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A Gospel Worth Dying For (Acts 20:24) | Charles Spurgeon · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed thinking. Each time we gather, we open up
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the ancient texts and significant sermons, always
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looking for truth that lasts. What's right.
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Today we are immersing ourselves in a message that has really
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echoed through the centuries. It's something that stirred the
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Apostle Paul right to his core, and later it moved a preacher,
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Charles Spurgeon, to say it was actually worth dying for.
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It's quite a statement, yeah. And you're joining us for a deep
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dive right into the heart of the Christian message.
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We're focusing specifically on insights from Spurgeon's sermon,
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A Gospel worth Dying for. He preached it back in 1883.
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1883. Yeah, So we'll be looking at
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what Paul held most dear, what he treasured and, you know, what
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believers down through history have found to be their greatest
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hope and her actual calling. OK, Our aim here is to think
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about what makes this particular message stand out, how it speaks
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to, well, humanity's deepest condition and its ultimate goal,
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which is giving all glory to God alone.
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OK, so let's unpack this then. We should start with the Apostle
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Paul himself, specifically Acts chapter 20, verse 24.
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Paul made a really striking statement there about his life.
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What did Paul actually think about his existence?
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Well, Paul certainly regarded his life highly.
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I mean, as any person naturally would.
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He felt the same kind of affection for life as others do,
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Sure. And he really grasped that his
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physical presence, his being alive, held great significance
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for the churches he was serving and, you know, for the wider
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mission of Christ. He wasn't detached from its
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value. Not at all.
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He even said it somewhere else, that to abide in the flesh is
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more needful for you. So for their sake, this tells us
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he wasn't just tired of living, you know, nor was he being
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reckless, treating life like something disposable.
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He genuinely valued it. He saw it as precious.
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And this appreciation it extended to time itself.
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Time makes up life, right? So he made each day, each hour
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count. He was striving to make the
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meaningful, redeeming the time, as he put it, because the days
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are evil. That phrase always stands out.
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It does. It shows a really sober and and
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careful way of looking at his own mortal presence.
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He recognized its value and the significant impact he could
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have. He understood his dates weren't
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really his own, but more like a stewardship for something much
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greater. That's a fascinating look into
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his mindset. So despite valuing life so
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deeply, Paul spoke of something he valued even more.
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What was that ultimate goal for him?
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What trumped even life itself? Yeah, in direct comparison to
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what Paul saw as his great object, his main goal, he said
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he did not count his life as dear to himself.
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Didn't count it, dear. No.
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And that goal was to testify that the gospel of the grace of
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God, that was it. He thought of his life like a
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race, a race. It just had to be run.
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Now think about a runner. Their only real concern is how
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quickly they can get to the finish line, right?
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The goal isn't how long the race is, but finishing it well,
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finishing it quickly. Right, the focus is the end.
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Exactly. The runner might not even pay
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much attention to the path itself, except as the way to get
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to that desired end. And that was Paul's perspective
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on his life, all his energies, all his spirits.
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Focus was poured into this one pursuit.
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Just. One thing.
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Bearing witness to the gospel of the grace of God everywhere he
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went. His life here below was valued
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only as a means to achieve that singular aim.
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Every breath, every step serve that overarching mission.
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It shows this single minded devotion, a complete dedication
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to 1 overriding purpose. He saw his days not as an end in
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themselves, but instruments for a higher calling.
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OK, now this is where it gets really compelling.
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I think Paul saw this gospel and his ministry of it and the kind
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of special trust from the Lord himself.
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What does that idea of a safer deposit actually mean for us?
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That's a powerful image Spursion draws out.
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Paul saw himself as having been put in trust with the gospel.
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He pictured the Savior, you know, with his pierced hands
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holding this priceless container.
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And inside was this celestial treasure, God's grace.
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And in this picture the Savior says to Paul, I have redeemed me
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with my blood, I've called thee by my name, and now I commit
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this precious thing into thy hands, that thou mayest take
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care of it and guard it even with thy heart's blood.
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It was serious, like I authorized you to go everywhere
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in my place and make known this gospel.
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That's a heavy charge. Incredibly heavy.
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And Paul? For his part, he resolved, he
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made-up his mind to be faithful to that charge, even if it meant
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losing his life. This idea of guardianship, of
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being entrusted with something of just immeasurable worth, it's
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central to understanding his devotion.
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It wasn't just the message he was sharing.
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It felt like a treasure he was actively guarding.
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Right, not just delivering mail, but guarding the crown jewels.
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Exactly. He understood it wasn't some
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casual invitation, but a solemn responsibility straight from his
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Lord, calling for ultimate sacrifice if needed.
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This message wasn't his own, it was God's and he was just the
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custodian. That leads us right to thinking
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about ourselves. Then does this responsibility,
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this guardianship of the gospel, does it stretch beyond apostles
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like Paul? Does it include everyone who
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believes today? The source Spurgeon makes it
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blind that, yes, all believers are in a similar position, at
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least in some measure. Now, obviously, not all of us
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are called to be apostles in the same way Paul was, and not
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everyone is called to, you know, public proclamation from a
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pulpit. But there's still a general
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assignment on all believers. OK, what's that?
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We are all called to be courageous for the truth here on
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earth and to strive earnestly for the faith that was once
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delivered to the Saints. Jude talks about that, right?
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So this should lead every believer to view their life as a
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race, just like Paul did. And it should also lead us to
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see ourselves as guardians of the gospel.
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Guardians. Yeah, think of it like the
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person who carries the flag, the colors for a regiment and
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battle. That person feels bound to
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sacrifice everything to keep that flag safe, right?
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In a similar way, every believer has a calling to some kind of
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service, some part in keeping and proclaiming this message.
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Our individual lives become a way to achieve that greater aim,
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just as Paul's life wise, this isn't just for a select few
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leaders. It's a universal call to
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everyone who's received this good news.
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We're all called to participate in its spread and its
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preservation. So my life, your life, it's
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meant to be a testimony, A practical display of this truth
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in our own sphere. That's exactly it.
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OK, so Paul was ready, literally ready, to give his life for this
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specific gospel. But what kind of gospel was it?
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Because as the source says, it is not everything called gospel
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that would produce such enthusiasm.
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What did Spurgeon notice about the Gospels nowadays, even back
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in his time? Yes, Spurgeon was quite pointed
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about this. He observed that in his day
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there were messages being called gospel for which he absolutely
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would not sacrifice his life. Strong words.
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Very, and he wouldn't recommend anyone else live for them
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either. And the reason he gave was
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sharp. These particular gospels, as
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they were called, were just short lived.
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They were, in his words, meant to be snuffed out within a few
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years. Fleeting, Completely fleeting,
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he said plainly. It's never worthwhile to die for
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a teaching that is itself going to disappear.
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And he wasn't just speculating. He'd seen it happen.
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He said he lived long enough to see half a dozen new gospels
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rise, flourish and decay. Wow, like trends?
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Exactly like trends, he called them quite vividly.
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Mushroom Gospels of the hour. Mushroom gospels.
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I like that. It paints a picture, doesn't it?
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So just they pop up quickly and disappeared just as fast, like
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yesterday's newspaper, you know, tossed aside after its brief
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moment. Do you remember being told years
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before that his old Calvinistic doctrine was outdated, a thing
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of the past? Then later he heard that any
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kind of evangelical teaching was old fashioned, supposed to be
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replaced by something called advanced thought.
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Sounds familiar even today. Doesn't it?
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It highlights his real concern about the temporary nature of
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human attempts to label themselves as the eternal
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message. He saw this pattern clearly.
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Human ideas, no matter how smart or appealing they seem at the
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time, just can't stand the test of time or the trials of real
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life. They lack the substance to truly
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grip hearts or inspire that kind of ultimate sacrifice, Paul
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showed. That's a really stark warning
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against, well, shifting sands and what we believe.
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So what did the true gospel consist of then, in contrast to
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these temporary messages? Well, in contrast, Spurgeon says
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there was once, and he insists there still is, a true gospel in
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the world. And this gospel was made of
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solid facts, truths that Christians historically never
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questioned. They were established,
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unshakable realities. Not just ideas, but facts.
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Facts. It was a message that believers
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embraced deeply, passionately, as if it were the very life of
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their soul. This gospel historically stirred
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intense enthusiasm. It demanded great sacrifice from
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his followers. You can see that in church
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history. Absolutely.
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Yeah. 10s of thousands of people would gather to hear this
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gospel, often risking their lives to do so.
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Men bravely proclaimed it right to the faces of tyrants, losing
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everything, possessions, freedom, going to prison, even
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facing death for it, and doing so remarkably, while singing
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psalms. Amazing.
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So Spurgeon asks this really important question, Does that
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kind of gospel still exist among us?
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Or, he wonders, have we drifted into what he calls a kind of
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cloud land? Cloud.
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Land. Yeah, like a realm of
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imagination, maybe story or just unreality, where souls are left
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to starve on mere guesses and because of that they lose their
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ability for confidence or passionate zeal.
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Starving on guesses. He questioned whether followers
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of Jesus are now being fed quote the froth of thought and the
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wind of imagination which he feared only leads to arrogance
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and self focus. Strong critique.
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Very. Instead, he urged to return to
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the substantial meat of infallible revelation.
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He called for believers to ask the Holy Spirit to nourish us
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with his own inspired word. It's this stark contrast he's
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drawing temporary human guesswork versus the solid
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ground divine revelation. He saw these fleeting gospels as
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a kind of spiritual famine, leaving people hungry for truth,
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not fed by it. Substantial meat versus froth.
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That's a powerful image. All right, let's unpack this
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true gospel further then. If these other so-called gospels
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fall short, What is this genuine gospel that Paul valued more
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than his own life? Paul himself named it.
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He called it the Gospel of the grace of God.
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That's the key phrase. What struck him most forcefully,
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what really captured his mind and heart, was that it was a
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message of grace, and, crucially, of grace alone.
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Grace alone. Yes, amidst all the different
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notes, you might say the good news.
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One particular note rang out louder than all the others,
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pleasing his ear. Grace.
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Specifically the grace of God. He saw that single note as
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defining the whole message, giving it its unique character.
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So it wasn't just part of the message, it was the message in a
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sense. It was the defining
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characteristic. But sadly, Spurgeon points out,
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even in his own day, that word grace wasn't heard very often in
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public discourse. People were more used to hearing
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about, you know, moral duties, scientific fixes, human
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progress. Things people can do.
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Exactly. Things centered on human effort.
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So Spurgeon, calling himself one of those antiquated folk, made
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it his business to clearly speak that word grace so that those
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who recognized its joyful sound would be glad, and maybe those
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who didn't like it would still be touched by its piercing
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truth. He knew that word grace was the
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absolute key to understanding God's approach to humanity.
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OK, so grace is central. Why is grace so vital for us,
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for every person listening? Because grace isn't just one
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aspect of the gospel. It's it's very hard.
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Its core nature, it truly represents the only hope for
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this fallen world, a world sunk in wrongdoing and, frankly,
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brokenness. The only hope?
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According to this message, yes. And for believers, as they look
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forward toward glory, toward God's presence, grace is their
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only real comfort, their only assurance.
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The sorts even suggest, interestingly, that maybe Paul
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had a clearer, deeper grasp of grace than even other major
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apostles like Peter or James or John.
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Really, more than them? Possibly, and Spurgeon
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speculates, this might be why Paul has such a large place in
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the New Testament writings. While other writers were strong
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in certain areas, when it came to the depth and clarity of
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teaching Grace, Paul seemed to stand first and foremost.
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And because of this, the source suggests there's an urgent need
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today for what it calls Pauline evangelism and precision.
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We need that clarity. Paul, with his directness would
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quickly deal with these new gospels.
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He'd say to those following them, something like he did to
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the Galatians. I marvel that ye are so soon
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removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto
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another gospel which is not another.
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But there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel
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of Christ. No mincing words there.
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None at all. His response would be swift and
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plain, no room for wandering theologically from the core
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message of grace. He understood that any deviation
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from grace was in fact a deviation from the Gospel
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itself. Let's make this really clear for
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everyone listening. How is the gospel truly the good
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news of grace? What makes it good news?
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OK, the gospel makes known that God is prepared.
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He is ready to deal with sinful humanity not based on their
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actions or their worthiness. Which is how we normally think
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things work. Right, we think in terms of
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merit, earning, deserving, but God is prepared to deal with us
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solely on the basis of free favor and pure mercy.
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Now think about it. There would be no truly good
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news in just stating God is just.
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First off, that's not really news.
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Our conscience deep down already tells us that God is just.
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And the fact that God will deal with wrong and right, you know,
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punish sin and reward righteousness, that's also not
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news. And even if it were, it wouldn't
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be good news for us because the reality is we've all sinned, all
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of us, and therefore, based on justice alone, we would
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certainly perish. There'd be no hope.
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A. Sobering thought.
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It is, but this is news, and the best kind of news, that the
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judge of all the earth is prepared to pardon
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transgression, to forgive sin, and even more, to declare the
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ungodly righteous in his sight. Declare them righteous.
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Yes, it is indeed good news for sinners that the Lord will
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completely blot out sin, cover the Sinner with his own
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righteousness, and receive that person into his favor.
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And here's the incredible part. This isn't based on anything
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that person has done or ever could do.
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It's entirely out of His sovereign grace.
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So even though all humanity is guilty without exception and
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justly condemned, yet God is ready to remove us from under
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the law's curse and grant us all the blessedness that belongs to
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righteous people. And he does this purely as an
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activist mercy. That's what sets it apart from
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every other religion or philosophy.
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It flips our natural human expectation completely upside
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down. We expect to earn.
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God offers to give freely. This is really starting to land
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differently. It sounds like a message that
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genuinely changes everything for us.
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It absolutely is. This is truly a message worth
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giving your life for. Think about it that through this
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special arrangement, this covenant of grace, God can
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simultaneously be perfectly righteous and still be the one
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who declares righteous those who believe in Jesus.
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Both things at once. Both things, He can be the
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righteous judge of all humanity, and yet believing individuals
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can be declared righteous freely by His grace.
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All accomplished through the redemption found in Christ
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Jesus. The fact that God is kind and
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gracious and stands ready to bless the most undeserving.
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That's a truly wonderful piece of information.
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It's so astounding, Spurgeon says.
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It's worth a person spending 100 lives just to tell it a. 100
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lives. My own heart moves with fervor,
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just repeating as telling the penitent, the despairing, that
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even though their wrongs deserve the deepest judgment, yet grace
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can give them glory and prepare them for it.
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This comes as a sovereign act of pure love, completely separate
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from their character or any worthiness they might think they
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have or lack. Completely separate.
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Completely because the Lord himself declared I will have
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mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on
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whom I will all have compassion. Because he said that there's
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hope. Hope for even the most hopeless,
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the most utterly despondent among us.
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Since the Scripture states it is not of him that willeth, nor of
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him that runneth, but of God that she with mercy, there's an
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open door of hope for those who might otherwise just fall into
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absolute despair, having nowhere else to turn.
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An open door, yes. Paul, you can almost feel his
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spiritual excitement, can't you? His passion over this revelation
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of free grace. You can understand his
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willingness to give his life away just so he could tell his
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fellow sinners that grace reigns through righteousness, leading
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to eternal life. It's a message that compels a
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response of total devotion because it offers something we
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could never, ever achieve on our own.
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OK, so the good news is incredible.
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God can be both righteous and the one who makes us righteous.
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But how? How does he actually do this
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without compromising his own righteous nature, without just
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setting aside his own perfect standards?
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What did God the Father do to remove what Spurgeon calls the
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grand obstacle to mercy? That's the crucial question,
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isn't it? How can mercy flow without
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justice being violated? Well, to deal with people on
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this basis of free favor, God the Father himself took action.
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He removed the great hindrance that stood in mercy's way.
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And that obstacle was his own perfect justice.
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His justice was the obstacle. In a manner of speaking, yes,
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because God is just. That's an absolute truth
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foundational to who He is, and our conscience deep down knows
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this. In fact, Spurgeon argues, our
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conscience will never truly rest unless it can see God's justice
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being upheld, fully vindicated. Therefore, so that God might
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justly deal in a way of pure mercy with sinful people, he did
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something astounding. He gave His only begotten Son.
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Through the Son's death, the law received everything that was
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owed to it, the demands of justice were fully met, and the
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eternal principles of God's governance were perfectly kept
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and maintained. Through the death of his son.
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Yes, Jesus was appointed to stand in humanity's place, to
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bear human sin upon himself, to endure the correction, the
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penalty for human guilt. The prophet Isaiah states this
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so clearly in chapter 53, painting this vivid picture of
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substitution. The Suffering Servant.
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Exactly so humanity can now be saved securely because the
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instruction of the law is not set aside, nor is the penalty
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for sin just waved away. No, all that the sternest
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justice could possibly demand have been fully done and
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suffered by Christ. Justice is satisfied.
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Completely. And yet, through this perfect
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satisfaction, Grace now has his hands completely united, you
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might say, to distribute pardons as it desires.
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The debtor is released, set free because the debt has been paid
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in full. Paid by Christ.
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Paid by Christ, When we look at the dying Savior, we hear the
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prophet say the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with
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his stripes we are healed. Here, in this very act of
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substitution, everything truly is of Christ.
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That word you mentioned from the source propitiation, it can
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sound a bit, well, theological or intimidating.
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Can you give us the plainest meaning of what that describes
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here? Absolutely.
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It's a key concept. At its heart, propitiation means
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that God himself provided the perfect sacrifice that satisfied
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his own holy justice. It means his righteous anger
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against sin was fully absorbed, turned away by the sacrifice he
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provided in Christ. So God satisfies his own
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justice. Precisely.
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It's like He created the only possible pathway to peace by
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taking the just penalty for our wrongdoing upon Himself in the
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person of His Son. It's the ultimate act of
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reconciliation, and it was initiated entirely by the One
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who was offended by God Himself. That really is the wonder of it
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all, isn't it? That the offended one, God
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provides the way back to peace. It's not something we initiate
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or earn. Indeed, it truly is.
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It was an act of immense grace on God's part simply to decide
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to devise such a way of reconciliation, and then even
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more to accept that way. But the highest level of grace
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is seen in Him actually providing that reconciliation at
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His own infinite cost. His own.
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Cost. That's the marvel.
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He who was offended himself provides the means for peace.
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He had but one son, his beloved only son.
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And rather than allow any barrier to stand in the way of
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him dealing with humanity on the footing of pure grace, He took
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that Son from his side, allowed him to take on our fragile human
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nature, and in that nature permitted him to die the
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righteous for the unrighteous, all to bring us to God.
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Incredible love. As the Scripture puts it so
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beautifully here in His love, not that we love God, but that
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He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our
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sins. This, then, is the very essence
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of the gospel of the grace of God, that God is able, without
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acting unjustly in any way, to deal with people in pure mercy,
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totally apart from their sins or merits.
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Why? Because their sins were laid
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upon His dear Son Jesus Christ, and Christ offered to divine
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justice a complete, perfect satisfaction.
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So as a result, God is revealed as glorious in His Holiness and
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at the same time rich in His mercy.
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Yes, that is certainly something worth proclaiming with every
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fiber of our being. It's a message that stands
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unique in its breathtaking solution to the human dilemma,
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resolving that tension between God's perfect justice and His
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boundless mercy in a way only He could.
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It's not a contradiction. It's a divine mystery revealed.
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OK, so justice is fully satisfied through Christ.
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The way is open. The message of grace is now
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ready to go out into the world. What does this gospel message
21:18
actually say to those who feel lost, those who know they are in
21:20
need? How does it speak directly to
21:22
their situation? Well, to accomplish these huge
21:25
plans of grace, it was absolutely necessary for a
21:27
specific gospel message to be sent out.
21:30
A message just brimming with promise, full of encouragement,
21:33
loaded with blessing. And Spurgeon insists that
21:36
message has been given to us. The gospel we proclaim is full
21:40
of grace, right to the very brim.
21:42
It overflows. OK, So what does it sound like?
21:45
It speaks directly to the lost and needy like this Sinner, just
21:49
as you are right now, Return to the Lord and He will receive you
21:53
graciously and love you freely. Just as you are.
21:56
No cleanup required first. None God Himself has stated, For
22:00
I will be merciful to their unrighteousness and their sins
22:03
and their iniquities. Will I remember no more.
22:06
Think about that. Remembered no more for Christ's
22:08
sake, not because of your anguish or tears or sorrow, but
22:11
for Christ's sake alone. He will remove your sins from
22:13
you as far as the east is from the West.
22:15
That's complete removal. Complete, he says.
22:17
Come now and let us reason together, saith the Lord.
22:20
Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.
22:24
Though they be red like Crimson, they shall be as wool.
22:27
It's an invitation to cleansing. You may truly come to Jesus just
22:32
as you are right now in your current state, and He will give
22:35
you full forgiveness the moment you believe in Him.
22:38
So it bypasses all human qualification.
22:40
Really. It embraces sheer need.
22:42
It doesn't ask you to clean yourself up first.
22:45
It invites you to come as you are, to be made clean.
22:47
Now you use that phrase earlier, justify the ungodly.
22:51
Let's clarify that for the listener.
22:53
What does that actually mean for an individual?
22:55
Is it about suddenly becoming a perfect person overnight?
22:58
Or is it a really crucial distinct we need to grasp there
23:02
and doesn't mean we are not supposed to look within
23:03
ourselves for any goodness or ability before we come to God.
23:06
That's a vital point, and yes, a crucial distinction.
23:09
Justify, in this biblical context is primarily a legal
23:13
term. It's forensic.
23:14
It means God declares A sinful person righteous in his sight.
23:18
A declaration. Yes, like a judge's verdict,
23:21
it's a divine verdict of not guilty and even more positively
23:25
righteous. Not because we are inherently
23:27
good or suddenly perfect, but because Christ's perfect
23:31
righteousness is legally credited to our account.
23:35
It's about our standing before God, being made right through
23:38
Christ. Now, moral change certainly
23:41
follows that sanctification, but justification is about that
23:44
initial declaration of right standing.
23:47
OK, that distinction is helpful. And the second part looking
23:50
within. You're spot on, the Lord says to
23:52
us today. Look not within as though you
23:54
would search for any merit there, any inherent goodness or
23:56
reason why God should accept you.
23:58
No, he says, look to me and be ye saved.
24:02
Look away from yourself to Christ.
24:03
Look. Away.
24:04
He declares I will bless you apart from any merit you might
24:07
possess entirely according to the reconciliation that Christ
24:10
Jesus accomplished. He says further, look not within
24:13
as though you look for any strength for future living.
24:16
Don't look inside for the power to change.
24:18
He says I am. Become both your strength and
24:20
your deliverance, for when you were yet without strength, in
24:23
due time Christ died for the ungodly.
24:26
Strength comes from him too. Everything comes from him.
24:29
The very nature of the gospel message is soaked in grace
24:32
because it's directed to those whose only proper plea.
24:36
Their only rightful appeal is their profound need.
24:39
Remember, those who are healthy don't need a doctor, only those
24:42
who are sick. Christ himself said he came not
24:45
to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
24:49
So the call is to the needy. Exactly.
24:51
Therefore come you who know you are morally unwell, you whose
24:55
lives feel stained like white with a leprosy of sin, as Bergen
24:59
puts it, come and be received, because to you is this free
25:02
gospel declared by God's own instruction.
25:05
Assuredly a message like this is worth any effort to spread it
25:07
everywhere. It's so blessed, so divine in
25:10
its origin and effect, that we should gladly give our very
25:12
blood, like Paul, to proclaim it.
25:14
It truly means all human boasting is utterly excluded.
25:17
So what is the simple way then? How does someone actually
25:20
receive this forgiveness? What's the practical step for a
25:23
person hearing this good news right now?
25:25
Well, for this incredible gift, this gospel blessing to actually
25:28
be within reach of people, God's grace has adopted a method
25:31
that's perfectly suited to our condition.
25:34
It's not complicated. Someone might ask how?
25:36
How can I be forgiven? Tell me plainly, quickly, what
25:38
must I do? Yeah.
25:39
Philippian jailer question. Precisely.
25:41
And the clear, simple answer remains the same.
25:44
Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.
25:47
God asks of you no list of good works, no requirement of certain
25:51
good feelings or emotional states.
25:53
Instead, He asks simply that you be willing to accept what He
25:57
most freely gives. Willingness to receive.
25:59
That's it. He saves based on believing, and
26:03
this is the essence of faith, that you believe that Jesus
26:06
Christ is truly the Son of God, the promised Savior, and that
26:09
you trust yourself, your entire being, your eternal destiny to
26:12
Him as the scripture says. But as many as received him to
26:16
them gave he power or ability to become the sons of God, even to
26:19
them that believe on his name. If you believe you're saved.
26:23
Simple yet profound. It is.
26:26
And this deliverance, this salvation, the Bible says, is of
26:29
faith, that it might be by grace to the end.
26:33
The promise might be sure to all the seed, the method itself.
26:37
Faith highlights the freeness of the guest.
26:40
It's not about working your way up a ladder to God.
26:42
It's about receiving his hand, reaching down to you in grace.
26:45
It sounds like then even the faith itself is a gift.
26:48
It's not something we muster up entirely on our own.
26:51
And is there a promise of ongoing support, ongoing
26:54
sustainment for believers? It's not just a one time
26:57
transaction at the start. Yes, absolutely.
27:00
Right on both counts, if you were to say.
27:02
But even faith feels beyond my reach.
27:04
It feels like something I just can't generate on my own.
27:06
Which many people feel. Exactly.
27:08
Then the gospel of the grace of God goes even deeper.
27:10
It tells us that even the faith required is God's gift.
27:13
It reveals that God Himself works that faith in people by
27:16
His Holy Spirit, because apart from that spirit, humanity lies
27:20
spiritually dead in transgressions and wrongs,
27:22
utterly unable to generate saving belief on their own.
27:25
So God even gives the ability to believe.
27:28
Think of the grace in that. Oh, what grace is this?
27:30
The very belief that is commanded is also graciously
27:33
granted. It's a complete work of God from
27:35
the very beginning to the very end.
27:37
Amazing. And the second part?
27:39
Ongoing support. Yes.
27:41
Furthermore, consider this. Suppose you believe in Christ
27:44
and you know your past sins are forgiven, yet you might fear
27:47
falling back into sin because you feel you have no strength
27:50
within yourself to keep going, to stay faithful in the future.
27:53
Yeah. Listen closely to this precious
27:54
truth. The gospel of the grace of God
27:57
declares that He will keep you. He Himself will keep you right
28:01
to the very end of your life. He keeps us.
28:03
He does. He promises that he will
28:06
preserve alive within you the spiritual fire that He himself
28:09
Kindles. He says, I give unto my sheep
28:12
eternal life, and they shall never perish.
28:15
And again Jesus says, The water that I shall give him shall be
28:18
in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
28:21
The sheep of Christ shall never perish, nor shall anyone snatch
28:25
them out of Christ's hand. That's incredible security.
28:27
It is. Do you hear this?
28:29
You listening now, who feel you have no claim on God's grace
28:33
whatsoever, who recognize your utter unworthiness?
28:37
His free grace comes to you right where you are, even to you
28:41
in your exact condition, and if you were made willing by His
28:44
Spirit to receive it, you are this very day a saved person and
28:49
saved forever. Beyond any question, beyond any
28:51
doubt. This gospel is so truly worth
28:54
proclaiming that Paul could confidently declare neither.
28:57
Count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish
29:01
my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received
29:03
of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.
29:07
This whole concept of grace, especially sovereign grace, can
29:09
be really challenging for our natural way of thinking,
29:12
particularly when we think about God's sovereignty, His complete
29:15
freedom. How does the gospel of grace
29:17
relate to any claim we might think we have on God?
29:21
It seems to turn human merit completely on its head.
29:23
It absolutely does, and if you feel drawn to accept this way,
29:26
this method of grace, it's vital we look at this aspect closely
29:30
without shrinking back. Spurgeon warns that some people
29:32
think they love a thing, but they've actually misunderstood
29:34
its true nature. So do you truly grasp this, that
29:37
in the context of pure grace you have no proper plea, no rightful
29:41
claim upon God whatsoever, based on your own merit?
29:45
He clearly states I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy,
29:48
and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
29:51
That sounds very absolute. It is when salvation is purely a
29:54
matter of mercy. Then no one can possibly put
29:56
forth a claim based on deserving it.
29:59
Such a claim just cannot exist. The concepts are mutually
30:02
exclusive. If it's truly of grace, it
30:05
cannot be of debt, something earned or owed.
30:07
And if it's of debt, then it's not of grace.
30:10
Can't be both. Can't be both.
30:12
So if God in His sovereign wisdom desires to save one
30:15
person, and another person is left to perish in their own
30:18
willing sin, that second person cannot dare to dispute with God
30:21
regarding his choice. Or if they do try, the
30:24
unanswerable reply comes back. Can I not do as I will with my
30:27
own? I can feel hard to accept.
30:30
It can this truth, the absolute sovereignty of God and
30:33
salvation, might cause a natural shrinking back inside us.
30:38
Our human pride naturally bristles against the rule of
30:40
grace because grace demands that humanity be laid low so that God
30:45
alone is exalted. It asks us to lay down our
30:48
perceived rights and simply accept a gift which can feel
30:52
unsettling to our independent nature.
30:55
You've painted such a clear picture of pure grace there.
30:58
But I can almost hear some listeners thinking, OK, if it's
31:01
all grace, if it's not based on my actions at all, does that
31:03
mean my efforts don't matter? Does this lead to a license for
31:07
moral carelessness? Just do whatever I want.
31:09
How would Spurgeon address that potential misunderstanding head
31:12
on? And also, if we have no claim,
31:14
does that mean some people are just excluded from the start
31:17
with no hope? Those are very common and
31:19
understandable questions, absolutely, and Spurgeon would
31:21
confront them directly. Regarding the first point, does
31:24
grace lead to carelessness, He would argue strongly that the
31:27
very nature of God's grace, when truly grasped by the heart,
31:30
actually produces holiness. It doesn't excuse sin.
31:33
If someone truly understands they've been saved by pure,
31:36
unmerited favor, rescued from deserved judgment, purely by
31:39
God's mercy in Christ, it awakens a deep love and
31:42
gratitude. And that love compels them to
31:45
want to live for God, not against Him.
31:47
The desire to please and honor the God who gave everything for
31:50
you fundamentally changes your heart's motivation.
31:52
So it's motivation, not license. Exactly.
31:55
It's not a license to sin, but a liberation from sins, power, and
31:59
penalty, leading to a new life of willing obedience and
32:03
obedience born out of thankfulness and love, not out
32:05
of a desperate struggle to earn God's favor.
32:08
Spurgeon would likely say that anyone who uses grace as an
32:11
excuse to sin simply hasn't understood what grace truly is
32:15
or hasn't genuinely received it. True grace fosters not laziness,
32:19
but a fervent desire to live in a way that pleases the one who
32:22
gave such an indescribable gift. Now to your second question, If
32:27
we have no claim, does that mean some are just shut out?
32:30
While it's true you have no claim based on merit, there's
32:33
another sign to this truth, a side that shines brightly with
32:35
hope for everyone. On the other hand, there is
32:38
absolutely no obstacle related to your sinfulness that can
32:40
prevent you from obtaining mercy.
32:42
No obstacle, no obstacle in you. If no amount of personal
32:45
goodness is needed to recommend you to God, since everything He
32:48
gives must be pure favor, then by the same logic no amount or
32:52
degree of personal vadnais can automatically shut you out from
32:55
that favor either. However guilty you may be,
32:57
however deep your sins run, it may still be God's sovereign
33:01
will to show favor to you. So my sin isn't a barrier to His
33:04
grace. Precisely, He has in many
33:07
recorded cases called forth the very chief of sinners.
33:10
Think of Paul himself, and extended his grace to them.
33:13
Why should he not do so in your case also?
33:16
At any rate, no growth in sin, no long history of sinning, no
33:19
extreme height or severity of sin can be a valid reason in
33:22
itself why God should not look with grace upon you.
33:25
Because if pure grace and nothing else but grace is the
33:28
ruling principle, then even the jet black transgressor, as
33:31
Spurgeon calls them, as someone whose sins are numerous and
33:34
grievous, may still be saved. In fact, in such a person's
33:37
case, there's ample room, ample opportunity, for grace to
33:40
display its greatness and its magnificent power.
33:43
The only ultimate barrier is an unwillingness to receive the
33:46
free gift offered in Christ. Some might still stumble over
33:49
the idea of election. Then, if it's ultimately God's
33:51
sovereign choice, how does that leave room for human
33:53
responsibility or any hope for someone who feels like maybe
33:56
they aren't chosen? That's a point Spurgeon
33:58
addresses, too. He says he's heard people try to
34:00
make excuses for their inaction or despair by using the teaching
34:04
of election, saying things like, well, what if I'm not elected?
34:07
Yeah, that's a common thought. But Spurgeon suggests it's far
34:11
wiser, and certainly more hopeful, to turn that question
34:14
completely around. Instead of What if I'm not
34:17
elected, ask What if I am elected?
34:22
A different perspective. A radically different one.
34:24
And he goes further. He basically says, The truth is,
34:26
I am elected if I believe in Jesus.
34:29
For there never was a single soul yet that cast itself wholly
34:32
upon the reconciliation offered in Christ.
34:35
But that soul was chosen by God from before the foundation of
34:38
the world. So faith is the evidence of
34:40
election, not a prerequisite we generate.
34:42
In essence, yes. Trusting in Christ is the very
34:46
sign that God's electing grace. Is it working you.
34:49
This is the gospel of the grace of God, and Spojan says he knows
34:53
it touches the hearts of many. It often moved his own soul, he
34:56
says, like the sound of stirring martial music.
34:58
Invigorating, inspiring to just consider his Lord's grace
35:02
reaching back into eternity past.
35:04
A grace that has been constant to its choice and will be
35:07
constant to it even when all these visible things around us
35:09
fade away like sparks flying up from a chimney.
35:12
His heart was genuinely glad to proclaim this free grace and
35:15
sacrificial love. There is something in a free
35:19
grace gospel that is undeniably worth proclaiming, worth
35:21
listening to intently, worth living for every single day, and
35:25
yes, truly worth giving one's life for, as Paul did.
35:28
It provides the ultimate security, knowing your salvation
35:31
rests not on your shaky grip on God, but on His unchanging,
35:35
gracious grip on you. OK, so if this gospel, this
35:38
message of grace has made such a profound, noticeable alteration
35:41
in a person's life, how should that person respond?
35:44
What becomes the natural outflow of experiencing this?
35:47
Spurgeon puts it very directly. If the gospel has genuinely done
35:51
nothing for you, if it hasn't really affected your existence
35:55
in a deep way, then perhaps you should just stay silent about
35:58
it, or maybe even speak against it if that's your conviction.
36:01
That's blunt. It is, but he continues, if the
36:04
gospel has done for you what it has done for some of us, if it
36:08
is fundamentally changed the entire current of your life,
36:11
altering its direction completely, If it has lifted you
36:14
up from a low, maybe desperate place and set you, as it were,
36:17
on a seat of honor. If it is today you're very
36:19
spiritual sustenance, your food and drink.
36:21
If to your life it has become the very core, the illuminating
36:24
sun, then by all means bear constant witness to it.
36:28
If it's real, you talk about it. Exactly.
36:30
If the gospel has become to you what Spurgeon says it was to
36:33
him, the light of his innermost heart, the deepest core of his
36:36
being, then tell it. Tell it wherever you go.
36:40
Let people know that even if they choose to reject it, it
36:42
remains to you God's saving might.
36:44
And it will be the same saving might to every single person who
36:47
believes it. Your personal experience becomes
36:50
a living testimony, A vibrant demonstration of its truth.
36:54
You simply cannot keep silent if it is truly gripped your soul.
36:58
So what are the primary reasons then, beyond just personal
37:01
experience, that we as believers should make known this gospel of
37:04
the grace of God? What drives that urgency?
37:07
Spurgeon gives a few key reasons.
37:09
Firstly, and very simply, because it is the only true
37:12
gospel in the world after all. The only one.
37:14
The only one with saving power. These temporary mushroom gospels
37:18
we talked about, the ones that arrive and depart like
37:20
yesterday's news, having their brief moment, then being
37:22
discarded. They have no legitimate claim on
37:24
anyone's zeal. There's no reason to devote your
37:27
life to something fleeting. But he says to hear the true
37:30
gospel of the grace of God is worth walking many miles for,
37:33
worth any effort to come and listen.
37:35
People are drawn to it. He believes so, he said.
37:38
If this gospel were plainly presented in all our places of
37:41
worship, he assured his listeners, they'd see very few
37:44
empty seats. People would come and hear it,
37:46
because historically, they always have.
37:48
It's a gospel without grace, he argues, that starves the flock
37:52
until they feel compelled to leave the pasture, seeking
37:55
spiritual nourishment elsewhere. Humanity, deep down, desire
37:59
something that will bring genuine cheer to the heart of
38:02
its life's toil and labor, something that will give real
38:05
hope when faced with the oppressive sense of our own
38:08
wrongdoing. Just as thirsty people
38:11
desperately need water to survive, so humanity needs the
38:14
gospel of the grace of God for their spiritual life and
38:16
well-being. And there are no two gospels in
38:18
the world any more than there are two Suns up in the sky.
38:21
There's only one atmosphere for us to breathe, and only one
38:24
gospel for our souls to live by. It's unique, and it's absolutely
38:28
necessary. It's the only message that truly
38:30
satisfies humanity's deepest spiritual hunger.
38:33
That's a powerful reason. What else?
38:35
Proclaim it next, because it brings honor to God.
38:38
Do you not see how it's very nature brings honor to God?
38:41
Well, it humbles the Sinner, laying them low.
38:43
It makes humanity realize their place, essentially nobody in the
38:47
work of salvation, but it makes God everything.
38:49
All in all, it places God on the seat of honor and brings
38:52
humanity down low, acknowledging our absolute dependence.
38:56
And then having brought us that place of humility, it gently
38:59
leads people to worship and reverence the God of all grace,
39:02
the God who graciously passes over wrongdoing, evil, and sin
39:06
because of Christ, Therefore, we must spread it.
39:09
Spreading the gospel inherently glorifies God because it
39:11
displays his character. And spread it also because in
39:14
doing so, you bring honor to Christ.
39:17
Oh, Spurgeon muses, If Christ himself should suddenly appear
39:20
on this platform this morning, how gladly, how reverently we
39:23
would all make way for him, how devotedly we would adore him if
39:26
we could just see his face, that dear majestic head, Wouldn't we
39:30
all immediately bow down and worship without question?
39:32
And he then spoke and said, My beloved, I have entrusted to you
39:36
my gospel. Hold it fast just as you
39:38
received it. Don't give in to the mere ideas
39:41
and inventions of people, but hold fast the truth you
39:43
received. And go, go and tell my word,
39:46
because I have other sheep that are not yet part of this fold,
39:49
and they must be brought in. And you have brothers and
39:51
sisters who are still wayward like the prodigal son, and they
39:54
must come home. I mean, if he looked you, each
39:56
one of us right in the face and spoke so directly.
40:00
What would the response be? Your soul would surely answer
40:02
with immediate commitment, wouldn't it?
40:04
Lord, I will live for you. I will make you known.
40:06
I will give my life for you, if necessary, to publish the gospel
40:09
of Jesus Christ. This call to make Him known
40:11
flows directly, naturally, from a heart filled with grateful
40:14
adoration for who He is and what He's done.
40:16
Hashtag #outro. Wow, what a rich deep dive we've
40:21
had today into this gospel, the grace of God.
40:24
It really is a message that commands our full attention and,
40:27
as you've said, our eager proclamation.
40:29
Indeed it does. So maybe something for you, our
40:32
listener, to consider is this. If this gospel, this message
40:35
that brings down human pride and lifts up God's Amazing Grace,
40:39
truly is the only source of real hope and lasting security, how
40:44
does this understanding now shape your own daily
40:46
conversations, your actions as you live day by day in the light
40:50
of His pure mercy? What difference does it make
40:53
practically? That's definitely something to
40:54
ponder. Thank you for joining us today
40:56
on Reform Thinking. Until next time, keep seeking to
40:59
understand and apply God's lasting truth.