Spurgeon’s Conversion
The earliest recorded instance about Charles Spurgeon’s conversion is found in his diary that detailed the period from April 6, 1850 to June 20, 1850.[1] In that diary he wrote, “Saved men and women date from the drawn of their true lives; to from their first birthday but from the day wherein they were born again.”[2] Spurgeon in a sermon at New Park Baptist Church on Sunday morning, the sixth of January 1856 stated that six years earlier, “As early as possibly at this very hour of that day,” he had come to Christ.[3]
Spurgeon was saved during December 1849 at a Primitive Methodist Church in Colchester, England. The preacher gave a very simple message from Isaiah, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth.”[4] After explaining the text and what it meant for ten minutes, the preacher turned to young Charles Spurgeon and began preaching at him telling him that he needed to “Look to Jesus Christ and live.”[5] Spurgeon after hearing the good news responded as the Holy Spirit opened his eyes to new life.[6]
Spurgeon’s Call to Ministry
Shortly after his conversion, Spurgeon was asked to become a Sunday school teacher, which he did and became so successful that he was asked to address the whole school.[7] In ministering at the Sunday school, Spurgeon began to have a burden for a life of ministry. He prayed, “Make me Thy faithful servant, O my God; may I honour Thee in my day and generation, and be consecrated for ever to Thy service.”[8] In one of his letters to his parents he tells them that he wishes to be like his father– a successful preacher of the gospel.[9] Arnold Dallimore notes that what Spurgeon was experiencing was an unmistakable call to the ministry with his mighty gifts and his heart moved with a love for God and a love for the souls of mankind, it was inevitable that he should be a preacher.[10]
[1] Lewis Drummond, Spuregon Prince of Preachers (Grand Rapids, Kregel, 1992), 116.
[2] C.H. Spurgeon, The Saint and His Saviour (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1880), 176-179.
[3] C.H. Spurgeon’s Autobiography: Compiled from His Diary, Letters, and Records, by His Wife and His Private Secretary, Susannah, 129.
[4] Ian Murray, ed., The Early Years (London: Banner of Truth, 1962), 87-90.
[5] Ian Murray, ed., The Early Years (London: Banner of Truth, 1962), 87-90.
[6] Ibid., 87-90.
[7] Lewis Drummond, Spuregon Prince of Preachers (Grand Rapids, Kregel, 1992), 27.
[8] Ibid., 118.
[9] Ibid., 116.
[10] Arnold Dallimore, A New Biography (Pennsylvania, Banner of Trust, 2005), 28.
Dave Jenkins is happily married to Sarah Jenkins. He is a writer, editor, and speaker living in beautiful Southern Oregon. Dave is a lover of Christ, His people, the Church, and sound theology. He serves as the Executive Director of Servants of Grace Ministries, the Executive Editor of Theology for Life Magazine, and is the Host for the Equipping You in Grace Podcast. He is the author of The Word Explored: The Problem of Biblical Illiteracy and What To Do About It (House to House, 2021) and The Word Matters: Defending Biblical Authority Against the Spirit of the Age (G3 Press, 2022). You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, or read his newsletter. Dave loves to spend time with his wife, going to movies, eating at a nice restaurant, or going out for a round of golf with a good friend. He is also a voracious reader, in particular of Reformed theology, and the Puritans. You will often find him when he’s not busy with ministry reading a pile of the latest books from a wide variety of Christian publishers. Dave received his M.A.R. and M.Div through Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary.