Sermon of the Week: “Martha and Mary”

By / Apr 27

Have you ever been so caught up with ministry that you forget to slow down and feed your own soul? It is easy to be busy with serving, only to miss out on Christ in the process. Spurgeon points to the story of Martha and Mary to offer insights into this common pitfall, where the former was busying herself with household tasks while the latter prioritized hearing the teaching of Jesus.

Now, Spurgeon acknowledges that Martha was not an enemy of Christ as some may paint her out to be. She was an “earnest woman, a true believer, and an ardent follower of Jesus, whose joy it was to entertain Jesus at the house of which she was the mistress.” Her actions were not objectively sinful, but her priorities were misplaced. Spurgeon correctly identifies that Martha’s primary focus was on the care for temporal needs. Mary, however, was completely enamored with the truth of Jesus. “[Mary] looked at him as a priest, she viewed him as a prophet, she adored him as a king.”

As we follow our risen Lord, it is important that we do not become distracted by temporal acts of service. Sometimes we become so busy in ministries and doing acts for the Lord that we forget to nourish our souls in the Lord’s teachings. “Brethren, there is something better to be studied than the outward, for though this may be aimed at with a single eye to God’s glory, and we judge no man, yet we fear the tendency is to imagine that mere externals are precious in the Master’s sight.” The Lord does not need anything from us. Any service we offer must come from the strength He supplies. Therefore, let us strive to be like Mary, prioritizing the enjoyment of Christ’s teachings above all things.

Excerpt:

To know and to love the gospel is no mean thing. Obedience to Jesus, and anxiety to learn his will so as to please him in all things, are not secondary matters. Contemplation, worship, and growth in grace are not unimportant. I trust we shall not give way to the spirit which despises our Lord’s teaching, for if we do, in prizing the fruit and despising the root we shall lose the fruit and the root too. In forgetting the great well-spring of holy activity, namely, personal piety, we shall miss the streams also. From the sincerity of faith and the fervour of love practical Christianity must arise; and if the food that faith and love feed upon be withdrawn, if sitting at the feet of Jesus be regarded as of secondary consequence, then both strength and will to serve the Lord will decline.

Read the rest of the sermon here.



Intro to the Sermon of the Week: “A Cure for Care”

By / Apr 13

Do you ever struggle with anxious thoughts? Anxiety is an everyday battle for many Christians. How should we respond to cares that cause our muscles to tense up and our minds to race? What promises can we hold to when wracked with worry for yet another sleepless night?

In the 1862 sermon, titled “A Cure for Care”, the Spurgeon describes the “disease” of anxious cares, then heralds the remedy and the Lord’s gracious invitation to cast our cares on Him.

Spurgeon reminds us that sometimes, finding release from anxiety begins with repenting of wrong thinking: “[T]he very essence of anxious care is the imagining that we are wiser than God, and the thrusting of ourselves into his place[.]” As we surrender our efforts to control our circumstances and humbly submit our lives to the sovereignty of God, we are cultivating a space where the peace of God can flow like a river in our hearts.

Our Father in heaven bids us to cast our burdens on Him. “With broad shoulders, with omnipotence as his strength, he says ‘My child, roll thy burden upon thy God.’” How gracious the invitation of the King!

When the world looks at you, do they see someone who is feverishly trying to “keep it together” in their own strength? Or do they see someone who, in their weakness, is leaning on the Almighty God, standing on promises solid as a rock?

Excerpt:

Away then with dark suspicions and anxieties! Is it care about past sin? “The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s dear Son, cleanseth us from all sin.” Is it present temptation? “There hath no temptation happened to you but such as is common to men: but God who is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” Is it future peril? O leave thou that with him, for neither “things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” If you begin to think always of yourself, you must be miserable. Why, it is Christ that makes you what you are before the eyes of God; look then to Jesus in order to find out what you are in God’s esteem. Soul, I say again look at Christ, and not at yourself.

Read the rest of the sermon here.



It Is Finished!

By / Apr 3
When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.  — John 19:30

Let the day unfold in your minds. Christ is brought to the cross; he is nailed fast to the cruel wood. The sun burns him. His brutal wounds increase the fever. God forsakes him. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:47). While he hangs there in mortal conflict with sin and Satan, his heart is broken; his limbs are dislocated. On and on he goes, steadily determined to drink the last dreg of that cup which must not pass from him so his Father’s will be done. At last, he cries, “It is finished!” Christ dies. Hear it, Christians. Hear this shout of triumph as it rings today with all the freshness and force which it had years ago! Hear it from the sacred Word and from the Savior’s lips, and may the Spirit of God open your ears that you may understand what you hear!

What did the Savior mean by “It is finished”? First, that all the emblems, promises, prophecies, and Old Testament sacrifices were now fully realized in him. All the Scripture was now fulfilled. When he said, “It is finished,” the whole book—from the first to the last, in both the law and the prophets—was finished in him. There is not a single jewel of promise or prophecy, from that first emerald which fell on the threshold of Eden to that last sapphire stone of Malachi, which was not set in the breastplate of the true High Priest.

When he said, “It is finished,” Jesus totally destroyed the power of Satan, of sin, and of death—for you. The champion had entered the lists to do battle for our soul’s redemption, against all our foes. He met Sin. Horrible, terrible, all but omnipotent Sin nailed Christ to the cross—but in that deed, Christ nailed Sin also to the tree. There they both did hang together—Sin and Sin’s destroyer. Sin destroyed Christ, and by that destruction Christ destroyed Sin. The words “It is finished” consolidated heaven, shook hell, comforted earth, delighted the Father, glorified the Son, brought down the Spirit, and confirmed the everlasting covenant to all the chosen ones.

Dear friends, once more, take comfort from this finality, for the redemption of Christ’s church is perfected. There is not another penny to be paid for her full release. There is no mortgage upon Christ’s inheritance. Those whom he bought with blood are forever clear of all charges—paid for to the utmost. “It is finished”—finished forever. All those overwhelming debts, which would have sunk us to the lowest hell, have been discharged by the cross. And they who believe in Christ may appear with boldness even before the throne of God itself. “It is finished.” Your sins have received their death blow; the robe of your righteousness has received its last thread. It is done­ —complete, perfect. It needs no addition; it can never suffer any diminution.

O Christian, do lay hold of this precious thought, for it is enough to make you leap though your legs were loaded with irons, and to make you sing though your mouth was mute. Oh, to think that we are perfectly accepted in Christ—that our justification is not partial; it does not go to a limited extent but goes the whole way. Oh, wondrous grace! As far as the east is from the west, so far has God removed our transgressions from us by the death of Christ (Psalm 103:12). This and this alone will put away sin. Therefore in this cross of Christ we glory; yes, and in it alone will we glory evermore.

Reflect

How does the death of Jesus affect you? What do you want to express to the Lord Jesus today? What do you need to believe more firmly, eagerly, joyfully?

Pray

O Lord, the scene of Good Friday is at the same time too painful and too wonderful for my heart. My soul is grieved and gladdened, lamenting and leaping, sorrowful and savoring all that happened on that bloody cross. I rejoice in my Redeemer! The wonder of grace! The freedom of forgiveness! Today, I drink of the sweet nectar of the gospel and say, “Thank you, Jesus!” Amen.

Sources

This is an excerpt from The Risen King: 40 Devotions for Easter with C. H. Spurgeon, edited by Jeff Medders, general editor and fellow of The Spurgeon Library, and visiting professor of Christian Studies at MBTS.



Intro to the Sermon of the Week: “Poverty and Riches”

By / Mar 30

On Sunday evening, March 22nd, 1888, Charles Spurgeon entered the pulpit exhausted. He had constant speaking engagements for the last week and was utterly worn out. The Downgrade Controversy continued to loom over his mind as well. It had now been a year since he sounded the alarm on the growing theological liberalization within the Baptist Union. Rather than addressing the problem, the Union voted to censure Spurgeon the following January. 

Tired and weary, the preacher decided to focus on a simple truth of Scripture that night, something that would offer rest in trying times. He decided to meditate on the poverty of Christ and the riches we gain through Him.

Using 2 Corinthians 8:9 as his guiding text, Spurgeon highlights the unfathomable depths of Jesus’s condescension. The infinite God became finite man–and not a man of any societal stature at that. He was not born into royalty or wealth but was placed into the arms of a modest carpenter and his betrothed. “He might have been born in marble halls, swaying the sceptre of universal empire, and from his birth receiving the homage of all mankind. But instead of that, you know, he was reputed to be the carpenter’s son, his mother was but a humble Jewish maid, and his birthplace was a stable,— poor accommodation for the Prince of the kings of the earth.”

Christ’s condescension did not stop there. His reputation as God was set aside, and He was instead beaten and derided; the world did not give Him the honor that was due. Then His poverty sank to nothing when He gave His own life. “We have, perhaps, never realized the wonder that he ‘who only hath immortality’ did actually die. His spirit departed, he gave up the ghost, the ghost who had been a guest within his body, he gave up that guest, and his body was tenantless, an empty house.”

But praise be to God that Christ’s story does not end in the grave. Three days later, he rose again. Spurgeon brilliantly displays the dichotomous relationship between Christ’s poverty and the riches of those who are saved through Him. He was made finite so that we could become infinite. His reputation was thrown down so that we could be called sons of God. His life was cut short so that we could be given the gift of eternal life. What a comforting and restful thought for a man who had many earthly treasures ripped away in his final years. Spurgeon could rest in the reality that through Christ’s poverty, he and all those who have put their faith in Christ are already given riches beyond measure.

Excerpt:

There was no need that Christ should be poor except for our sakes. Some persons are born poor, and it seems as if, with all their struggles, they could never rise out of poverty; but of our Lord Jesus Christ it can truly be said that “he was rich.” Shall I take you back in thought to the glories of the eternity when, as very God of very God, he dwelt in the bosom of the Father? He was so rich that all he possessed was as nothing to him. He was not dependent upon any of the angels he had created, nor did he rely for glory upon any of the works of his hands. Truly, heaven was his abode; but he could have made ten thousand heavens if he had willed to do so. All the greatest wonders he had ever made were but specimens of what he could make. He had all possibility of inconceivable and immeasurable wealth within his power; yet he laid aside all that, denied himself the power to enrich himself, and came down to earth that he might help us. His poverty was all voluntary; there was a necessity laid upon him, but the sole necessity was his own love. There was no need, as far as he was concerned, that he should ever be poor; the only need was because we were in need, and he loved us so that he would rescue us from poverty, and make us eternally rich.

Read the rest of the sermon here.



“The Utmost Plainness”: How Spurgeon Addressed Sexual Sin from the Pulpit

By / Mar 23

Charles Spurgeon’s reputation as a bold preacher is well-deserved. He preached openly about sin and held nothing back, and he always offered the hope of Christ. This included his approach to sexual sin.

Spurgeon regularly preached against the dangers and temptations of sexual immorality, and he did this with an openness that shocked the Victorian sensibilities of his contemporaries.

Bold and Direct

In a sermon on 1 Corinthians 6:9–11, where Paul warns that “No sexually immoral people… will inherit God’s kingdom,” Spurgeon brought the force of his text to bear on his congregation:

Not necessarily in the bonds of wedlock should we all be, but always in the bonds of purity; and those who sin against that which is pure, in their intercourse with one another, shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Nothing could be more explicit than this inspired declaration of the apostle. If any persons live in lust and uncleanness, God will not permit them to defile his true Church on earth, or to profane his temple above.[1]

In Spurgeon’s day, many would have found sexual immorality to be unacceptable and improper to speak about in the “temple” here below—the church gathered here on earth. But Spurgeon felt a pastoral urgency based upon the fact that unrepentant sexual sinners aren’t permitted in God’s “temple above.” Spurgeon knew that urgent warnings against any kind of sexual immorality were always necessary.

Spurgeon continued to address those who may have felt that the subject at hand was inappropriate for a minister of the gospel:

It is quite possible that I may be speaking to some people upon whose ears this message grates very harshly,—for all sorts of hearers come to this place,—and they will be the first to say, “The preacher should not mention such a subject.” My answer to that remark is: Then, you should not commit such iniquity, and give me cause to speak of it. As long as there are, in the world, sinners of this character, there must be servants of the Lord Jesus Christ faithful enough to pluck the velvet from their mouths, and to speak with the utmost plainness about them and to them.[2]

Did you catch that? Spurgeon’s response to people who told him to stop preaching about sexual sin was basically: “Stop giving me a reason to preach about it.”

As long as sexual sinners were believing the lies of the world, the flesh, and the devil, Spurgeon wasn’t going to hold back. The cost was too high.

What Can Pastors Learn from Spurgeon on Preaching in a Sexually Confused World?

1. Preach Boldly about Sin.

As watchmen on the wall, we must warn people about the dangers of sexual immorality.

Recent data shows that nearly a quarter of all practicing Christians view pornography at least once a week. More than half of practicing Christians view it regularly.[3] We are fooling ourselves and our people if we think our church is exempt from this catastrophe. People in your church have “given you cause to speak” about this issue. Will you speak up?

While pornography use is rampant in the church, talking about it is not. The vast majority (84%) of pornography users say that no one is helping them grow and fight this habitual sin; half say that no one knows that they regularly view pornography.[4] We must bring God’s truth—the truth that sets people free.

Speak up, pastor. People need it.

2. Preach Clearly about Righteousness.

As shepherds of the sheep, we must instruct our people to put on purity, not just put off sexual immorality. The world is not afraid to speak openly about sexual topics; we should not blush to joyfully and boldly proclaim God’s design for sex within marriage.

3. Preach Centrally about Christ.

Sexual sinners need more than behavior change.

Broken marriages need more than communication tips.

Those enslaved to pornography need more than internet filters.

People need Christ. Preach the forgiving, freeing, and transforming power of Christ crucified and raised for all kinds of sinners.

That’s where Paul goes in 1 Corinthians 6, “And some of you used to be like this. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (v. 11). Spurgeon explained:

The Lord seems to have said, “I will stretch out my hand, and I will save some of the very chief of sinners, in order that, throughout all time, it may be known that my gospel can effect the salvation of all sorts of sinners, even the most degraded. However depraved and fallen they may be, they cannot have gone beyond the reach of the gospel of my Son.” Is not that a glorious fact?

Oh! When I think of some of you big sinners, whom the Lord has saved under my ministry, I stand on this platform, and, with the utmost confidence, cry to the guiltiest sinners who may be present, “Come along with you, whoever you may be; I have a gospel that is just suited to you.” I can say, “Come, you who are moral and refined, who have never gone into any gross sin; here is a gospel just suitable for you;” but I am glad also to be able to add, “Come along, you who have raked the very kennels of hell with your iniquities, here is that which can wash you, and make you white as the newly-fallen snow.”[5]

A Resource to Help

My book, Sex and Self-Forgetfulness (2026, New Growth Press), is a 30-day journey for married couples to discover and live out God’s design for unifying sex. This book is a guide to help couples overcome common sexual struggles (including past and current sexual sin, one-sided sex, past sexual abuse, and more) by living out the love of Christ for one another. It’s available now wherever books are sold.

I hope it helps you talk about sexual purity and God’s gift of sex in a more open and constructive way to bless your own marriage and the marriages in your church.

——————

Doug Hanna (M.Div., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is a pastor, creator of @SpurgeonBooks on Instagram (the account that 12 of your friends probably follow), and author of Sex and Self-Forgetfulness.

[1] Spurgeon, C. H. “A Marvellous Change.” In The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, 46:61–72. London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1900, page 62.

[2] Ibid.

[3] https://www.barna.com/trends/over-half-of-practicing-christians-admit-they-use-pornography/

[4] Ibid.

[5] “A Marvellous Change,” page 66.



Intro to the Sermon of the Week: “Grace Abounding”

By / Mar 9

Have you ever tried to comprehend the depth of God’s grace? The wellspring of grace is infinite, and through Christ, all are welcome to come and drink. In the 1866 sermon “Grace Abounding,” Spurgeon invites us to savor God’s abundant grace. Using vivid illustrations, Spurgeon tilts the gem that is the Lord’s grace, allowing light to reflect off its many facets.

Enter the law of God. Spurgeon points to its condemning power as evidence for God’s unconditional grace. God gave the law not only to limit sin but to highlight man’s depravity. Like a spotlight, the law shines on our sin, exposing how far we fall from the righteousness of the Lord. Thanks be to God that His grace covers such a great divide. “The work of the law upon the enlightened conscience is a very healthy operation; it is like a sharp needle that goes through the soul, but it draws the golden thread of mercy after it; or like the sharp plough which breaks up the ground, and prepares it for the seed which in due time shall bring forth the harvest to God’s praise and glory.”

But to find the greatest illustration of God’s grace, we need not look any further than the cross. There, knowing the full weight of the world’s sins, God poured out His wrath not on the world, but on His one and only Son. Jesus died for us “while we were still sinners” (Rom 5:8, ESV) and made a way of salvation so that all who believe in Him can have eternal life. Who can describe the treasures of grace? “Oh, for an angel’s tongue to tell out the wondrous mystery! My poor lips are quite unequal to this tremendous task; it is vain for me to attempt to describe the grace that so gloriously abounded in our Lord upon the cross […]”

Excerpt:

Sin did us untold damage, but grace has given us more than sin ever took away. Sin robbed us of silver, but grace has given us gold. Sin slew this body of flesh, but grace has given us a spiritual body which shall live for ever. Sin threw us down among the masses of this fallen race but grace has lifted us up, and set us among the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Yes, beloved, “now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” Verily, “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.”

Read the rest of the sermon here.



Intro to the Sermon of the Week: “Portraits of Christ”

By / Mar 2

Have you ever felt discouraged about your progress in the Christian life? Have thoughts like, “I’ll never be as godly as I ought to be,” obscured your outlook? Maybe you aren’t seeing success in your struggle with sin or making headway toward holiness. In this 1861 sermon, Charles Spurgeon encourages the church to hold on to the truth that, despite discouraging setbacks, all believers will be transformed into the image of Christ.

Why is such a transformation necessary in the first place? Although we were created in the image of God, the events of Eden disfigured that image. Only Jesus can restore what was lost. “[Christ] re-makes us,” Spurgeon reminds. “[He] takes away the sinful, rebellious visage which [Adam] bore when he was expelled from the garden, re-stamps God’s own face on us, and makes us in the image of the Most High again.”

But is it really possible to be conformed to Christ’s image? Many of us have felt suffocated by our own slow progress. On the road to sanctification, we face daunting hindrances. Our own stubborn hearts, the broken world around us, and the sheer loftiness of the goal can make it seem unattainable. But, as Spurgeon encourages us, conformity to Christ is possible. How? Because it is God’s work and not ours. “[W]hen God decrees a thing,” says Spurgeon, “what is to stand in his way?”

Excerpt:

[…] if you as believers will look much at Christ, you will grow like him; you shall be transformed from glory to glory as by the image of the Lord. I look at you, I do not grow like you; you look at me, and grow not like me. You look at Christ – Christ looks at you – he is photographed on you by his own power of light [….] Go again and look at Christ. Go and weep because you are not like him. Go and bow before him with adoration. Go and strain upwards to that great height. In doing so your very failures are successes; your fears are proofs that you are beginning to be like him.

Read the rest of the sermon here.



Introduction to the Sermon of the Week: “Immeasurable Love”

By / Feb 23

What was the first verse you ever memorized? Many of us were taught to memorize John 3:16 when we were children, and for good reason! This verse encapsulates the heart of the gospel and God’s unfathomable love for the world. There is no display of love greater than this: that God sent his only Son into the world to save sinners through Christ’s death and resurrection.

In 1885, Spurgeon examines the depths of John 3:16 in a sermon titled “Immeasurable Love”. As he explains, we will never grow beyond our need for the essential truths found in this verse. “Come, ye aged saints,” he says, “be children again; and you that have long known your Lord, take up your first spelling-book, and go over your ABC again, by learning that God so loved the world, that he gave his Son to die, that man might live through him.” Who among us – even the most mature of Christians – can fully mine the depths of the gospel?

God gave His Son. This was done willingly and abundantly, without coercion or reluctance. He offered what was closest to Him, His only Son, to redeem the world. Can anyone fathom the magnitude of God’s love that He displayed through His Son? “That love which spares nothing, but spends itself to help and bless its object, is love indeed, and not the mere name of it.” Christ is the greatest expression of God’s love for us.

And now, this great love is available to all if they repent and put their faith in Christ, trusting in His saving gift. Not only is this love given freely to all who believe, but there is no fear that it will ever run dry or His promise of redemption will ever be retracted. His love has no end and is forever for his children. “As long as there is a God, the believer shall not only exist, but live. As long as there is a heaven, you shall enjoy it; as long as there is a Christ, you shall live in his love; and as long as there is an eternity, you shall continue to fill it with delight.” 

Excerpt:

Throughout the ages the great Father stood to his gift. He looked upon his Only Begotten as man’s hope, the inheritance of the chosen seed, who in him would possess all things. Every sacrifice was God’s renewal of his gift of grace, a reassurance that he had bestowed the gift, and would never draw back therefrom. The whole system of types under the law betokened that in the fulness of time the Lord would in very deed give up his Son, to be born of a woman, to bear the iniquities of his people, and to die the death in their behalf. I greatly admire this pertinacity of love; for many a man in a moment of generous excitement can perform a supreme act of benevolence, and yet could not bear to look at it calmly, and consider it from year to year; the slow fire of anticipation would have been unbearable. […] Yet the Lord God spared not his own Son, but freely delivered him up for us all, doing it in his heart from age to age. Herein is love: love which many waters could not quench: love eternal, inconceivable, infinite!

Read the rest of the sermon here.



Intro to the Sermon of the Week: “The Gospel of the Glory of Christ”

By / Feb 18

What is so glorious about the gospel? What was it about the Good News that so enraptured men like Charles Spurgeon and the Apostle Paul?

In March of 1889, Spurgeon preached a sermon based on a single phrase from 2 Corinthians 4:4 – “The light of the glorious gospel of Christ.” In this message, the Prince of Preachers puts the gospel on display and lets it shine in all its brilliance.

First, the preacher considers that the glory of the gospel is Christ Himself. “Christ is the author of the gospel, the subject of the gospel, and the end of the gospel.” What is so glorious about the gospel? Christ. The good news is good because it is news about Him.

Next, Spurgeon describes the nature of the light of the gospel. The gospel needs no illumination from the outside; it is light itself, and people need only to open their eyes to see it. “I wish I could induce unbelievers here to read the story of the crucifixion every morning,” Spurgeon states, “and to keep on reading it and studying it; for I am persuaded that the light which streams from the cross would, by the blessing of God, open their eyes, and enter their souls savingly.”

Finally, he addresses what we ought to do with this light we’ve been given. What shall we do with this light? “Look towards it[!]” Spurgeon exclaims. “I beseech you,” he continues, “beloved in the Lord, to get alone, and give yourself to meditate upon the glory of the once-despised Jesus. Track him from the cradle to the cross, from the cross to the crown. I cannot suggest to you any subject more instructive, more comforting, more ennobling than this.”

Maybe you have heard the gospel many times, but don’t see its glory. Perhaps you don’t feel sorrow for sin, desire for forgiveness, or joy at the news of grace. You are missing something heavenly. Only God can open your eyes.

Is the gospel glorious to you? Have you beheld the glory of Christ? “Look unto Jesus, and the light within will grow like the glory of heaven.”

Excerpt:

Have you never heard how the Laplanders climb the hills when the sun is at last about to appear after the weary winter months? How they rejoice in the first beams of the rising sun! So let us rise to lofty meditation, and look to our Lord and Master, till we perceive his mediatorial glory, and are blessed thereby. Have you no time? Give up your newspaper for a week that you may sanctify the time to the noble end of considering the glory of your Lord; and I will warrant that you shall get a thousand times more out of such thought than from skimming the daily journal. Look unto Jesus, and the light within will grow like the glory of heaven.

Read the rest of the sermon here.



Introduction to the Sermon of the week: “Never! Never! Never! Never! Never!”

By / Feb 9

Have you ever had to say something twice to make a point? A mother will drill her children, “Never, ever cross the street without looking both ways.” On special occasions we may even repeat our point a third time. “I cannot, cannot, cannot forget our anniversary,” rueful husbands have chided themselves. But God, in making a point to His people, repeats Himself no less than five times!

“Never! Never! Never! Never! Never!” is the title of Spurgeon’s 1862 sermon and is also the forceful assertion underlying the English text of Hebrews 13:5. In the original Greek, five negating words are repeated throughout the verse to drive home the point that Jesus will never leave His people. It is a “five-fold assurance,” a “quintessence of consolation” says Spurgeon. “If he be father, if he be husband, if he be head, if he be all-in-all, how can he leave thee?”

For those who are in Christ, this assurance has no end. Those who have put their faith in Jesus are eternally united with Him. What grounds do we have for comfort? God, the Creator of all things, is forever with us. Nothing can separate us from His love. “To depend upon the daily providence of a faithful God, is better than to be worth twenty thousand pounds a year. […] How we ought to rejoice with joy unspeakable if He will never leave us! Mere songs are not enough; shout for joy all ye that are upright in heart.”

Excerpt:

Whether he gave the word to Abraham or to Moses matters not; he has given it to thee as one of the covenanted seed. There is not a high blessing too lofty for thee; nor a wide mercy too extensive for thee. Lift up now thine eyes to the north and to the south, to the east and to the west, for all this is thine. Climb to Pisgah’s top, and view the utmost limit of the divine promise, for the land is all thine own. There is not a brook of living water of which thou mayest not drink. If the land floweth with milk and honey, eat the honey and drink the milk. The fattest of the kine, yea, and the sweetest of the wines, let all be thine, for there is no denial of any one of them to any saint. Be thou bold to believe, for he hath said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” To put everything in one, there is nothing you can want, there is nothing you can ask for, there is nothing you can need in time or in eternity, there is nothing living, nothing dying, there is nothing in this world, nothing in the next world, there is nothing now, nothing at the resurrection-morning, nothing in heaven that is not contained in this text — “I will never leave thee; I will never forsake thee.”

Read the rest of the sermon here.