Five Days With Spurgeon: Baptism and the Lord’s SupperSample

The Church Ordinances

Many evangelical churches today struggle to know what to do with ordinances. They know it ought to be a part of the church, but there is little understanding of its theological meaning and how it functions in the church’s life.

As a result, all kinds of dangerous innovations arise. Baptism ends up being spontaneous with little examination of those being baptized. The Lord’s Supper is separated from the church's discipline and becomes individualized. In all kinds of ways, as the church loses a biblical and theological understanding of the ordinances, the church is weakened, and the gospel is compromised.

Then, Charles Spurgeon provides a model for a convictional approach to the ordinances. For him, they were a source of joy.

During the next few days, we will explore Spurgeon’s theology and practice of the ordinances, first considering baptism, then the Lord’s Supper. In both ordinances, we will see that Spurgeon’s practice was ordered by conviction, not convenience. While we may not agree with all of Spurgeon’s positions, his example of faithfulness remains instructive to this day.

The Ordinances of the Church

Spurgeon held to two ordinances of the church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. He avoided using the term sacrament, which the Church of England defined as “an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.” He appreciated the idea of a visible sign. But at the same time, Spurgeon rejected any Roman Catholic understanding of the sacraments as meritorious apart from faith in Christ. This superstitious view continued at a popular level even among Protestants.

Therefore, Spurgeon preferred the term ordinance, meaning baptism and the Lord’s Supper were ordained by Christ for the church. Because Christ gave them, His Word is to govern their practice. While faith was central to one’s participation, Christians must also abide by the forms that we have been given. Even as churches grew more elaborate in celebrating the ordinances, Spurgeon believed simplicity was the most important quality. For Spurgeon, simplicity promoted faith. Through obedience and faith, the ordinances became a source of rich, personal communion with Christ.