Many of you know the story of Charles Spurgeon. As a 19-year-old, he was called to pastor a historic congregation in London, and under his preaching, God brought about a remarkable revival. Throughout his 38-year ministry, Spurgeon regularly preached to a capacity crowd. By the time of his death, the membership at his church, the Metropolitan Tabernacle, was over 5,300.
But as gifted as Spurgeon was, it’d be wrong to think the thousands who joined his church were all converted through his evangelistic preaching. Instead, he gave credit to his congregation. As Spurgeon once shared at a gathering of Scottish ministers,
Somebody asked me how I got my congregation. I never got it at all. I did not think it my business to do so, but only to preach the gospel. Why, my congregation got my congregation.
The Testimony Books at the Tabernacle confirm Spurgeon’s words. In those documents, we read his elders’ records of thousands of conversion testimonies describing the ministry of ordinary members to bring the lost around them to faith. In those testimonies, exemplified in the stories that follow, we see at least five ways the church got Spurgeon his congregation.
Personal Evangelism
Spurgeon regularly reminded his
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