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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.
Sermon Summary
C.H. Spurgeon emphasizes the dire consequences for sinners who reject Christ, drawing a stark comparison between the suffering of Jesus, the innocent substitute, and the fate awaiting the unrepentant sinner, referred to as the 'dry tree.' He warns that if God did not spare His own Son in the face of sin, He will certainly not spare those who remain in their unregenerate state. Spurgeon vividly illustrates the torment and despair that will befall those who are forsaken by God, urging listeners to trust in Jesus to escape the wrath to come. The sermon serves as a powerful call to repentance and faith in Christ, highlighting the urgency of turning to Him for salvation.
If They Do These Things in a Green Tree
Among other interpretations of this suggestive question, the following is full of teaching: "If the innocent substitute for sinners, suffer thus, what will be done when the sinner himself --the dry tree--shall fall into the hands of an angry God?" When God saw Jesus in the sinner's place, He did not spare Him; and when He finds the unregenerate without Christ, He will not spare them. O sinner, Jesus was led away by His enemies: so shall you be dragged away by fiends to the place appointed for you. Jesus was deserted of God; and if He, who was only imputedly a sinner, was deserted, how much more shall you be? "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" what an awful shriek! But what shall be your cry when you shall say, "O God! O God! why hast Thou forsaken me?" and the answer shall come back, "Because ye have set at nought all My counsel, and would none of My reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh." If God spared not His own Son, how much less will He spare you! What whips of burning wire will be yours when conscience shall smite you with all its terrors. Ye richest, ye merriest, ye most self-righteous sinners--who would stand in your place when God shall say, "Awake, O sword, against the man that rejected Me; smite him, and let him feel the smart for ever"? Jesus was spit upon: sinner, what shame will be yours! We cannot sum up in one word all the mass of sorrows which met upon the head of Jesus who died for us, therefore it is impossible for us to tell you what streams, what oceans of grief must roll over your spirit if you die as you now are. You may die so, you may die now. By the agonies of Christ, by His wounds and by His blood, do not bring upon yourselves the wrath to come! Trust in the Son of God, and you shall never die.
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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.