21 But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; Romans 3:21-26 (NASB) Read verses 25-26 on the site.
The passage above (Romans 3:21-26) is loaded with doctrinal truth. I could write a paper just on Romans 3 and it would probably take me quite some time to get all the cross-references tied in and all the explanations set just right so those who read it would be edified….
However, just reading these Holy Spirit inspired words, ῥήματα (rhēmata), should cause us to reflect on the incredible work of salvation God has done in us for none of us deserve it (v23) nor did we do anything to attain it (v24) except believe by faith that it was a gift from God according to Ephesians 2:8-9:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB)
Spurgeon fully understood this, which was one of the reasons his ministry was so powerful. It wasn’t him or his knowledge or abilities that did that, no, it was the working of the Holy Spirit through Him as he proclaimed God’s very rhēmata to those God brought to hear him. This is something that is missing on a large scale in so many churches in our time which means even if there are scores of people in those churches listening to what is being preached that are not being fed God’s rhēmata.
In the following devotional from Spurgeon’s Morning by Morning for September 25 we see the depth of Bible knowledge he had that he was passing that on to all who heard him preach and read his books and devotionals.