About C H Spurgeon

Charles Haddon Spurgeon was born at Kelvedon in Essex in 1834. He was brought up in a Christian home, and was converted at the age of 15; the call to preach the Gospel came shortly afterwards. Spurgeon displayed such rare, God-given gifts as a preacher that he was appointed pastor of Waterbeach Baptist Church in Cambridgeshire at the age of 17; the church experienced rapid growth under his ministry. Two years later, he was invited to preach at New Park Street Chapel (later the Metropolitan Tabernacle) in London in 1853. His preaching made such an impression that he was shortly afterwards called to the pastorate. His arrival soon led to such crowds thronging the chapel that services had to be moved to a vast hired hall in the Strand, and then to the Royal Surrey Gardens Music Hall, where up to 10,000 people assembled.

The present site was acquired for the Tabernacle partly because of its prominent situation and partly because it was thought to be the site of the burning of the Southwark Martyrs. For this reason our foundation-stone bears the words: ‘The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.’ During Charles Spurgeon’s ministry tens of thousands were converted to God under the preaching of the Word. Today we are privileged to worship in surroundings hallowed by such a history.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon pastored the church for 38 years, founding a pastors’ college, an orphanage, a Christian literature society and The Sword and the Trowel magazine. Over 200 new churches were started in the Home Counties alone, and pastored by his students. His printed sermons (still published) fill 63 volumes. In 1887, toward the end of his ministry, Spurgeon led the church out of the Baptist Union because of the widening influence of theological liberalism in the Union. He died in 1892 in Menton, France, utterly worn out by vigorous service for the Lord whom he loved so much.