repentance

A Most Humbling Doctrine

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God, The Holy Spirit

…God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth… – 2 Thessalonians 2:13

I think election, to a saint, is one of the most stripping doctrines in all the world—to take away all trust in the flesh, or all reliance upon anything except Jesus Christ. How often do we wrap ourselves up in our own righteousness, and array ourselves with the false pearls and gems of our own works and doings. We begin to say, “Now I shall be saved, because I have this and that evidence.” Instead of that, it is naked faith that saves; that faith and that alone unites us to the Lamb, irrespective of works, although it is productive of them. How often do we lean on some work, other than that of our own Beloved’s, and trust in some might, other than that which comes from on high. Now if we would have this might taken from us, we must consider Election. Pause, my soul, and consider this. God loved you before you had a being. He loved you when you were dead in trespasses and sins and sent His Son to die for you. He purchased you with His precious blood before you could lisp His name. Can you then be proud?

I know nothing, nothing again, that is more humbling for us than this Doctrine of Election. I have sometimes fallen prostrate before it, when endeavoring to understand it. I have stretched my wings, and, eagle-like, I have soared towards the sun. Steady has been my eye, and true my wing, for a season; but, when I came near it, and the one thought possessed me—”God hath from the beginning chosen you unto salvation,” I was lost in its lustre, I was staggered with the mighty thought; and from the dizzy elevation down came my soul, prostrate and broken, saying, “Lord, I am nothing, I am less than nothing. Why me? Why me?”

Friends, if you want to be humbled, study Election, for it will make you humble under the influence of God’s Spirit. He who is proud of his election is not elect; and he who is humbled under a sense of it may believe that he is. He has every reason to believe that he is, for it is one of the most blessed effects of Election in that it helps us to humble ourselves before God.

Unconditional Election by C. H. Spurgeon

If You Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, You Are Elect

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God, The Holy Spirit

…God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth… – 2 Thessalonians 2:13

Whoever believes God’s truth, and believes on Jesus Christ, is elect. I frequently meet with poor souls, who are fretting and worrying themselves about this thought—”How, if I should not be elect!” “Oh, sir,” they say, “I know I put my trust in Jesus; I know I believe in His name and trust in His blood; but how if I should not be elect?” Poor dear creature! you do not know much about the Gospel, or you would never talk so, for he that believes is elect. Those who are elect, are elect unto sanctification and unto faith; and if you have faith, you are one of God’s elect; you may know it and ought to know it, for it is an absolute certainty. If you, as a sinner, look to Jesus Christ and say—

“Nothing in my hands I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling,”

you are elect. I am not afraid of election frightening poor saints or sinners. There are many divines who tell the enquirer “election has nothing to do with you.” That is very bad, because the poor soul is not to be silenced like that. If you could silence him so, it might be well, but he will think of it, he can’t help it. Say to him then, if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ you are elect. If you will cast yourself on Jesus, you are elect. I tell you—the chief of sinners— I tell you in His name, if you will come to God without any works of your own, cast yourself on the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ; if you will come now and trust in Him, you are elect—you were loved of God from before the foundation of the world, for you could not do that unless God had given you the power, and had chosen you to do it. Now you are safe and secure if you do but come and cast yourself on Jesus Christ and wish to be saved and to be loved by Him. But do not think that any man will be saved without faith and without holiness. Do not conceive, my hearers, that some decree, passed in the dark ages of eternity, will save your souls, unless you believe in Christ.

Unconditional Election by C. H. Spurgeon

Elect Unto Holiness

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God, The Holy Spirit

But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth… – 2 Thessalonians 2:13

He hath from the beginning chosen you unto sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth. How many men mistake the Doctrine of Election altogether! and how my soul burns and boils at the recollection of the terrible evils that have accrued from the spoiling and the wresting of that glorious portion of God’s glorious truth! …I tell you there have been thousands of men who have been ruined by misunderstanding Election; who have said, “God has elected me to heaven, and to eternal life”; but they have forgotten that it is written, God has elected them “through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” This is God’s election—election to sanctification and to faith. God chooses His people to be holy, and to be believers. How many of you here then are believers? How many of my congregation can put their hands upon their hearts and say, “I trust in God that I am sanctified”? Is there one of you who says, “I am elect”? —I remind you that you swore last week. One of you says, “I trust I am elect”—but I jog your memory about some vicious act that you committed during the last six days. Another of you says, “I am elect”—but I would look you in the face and say, “Elect!? You are a most cursed hypocrite! and that is all you are!” Others would say, “I am elect”—but I would remind them that they neglect the mercy seat and do not pray. Oh, beloved! never think you are elect unless you are holy. You may come to Christ as a sinner, but you may not come to Christ as an elect person until you can see your holiness. Do not misconstrue what I say—do not say “I am elect,” and yet think you can be living in sin. That is impossible. The elect of God are holy. They are not pure, they are not perfect, they are not spotless; but, taking their life as a whole, they are holy persons. They are marked, and distinct from others: and no man has a right to conclude himself elect except in his holiness. He may be elect, and yet lying in darkness, but he has no right to believe it; no one can see it, there is no evidence of it. The man may live one day, but he is dead at present. If you are walking in the fear of God, trying to please Him, and to obey His commandments, doubt not that your name has been written in the Lamb’s Book of Life from before the foundation of the world.

Unconditional Election by C. H. Spurgeon

Make Ready, for He Comes

Sherry Attributes of God, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God, The Father, the unbelieving life

Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. – Job 1:21

It is not always proper for us to ask reasons for divine acts, for if He gives no account of His matters we ought not to ask any account. That frivolous affectation of piety which leads even professedly Christian men to call every affliction a judgment, and to consider that every patron who is suddenly taken away, dies as a judgment either upon him or others, I detest from my very soul…Those who talk thus know nought of their Bibles. They upon whom the tower of Siloam fell, dream ye that they were worse sinners than others? I am utterly sick of the cant of a portion of the religious world, when they raised a kind of miniature howl at me, when I said, and still repeat it, that an accident on a railway on the Sunday is not a judgment, but happens in the common course of Providence, and that we are not to look for an immediate reason close at hand for any of these events.

I hear a voice which says to me, “Preacher! be instant in season and out of season, be up and doing, earnest and fervent, for thy day is short, and thy time shall soon be over.” I hear a voice which says to you, officers of the Church, “Be diligent in business, fervent in spirit—serving the Lord; for soon shall the pallor of death overtake you, and He shall lay His chill hand upon your hoary heads and stretch you in the cold grave.” I hear a voice which speaks to the people of my charge—the members of this Christian Church—”Work while it is called today, for the night cometh wherein no man can work.” And I hear a solemn note, ringing as a funeral bell to you who are unconverted, and I translate its message thus—”Prepare to meet your God, ye careless ones, who are at ease, make ready, for He comes; ye thoughtless ones, who give yourselves no trouble about eternity, make ready, for He comes; drunkard, thou who art a lover of pleasure more than a lover of God, make ready for He comes; swearer, blasphemer, make ready, for He comes; He comes whom thou hast blasphemed; and each one of you, if ye be out of Christ, if your sins still lie upon you, if ye have never sought and found absolution from the lips of God your Father, seek it, seek it, for He comes. 

The Royal Death Bed by C. H. Spurgeon

What Can We Do?

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, prayer, promises, repentance, Sovereignty of God, The Father, The Holy Spirit

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. – John 15:5

What can we do to obtain the presence of God in our midst?

There is not one among us who does not know that the Holy Ghost is needful to effect any work. We must pray in the Holy Ghost, or else we shall not pray at all; and we must preach under the influence of the Holy Ghost, or else we shall chatter like sparrows on the window-sill in the morning, and nothing will come of the chattering. Only the Holy Ghost can make anything we do to be effectual. Therefore, never begin any work without the Holy Ghost, and do not dare go on with the impetus that you have gained, but cry again for the Holy Spirit. Let all your service for God be in the Spirit, or else it is all good for nothing.

We must confess our helplessness without God and honestly mean the confession. The first thing that is required of us is to bemoan the fact that, by and of ourselves, we can do nothing; even as our Lord said to His disciples, “Without Me ye can do nothing.” We must also be very careful in our lives. God will not come to an unholy church. The sacred Dove will never come to a foul nest. There must be a purging and a cleansing, or else He will not come. there must be a conscientious obedience to His word, a strict adherence to His truth, His doctrine, His precepts, to the whole of Christ’s rule and law. He will not prosper us unless we are careful to follow every step that He has taken. God help us to have this conscientious care, this coming out from those who may not be thus careful; according to His word. “Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” If we desire this special sense of God’s presence, there must be unbroken union. To crown it all, there must be a hearty reliance upon God, and a childlike confidence in Him. I would recommend you either believe in God up to the hilt, or else not believe at all. Oh, I pray you, do believe in God, and His omnipotence!

Is God in the Camp? by C. H. Spurgeon

This Must Be Done

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, confession of sin, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God, The Father, The Holy Spirit

The LORD’S voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see Thy name: hear ye the rod, and Who hath appointed it. – Micah 6:9

Israel was out of gear with God. The people had forgotten the Most High and had gone aside to the worship of Baal. They had neglected the things of God; therefore, they were given up to their enemies. When Jehovah had brought them out of Egypt, He instructed them how they were to live in the land to which He would bring them, and warned them that if they forsook Him, they would be chastened. His words were very plain: “If ye will not for all this hearken unto Me but walk contrary unto Me, then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury, and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.” In fulfillment of this threatening, the Philistines had been divinely permitted to make great havoc of the idolatrous Israelites, and to hold them in cruel slavery.

The only way for them to get out of their trouble was to return to God, who, by His judgments, seemed to say, “Hear ye the rod, and Who hath appointed it.” The only cure for their hurt was to go back with repentance and renew their faith and their covenant with God. Then all would have been right. But this is the last thing that men will do. Our minds, by nature, love not spiritual things. We will attend to any outward duty, or to any external rite; but to bring our hearts into subjection to the divine will, to bow our minds to the Most High, and to serve the Lord our God with all our heart, and all our soul, the natural man abhors. Yet nothing less than this will suffice to turn our captivity.

Instead of attempting to get right with God, these Israelites set about devising superstitious means of securing the victory over their foes. In this respect most of us have imitated them. We think of a thousand inventions; but we neglect the one thing needful…Get right with God; confess thy sin; believe in Jesus Christ, the appointed Saviour; be reconciled to God by the death of His Son; then all will be right between thee and the Father in heaven. We cannot bring men to this, apart from the Spirit of God.

Is God in the Camp? by C. H. Spurgeon

None Shall Resist His Will

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, repentance, salvation, Sovereignty of God Leave a comment

Shall iron break the northern iron and the steel? – Jeremiah 15:12

And (Saul) said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” – Acts 9:5

To resist God is to strike with naked feet against a goad. “It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.” You will hurt yourself; you cannot injure Him, nor change His purposes by so much as the turning of a hair. God will have His way: None shall resist His will. Everlasting and eternal are His decrees; and fast and fixed they ever must remain, though all earth and hell should unite in one great conspiracy. He thrusts a bit into the tempest’s mouth, and rides upon the wings of the wind. Confusion there is none to Him. Adversaries, what are they? They are utterly consumed as the stubble. But take ye heed that God come not out against you, ye who are rebels; for if He once put on the war-harness and fight against you, woe unto you! Have you not heard? Hath no one told you of the arrows of His quiver? They are sharp, heart-piercing, infallible. Sickness can shake you till every nerve shall become a road for pain to carry on its dreadful traffic. Poverty can come upon you, and want, like an armed man. Death shall strike down all your lovers, and your acquaintances shall sink into the abyss. Let God but come forth in judgment against a man, or a people, and what can He not do?

Cast down your weapons. Come now and ask for reconciliation. The ambassador of peace invites you. I point you no longer to His burning throne, but to yonder cross. See there God in human flesh—bleeding, suffering, dying. Those wounds are fountains of mercy. Look to them, and you shall live. Wrath is appeased by the death of Jesus. Fury is no more in Jehovah! Trust in Jesus, the crucified, and your transgression shall be forgiven you. That precious blood shall make reconciliation: there shall be peace between you and God; but O resist no longer, for the iron cannot break the northern iron and the steel.

The Northern Iron and the Steel by C. H. Spurgeon