Description
CHARLES SPURGEON
Borrowing from John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, legendary preacher and author Charles Spurgeon presents an allegory that begins with the image of the wicket gate, the entry point to the straight and narrow way that all pilgrims must follow to reach the Celestial City.
While everyone on the road to salvation must eventually pass by this way, Spurgeon focuses on “a smaller company, who are not far from the kingdom, but have come right up to the wicket gate which stands at the head of the way of life.” Though close in proximity to the path of salvation, for some reason, they have chosen not enter the gate! Spurgeon explores why.
In his powerful and persuasive manner, Spurgeon employs colorful descriptions and concrete examples of both the best and the worst of human behavior to communicate the importance of affirming faith and salvation in Jesus Christ.
About the Author
Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834–1892), the “Prince of Preachers,” preached his first sermon at age sixteen and became a pastor at age eighteen. Spurgeon drew large crowds and built the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London in 1861 to accommodate them. He published over two thousand sermons; his inspiring and challenging messages comprise the largest collection of work by a single author. Spurgeon preached to an estimated ten million people during his lifetime, including notables such as the prime minister of England, members of the royal family, and Florence Nightingale. He appealed constantly to his hearers to move on in the Christian faith, to allow the Lord to minister to them individually, and to be used of God to win the lost to Christ. In addition to his powerful preaching, Spurgeon founded and supported charitable outreaches, including educational institutions. His pastors’ college, which is still in existence today, taught nearly nine hundred students in Spurgeon’s time. He also founded the famous Stockwell Orphanage.
