Spurgeon unpacks Christ's title "Counsellor" in three layers: first, Christ was present in the eternal council before creation, where the Trinity deliberated on the making of the world, the ordering of providence, and the plan of salvation — including who would be saved — making the gospel not a last-minute solution but a perfectly designed plan from before time began. Second, Christ is the "Angel of the great council" who brings those divine secrets to us, meaning the only way to understand history, prophecy, or whether you are among God's elect is to look to Christ directly — not by trying to peer behind the curtain of predestination, but by simply trusting Christ, after which the assurance of election follows naturally. Third, Christ is a personal Counsellor available to every believer today — unlike human advisors who may be cool, self-interested, or unwise, Christ offers counsel that is simultaneously faithful, deeply sympathetic, and perfectly wise, and Spurgeon closes by urging every type of listener — the troubled believer, the ambitious young person, the backslider, and the seeking sinner — to bring their specific need to Christ and follow his advice.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on September 26, 1858.

Spurgeon takes the single word "Wonderful" from Isaiah's prophecy about Christ and unfolds it across three timeframes: in the past, Christ's eternal existence before creation, his stunning incarnation as an infant while being the Almighty God, his patient endurance of suffering and mockery, and his death and resurrection all leave every honest observer speechless with amazement. In the present, Spurgeon makes the sermon deeply personal, sharing his own story of being crushed by conviction of sin, then flooded with peace the moment he looked to the crucified Christ — and inviting his listeners to recognize that their own trials and troubles only serve as a dark background that makes the diamond of Christ's name shine more brightly. He closes by sweeping into the future, imagining the day of judgment when even those who mocked and rejected Christ will be struck with awe at who he truly is, while the redeemed gather around him with songs of wonder and worship — not the wonder of terror, but the wonder of adoration that will never wear thin through all eternity.

A sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on September 19, 1858.

Spurgeon opens with the surprising claim that the Lord's Prayer was not designed as a universal formula for all people, but specifically for genuine believers — since calling God "Father" is meaningless or even presumptuous for someone who has never been adopted into his family through new birth and faith. He then unpacks the two relationships in the opening words "Our Father": sonship, which comes not from creation but from God's sovereign act of adoption and regeneration, bringing with it God's deep love, the duty of obedience out of love rather than fear, and the security that nothing can sever the parent-child bond even when we fail; and brotherhood, which means every believer's prayer must be wide enough to include fellow Christians of all backgrounds, the poor, the spiritually lost, and believers in distant lands. He concludes by showing that the words "Our Father" are themselves a powerful double argument in prayer — a child has the right to be heard by a father, and a right to expect a father's provision — and he urges those who have never known this relationship to seek it through Christ, so they too can approach God with the confident love of a child, not the fearful distance of a stranger.

A sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on September 12, 1858.

Spurgeon argues that the human heart is not merely damaged but utterly ruined — too proud, too rebellious, too thoroughly corrupted to be repaired — and that God's answer is not to fix the old heart but to replace it entirely with a new one, which is itself a greater miracle of grace than the creation of the world since God chose to remake fallen humans while allowing fallen angels to perish without mercy. He explains that this new heart is entirely God's work from start to finish: it cannot be earned, desired, or initiated by the natural person, since no one ever truly seeks God until God has already begun working in them — making regeneration an instantaneous, sovereign, victorious act of divine grace that overcomes even the hardest resistance. He closes with warm encouragement in two directions: to those already seeking God, assuring them that their very desire for a clean heart is evidence the work has already begun; and to those who feel too wicked to be saved, urging them to simply cast themselves on God's mercy, since he saves people not because of what they are but entirely because of who he is.

A sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on September 5, 1858.

Spurgeon takes the striking phrase "the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel" and unpacks it in two directions: first showing how Christ's sacrifice surpasses Abel's offering because Christ was the actual Lamb rather than just a symbol pointing to one, and second exploring how the blood of murdered Christ speaks differently than the blood of murdered Abel — where Abel's blood cried "Revenge!" to heaven and brought terror to Cain's conscience, Christ's blood cries "Mercy! Pardon! Acceptance!" and brings peace to the guilty sinner. He walks the listener through the three voices of Christ's blood: its cry in heaven securing forgiveness for many rather than judgment for one; its testimony on earth sealing the covenant of grace with God's own blood; and its whisper to the troubled conscience, replacing despair and dread with assurance, adoption, and hope. Spurgeon closes with a direct and warm invitation to anyone who has never come to this blood, urging them to simply trust Christ — not with good works or religious credentials, but empty-handed — promising that the blood which cleanses from all sin will speak those same better things into their own heart.

A sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on August 29, 1858.

Using the promise "As your days, so shall your strength be," Spurgeon first walks his listeners through the many ways Christians discover their own weakness — in daily duties, in illness and suffering, in trying to grow spiritually, and especially in temptation — arguing that this awareness of weakness is not something to despair over but is actually the very thing that opens the door for God's strength. He then unpacks the promise itself: it is guaranteed by God's omnipotence, limited wisely to what is actually needed each day (not given out in advance to satisfy fears or desires), and perfectly adaptable to every size of trial — whether ordinary days or the darkest storms, God's strength will always match the difficulty. He closes by drawing two contrasting conclusions: for believers, this promise is a reason to stop doubting and step forward boldly into whatever lies ahead, while for those without God, he warns that their strength is only declining with age and they have no such promise to carry them through death and judgment.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on August 22, 1858.

Spurgeon opens by defining salvation as far more than just avoiding hell — it is the complete restoration of a person from the ruin of sin, beginning in this life and culminating in glory — and then boldly declares that the Bible teaches there is absolutely no path to this salvation except through Jesus Christ, which he argues is not narrow-mindedness but the natural claim of a religion that is actually true rather than one of many equally false inventions. He addresses common objections head-on, affirming that infants who die are saved through Christ's blood even without conscious faith, and that God's Spirit may work secretly in some who never heard the gospel, but insisting that no one — however moral, religious, or sincere in another religion — can be saved apart from Christ's name. He then turns to the doubting sinner directly, pointing to Christ's perfect sinlessness, his divine nature, the Father's acceptance of his sacrifice proven by the resurrection, and the countless terrible sinners already saved, to urge every troubled soul to stop looking for salvation anywhere else and simply cast themselves upon Jesus — the only one with power and willingness to save to the uttermost.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on August 15, 1858.

Spurgeon opens with a seeming paradox: Christianity forbids hatred toward any person, yet commands intense hatred toward evil itself — and he argues that this righteous hatred is not just permitted but is a duty, flowing naturally from love for God and for people. He then makes this personal, urging believers to direct that hatred first inward against their own sin, offering compelling reasons: sin has already done tremendous damage to their souls, it weakens their prayer life and usefulness to others, it will bring God's chastening rod, and most powerfully — it was their own sin that drove the nails into Christ. He closes by extending the duty outward, calling Christians never to smile at or stay silent about evil in others, to confront sin privately when possible, to live blameless lives so their words carry weight, and to join actively in spreading the gospel — because the best weapon against evil in the world is an engaged, passionate, Spirit-filled church.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on August 8, 1858.

Spurgeon tackles one of the most challenging tensions in Christian theology — that God sovereignly chooses whom he saves, yet every person who rejects the gospel is genuinely and fully responsible for their own damnation — arguing that these two truths are like parallel lines that never appear to meet on earth but converge at the throne of God in eternity. He explains sovereign grace by showing that salvation is never merited, never earned by prior seeking or prior goodness, and always initiated by God himself — using Paul's conversion as a dramatic example of God saving someone who was actively hostile to him. He then turns with equal force to human responsibility, insisting that God stretches out his hands "all day long" in genuine, affectionate invitation to every sinner, and that those who die lost will have no valid excuse — not their sinful nature, not predestination, not anything — because they had every opportunity to respond to a God who pursued them with love.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on August 1, 1858.

Spurgeon argues that God is constantly preaching to humanity through the everyday world around us — from morning to night, through every season, in every occupation — using the ordinary sights of daily life as living parables meant to awaken the conscience and draw people to repentance. He walks his listeners through a remarkable range of illustrations: waking up and putting on clothes speaks of needing Christ's righteousness, the setting sun warns of approaching death, the migrating birds call sinners to flee toward God, the harvest field portrays the final judgment, and even tradesmen like bakers, butchers, cobblers, and printers find spiritual warnings embedded in their own daily work. He closes by stepping out of the metaphors entirely to make a direct and urgent appeal: if heaven and hell are real, then living without Christ is the height of folly, and the simple remedy is to trust Jesus Christ fully — believing he died, rose again, and is able to save anyone who comes to him.

Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on July 25, 1858.