Spurgeon’s sermons are among the finest that have ever been preached or composed. They are, among other excellent things, a condensation of Puritan divinity. The Puritans were the preeminent expositors of their age, and, in fact, of any age. So one day many years ago I decided to condense some of Spurgeon’s sermons in order to learn the grand doctrines of the Bible. Eventually I moved on to other projects, but not before completing over eighty sketches.
These sketches are not abridgments of sermons. Each sketch is a snapshot of a whole sermon. For each sketch, I have stuck precisely to the format of each title being summed up. When there were three points, I put in the same three points; when there were six, I squeezed all six of them in. Each sketch begins with a summary of the sermon introduction. Each sketch closes with an excerpt from the sermon conclusion, word for word. I have tried my best to include some of Spurgeon’s illustrations. I have fit in as much historical information, and as many anecdotes and analogies as I could. Because I planned to hand these sketches out on the street, Spurgeon’s English has been modernized. The reason why the sketches are harmonized for length is because my object was to fit each one on a single page.
The sermons of Spurgeon are saturated with the great life-changing doctrines; they are Christ-centered; they are calculated to bring sinners to repentance; they are warm yet hard-hitting; and they are all well-structured, smart and interesting, artistic and arresting, and as persuasive as any sermons that have ever been delivered or written down. Spurgeon’s doctrine has proven good enough for the Spirit to set his seal to. And my sketches are nothing else than an accurate, clear condensation of what he preached. His pulpit power may be felt, even in snapshots of his work.
It would have been easy to make it appear as though Spurgeon believed something other than he actually believed. By a selective summary, a person could make it appear as though he believed that Jesus died for every sinner, for example. I was not tempted to commit that sin, for I believe as Spurgeon did, and I hate misrepresentations in any case. I think Spurgeon is wrong on lizards being killed before Adam was created. I made sure to make room for parts like this for no other reason than because I disagree. I have been very careful to convey Spurgeon’s doctrine, no matter what I found it to be. Spurgeon chose to preach from texts that contain the grandest themes. It is not possible to find a sermon of his that treats of minor matters. So it is not possible to cherry-pick little hobby horses when featuring his work. I did choose to sketch a sermon of his on Christmas, even though I do not believe that a sermon on Christmas is ever appropriate. When a sermon on Christmas is by C. H. Spurgeon, though, you can count on it being about Christ, not the manger or Magi.
