Charles Spurgeon (Heroes of the Faith)

Rating:
Summary: Charles H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
Review: Charles Spurgeon was a fascinating man with a great gift for captivating his audiences with very direct and Christ-centered sermons. His preaching is what gained his fame, yet through his astounding popularity he remained strikingly humble and generous. Through simple, down-to-earth language he conveyed the sinfulness of all humanity and our desperate need for a Savior, and what a great and merciful Savior we do have in Jesus Christ. Massive crowds thronged to hear the Gospel from him throughout his life, and the college he started produced many other young ministers to carry on the work of spreading the message of Christ's forgiveness.
This biography of him is the only one I've read, and it was fairly good, but left something to be desired. It really only scratched the surface on explaining his theology, and quoting his sermons so that the reader could get a feel for his great popularity. Also, the book often gushed about how great a man he was; attention that, according to his description, Spurgeon would have preferred to be sent towards his Lord and Savior, Jesus. I suppose what I would have found more useful was a more direct and focused look at Spurgeon himself, the content of his preaching, which reflected his belief, and not so much flowery language and peripheral aspects of his life. It did come across clearly however that he sought his strength for ministry from God, and he resolved to "know nothing but Christ crucified."

Rating:
Summary: Charles H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
Review: Charles Spurgeon was a fascinating man with a great gift for captivating his audiences with very direct and Christ-centered sermons. His preaching is what gained his fame, yet through his astounding popularity he remained strikingly humble and generous. Through simple, down-to-earth language he conveyed the sinfulness of all humanity and our desperate need for a Savior, and what a great and merciful Savior we do have in Jesus Christ. Massive crowds thronged to hear the Gospel from him throughout his life, and the college he started produced many other young ministers to carry on the work of spreading the message of Christ's forgiveness.
This biography of him is the only one I've read, and it was fairly good, but left something to be desired. It really only scratched the surface on explaining his theology, and quoting his sermons so that the reader could get a feel for his great popularity. Also, the book often gushed about how great a man he was; attention that, according to his description, Spurgeon would have preferred to be sent towards his Lord and Savior, Jesus. I suppose what I would have found more useful was a more direct and focused look at Spurgeon himself, the content of his preaching, which reflected his belief, and not so much flowery language and peripheral aspects of his life. It did come across clearly however that he sought his strength for ministry from God, and he resolved to "know nothing but Christ crucified."