Cross in the Tabernacle: Charles Haddon Spurgeon & Biblical hermeneutics
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Date
10/07/2018Embargo end date
09/07/2019ed/ic/Rest
Author
Breimaier, Thomas Andrew
Metadata
Abstract
This thesis examines the biblical interpretation of the eminent Victorian Baptist
pastor, Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892), who became one of the most
renowned preachers in the English-speaking world. His Metropolitan
Tabernacle in London was the world’s first ‘megachurch’, with a weekly
congregation of over 5,000; by the end of his life, more than ten thousand copies
of Spurgeon’s sermons were printed and distributed weekly. Through his
example and his publications, he had an immense influence on preaching across
the North Atlantic world. This thesis, the first sustained analysis of Spurgeon’s
biblical interpretation, argues that his preaching success lay in his distinctive
approach to Scripture, and that Christ’s crucifixion and the priority of
conversion formed the interpretive lens through which Spurgeon approached
biblical texts. Chapter one examines Spurgeon’s early education and
conversion, and explores some previously unpublished early sermons. Chapters
two and five analyze Spurgeon’s mature addresses and publications, including
his magazine and biblical commentaries. Chapters three and four, respectively,
address Spurgeon’s use of the Old and New Testament in his preaching, with
particular attention on the language of cross and conversion. Finally, chapter
six considers the instruction that he provided to the hundreds of students who
attended his Pastors’ College.