posted by Phil Johnson
The PyroManiacs devote some space each weekend to highlights from The Spurgeon Archive. The following excerpt is from "Living Temples for the Living God," a sermon preached at the Metropolitan Tabernacle. The date was not recorded, but the sermon was published in 1872.
ow-a-days, if a man is very reverent towards the word of God, and very desirous to obey the Lord's commands in everything, people say, "He is very precise," and they shun him; or, with still more acrimony, they say, "He is very bigoted: he is not a man of liberal spirit;" and so they cast out his name as evil.Bigotry, in modern parlance, you know, means giving heed to old truths in preference to novel theories; and a liberal spirit, now-a-days, means being liberal with everything except your own money—liberal with God's law, liberal with God's doctrine, liberal to believe that a lie is a truth, that black is white, and that white may occasionally be black. That is liberal sentiment in religion—the broad church school—from which may God continually deliver us.
9 comments:
Wow. I love this because my own brother is pursuing me on this very issue. He thinks that Reformists have a too-high of a view of God. What? Are you kidding me? I don't think believers can ever have too-high of a view of God and His Word!
Christa, take that as a compliment. At least he recognizes that it is a high view of God that causes us to believe what we do. May we ALL be guilty of having a too-high view of God in the liberals eyes.
The past several articles on Pyro and Spurgeon have spawned a few questions.
How do I make sure I am humble when the gospel and the person of Jesus Christ is at stake? Is that REALLY my “job” at that point? If I "back down" I didn't do it because I think I am humble - do I? Can what I think is humility really be disguised passivity and self-interest and ultimately self-love? And in missing that sin in me - I have actually confirmed in them a "Christ" that is passive, pliable and really pretty “cool” like me. Is that really what I wanted to do in my heart of hearts? Is that the Holy One?
What did I do?!?!
Is contriteness of spirit the only thing for the public arena and all the “trembling at His Word” part should just stay in my closet – or should it too spill over into the public arena? Please make special note: The Biblical orthodox humility that Spurgeon possessed did not keep him from letting us know IN THE PUBLIC ARENA that he thought others who actually claimed Christ were NOT trembling at His Word!!! I wonder if “their” opinions would have affected me to the point where I wouldn’t have wanted to be seen “hanging” with Charles (or Pyro?) while he was still alive – just applaud him from afar. But of course Spurgeon was not even interested in human applause - not even a little.
The sorry sorry sorry state of the visible church at the beginning of the 21st century is that it is immersed in compromised and fake Christianity – often preaching another Jesus and a different gospel – being swept away by different spirits. The first inroads are usually either “sensual” worship and/or a “smooze me with love/feed-me all my fallen heart longs for/don’t bring me under conviction” Christ. This “new Christianity” can very easily do without the actual resurrected person of Jesus Christ – and His Cross - as the source and center – and it can now market the fake by its own hand. And it is every where and getting worse. It is probably way past the saturation point in most churches. The world loves fake Christianity - and if the "church" presents a fake Christ the world will come pouring in. And it is being compromised and watered down to such an extent and with the possibility of a certain man being placed therein – that it could be more than just any old apostasy.
So figuring out the difference between “humble” and “passive” in our day and age becomes critical for the sake of lost souls in both the world and the visible church. And it is true that we shouldn’t "run over" anyone with the gospel – but we should stand firm also – and everyone around us should know we are standing firm.
Pyro does it again. I am learning the lesson and joining the chorus. And I am hoping that a holy God will someday let me know if I was really humble or not.
Note to self: Humility is first and foremost a characteristic before HIM and not men.
Thanks for posting such relevant encouragement from a previous generation.Spurgeon always nails it.
Christa Ruth . Someone said to me once when I was sharing Christ "Jesus is OK in His place" !! Well yeah; He owns the place and He rules the place.
Glenn Christopherson
Christa
"Too-high of a view of God."
Hear comfort from the Psalms!
"O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor." (Psalm 8:1-5)
"Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth" (Psalm 57:5)
"They scoff and speak wickedly concerning oppression; They speak loftily. They set their mouth against the heavens, And their tongue walks through the earth." (Psalm 73:8-9)
"And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints. For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the LORD? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, And to be held in reverence by all those around Him. (Psalm 89:5-7)
And finally from Peter,
"Knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”
(2 Peter 3:2-4)
In the Lamb,
Rafe
Thank you guys for all the encouraging words! I'm sure we all face this as we grow in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and our passion for His Truth that grows ever stronger! Blessings my fellow brothers and sisters and I can't wait to meet you in Glory!
Until,
Christa
AMEN! It's a sorry day when those saved and kept by Truth don't adorn that very Word.
As for the Father, so for the Son:
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:5-11)
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything He might be preeminent. For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross. (Colossians 1:15-20)
More reason why Christians cannot be Liberal and I would say Christians cannot support those who are either. Machen was right, Christianity and Liberalism stand in total antithesis to one another. Sadly, many Christians are bringing Christ into fellowship with this false and idolatrous world view. I think the fruit of Liberalism is the same as that of the pagan religions condemned in the Old Testament.
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