All of Grace in Modern English: With Scripture Texts from the English Standard Version (ESV)

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

An Earnest Word with Those Who Are Seeking Salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ

When a person first realizes there really is a salvation for sinners, they find it most amazing that this salvation could be for someone as lost and guilty as themselves. They think they must have great sorrow over their sinful life and change their ways. They forget that their sorrow is actually part of their salvation. But, “Oh,” they say, “I must be this and that.” That is true, but it comes as a result of salvation, not as the cause of it. Salvation comes first, then the results. In fact, salvation comes when they can only be described by the hateful, beggarly, despicable, disgusting name, “Ungodly.” That is all a person is when God’s gospel comes to justify them.

It does at first seem most amazing to an awakened man that salvation should really be for him, as a lost and guilty one. He thinks that it must be for him as a penitent man, forgetting that his penitence is part of his salvation. "Oh," says he, "but i must be this and that," all of which is true, for he shall be "this and that" as the result of salvation, but salvation comes to him before he has any of the results of salvation. It comes to him, in fact, while he deserves only this bare, beggarly, base abominable description: ungodly.

Do not wait till you have reformed your ways. Come now and come as you are for salvation.

Wait not for reformation, but come at once for salvation.

Come in your filthy worn out clothes. I mean, come to your heavenly Father in all your sin and sinfulness. Come to Jesus just as you are, diseased, filthy, naked, not fit to live nor fit to die. Come, you who are the very dirt of creation. Come, even though you hardly dare to hope for anything except death. Come, even though despair is overwhelming you and piercing your heart like a horrible nightmare. Come and ask the Lord to justify another ungodly person. Why should he not justify you? Come, because this great mercy of God is meant for people like you.

But you must not measure God’s ability to forgive with yours. His thoughts and ways are as much above yours as the heavens are high above the earth.

Ability? But we should measure God's final forgiveness for us by the forgiveness which we have extended to others

I was once afflicted with a horrible sense of guilt. My life was miserable; but then I heard the command, “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.” I turned, and in a moment the Lord justified me. I saw Jesus Christ, made sin for me, and that sight gave me peace. When those who were bitten by the fiery serpents in the wilderness looked to the serpent of bronze they were healed immediately. And so was I when I looked to the crucified Savior. The Holy Spirit gave me the means to believe and gave me peace through believing. I felt as sure that I was forgiven as I had previously felt I was condemned. I had been certain that I was condemned because the word of God declared it, and my conscience also condemned me. But when the Lord justified me, I became just as certain that I was no longer condemned, by that same word of God and that same conscience. The Bible says, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned,” and my conscience believed that God could pardon me and still be fair. So, the Holy Spirit and my own conscience were in agreement. Oh, how I wish that my reader would accept God’s word about this. If they would, then their own conscience would soon come to peace in this matter.

When the Holy Spirit was convicting me of sin, I had a clear and sharp sense of the justice of God. Whatever sin might be to other people, it was an intolerable burden to me. It was not so much that I feared hell, but that I feared sin. I knew that I was so horribly guilty and I remember thinking that if God did not punish me for sin, he should. I felt that the Judge of all the earth should condemn sin such as mine. I sat as my own judge and condemned myself to perish. I acknowledged that if I was God I must sentence such a guilty creature like myself to the lowest hell.

Years of despondency, awakening, this intermediate state

The light was there, but I was blind. Only the Lord himself could make the matter plain to me. It came to me as a surprise, as if I had never read in the Bible that Jesus was the answer, and that his sacrifice could make the just God my friend. I believe it will come as a surprise to every newborn child of God whenever they see this truth. I am talking about that glorious teaching that the Lord Jesus came as a substitute. I came to realize that salvation was possible because Jesus sacrificed himself for others. I came to understand that this arrangement for a substitute was made before God created Adam and Eve. I was made to see that Jesus is the Son of God and that he is coequal and coeternal with the Father and that an agreement was made that he would be the Leader of a chosen people, and that as their Leader he would suffer for them and save them.

Revelation: this is what i need!

Our fall did not begin as a personal one. We fell first in Adam who represented all humanity. Therefore, it became possible for us to be recovered by a second representative. And we know that second representative is the Lord Jesus Christ who, as the Leader of his people, volunteered to become the second Adam. I saw that before I had actually sinned I had already fallen by my first father’s sin; and I rejoiced when I came to see I could be legally rescued by a second representative. The fall by Adam left a legal loophole, a way of escape. Another Adam can undo the damage done by the first. I was worried about how a just God could pardon a guilty sinner. Then I understood and saw by faith that the Son of God became a man and in his own blessed person he paid the price of my sin in his own body on the cross. He was pierced for my transgressions; he was crushed for my iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought me peace. The wounds inflicted on him healed me.

Loophole

The law of God was more satisfied by the death of Christ than it would have been if all transgressors had been sent to hell. For the Son of God to suffer for sin brings more glory to God than if the whole human race was made to suffer.

Better

There is more value in Christ’s death than all human sin can overcome. The great ocean of Jesus’ loving self-sacrifice can swallow up the mountains of our sins, all of them.

The wrath on Jesus was so sufficient, it may have produced an infinite debt of grace

What is it to believe in Jesus? It is not merely to say, “He is God and the Savior.” It is to trust him completely and absolutely, to take him as the payment for your salvation from this time forth and forever, and take him as your Lord, your Master, your all.

This is what i need

In this chapter I have a few words to those who understand the way of justification by faith that is in Christ Jesus, but have trouble stopping their sinning. We can never be happy, at peace, or spiritually healthy until we become holy. We must be free from sin. But how does this freedom come about? For many, this is the life-or-death question. The old nature is very strong. They have tried to hold it back and tame it, but it will not be conquered. They find that though they are eager to be better, if anything they are growing worse than before. The heart is so hard, the will is so stubborn, the passions are so furious, the thoughts are so unpredictable, the imagination is so uncontrollable, the desires are so wild, that the person feels that they have a den of wild animals living inside of them, that would rather eat them up than be ruled by them. Our fallen nature seems to be like Leviathan, about whom the Lord said to Job, “Will you play with him as with a bird, or will you put him on a leash for your girls?” A person might as well hope to hold the north wind in the hollow of their hand as expect to control by their own strength those wild powers that live within their fallen nature.

What is faith? It is made up of three things―knowledge, belief, and trust.

We must hear first, so that we may know what is to be believed.

True! But what does this say about ministries like Ligonier and White Horse Inn which profess to teach people what it is that they believe?

Believe these truths like you believe any other facts. The difference between common faith and saving faith is mainly a matter of where the faith is placed.

...lies mainly in the subjects upon which it is exercised.

Sometimes, to a troubled heart, the simple gospel of “Believe and live,” is not, after all, so simple, because it asks the poor sinner to do what he or she cannot do. To someone who has been awakened to their need, but is not fully instructed, there appears to be a missing link. Salvation in Jesus is close, but how can it be reached? The soul has no strength and does not know what to do. The soul is within sight of the city of safety, but cannot enter its gate.

"the city of refuge"

Still, I know what they mean. I used to feel the same way in the days of my darkness. I wanted to repent, but I thought that I could not do it, and yet all the time I was actually repenting. Odd as it may sound, I felt that I could not feel. I used to get into a corner and weep, because I could not weep. I fell into bitter sorrow, because I could not sorrow for sin. What a mess we make when, in our unbelieving state of mind, we begin to judge our own condition! My heart was failing me for fear, because I thought that my heart was as hard as solid rock. My heart was broken to think that it would not break. I see now that I was displaying the very thing that I thought I did not have, but at the time I did not know what I was doing.

Remember this. The person who truly repents is never satisfied with their own repentance. We can no more repent perfectly than we can live perfectly. However pure our tears of sorrow, there will always be some dirt in them. There will always be something to be repented of even in our best repentance. But listen! To repent means to change your mind about sin, and Christ, and the wonderful things about God. There is sorrow implied in repentance, but the main thing is the turning of the heart from sin to Christ. If there is this turning, then you have the essence of true repentance, even if no fear or discouragement should ever cast their shadow on your mind.

If you fully understand the meaning of the holy sacrifice of Jesus, you must repent of ever having opposed the one who is so full of love. It is written, “When they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.” Repentance will not make you see Christ, but seeing Christ will give you repentance. You may not make a Christ out of your repentance, but you must look to Christ for repentance. The Holy Spirit, by turning us to Christ, turns us from sin. Repentance is the effect, Christ is the cause. So look away from your repenting to the cause of your repenting. Look to the Lord Jesus, who should be praised for giving repentance.

I think that in this case, "must" is meant to say "will" or "shall" not "ought."

This whole business of believing is really a very curious thing, because people do not get much help by trying to believe. Believing does not come by trying. If someone were to make a statement about something that happened today, I would not tell him that I would try to believe him. If I believed in the integrity of the person who told me about the incident and said that he saw it, I would accept the statement immediately. If I did not think they were an honest person, I would, of course, not believe them. But there would be no trying to believe. Now, when God declares that there is salvation in Christ Jesus, I must either believe him right away or consider him a liar. Obviously you do not need to think about which is the right path in this case. God’s word must be true and we are compelled to believe in Jesus without hesitation.

I believe that Christ saves sinners, even someone like Paul who tried to snuff out the early church, or Peter who denied Jesus with a curse in his most desperate moments. But what warrant do i have in believing that I'm redeemed? Especially when God's irrevocable word puts people like me in the warnings rather than the promises?

If you take the truth that Christ died for the ungodly and believe it, your faith will save you, and you may go in peace.

According to whom?

Sit down and watch the dying Savior until faith springs up spontaneously in your heart. There is no place like Calvary for creating confidence in Christ. The very air of that sacred hill brings spiritual health to trembling faith. Many have stood there watching and said: While I view you, wounded, grieving, Breathless on the cursed tree, Lord, I feel my heart believing That you suffered thus for me.

“Alas!” cries another, “I am helpless because I cannot quit sinning and I know that I cannot go to heaven and take my sins with me.” I am glad you realize that, because it is quite true. You must be divorced from your sin or you cannot be married to Christ. Think back to young John Bunyan. He was in a field playing sports one Sunday when this flashed into his mind: “Will you keep your sins and go to hell, or will you give up your sins and go to heaven?” That question brought him to a dead stop. It is the same question that everyone will have to answer, because there is no continuing in sin and going to heaven. It is impossible. You must quit sin or quit hoping for heaven. Do you reply, “Yes I am willing. I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. Sin masters me. I have no strength to do what is right.” If you have no strength, our text is still true, “While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly”

There is nothing like placing your faith in the Friend of sinners. It conquers all evil. If Christ has died for me, ungodly as I am, helpless as I am, then I cannot live in sin any longer. I must stir myself to love and serve the Lord who has redeemed me. I can no longer think of evil as unimportant. It killed my best friend. I must be holy for his sake. How can I live in sin when he has died to save me from it?

Transformative convictions

Converts usually say that they did not know the gospel until such and such a day even though they had heard it for years. The gospel has remained hidden, not from lack of explanation, but because it is understood supernaturally. The Holy Spirit is ready to reveal the good news and he will give it to those who ask. And when everything is clearly seen, you will see that the gospel can be summed up in the words, “Christ died for the ungodly.”

Revelation

Beating yourself up over it will not help. Stand up straight and look at yourself. You were never meant to be like a frog in hiding, in fear of life and afraid to either move or stand still. This is a spiritual matter, but you need to be brave and strong in your everyday life too. I would do many things to please my friends, but I would not risk going to hell just to please them. It may be very well to do this and that for the sake of staying on good terms with people, but it is never worth doing something that would injure your friendship with God.

"the Holy Spirit can cast out the evil spirit of the fear of man. He can make the coward brave. Remember, my poor vacillating friend, you must not remain in this state. It will never do to be mean and beggardly to yourself. Stand upright and look at yourself, and see if you were ever meant to be like a toad under a harrow, afraid for your life, either to move or to stand still. Do have a mind of your own. This is not a spiritual matter only, but one which concerns ordinary manliness. I would not do many things things to please my friends, but to go to hell to please them is more than i would venture. It may be very well to do this and that for good fellowship, but it will never do to lose the friendship of God in order to keep on good terms with men."

Work this into your soul, “Christ died for me,” and soon you will be ready even to die for him. Believe it! Believe that he suffered in your place as your substitute, and endured God’s wrath for you. If you believe that fact, you will be forced to feel, “I cannot be ashamed of him who died for me.” The person who is fully persuaded of this can meet persecution with fearless courage. Look at the saints in the age of the martyrs. In the early days of Christianity, when this thought of Christ’s great love was sparkling in all its freshness in the church, people were not only ready to die, but they became eager to suffer. They came voluntarily by the hundreds to the judgment seats of the rulers and confessed Christ. I do not say that they were wise to welcome a cruel death, but it does prove my point. A true understanding of the love of Jesus lifts the mind above all fear of what the world can do to us. Why should it not produce the same effect in you? Oh, that it would inspire you right now to join the Lord’s side and be his brave follower to the end!

There was never a person yet who sincerely repented of sin, with believing repentance, who was not forgiven. On the other hand, there was never a person forgiven who had not repented of their sin. I do not hesitate to say that there never has been, there is not now, and there never will be any case of sin being washed away, unless at the same time the heart was led to repentance and faith in Christ. Hatred of sin and a sense of pardon come into the soul together and stay together as long as we live.

One who is forgiven much loves much. Her sins are forgiven because she loved much.

Law and terrors do but harden, the while they work alone; But a sense of blood-bought pardon Soon dissolves a heart of stone.

You will never value pardon unless you feel repentance. You will never experience the depths of repentance until you know that you are pardoned. It may seem strange, but it is really true.

If I know that I repent, then I know that I am forgiven. How am I to know that I am forgiven except that I also know that I have repented, that I have turned my back on my former sinful life? To be a believer is to be penitent. Faith and repentance are two spokes in the same wheel, two handles of the same plow. Repentance has been well described as a heart broken for sin and from sin. It may also be explained as a broken heart that is turning from sin and returning to the Father. It is a change of mind of the most thorough and radical kind. It results in sorrow for the past and a determination to change in the future. Repentance is to leave The sins we loved before; And show that we in earnest grieve, By doing so no more. If this is the case in our life, then we may be certain that we are forgiven; because the Lord never caused a heart to be broken for sin and from sin, without pardoning it. If, on the other hand, we are enjoying pardon, through the blood of Jesus, and are justified by faith, and have peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord, then we know that our repentance and faith are genuine.

Do not think of your repentance as the reason for your forgiveness, but as the companion of it. Do not expect to be able to repent until you see the grace of our Lord Jesus and his willingness to blot out your sin. Keep these blessed things in their proper places and see them in their relation to each other.

Be thankful to the God who made you poor, or sick, or sad, because Jesus uses all of these things to change your spirit and turn you to himself. The Lord’s mercy often rides to the door of our hearts on the black horse of affliction. Jesus uses the whole range of our experience to wean us from earth and woo us to heaven. Christ is exalted to the throne of heaven and earth so that he can use all the powers at his disposal to graciously soften hard hearts through repentance.

He is waiting even now to give repentance to you. Ask him for it at once.

It is contrary to all experience to suppose you can force your soul into a state of grace. Take your heart in prayer to him who understands it, and say, “Lord, cleanse my heart. Lord, renew it. Lord, work repentance in it.” The more you try to produce emotions of repentance in yourself, the more you will be disappointed. But if you believe that Jesus died for you, and meditate on that, repentance will burst out.