the Infinite, and grasp as much as possible of the Eternal, and I am sure if you have minds at all, they will shrink with awe. The tall archangel bows himself before his Master’s throne, and we shall cast ourselves into the lowest dust when we feel what base nothings, what insignificant specks we are, when compared with our all-adorable Creator.

For meditation: Nothing is too big for God (Proverbs 30:4); nothing is too small for God (Proverbs 30:24-28). What is man? Both weak and wicked (Proverbs 30:2,3,32). But God still cares (Proverbs 30:5).

Sermon no. 156

4 October (1857)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Confession and absolution

October 3, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.” Luke 18:13

Suggested Further Reading: 1 John 1:5-2:2

The Greek explains more to us than the English does; and the original word here might be translated—“God be propitiated to me a sinner.” There is in the Greek word a distinct reference to the doctrine of atonement. It is not the Unitarian’s prayer—“God be merciful to me;” it is more than that—it is the Christian’s prayer, “God be propitiated towards me, a sinner.” There is, I repeat it, a distinct appeal to the atonement and the mercy-seat in this short prayer. Friends, if we would come before God with our confessions we must take care that we plead the blood of Christ. There is no hope for a poor sinner apart from the cross of Jesus. We may cry, “God be merciful to me,” but the prayer can never be answered apart from the victim offered, the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world. When thou hast thine eye upon the mercy-seat, take care to have thine eye upon the cross too. Remember that the cross is, after all, the mercy-seat; that mercy never was enthroned, until she hung upon the cross crowned with thorns. If thou wouldst find pardon, go to dark Gethsemane, and see thy Redeemer sweating blood in deep anguish. If thou wouldst have peace of conscience, go to Gabbatha, the pavement, and see thy Saviour’s back flooded with a stream of blood. If thou wouldst have the last best rest to thy conscience, go to Golgotha; see the murdered victim as he hangs upon the cross, with hands and feet and side all pierced, as every wound is gaping wide with misery extreme. There can be no hope for mercy apart from the victim offered—even Jesus Christ the Son of God. Oh, come; let us one and all approach the mercy-seat, and plead the blood.

For meditation: Confession of sins is a totally useless practice unless we go straight to God, the only one who can forgive us, pleading Christ crucified, the only valid reason for us to be forgiven. But when we come in God’s way, we can come to him confidently (Hebrews 10:19-22).

Sermon no. 216

3 October (1858)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The blood of the everlasting covenant

October 2, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“The blood of the everlasting covenant.” Hebrews 13:20

Suggested Further Reading: Hebrews 9:15-26

With regard to Christ, his precious blood shed in Gethsemane, in Gabbatha and Golgotha, is the fulfilment of the covenant. By this blood sin is cancelled; by Jesus’ agonies justice is satisfied; by his death the law is honoured; and by that precious blood in all its mediatorial efficacy, and in all its cleansing power, Christ fulfils all that he stipulated to do on behalf of his people towards God. Oh, believer, look to the blood of Christ, and remember that there is Christ’s part of the covenant carried out. And now, there remains nothing to be fulfilled but God’s part, there is nothing for thee to do; Jesus has done it all; there is nothing for free will to supply; Christ has done everything that God can demand. The blood is the fulfilment of the debtor’s side of the covenant, and now God becomes bound by his own solemn oath to show grace and mercy to all whom Christ has redeemed by his blood. With regard to the blood in another respect, it is to God the Father the bond of the covenant. When I see Christ dying on the cross, I see the everlasting God from that time, if I may use the term of him who ever must be free, bound by his own oath and covenant to carry out every stipulation. Does the covenant say, “A new heart will I give you, and a right spirit will I put within you?” It must be done, for Jesus died, and Jesus’ death is the seal of the covenant. Does it say, “I will sprinkle pure water upon you and you shall be clean; from all your iniquities will I cleanse you?” Then it must be done, for Christ has fulfilled his part.

For meditation: The very character of God doubles the reliability of his purposes and promises (Hebrews 6:13-18).

Sermon no. 277

2 October (1859)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Stanley – Inheriting God’s Promises

October 1, 2013 broboinhawaii 1 Comment

Hebrews 6:11-12

The Lord wouldn’t have made all the promises in the Bible if He didn’t want to give His children great blessings. Yet we cannot be presumptuous and simply assume such benefits automatically belong to us. So how can we claim God’s promises with the expectation that He will take pleasure in answering our petitions?

There are certain questions we must ask in order to test the needs we bring before our heavenly Father. These include:

• Does this promise meet my personal need or desire?

• Am I asking with a spirit of submissiveness to His will?

• Can God fulfill this request without harming another person or interfering with His will in someone else’s life?

• Does the Holy Spirit bear witness to my spirit that the petition pleases God?

• Will God be honored by fulfilling this?

• Does my request to claim this promise contradict God’s Word in some way?

• If God fulfills this promise, will it further my spiritual growth?

Once we have satisfactorily answered these questions, inheriting God’s promises depends on three requirements. First, we need to have faith. Our Father wants us to trust Him, and He rewards those who do (Gen. 15:6; Heb. 11:6).

Second, we must be obedient to whatever we know is His will for us—we’ll never attain His best if we knowingly disobey. And third, we must have patience and be willing to wait for the Lord’s perfect timing. Doing these things is well worth our while, considering the blessings He longs to give us.

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The remembrance of Christ

October 1, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“This do in remembrance of me.” 1 Corinthians 11:24

Suggested Further Reading: Luke 22:14-20

Our Saviour was wiser than all our teachers, and his remembrancers are true and real aids to memory. His love tokens have an unmistakable language, and they sweetly win our attention. Behold the whole mystery of the Lord’s table. It is bread and wine which are lively emblems of the body and blood of Jesus. The power to excite remembrance consists in the appeal thus made to the senses. Here the eye, the hand, the mouth find joyful work. The bread is tasted, and entering within, works upon the sense of taste, which is one of the most powerful. The wine is sipped—the act is palpable; we know that we are drinking, and thus the senses, which are usually clogs to the soul, become wings to lift the mind in contemplation. Again, much of the influence of this ordinance is found in its simplicity. How beautifully simple the ceremony is—bread broken and wine poured out. There is no calling that thing a chalice, that thing a paten, and that a host. Here is nothing to burden the memory—here is the simple bread and wine. He must have no memory at all who cannot remember that he has eaten bread, and that he has been drinking wine. Note again, the deep relevance of these signs—how full they are of meaning. Bread broken—so was your Saviour broken. Bread to be eaten—so his flesh is meat indeed. Wine poured out, the pressed juice of the grape—so was your Saviour crushed under the foot of divine justice: his blood is your sweetest wine. Wine to cheer your heart—so does the blood of Jesus. Wine to strengthen and invigorate you—so does the blood of the mighty sacrifice.

For meditation: We forget him when we absent ourselves from his table without good cause; we forget him when we attend the Communion Service as an optional add-on. “Remember Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:8).

Sermon no. 2

1 October (Preached 7 January 1855)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Love to Jesus

September 30, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“O thou whom my soul loveth.” Solomon’s Song 1:7

Suggested Further Reading: Psalm 103

The Christian, if he had no Christ to love, must die, for his heart has become Christ’s. And so if Christ were gone, love could not be; then his heart would be gone too, and a man without a heart is dead. The heart, is it not the vital principle of the body? And love, is it not the vital principle of the soul? Yet there are some who profess to love the Master, but only walk with him by fits, and then go abroad like Dinah into the tents of the Shechemites. Oh, take heed, ye professors, who seek to have two husbands; my Master will never be a part-husband. He is not such a one as to have half of your heart. My Master, though he be full of compassion and very tender, hath too noble a spirit to allow himself to be half-proprietor of any kingdom. Canute, the Danish king, might divide England with Edmund the Ironside, because he could not win the whole country, but my Lord will have every inch of thee, or none. He will reign in thee from one end of the isle of man to the other, or else he will not put a foot upon the soil of thy heart. He was never part-proprietor in a heart, and he will not stoop to such a thing now. What saith the old Puritan? “A heart is so little a thing, that it is scarce enough for a sparrow’s breakfast, and ye say it be too great a thing for Christ to have it all.” No, give him the whole. It is but little when thou weighest his merit, and very small when measured with his loveliness. Give him all. Let thy united heart, thy undivided affection be constantly, every hour, given up to him.

For meditation: The members of the Godhead are the only joint-owners of the Christian. May God teach us his way—that our hearts may be united and wholly for him (Psalm 86:11-12).

Sermon no. 338

30 September (1860)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Declension from first love

September 29, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” Revelation 2:4

Suggested Further Reading: John 15:9-14

There are some people who always live upon what they have been. I speak very plainly now. There is a brother in this church who may take it to himself; I hope he will. It is not very many years ago since he said to me, when I asked him why he did not do something—“Well, I have done my share; I used to do this, and I have done the other; I have done so and so.” Oh, may the Lord deliver him, and all of us, from living on “has beens!” It will never do to say we have done a thing. Suppose, for a solitary moment, the world should say, “I have turned round; I will stand still.” Let the sea say, “I have been ebbing and flowing these many years; I will ebb and flow no more.” Let the sun say, “I have been shining, and I have been rising and setting for many days; I have done this enough to earn me a goodly name; I will stand still;” and let the moon wrap herself up in veils of darkness, and say, “I have illuminated many a night, and I have lighted many a weary traveller across the moors; I will shut up my lamp and be dark for ever.” Brethren, when you and I cease to labour, let us cease to live. God has no intention to let us live a useless life. But mark this; when we leave our first works, there is no question about our having lost our first love; that is sure. If there be strength remaining, if there be still power mentally and physically, if we cease from our office, if we abstain from our labours, there is no solution of this question which an honest conscience will accept, except this, “Thou hast lost thy first love, and, therefore, thou hast neglected thy first works.”

For meditation: Past love is no substitute for present expressions of it (Philemon: 5-7,20). Present work is no guarantee that love cannot be lost in the future (Philemon: 24; 2 Timothy 4:10).

Sermon no. 217

29 September (Preached 26 September 1858)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The great Supreme

September 28, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Ascribe ye greatness unto our God.” Deuteronomy 32:3

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

In Protestant countries there is a very strong tendency to priestcraft still. Though we do not bow down and worship images, and do not professedly put our souls into the hands of priests, yet, I am sorry to say it, there is scarce a congregation that is free from that error of ascribing greatness to their minister. If souls are converted, how very prone we are to think there is something marvellous in the man; and if saints are fed and satisfied with marrow and fatness, how prone we are to suppose that the preacher has something about him by which these wondrous things are done; and if a revival takes place in any part of the vineyard, it matters not in what denomination, there is an aptness in the human mind to ascribe some part of the glory and the praise to the mere human agency. Oh, beloved, I am sure that every right-minded minister will scorn the thought. We are but your servants for Christ’s sake. We speak to you, as God helps us, what we believe to be God’s truth; but ascribe not to us any honour or any glory. If a soul is saved, God from first to last has done it. If your souls are fed, thank the Master; be respectful and grateful to the servant as you will be, but most of all thank him who puts the word into the mouths of his servants, and who applies it to your heart. “Oh, down with priestcraft!” even I myself must down with it. “Down with it!” I cry. If I myself like Samson fall beneath its roof, let me fall myself and be crushed, well content in having pulled down or contributed to remove one solitary brick in that colossal house of Satan. Take care, friends, that you put no honour upon any man that you ought to have ascribed unto his Sovereign. “Ascribe ye greatness unto our God.”

For meditation: Why are you using these daily readings? We should thank God for Spurgeon, but many go too far and venerate Spurgeon himself. He reminds us that he too was a man (Acts 10:26) and that the glory belongs not to him but to his and our God (Psalm 115:1).

Sermon no. 367

28 September (1856)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The mysteries of the brazen serpent

September 27, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:14,15

Suggested Further Reading: John 12:20-36

Let each of us who are called to the solemn work of the ministry remember, that we are not called to lift up doctrine, or church governments, or particular denominations; our business is to lift up Christ Jesus and to preach him fully. There may be times when church government is to be discussed, and peculiar doctrines are to be vindicated. God forbid that we should silence any part of truth: but the main work of the ministry—its every day work—is just exhibiting Christ, and crying out to sinners, “Believe, believe, believe on him who is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.” And let it be remembered, that if the minister preaches Christ plainly, that is all he has to do; if with affection and prayer he preaches Christ fully, if there were never a soul saved—which I believe would be impossible—he would have done his work, and his Master would say, “Well done.” I have gone away from this hall, after preaching upon various doctrines, and though many have complimented me, foolishly, I have said to myself, “I can but groan that I had such a subject at all.” And at another time, when I have been faltering in my delivery, and committed a thousand blunders in my speech, I have gone away as happy as a prince, because I have said, “I did preach Christ.” There was enough for sinners to be saved by; and if all the papers in the world should abuse me, and all the men in the world should say ‘cry him down’; he will still live and still breathe as long as he feels in himself, “I have preached to sinners, and Christ has been preached to them, so as they could understand and lay hold on him and be saved.”

For meditation: “We would see Jesus” (John 12:21) is not just something to say to the preacher, but something to pray for the preacher (Colossians 4:3,4).

Sermon no. 153

27 September (1857)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – His name—the Counsellor

September 26, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor.” Isaiah 9:6

Suggested Further Reading: Proverbs 8 (which was read earlier in the same service)

Tried child of God, your daughter is sick; your gold has melted in the fire; you are sick yourself, and your heart is sad. Christ counsels you, and he says, “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, he will sustain thee; he will never suffer the righteous to be moved.” Young man, you that are seeking to be great in this world, Christ counsels you this morning. “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not.” I shall never forget my early years. I was ambitious; I was seeking to go to college, to leave my poor people in the wilderness that I might become something great; and as I was walking that text came with power to my heart; “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not.” I suppose about forty pounds a year was the sum total of my income, and I was thinking how I should make both ends meet, and whether it would not be a great deal better for me to resign my charge and seek something for the bettering of myself, and so forth. But this text ran in my ears, “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not.” “Lord,” said I, “I will follow thy counsel and not my own devices;” and I have never had cause to regret it. Always take the Lord for your guide, and you shall never go amiss. Backslider! You that have a name to live, and are dead, or nearly dead, Christ gives you counsel. “I counsel thee to buy of me, gold tried in the fire and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed.” And sinner! You that are far from God, Christ gives you counsel. “Come unto me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Depend on it, it is loving counsel. Take it.

For meditation: God has promised to guide his children and to keep an eye on them (Psalm 32:8). His guidance has a sure foundation and a great advantage over the thoughts and intentions of men (Psalm 33:10,11). We can seek his guidance right where we are; isn’t it strange that we can so often go to him last of all?

Sermon no. 215

26 September (1858)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Stanley – Jesus, Our Life Preserver

September 25, 2013 broboinhawaii 1 Comment

John 3:16-18

Picture a muddy river, swollen with rain and rushing over rocks. You’ve fallen into that dirty water and cannot fight the current for long. Your head goes under once, then twice, and both times you come up sputtering after swallowing some of the filth. A third dunking might kill you. Suddenly, from the shore, someone throws a life preserver, which floats past your chest. Will you grab it?

The answer seems obvious—of course you would! But too often people drowning in the world’s fast-moving current refuse to grab onto the spiritual life preserver: Jesus Christ. He died on the cross for all of humanity, but individuals have a responsibility in salvation. A person must recognize his or her own helplessness and acknowledge the need for Christ. That means the new Christian accepts Jesus’ sacrifice as true and personal, believing that there is no other way to be rescued.

It isn’t necessary to understand everything about faith and the Bible in order to be saved—God will ensure that His children learn whatever they need from the Holy Spirit. However, it is critical to realize that we cannot save ourselves.

Can you point to a time in your life when you received Jesus Christ as your Savior? God is calling, longing for you to recognize your need for Him and to pray for rescue from sin. He is faithful to answer by saving you and making you blameless before Him.

God is offering you a life preserver and waiting to pull you to eternal safety. The choice is yours. Will you choose Christ and live?

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – A divided heart

September 25, 2013 broboinhawaii 1 Comment

“Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty.” Hosea 10:2

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:4-12

If we would provoke the anger of the Most High and bring down trying providences on the churches, we have nothing to do but to be divided in our hearts and all will be accomplished. If we wish that every vial may empty out its ill, and that every vessel may withhold its oil, we have but to cherish our bickerings till they become animosities; we have but to nurse our animosities till they become hatreds, and all the work will be fully completed. And if this be the case in the church at large, it is peculiarly true in those various sections of it which we now call Apostolic Churches. Oh, my brethren, the smallest church in the world is potent for good when it has but one heart and one soul; when pastor, elders, deacons, and members, are bound together by a threefold cord that cannot be broken. Then are they mighty against every attack. But however great their numbers, however enormous their wealth, however splendid may be the talents with which they are gifted, they are powerless for good the moment they become divided amongst themselves. Union is strength. Blessed is the army of the living God, in that day when it goes forth to battle with one mind, and when its soldiers as with the tramp of one man, in undivided march, go onwards towards the attack. But a curse awaits that church which runs to and fro and which, divided in itself, has lost the main stay of its strength with which it should batter against the enemy. Division cuts our bowstrings, snaps our spears, houghs our horses, and burns our chariots in the fire. We are undone the moment the link of love is snapped. Let this perfect bond be once cut in twain and we fall down, and our strength is departed. By union we live, and by disunion we expire.

For meditation: Believers are not to try to create “unity” with those who preach another gospel, but we are urged to maintain the unity that already exists between true believers (Ephesians 4:3; Philippians 1:27). What would somebody have to report about your church (and your own contribution in it)?

Sermon no. 276

25 September (1859)

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The duty of remembering the poor

September 24, 2013 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

“Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.” Galatians 2:10

Suggested Further Reading: James 2:1-17

If you do not help the one that you see has the greatest need, I am afraid the love of God dwelleth not in you. It is a duty we owe to the poor of the Lord’s flock, and we reap many advantages we should not have if we had not to remember the poor. Now, allow me to press home this obligation: why should we remember the poor? I shall not urge it upon the ground of common philanthropy and charity; that were a too mean and low way of addressing Christian men, although even they perhaps might be benefited by it. I shall urge it in another way. “Remember the poor,” because they are your Lord’s brethren. What! Do you not feel, like David, that you would do anything for Jonathan’s sake? And if he hath some poor sick son, some Mephibosheth, lame in his feet, wilt thou not seat him at thy table, or give him a maintenance, if thou canst, seeing that Jonathan’s blood is in his veins? Remember, beloved, the blood of Jesus runs in the veins of poor saints; they are his relatives, they are his friends; and if that move thee not, remember, they are thy friends too. They are thy brethren if thou art a child of God; they are allied to thee; if they are sons of God, so art thou, and they are brethren of thine. What! Let thy brother starve? If thou canst, wilt thou not relieve thy brother’s necessity, not shield him from the cold, not ward off hunger, not provide for his needs? Oh! I know thou lovest Jesus; I know thou lovest the friends of Jesus, and I know thou lovest thine own family; and, therefore, thou wilt love thy poor brethren, wilt thou not? I know thou wilt; thou wilt relieve them.

For meditation: Do you discriminate against some of your brothers and sisters in Christ? Your heavenly Father doesn’t (Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 6:9).

Sermon no. 99

24 September (Preached 25 September 1856)

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