A Wondrous Mystery by Geoffrey Chang

Charles H. Spurgeon, who was considered by many to be the greatest preacher of his generation, lived during the nineteenth-century revival of the celebration of Christmas in the US and England. He loved Christmas and welcomed the holiday season as an opportunity for reflection, rest, and reunion with friends and family.

In A Wondrous Mystery: Daily Advent Devotionals, Geoffrey Chang, curator of the Spurgeon Library at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, has complied thirty daily devotions from the sermons of Spurgeon to help readers keep their hearts focused on Christ during the busy holiday season. Readers will be filled with the wonder of Christmas as the words of Spurgeon remind them of the Incarnation that is to be marveled at all year round.

In this interview, Geoffrey Chang shares more about this new Christmas devotional.

Q: For those who may know Charles Spurgeon by name, but who may not know much about him, can you introduce him to our audience?

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) was the pastor of the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London. He was powerfully converted as a teenager, began preaching at the age of sixteen, pastored his first church at seventeen, and was eventually called to the New Park Street Chapel, a historic Baptist congregation in London, at the age of nineteen. As a remarkably gifted preacher, he would become the most famous preacher of the nineteenth century, with his sermons being published worldwide. His congregation became the largest church in all evangelicalism, with a membership of over 5,300 by the time of his death.

In addition to preaching and pastoring, Spurgeon founded an orphanage ministry that served thousands of children throughout his lifetime, and he also trained hundreds of men for pastoral ministry through the Pastors’ College. Spurgeon would also be famous for his stand for historic Christian orthodoxy within his denomination. In all this, he left a remarkable legacy of gospel preaching, church planting, Christian activism, and theological faithfulness.

Q: Why is the work of Spurgeon a favorite amongst so many modern-day Christians?

Spurgeon was a gifted communicator who loved Jesus and loved the Bible. His sermons and writings are as fresh and interesting today as they were when they were first published. In his use of illustrations, his ability to communicate deep truths in accessible ways, and his evident love for Christ, Spurgeon’s sermons continue to be helpful for Christians all over the world.

Spurgeon is a particular favorite among preachers today. Many pastors find Spurgeon to be a mentor and a guide for their own preaching. On any given Sunday, I have no doubt that Spurgeon is being quoted from pulpits all over the English-speaking world (and beyond). As a result, many church members have also come to love Spurgeon and find him to be a help. For so many Christians, Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening was the first daily devotion that they learned to use. We hope this work will provide another such resource.

**Q: Introduce us to the daily advent devotional, A Wondrous Mystery.**

This work exists to help Christians meditate on the wonder of the Incarnation by taking excerpts from Spurgeon’s Christmas sermons that were preached during his 38-year ministry in London. In these sermons, Spurgeon meditates on the Old Testament prophecies about the coming of the Messiah and on the New Testament accounts of the birth of Christ and the significance of the Incarnation. This was at the heart of Spurgeon’s celebration of Christmas: the promised Savior has come! This was the joy that he wanted to pass on to his hearers, and this joy is what we hope to convey in A Wondrous Mystery.

Q: Can you tell us about the revival of the celebration of Christmas that was going on at the time that Spurgeon was preaching? Why do you believe that Spurgeon loved Christmas?

The celebration was revived in Victorian England in part due to the marriage of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria. Albert brought from Germany the Christmas customs of gifts and Christmas trees, and those traditions captured the public imagination. This was also the time when Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol was written, and it was an instant success.

In all this, Christmas became not so much a religious holiday as a cultural celebration. Spurgeon was a Victorian, so he naturally loved Christmas. He appreciated the opportunity for rest (especially for the working class) and for family reunions. He loved giving gifts to his children and the orphans under his care. But most of all, he loved the opportunity to reflect on the Incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is where the wonder of Christmas was to be found.

Q: You share in the introduction that while Spurgeon loved Christmas, he taught his people not to treat Christmas in any way as “sacred.” What would Spurgeon say is the best way to celebrate Christmas?

Spurgeon, like the Puritans before him, understood that the Christian calendar was an invention that arose out of tradition. We have to be careful not to treat holidays as if they carry the weight of biblical command. At the same time, there certainly is nothing wrong with celebrating the birth of Christ! So, when it came to the gatherings of the church, Spurgeon celebrated Christmas not through any outward adornments or innovative rituals but simply by focusing on the theological significance of the Incarnation. Beyond the gathering of the church, Spurgeon would encourage a celebration of Christmas to be marked, yes, by food and gifts and ornaments, but even more importantly, by love, generosity, and service to your fellow man.

**Q: Are there any devotions from A Wondrous Mystery that you would consider favorites? Why do those stand out to you?**

Yes, there are several. I’ll mention two. One is titled “Laid in the Manger,” which is a meditation on Luke 2:7 and Jesus being placed in a manger. This is a reminder of the humility of the Savior. Spurgeon writes,

In thus being laid in a manger, he did, as it were, give an invitation to the most humble to come to him. We might tremble to approach a throne, but we cannot fear to approach a manger. . . . Never could there be a being more approachable than Christ. No rough guards pushed poor petitioners away; no array of officious friends were allowed to keep off the importunate widow or the man who clamored that his son might be made whole; the hem of his garment was always trailing where sick folk could reach it, and he himself had a hand always ready to touch the disease, an ear to catch the faintest accents of misery, a soul going forth everywhere in rays of mercy, even as the light of the sun streams on every side beyond that orb itself.

What an encouraging reminder!

The other is “The Empty Place.” For many, Christmas can be a sad and lonely time, as we remember loved ones who are no longer with us. For these people, Spurgeon says,

When you get to your family gathering, perhaps you will have to remember that your mother has died this year, or it may be that your father has gone home, or perhaps it was the eldest son, or that sweet curly-headed child. Perhaps, tomorrow, you will be merry; and I do not say to you, “Be not so,” but let these memories come over you, let them direct your thoughts upward, let them remind you that family gatherings are only for a time, and that the great gathering is above. There the immortals meet, there the feast never ends.

These reflections are good to have not only when we’re grieving but also during years when we’re rejoicing.

Q: Why is it important for us to be familiar with church history and the teachings and writings of preachers from the past?

Hebrews 13:7–8 (ESV) says, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” This was true in the first century—how much more so here in the 21st century! In all these many centuries of church history, we have many more leaders and teachers “who spoke to us the word of God.” We have not only the teaching of their words but also the example of their lives and faith as they held on to the unchanging gospel and passed it on to the next generation. Church history, then, is a gift to the church today. Just as we are thankful for pastors and teachers who bring us God’s Word today, we can also benefit from pastors and teachers of the past and learn from them through their works.

Q: When did you first become interested in the work of Spurgeon?

I first became interested in his work as a pastor. As one who was preaching through Scripture, particularly the Psalms, I found his sermons and his commentary on the Psalms (The Treasury of David) so helpful in both understanding the text and explaining it. This was many years ago! I’ve been walking with Spurgeon for at least two decades, and he has become a friend and companion to me in the ministry.

Q: Please tell us more about the Spurgeon Library and your position as curator there.

The Spurgeon Library has the privilege of housing 6,000 volumes of Spurgeon’s own pastoral library, along with many, many other interesting artifacts, manuscripts, letters, and more. In addition to being a research center for Spurgeon scholarship, we are also a kind of museum and seek to tell the story of his life and ministry to encourage the church today. As a curator, I have the privilege of overseeing our collection and our research efforts, and thinking of new ways to tell Spurgeon’s story.

Q: What other devotionals are planned for the Old Made New series in the future?

Lord willing, we will have three more devotionals from Spurgeon in the future: one on the topic of suffering, one for Easter on the resurrection, and one on prayer. All should be really encouraging!