History Repeating?

Charles H Spurgeon, as a young lad, became pastor of the New Park Baptist Church in London, England, at a time when Christianity was in great decline. He refused to follow the lead of those who would compromise the truth of the word of God. When He began his work there, the church had many empty seats. He was advised to follow the trend, but He said no. He is quoted as saying, “First pure, then peaceable; if only one is attainable, choose the former. Fellowship with known and vital error is participation in sin. To pursue union at the price of truth is treason to the Lord Jesus.” Thirteen years later with a new and much larger church building, he preached regularly to ten thousand people.

What was it that he would not compromise? There no doubt were other things, but in the main it was the doctrines of grace. He believed and taught the truth of a gracious election. He did not see this as a doctrine of fatalism that would dry up the church; rather he saw it as the center of gospel truth and the beginning of eternal salvation. He believed and taught the ruin of sinners. He believed that all men were in Adam when he took of that forbidden fruit. This he believed caused all men to be corrupted or ruined in the Fall, so that there was no good in ruined man. He believed and taught that Christ did not try to save men and then fail; he believed that Christ made an absolute atonement to atone for every sin of every one of those who were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. He also believed in Christ's compelling love. That is not that Christ was compelled to love us. It is rather that His love to his elect was so compelling that every one the Father gave to Him would be effectually drawn to Him and be saved. Finally, he believed and taught that the believer saved by Christ's marvelous grace would be enabled by the Holy Spirit, and that every one of them would persevere in the faith and be eternally saved. In His day these truths were not some new emphasis. These were in his day the marks of orthodoxy. Not to preach these was not to preach the gospel but a turning away from it.

My, how we have fallen from that. Those who teach these truths today are considered off the main stream, and they must be avoided at all cost. What should we do? Should we follow the modern trend and omit these truths as Spurgeon was advised to do, or should we like Spurgeon bare down and declare these truths without compromise. We must not concern ourselves with the size of our crowd. Instead we must be “First pure, then peaceable; if only one is attainable, choose the former...” Count me on the side of truth.