Grace Must Change Us
To be a useful vessel for God, we must allow His grace to change us, making us into silver or golden vessels that honor Him.
C.H. Spurgeon emphasizes that grace must transform us into valuable vessels for God's use, comparing us to silver and gold that withstands trials, unlike wooden or earthen vessels that are easily damaged or broken. He warns that nominal Christians are susceptible to being led astray by false teachings, which can ruin their character and faith. Spurgeon reflects on the sad reality of those who once appeared strong but succumbed to temptation, becoming like broken pots outside the house of Christ. The sermon calls for a deep, transformative grace that equips believers to endure challenges and serve honorably in the church.
Text
...grace must make us into silver or into golden vessels, or the Master cannot himself use us, nor can our use in the church ever be to honor. The wooden vessels in the church are very easily hacked and carved and spoiled; if a man be inclined to mischief he can put his knife to them and can cut great notches in them, ruin their character, and render them worthless. Cunning teachers can soon take away from merely nominal Christians what they professed to believe, for they are very readily cut and hacked by those who play at such games. As for the earthen vessels, how soon they are broken.
Outside of any great house there are the remains of many broken pots, which fell to the ground and went to pieces; and, I am sorry to say, we also can find enough of such relics to sadden us all. There were some in this house once who were comely to look upon, but there came a temptation and brushed them from the table, and they were shivered in a moment. Others of precious metal have endured far more shocks and tests of a severer kind, but these being only of earth were broken at once. Heaps of crockery accumulate outside every great house, and certainly outside the great house of Christ.
From a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon entitled "The Great House And The Vessels In It," delivered April 8, 1877.
Sermon Outline
- The Importance of Being a Vessel for God
- The Types of Vessels in the Church
- The Dangers of Being a Wooden or Earthen Vessel
- Vulnerability to Corruption
- Vulnerability to Breakage
Key Quotes
“The wooden vessels in the church are very easily hacked and carved and spoiled; if a man be inclined to mischief he can put his knife to them and can cut great notches in them, ruin their character, and render them worthless.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“As for the earthen vessels, how soon they are broken.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“Heaps of crockery accumulate outside every great house, and certainly outside the great house of Christ.” — C.H. Spurgeon
Application Points
- We must allow God's grace to change us, making us into vessels that are useful and effective in His service.
- We must be careful not to allow corruption and breakage to occur in our lives, lest we become useless to God.
- We must strive to become vessels that honor God, bringing Him glory and usefulness in our lives.