Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit · Sermon No. 376
Sir Morton Peto in the Chair
A noble assembly having filled the house, after singing, the Rev. C. H. SPURGEON offered prayer. REV. C. H. SPURGEON—In inviting our Baptist Brethren to meet together this evening, it was in the hope that something might be suggested which might promote our success as a united body, and that words of encouragement from comrades in the same regiment might gladden all hearts; we offer the heartiest welcome to our beloved friends—this chapel belongs not to me nor to my Church specially, but to all the Baptist denomination! I feel tonight as if I were rendering up the trust deeds to the proper proprietors—acknowledging that this house belongs not to any man, but, first, to the God of the whole world, and, next, to those who hold the pure primitive ancient Apostolic faith. We believe that the Baptists are the original Christians. We did not commence our existence at the Reformation, we were Reformers before Luther or Calvin were born; we never came from the Church of Rome, for we were never in it. We have an unbroken line up to the Apostles themselves! We have always existed from the very days of Christ, and our principles, sometimes veiled and forgotten like a river which may travel underground for a little season, have always had honest and holy adherents. Persecuted alike by Romanists and Protestants of almost every sect, yet there has never existed a Government holding Baptist principles which persecuted others; nor, I believe, any body of Baptists ever held it to be right to put the consciences of others under the control of man. We have ever been ready to suffer as our martyrologies will prove, but we are not ready to accept any help from the State to prostitute the purity of the Bride of Christ to any alliance with Government! And we will never make the Church, although the Queen, the despot over the consciences of men. I will now resign the meeting to my esteemed friend, Sir Morton Peto, who has many a stone in this building, and who, I trust, will honor us with his presence on many future occasions.
The CHAIRMAN—My dear Christian Friends—when invited to lay the first stone of this building, I deemed it a high honor and privilege. To be asked to preside tonight at the meeting of the Baptist Brethren of the metropolis, I deem also to be an honor and a privilege. Let me say at once how much I sympathize with all of you in meeting in this magnificent building tonight, under circumstances of the most gratifying character, without anything to allay or diminish our joy and thankfulness to God. I recollect having said when the first stone was laid, that I saw no reason why this building should not be opened free from debt, and what has just fallen from your esteemed pastor has shown how that anticipation has been abundantly realized! In meeting my Baptist Brethren for the first time in this building, my thoughts naturally recur for a moment to the past. Mr. Spurgeon has spoken of our history, of our martyrologies, and the sufferings of our forefathers. They have labored; we have entered into their labors. The result of that is shown in the ability of God’s people connected with our denomination to raise a temple like this to His praise; and we have to acknowledge how much we owe to our forefathers in the opportunity we have of giving as a privilege, not as an exaction, and in seeing such a result of giving as this edifice displays. There are many grounds on which we rejoice with our friend—the first and greatest of all is that which was referred to in the text on the evening of the opening day—“Christ is preached and therein do I rejoice; yes, and I will rejoice.” In the sermon of the afternoon, to which that of the evening seemed a graceful and fitting pendant, your pastor said that with all the misconceptions entertained with regard to his ministry, there was one point about which there could be no misconception—he thanked God he could say from his heart he had simply preached Christ. Now I believe the evidence we have in this building is no mean one that he has preached Christ—because if ministers have recourse to what they deem intellectual or philosophical preaching, or any other than that of preaching Christ, we soon find in our denomination empty pews show the result! There is an underlying stratum in the deep feelings and hearts of our countrymen of reverence and love for the old Gospel which nothing else can supplant. The great strength of this country is that, whatever may be written or said, the people at once refer to the Law and to the Testimony, and that which is not found written there has no place in their reverence or their esteem!
The next cause we have for rejoicing is the feeling that the privilege we have of worshipping God according to our consciences in this and every other edifice connected with His praise is to be traced to the result of the sufferings of our forefathers. But that privilege has entailed on us an adequate responsibility. In reading the writings of the Puritan Fathers, I am struck to see how deeply they were impressed with the principles on which they acted. They were not Nonconformists because their fathers were; they would themselves have gone to the stake to assert the principles connected with the Headship and the position of the Great Head of the Church in the sole right of sovereignty within that Church. In the present day there is entailed on us a great responsibility in guarding tenderly and carefully these privileges. There is not only a desire on the part of the State to keep the Church so-called allied to the State, but to put in the thin end of the wedge and intermeddle with other denominations. If we find the Church as we understand it, in the slightest degree interfered with, we must as one man arise and say we will never allow the privilege of the Headship of the Great Head of the Church to be interfered with by any State in existence—all honor to the Queen! No one can say more fervently than the Baptists, “God save the Queen,” but while we render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, we must have respect to the commandment which enforces that nothing of Caesar’s shall touch that which is God’s. We—the members of other Baptist churches, congratulate with all our hearts the pastor, deacons, and members of this Church on the accomplishment of this great work, without any feeling excepting that of devout thankfulness to God for what He has enabled them to achieve! And we desire that abundant success may attend the proclamation of the Gospel in this building. Long may the pastor be spared to minister to a devoted, loving, and affectionate people! Long may he be surrounded by deacons who are able and willing to take the stroke oar in all the labors that appertain to them in connection with the secular affairs of the church; long may he see this place too narrow for even the communicants who assemble as his church members, and long may he have the power of the Holy Spirit attending an effective ministry and witnessing every month in that baptistery to the result of his labors! That which does not bring souls to Christ is worth nothing!