| Theology has nothing new in it except that which is false. The preaching of Paul must be the preaching of the minister today. The old truth that Calvin preached, that Chrysostom preached, is the truth that I must preach today, or else be a liar to my conscience and my God. I cannot shape the truth, I know of no such thing as the paring off the rough edges of doctrine. John Knox's gospel is my gospel. Election is not mentioned once in the year in many a pulpit; final perseverance is kept back; the great things of God's law are forgotten, and a kind of mongrel mixture of Arminianism and Calvinism is the great delight of the present age. And hence the Lord has forsaken many of His tabernacles; and left the house of His covenant; and He will leave it until again the trumpet gives a certain sound. For, wherever there is not the old gospel we shall find 'Ichabod' written upon the church walls ere long. The truths of the Covenanters, the old truths of the Puritans, the old truths of the apostles is the only truth that will stand the test of time, and never need to be altered to suit a wicked and ungodly generation.
C.H. Spurgeon |