April 1, 2024 Show with Jared Payne on “Charles Spurgeon: The Early Years that Shaped the Prince of Preachers”

Iron Sharpens Iron Radio Introduction and April Fool's Day Banter

Live from historic downtown Carlisle, Pennsylvania, home of founding father James Wilson, 19th century hymn writer George Duffield, 19th century gospel minister George Norcross, and sports legend Jim Thorpe, it's Iron Sharpens Iron.

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Good afternoon, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Lake City, Florida, and the rest of humanity living on the planet Earth who are listening via live streaming at ironsharpensironradio .com. This is Chris Arnzen, your host of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, wishing you a happy April Fool's Day on this first day of April 2024, and I am officially today declaring that April's Fool's Day is to be a day commemorated for the folks that do not listen to Iron Sharpens Iron Radio.

But of course, none of those folks are hearing me making that declaration. But I am thrilled about the guest and topic for today, but before I introduce my guest and my co-host and our topic, I have a couple of important reminders for you.

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Jared Payne, A Pilgrim's Coffer, and the New Park Street Pulpit Project

But we have as our guest today both a first-time guest and also we are welcoming back somebody who's already been a guest, but he's going to be my first-time co-host today. First of all, we have Jared Payne joining us for the first time.

He is founder of A Pilgrim's Coffer, and he's going to be addressing Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the early years that shaped the Prince of Preachers. It's my honor and privilege to welcome you back to Iron Trip and Zion Radio, or should I say welcome you to Iron Trip and Zion Radio for the very first time, Jared Payne.

Thank you so much. I appreciate you having me on. And we also have co-hosting with me, someone who I have had on the program before, Alex Wright, founder of Vessels for Christ Ministries. It's great to have you back on the show, Alex.

It's great to be here, Chris. And not only are we going to be addressing Charles Haddon Spurgeon's early years, but we're also going to be announcing the printing of the newly retyped edition of the new Park Street Pulpit sermons by Charles Haddon Spurgeon for the very first time in history.

So we'll be getting to that momentarily. But first of all, Jared, tell us about A Pilgrim's Coffer.

Yeah, so we, in earlier years, I worked as a corporate tax accountant. So I did that for almost a decade. And in the Lord's providence, I ended up leaving that work after a period of time. And it was a very organic thing in how our, you know, our work and our ministry kind of grew from an interest in theology, in a lot of these works, these great works that are done that so many are so many are familiar with, Spurgeon being probably foremost as far as being well known by across the board.

But A Pilgrim's Coffer really started because as I was going to work through going through these volumes, sharing quotes, picking up things, that was the idea that this was this was my coffer. This was my little where I was going to just a pilgrim was going to keep his his little treasures in one place.

And and I thought, well, if I'm going to go to the trouble to start collecting some of these items and working through things like this, I'd just share it with everybody. So that's really the the beginnings of A Pilgrim's Coffer.

And it has since grown as our collection has grown. Our original Spurgeon collection, along with a lot of other materials, we have started getting into a little bit of publishing. Prior to this, we we worked on we had A Pilgrim's Digest that we did for a year that was kind of in the in the general gist of the Old Sword and Trowels.

Really enjoyed doing that. I'm hopeful that one day we'll be able to get back to it. But we really saw the need to go and start working on some of this retyping, setting this Spurgeon work. When you go back and you see originals, you see Pilgrim Publications is the last one you know, decades ago to have finished a photolithograph set.

And after a while, it just became apparent that this was a need for the church, that we are in 2024 now and that we that we need to be digitizing and getting, you know, correct editions of these for the future, for pastors, seminaries, laymen and everybody, everybody that we can.

So just became something that was that was on our heart to do. And we finally decided that we would we would take it, take up the project.

And how far along are you into this retyping setting of the new Park Street pulpit sermons?

So the volume that just came out is that is Volume 1, 1855. So these this is Spurgeon sermons, Volume 1 of 63 total sermons. But the technical volume was the new Park Street pulpit, 1855. And the new Park Street pulpit goes for six years, goes through 1860.

And then in 1861, the Metropolitan Tabernacle was built. And then you see the name change. So a lot of people do generally refer to the whole set as the Metropolitan Tabernacle pulpit. But the first six volumes are new Park Street pulpit.

So we're just starting. We are getting ready to start on on Volume 2. And our goal is in relatively short order that these are going to be coming out quite frequently. So our goal is just out of the chute to be kind of at six a year, you know, five, six a year.

And then we're going to we're going to push the gas pedal as as quickly as we can. But I will not you know, when you think about the Pilgrim Publications set, if for those who have them or know of them, that was a that photolithograph set took 12 years and they were photolithographing the the set.

So so we're retyping setting every line and making we are technically correcting some of the errors that came through in the original printing. But our goal is to make it a much quicker print publishing set than than that.

But if people will just bear with us a little bit, we will we'll be plowing through them as fast as we can without sacrificing the quality, because that's the most important thing. We want to want to do these right the first time so that people people are really happy with them and can, you know, Lord willing, pass these volumes down to their to their family members as well.

Well, I hope that when you said that you were correcting errors, you didn't mean by that theological errors that you think existed in the writings. Oh, no, no. Because, as you may as you may know, I'm not going to mention the name of the periodical or the group, but there was an anti-Calvinist independent fundamentalist Baptists group that some years ago, probably going on 30 years ago or more, reprinted sermons by Spurgeon.

And they actually had the audacity to change things to fit their soteriology and to not accommodate Spurgeon's Calvinism.

Yeah, that's a that's a travesty. We would never do that because I'm right where Spurgeon is.

And the excuse was, well, now that Spurgeon is in heaven, he would agree with these changes.

That's that. And, you know, even from the historical aspect, you know, we think about all the volumes, which some folks know of some of that that Spurgeon had in his library. They weren't the vast, vast, vast majority, of course, were not Baptist.

You know, we we need to have great theologians, pastors. We need to have their material, even if we don't agree with everything. And we need to just from a historical standpoint, we need to know what was written.

Those things don't need to change. And it's always a very sad thing when people start going through and trying to edit those things or make commentary on on things. Unfortunately, Spurgeon is is so well known.

That and I'll admit I'm not the the the premier Spurgeon historian by any stretch. You'll never hear me saying that I I've been fortunate enough to go through a lot of material. But there's some there's some guys out there that have gone through way, way more material than me.

But that having been said, I noticed very frequently when that I see things about Spurgeon anecdotes or quotes or this that there's a lot out there that gets that gets has been twisted or has been evolved over time.

And so we have to be we have to be very careful in how we do that. But no, I want these sets to be to be exactly like they were intended to be. If you go to the publisher's preface in the front of these volumes, you will see me lay out our methodology for these.

And so it we make sure that in the printing errors, whether we're very much some of them very, very minor, but whether we're talking about punctuation or occasional misspelling, we cross reference these diligently.

And if we aren't sure, we don't touch anything. So it is it is our goal to have this be the most accurate. And and the default is leave it alone. Don't touch it. But I will say we're absolutely absolutely not Americanizing the spelling.

So that's that is one thing that you will see in a lot of the smaller modern editions that have been. And by modern, I mean since the 40s or 50s, because a lot of those sets, which were not full sets, they were partial sets, you know, 10 volumes, 20 volumes max.

Those tended to come from some of the earlier American reprints where a lot of that a lot of that spelling got changed. And so we go we're going with the originals, the Passmore and Alabasters. And so we think that people are going to be happy.

We you know, we welcome people to if they want to cross check us on with what we have in the original. But I can tell you personally, with the amount of hours that I've put into just this volume one, that that we think people are going to be real happy who are looking for a a true but clean and crisp retype set volume.

We think that they're going to be really happy with these.

Amen. Well, now, Alex, right. If you could please tell us about Vessels for Christ.

Yeah. So Vessels for Christ is a we're a parachurch ministry. We focus on helping pastors financially with resources overseas. Most of the work we're doing is in Myanmar and Central America. We were doing some work in India, but some things have happened and we're kind of shifting gears.

But we basically want to help those brothers and sisters in Christ and those churches that just we want to help them with whatever they may need. Just get it. Getting the gospel out to the unreached areas in Myanmar and Central America.

The prosperity gospel, the word faith, the N .A .R. movement, the new apostolic reformation. Your listeners would maybe know of Bethel Church or IHOP. That stuff is very prevalent in Belize where we're doing work.

So we work with the brother Nate Stewart there. He's a missionary and he's sharing the true gospel down there. And actually, he has a few more solid brothers that have come alongside him to evangelize that area.

One, you may know of the church he came from. I can't think of the brother's name right now, but he was going to Tim Stevens Church, the pastor who got arrested in Canada. Oh, yeah. During the COVID stuff.

Yeah. Yeah. Tim Stevens. So he was attending there and he's now... Is that church affiliated with James Coates Church? I'm not sure if there's any affiliation. I know James Coates and Tim Stevens know each other because I know Tim Stevens is going to Masters MacArthur's College.

But yeah, so a brother from his church has come down. So there's some really good stuff happening there. I feel more solid Bible teaching, sound doctrine is being promoted there in Belize. And then in Myanmar, latest update is just the military is still ravaging that country.

They're forcing the citizens. The military has been decimated. So they're forcing 5 ,000 citizens to be drafted every month now going forward. So anyone from the ages of, I believe, is 25 to 35 are at risk.

And that includes believers and pastors and are at risk of having to join the military, almost like a David situation. Sorry, a Daniel situation where it's like he has to, you know, be a part of that.

That military and those pagan people, those godless people, and just trying to encourage pastors and believers there in that regard. But believers are still... Unbelievers are still getting converted in Myanmar.

People are getting baptized and we're just continuing to do what God's called us to do and help those brothers overseas. That may not be thought about a lot.

And I understand that Vessels for Christ is going to be the recipient of a percentage of the monies coming from sales of the new edition of the new Park Street Pulpit.

Yeah, that's correct. Jared has been kind enough to donate a portion of the sales from the show today. If anyone mentions your name or Iron Sharpens Iron or Vessels for Christ in the notes section when they order one, a percentage of the sales will go towards our ministry.

So we are very grateful to A Pilgrim's Coffer and Jared for offering that to us.

And the website for A Pilgrim's Coffer is apilgrimscoffer .com. The website for Vessels of Christ or Vessels for Christ, if you want more details, is vesselsforchrist .org. Vesselsforchrist .org. And God willing, we will be repeating that information toward the end of the program.

Jared Payne's Salvation Testimony

Well, we have a tradition here, Jared. Whenever we have a first-time guest on this program, we have that guest give a summary of their salvation testimony, including the kind of religious atmosphere, if any, in which they were raised, and what kind of providential circumstances our Sovereign Lord raised up in their lives that drew them to himself and saved them.

And I'd love to hear a summary of your testimony, since you are a first-time guest, unlike Alex, who has already done this in the past.

Yeah, absolutely. No, I was blessed to grow up in a wonderful family that we were raised at church. Every time the doors were open, it was generally Southern Baptist, you know, was the atmosphere here in North Carolina.

And so I would say that's the majority of the churches down here. Of course, we have quite a bit of IFB as well. But, yeah, the summer before I turned seven, I went to the pastor at the church there. I told my parents, and I said, look, I think that I believe in Christ.

I believe that he's my Savior. I believe that I'm to live for him. And so I think that I need to be baptized. And so I was baptized not long after, in 1993. And the Lord has shown just great mercy and the providence that he has led me through in the years following that.

There were certainly many years in this day and age, the college years going through where, you know, it was a very, you know, for lack of a better word, it was, you know, somewhat depressing because there was just so little of a Christian atmosphere and Christian fellowship to be had.

I went to a college and got my master's and got my undergrad and my master's in accounting and did those things. Came up right when a lot of the housing, you know, the housing crisis was going on there kind of in 07, 08.

So I was interested in business and I went to school for that, knowing that I needed a job. You know, I kind of kind of grew up where it was like, hey, when you go to college, you know, you try not to come home, like get a job, start working kind of thing.

And so and so that's what we did. And the Lord just just looking back, there's just so much of his gracious hand in all of it that led me to my wife. I just it's one of those things that can't be thankful enough for in all that he's done.

But a notable thing that I will that I will particularly mention is while I was, you know. Each of these these stages in my life, I look back and there's so much to be thankful for what he taught me, what he led me through, what he brought me to.

And I will say as a as a Baptist, but as a, you know, unabashed Calvinist or that's what I'm going to be called anyway. But the when I was when I was working and this is probably been about. I would say it's probably been at least a decade ago now or are really close to it, if not.

I had a friend that I worked with and he was he was older than me. And but I would always talk theology with people. But I say theology loosely because in the atmosphere that I grew up in that I think is is still probably, you know, without trying to talk poorly about anybody.

You know, that is probably the norm for a lot of your Southern Baptist churches. And, you know, there was so little substance as far as doctrine, as far as technical doctrine, as far as understanding ecclesiology and soteriology and these things.

I had not heard even by that point. I'd heard very, very little of that. And especially, you know, from the pulpit in one form or another. And so the Lord was providential to put a coworker and still a friend of mine in in my path.

And we I can still vividly remember the conversations that we had, but particularly when when he brought up the doctrines of grace and he walked through those. And I said, Daniel, I don't disagree with anything that you've just said.

But I have one question and it is, why have I never heard that at my church or the churches that I've been to? And so that I can I can certainly point to and say that really jump started my interest in going back and starting to dig in the historical and the doctrinal and the theological older materials and directly led to my, you know, trying to build up my library.

And I just I would not be I would not be here. I would not be doing what I'm doing if it weren't for that. And just the mercy of the Lord has been so great to put the people in my path that he has. Alex included it.

I met Alex out at a conference in it was in Conway. It was that that grace that GBTS was doing out there a number of years back now. And group of friends happened to be going to eat together, met him there.

And we've been we've been friends and talking ever since. And so it's Lord has just been so kind in that. And I've I've been afforded meeting so many people, even to this point, that. Dear brothers and sisters, some of whom I've never met, and I just didn't know that it could, you know, that there could be the joy and the love that there is even amongst those that we don't get to physically spend a lot of time with.

But, you know, with all the negatives that there are for social media and Internet and all sorts of things, you know, there are certainly some wonderful opportunities. And so I'm thankful to have been able to to meet with and get to be friends with a lot of these folks.

But just most importantly, I think the the, you know, under truly understanding the Lord's hand in salvation, understanding what he has accomplished for us and the assurance that he gives that we need to understand from the gospel truth.

And the whole counsel of God that we see all throughout Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, I think, is it's such a reassuring thing that we can look to Christ and we can be thankful each and every day for what he's done.

And and know that it is not on us every day to be to be unsure, to be uncertain, but that we can enjoy and love that we can labor for the Lord each day. And and just praise him in the in the world that that has so many so so much negativity and so much that, you know, people that that we kind of want to throw our hands up and walk away with.

I think, you know, looking at at guys like Alex and and those working internationally, the, you know, heart cry and Paul Washer and all sorts of guys in this and the things that you hear, there are there are wonderful, amazing, miraculous things going on in in a lot of the world.

And I just I just hope that, you know, we can not let the the condition of the United States, which we've got a lot of missionary, you know, quote unquote missionary work to do to do here in the in the US.

But I hope that people, you know, get up every day and know that, you know, when we when we think things are as terrible as they are, what that that's not as much of a problem as as it is opportunities for us to share the gospel and to grow the kingdom.

Spurgeon's Salvation and Early Ministry Challenges

Well, we have to go to our first commercial break. Now, if you'd like to join the conversation with a question of your own about the early years of Charles Haddon Spurgeon, please send your questions to Chris Arnzen at Gmail dot com.

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So, go to royaldiadem .com today and mention Iron Sharpens Iron Radio. That's royaldiadem .com. We're now back with our guest today and my co-host. If you've just tuned us in today, my guest is Jared Payne, founder of A Pilgrim's Coffer, and my co-host today is Alex Wright, founder of Vessels for Christ.

We are discussing Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the early years that shaped The Prince of Preachers. And if you could, please, because it's such a fascinating story, Jared, tell our listeners, even though I've told this story myself on this program, tell our listeners about Charles Haddon Spurgeon's salvation as a teenager.

Yeah, so that happened, I believe it was 1850. There's a couple books out there, old books, that talk about the disputes of the dates. But it was during a snowstorm. His family was congregational. And in a snowstorm, he stopped in partway as he was heading to church into a little Methodist church, and there was a pastor who another somewhat disputed discussion, but that it was kind of one of the Methodist circuit pastors, for lack of a better term, that would go around.

And would also fill in, but would work through churches in that part of eastern UK, out there where Kelvingdon and the little towns were. And he his name was Robert Eaglin, is who some of the Danzy Sheen was a was one of the students that was in the pastor's college, and he was actually a Methodist.

So it was he was one of the very few that came through that one of the few notable that wasn't a Credo Baptist. And but he actually did some labors to go back and try to find out who that was, and they he nailed it down completely to a pastor named Robert Eaglin.

And the story goes that it was just a very, very simple sermon on look to Christ and live out of Isaiah, and Spurgeon just said that he felt the Spirit of the Lord come over him there, that he had been was born again.

He, of course, came from a very devout family. His father was a pastor. His grandfather was a pastor. But if you go through his autobiography or even many of the other biographies out there, great biographies, that you'll see how he talks about wrestling with his wrestling with his faith.

And ultimately his salvation to the point where he didn't believe that he was saved, and that is the pivotal moment that he said just really, really gave him a true belief in his salvation, that Christ had died for him.

And so just so much fascinating information. It makes it a little bit fun to dig through because everything wasn't as well documented as things are today. So you get to if you get into digging deep into Spurgeon material, you do get into a lot of different topics and discussions about what facts were.

So it's interesting. I won't go down too many rabbit holes on that. Not that again, not that I'm the foremost expert on this stuff, but there's a lot of interesting things. I think they even mentioned like with the pastor Robert Eaglin, who they're pretty sure that that's undoubtedly who it was, Spurgeon in later years when they brought it up to him said, no, I think I would have no, I think I think they showed him a picture of him maybe and he said, no, I don't think I'll know him until I see him in heaven.

And so Spurgeon never mentioned his name, didn't know, didn't ever go back, but it's fascinating stuff to go through. Spurgeon is just his entire life is an obvious series of providential events and uses in his life.

And so it's really interesting to go back and try to frame him in his day and try to understand some things about him that I think sometimes we have a we have more of a modern view of him. Because of our affinity and our what we do know of him, there's we don't think of him maybe in the way that his peers and fellow Londoners and so on and so forth viewed him, especially out of the gate.