Spurgeon’s Sermons: Being Mentored by the Prince of Preachers

The Story of the 63 Volumes

The Preaching of the Word by the chosen servants of the living God, is the ordained means for the gathering in of the elect. It is not the Word read, so much as that which is heard, which has the promise attached to it; hence the importance of a devout attendance on the ministry of the Gospel. Nevertheless, without doubt, the Holy Ghost who has helped us in the delivery of these Sermons, will also afford his divine assistance now that we send them forth in this volume.[1]

With these words, C. H. Spurgeon introduced the first volume of the New Park Street Pulpit, an annual volume of his weekly sermons that would be published beginning in January 1855. Over the years, Spurgeon’s weekly sermon became a staple in evangelicalism. They were sold throughout the English-speaking world. British evangelicals could go to the store on Thursday and pick up a copy of the latest sermon along with their weekly groceries. Even after he died in 1892, Passmore & Alabaster continued to publish sermons from their vast treasury of Spurgeon’s sermon transcripts. After all, Spurgeon regularly preached four times a week—sometimes as many as thirteen times!—and his sermons were transcribed by stenographers in the congregation. These weekly sermons continued for 25 years—3,563 in all.

Many preachers have published their sermons. But no one has had anything close to Spurgeon’s staying power; his weekly sermons were sold for 63 years. In the end, it took a World War to put an end to publishing his sermons.[2]

The 63 volumes of Spurgeon’s sermons are a treasure of church history. They contain sermons from nearly every chapter of the Bible, covering every topic of theology. They all point to the center of Scripture: Jesus Christ. But because of their size, few have ever attempted to republish them. Beginning in the 1960s, Pilgrim Publications, led by Bob Ross, made these sermons available for a generation of pastors. However, with Ross’s passing in 2020, Pilgrim came to an end, and Spurgeon’s sermons are again no longer in print.

Enter Reformation Heritage Books. In partnership with Midwestern Seminary and the Spurgeon Library, they are once again making the 63 volumes available for a new generation of pastors, preachers, seminarians, and more. Beginning this year, the first six volumes of the New Park Street Pulpit will be made available. Lord willing, the remaining 57 volumes of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit will then be released in four more box sets over the next three or four years.

On Reading Spurgeon’s Sermons

Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, the famous Welsh preacher of Westminster Chapel, once wrote about Spurgeon’s sermons,

Throughout my ministerial life, people have told me of the help and blessing they have obtained from reading Spurgeon’s sermons. I think primarily of lay people who were not fortunate enough to have good, solid, evangelical preaching in their own churches, and who find the sermonettes and talks on the radio and television quite inadequate. Spurgeon always provides a solid meal and sustenance on which one can live.[3]

If you are a young Christian, a Christian who doesn’t have access to “solid, evangelical preaching,” or a Christian who simply wants to grow in your love for God’s Word, I commend Spurgeon’s sermons to you. Encourage your church library to get a set; better yet, purchase a set yourself (the New Park Street Pulpit is a great place to begin) and begin working through them. Read through a sermon each evening before you go to bed. What better way to end the day? Or use your Lord’s Day afternoons by reading a sermon. Find a young Christian and read through sermons together. Start a small group where you take turns reading a sermon out loud and then discussing it. The sermons are perfect for devotional reading in all kinds of settings: long enough to allow for meditation and reflection but short enough to make it digestible.

But these sermons aren’t only for lay readers. They’re also a resource for preachers. Lloyd-Jones continues,

Many preachers also, I know, have modeled themselves on him. A still larger number have often found comfort, encouragement, stimulus, and helpful suggestions for their own preaching as the result of reading his sermons. Never was the Truth he preached and proclaimed, in such a winsome yet powerful manner, more needed than today. Nothing can substitute preaching—no psychological counseling or group therapy, or any one of the latest passing fads and crazes.

Lloyd-Jones laments the “passing fads and crazes” of his day. But isn’t this the case in every age? Too many preachers allow their sermons to be influenced by news headlines, personal concerns, and cultural fads. How can a pastor tether himself to the Truth? How can a pastor grow in his understanding of God’s Word and his ability to communicate it? Certainly, expert feedback will help a preacher grow, but not everyone will have access to that in their church. The other option is to find faithful models in preaching. Spurgeon can help.

If you are a regular preacher, consider adopting Spurgeon as a spiritual mentor in your preaching. Find a way to read his sermons regularly. Turn to them for refreshment when you’re feeling spiritually dry or discouraged. Analyze his sermons when training your pastoral interns to preach. To prepare for a sermon series, consider reading through a number of sermons that Spurgeon might have preached. Incorporate a Spurgeon sermon on the relevant text as a step in your preparation. Of course, this isn’t a substitute for your own meditation and study! But as a devotional aid to warm your heart, a resource of fitting illustrations and applications, and a guide for thorny questions, Spurgeon can be a great mentor.

A Personal Testimony

I’ve been preaching now for nearly two decades. Regularly reading Spurgeon’s sermons has helped me meditate longer on Scripture. Like the Puritans before him, Spurgeon’s sermons model how to take a doctrine and simply stare at it, turning the diamond and allowing its brilliance to shine. But unlike most of the Puritans, Spurgeon is accessible.

Even more, I’ve grown in my ability to preach more directly to the heart. So much modern preaching tends to be intellectual, patterned more after lectures or commentaries. They say true things, but they tend to be disconnected and abstract. By observing Spurgeon’s use of illustrations, his directness and closeness of application, and his preaching to the heart, I’m learning to land my sermons more directly on my listeners, showing how God’s Word matters for us today. Most of all, Spurgeon’s sermons (especially the earlier ones!) have a fire and zeal about them that is contagious. They’ve helped me feel the burden of the text and carry that burden to my people.

Improvements like these are hard to quantify. Through these 63 volumes, you can be mentored by the Prince of Preachers. They’ll be a lifelong companion in the pulpit and the ministry. If books are tools for pastoral ministry, then these tools should be at the top of your wish list.

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[1] C. H. Spurgeon, The New Park Street Pulpit: Containing Sermon Preached and Revised by the Rev. C. H. Spurgeon, 1855, Vol. 1, (Pilgrim Publications: Pasadena, TX, 1990), i.

[2] Spurgeon’s sermons stopped being published in May 1917 due to a paper shortage from World War 1.

[3] This and the following quote by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones is found on the inside flap of the dust jacket of Vol. 9 of the Pilgrim edition of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit. C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit: Sermons Preached and Revised by C. H. Spurgeon, 1863, Vol. 9 (Pilgrim Publications: Pasadena, TX, 1969).