The Perpetuity of the Gospel
(No. 2636)
INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S DAY, AUGUST 20, 1899.
DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING, MAY
28, 1882.
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Words shall not pass away."
Luke 21:33.
LAST Lord's-Day morning I preached upon the perpetuity of the Law of
God, [Sermon #1660, Volume 28– The Perpetuity of the Law of God]
basing my remarks upon our Lord's words, "For verily I say unto you,
Till Heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass
from the Law till all is fulfilled." Tonight, I am not going to speak
of the Law, but of the Gospel. And, by the term, "the Gospel," I mean
the summary of all that our Lord Jesus Christ spoke when He was here
below. Of that Gospel it may be said, as He, Himself, said of the Law,
that not one jot or tittle of it shall pass away till all is fulfilled.
The Gospel of Christ is not merely the Gospel of yesterday, but, like
Christ Himself, it is "the same yesterday, and today, and forever." It
is not a Gospel simply for this age, or for some other age, a Gospel
which shall, by-and-by, be worn out and cast aside. But when yon blue
heavens shall be folded up, like a worn-out vestment, the Gospel shall
still be as powerful as ever. "Heaven and earth shall pass away," says
our Lord, "but My Words shall not pass away."
I. Without further preface, I remark, first, that THE WORDS OF JESUS
MUST STAND, COME WHAT MAY. If you accept the testimony of Christ
concerning His own Words–and you who are His followers will not
question anything that He says–then this is certain, that the Words of
Jesus must stand forever, come what may.
The major change of Heaven and earth passing away includes all lesser
changes, but whatever alteration may come before the last great change,
Christ's Words shall still stand The world gets more civilized–so I am
told, though, when I read the newspapers, I am not quite sure of it.
The world gets more intelligent–so I am told, though, when I read the
magazines–I mean, the first-class quarterlies–I am not certain that
it is so, for, in that direction, the ignorance appears to me to become
greater every day. I mean the ignorance among the learned and
scientific men, who seem to me, in their discoveries, to wander
continually further and further, not only from that which is revealed
and Infallible, but also from that which is rational and truthful.
But still, the world does alter and, according to its own notion, it is
getting wonderfully near perfection! Was there ever such a century as
the nineteenth? Was there ever such a period of time since the world
began? What is there that we are not doing? Lighting ourselves by
electricity, speaking by means of the lightning, traveling by
steam–what an amazing people we are! Yes, yes, and we are going to do
much greater things than these, no doubt. And many matters which are
now reckoned as mere dreams will probably because accomplished facts in
a few generations! But after these marvels have all come and gone, the
Words of our Lord Jesus Christ will still abide–they will not pass
away! Fashion follows fashion, systems succeed systems, everything
beneath the moon is like the moon, it waxes and wanes and is always on
the change! But come whatever change there may, even if the human race
should reach that wonderful development which some prophesy for it, yet
still, the Words of our Lord Jesus Christ shall not pass away. And when
the greatest alteration of all shall take place and this present
dispensation shall come to an end–and all material things shall be
consumed with fire and be destroyed–yet, even then, there shall remain
above the ashes of the world and all that is therein, the imperishable
Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, for, as Peter says, "The Word of
the Lord endures forever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is
preached unto you."
Why is it that Christ's Words will last in this way? I answer, first,
because they are Divine. That which is Divine will endure. All God's
works will not last forever, but His Words will. He will never retract
anything that He has said. Even Baalim had Light of God enough to
declare. "God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man,
that He should repent: has He said, and shall He not do it? Or has He
spoken, and shall He not make it good?" God has never had, as our
common saying puts it, to "eat His own words," nor will He! And Christ
has never had to retract anything that He has uttered. All His life, He
had not even once to make an apology and say, "I spoke too fast, or too
warmly, or somewhat inaccurately." Everything that He said has stood
and shall stand because the Divinity that is in it makes it
everlasting!
Again, the Words of Christ must stand because they are the Revelation
of the innermost heart of God. This great world, and the sun, and moon,
and stars, reveal God–but not as fully and as clearly as the Son of
God reveals Him. The Incarnate Word is the most grand manifestation of
Deity and the Words of that Eternal Word are the Revelation of the
purpose of God which He formed in His Infinite mind before He made the
world. That which, in the secret counsels of eternity was planned–that
which–
"Ere sin was born, or Satan fell," was devised in the heart of the Most
High–is revealed to us, as far as it may be revealed, in the Words of
the Lord Jesus Christ. God's essential purposes cannot be altered–they
must all be fulfilled. His eternal plan was formed in the foresight of
all generations that shall exist, so it must stand unchanged and,
inasmuch as those purposes and that plan are closely connected with the
Words of Christ and, indeed, are made known to us by His Words,
therefore the Words of Christ must stand forever.
Further, the Words of Christ must live even when Heaven and earth have
passed away because they are pure Truth of God. Everything that is
absolutely and purely true must be abiding and enduring. See how long
solid silver lasts. You may buy plated goods for use in your house,
but, after a time, in the process of wearing you begin to see the baser
metal underneath. But if you have real silver, hall-marked, it will
last your lifetime. David truly said, "The Words of the Lord are pure
words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times."
Their surface does not wear off and reveal the dross beneath, for there
is none! All is pure throughout. Impurity breeds decay–error is
corruption–every evil thing carries within it the seeds of its own
death. But God's Truth has no corruption in it. It is the living and
incorruptible Seed which, therefore, lives and abides forever. That
which is perfectly pure will not ferment because it contains within
itself no germs of decay. Nor shall it pass away, but it shall live
forever. Our Lord Jesus Christ spoke nothing but pure, unalloyed
Truth–the very Truth of God and, therefore, it shall stand fast
forever.
And that Christ's Words shall live eternally, we do believe, again,
because no power can prevent it. What power is there that can prevent
Christ's Words from being triumphant? Do you hear the roar from the pit
of Hell as that question is asked? The devil and his legions of fallen
spirits say that they will prevent the triumph of the Words of Christ
and, whereas He has declared that His Kingdom shall come, they conspire
to prevent its coming. But Christ has already broken the head of the
dragon, He has trampled the old serpent beneath His feet and His
Omnipotence is greater than Satan's potency. The devil may be mighty,
but Christ is Almighty, and Hell shall suffer dire defeat at the hand
of the Crucified Savior! As for the wicked men upon this earth, they
often league themselves together and take counsel "against the Lord,
and against His Anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and
cast away their cords from us." You know how futile are all their
efforts, for the Psalmist says, "He that sits in the heavens shall
laugh. The Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak to
them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure. Yet have I set
My King upon My holy hill of Zion."
There is no power that can effectually resist the Words of Christ.
"Where the word of a king is, there is power," but where the Word of
God is, there is Infinite power! What He says must be done. Before He
said, "Let there be light," there was not a spark amid all earth's
gloom that could help to make the day! There was nothing lying here
that could have created the light and yet the darkness fled before that
fiat of God! And so, today, if there is nothing on earth to help the
fulfillment of Christ's Word, He has said to this poor dark world, "Let
there be light," and that light, which He has kindled, is growing
brighter and brighter–and shall increase unto the perfect day. O
devils in Hell, can you blot out that light? Impossible! Christ's Word
must stand!
And yet once more, Christ's Word must stand because His honor is
involved in its permanence. If He had to alter anything He said, it
would be manifest that He had made mistakes which He must rectify. I
often get books in which there is a slip of paper containing errata
fastened at the beginning. They are said to be printers' blunders, but
I should not wonder if they are also the mistakes of the writer. But
there they are and I have to take a pencil and make these corrections
in the volume. There are no errata in the Words of Christ, nor can
there be any corrections in anything that He has said. David's
declaration applies to all the Words of Jesus. "The Law of the Lord is
perfect." Christ's Words are all they should be, no less and no more,
and cursed shall that man be who shall add to or take from them! There
cannot be any alteration in them, for that would be to dishonor
Christ's wisdom. Alteration, indeed! That would make it appear that
Christ trifled while He was here, or that He said what He must
necessarily unsay and that He was, after all, but an experimenter as to
truth, getting as near it as He could and afterwards correcting His
mistakes, like a physician who does not understand a disease and who
gives a medicine which drives his patient too far one way, and then
gives him another drug which brings him back again, but never
completely cures him! Christ never has to act in that fashion. He knew
what He meant and He said what He meant–and that which He said, and
that which He meant shall stand even when, like withered figs that drop
from the tree the stars shall fall from their places, the sun shall be
turned into blood and the moon shall become black as a sackcloth of
hair! It must be so and, therefore, all you who believe in Jesus,
believe firmly in this double declaration that He has made, "Heaven and
earth shall pass away, but My Words shall not pass away."
II. Now, secondly, THIS DECLARATION APPLIES TO ALL CHRIST'S WORDS–not
merely to some of them, but to all, for it is left with an intentional
indefiniteness which makes it refer to all that He said–"My Words
shall not pass away."
This declaration applies, then, to the Doctrinal teaching of Christ.
Whatever Doctrine Christ taught, either Himself, personally, or by His
Apostles guided by the Spirit of God, is definite, distinct, immovable
Truth of God. There are many ministers, nowadays, who think that they
must shift their doctrinal landmarks and there are others who have no
landmarks at all. They believe something, or everything, or nothing–it
is difficult to tell which–and their common cry is, "We must be
charitable!" I have known many people who were willing to be charitable
with other people's money, and I have known others who are charitable
with Doctrines that are not theirs to give away, for they are Christ's
Doctrines–but these supposed custodians of them care so little for
them that they offer to give them away in any quantity! But a faithful
steward of Christ's Gospel will not do so. He who loves Christ and
wishes to honor Him, keeps Christ's Words, and treasures them up!
I have heard of this body of divinity and that, but the body of
divinity that I believe in is the body of Jesus Christ! And the true
divinity, the real theology, is that wondrous Logos, the Incarnate Word
of God, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! If we will take Jesus, and
Him, only, to be our Leader, there are a great many ways that we shall
never go–and there are a great many things which are done by different
sects of professing Christians which we shall not do, as we cannot see
that Christ ever did anything of the sort! And if He did not, neither
will we. That is a good rule for all Christians which I saw in one of
our Orphanage schoolrooms–"What would Jesus do?" There cannot be a
better guide than that for Believers, for our text is true with regard
to Doctrine, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Words shall not
pass away." I am often said to be a very old-fashioned, narrow-minded
sort of person and I have not the slightest objection to the
accusation. I certainly am not new-fashioned and do not intend to be,
for "the old is better" and, in theology, there is nothing new that is
true, and nothing true that is new! The Truth of God is as old as the
everlasting hills and to that I desire to keep even to the end, and I
trust that you, also, will be of the same mind.
Next, we have the Words of Jesus, not only about Doctrine, but He has
given us plain practical commands. The Master taught a wonderful system
of ethics and to that system we are to cling with the same tenacity
that should characterize our hold on the Doctrines that Christ taught.
Brothers and Sisters, let us never get away from such a Divine teaching
as this–"I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use
you and persecute you." Let us not only love one another, but let us
seek to do good unto all men as we have opportunity, especially to such
as are of the household of faith. Be it our daily delight to cast out
all malice and unkindness from our hearts, that the Law of Love may be
fulfilled in us, "who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
You may depend upon it that there will never be any improvement upon
the teaching of Christ! There have been some persons who have tried to
improve upon it, but they have made a signal failure of all their
attempts. His ethical teaching–His teaching of morals–has impressed
even some of those who have not accepted His Doctrines, or even
believed in His Divinity! They have been astonished at the purity, the
holiness, the love which Jesus Christ inculcated in the Laws which He
laid down for the guidance of His disciples.
But I must press on and remind you that the promises of Christ shall
stand forever Heaven and earth shall pass away, but His promises shall
not pass away. Is not that a blessed Truth of God? He said, "Come unto
Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Come along with you, then, poor laboring and heavy laden Souls, for He
will give you rest! Heaven and earth shall pass away, but He will give
you rest if you come to Him. And He has said, "He that believes and is
baptized shall be saved." Come along with you, then! Obey both His
commands–first, believe, and then be baptized, for, though Heaven and
earth shall pass away–you shall be saved! There are many things which
may be but actions. Like the phantom visions of a night, they may
dissolve, but you shall be saved, that is a sure thing, that is certain
beyond all question! The Lord Jesus has promised such great things to
His people that I could keep you here all night if I were to try to
repeat those gracious Words of promise which streamed out of His lips!
Here is one of the sweetest of them–"All that the Father gives Me
shall come to Me; and he that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out."
If you come to Him, He will not in any wise cast you out! He must, He
will receive you! Heaven and earth may pass away, and they shall pass
away in due time, but never shall a soul that comes to Jesus be
rejected by Him! Oh, that many of you would avail yourselves of that
promise this very hour!
Dear aged Friend, you are getting very feeble and you have passed
through a great many changes, but that promise has not been altered all
the while! Do you recollect when your mother told you about Christ when
you were a curly-headed boy? "Ah," you say, "it is too late, now!" No,
my dear Friend, no! Heaven and earth have not passed away yet, and that
promise has not passed away–you may still come to Christ, so come and
welcome, for it is still written, "He that comes to Me I will in no
wise cast out." "He is able, also, to save them to the uttermost that
come unto God by Him, seeing He ever lives to make intercession for
them." Trust His promise even now! Bow your head in the pew and
silently seek the Ever-Blessed One and He will be found of you, for His
Word is as sure to you as it was to me–as sure to you as it has been
to tens of thousands who, in different times, have tried it and found
that promise true!
But remember, also, that as every Word of promise from Christ shall
stand, so shall every Word of prophecy. There is a whole Book of
Revelation which I do not understand, but which I fully believe. I am
very glad to find something in the Bible which I cannot comprehend, but
which I may believe, for I do not call that faith which limits its
belief to what it can understand. If you have any little children, you
delight to see the way in which they trust you when they cannot make
out what you are doing, though they are sure that you are doing right.
I want you, dear Friends, to have just that kind of faith in the Book
of Revelation–it is all true, although you cannot interpret all its
mysteries. And it will all come true–every word of it–in God's good
time! The Lord shall come, the Lord shall reign, the Lord shall judge,
the Lord shall justify and glorify His people–and the Lord shall bid
the ungodly depart from Him under the curse. I pray that we may all be
helped to believe every Word of it.
When I read the Bible, I like to read it in the spirit of the little
boy whose mother told him something, but his schoolmates laughed at him
for believing it. They asked him how he knew that it was true and he
said that his mother told him so, and his mother never told a lie. They
tried to prove that it could not be so, but he said, "Look here, my
mother said so, and it is so if it isn't so." And if I find anything in
the Word of God–and somebody with wonderful wisdom tells me that it
cannot be so, he is quite sure of it–I laugh his "cannots" into
oblivion and reply–"It is so if it isn't so! Your supposed proof is
nothing to me! If God has said it, and all the tongues that ever wagged
should deny it, I would still say, 'Let God be true and every man a
liar.'" Hold then, dear Friends, to the Words of Christ even though you
do not always understand them.
I must also remind you that every Word of threats that Jesus Christ has
spoken is true. Oh, that we could have seen His face and heard the very
tones of His voice! There must have been an inexpressible sweetness and
an ineffable tenderness about the speech of Jesus Christ. All those who
heard Him speak knew that He loved them. And the publicans and sinners,
the poor pariahs, the off-casts, those who were scorned by everybody
else, drew near to hear Him because they felt that there was sympathy
towards them in that great heart of His. Yet, did you ever notice–you
must have noticed it, that never man spoke such terrible words of
threatening to the ungodly as this Man spoke? It was Jesus who spoke of
the worm that never dies and of the fire that never shall be quenched!
It was Jesus who spoke of destroying both body and soul in Hell! It was
He who said many of the most terrible things about future punishment
that were ever uttered, such as that parable of the rich man who "died
and was buried; and in Hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments,
and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and
said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue, for I am
tormented in this flame."
When you hear men trying to soften down the threats of the Scriptures,
do not believe that love to souls suggests such a course of action–it
often is the proof of true love that it can speak harsh things! If a
man comes and tells you very pleasant things about yourself, beware of
him–he is not your friend! But the man who can warn you, who can point
out your fault and your folly–who can run the risk of losing your
esteem by indicating your danger–that is the one who has a sincere
affection for you! And a wise man will choose such a friend as that.
Whatever anyone may think or say, there is not a terrible Word that
ever fell from the Savior's lips which will not stand! Though you do
not like it, you cannot alter it–it will not be selected by your likes
or dislikes. "He that believes not shall be damned." You call that a
hard saying? Regardless, it is true, or Christ would not have said it.
It must have cost Him much inward anguish to utter such a sentence as
that! It must have been a sort of mental crucifixion to Him to speak as
He did about the terrors of the world to come. And you can be you sure
that they are not less awful than He described, not less horrible than
He depicted them! So, whatever any may say by way of toning down His
threats, reject their lies, for Heaven and earth shall pass away, but
the Words of Christ shall not pass away.
III. Thirdly, and lastly, I want to show you that THIS TRUTH HAS A
BEARING UPON US ALL.
First, I am sure that it has a relation to the preacher. My text
innately concerns me and all who are called to be ministers of the
Gospel. Dear Brothers, we have to preach the same Gospel that our Lord
Jesus Christ preached, and no other. I am thankful that I do not know
any other Gospel. Long ago I came to Paul's resolve and, "I determined
not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified."
I stick to that, and that is what all of us must do if we would please
our Master! There is no progression in the Truth of God, itself. We
progress in our knowledge of what Christ said, and in our understanding
of it, but the Truths that He uttered remain just the same as they were
in His days. You know that when your little children go down to the
seaside, they build tiny castles and houses, and make gardens in the
sand–but they are all washed away when the tide rolls over them. I
should not like to preach a theology of the kind that is being
constantly washed away, leaving me to start afresh with some more sand.
The Eddystone Lighthouse has stood gloriously, and the reason why
another has to be built is because the rock has given way under it–the
lighthouse, itself, is all right. We thank God that when we build upon
what Christ says, we build on a Rock that will not give way under us!
And if we are as steadfast as the old lighthouse, and not a stone of us
will stir, we shall be perfectly justified by the equal steadfastness
of that Truth of God upon which we build! There is no stirring that
rock which is formed of what Christ said. The earth may not only quake,
but melt. And the unpillared vault of Heaven that has stood so firm
these many ages–even it shall come down with a crash! But no Word of
Jesus Christ shall ever be dissolved or pass away! We must stick to the
old Gospel, then. It sufficed for our fathers and our grandfathers, and
it will suffice for our grandchildren if the world stands so long as to
see them also grow up to preach it!
This text also has a bearing upon Church members, especially upon you
very timid souls who, now and then, get afraid that everything good is
coming to an end. I meet with some dear old souls, of both sexes, who
are very nervous about what is coming to pass. They are afraid that
dreadful times are coming. Yes, no doubt they are, but there is a
sinful timidity which does dishonor to the power and Truth of God.
There have always been, in all ages, some Latimers and Luthers who had
no fear for God's Truth. People complained that they were very dogmatic
but they did not care what was said about them–they were probably just
as happy whatever the world said!
Luther had one very special friend among the German princes and someone
asked the Reformer, "Suppose that he should withdraw his protection
from you, where would you hide?" "Beneath the broad shield of Heaven,"
he answered. And Luther spoke wisely. He would not feel that he was
dependent upon any man, but upon God alone. I wish, my poor trembling
Friend, that you had something of his holy courage. Do not get into
that doubting state of mind again! Heaven and earth shall pass away, so
wait till you see them all going! And when they do go, just sit still
and sing–
"Then should the earth's old pillars shake, And all the wheels of
nature break, Our steady souls should fear no more, Than solid rocks
when billows roar."
But, next, our text has a bearing on all Believers. Dear Friends, if
Christ's Words shall never pass away, let us believe them to be true to
ourselves. Are any of you persecuted? Do not give way for a single
moment! Stand to your colors! Never be ashamed to acknowledge your
Lord. Remember how He said, "Who are you, that you should be afraid of
a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as
grass; and forget the Lord your Maker, who has stretched forth the
heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and has feared
continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he
were ready to destroy?" Hold you to Christ, whose Words shall never
pass away.
Are you very sick and weak, or are you getting very poor? Well, your
health and your property, too, will pass away, but Christ's Words will
never pass away. Are you dying? Christ's Words will never die or pass
away–die with them in your heart! When I went, last week, to see one
of the members of this Church who is very ill, I had a little of my own
teaching given back to me. This dear Brother said to me, "Do you
remember saying to us, years ago, 'What time I am afraid, I will trust
in You,' is a third-class carriage, but it is in the Gospel train, and
it will take you to Heaven"? And you added, "Why do you not go in the
first-class carriage–'I will trust, and not be afraid'?" I commend
that first-class carriage to all of you! "I will trust, and not be
afraid." Let faith expel fear and so travel to Heaven first-class! You
well may do so, for there is no cause to be afraid.
If any of the Words of Christ could pass away with this wind, and that
wind, and the other wind, oh, dear, what a card-house we would live in!
But if they all stand firmly forever–as they do–then why and,
therefore, should we indulge the slightest fear? One reason why some of
you do not rest in Christ as you should is because you do not get right
down flat on to His Words and trust wholly to them. You know what the
slave said when his master asked him why he was so confident about
salvation. He answered, "Massa, you try to stand, but Sam fall flat
down on de promise, and when he is flat down on de promise, he can't
fall any lower." Just so! Then fall flat on the promise and if you lie
there, clinging and resting there, alone, then Heaven and earth shall
pass away, but not the Words on which you are trusting!
Now, last of all, this is a word to sinners. What a message my text has
for those of you who do not love Christ, those of you who are
undecided! Christ's Words shall not pass away–what then? This is the
only Gospel that you will ever hear–the last train is about to start.
If you do not go by that, there is no other that will carry you to
Heaven, "for there is no other name under Heaven given among men,
whereby we must be saved." The Gospel will never change its character.
Are any of you waiting till it does, like the countryman who said he
would cross the river when all the water had run by? There will never
be any easier way to Heaven than there is at this moment! I verily
believe that some people, by delay, make the road to Heaven harder for
themselves than it would otherwise be. If they are ultimately saved, it
is more difficult for them to trust to Christ when they have been long
delaying. Even mercy seems, sometimes, to act like Benjamin Franklin
did when a man came into his shop to buy a book, but wasted the
bookseller's time by his foolish delay. The man asked, "What is the
price of this book, Sir?" "Four shillings," said Franklin. "It is
rather high," said the man, "I will not take it." He waited about ten
minutes and then he asked, "What now, really, will you take for that
book?" "Five shillings," said Franklin. "No," said the customer, "you
asked only four shillings just now." Franklin replied, "Sir, you have
taken up ten minutes of my time attending to you, so that makes the
price of the book one shilling more. It is five shillings, now, but if
you do not buy it quickly, it will be more." There was some common
sense in that mode of dealing! And you will truly find, in spiritual
matters, that there is nothing gained by delay. But there isincreased
sin, increased hardness of heart and even an increased difficulty in
yielding the soul to Christ!
The best time for any of you to come to Jesus is just now! You can
never have a fairer opportunity than that which lies before you at the
present moment. I am sure of it, because God's wisdom always picks the
best opportunity–and what does God's wisdom say? "Today if you will
hear His voice, harden not your hearts." And yet again, "Behold, now is
the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." If Christ's
Words are to stand, there will be no other Gospel ever presented to
you. If Christ's Words are to stand, why should you delay? Sometimes,
when I have been returning from preaching away from here, I have seen
people outside the theater as I have gone by, quite a crowd of them,
and I have asked a friend why they were waiting. "Oh," he has answered,
"they are expecting to get in at half price." Well, now, you cannot
expect anything of that kind in the matter of salvation, for the
original charge is "without money and without price," and it never can
be any lower than it is now! Then why not come at once?
I came to Jesus Christ when I was 15 years of age and I wish I had come
to Him 15 years before if it had been possible. Oh, that I should ever
have lived a single minute without the sweet knowledge of salvation by
Jesus Christ! It is not a thing to be put off! God grant that you may
no longer put it off! You have done too much of that already, so make
haste and come to Christ this very moment!
Let me earnestly entreat you not to be looking out for some larger
possible hope that may reach you after death. That is a terrible
delusion! I pray you, risk not your soul upon it! Heaven and earth
shall pass away, but Christ's Words shall not pass away and, as I have
already reminded you, He has said, "He that believes not shall be
damned." And so he will be and there is nothing but that awful doom for
him. You have your choice. If you trust in Christ, you shall have
eternal glory. If you will not have Christ as your Savior, you shall
have everlasting punishment. There is no other hope for you. I pray God
to lead you to come to Christ at once. Oh, that you would not hesitate,
since He invites you! Oh, that you would not tarry, since that were to
insult Him! May His blessed Spirit now compel you to come in, that the
house of His mercy may be filled! All you have to do is to trust Him!
You have not to be doers until frstyou have trusted to what He has
done. Then He will make you doers! Come empty! Come sinful! Come
hard-hearted! Come just as you are! Tarry not to cleanse or mend, but,
just as you find yourself, rest on Jesus! Fall flat on His promise!
Depend upon the merit of His blood and the power of His ever-living
plea! God help you, now, to do this, for His dear name's sake! Amen.
EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: PSALMS 20,21.
The 20th Psalm is a prayer for the King–not only for David or Solomon,
but for "great David's greater Son"–the true King of the Church. As if
the Church saw Jesus going forth to His work, she offers up a prayer
for Him.
Psalm 20:1. The LORD hear you in the day of trouble; the name of the
God of Jacob defend you. And so it came to pass, in that dread night in
Gethsemane, Jesus "was heard in that He feared." The God of wrestling
Jacob heard the cries of His dear Son and defended Him, or supported
Him, as it is in the marginal reading.
2. Send you help from the sanctuary, and strengthen you out of Zion.
And you know how there came, from yonder heavenly Jerusalem, an angel
strengthening Him. The celestial messenger stood at His side amid the
gloom of the olive garden and brought Him comfort and succor from God's
right hand–
"His earnest prayers, His deepening groans Were heard before angelic
thrones. Amazement wrapped the sky! 'Go, strengthen Christ!' the Father
said! The astonished seraph bowed his head And left the realms on
high."
3. Remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah.
And so He did. There was never such acceptance given to any burnt
sacrifice as was given to our Divine Lord when He offered up Himself!
4. Grant you according to your own heart, and fulfill all your counsel.
Is it not written, "Prayer also shall be made for Him continually; and
daily shall He be praised"? Here, then, is a suitable prayer for you to
present on behalf of the Lord Jesus–that God would grant Him according
to His own heart and fulfill all His counsel!
5. We will rejoice in your salvation. Come, Brothers and Sisters, let
us make this verse true! And even if we have anything to sigh over, let
us lay it aside while we now devote ourselves to the happy work of
rejoicing in the glorious salvation of our Lord and King!
5-9. And in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD
fulfill all your petitions. Now know I that the LORD saves His
anointed; He will hear him from His holy Heaven, with the saving
strength of His right hand. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses:
but we willremember the name of the LORD our God. They are brought down
and fallen: but we are risen and stand upright. Save, LORD: let the
king hear us when we call What a blessing it is that our King hears us
when we call upon Him! He is full of sympathy with all His people, for,
in the time of His sojourn on earth, He often knew what it was to plead
with His Father. And as God heard Him, then, so does He, Himself, hear
us. All glory be to His blessed name! The 21st Psalm views the King as
having ended his battle and achieved his victory.
Psalm 21:1, 2. The king shall joy in Your strength, O LORD; andin Your
salvation how greatly shall he rejoice! You have given him his heart's
desire, and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah God gave
to Jesus the strength needed to accomplish the work which He came to do
and He is daily giving Him to see of the travail of His soul that He
may be satisfied.
3. For you meet him with the blessings of goodness. They go before Him
like scouts or forerunners! Wherever Jesus comes, the blessings of
goodness fly before Him to the sons of men.
3. You set a crown of pure gold on his head. Let us crown Him afresh,
tonight, with our poor garlands of praise, while God sets a crown of
pure gold upon His head!
4. He askedlife of You, and You gave it to him, even length of days
forever and ever. And because He lives, we shall also live! The Father
has given Him to have life in Himself and hence He communicates that
life to us who believe in Him.
5. His glory is great in Your salvation: honor and majesty have You
laid upon him. Heaped it on Him. There is no one so worthy of honor as
our Lord Jesus is! None are so majestic as the Man of Sorrows who once
bowed His head to death on His people's behalf.
6. For You have made him most blessed forever: You have made Him
exceedingly glad with Your Countenance. The Father rewards Him for all
His service–"You have made Him most blessed forever." We cannot
imagine how great is the joy of Christ as His Father smiles upon
Him–"You have made Him exceedingly glad with Your Countenance."
7. 8. For the king trusts in the LORD, and through the mercy of the
Most High he shall not be moved. Your hand shall find out all Your
enemies. Oh, what a wonderful prophecy that is! Christ's hand shall
find out all His enemies. If they hide themselves, He shall discover
them. If they cover themselves with chain armor, yet still His hand
will find out their vulnerable parts and touch their very souls until
they melt with fear! "Your hand shall find out all Your enemies." Are
there any of these enemies of Christ here, tonight? If so, not only
will His eyes find them out, but His hands will find them out, too.
8-13. Your right handshall find out those that hate You. You shallmake
them as a fiery oven in the time of Your anger: the LORD shall swallow
them up in His wrath, and the fire shall devour them. Their fruit shall
You destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of
men. For they intended evil against You: they imagined a mischievous
device which they are not able to perform. Therefore shall You make
them turn their back, when You shall make ready Your arrows upon Your
strings against the face of them. Be you exalted, LORD, in Your own
strength: so will we sing and praise Your power