Category Archives: Spurgeon

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What Spurgeon Can Teach Us Today

Back in 2012 RTS-Orlando established the Nicole Institute for Baptist Studies in honor of Roger Nicole (1915-2010). Nicole, a founding editorial board member of Christianity Today, was a distinguished visiting faculty member at RTS from 1989 to 2000. The NIBS typically hosts an annual Spurgeon Lecture in April. The Spurgeon Lecture, named after the great Reformed Baptist preacher Charles H. Spurgeon, is designed to equip and inform the audience on a broad range of theological, historical and cultural issues.

In 2013 John Piper delivered the Spurgeon Lection with a message titled, “The Life and Ministry of Charles Spurgeon.” I think the Prince would have been pleased. Watch the lecture below, be amazed, and be encouraged.

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The Preacher’s Private Prayer

The Pastor and Prayer

In preparing to preach this Saturday on Acts 6:1-7 I’ve found the apostles’ prioritization on prayer freshly challenging. And that’s the way it’s supposed to be, right? Which one of us would ever say we don’t desire to grow in devotion to prayer? I need to hear—surely I’m not the only one—this apostolic conviction again and again, “We will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

From Disqualified to Distinguished

Thinking about Acts 6:4 always reminds me of a Spurgeon lecture entitled, “The Preacher’s Private Prayer.” His opening volley to the students will arrest any pastor’s attention. With typical confidence the Prince proclaims,

Of course the preacher is above all others distinguished as a man of prayer. He prays as an ordinary Christian, else he were a hypocrite. He prays more than ordinary Christians, else he were disqualified for the office which he has undertaken. “It would be wholly monstrous,” says Bernard, “for a man to be highest in office and lowest in soul; first in station and last in life.” Over all his other relationships the pre-eminence of the pastor’s responsibility casts a halo, and if true to his Master, he becomes distinguished for his prayerfulness in them all.

You’ll really want to read the rest here—pastoral and spiritual gold awaits. It may just be the most challenging and encouraging thing you do today.

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The Right Mood of Preaching

“I love to preach in such a mood, not as though I was about to preach at all, but hoping that the Holy Spirit would speak through me. . . . Dependence upon God is the flowing fountain of success. That true saint of God, George Muller, has always struck me, when I have heard him speak, as being such a simple, child-like being in his dependence upon God; but, alas! the most of us are far too great for God to use us; we can preach as well as anybody, make a sermon with anybody,—and so we fail. Take care, brethren; for if we think we can do anything of ourselves, all we shall get from God will be the opportunity to try.” – Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry, 183.

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Don’t Be A Drone

“In order to get attention, make your manner as pleasing as it can possibly be. Do not, for instance, indulge in monotones. Vary your voice continually. Vary your speed as well–dash as rapidly as a lightning flash, and anon, travel forward in quiet majesty. Shift your accent, move your emphasis, and avoid sing-song. Vary the tone; use the bass sometimes, and let the thunders roll within; at other times speak as you ought to do generally–from the lips, and let your speech be conversational. Anything for a change. Human nature craves for variety, and God grants it in nature, providence and grace; let us have it in sermons also.” – Spurgeon, Lectures to My Students, 132.

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Keep to the Old-Fashioned Gospel

spurgeon_chair1Back in my soccer playing days it was always interesting to see how guys prepared their mind for the game at hand.

Some kept to a rigid routine driven by superstition, others lost themselves in some Jedi-like “the Force is with you” mental game, and many piped music through their headphones to drown out the world.

Apart from prayer, the way I like to prepare to preach is by reading something from The Prince: Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Sometimes it’s a sermon, other times it’s a lecture on ministry. One of my favorite paragraphs to meditate on comes from his lecture “Sermons – Their Matter.” Maybe it will be just what you need to ascend to the sacred desk with purposeful power.

In [preaching] it must be our aim to use the subject in hand with energy and effect, and the subject must be capable of such employment. To choose mere moral themes will be to use a wooden dagger; but the great truths of revelation are as sharp swords. Keep to doctrines which stir the conscience and the heart. Remain unwaveringly the champions of a soul-winning gospel. God’s truth is adapted to man, and God’s grace adapts man to it. There is a key which, under God, can wind up the musical box of man’s nature; get it, and use it daily. Hence I urge you to keep to the old-fashioned gospel, and to that only, for assuredly it is the power of God unto salvation.

Keep to that old-fashioned path and slay the Devil with the Spirit’s sharp sword.

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The Ablest Man

“Appoint the ablest man to pray, and let the sermon be slurred sooner than the approach to heaven. Let the Infinite Jehovah be served with our best; let prayer addressed to the Divine Majesty be carefully weighed, and presented with all the powers of an awakened heart and a spiritual understanding. He who has been by communion with God prepared to minister to the people, is usually of all men present the most fit to engage in prayer.” (Spurgeon, Lectures to My Students, 59).

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Preachers Need Prayers

Resound Slider NT

In Ephesians 6:19-20 Paul says, “[Pray] also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”

He is in chains in a Roman prison at this time, thus it’s interesting to note he doesn’t ask the Ephesians to pray for his release. Rather, he asks them to pray for him to boldly preach the gospel. Are you in a time of suffering and hardship? It’s not wrong to ask for God to release you from your trial, but don’t forget to ask God to empower you to proclaim the gospel boldly in your suffering. Your chains, like Paul’s, just might be the very vehicles God has ordained for sinners to come to faith in His Son.

WHAT PREACHING MUST BE

If ever there was an illuminating and pointed truth on preaching, it’s Ephesians 6:20. For here we see apostolic teaching on what preaching must be. I wonder what adjectives you want to attach to preaching? Complete this sentence, “I look for preaching that is __________.” What came to mind? Preaching that is short, entertaining, compelling, funny? Or do you, like Paul, long for preaching that is bold. The preaching of the Gospel is the means by which God awakens dead sinners, assaults the kingdom of Satan, and establishes the kingdom of His Son. Such bold preaching will always need prayer. Alistair Begg, a master of boldly proclaiming the mystery of the gospel, said, “The devil is unafraid of prayerless proclamation.” Can God use preaching not saturated with prayer? Sure. But we have no reason to expect He will.

THE FURNACE ROOM

In the latter half of the 19th century five young college students were waiting to hear the great Charles Spurgeon preach when a man walked up and asked, “Gentlemen, let me show you around. Would you like to see the furnace room of this church?” They were not particularly interested, for it was a hot day in July. But they didn’t want to offend the stranger, so they consented. The young men were taken down a stairway, a door was quietly opened, and their guide whispered, “This is our furnace room.” Surprised, the students saw 700 people bowed in prayer, seeking a blessing on the service that was soon to begin in the auditorium above. Softly closing the door, the gentleman then introduced himself. It was none other than Charles Spurgeon.

He was the Prince of Preachers because his people were mighty in praying for his preaching.

Look anywhere in church history and you’ll see behind every powerful preacher is a prayerful people. Do you pray specifically for the preaching ministry of your church? I believe with my whole heart that the power of your church’s pulpit will advance only as far as your prayers for it.

A few weeks ago at IDC we began an informal meeting from 4:30-4:45 to pray for the night’s sermon and preacher. I like to think of it as our own little furnace room. And I take it to be no mere coincidence that after our first Furnace Room gathering a brother in our church, who aspires to pastoral ministry, preached a sermon that was received with unusual force in the congregation.

Preachers need the prayers of their people. Pastor, how can you build a culture in your church where preachers are regularly lifted up in prayer?

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Do You Believe?

02202012_spurgeon

Spurgeon’s timeless address “The Preacher’s Power, and the Conditions for Obtaining It” has truth and wisdom aplenty to challenge any preacher.

Consider this point on faith and preaching:

Beloved, have a genuine faith in the Word of God, and in its power to save. Do not go up into the pulpit preaching the truth, and saying, “I hope some good will come of it” but confidently believe that it will not return void, but must work the eternal purpose of God. Do not speak as if the gospel might have some power, or might have none. God sends you to be a miracle-worker; therefore, say to the spiritually lame, “In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk,” and men will rise up and walk; but if you say, “I hope, dear man, that Jesus Christ may be able to make you rise up and walk,” your Lord will frown upon your dishonouring words. You have lowered Him, you have brought Him down to the level of your unbelief and He cannot do many mighty works by you. Speak boldly; for if you speak by the Holy Spirit, you cannot speak in vain.

Oh, that we could make our people feel that we believe what we are saying!

If you are preaching this weekend, ascend to the pulpit with belief, so that you may have power!

The Gospel is preached in the ears of all—it only comes with power to some. The power that is in the Gospel does not lie in the eloquence of the preacher, otherwise men would be the converters of souls. Nor does it lie in the preacher’s learning, otherwise it would consist in the wisdom of man. . . .

We might preach till our tongues rotted, till we should exhaust our lungs and die, but never a soul would be converted unless there were the mysterious power of the Holy Spirit going with it, changing the will of man! O Sirs! We might as well preach to stone walls as preach to humanity unless the Holy Spirit is with the Word to give it power to convert the soul! – Spurgeon

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Power in Sermon Prep

Powerful Preparation

Every preacher surely knows the feeling. Sunday’s coming and he’s yet to settle on a text or outline for his sermon. He fears he will enter the pulpit void of power.

What’s he to do?

Clearly, he must pray for the fresh winds of the Spirit to inflame his soul and give him full insight into God’s word. But is there anything else that one can do? Any dispositions of the heart necessary for power in preparation?

LET THE POWERFUL PREACHER ADVISE

Spurgeon was, by all accounts, a legendary force of power in the pulpit. You don’t get the label “Prince of Preachers” if you aren’t a Christ-exalting, homiletical hurricane. And he trained his pastoral students to yearn for the power of God in preaching. In an address to the annual pastor’s conference over which he presided, Spurgeon remarked on “The Preacher’s Power, and the Conditions for Obtaining It.”

spurgeon_chair1Spurgeon starts by reminding his audience that Sovereign God of the universe purposes to use weak vessels (preachers) to proclaim His treasured Christ. Therefore, these men must preach “by Divine power, or else be total failures.” From where does such power come? “The supernatural force is the power of the Holy Ghost, the power of Jehovah Himself. It is a wonderful thing that God should condescend to work His marvels of grace through men.” Amen!

The Prince calls preachers to long for such power in public, but to remember that “in order to have power in public, we must receive power in private.” It’s in this part of the address that Spurgeon speaks about receiving power in sermon preparation. He says it’s during sermon preparation “the Lord gives the soul saving message, and clothes it with power; He gives it to certain order of people, and under certain conditions.”

So, what are those conditions for receiving the Spirit’s power during sermon prep?

6 CONDITIONS FOR OBTAINING POWER IN SERMON PREP

  1. A simplicity of heart. The Lord pours most into those who are most empty of self. Those who have least of their own shall have the most of God’s. The Lord cares little what the vessel is, whether golden or earthen, so long as it is clean, and disengaged from other uses.
  2. A great humility of mind. It ought not to take much humility for such poor creatures as we are to sit at the feet of Jesus. We ought to look upon it as an elevation of mind for our spirit to lie prostrate before infinite wisdom. Assuredly, this is needful to the reception of power from God.
  3. A singleness of eye. Such a man, trying to hear what God the Lord shall speak, is all ear. He honestly and eagerly desires to know what God’s mind is, and he applies all his faculties to the reception of the Divine communication. Unless you have but one eye, and that one eye sees Christ and His glory in the salvation of men, God will not use you.
  4. A complete subordination to Him. The best of men, must be altogether subordinate to the Word of the Lord.
  5. A deep seriousness of heart. We are so weak, and these Divine inspirations are so weighty, that we are subdued into awe, and there is no room for levity. Brethren, avoid anything like trifling over sermon-making. Do not regard preparation for the pulpit as a trifling thing; and do not rush upon your holy duties without devout preparation for the hallowed service. Make your waiting upon God a necessity of your calling, and at the same time the highest privilege of it. Count it your joy and honour to have an interview with your Master. Get your message fresh from God.
  6. A sympathy with God. The Lord loves to use a man who is in perfect sympathy with Him. God loves to clasp a sympathizing one to His heart, and then to say, “Go, My child, and work in My Name; for I can trust My gospel in thy hands.” Be with God, and God will be with you. Espouse His cause, and He will espouse yours. There can be no question about this.

This is a well of wisdom from which you can drink as you continue to prepare for this weekend. May you receive power in your preparation!