Spurgeon Quotes from "War of Truth"

The quotes (seperated into individual paragraphs) that follow are from a sermon preached by Charles Spurgeon titled - War of Truth

“We wrestle not with flesh and blood.” Christian men are not at war with any man that walks the earth. We are at war with infidelity but the persons of infidels we love and pray for. We are at warfare with any heresy but we have no enmity against heretics. We are opposed to and cry war to the knife with everything that opposes God and His Truth— but towards every man we would still endeavor to carry out the holy maxim, “Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you.” The Christian soldier has no gun and no sword, for he fights not with men. It is with “spiritual wickedness in high places” that he fights and with other principalities and powers than with those that sit on thrones and hold scepters in their hands. I have marked, however, that some Christian men—and it is a feeling to which all of us are prone—are very apt to make Christ’s war a war of flesh and blood instead of a war with wrong and spiritual wickedness."

"We are not fighting against men. We are fighting for men rather than against them. We are fighting for God and his Truth against error and against sin. But not against men. Woe, woe, to the Christian who forgets this sacred canon of warfare. Touch not the persons of men but smite their sin with a stout heart and with strong arm. Slay both the little ones and the great. Let nothing be spared that is against God and his Truth. But we have no war with the persons of poor mistaken men. Rome we hate even as we abhor Hell, yet for her votaries we ever pray."

We want and need out-and-out Truth in these perilous days. We want and need a man to speak as God tells him and care for nobody’ opinions. Oh, if we had some of the old Scotch preachers! Those Scotch preachers made kings tremble. They were no men’s servants. They were very lords, wherever they went, because each of them said, “God has given me a message. My brow is like adamant against men. I will speak what God bids me.” Like Micah, they said, “As the Lord my God lives, whatsoever my God says unto me, that will I speak.”

But what have we behind them? What have we there, in the very vitals of our city? This city is a colossal culprit, it is a behemoth sinner and everywhere there are those who live in the vilest of vices and yet go unchecked and unreproved. We live in a time when it is unfashionable to tell men of their sins and there are few who have the spirit to speak out plainly of men’s sins. When we consider the mass of female profligates which number their committed by tens of thousands, are we not driven to conclude that the same sin must be rife enough with men?

Let us, then, Brothers and Sisters, each in our spheres, deal hard blows at the enemy. This is a fight in which all can do something who are the Lord’s people. Those who halt upon their crutches can use them for weapons of war as well as the mighty men can wield their swords! We have each an allotted work to do if we are the Lord’s elect. Let us take care that we do it. You are a tract distributor—go on with your work—do it earnestly. You are a Sunday-School teacher— go on, do not stop that blessed work—do it as unto God and not as unto man. You are a preacher—preach as God gives you ability, remembering that He requires of no man more than He has given to him. Therefore, be not discouraged if you have little success, still go on. Are you like Zebulon, one that can handle the pen? Handle it wisely. And you shall smite through the loins of kings. And if you can do but little, at least furnish the shot for others that you may help them in their works of faith and their labors of love. But let us all do something for Christ. I will never believe there is a Christian in the world who cannot do something. There is not a spider hanging on the king’s wall but has its errand. There is not a nettle that grows in the corner of the churchyard but has its purpose. There is not a single insect fluttering in the breeze but accomplishes some Divine decree.

Now this teaches that there must be prayer as well as effort. Minister! Preach on. But you shall have no success unless you pray. If you do not know how to wrestle with God on your knees you will find it hard work to wrestle with men on your feet in the pulpit. You may make efforts to do so but you shall not be successful unless you back up your efforts with prayer. You are not so likely to fail in your efforts as in your prayers. We never read that Joshua’s hand was weary with wielding the sword but Moses’ hand was weary with holding the rod. The more spiritual the duty, the more apt we are to tire of it. We could stand and preach all day but we could not pray all day. We could go forth to see the sick all day but we could not be in our closets all day one- half so easily. To spend a night with God in prayer would be far more difficult than to spend a night with man in preaching. Oh, take care, take care, Church of Christ, that you do not cease your prayers! Above all, I speak to my own much-loved Church, my own people. You have loved me and I have loved you and God has given us great success and blessed us. But, mark it well—I trace all of it to your prayers. You have assembled together in multitudes, perfectly unparalleled, to pray for me on each Monday evening and I know I am mentioned at your family altars as one who is very dear to your hearts. But I am afraid lest you should cease your prayers. Let the world say, “Down with him.” I will stand against them all if you will pray for me. But if you cease your prayers it is all up with me and all over with you. Your prayers make us mighty. The praying legion is the thundering legion.

Remember the great Intercessor—Christ is on the hill and while you are in the valley He pleads and must prevail. Therefore go on and conquer for Christ’s sake! I can no longer address you but must finish up by repeating the words with which I always like to conclude my sermons—“He that believes on the Lord Jesus and is baptized shall be saved and he that believes not shall be damned!” Oh that you would believe in Christ! Oh that God would give you faith to put your trust in Him! This is the only way of salvation. “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved.”