God's grace is greater

Mention any sin you like, and I will assure you upon divine authority that men have committed such sins and have yet been saved. Talk of a deed that has blackened the man’s character for ever, that deed of foul adultery and murder; yet that did not stop God’s love from flowing to David; and even if you have gone that length, and I suppose there is no person here who has gone farther, even that cannot prevent divine love from lighting upon you. As God does not love because there is excellence, so he does not refuse to love because there is sin. Let me select the case of Manasseh; he shed innocent blood very much; he bowed before idols; what was worse, he made his children to pass through the fire to the son of Hinnom, put his own child to death as a sacrifice to the false god, and yet for all that God’s love laid hold upon him, and Manasseh became a bright star in heaven, though once as vile as the lost in hell.

If there be anything in you, then, that makes you think God cannot love you, I reply, Impossible, for surely your sins do not exceed those of the chief of sinners. Paul says he was the chief of sinners, and he meant it; he spoke by inspiration, and there is no doubt he was. Now if the biggest of sinners has passed through the strait gate, there must be room for the next biggest; if the greatest sinner in the world has been saved, then there is a possibility for you and for me, for we cannot be such great sinners as the very chief of sinners. But I will dare to say that even if we were, even if we could exceed Paul, yet even that could be no barrier; for man’s sin, to say the most of it, is but the act of a finite creature, but God’s grace is the act of infinite goodness. God forbid that I should depreciate your offenses, they are loathsome, they are hellish in themselves; still they are only a creature’s deeds, the deeds of a worm that to-day is and to-morrow is crushed; but the grace, the love, and the pity of God, oh! these are infinite, eternal, everlasting, boundless, matchless, quenchless, unconquerable, and therefore the grace of God can overcome and prove itself mightier than your guilt and sin.

From a sermon entitled "Grace Abounding," delivered March 22, 1863. Flickr photo by Keven Law; some rights reserved.

All through the Lamb

Brethren, if we have done anything for Christ, if we have achieved any victories, if in this house any souls have been converted, any hearts sanctified, any drooping spirits comforted, bear witness that it has been all through the Lamb. When we have pictured Christ slaughtered, have described the agonies which he endured upon the cross, when we have tried to preach fully though feebly the great doctrine of his substitutionary sacrifice, have set him forth as the propitiation for sins, then it is that the victories have begun. And when we have preached Christ
ascending up on high, leading captivity captive, and when we have glorified in the fact that he ever liveth to make intercession for us, and that he shall come to judge the quick and dead, if any good has been accomplished it has been through the Lamb — the Lamb slain, or else the Lamb exalted.

From a sermon entitled "Ebenezer!," delivered March 15, 1863. Flickr photo by Tom Godber; some rights reserved.

Unselfish devotion

The spirit of this world is often selfish; it is always a spirit that forgets God, that ignores the existence of a Creator in his own world, the land which he makes fat by his own bounty. Men with God’s breath in their nostrils forget him who makes them live. Now, your spirit should be one of unselfish devotion, a spirit always conscious of his presence, bowed down with the weight, or raised up with the cheer of Hagar’s exclamation — “Thou God seest me;” a spirit which watches humbly before God, and seeks to know his will and to do it through the grace of God given to you. Such a spirit as this, without the drab of one sect, or the phylacteries of another, will soon make you quite as distinct from your fellow men as ever meats and drinks could make the Jews a separate people.

From a sermon entitled "The Clean and the Unclean." Flickr photo by K B; some rights reserved.

Oil of gladness

To Christ the shouts of his people are better than the cheers of the most enthusiastic populace, and to him the lowly offerings of his saints are more acceptable than thousands of gold and silver. Forgive your enemy, and you make Christ glad; distribute of your substance to the poor, and he rejoices; be the means of saving souls, and you give him to see of the travail of his soul; preach his gospel, and you are a sweet savor unto him; go among the ignorant and among the hopeless, and try to lift them up, and you have given him satisfaction. I tell you, brother, it is in your power this very day to break the alabaster box and pour the precious ointment on his head, as did the woman of old, whose memorial is to this day set forth. You can anoint him above all his fellows with the oil of gladness.

From a sermon entitled "The Gladness of the Man of Sorrows," delivered March 8, 1863. Flickr photo by James Jordan; some rights reserved.

Outside the camp

There have been times, and the days may come again, when faithfulness to Christ has entailed exclusion from what is called “society.” Even now to a large extent the true Christian is like a Pariah, lower than the lowest caste, in the judgment of some. The world has in former days counted it God’s service to kill the saints. We are to reckon upon all this, and should the worst befall us, it is to be no strange thing to us. These are silken days, and religion fights not so stern a battle. I will not say it is because we are unfaithful to our Master that the world is more kind to us, but I half suspect it is, and it is very possible that if we were more thoroughly Christians the world would more heartily detest us, and if we would cleave more closely to Christ we might expect to receive more slander, more abuse, less tolerance, and less favor from men. You young believers, who have lately followed Christ, should father and mother forsake you, remember you were bidden to reckon upon it; should brothers and sisters deride, you must put this down as part of the cost of being a Christian. Godly workingmen, should your employers or your fellowworkers frown upon you; wives, should your husbands threaten to cast you out, remember, without the camp was Jesus’ place, and without the camp is yours.

Oh! ye Christian men, who dream of trimming your sails to the wind, who seek to win the world’s favor, I do beseech you cease from a course so perilous. We are in the world, but we must never be of it; we are not to be secluded like monks in the cloister, but we are to be separated like Jews among Gentiles; men, but not of men; helping, aiding, befriending, teaching, comforting, instructing, but not sinning either to escape a frown or to win a smile. The more manifestly there shall be a great gulf between the Church and the world, the better shall it be for both; the better for the world, for it shall be thereby warned; the better for the Church, for it shall be thereby preserved. Go ye, then, like the Master, expecting to be abused, to wear an ill-name, and to earn reproach; go ye, like him, without the camp.

From a sermon entitled "The Procession Of Sorrow," delivered March 1, 1863. Flickr photo by James Jordan; some rights reserved.

The Defender of the Poor

“For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor.”

God will not be absent when his people are on their trial; he will hold a brief for them and stand in court as their advocate, prepared to plead on their behalf. How different is this from the doom of the ungodly who has Satan at his right hand (Psa. 109:6).

“To save him from those that condemn his soul.”

The court only met as a matter of form, the malicious had made up their minds to the verdict, they judged him guilty, for their hate condemned him, yea, they pronounced sentence of damnation upon the very soul of their victim: but what mattered it? The great King was in court, and their sentence was turned against themselves. Nothing can more sweetly sustain the heart of a slandered believer than the firm conviction that God is near to all who are wronged, and is sure to work out their salvation.

O Lord, save us from the severe trial of slander: deal in thy righteousness with all those who spitefully assail the characters of holy men, and cause all who are smarting under calumny and reproach to come forth unsullied from the affliction, even as did thine only-begotten Son. Amen.

From The Treasury of David, exposition of Psalm 109:31. Flickr photo by James Jordan; some rights reserved.

Establish the work of our hands...

“And establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.”

Let what we do be done in truth, and last when we are In the grave; may the work of the present generation minister permanently to the building up of the nation. Good men are anxious not to work in vain. They know that without the Lord they can do nothing, and therefore they cry to him for help in the work, for acceptance of their efforts, and for the establishment of their designs. The church as a whole earnestly desires that the hand of the Lord may so work with the hand of his people, that a substantial, yea, an eternal edifice to the praise and glory of God may be the result. We come and go, but the Lord's work abides. We are content to die, so long as Jesus lives and his kingdom grows. Since the Lord abides for ever the same, we trust our work in his hands, and feel that since it is far more his work than ours he will secure it immortality. When we have withered like grass, our holy service, like gold, silver, and precious stones, will survive the fire.

From The Treasury of David, exposition of Psalm 90:17. Flickr photo by rachel_thecat; some rights reserved.

Sowing for our posterity

“Let thy work appear unto thy servants.”

See how he dwells upon that word servants. It is as far as the law can go, and Moses goes to the full length permitted him, henceforth Jesus calls us not servants but friends, and if we are wise we shall make full use of our wider liberty. Moses asks for displays of divine power and providence conspicuously wrought, that all the people might be cheered thereby. They could find no solace in their own faulty works, but in the work of God they would find comfort.

“And thy glory unto their children.”

While their sons were growing up around them, they desired to see some outshinings of the promised glory gleaming upon them. Their sons were to inherit the land which had been given them by covenant, and therefore they sought on their behalf some tokens of the coming good, some morning dawnings of the approaching noonday. How eagerly do good men plead for their children. They can bear very much personal affliction if they may but be sure that their children will know the glory of God, and thereby be led to serve him. We are content with the work if our children may but see the glory which will result from it: we sow joyfully if they may reap.

From The Treasury of David, exposition of Psalm 90:16. Flickr photo by Paata Vardanashvili; some rights reserved.

He shall throw down every foe

The dragon’s head shall be so completely broken, that he can do nothing but bite his iron bonds and growl out his confession that God is stronger than he. The hosts of hell shall have been so utterly routed, that the deep groans of dismay and shrieks of terror shall be the confession that Omnipotence rules their terrible doom. As for Death, when he shall see his captives all loosed before his eyes; as for the grave, when the key shall be rent from her grip, and all her treasures plucked from her grasp — death and the grave shall both acknowledge that their victory is gone for ever; Christ has been the conqueror, the Son of God who in our nature has already taken away the sting.

There may be to-day some who write their names down as Atheists; there may be others who openly avow that they are the adversaries of God; and throughout the universe there are never wanting those who are hopeful that the issue will turn out as they wish — they are hopeful that wrong will master right; that evil shall drive out good, and darkness extinguish light. But there shall not be one such being left on that great day of victory; it shall be acknowledged even by the lip of despair that the Lord God, “with his own right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.” Blazoned across the sky in lightnings such as the eye of terror has never beheld before; thundered out with trumpet louder than even that which startled the sleeping dead, every tongue in earth and hell shall confess, because every ear hath heard, that the Lord reigneth, and is king for ever and ever.

From a sermon entitled "The New Song," delivered December 28, 1862. Flickr photo by Tom Woodward; some rights reserved.

The Marvel of His Plan

That Deity should willingly submit to be spit upon to redeem those whose mouths vented the spittle! In what book do you read such a wonder as this? We have pictures drawn from imagination; we have been enchanted along romantic pages, and we have marvelled at the creative flights of human genius; but where did you ever read such a thought as this? “God was made flesh and dwelt among us” — he was despised, scourged, mocked, treated as though he were the offscouring of all things, brutally treated, worse than a dog, and all out of pure love to his enemies. Why, the thought is such a great one, so God-like, the compassion in it is so divine, that it must be true. None but God could have thought of such a thing as this stoop from the highest throne in glory to the cross of deepest shame and woe.

And do you think that if the doctrine of the cross were not true, such effects would follow from it? Would those South Sea Islands, once red with the blood of cannibalism, be now the abode of sacred song and peace? Would this island, once itself the place of naked savages, be what it is, through the influence of the benign gospel of God, if that gospel were a lie?

From a sermon entitled "The Greatest Trial On Record," delivered February 22, 1863. Flickr photo by Kappa Wayfarer; some rights reserved.

Covetousness

Brethren, I do solemnly believe, that of all hypocrites, those are the persons of whom there is the least hope whose God is their money. You may reclaim a drunkard; thank God, we have seen many instances of that; and even a fallen Christian, who has given way to vice, may loathe his lust, and return from it; but I fear me that the cases in which a man who is cankered with covetousness has ever been saved, are so few, that they might be written on your fingernail. This is a sin which the world does not rebuke; the most faithful minister can scarce smite its forehead. God knoweth what thunders I have launched out against men who are all for this world, and yet pretend to be Christ’s followers; but yet they always say, “It is not for me.” What I should call stark naked covetousness, they call prudence, discretion, economy, and so on; and actions which I would scorn to spit upon, they will do, and think their hands quite clean after they have done them, and still sit as God’s people sit, and hear as God’s people hear, and think that after they have sold Christ for paltry gain, they will go to heaven.

O souls, souls, souls, beware, beware, beware, most of all of greed! It is not money, nor the lack of money, but the love of money which is the root of all evil. It is not getting it; it is not even keeping it; it is loving it; it is making it your god; it is looking at that as the main chance, and not considering the cause of Christ, nor the truth of Christ, nor the holy life of Christ, but being ready to sacrifice everything for gains’ sake. Oh! such men make giants in sin; they shall be set up for ever as butts for infernal laughter; their damnation shall be sure and just.

From a sermon entitled "The Betrayal," delivered February 15, 1863. Flickr photo by Wolfgang Staudt; some rights reserved.

The Weapon of Prayer

Dear friends, when we are tempted and desire to overcome, the best weapon is prayer. When you cannot use the sword and the shield, take to yourself the famous weapon of All-prayer. So your Savior did. Let us notice his prayer. It was lonely prayer. He withdrew even from his three best friends about a stone’s cast. Believer, especially in temptation, be much in solitary prayer. As private prayer is the key to open heaven, so is it the key to shut the gates of hell. As it is a shield to prevent, so is it the sword with which to fight against temptation. Family prayer, social prayer, prayer in the Church, will not suffice, these are very precious, but the best beaten spice will smoke in your censer in your private devotions, where no ear hears but God. Betake yourselves to solitude if you would overcome.

From a sermon entitled "Gethsemane," delivered February 8, 1863. Flickr photo by mike138 ; some rights reserved.

We must be converted to Christ

Remember, first of all, that Jesus Christ has revealed to you your need. He has told you in express words that you need regeneration. “Except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Enlarging upon the doctrine, he adds — “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven.” He has laid the new birth before you as an imperative necessity. You admit that this is true; your admission that this Book came from God is clearly an assent to this teaching. Why, then, is it that you who have never passed from death unto life, remain contented without that divine change, and are satisfied with moral reformation or outward respectability, while the Book assures you that these will never avail? The Great Master assures you that you must be converted. Hear his express words — “Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

From a sermon entitled "Nominal Christians - Real Infidels," delivered February 1, 1863. Flickr photo by Jason Hunter; some rights reserved.

The Lord is my portion

The character of God is the refuge of the Christian, in opposition to other refuges which godless men have chosen. Solomon suggestively puts the following words in the next verse — “The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit.” The rich man feels that his wealth may afford him comfort. Should he be attacked in law, his wealth can procure him an advocate; should he be insulted in the streets, the dignity of a full purse will avenge him; should he be sick, he can see the best physicians; should he need ministers to his pleasures, or helpers of his infirmities, they will be at his call; should famine stalk through the land, it will avoid his door; should war itself break forth he can purchase an escape from the sword, for his wealth is his strong tower.

In contradistinction to this, the righteous man finds in his God all that the wealthy man finds in his substance, and a vast deal more. “The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I trust in him.” God is our treasure; he is to us better than the fullest purse, or the most magnificent income; broad acres yield not such peace as a well attested interest in the love and faithfulness of our heavenly Father. Provinces under our sway could not bring to us greater revenues than we possess in him who makes us heirs of all things by Christ Jesus.

From a sermon entitled "Our Stronghold," delivered October 26, 1862. Flickr photo by Louise Docker; some rights reserved.

Without me ye can do nothing

It is a doctrine acknowledged by all orthodox Christians and confessed in some form or other by all believers, that without the Spirit of God we are unable to do anything aright, but, nevertheless, I question if any of us have given our full consent to the doctrine of human inability in its fullest bearings. “Without me ye can do nothing,” is a text upon which our life is the sermon; but until its very close it is probable we shall not fully fathom the depth of our own weakness. Brethren, when a ship is in sailing order and in good condition yet she cannot speed on her journey of herself; even though the sails be spread, there is no hope of her making port unless the wind shall blow; if that be so, how much more is it true that if that ship leak, if the worm hath begun to eat her timbers, or if by grazing upon a rock she has done serious damage to her bottom, it is impossible that she should repair her own damage! If her sails be tattered how shall she mend them? If her masts be strained, if any injury whatever be done to her tackling, how shall she be able to recover of herself?

Brethren, you can see the analogy. If the child of God, even when in a healthy state, needs to cry for the divine Spirit, how much more when he has fallen under spiritual decays, or has grievously backslidden does he need the divine hand of the Mighty Carpenter to set him right!

From a sermon entitled "Gracious Renewal," delivered January 25, 1863. Flickr photo by Nevena ; some rights reserved.

A house of prayer and praise

Beloved, the day shall never come when the Church shall cease to be the temple of prayer. The fire upon this altar shall never be quenched day nor night.


"To Him shall constant prayer be made,
And princes throng to crown his head;
His name like sweet perfume shall rise
With every morning’s sacrifice."

There shall never lack a man in our Israel to hold up holy hands, like Moses upon the mountain, that the hosts of God may prevail in the plain below. Elijahs may be taken away, but Elishas shall follow. Apostles may cease their perpetual supplications, but a train of intercessors shall follow in their footsteps. While earth brings forth her harvests, the Church shall yield her sheaves of prayer.

Nor shall praise ever cease; the hallowed hymn, the psalm of victory, the hallelujah of triumphant joy, these shall never be suspended. In the worst days of the Church, even when she assembled in the catacombs and gathered her sons for worship in the caves of the earth, even then she had her hymn of praise, even then they sang of Christ ascended and about to come. The roaring of the sea may cease, the thunders may be hushed, and the spheres may end their song, but the redeemed of the Lord must praise the name of Jehovah world without end.

From a sermon entitled "Broad Rivers And Streams," delivered January 18, 1863. Flickr photo by b k ; some rights reserved.

This world is not our home

Lay not fast hold upon the things of earth. He who is but a lodger in an inn must not live as though he were at home. Keep thy tent ready for striking. Be thou ever prepared to draw up thine anchor, and to sail across the sea and find the better port, for while Jesus beckons, here we have no continuing city. No true wife hath rest save in the house of her husband. Where her consort is, there is her home — a home which draws her soul towards it every day. Jesus, I say, invites us to the skies. He cannot be completely content until he brings his body, the Church, into the glory of its Head, and conducts his elect spouse to the marriage feast of her Lord.

Besides the desires of the Father and the Son; all those who have gone before, seem to be leaning over the battlements of heaven to-night, and calling, “Courage, brothers! Courage, brothers! Eternal glory awaits you. Fight your way, stem the current, breast the wave, and come up hither. We without you cannot be made perfect: there is no perfect Church in heaven till all the chosen saints be there; therefore come up hither.” They stretch out their hands of fellowship; they look with glistening eyes of strong affection upon us, and still again they say, “Come up hither.” Warriors who wear your laurels, ye call us to the brow of the hill where the like triumphs await us. The angels do the same tonight. How they must wonder to see us so careless, so worldly, so hardened! They also beckon us away, and cry from their starry seats, “Beloved, ye over whom we rejoiced when you were brought as prodigals to your Father’s house, ‘Come up hither,’ for we long to see you; your story of grace will be a strange and wondrous one — one which angels love to hear.

From a sermon entitled "The Voice from Heaven," delivered November 23, 1862. Flickr photo by Michael ; some rights reserved.

Summer break

Hello friends! Thanks for your continued support of The Daily Spurgeon. We're now pushing 300 subscribers as well as some 900 users on Facebook. God has increased us greatly in just one short year.

We'll be taking a few days off for the holiday break in the U.S. See you again next week!

Christ, our Companion in suffering

If we had to walk through the darkness alone we should know the very extremity of misery, but having a companion we have comfort; having such a companion, we have joy. It is all black about me, and the path is miry, and I sink in it and can find no standing; but I plunge onwards, desperately set on reaching my journey’s end. It frets me that I am alone, but I hear a voice; (I can see nothing) but I hear a voice which says, “Yea, though I pass through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil.” I cry out, “Who goes there?” and an answer comes back to me — “I, the faithful and true witness, the Alpha and the Omega, the sufferer who was despised and rejected of men, I lead the way;” and at once I feel that it is light about me, and there is a rock beneath my feet, for if Christ my Lord hath been here, then the way must be safe, and must conduct to the desired end. The very fact that he has suffered, then, consoles his people.

From a sermon entitled "A Tempted Savior - Our Best Succor," delivered January 4, 1863. Flickr photo by Jay Miller; some rights reserved.

God will not cast off His people

“For the Lord will not cast off his people.”

He may cast them down, but he never can cast them off. During fierce persecutions the saints have been apt to think that the Lord had left his own sheep, and given them over to the wolf; but it has never been so, nor shall it ever be, for the Lord will not withdraw his love, “neither will he forsake his inheritance.” For a time he may leave his own with the design of benefiting them thereby, yet never can he utterly desert them.

“He may chasten and correct,
But he never can neglect;
May in faithfulness reprove,
But he ne'er can cease to love.”


From the "Treasury of David," exposition of Psalm 94:14. Flickr photo by Pascal Blachier; some rights reserved.

Eternal life comes from God

The eternal life which God gives his people is in no sense whatever the fruit of their exertions; it is the gift of God. As the earth drinks in the rain, as the sea receives the streams, as night accepts light from the stars, so we, giving nothing, partake freely of the grace of God. The saints are not by nature wells, or streams, they are but cisterns into which the living water flows. They are but as the empty vessel; sovereign mercy puts them under the conduit-pipe, and they receive grace upon grace till they are filled to the brim.

He that talks about winning salvation by works; he that thinks he can earn it by prayers, by tears, by penance, by mortification of the flesh, or by zealous obedience to the law, makes a mistake; for the very first principle of the divine life is not giving out, but receiving. It is that which comes from Christ into me which is my salvation; not that which springs out of my own heart, but that which comes from the divine Redeemer and changes and renews my nature. It is not what I give out, but what I receive, which must be life to me.

From a sermon entitled "Life And Walk Of Faith," delivered December 7, 1862. Flickr photo by Flemming Christiansen; some rights reserved.

The fairest of ten thousand

He is the Wonderful, the Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace... Get up from your beds of sloth; rise from your chambers of ease; go forth, go forth to pray, to labor, to suffer; go forth to live in purity, leaving Babylon behind; go forth to walk with him alone, leaving even your kinsfolk and acquaintance if they will not follow with you. Wherefore tarriest thou at home when the King is abroad? “Behold the Bridegroom cometh, come ye forth to meet him...”

Today let your eye rest upon him. Let your eye behold the head that today is crowned with glory, wearing many crowns. Behold ye, too, his hands which once were pierced, but are now grasping the scepter. Look to his girdle where swing the keys of heaven, and death, and hell. Look to his feet, once pierced with iron, but now set upon the dragon’s head. Behold his legs, like fine brass, as if they glowed in a furnace. Look at his heart, that bosom which heaves with love to you, and when you have surveyed him from head to foot exclaim, “Yea, he is the chief among ten thousand, and altogether lovely.”

From a sermon entitled "The Royal Pair In Their Glorious Chariot," delivered November 30, 1862. Flickr photo by Miyuki Utada; some rights reserved.

Joy cometh in the morning

A man who knows that his trials will not last long, can be cheerful under them. If he sees a Father’s hand in the midst of every adversity, and believes that when he is tried he shall come forth like gold from the furnace; if he knows with the Psalmist that “weeping may endure for the night, but that joy cometh in the morning,” why then grief has lost its weight, and sorrow has lost its sting; and while the man weeps he yet rejoices, seeing the rainbow of the covenant painted on the cloud. Happy man, who, under bereavement, under crosses, and losses, can still cast his burden upon God, and can say, “Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation!”

The Christian man is bound to live above his sorrows; he weeps, for “Jesus wept;” he may mourn, for the faithful have been mourners often, but he must not so mourn and weep as to be eaten up with grief; over the tops of the rolling waves he must see the haven of peace, and rejoice evermore.

From a sermon entitled "A Drama In Five Acts," delivered November 23, 1862. Flickr photo by Louise Docker; some rights reserved.

Who is like the Lord?

“Who is like unto the Lord our God?”

The challenge will never be answered. None can be compared with him for an instant; Israel's God is without parallel; our own God in covenant stands alone, and none can be likened unto him. Even those whom he has made like himself in some respects are not like him in godhead, for his divine attributes are many of them incommunicable and inimitable. None of the metaphors and figures by which the Lord is set forth in the Scriptures can give us a complete idea of him; his full resemblance is borne by nothing in earth or in heaven. Only in Jesus is the Godhead seen, but he unhesitatingly declared “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father.”

“Who dwelleth on high.”

In the height of his abode none can be like him. His throne, his whole character, his person, his being, everything about him, is lofty, and infinitely majestic, so that none can be likened unto him. His serene mind abides in the most elevated condition, he is never dishonoured, nor does he stoop from the pure holiness and absolute perfection of his character. His saints are said to dwell on high, and in this they are the reflection of his glory; but as for himself, the height of his dwelling-place surpasses thought, and he rises far above the most exalted of his glorified people.

From the Treasury of David, exposition of Psalm 113:5. Flickr photo by law_keven; some rights reserved.

Christ has borne our punishment

Any theology which offers the pardon of sin without a punishment, ignores the major part of the character of God. God is love, but God is also just — as severely just as if he had no love, and yet as intensely loving as if he had no justice. To gain a just view of the character of God you must perceive all his attributes as infinitely developed; justice must have its infinity acknowledged as much as mercy. Sin must be punished. This is the voice which thunders from the midst of the smoke and the fire of Sinai — “The soul that sinneth it shall die;” “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” “Sin must be punished” is written on the base of the eternal throne in letters of fire; and, as the damned in hell behold it, their hopes are burned to ashes. Sin must be punished, or God must cease to be.

The testimony of the Gospel is not that the punishment has been mitigated or foregone, or that justice has had a sop given it to close its mouth. The consolation is far more sure and effectual; say ye unto the daughter of Zion that “the punishment of her iniquity is accomplished.” Christ hath for his people borne all the punishment which they deserved; and now every soul for whom Christ died may read with exultation — “The punishment of thine iniquity is accomplished.” God is satisfied, and asks no more. Sin deserved God’s wrath; that wrath has spent itself on Christ. The black and gathering clouds had all been summoned to the tempest, and manhood stood beneath the dark canopy waiting till the clouds of vengeance should empty out their floods. “Stand thou aside!” said Jesus — “Stand thou aside, my spouse, my Church, and I will suffer in thy stead.”

From a sermon entitled "A Message From God For Thee," delivered November 16, 1862. Flickr photo by Rosana Prada; some rights reserved.

Though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor

“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich.”

His heart is made of tenderness, his bowels melt with love. In all our afflictions he is afflicted. Since the day when he became flesh of our flesh, he hath never hidden himself from our sufferings. Our glorious Head is moved with all the sorrows which distress the members. Crowned though he now be, he forgets not the thorns which once he wore, amid the splendors of his regal state in Paradise he is not unmindful of his children here below. Still is he persecuted when Saul persecutes the saints, still are his brethren as the apple of his eye, and very near his heart. If ye can find in Christ a grain of selfishness, consecrate yourselves unto your lusts, and let Mammon be your God. If ye can find in Christ a solitary atom of hardness of heart and callousness of spirit, then justify yourselves... But if ye profess to be followers of the Man of Nazareth, be ye full of compassion; he feeds the hungry lest they faint by the way; he bindeth up the broken in heart and healeth all their wounds; he heareth the cry of the needy and precious shall their blood be his sight; therefore be ye also tenderhearted also very affectionate the one toward the other.

From a sermon entitled "Christian Sympathy," delivered November 9, 1862. Flickr photo by Franco Caruzzo; some rights reserved.

Christ has finished the work

All that has to be done to save a soul Christ has done already. There is no more ransom to be paid; to the last drachma he hath counted down the price. There is no more righteousness to be wrought out; to the last stitch he has finished the garment. There is nothing to be done to reconcile God to sinners; he hath reconciled us unto God by his blood. There is nothing wanted to clear the way to the mercy-seat; we have a new and living way through the veil that was rent, even the body of Christ. There is no need of any preparation for our reception on the part of God. “It is finished,” was the voice from Calvary; it meant what it said, “It is finished.” Christ hath finished transgression, made an end of sin, and brought in everlasting righteousness.

From a sermon entitled "Christ - Perfect Through Sufferings," delivered November 2, 1862. Flickr photo by Heather Katsoulis; some rights reserved.

God has spoken

There may be a promise in the Word which would exactly fit your case, but you may not know of it, and therefore miss its comfort. You are like prisoners in a dungeon, and there may be one key in the bunch which would unlock the door, and you might be free; but if you will not look for it you may remain a prisoner still, though liberty is near at hand. There may be a potent medicine in the great pharmacopoeia of Scripture, and you may still remain sick, though there is the precise remedy that would meet your disease, unless you will examine and search the Scriptures to discover what “He hath said.”

Should we not, beside reading Scripture, store our memories richly with the promises of God? We can recollect the sayings of great men; we treasure up the verses of renowned poets; ought we not to be profound in our knowledge of the words of God? The Scriptures should be the classics of a Christian, and as our orators quote Homer, or Virgil, or Horace, when they would clinch a point, so we should be able to quote the promises of God when we would solve a difficulty or overthrow a doubt. “He hath said,” is the foundation of all riches and the fountain of all comfort, let it dwell in you richly as “a well of water, springing up unto everlasting life.”

From a sermon entitled "Never! Never! Never! Never! Never!," delivered October 26, 1862. Flickr photo by Louise Docker; some rights reserved.

Better is a day in your courts

"For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand."

Of course the Psalmist means a thousand days spent elsewhere. Under the most favorable circumstances in which earth's pleasures can be enjoyed, they are not comparable by so much as one in a thousand to the delights of the service of God. To feel his love, to rejoice in the person of the anointed Savior, to survey the promises and feel the power of the Holy Ghost in applying precious truth to the soul, is a joy which worldlings cannot understand, but which true believers are ravished with. Even a glimpse at the love of God is better than ages spent in the pleasures of sense.

“I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”

The lowest station in connection with the Lord's house is better than the highest position among the godless. Only to wait at his threshold and peep within, so as to see Jesus, is bliss. To bear burdens and open doors for the Lord is more honor than to reign among the wicked. Every man has his choice, and this is ours. God's worst is better than the devil's best. God's doorstep is a happier rest than downy couches within the pavilions of royal sinners, though we might lie there for a lifetime of luxury. Note how he calls the tabernacle “the house of my God;” there's where the sweetness lies: if Jehovah be our God, his house, his altars, his doorstep, all become precious to us. We know by experience that where Jesus is within, the outside of the house is better than the noblest chambers where the Son of God is not to be found.

From the Treasury of David, exposition of Psalm 84:10. Flickr photo by Kevin Lau ; some rights reserved.

Citizens of Heaven

What is meant by our being citizens in heaven? Why, first that we are under heaven’s government. Christ the king of heaven reigns in our hearts; the laws of glory are the laws of our consciences; our daily prayer is, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The proclamations issued from the throne of glory are freely received by us, the decrees of the Great King we cheerfully obey. We are not without law to Christ. The Spirit of God rules in our mortal bodies, grace reigns through righteousness, and we wear the easy yoke of Jesus. O that he would sit as king in our hearts, like Solomon upon his throne of gold. Thine are we, Jesus, and all that we have; rule thou without a rival.

From a sermon entitled "Citizenship In Heaven," delivered October 12, 1862. Flickr photo by Misty; some rights reserved.

A word of warning to foolish virgins

We have seen - who has not that has had any experience in the religious world? - we have seen our leaders turn their backs in the day of battle; and our teachers fail to sustain their own character. Ah! And we have the painful conviction that there are others who are not discovered yet, whose sins do not go beforehand unto judgment, but follow after; who are nevertheless tainted at the core. There are the many covetous professors who are as grasping and as grinding as if they never professed to be Christians; and you know that “covetousness is idolatry.” There are the many time-serving Christians, who hold with the world and with Christ too; and ye know that we cannot serve two masters. There are the many secret sinners among Christians, who have their petty vices which come not under human observation, and who, because they are thought to be good, write themselves down among the godly; now we know there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, and woe to them when their secret sins shall be published on the house-tops.

Then we have the legal professors, who trust to their own works, and shall find that the curse of Sinai shall wither them. And what shall I more say? Have we not many who are not so inconsistent that we could put our finger upon any open sin sufficient to deserve excommunication, but who are guilty of enormous spiritual wickedness? They are dead, they bring forth no fruit; their hearts are hard as a millstone with regard to the conversion of sinners; they have not faith of God’s elect; they do not live by faith; they have not the spirit of Christ, and therefore they are none of his. God knoweth we have sought to use all care and diligence in this Church, both to keep out unworthy persons and to cast out unhallowed livers; but, despite all that, we cannot but be conscious, and we tell it you faithfully, that the enemy still continues to sow tares among the wheat. The gold is mixed with the dross and the wine with water: for evil men thrust themselves into the heritage of the Lord. When our muster-roll shall be revised at last, how many out of our more than two thousand members will be found to be base-born pretenders unto godliness! O my brethren, I conjure you, by the precious blood of Christ, which was not shed to make you hypocrites, but shed that a sincere people might show forth His praise; I beseech you, search and look lest at the last it be said of you, “Mene, Mene Tekel, thou art weighed in the balances and found wanting.”

From a sermon entitled "Self-Delusion," delivered October 19, 1862. Flickr photo by Eric Hill; some rights reserved.

Faith Overcomes

The devil cometh out against us; but we are more than a match for him when our faith is firm. Upon the shield of our faith we catch his arrows, and by the sword of our faith we smite him to the very heart. There is no temptation that ever can assail a believer, but faith can certainly supply an antidote. If I believe in Jesus I have his promise that I shall overcome, and I shall overcome, because I believe that promise. Even if I should get beneath the devil’s foot, and he should lift his sword to smite me, if I could say, “Rejoice not over me, O mine enemy, for when I fall yet shall I rise again,” I should rise, and victory would be mine. Faith overcometh even hell itself and its crowned monarch: for defense it is a panoply, and for attack it is our battle-axe and weapons of war.

From a sermon entitled "Faith Omnipotent," delivered October 12, 1862. Flickr photo by Yago Veith; some rights reserved.

The Gospel to every creature

I want to say to every sinner, “You are in a state in which there is nothing morally that can qualify you for being saved, but Jesus Christ meets you where you now are.”

Remember first, that when the gospel was first sent into the world, those to whom it was sent, were manifestly without any moral qualification. Did you ever read the first chapter of Paul’s Epistle to the Romans? It is one of those awful passages in Scripture, not intended to be read in congregations; but to be read and studied in the secrecy of one’s chamber. The apostle gives a portrait of the manners and customs of the heathen world, so awful, that unless our missionaries had informed us, that it is exactly the photograph of life in Hindustan at the present moment, infidels might have declared that Paul had exaggerated.

Heathendom in the time of Paul, was so desperately wicked that it would be utterly impossible to conceive of a sin, into which men had not fallen; and yet, “We turn unto the Gentiles,” said the apostle; and yet the Lord himself commanded, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” What! To Sodomites, whose very smallest sin is adultery, and fornication; to thieves and murderers, to murderers of fathers and mothers? Yes, go and preach the gospel to them! Manifestly, the fact that the world was steeped up to its very throat in the filth of abominable wickedness, and yet the gospel was sent to it, proves that Christ does not seek for any qualification of morality, or righteousness in man, before the gospel is available to him. He sends the Word to the drunkard, to the swearer, the harlot, the vilest of the vile; for such is the gospel of Christ intended to save.

From a sermon entitled "Good News For You," delivered October 5, 1862. Flickr photo by Ron Almog; some rights reserved.

Do all things without disputing

Dispute not with God; let him do what seemeth him good. Dispute not with your fellow Christians, raise not railing accusations against them. When Calvin was told that Luther had spoken ill of him, he said, “Let Luther call me devil if he please, I will never say of him but that he is a most dear and valiant servant of the Lord.” Raise not intricate and knotty points by way of controversy. Remember, you have adversaries upon whom to use your swords, and therefore there is little need that you should turn their edges by dashing at the armor of your fellows. Dispute not even with the world. The heathen philosophers always sought occasions for debate; be it yours to testify what God has told you, but court not controversy. Be not ashamed to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints, but never do it in a spirit of mere debating, never because you wish to gain a victory, but only because ye would tell out what God hath bidden ye reveal.

From a sermon entitled "Believers - Lights In The World," delivered September 28, 1862. Flickr photo by Meena Kadri ; some rights reserved.

Jesus the Beloved

“This,” said the mysterious voice from heaven in the midst of the waters of Jordan, “this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” And again, at the resurrection of Lazarus there came the same voice from heaven, announcing the perpetuity of the Father’s love. None of us can tell how dear Jesus must be to his Father. We have, however, abundant proofs of the fact that he is very near unto him, for he is privy to all his Father’s counsels. From the counsels of the Most High, Christ was never absent.

“When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth: while as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: when he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep: when he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by him, as one brought up with him; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him.”

“Let us make man,” said God, “in our own image,” - calling Christ into creation’s work. “Without him was not anything made that was made,” is the declaration of John the divine. Beside this, we know that everything which is done of the Father by his divine decree is that he may glorify his Son; while, on the other hand, the Son lived and died, and lives again that he may glorify the Father. Such is their mutual interest in one another that we cannot suppose a relationship closer, nor a love more intense than that which exists between the Father and the Son. It were foolish and ridiculous in me to attempt to dive into the awful depths of the divine unity. We know that the Father is one with the Son, and that Jesus is one with Jehovah. The unity of essence is a well so deep, that I cannot expect to find its bottom; and the love which springeth up from this essential unity must be more deep and profound than the wit of man can guess, or than the language of man can utter. I repeat the confession of our ignorance, it is impossible for us to form even a guess of the intensity of the affection that must exist between the eternal Father and Jesus Christ, his Son; since their essential union from which this affection springs is a doctrine beyond our comprehension, and is meekly to be received of our faith. Certainly we know that never was the term “beloved” so full of meaning, never did human word become so divinely rich as when God himself, by the Holy Ghost, applied it to Jesus the beloved of the Father.

From a sermon entitled "Accepted In The Beloved," delivered September 21, 1862. Flickr photo by Miyuki Utada; some rights reserved.

We boast in God alone

“In God we boast all the day long.”

We have abundant reason for doing so while we recount his mighty acts. What blessed boasting is this! it is the only sort of boasting that is bearable. All other manna bred worms and stank except that which was laid up before the Lord, and all other boasting is loathsome save this glorying in the Lord, which is laudable and pleasing.

“And praise thy name for ever.”

Praise should be perpetual. If there were no new acts of love, yet ought the Lord to be praised for what he has done for his people. High let the song be lifted up as we bring to remembrance the eternal love which chose us, predestinated us to be sons, redeemed us with a price, and then enriched us with all the fullness of God.

From the exposition of Psalm 44, verse 8, within "The Treasury of David." Flickr photo by Flemming Christiansen; some rights reserved.

The Messenger of the Covenant

Moses was messenger of the covenant of works, and his face shone, for the ministration of death was glorious; but Christ is the messenger of the covenant of grace. O let his face shine in your esteem, you saints of the Lord, for the ministration of life must be more glorious, far! Christ comes to us to tell us all that God will tell. The revelation of God is Christ. If you would know God, he that has seen Christ has seen the Father. God’s word is Jesus, he speaks fully by him. Would you know the Father’s decree? “I will declare the decree,” saith Christ. Would you know his character? See every attribute of God in the man, Christ. Would you know his designs? See the designs of God effected in the works of Jesus. Would you know in fact all that is knowable of God? Understand that you can see it, not in nature, nor in providence, but in Jesus...

From a sermon entitled "The Messenger of the Covenant," delivered September 7, 1862. Flickr photo by Sharon Mollerus; some rights reserved.

Arise and call upon your God

But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, "What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.” - Jonah 1:5, 6.

Yet further, let us remember that as Jonah was the only man in the ship whose prayer could be of any avail, so the children of God are the only men who can do any real spiritual service to the perishing world. All the cries of the shipmaster and his crew were addressed to the gods of their various countries, who had ears which could not ear, and hands which could afford no aid. Jonah was the only man who worshipped the Lord that made the sea and the dry land; hence, his prayers alone could save the ship. Now, the salvation of the world under God lies with the Church. Christ has finished the atonement; it is for the Church to finish the ingathering. Christ hath paid the purchase-price, and completed redemption by blood; it is for the Church to seek the Holy Spirit, and fully to redeem the world by power. Suppose, then, that you who fear God say, “This is no case of mine; I am not my brother’s keeper;” suppose that you waste opportunities, and throw precious time to the dogs, then the world must go down to its awful doom; but, mark you, its blood shall be upon your skirts.

This generation, under God, must have salvation given to it through our ministry, through our evangelists, through our Sunday Schools, through our missionaries, through our preachings and teachings; and if we do it not, the world will not stay from perishing while we are staying from laboring. Men will not live on until another generation worthier than we are shall have taken our places, but this generation must go down to the tomb, muttering curses between its lips against the faithless, wicked, unbelieving, inactive Church; and we must go down too, to meet the doom of those who had no real faith in Christ, or else they would have had a love for the souls of men; who had not the spirit of Jesus, or else they would with wooing entreaties, and with earnest efforts have brought men to the cross of Christ.

From a sermon entitled "What Meanest Thou, O Sleeper?," delivered September 14, 1862. Flickr photo by Axel Buhrmann; some rights reserved.

God is mighty to save

When God says to a sinner, “Live,” all the devils in hell cannot keep him in the grave. If the Lord should say to a blasphemer here today, “Live,” that blasphemer must become a saint. Saul of Tarsus is on the road to Damascus to arrest the saints of the living God. A strong hand might seize the bridle of his charger and throw him to the ground; but Saul is not to be stopped like this; he will rise from the ground the same Saul, to go to Damascus as bloodthirsty as ever. But see what divine grace can do! A voice from heaven and a light above the brightness of the sun, and Saul is crying out, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” Within three days he is baptized, he becomes a preacher; and Saul that was called Paul becomes a leader in the hosts of the Most High. My Master can do the like today. Mighty to save is he.

From a sermon entitled "Ezekiel's Deserted Infant," delivered September 7, 1862. Flickr photo by Chris Gin; some rights reserved.

God will guide us

In the great and in the little, Jehovah reigneth. Standing in the chariot of providence he holds the reins, and when the coursers seem to be wild and to know no bit or bridle, he guideth them according to his will. O rest thou in this, believer: he shall guide thee with his counsel. But this counsel also represents the written word - his decree is his counsel, his written Word is our counsel, his counsel to us.

Happy is the man who has God’s word always to direct him! What would the mariner be without his compass? What would the Christian be without the Bible? This is the unerring chart, the map in which every shoal is described, and all the channels from the port of destruction to the haven of salvation mapped, and marked by one who has sailed along the sea. Blessed, blessed be thou, O God, that we may trust thee to guide us now and guide us even to the end!

From a sermon entitled "Flesh And Spirit - A Riddle," delivered August 31, 1862. Flickr photo by Louise Docker; some rights reserved.

The sin of oppression

Oppression, too... is another great sin. The prophet speaks of selling the poor for a pair of shoes; and there are such who would grind the widow and the orphan to the last extreme, and make their laborers toil for nought. How many businessmen we have, who never knew what “bowels of mercy” were. Men form themselves into societies, and then exact an outrageous usury upon loans from the unhappy men who fall into their hands. Cunning legal quibbles, and crafty evasions of just debts, often amount to heavy oppression, and are sure to bring down the anger of the Most High.

From a sermon entitled "The Loaded Waggon," delivered August 24, 1862. Flickr photo by Madalena Pestana; some rights reserved.

We need the Holy Ghost

We as a Church, and I may speak freely for my own flock, we long, to see Christ glorified. It is to this end we seek to train up our sons, young men in our much-loved college, that they may go forth as preachers of the Word. We have agencies by which we hope to do something in our generation for our Master, but what is everything we can do without the Holy Ghost? Let us, therefore, pray without ceasing. Oh, without prayer what are the Church’s agencies, but the stretching out of a dead man’s arm, or the lifting up of the lid of a blind man’s eye? Only when the Holy Spirit comes, is there any life and force and power. Cry then mightily unto God, O ye who seek to glorify Christ, for without the Holy Spirit ye utterly fail.

From a sermon entitled "The Holy Spirit Glorifying Christ," delivered August 17, 1862. Flickr photo by Roby Ferrari; some rights reserved.

Attentive to the preaching of the Word

Carry home what of truth you can. Take notes in your heart. And when you have gathered and have your hands full, take care to discriminate. Ruth, we are told, threshed her corn and left the straw behind, and took home the good wheat. You do the same. There is much straw in all our sermons, much that our Master would not have us say, for we are poor, poor creatures, and but fallible like yourselves, but leave the straw behind, and take home the good wheat; and do us this service - do not take home the straw and leave the wheat as some do. There are many foolish gleaners who, if there be one word of ours awry will tell it to our discredit, but our Master’s words they will forget.

From a sermon entitled "A Sermon For Gleaners," delivered August 10, 1862. Flickr photo by Giuseppe Zeta; some rights reserved.

True belief, true discipleship

Probably there are numbers in this assembly to whom the Christian religion has always been a subject of respectful interest; they have never blasphemed the name of Christ; they have not doubted the inspiration of Scripture; nay, they have studied God’s Word; they have given a degree of attention to its doctrines, and they intend yet more fully to examine its revelations. How pleasant and hopeful are such marks of interest, but how far are many of these enquirers from true discipleship for their unhumbled hearts are not obedient to the dictates of the gospel; the cross is to them, too heavy a load to carry; they have not made up their minds to wear “Christ’s yoke;” they had rather see his holiness and see his disciples imitate him, than themselves take up the cross daily and follow him.

My hearers, allow me to remind you very solemnly, that a speculative religion which has curiosity as its impulse, a search after knowledge as its rule, and self-esteem as its root, can never save the soul. It is not for you to criticise, but to repent; it is not for you to judge, but to believe; it is not for you to admire, but to obey; it is not for you to praise and applaud, but cheerfully to bow your necks to imitate and follow Christ. Nothing short of a religion which subjects us to personal service of Christ, which gives us a new heart and a right spirit, and compels us to feel that we are not our own, but bought with a price - nothing short of this will ever give lasting peace of mind, or bring us to the place where we shall see the face of God
with delight.

From a sermon entitled "Christ's Servant - His Duty, And Reward," delivered August 3, 1862. Flickr photo by Francisco Antunes; some rights reserved.

A faithful Creator

With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him? When He balanced the clouds, and laid the foundations for the earth, who taught Him the laws of gravity? Who has weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Was He not alone? No parliament of angels bowed at His right hand, for He created even them. No archangel bowed his head and offered advice to the Most High, for the archangel himself is but a creature. Cherubim and seraphim might sing when the work was over, but help in the work they could not. Look now, what star did the angels make? What spot of earth is the creation of an archangel? Look to the heavens above or to the deeps beneath, where do you see the impress of any hand but God’s, and that hand a solitary one?...

Roll then your burden on your God if you are alone, for alone with Him you have the best of company. If you had the hosts of heaven with you, what would you be without your God? If all the Church were at your back, terrible as an army with banners, your defeat would be certain if the Holy Ghost did not dwell in you. I tell you, man, if all the saints and angels in earth and heaven should unite to speed you in your object, yet, if your God should stand aloof from you, you would labor in vain and spend your strength for nothing. But with Him you shall prevail though all men forsake you.

From a sermon entitled "Creation - An Argument For Faith," delivered July 27, 1862. Flickr photo by Vera & Jean-Christophe; some rights reserved.