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D.L. Moody

Dwight Lyman Moody (1837 - 1899). American evangelist, publisher, and founder of Moody Bible Institute, born in Northfield, Massachusetts, to a poor Unitarian family. Leaving home at 17, he worked as a shoe salesman in Boston, converting to Christianity in 1855 through his Sunday school teacher. Moving to Chicago, he founded a Sunday school for street children, growing it to 1,500 attendees by 1860. Without formal ordination, he preached across the U.S. and Britain, holding campaigns with song leader Ira Sankey, drawing millions, including 130,000 in London in 1875. Moody authored books like Heaven (1880) and founded the Chicago Evangelization Society (1889), now Moody Bible Institute, training thousands of missionaries. Married to Emma Revell in 1862, they had three children. His practical, love-focused sermons bridged denominations, influencing figures like Billy Graham. He established Northfield Conferences, fostering global missions, and raised funds for Chicago’s YMCA. Moody’s tireless work, delivering over 100 sermons annually, transformed 19th-century evangelicalism. His maxim, “If this world is going to be reached, I am convinced it must be done by men and women of average talent with hearts on fire,” drives his enduring legacy.
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Sermon Summary
D.L. Moody shares a poignant legend about a little girl in Egypt who, facing the threat of death from the destroying angel, sought assurance of her safety through the blood on her family's doorposts. Despite her father's assurance, her desire for certainty led them to discover that the blood had not been applied, leaving her vulnerable. Once the blood was sprinkled, she was safe, illustrating the necessity of being covered by Christ's sacrifice for true security. Moody emphasizes the importance of ensuring that we are protected in Christ, as the little girl learned the vital lesson of faith and assurance.
A Child Legend
There is a beautiful legend told about a little girl who was the first-born of a family in Egypt, when the destroying angel swept through that land, and consequently who would have been a victim on that night if the protecting blood were not sprinkled on the doorposts of her father's house. The order was that the first-born should be struck by death all through Egypt. This little girl was sick, and she knew that death would take her, and she might be a victim of the order. She asked her father if the blood was sprinkled on the door-posts. He said it was, that he had ordered it to be done. She asked him if he had seen it there. He said no, but he had no doubt that it was done. He had seen the lamb killed, and had told the servant to attend to it. But she was not satisfied, and asked her father to go and see, and urged him to take her in his arms and carry her to the door to see. They found that the servant had neglected to put the blood upon the posts. There the child was exposed to death until they found the blood and sprinkled it on the posts, and then it was safe. See to it that you are safe in Christ.
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Dwight Lyman Moody (1837 - 1899). American evangelist, publisher, and founder of Moody Bible Institute, born in Northfield, Massachusetts, to a poor Unitarian family. Leaving home at 17, he worked as a shoe salesman in Boston, converting to Christianity in 1855 through his Sunday school teacher. Moving to Chicago, he founded a Sunday school for street children, growing it to 1,500 attendees by 1860. Without formal ordination, he preached across the U.S. and Britain, holding campaigns with song leader Ira Sankey, drawing millions, including 130,000 in London in 1875. Moody authored books like Heaven (1880) and founded the Chicago Evangelization Society (1889), now Moody Bible Institute, training thousands of missionaries. Married to Emma Revell in 1862, they had three children. His practical, love-focused sermons bridged denominations, influencing figures like Billy Graham. He established Northfield Conferences, fostering global missions, and raised funds for Chicago’s YMCA. Moody’s tireless work, delivering over 100 sermons annually, transformed 19th-century evangelicalism. His maxim, “If this world is going to be reached, I am convinced it must be done by men and women of average talent with hearts on fire,” drives his enduring legacy.