Stirred by the death of a faithful deacon of the church, Spurgeon brings that man’s dying words to his brothers to the congregation by way of a sermon. He sets before them in potent language the potent fact that they have been bought at the price of Christ’s life-pains, that the Son of God shed his precious blood to make them his own. From that flows a plain consequence: if Christ has bought you then you are not your own, but you belong to God in your body and soul. Spurgeon explores both the negative side of that and the positive. That leads to a natural conclusion, that those who belong to God ought to glorify God in their bodies as well as in their souls. He closes with some particular reminders and exhortations that it is perfectly proper for the world to keep a close eye upon those who claim to be Christ’s purchased possession, and to expect them to live to the standard of men who follow Christ. To fail to do so is to dishonour the one who bought us. Without for one moment lurching into sentimentality, and holding fast to the plain sense of the words, Spurgeon nevertheless takes advantage of the occasion of the death of Thomas Cook to urge the saints to holiness—a fine example of ‘occasional’ preaching, as well as a clear call for consecrated living.

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