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The sermon presents worldwide Gospel proclamation as the church’s duty and privilege. Spurgeon attributes limited missionary success to inadequate zeal, faith, self-denial, preaching, prayer, generosity, and spiritual power. He insists that the Gospel itself is sufficient to save sinners, while the Holy Spirit sovereignly empowers its proclamation. The church is therefore called to courageous, expansive, sacrificial mission, trusting God to bless the Word and urgently concerned for those who remain unreached.
Theological center: The Gospel is God’s effective saving Word, whose success depends on the powerful application of the Holy Spirit rather than human talent or methods.
Applications: Proclaim the Gospel widely · Preach boldly and extensively · Pursue courageous self-denial · Attempt expansive missionary work
Primary texts: Acts 13:49 · Acts 16:9 · Mark 16:16
ON BEHALF OF THE BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY “And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.” Acts 13:49 I SHALL not confine myself to the text. It being an old custom to take texts when we preach, I have taken one, but I shall address you, at large, upon a subject which I am sure will occupy your attention, and has done for many days and years past—the subject of Gospel missions. We feel persuaded that all of you are of one mind in this matter, that it is the absolute duty as well as the eminent privilege of the church to proclaim the Gospel to the world. We do not conceive that God will do His own work without instruments, but that, as He has always employed means in the work of the regeneration of this world, He will still continue to do the same, and that it becomes the church to do its utmost to spread the truth wherever it can reach the ear of man. We have not two opinions on that point. Some churches may have, but we have not. Our doctrines, although they are supposed to lead to apathy and sloth, have always proved themselves to be eminently practical. The fathers of the missions were all zealous lovers of the doctrines of the grace of God, and we believe, the great supporters of missionary enterprise, if it is to be successful, must always come from those who hold God’s truth firmly and boldly, and yet have fire and zeal with it, and desire to spread it everywhere. But there is a point on which we have great division of opinion and that is as to the reason why we have had so little success in our missionary labors. There may be some who say the success has been proportionate to the agency and that we could not have been more successful. I am far from being of their opinion and I do not think they themselves would express it on their knees before Almighty God. We have not been successful to the extent we might have expected, certainly not to an apostolic extent, certainly with nothing like the success of Paul or Peter, or even of those eminent men who have preceded us in modern times, and who were able to evangelize whole countries, turning thousands to God. Now, what is the reason for this? Perhaps we may turn our eyes on high and think we find that reason in the sovereignty of God, which has withholden His Spirit and has not poured out His grace as aforetime. I shall be prepared to grant all men may say on that point, for I believe in the ordination of everything by Almighty God. I believe in a present God in our defeats as well as in our successes—a God as well in the motionless air as in the careering tempest, a God of ebbs…