ENCOURAGEMENT FOR PASTORS (BY SPURGEON)
“They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; for they did not love their lives to the point of death.” (Revelation 12:11)
Now, brethren, what is the testimony of the saints? It is a testimony concerning the blood of the Lamb. If ever we are to conquer Satan in the world, we must preach the atoning blood. Whenever the doctrine of the atonement has been obscured in the church in any measure, to that extent the power of the church has declined; but you shall find that whenever there is a clear declaration of justification by faith in Jesus Christ, then the church comes forth in her glory, and bruises the dragon’s head.
Dear brothers, if you want to deliver souls from the power of Satan, you must preach the sacrifice of Jesus and its power to remove sin. Does Satan cast about men the chains of drunkenness, or uncleanness, or self-righteousness, preach the blood of Jesus as the only way of salvation, let them see how sin was punished in him, and how ready the Lord is to forgive them, and they will arise and go unto their Father. Tell the sinner that God is able to put away his sin, because Jesus died, and, touched with repentance, through the teaching of the Holy Spirit, you will find the sinner break loose from the seven-headed dominion of the devil.
SERMON ILLUSTRATION (BY SPURGEON)
Spurgeon was a master illustrator. You can use this illustration in your own preaching to describe the church’s witness.
The gospel is something like an illustrated paper. The preacher’s words are the letterpress, but the pictures are the living men and women who form our churches. And like when people take up such a newspaper, they very often do not read the letterpress, but they always look at the pictures—so in a church: Outsiders may not come to hear the preacher, but they always consider, observe, and criticize the lives of the members
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