This seems to be an excellent sermon, i have only read the first 2 pages so far, but it is delightful. I often suffer from feelings of loneliness, i take comfort in knowing that the Spirit is our helper in those times. As i was thinking about it today, i thought about how lonely the Lord must have been on that Cross. He was beaten, unjustly condemned, shunned by His own people who he came to save, and finally he was crucified with thieves, although He was the King of Kings. So i searched Google for something about Christs loneliness and discovered this sermon. The first page describes how i felt when i considered the Lords loneliness. Mr Surgeon also mentions the Lords time at Gethsemane, and how his disciples couldn't stay awake and watch as He prayed. I think the Lord must have felt great sorrow and loneliness. I think Mr Surgeon sheds light on bearing our own Cross. Page 2 describes how the Apostles fearfully fled their Lord. Peter thought that he was fearless, yet He was far from it. What a good thing this is to comprehend, surely our fears should be overcome, yet it is by Christs strength that we do this, we are not free from fear but we will overcome them by His strength. His strength helps me in my own lonly depression, and its His strength that holds me up even when im fearful, and its He who helps me grow Spiritualy. Praise the Lord
Sermon #3052 Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit 1
Volume 53 Spurgeon Gems - C. H. Spurgeon Resources & Other Reformed Resources 1
CHRISTS LONELINESS AND OURS NO. 3052
A SERMON PUBLISHED ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 1907.
DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.
Jesus answered them, Do you now believe? Behold, the hour come s, yes, is now come, that you shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave Me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. John 16:31, 32.
[Another sermon by Mr. Spurgeon upon the same text is #2271, Volume 38ALONE , YET NOT ALONE Read/download the entire sermon, free of charge, at http://www.spurgeongems.org.] Do you now believe? Then it seems that faith held them fast to Christ, but as soon as fear prevailed they were scattered and left their Master alone. Faith has an attracting and upholding power. It is the root of constancy and the source of perseverance under the power of Gods Spirit. While we believe, we remain faithful to our Lord. When we are unbelieving, we are scattered, every man to his own. While we trust, we follow closely. When we give way to fear, we ungratefully forsake our Lord. May the Holy Spirit maintain our faith in full vigor that it may nourish all our other Graces! Faith being strong, no faculty of the inner man will languish, but if faith declines, the energy of our spiritual nature speedily decays. If you believe not, you shall not be established, but the just shall live by faith to the fullest force of life. This being noted, our meditation shall now be fixed alone upon the Saviors loneliness and the measure in which the Believer is brought into the same condition. I. THE LONELINESS OF THE SAVIOR. Note the fact of it. He was left alonealone just when most, as Man, He needed human sympathy. Solitude to Him, during His earthly life, was often the cause of strength. He was strong in public ministry because of the hours spent in secret wrestling with God on the lone mountainside. But when He came to the hour of His agony, His perfect Humanity pined after human sympathy, yet it was denied Him. He was alone in the Garden of Gethsemane though He took the eleven with Him. Yet must He leave eight of them outside at the garden gateand the three, the choice, the élite of them allthough they were brought somewhat nearer to the scene of His passion, yet even they must remain at a stones cast distance. None could enter into the inner circle of His sufferings where the furnace was heated seven times hotter than it was known to be heated. In the bloody sweat and the agony of Gethsemane, the Savior trod the winepress alone. [See Sermon #2567, Volume 44THE SINGLE-HANDED CONQUESTRead/download the entire sermon, free of charge, at http://www.spurgeongems.org.] His specially- favored disciples might have watched with Him, wept with Him and prayed for Himbut they did not. They left His lone prayer to ascend to Heaven unattended by sympathetic cries. He was alone, too, when put upon His trial. False witnesses were found to bear lying testimony against Him, but no man stood forward to attest the honesty, quietness and goodness of His life. Surely one of the many who had been healed by Him, or of the crowds that had been fed by His bountiful hands or, still likelier, some of those who had received the pardon of their sins and enlightenment of their minds by His teaching might have come forward to defend Him! But no, His coward followers are silent when their Lord is slandered. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter and no pitying voice entreats that He may be delivered. True, His judges wife tries to persuade her husband to have nothing to do with Him and her vacillating husband offers to liberate Him if the mob will have it sobut none will raise the shout of loose Him and let Him go. He was not literally alone upon the Cross, yet He was really so in a deep spiritual sense. Though a few loving ones gathered at the foot of the Cross, yet these could offer Him no assistance and probably dared not utter more than a tearful protest. Perhaps the boldest there was that dying thief who called Him, Lord, and expostulated with his brother-malefactor, saying, This Man has done nothing amiss. [See Sermon #1881, Volume 32THE DYING THIEF IN A NEW LIGHT
http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols52-54/chs3052.pdf
Sermon #3052 Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit 1
Volume 53 Spurgeon Gems - C. H. Spurgeon Resources & Other Reformed Resources 1
CHRISTS LONELINESS AND OURS NO. 3052
A SERMON PUBLISHED ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 1907.
DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.
Jesus answered them, Do you now believe? Behold, the hour come s, yes, is now come, that you shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave Me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. John 16:31, 32.
[Another sermon by Mr. Spurgeon upon the same text is #2271, Volume 38ALONE , YET NOT ALONE Read/download the entire sermon, free of charge, at http://www.spurgeongems.org.] Do you now believe? Then it seems that faith held them fast to Christ, but as soon as fear prevailed they were scattered and left their Master alone. Faith has an attracting and upholding power. It is the root of constancy and the source of perseverance under the power of Gods Spirit. While we believe, we remain faithful to our Lord. When we are unbelieving, we are scattered, every man to his own. While we trust, we follow closely. When we give way to fear, we ungratefully forsake our Lord. May the Holy Spirit maintain our faith in full vigor that it may nourish all our other Graces! Faith being strong, no faculty of the inner man will languish, but if faith declines, the energy of our spiritual nature speedily decays. If you believe not, you shall not be established, but the just shall live by faith to the fullest force of life. This being noted, our meditation shall now be fixed alone upon the Saviors loneliness and the measure in which the Believer is brought into the same condition. I. THE LONELINESS OF THE SAVIOR. Note the fact of it. He was left alonealone just when most, as Man, He needed human sympathy. Solitude to Him, during His earthly life, was often the cause of strength. He was strong in public ministry because of the hours spent in secret wrestling with God on the lone mountainside. But when He came to the hour of His agony, His perfect Humanity pined after human sympathy, yet it was denied Him. He was alone in the Garden of Gethsemane though He took the eleven with Him. Yet must He leave eight of them outside at the garden gateand the three, the choice, the élite of them allthough they were brought somewhat nearer to the scene of His passion, yet even they must remain at a stones cast distance. None could enter into the inner circle of His sufferings where the furnace was heated seven times hotter than it was known to be heated. In the bloody sweat and the agony of Gethsemane, the Savior trod the winepress alone. [See Sermon #2567, Volume 44THE SINGLE-HANDED CONQUESTRead/download the entire sermon, free of charge, at http://www.spurgeongems.org.] His specially- favored disciples might have watched with Him, wept with Him and prayed for Himbut they did not. They left His lone prayer to ascend to Heaven unattended by sympathetic cries. He was alone, too, when put upon His trial. False witnesses were found to bear lying testimony against Him, but no man stood forward to attest the honesty, quietness and goodness of His life. Surely one of the many who had been healed by Him, or of the crowds that had been fed by His bountiful hands or, still likelier, some of those who had received the pardon of their sins and enlightenment of their minds by His teaching might have come forward to defend Him! But no, His coward followers are silent when their Lord is slandered. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter and no pitying voice entreats that He may be delivered. True, His judges wife tries to persuade her husband to have nothing to do with Him and her vacillating husband offers to liberate Him if the mob will have it sobut none will raise the shout of loose Him and let Him go. He was not literally alone upon the Cross, yet He was really so in a deep spiritual sense. Though a few loving ones gathered at the foot of the Cross, yet these could offer Him no assistance and probably dared not utter more than a tearful protest. Perhaps the boldest there was that dying thief who called Him, Lord, and expostulated with his brother-malefactor, saying, This Man has done nothing amiss. [See Sermon #1881, Volume 32THE DYING THIEF IN A NEW LIGHT
http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols52-54/chs3052.pdf
