Name: Mark Driscoll Mark is the founder of Mars Hill Church (1996), the Paradox Theater, the Acts 29 Network, and the Resurgence Missional Theology Cooperative. Most enjoyably, Mark is the father of three sons and two daughters.
As one of the most important theologians of our day, Dr. Wayne Grudem has impacted me tremendously since my conversion to Christianity at the age of nineteen. I believe the first book of his I read was Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. Today, I own every book he has published that I am aware of. His Systematic Theology is in my opinion the finest on the market and the standard for Mars Hill Church and many of the churches we are affiliated with in the Acts 29 Network.
Over a year ago while in Raleigh, N. C., I met Dr. Grudem’s son Elliot and was encouraged at the loving and respectful way he spoke of his father. Sometimes a man is great in print or on the stage, but far less impressive the closer you get to him in the everyday affairs of life. But the way Elliot spoke of his dad was incredibly reassuring and made me all the more eager to one day meet and thank him.
We've been working with Song of Solomon productions to design a video curriculum to go along with the book—Vintage Jesus. We filmed a 30 minute session for each of the 12 chapters with the goal of helping small groups learn about Jesus, needless to say we're really excited about this. There are far too many people who call themselves Christian, but don't know Christ. It is our hope and prayer that God will use these DVDs in small groups around the country for people to get to know Jesus.
The Contest
We are so excited about this that we want to give some away for free. Here's what you have to do...
3 easy steps.
1. Type up a short proposal of how you will use these DVDs to have the most impact for the Kingdom of God.
3. Add your proposal to the Vintage Jesus Facebook wall.
We will read every post, choose the top 5, and mail the winners the full DVD curriculum of Vintage Jesus DVD set (valued at 230 bucks!). We hope this is will be a Catalyst for thousands of conversations about Jesus.
In the lengthy time that Dr. J. I. Packer afforded me to speak with him while we were recently together in Orlando, I asked him which theological issues he would commend young Christian leaders to study in order to be prepared for the next fifty years. His list was quite insightful:
1. Regeneration — He said that the doctrine of regeneration has not been fully appreciated by many who do not understand that to be born again with a new heart and new nature means that we have at our deepest level a new identity and new passionate desires for God’s Word and ways. He commended to all young Christian leaders a thorough study on the doctrine of regeneration.
2. God-Centered Theology — He said that theology today is rife with man-centered thinking so that the glory of God in all things is not the essence of what is taught to be faithfully Christian. The result, he explained, is that even Christians often live their lives for the supreme purpose of their perceived happiness, feelings, and satisfaction. Yet, biblical Christianity differs from the other religions of the world in that the desires and purposes of God override ours; we are not the number one priority, but rather God is.
3. Godliness Begins at Home — This point was both surprising and refreshing. I was expecting only weighty and complicated theological admonition from such a theological giant. However, his wise counsel on this point is well needed. Packer said that most Christians do not take seriously the biblical teaching that true Christian living begins first at home with one’s spouse, children, and grandchildren. Therefore, he implored young Christian leaders to begin their quest for maturity and holiness at home in relationship with their family.
4. Trinity — Packer stated that the fullness of the doctrine of the Trinity is not completely appreciated as it should be. The result, he said, is that some Christians have only a deep understanding of Jesus or the Holy Spirit so that they are guilty of what he called “Jesus-olatry” or “Holy Spirit-olatry” rather than a full love and worshipful appreciation of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit.
We spent a whole week talking about Charles Haddon Spurgeon. He's a great preacher and man of God that we could all learn from. Below are the links to all of the posts. If you have anything to add about why Spurgeon is the man, blog about it and send @mikeyanderson the link.
Shout Outs
All of these people responded on Twitter to this question, and got it right. Good job, can any of you think of more ways to make this blog a little more interactive? Send to @mikeyanderson, he'll get it going.
This week is unofficially “Spurgeon Is the Man” week. In tribute to arguably the greatest Bible preacher outside of Scripture, I will post four blogs on why he is the man. Continued from Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
Writing
Spurgeon was a voracious writer who took extensive amounts of time to ensure his studies spread beyond his pulpit into the world. From 1855 to 1892, his weekly sermons were published and between two and three hundred million copies were sold. He also published a monthly magazine called “The Sword and the Trowel,” penned over 140 books, wrote the enormous commentary on the Psalms titled The Treasury of David, wrote reviews of 1,437 books he had read and recommended to young pastors, and wrote the devotional books Morning by Morning and Evening by Evening. In addition, he wrote up to five hundred personal letters a week by hand with a pen that had to be replenished continually in an ink bottle. All the more amazing, he had arthritis in his hands.
With a background in journalism and a degree in communication, the writing of Spurgeon is incredibly inspiring to me. I believe the reason he had such a global and lasting impact is because of his writing ministry. In light of that, this past year the Executive Elders of our church reorganized how we operate in large part to enable me to focus on studying, preaching, writing, and serving as something of a movement leader as Spurgeon was. The change was very painful, but six months later is bearing great fruit. Finally relieved of working in the details of running the church, I am free to study and write more than ever. By God’s grace, this year alone I am publishing six books and believe that it is possible to publish at least as many books as Spurgeon in my lifetime.
Opposition
Spurgeon came under continual attack because of both his conservative theology and successful ministry. What has come to be known as the Downgrade Controversy ultimately led to Spurgeon being kicked out of his own Baptist denomination for his unwillingness to stop teaching such things as eternal torment in a literal hell, the literal truthfulness of Scripture, a literal creation by God, and the perfection and divine inspiration of Scripture. In his final days, Spurgeon was attacked by hyper-Calvinistic legalists and universalistic liberals alike, the former because he freely preached the gospel to all people, the latter because he did not believe that everyone would be saved.
To make matters worse, Spurgeon was blessed with a rigorous mind and powerful voice but suffered from poor health. He suffered continually from a variety of ailments, ranging from kidney disease to gout, which occasionally prevented him from preaching and ultimately took his life at age 57. Additionally, his beloved wife Susannah struggled mightily with poor health and spent considerable years of her life essentially bedridden. In his seasons of tremendous pain he was forced to pray and trust the goodness of God. His suffering also greatly clarified his understanding of Jesus’ painful atonement and great love for his people. His prayers sustained him when he was forced to miss up to seven weeks at a time and lie bedridden in pain rather than preach to his congregation. Spurgeon struggled with depression prompted by his poor health and the painful burden he carried for the many pastors who came to him for counsel. Speaking of his bouts with depression, he said that it was like “fighting the mist.”
Once, a terrorist threat was made against his birthday party, which required police protection. Perhaps the darkest period of Spurgeon’s ministry came when troublemakers began falsely crying “Fire!” to a packed congregation that had come to hear him preach, causing a stampede that killed some people who were trampled underfoot. Spurgeon was so distraught that he had to take some months off to simply recover emotionally.
One of the greatest gifts I have ever received arrived in conjunction with the tenth anniversary of our church. It was a handwritten letter from Spurgeon sent to me from an Australian pastor who listened to my sermons online. At the time the letter was written, Spurgeon was roughly my age with a church of five thousand, which was roughly the same size as our church. The letter included a particularly haunting line for me personally. In it, I find a mentor with whom I can relate, as there are few who understand the weight of leading a large, fast-growing urban church at a young age without a pastor to mentor you in the face of great adversity and criticism. In the letter written to a friend on February 20, 1873, Spurgeon speaks of “staggering under the cares of the little nation that demands my perpetual service.”
In the face of daunting work and overwhelming criticism, Spurgeon has mentored me in four ways.
First, in his willingness to speak of his personal suffering and pain, he has chosen to not falsely present himself as a perfect man without weakness or trouble. In so doing he has given me freedom to likewise be honest in hopes of best serving other ministers of the gospel.
Second, in admitting the pain he personally endured at the hands of critics who were motivated by everything from jealousy to false doctrine, he has made me feel oddly normal. I also praise God that he did not live in our present day when criticism is worse than ever. In a phone conversation I had with Rick Warren, he noted that today criticism is instant, constant, global, and permanent. His insights are truthful, and had Spurgeon lived in our day of Internet rumor-mongering, I fear it would have shortened his life even further. I find myself returning to Spurgeon’s letters and autobiography for some mentoring and praise God he lived in a different era because of my affection for him.
Third, in dealing with critics I have learned to find a way to strategically respond beyond the pulpit. What I appreciate about Spurgeon is that he did not allow his pulpit to be dominated by responses to his critics, as that would have gotten him off mission and message. Still, if he did not have a way to speak for himself and defuse rumors and lies, he would have been destroyed. His answer was the magazine “The Sword and the Trowel.” Taking the name from Nehemiah, he rightly saw that the movement he led needed to be built (trowel work) and defended (sword work). The magazine helped him to do both and in his example I have used blogging, article writing, YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, media interviews, and the like to do the sword work.
Fourth, I have learned from Spurgeon that suffering and despair are part of faithful gospel work in the face of criticism. I have also leaned the importance of living for the day when the biography is written on earth and the verdict is rendered in heaven. During one of the most painful seasons of conflict, illness, and controversy, Spurgeon said something that was literally transforming for me. He said that he kept a long view of things and knew that one day, after he was dead and gone, history would vindicate him. By God’s grace, it has, and with many years of ministry ahead of me, his words ring true and continually help me to keep my hand to the plow and press forward, awaiting my final judgment of works at the throne of Jesus.
Upon his death, sixty thousand people passed before his open coffin in one day, with a similar crowd the ensuing day. Four memorial services were held in one day for the members of the church, ministers and students, members of other denominations, and the general public respectively. The road to the cemetery from his church was lined with hundreds of thousands of people whose lives had been touched by the power of the gospel through Jesus’ servant Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
By God’s grace, Spurgeon finished his race well and I pray that I will do the same in part by learning from his example. Lastly, I praise God that his faith is now sight and look forward to the day when I will meet my dear friend.
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The beginning of next week will be a recap of this series, with shout outs to all of the Spurgeon fans out there.
This week is unofficially “Spurgeon Is the Man” week. In tribute to arguably the greatest Bible preacher outside of Scripture. Continued from Part 1 and Part 2.
Prayer
Spurgeon prayed both spontaneously by breaking from the affairs of his day to speak with the Lord, and also during scheduled times of prayer for himself that included walks in the woods, days away at a cottage, and months away in France for Sabbath, study, and prayer. Prayer for him was so significant that he aptly said, “Prayer has become as essential to me as the heaving of my lungs.” His commitment to prayer extended to a team of hundreds of intercessors who were appointed to pray for his preaching and people’s hearts during the church service. They prayed on their faces in the church basement that was aptly titled the “war room.” Occasionally when Spurgeon prayed over the sick they were healed and many believed he had the gift of healing. He also told his preaching students that his power, authority, and insight came from continually praying the text of his sermon before preaching it. His church prayer meetings were on Monday nights and as many as 1,200 people attended to pray as the Spirit led, which did not included printed prayers or long prayers because he hated both.
In examining the role of prayer in the ministry of Spurgeon, one aspect in particular intrigued me. His biographies frequently note that he preferred to pray while walking outdoors. This led to his purchase of a larger home outside of town later in life that included a beautiful garden surrounded by enough quiet acreage to enable him to prayer walk often. His accounts of these times were that they were deeply refreshing to his soul, particularly in seasons of great stress and despair.
In emulation of his example, I began praying for God to give me a quiet place where I could regularly go to have silence, solitude, and sufficient acreage to prayer walk. God was exceedingly gracious and provided a wonderful place. It is less than an hour drive from my home and is overseen by a loving Christian couple who maintain it as a small retreat center nestled on forty manicured acres of forest buttressed up against a slough from which I can canoe onto a lake. They have given me my own small apartment there to enjoy one day a week, enabling me to prayer walk, write, and even stay the night if I so desire. Like Spurgeon, the burdens of pastoring a large church in a major city can become daunting and I find having a quiet retreat in creation to prayer walk for long hours without interruption is often nothing short of a life saver.
Joy
Spurgeon viewed pleasure as a gift from God and did not gravitate toward Gnosticism or asceticism in the practice of the spiritual disciplines. Rather, he enjoyed his freedom in Christ to its fullest. Though scandalous to many, he drank beer, wine, and brandy. Further, after a visiting pastor proclaimed the evils of smoking to Spurgeon’s church, he simply replied, “I shall go home and smoke the best cigar I have got to the glory of God.” Like Spurgeon, I have received much criticism over the years for my enjoyment of such things as alcohol consumption in moderation. I have found him to be a great encouragement to live by Scripture and conscience rather than critics and legalisms.
One of the things I have most appreciated about Spurgeon is his witty and seemingly continual sense of humor. Spurgeon was known to have a robust sense of humor that spilled out into his preaching much to the consternation of his many critics. Still, Spurgeon shared the Bible’s love of irony and sarcasm, and his great wit endeared him to people who appreciated the fullness of his emotional life. It made him a real human being from whom people enjoyed learning the Bible. Among my favorite Spurgeon quips is his statement that he loved church committees and believed the ideal committee consisted of three people, two of whom stayed home. Curiously, one of the least known books ever published by Spurgeon is actually a collection of his writings on the subject of humor, Eccentric Preachers. I greatly enjoyed reading it in conjunction with a sermon I preached about humor in preaching, as it argued for the place of humor and personality quirks in preaching.
Mercy
Spurgeon was committed to activism and social justice, going so far as to preach against slavery, which made him very unpopular in America, where his printed sermons were banned and burned. Spurgeon was also a very merciful man who opened and oversaw an orphanage for needy children. Many called the orphanage the greatest sermon he ever preached. His wife, Susannah, had a particular burden for poor pastors who could not afford books to assist their studies of Scripture. She raised money for a pastors’ book fund that gave away thousands of books to needy pastors.
What I find encouraging about the example of Charles and Susannah is their humble willingness to use their influence and resources for the service of others in need. Too often, it seems, those preachers who are so devoted to study are sadly less enthusiastic to do good works and serve those in need. I am continually convicted that he preached the gospel both in word and deed without being caught up in the kind of debate that raged in his day about the social gospel versus the propositional gospel. Spurgeon simply served the whole person with the whole gospel, which again helps to explain his success in reaching all strata of society.
In light of Susannah’s example I now give away a few thousand copies of each of my books to mainly young pastors and church planters. In addition, we give away my sermons online for free to the tune of a few million downloads a year at www.marshillchurch.org and on iTunes and YouTube. We also give away theological content at www.theresurgence.com and host free training events for pastors. Thus, we have seen thousands of pastors taught free of charge through Mars Hill and other Acts 29 churches around the nation and the world.
Evangelism
The hyper-Calvinists in his day disdained Spurgeon for his passion for lost people to meet Jesus and his continual offering of the gospel of grace to the masses, which led to the baptism of 14,692 converts during his ministry. Despite much mean-spirited opposition, Spurgeon never shied away from calling all people to repentance and used unconventional means, such as meeting in a public theater (not a church) and preaching from a stage (not a raised pulpit), in an effort to be more culturally relevant with his ministry style. Curiously, however, he forbade the use of choirs, organs, and other musical instruments in his church services.
Spurgeon has deeply impressed upon me the importance of always inviting people to repent of sin and trust in Jesus. He rightly shared God’s heart for lost people and his example reveals that one can believe in both election and evangelism, as the Apostle Paul did also. Too often those of us who are theologically reformed spend more time criticizing evangelistic methods than doing evangelism ourselves. I too consider myself something of a reformed evangelist and appreciate that Spurgeon shared a deep love for lost people that God used to save many lives.
Spurgeon was trained, but in a practical and more natural way than other ministers of his day. Thus, his theology remained accessible to common people. Both his father and grandfather were pastors who also worked jobs during the week, which helped Charles blend practical Christian living and vocational ministry. This connection between ministry and real life lived by average people with typical jobs may in part explain his mass appeal to the multitudes of ordinary people who connected with his preaching. Though he did not attend a theological college, he did eventually found his own Bible college, which trained hundreds of young pastors and culminated in the book, Lectures to My Students, a collection of his practical counsel for aspiring pastors.
Spurgeon was a committed lifelong student. He had a large library built in his home so that he could study continually and still be near his sick wife. He had a large, round desk with a hinge that permitted him to sit in the middle of it with his beloved books surrounding him.
In his day, it was widely agreed that Spurgeon had the finest collection of Puritan literature in the entire world. Also included in his personal library were volumes of literature, theology, religion, travel, biography, science, hymnody, history, and humor. Following Spurgeon’s death, his library was distributed among family members. Today, the 6,750 volumes that remained have been preserved in his memory.
There are two ways in which Spurgeon has particularly mentored me regarding studying.
First, after years of trying to work out of one space functioning as both a study and an office, I finally adopted his method. Now I have an office at the church where I hold meetings. The office is set up with couches, chairs, and a fridge, much like a living room, but does not have any of my books, a desk, or anything else that assists studying and writing. At my home I have a roughly seven-hundred-square-foot personal library and study. So, I work from home most of the time and am far more effective in my studies and writing because I am not interrupted, I can work long hours as needed, I can still be near my wife and children, I reduce my commute time, and my wife and children have access to my books. In her biography, which my wife Grace enjoyed reading, Spurgeon’s wife noted that she greatly appreciated the fact that his library was at home so that she got to see him and also have access to his books. This was a helpful insight for how my wife and I organize our life.
Second, I was amazed at the scope and size of Spurgeon’s personal library. I planted Mars Hill Church in the fall of 1996 at the age of twenty-five and have always been a voracious reader. For years, our fledgling church plant struggled financially and during that time I did not obtain a salary from the church and paid for most of my books out of my own pocket. However, as the church grew and became more established, I spoke with our elders about setting up a book budget so I could begin collecting good reference material to assist my preaching and teaching. When they asked what prompted my request, I told them the story of Spurgeon and they graciously established a policy that continues to this day. It simply states that I can purchase any books and software I need to do my job most effectively. Thus, by God’s grace and our elders’ generosity, I now have a library of perhaps four thousand books and a part-time librarian to keep my library database and shelves current. Also, my friend Scott at Logos Bible Software has generously loaded up my computer with seemingly everything I could ever want.
This week is unofficially “Spurgeon Is the Man” week. In tribute to arguably the greatest Bible preacher outside of Scripture, I will post several blog posts on why he is the man. Shout outs are coming after the last post to all of those who guessed that it was Spurgeon in this post.
Dead guys often make the best mentors.
In our age of new and “improved” theological beliefs that blow like chaff through the church, it is both illuminating and inspiring to draw from the deep well of saints who have faithfully gone before us, and, as Paul said, ran their race well until they saw Jesus face to face. Perhaps my favorite dead mentor is the great English reformed Baptist Bible preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834–1892). His biographies have provided some of my most enjoyable and formative reading.
History
Spurgeon was the oldest of seventeen children, though nine died in infancy. Due to financial hardship, at the age of eighteen months he was sent to live with his grandfather, who was a strong Calvinistic preacher. At a young age he began reading his father and grandfather’s theological books and listening in on their theological conversations with other men. On one occasion, the visiting preacher Richard Knill prophesied over Charles, “This child will one day preach the gospel, and he will preach it to great multitudes.”
Free public education was not available in his day and so his father paid for a private education for Charles. By the age of ten, Charles was reading the Puritans with great delight. He likely would have attended Cambridge, but because he was a nonconformist (believing the church should not be governed by the state) who did not support the Church of England, the school was not open to him and so he never received a formal theological education. Some of his most formative theological training came not from his pastor, but rather from an elderly school cook named Mary King, who spent considerable time teaching the young Charles reformed theology.
Spurgeon began preaching shortly after his conversion to Jesus Christ at the age of sixteen. He soon became the best-known Bible preacher in the world in his day, and perhaps the best preacher in the history of the church outside of Scripture besides John Chrysostom (347–407). Spurgeon preached up to ten times a week and was heard by twenty million people from his pulpit over the course of his lifetime.
Four years after his conversion, at the age of twenty, he was appointed the pastor of London’s famous New Park Street Church, which was previously led by the distinguished reformed Baptist theologian John Gill. Spurgeon was such a magnetic draw that the previously struggling church, which had dwindled to a few hundred people, soon outgrew their building and had to move to Exeter Hall, and then to Surrey Music Hall. Spurgeon often preached to crowds of more than ten thousand without any amplification and his church became the world’s largest by the time of his death.
Sitting Down with J.I. Packer
Perhaps my favorite time in Orlando was spent in a small group with Dr. J. I. Packer. It is hard to overestimate Packer’s impact on evangelical Christianity. The graciousness he afforded me to sit on a couch and ask him questions for more than an hour was humbling and helpful. He is very clear minded at age eighty-two and he remains incredibly conversant, insightful, and witty. Impressively, his words are impeccably precise.
On Homosexuality
As we sat on the couch together, he explained that Anglicanism is patterned after the ancient Roman governmental system so that a bishop has jurisdiction over a geographic area. However, this long-established ecclesiological pattern has been breached because Anglicanism is suffering from “heretical bishops.” By “heretical bishops,” Packer was referring to those bishops who sanction homosexual activity. He explained that the “heretical bishops” won support for their position following much lobbying. This sadly required Bible-believing Anglican churches to come under the authority of other orthodox bishops outside of their geographic area rather than remain under “heretical bishops.”
Homosexuality: A Heretical Issue
When asked about calling those who support homosexuality and profess to be Christian “heretical,” Packer very carefully and insightfully explained what he meant. He began by saying that as Christians we are tempted to sin in many ways, including homosexuality. However, because God has saved us through Jesus and empowered us with the Holy Spirit, we are to practice ongoing repentance of sin and rejection of sinful desires. He explained in great detail that he perceives the approval of homosexuality to be “heretical” because it denies a fundamental aspect of the gospel—namely repentance. Packer explained how for six years he called his Anglican Diocese to repent of their sinful support of unrepentant homosexual activity, to no avail. Eventually, his own archbishop sought to pull his license (essentially his ordination or credentials) as a punitive measure. In the end, Packer, along with roughly thirty Anglican churches, came out from under their “heretical” leadership to form a new Anglican alliance.
Returning to the issue of denying a fundamental aspect of the gospel (repentance), he explained that 1 Corinthians 6:9–11 says,
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
Packer was clear that those who do not call Christians to repent of homosexual activity are, as Scripture says, “deceived.” He told me that the first of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses was that the whole of a Christian’s life is to be one of repentance of sin. Any Christian who does not practice and promote repentance is denying an aspect of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When I asked how the denial of repentance merited the label of “heretical,” Packer said, “ “‘Heresy’ ought to be used when an aspect of the gospel is being denied.” He further explained that because God through Paul warns the Corinthians that those who practice homosexuality unrepentantly will be damned to hell, “Souls are put at risk every time homosexuality is tolerated.”
Starting a New Religion?
In keeping with Packer’s line of reasoning, I asked him if those who are “heretical” in promoting homosexual activity while declaring themselves to be Christian are in effect promoting a new religion based upon a false gospel, like Mormonism and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. He said, “You could describe it that way and it’s what they are doing.”
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My Time on the Road
I recently spent a packed week preaching and teaching in London and Brighton, England, with Newfrontiers Network and other organizations. It was a grueling schedule, but Pastor Scott Thomas, who directs the Acts 29 Church Planting Network, and I learned a great deal and met some amazing people whom we thoroughly enjoyed.
On the way home we stopped over in Orlando, Florida, at the International Christian Retail Show. I did my first-ever book signing there, which was fun since Crossway Books was gracious enough to give away over two hundred copies of Vintage Jesus, which I penned with Dr. Gerry Breshears. We ran out of copies and I shook hands, prayed for people, and signed books for more than two hours.
I was also honored to speak on “A Passion for People” from Matthew 9:35–38 at the 70th anniversary banquet for Crossway. They also debuted the English Standard Version Study Bible due out in the fall. Jerry Bridges, Wayne Grudem, J. I. Packer, and Lane Dennis spoke at the event as well. In attendance were R. C. Sproul, Jack Graham, Roger Nicole, and others whom I had the honor of meeting. I was one of the only people in the room not in a suit, as I somehow missed the dress code, but everyone was gracious despite my black button-up shirt with skulls and crossbones and matching Affliction boots covered in serpents. The entire night was very moving, and the debut of the ESV Study Bible is incredibly exciting as it promises to be the most thorough and helpful study Bible ever produced.
