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C.H. Spurgeon
Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834 - 1892). British Baptist preacher and author born in Kelvedon, Essex, England. Converted at 15 in 1850 after hearing a Methodist lay preacher, he was baptized and began preaching at 16, soon gaining prominence for his oratory. By 1854, he pastored New Park Street Chapel in London, which grew into the 6,000-seat Metropolitan Tabernacle, where he preached for 38 years. Known as the "Prince of Preachers," Spurgeon delivered thousands of sermons, published in 63 volumes as The New Park Street Pulpit and Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, still widely read. He founded the Pastors’ College in 1856, training over 900 ministers, and established Stockwell Orphanage, housing 500 children. A prolific writer, he penned classics like All of Grace (1886) and edited The Sword and the Trowel magazine. Married to Susannah Thompson in 1856, they had twin sons, both preachers. Despite battling depression and gout, he championed Calvinist theology and social reform, opposing slavery. His sermons reached millions globally through print, and his library of 12,000 books aided his self-education. Spurgeon died in Menton, France, leaving a legacy enduring through his writings and institutions.
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Sermon Summary
C.H. Spurgeon emphasizes that the construction of God's temple is solely the work of God, who transforms lifeless stones into a living structure through the Holy Spirit. He illustrates this divine process by comparing it to the mythical Orpheus, whose music could move stones, highlighting that it is Christ's word that brings believers together as a holy temple. Spurgeon encourages the congregation to reflect on their own journey of faith, praising God for placing them in the church and binding them to Christ, the cornerstone. He calls for a deeper connection with the Holy Spirit, urging believers to recognize their role in this divine building process. Ultimately, the sermon is a celebration of God's grace in forming a unified body of believers in Christ.
Scriptures
Built Upon One Foundation
God’s temple does not build itself, neither does man build it, but it is the sole work of God. The Spirit of God quarries out of the pit of nature the stones which are as yet dead, separating them from the mass to which they adhered; he gives them life, amid then he fashions, squares, polishes them, and they, without sound of axe or hammer, are brought each one to its appointed place, amid built up into Christ Jesus. The old heathen fabled of the music of Orpheus that it was so sweet that as he poured forth the mellifluous sounds the rocks began to dance around him, and as he continued still to play they piled themselves up into a temple at his bidding. This is true of our Lord Jesus, the music of whose divine word by the Spirit brings us stones from different parts of the fields in which we lay, and fits us together, stone to his stone, till a holy temple in the Lord arises to his praise. May the Holy Ghost work among us in this manner, and may we all become indwelt by the ever-blessed Spirit. As you and I, who have long been brought into the church, think of how we became built upon the foundation, let us praise the hand which laid us in our place; and as we cling closer and closer to the great corner stone to whom we are always coming, let us bless him that the same love which in the beginning cemented us to the corner stone still holds us in our place so firmly that none shall separate us. From a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon entitled "The True Priesthood, Temple And Sacrifice," delivered September 30, 1877
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Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834 - 1892). British Baptist preacher and author born in Kelvedon, Essex, England. Converted at 15 in 1850 after hearing a Methodist lay preacher, he was baptized and began preaching at 16, soon gaining prominence for his oratory. By 1854, he pastored New Park Street Chapel in London, which grew into the 6,000-seat Metropolitan Tabernacle, where he preached for 38 years. Known as the "Prince of Preachers," Spurgeon delivered thousands of sermons, published in 63 volumes as The New Park Street Pulpit and Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, still widely read. He founded the Pastors’ College in 1856, training over 900 ministers, and established Stockwell Orphanage, housing 500 children. A prolific writer, he penned classics like All of Grace (1886) and edited The Sword and the Trowel magazine. Married to Susannah Thompson in 1856, they had twin sons, both preachers. Despite battling depression and gout, he championed Calvinist theology and social reform, opposing slavery. His sermons reached millions globally through print, and his library of 12,000 books aided his self-education. Spurgeon died in Menton, France, leaving a legacy enduring through his writings and institutions.