gr o w ing t oge t he r with
the people’s preacher
Four-Session Small-Group Study Study Guide and Personal Journal
Peter Morden
Copyright © Peter Morden 2010 Published 2010 by CWR, Waverley Abbey House, Waverley Lane, Farnham, Surrey GU9 8EP, UK. Registered Charity No. 294387. Registered Limited Company No. 1990308. The right of Peter Morden to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing of CWR. For a list of our National Distributors visit www.cwr.org.uk/distributors Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are from the Holy Bible: New International Version (NIV), copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society. Concept development, editing, design and production by CWR Cover image and internal images all taken and used with permission of Spurgeon’s College. Printed in England by Nuffield Press ISBN: 978-1-85345-577-3
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Contents Introduction
3
How to Use
5
Session 1: New Beginnings
6
Session 2: Tragedy and Triumph
12
Session 3: Ministry and Mission
19
Session 4: Suffering and Glory
25
Timeline: C.H. Spurgeon
32
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Introduction C.H. Spurgeon (1834–92) was an evangelical Baptist pastor who was one of the greatest ‘celebrities’ of the Victorian age. It is hard to imagine a Christian preacher being so well known and so influential today. As early as 1858, when Spurgeon was just 24 years of age, Americans returning home after a trip to England could expect to find themselves being asked two questions, namely, ‘Did you see the Queen?’ and, ‘Did you hear Spurgeon?’ Thousands came to hear him every week at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, and his printed sermons were read throughout the world. But Spurgeon wasn’t just a preacher. He founded a college for training pastors and an orphanage to care for vulnerable children. He wrote numerous books. He led countless men and women to Christ and encouraged innumerable Christians in their ongoing walk with God. This study resource introduces you to one of the true giants of Christian history, and gives an exciting glimpse into how God worked through this gifted (yet flawed and vulnerable) man. But this is not just, or even primarily, a history lesson! Even an exciting journey into Christian history would have limited value if it didn’t help us to follow Jesus now. But my conviction is that Spurgeon’s story does help us to live for Jesus today! Indeed, it has tremendous potential to inspire, inform and shape our Christian discipleship in the twenty-first century. There is much to help us nurture our relationship with God, much that we can glean about being the Church together, and much that we can discover about evangelism and social action. And we not only »3«
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Growing together with | C.H. SPURgeon – the people’s preacher
learn about our Christian lives with the help of Spurgeon. We learn about God Himself and His power. God works through frail and fallible people who nevertheless seek to love and serve their Lord wholeheartedly. Our times may be different from Spurgeon’s, but Jesus is the same ‘yesterday and today and for ever’ (Heb. 13:8). May we faithfully live and tell the gospel in our own generation, as Spurgeon did so faithfully in his. And may we also know the truth that Spurgeon discovered: that God’s power is ‘made perfect in [our] weakness’ (2 Cor. 12:9). Peter Morden Spurgeon’s College July 2010
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> How to use <
For group leaders How To Use This resource includes all you need for four dynamic small-group sessions. It comprises DVD clips, icebreakers, questions for discussion, a Bible Focus and suggestions for prayer. To get the most out of this material, you will need to set aside about one and a half hours for each session. As well as the group material, there are some additional notes and Bible references for each person to read between the meetings.
Preparation 1. Watch the relevant DVD clip before the meeting and read the Bible Focus carefully. The DVD clips for each session last about 20 minutes. 2. Use the icebreaker to get people talking, then turn to the study questions. You can use all the questions, or you can select the ones you think will be most useful to your group. Plan for about 45 minutes. This will leave about 25 minutes for prayer.
The Session 1. Play the DVD clip and then go straight into the icebreaker. 2. Use the questions you have selected. 3. Move from discussion to prayer. There are suggestions to guide you and there is also a written prayer with which you can close the session. 4. Encourage people to read the additional notes and Bible references on their own during the week. These will help reinforce the material covered in the group sessions. There is a ‘My Personal Journey’ page with some simple questions to help people apply the lessons they have learned. You may want to leave time in some of your sessions so that individuals can share what God has said to them personally during the week. »5«
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Session 1: New Beginnings Bible Focus: John 3:13–18 First of all, watch the DVD clip for this session.
ICEBREAKEr Share a time when you began something new. It may have been starting a new job, the time you first trusted Jesus or, perhaps, another ‘new beginning’ He called you to make.
FOR GROUP DISCUSSION 1. How did Spurgeon come to know Jesus personally? Are there similarities between the way he came to trust in Christ and the way you came to believe in Him?
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> Session 1: New beginnings <
2. Read Isaiah 45:22, the verse that was used by God in Spurgeon’s conversion, and this week’s Bible Focus, which is John 3:13–18. What does it truly mean to ‘look’ to Christ? How do these verses, especially the longer New Testament passage, challenge us?
3. How can we be involved in leading others to Christ? (Note: As well as drawing from the DVD, Bible verses such as John 1:40–42, Acts 8:26–35, 2 Timothy 1:5 can help us answer this question.)
4. How did Spurgeon come to take his first steps into preaching? Is there a ‘new thing’ that God may be calling you to do? And how can you encourage others to step out in faith?
5. What strikes you about Spurgeon’s preaching from 1 Peter 2:7, as it is shown on the DVD? How does this preaching challenge and encourage us as Christians today?
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Growing together with | C.H. SPURgeon – the people’s preacher
SUGGESTIONS FOR PRAYER Praise God for the good news of Jesus and for those who helped you to ‘look’ to Him. Above all, give thanks for Jesus Himself, God’s Son who died and rose again for you. Give thanks that our God is the God of ‘new beginnings’. Pray about any new things you believe God might be calling you to do. Pray for faith and courage to live as God would have us live, and to do what He would have us do. Ask God to show you three people with whom you can share the good news of Jesus. Write down their names in the space below. Make a commitment to pray for them, love them in practical ways, and take the opportunities God gives to share the gospel with them.
Closing Prayer Father, we praise You for the new start You give us in Jesus! Thank You for the good news about Him, good news that Spurgeon believed and preached. Help us to believe in Your Son ever more deeply, and help us to share Him with others whenever, wherever and however we can. Amen. »8«
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> Session 1: New beginnings <
For Personal Reflection Within a month of his conversion Spurgeon began to keep a diary, and on the first page he wrote the following prayer of commitment:
CONSECRATION O great and unsearchable God, who knowest my heart, and triest all my ways; with a humble dependence upon the support of Thy Holy Spirit, I yield myself up to Thee as Thine own reasonable sacrifice, I return to Thee Thine own. I would be for ever, unreservedly, perpetually Thine. Whilst I am on earth I would serve Thee; and may I enjoy Thee and praise Thee for ever! Amen. Feb. 1, 1850. Charles Haddon Spurgeon You may have found this prayer difficult to read. All the Christians of the time would have spoken to God using ‘Thees’ and ‘Thous’ as Spurgeon did. To address God in any other way would have been regarded as irreverent, but it can seem strange to many of us today. Some of the other words Spurgeon used are not ones we often hear. But even if the language is unfamiliar I hope you did pick up the utter passion of the young Spurgeon for his Saviour. There were no half measures with him. As a Christian he wasn’t content to be a ‘pewfiller’ or even just mildly committed. Drawing his strength from God, Charles Spurgeon was determined to be ‘out and out’ for his Lord. Perhaps the reason we find Spurgeon’s prayer difficult isn’t just the language. Maybe it’s also because his complete consecration to God challenges our own lack of commitment to Christ and His cause. »9«
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Growing together with | C.H. SPURgeon – the people’s preacher
Bible Readings Romans 12:1–2 Philippians 3:10 Ephesians 5:18–20 Spend some time this week reflecting on Spurgeon’s prayer of consecration, with the help of these Bible readings. You might even want to write your own prayer to God.
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> Session 1: New beginnings <
My Personal Journey The key truths I have learned or been reminded of are:
As a result I intend to:
My thoughts, on looking back over this week, are:
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