Gleanings from an 1894 Sword and Trowel: Spurgeon at a Wedding (part one).

I now introduce to you one of my favourite selections from the 1894 Sword and Trowel—Mr. Spurgeon at a Wedding. The article is doubly sweet; it first gives an account by a Pastors’ College man of Spurgeon conducting his marriage ceremony, and then is followed by a recording of the sermon by the one of the editors of the magazine. (The editing of The Sword and the Trowel was a collaborative effort after Spurgeon died, so I am unsure of who authored the piece.) I’ll include the editor’s introduction and the groom’s account in this post, and will provide the sermon in another.

Here’s the article:

Among the reminiscences of the late beloved President, sent to us, two years ago, by brethren trained in the Pastors’ College, was one which we thought it well to retain until we could give a report of the special service to which the writer alludes. The right time for its publication appears now to have arrived; and the present article will appropriately follow the touching address printed in the last month’s Magazine under the title, Mr. Spurgeon at a Funeral. [I plan to publish that article soon to TheLifeWord.] There, we saw our late dear Editor sympathizing with the sorrowing; here, we think of him as increasing the joy of those who had reached the happiest hour of their lives. Pastor E.A. Hobby of Macclesfield, is the minister referred to, and his note concerning the memorable event is as follows:—

“How well do I remember my last interview with our beloved President! It was on a bright spring morning, in the month of May, 1890, when he came down from ‘Westwood’ to Thornton Heath, to conduct our marriage service in Beulah Baptist Chapel. Having arrived a few minutes before time, we waited for him in the vestry. Presently the door opened, and he entered, with a bright, happy smile upon his face. After a pleasant greeting, in a few kind words he presented my wife with Morning by Morning, in which he had written ‘To Mrs. Hobby, on her wedding day, May 6th, 1890, with best wishes and prayers of C. H. Spurgeon,’ and Evening by Evening, containing the inscription, ‘The Lord bless thee and keep thee!’ He also gave me a morocco-bound Revised New Testament, inscribed, ‘With the Christian love of C.H. Spurgeon.’

“After expressing our hearty thanks, we adjourned to the chapel, where the ceremony took place. After the legal part of the service was completed, and he had addressed us in some wise, cheery words, he turned to those who had witnessed the ceremony, and made a very touching appeal to the unconverted. What an appeal that was! How our hearts throbbed, and our eyes filled with tears, as the great preacher, in simple, searching, pathetic language pleaded for some soul to yield to Christ as a fitting seal to that happy covenant of love! After the address came the closing prayer,—such a prayer as he alone could offer; it was full of yearning for souls, gratitude for the Lord’s goodness, and holy unction.

“It is needless to say that we thanked our beloved President very heartily for his great kindness; but he persisted in saying that the obligation was on his side, thanking us for coming such a great distance to be married by him, and then adding, ‘Would you like an hour at “Westwood”?’ Of course we should; and time-tables were soon consulted, and later trains arranged for. So to ‘Westwood’ we went. He did not begrudge us the time, which he could ill afford to spare; but himself conducted us through the greenhouses and grounds. How those plants seemed to speak, as he described them to us! He appeared to be introducing us to friends as well as to flowers; a little tale about one, a sweet promise associated with another, and in a marvellous way he unveiled the works of God in nature. We had all the poetry of Pantheism set to the metre of the personality of God. From the greenhouses we went to the fernery, where we were shown the famous ‘mother-fern’, mentioned in The Sword and the Trowel for December, 1891.

“Last, but not least, we visited the President’s special ‘sanctum’, ‘the den.’ This seemed to us a peculiarly-consecrated room; for there, the man of God held secret communion with his Maker; there the famous Jerusalem blade was sharpened for the fray; there, the mighty warrior buckled on the breastplate of righteousness, and was shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Fain would we linger in this heavenly atmosphere; but time forbids. We must say, ‘Farewell,’ and feel thankful for the unexpected pleasure of spending an extra hour with the one we love so well. As we pass out, through the casement by which we entered, I turn for a parting glance, and breathe an almost inaudible ‘Good-bye.’ The indefatigable toiler was already at work; but his quick ear caught my words, and he responded, ‘Good-bye, dear brother, and God bless you!’ Thus ended my last interview with our beloved President.”

As soon as time allows, I will post the rest of this excellent article. The address Spurgeon gave included a most interesting charge to the wife in anticipation of her future role as the wife of a pastor. Be sure to return to read it.

Coming Soon: More 1894 Sword and Trowel Posts

If you are new to my blog, the life word, welcome. The chart above reveals that I’m not accustomed to having so many show up. Phil Johnson’s kind recommendation brought a surge of visits! My dear friend's tip led you here, and I hope what you find will bring you back.

For the next several posts, I plan to continue pulling out sections from an 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowel I acquired. I've listed below the kind of things you’ll find here over the next several weeks. I do hope you’ll return. And, if you like what you see, please bookmark my site, link me to yours and let others know too.

Here’s a sampling of posts coming soon:

Spurgeon’s sermons burned!

A cripple’s recollection of Spurgeon

Spurgeon’s charge at a wedding

Spurgeon preaching a Funeral

Excerpts from otherwise unpublished sermons preached at New Park Street Chapel

Bruised Reeds: Suffering Pastors battling the Downgrade in their Churches (several posts)

Spurgeon’s appeal for Home Mission Evangelists

Tom Spurgeon’s visit to see D.L. Moody in Chicago

Sermons from Mentone

Remembrances and other choice remarks from Mrs. Spurgeon

The Met Tab’s calling of Tom Spurgeon as pastor

Gleanings from 1894 Sword and Trowel: At the Pastors' College

I’ll never forget my first visit to The Master’s Seminary, over which John MacArthur presides as president. I sat in a theology class taught by George Zemek and took in with sheer delight God’s word expressed so fully, so completely, so passionately.

What would it be like to spend time at the Pastors’ College, where Spurgeon presided as President? One of the former students, Pastor W. D. McKinney, gave this account; remembrances flavoured by the recent and bittersweet loss of President Spurgeon:

All through the week, there was, usually, plenty of hard work for the students. English Literature and Mental Philosophy were taught by the laborious Fergusson. Those who were in his classes had to work, or woe be to them! Gracey, mildly yet firmly, led his men through Greek, Latin, and Elisha Cole’s Divine Sovereignty, till their brows throbbed, and their backs ached. He smiled on the industrious and quietly marked the laggards. Then Mr. Rogers, in the general classroom, conducted us to the fountain-head of Theology. The march was over the old highway of logical and Scriptural reasoning; but, often, “the old man eloquent” would cheer our drooping spirits by rare bursts of matchless oratory. The Vice-President drilled us in Charnock on the Attributes, and then made us grub Hebrew roots till we were as weary as the Israelites in the brickfields of Egypt.

Friday afternoon came at last. The old, familiar clock pointed to three; the door opened on the stroke of the hour, the beloved President appeared, and walked up to the desk, while hands clapped, feet stamped, and voices cheered, till he had to hold up his hand, and say, “Now, gentlemen, do you not think that is enough? The floor is weak, the ceiling is not very high, and I am sure, you need all the strength you have for your labours.”

In those days, the President was in his prime. His step was firm, his eyes bright, his hair raven-black, his voice full of music, pathos, and merriment. Before him were gathered a hundred men from all parts of the United Kingdom, and not a few from beyond the seas. They were brought together by the magic of his name, and the attraction of his personal influence. His fame has gone out into all lands. His sermons were published in almost all languages. Many sitting before him were his own sons in the faith. Among his students he was at his ease, as a father in the midst of his own family. The brethren loved him, and he loved them.

Soon, the floods of his pent up wisdom poured forth; the flashes of his inimitable wit lit up every face, and his pathos brought tears to all eyes. It was an epoch in student-life to hear him deliver his Lectures to my Students. What wide discourse he gave us on the subject of preaching! How gently he corrected faults, and encouraged genuine diffidence! What withering sarcasm for all fops and pretenders! Then came those wonderful imitations of the dear brethren’s peculiar mannerisms,—one with the hot dumplings in his mouth, trying to speak; another, sweeping his hand up and down from nose to knee; a third, with his hands under his coat-tails, making the figure of a water-wagtail. Then the one with his thumbs in the armholes of his waistcoat showing the “penguin” style of oratory. By this means, he held the mirror before us so that we could see our faults, yet all the while we were almost convulsed with laughter. He administered the medicine with effervescing draughts.

After this, came the wise advice, so kind, so grave, so gracious, so fatherly; then the prayer that lifted us to the mercy-seat, where we caught glimpses of glory, and talked face to face with the Master Himself. Afterwards, the giving-out of the appointments for the next Lord’s-day took place. The dear President read from the letters in his hand, while we listened in expectation. “Here is one from an important church in a large city. They want a brother who must be eloquent, learned, polite, and very pious. Gentlemen, you are all endowed with these qualifications, how can I make a selection? Here, Small, you can go, for you are about the smallest of the lot, and we must keep our large men for the little places; they will be sure to fill them.

“Another brother is wanted for Ireland. There they have killed one already, and made two invalids. Here, Smith, you look tough; start off for the bogs, ‘Come back with your shield, or on it.’

“An extra good brother is called for from Scotland. He must be sound in the faith, and able to live on a pound a week. My thin brother Snooks, will you try ‘the land o’ cakes and heather’? Yes, I knew you needed less than any man in the College; you lived on eighteenpence one week, before you entered. If you get any thinner, come back at once for some English beef and plum-pudding.

“Gentlemen, here is another letter from the ancient church of Puddleton. It has had sixteen men in weekly (weakly) succession. Remember that it is a ‘hyper’ church, and wants at least sixteen ounces to the pound. Who will volunteer? Black is the man. Go, my brother, but be wise as a serpent, and harmless as a dove. In the meantime, hold on with both your hands; when they fail, catch hold with your teeth; if they give out, hang on with your eyebrows.

After the letters were disposed of, and the class dismissed for tea, then came the men who wanted advice. Some were in trouble, others in joy; and the President listened patiently to all their tales; anon he would laugh, and then he would weep. At last he is through, “weary in the work, but not weary of it.” His cheery voice gradually dies away as he ascends the stairs to his “Sanctum.” We did not grieve as we parted from him, for we knew that, God willing, on the next Friday afternoon, we should once more see his bright, genial face and hear his wit and wisdom again.

The present students listen in vain for the tones of that wonderful voice in the class-room; they hear only its echoes. He has gone up in the “the unseen holy,” where he awaits his sons in the faith.

Gleanings from 1894 Sword and Trowel; Pastors' College Statistics

Well, after that Fool’s Day diversion, it is time to return to better and more important things. In my reading I came across a report on the Pastor’s College that astounded me. I’ll provide the excerpt from the 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowel and then explain what captured me:

During the past thirty-eight years, nine hundred and nine men exclusive of those at present studying with us, have been received into the College, “of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some (ninety-six) are fallen asleep.” Making all deductions, there are about seven hundred and thirty brethren. Of these, six hundred and fifty-one are in our own denomination as Pastors, Missionaries, and Evangelists.

They may be thus summarized:--

Number of brethren who have been educated in the College...909
Number now in our ranks as Pastors, Missionaries and Evangelists...651
Number without Pastorates, but regularly engaged in the work of the Lord...30
Number not now engaged in the work, but useful in secular callings...28
Number educated for other Denominations...2
Number dead (Pastors, 87; Students, 9)...96
Number permanently invalided...15
Number removed from the College List for various reasons...87

To this “summary” the late beloved President in one of the Reports appended the following note: “The last were not removed from our list in all cases from causes which imply any dishonour, for many of them are doing good service to the common Lord under some other banner. We are sorry for their leaving us, and surprised that they should change their views; but this also is one of those mysteries of human life which are beyond our control.”

We ought to add, that for years past we have lost all traces of many of those referred to, and have reason to believe that several of them are dead.

I would love to hear your reaction to that little article. What amazes me is the high percentage of pastors, missionaries and evangelists that were produced in relation to the number of graduates from the Pastor’s College. I’m not versed in seminary stats, but I am astounded that well over 700 of 909 trained men went into full-time ministry.

What is your estimate of the reasons for that? Please comment.

Gleanings from 1894 Sword and Trowel, part 2: Gems from an Unpublished Sermon

There's much to gather, even from the very beginning of this volume. The first page starts out with a sermon preached and revised by Spurgeon that is not published (or mentioned, to my knowledge) elsewhere.

The message is titled "The Gleanings of the Olives" and based on Deuteronomy 24:20, "When thou beatest thine olive trees, thou shalt not go over the boughs again: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow."

The whole of the sermon is filled with helpful information, and the following section contains much for the preacher and church member:

"The divine command may also suggest to us the beauty of a kind consideration of those who are poor and needy in spiritual things. When we are preaching the gospel, we beat down from the olive tree the thick ripe fruit of the doctrines of grace; but we should remember that there are some who, through their weakness in the faith, are not able to participate with us in the higher truths; we ought therefore to remember them, and permit them to share in other portions of the Divine Word more suited to their capacities.

"There should be handfuls let fall on purpose for the trembling and for the desponding; we should not be so strict in the description of character as to hand over every cluster of the spiritual vine to a small company of rich saints, but we should leave branches of the grapes of Eshcol for those whose evidences are dim, whose faith is feeble, and who but for our thoughtfulness concerning them would exclude themselves from all heavenly comfort. It is true that the comfort of the text may chiefly belong to a certain character; but be not so rigid as to shut out the humble souls who dare not put in their claim for a share in it. Leave some olives on the tree. Do not beat the text too closely.

"Nor is the lesson for the preacher only; it ill becomes the hearer of the Word to be always clamorous to be himself fed under every sermon, especially if he is well instructed in the faith, and if a relish for the mysteries of the kingdom has been given to him. He must not be so selfish as to complain when the more elementary truths are preached again and again. What if they do not feed him? Are the olive trees of the Word to be so beaten for him that nothing shall remain for others? Are there not feebler folk who need spiritual sustenance?

"What if he be no longer a babe in grace, and having grown to ripe manhood, is able to digest the strong meat? Yet let him not demand of his Master's servant that he should always set strong meat, and nothing else, on the table. Let the babes be fed with milk even if the man of perfect stature cares not to partake of it. Let the humble soul have his portion; yea, let even the stranger who is within the gates of the Lord's house have a share in the produce of Emmanuel's land.

"We have known some who appeared to be utterly thoughtless of everybody but themselves: their one test of a sermon is their own profiting by it, and they never think that other classes beside instructed believers are to be considered by the true pastor. They demand that we shall beat the olive trees scores of times to get every berry for them alone: they even want us to extort more from our texts than they truly yield, by beating them with the rod of spiritualizing; and meanwhile, the poor in spirit are to be left to shift for themselves, that these 'dear people of God' may be surfeited.

"We scorn to be subservient to their unchristian greed. Misers who hoard their gold are rightly despised; but what shall we say of those who would monopolize the Word of God? Our heart is not in the slightest sympathy with them; we hope ever to leave large gleanings for the poor of the kingdom, and never to gather all the olives for those who are in their own opinion rich and increased with goods.

"In preaching, of what is thought to be a high order, there is too frequently a forgetfulness of the uninstructed. Words are used which are only understood by the cultured, and phrases are employed which are like another tongue to the common people. Where such preaching is natural, we will not indulge a censure upon it; but we earnestly maintain that at least some portions of every religious discourse ought to be so simple that the most illiterate should be able to understand them, and profit by them. There should be some gleanings even for the children, a bunch of grapes for the eager mouth of the hopeful boy, a few olives for the poor aged widow, a handful of corn for the weary labourer, a portion for seven, and also for eight. To forget the lower classes in our ministrations, will be a sin against the Lord.

"It is the glory of the dispensation of Christ that 'the poor have the gospel preached unto them,' yet it would seem in the judgment of too many, to be the glory of the pulpit if its teaching is only suited to the elite, and if the pews around it are never occupied by the peasant or the artizan. We would far sooner use such 'great plainness of speech' as to appear to neglect the refined classes, than that we would be charageable with the 'wisdom of words,' or with casting a veil over the truth so that the multitude are unable to perceive it. O ye masters of Israel, think of this, and in the largeness of your hearts act accordingly!

"Another bearing of the same precept would lead us in our arrangements for public teaching and evangelization, largely to consider those that are without, in the depths of spritual poverty. Provision must certainly be made for Christian people, for their families, and for those who attach themselves to our congregations; yet when this is done, all is not accomplished. Let the olives be well beaten for the household, and let the children have their portion in due season; but we must also think of the stranger, and lay ourselves out for the neglected classes.

"The City of God is not a close borough, imprisoned within gateless walls, within which provender is to be hoarded, while the famine rages without. No, the leaves of the tree of life are for the healing of the nations, and the gospel is a feast for those who lie in the highways and the hedges. By some means, the careless crowds must be brought under the sound of the truth; and if they will not come to us, we must go to them, and preach Christ in the marketplace, or even in the theatre and the music-hall.

"No single class should be forgotten, and the poorest and most degraded should lie heaviest upon our hearts. They need the light, and they must have their share of the oil, and of the olives. Some churches appear to beat their trees only for their seat-holders; but it must not be so among us, we must gather together the outcasts of Israel, and have it said of us as it was of our great Examplar, 'Then drew near unto Him all the publicans and sinners to hear Him.'

"The subject grows upon our consideration when we remember the teeming millions of the heathen world, for whom but a few olives are left when the Christian Church is gathering her fruit. Alas! the money spent upon the heathendom is far too little even in proportion to that which is spent at home, and that is none too great. When we are ourselves being fed with the finest of the wheat, can we not spare a sheaf for China? When our faces are made to shine with the annointing oil, have we no oil for India and Japan? And when we are gathering the clusters of Eshcol, and satisfying our mouths with the good things of the Lord's vineyard, have we no grapes for the parched lips of Africa, no draught of wine of consolation for the dying millions of South America? Surely, there is no need to press the point; but, henceforth, Israelites indeed will not plead home claims as a reason for stinting missionary contributions. Leave a fair share of olives for the stranger; and may the Lord therefore send a blessing on the whole olive-yard, according to His wont!

Gleanings from 1894 Sword and Trowel: A Concerned Letter from Spurgeon to his Students

During the late summer of 1865, Spurgeon's heart laboured over some troubling circumstances brought on by the sinful acts of a pastor sent out from the Pastors' College. Duties surrounding that situation demanded his attention and took him away from a routine meeting with his beloved students. In a letter informing them of his necessary absence, Spurgeon called his students to carefulness and watchful prayer, lest they too succumb to temptation.

I found this letter profitable for its balance, tact, and emphasis on holiness, evangelism and pastoral concern for individuals and churches. I pray you will find it equally helpful:

Nightingale Lane,
Clapham,
September 11th, 1865.

Beloved Brethren,

I am called away from you this afternoon; and I should much regret this if it were not that it has come into my heart to suggest to you to spend our usual time in prayer, instead of in teaching and learning. My heart is often heavy with trials, arising out of the College work, which is so dear to me, that I am perhaps unduly anxious over it. I am bowed to the very dust when I fear that any brother is erring in doctrine, lacking in grace, or loose in behaviour. I have as little to lament as it is possible there should be where we are all such imperfect creatures.

But, my brethren, I would fain have you all the best men living; and when you are not, I am distressed exceedingly. Just now, one brother, by his general self-indulgent habits, has lost the respect of his people, and must move. I do not want to inflict a curse on another congregation, and I do not want to cast him off. Between these two courses I am perplexed. Pray for me, for him, for all the brethren, and for yourselves.

In your society I always feel so much at home, that I must appear to you to be all happiness and mirth. Alas! it is not so; I am happy in the Lord, and blest in Him; but I am often a poor cast-down mortal, groaning under the burden of excessive labour, and sad at heart because of the follies of those whom I hoped to have seen serving the Lord, with zeal and success. Do give me your warmest consideration in your supplications. Believe me when I assure you that you are, for Christ's sake, very dear to me. Do not be led away from the faith which you professed when you entered the College. Cling to the collateral truths of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. Live near to God, and love the souls of men. I make some sacrifices for your sake; but I count them gain, and my work for you is a delight. But do plead for more grace to rest on us all, and upon those settled in the ministry. Levity of conduct in my brethren brings heaviness of heart to me; and, what is inconsistent pleasure to them, is terrible agony to me. Oh, how can the ministers of God be smoking and drinking when souls are dying, and talking lightness and wantoness when sinners are perishing? It must not be so among us. May the Lord prevent it! Seeking ever your soul's best interest, and desiring your fervent prayers,

I am, dearly-beloved brethren,
Your affectionate brother,
C.H. Spurgeon

Now Blogging: Gleanings from 1894 Sword and Trowel.

Yesterday I received in the post a hard-bound copy of the 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowel, the magazine launched and edited by C.H. Spurgeon. As I read through its pages, I will publish various parts I think are worth repeating.

The 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowel comes a mere two years after the Lord called C.H. Spurgeon to his heavenly home. With the loss of that great preacher, pastor and Christian leader, several of his family and friends shared together their grief and reflected back on the influence Spurgeon had on their lives. Thus, the 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowl seems more Spurgeon saturated than earlier issues of the magazine published when Spurgeon was living.

I trust you'll return frequently to read the many profitable items I glean from the 1894 edition of the Sword and Trowel.