Did you ever hear the legend of the man whose garden produced nothing but weeds?

Spurgeon addresses the Panic of 1857 that ravaged England and other nations. This is a New Year's message, 1858. Spurgeon attempts to comfort those who have suffered great losses over the year.

This sermon was first delivered on a Thursday evening in the March of the previous year, and then repurposed for reading on the first Lord's day of the year 1890. It is a delight to think that Spurgeon would preach something so sweet and substantial at an ordinary midweek service, and no surprise to find such a topic so well suited to the opening of a year. Here he develops the sermon with us, moving us on from point to point, thinking about the wonder of man blessing the God who blesses, the spirit in which we go about that happy work, the God whom we bless—that Jehovah who has made himself known to us in mercy—, and the self-awareness that we ought to exercise, as we address ourselves in the face of all discouragements within and without, to go on blessing the God of our salvation. Here is a preacher marked by simplicity of speech, plainness of address, and warmth of tone. Here we are stirred not just to think about what it means to bless the Lord, but to get involved with the business, and to get on with it, that the Lord shall not lack a witness to his majesty and mercy from us.

We highly suggest that you READ the TEXT at the link below, as you listen to the audio above. https://gracegems.org/2026/how_blind_must_they_be_who_think.htm Feel free to FORWARD this gem to others!

We highly suggest that you READ the TEXT at the link below, as you listen to the audio above. https://gracegems.org/2026/legend_of_garden_produced_nothin.htm Feel free to FORWARD this gem to others!

Welcome to today's episode, dedicated to every father who carries the heavy burden of looking back on his parenting with regret or feeling crushed by his own daily shortcomings. Throughout our discussion, we turned to the rich pastoral wisdom of 19th-century pastors like C. H. Spurgeon, J. C. Ryle, R. L. Dabney, and J. G. Pike, who remind us that God's covenant of grace was never made with flawless, angel-like parents, but with weak, redeemed sinners who lean entirely on Christ. We explored how no father is a total failure when he turns his regret into earnest prayer, knowing that God is not limited by our flawed efforts or broken threads, nor is His clock bound by our timeline. Whether through establishing a simple, 10-minute family altar, modeling genuine repentance by asking your children for forgiveness, or persistently pleading God's covenant promises for a wayward child, true fatherhood is not about perfection—it is about daily resting in God's endless mercy and trusting that His grace is always greater than our stumblings.

Spurgeon asks the heart-rending question which everyone must ultimately answer.

While Spurgeon is probably typecast as a classic three-pointer, his sermons actually show quite a variety in structure. This is a simple two-headed sermon, reflected in the title itself. How can peace be gained? How can peace be broken? Under the first heading, Spurgeon insists that true peace, the only peace worth having, is God's own gift, spoken to his people who are holy. He celebrates the certainty of it and explores something of the beauty of it. Then he comes down from the heights and considers the loss of our peace. Here the preacher shows himself the pastor. The text emphasises that we can lose our peace by turning back to folly, and while that is a proper consideration, Spurgeon takes a few moments to consider some of the other ways in which peace can be lost, not all of them through the sins and failings of true believers. His intention is not to offer us excuses, but not to lay the wrong burden on the wrong heart. The ground cleared, he asks very bluntly about the kinds of sins which lurk in our souls, and which can be the reason why we lose the peace which the Lord speaks. The probing is painful, the speech being plain, and a sensitive heart will find good reason to lament its own folly. Spurgeon concludes with exhortation, giving us a brief barrage of reasons to turn our backs upon folly once and for all, and not to go back to the paths which, because of grace, we have left.

We highly suggest that you READ the TEXT at the link below, as you listen to the audio above. https://gracegems.org/2026/ Feel free to FORWARD this gem to others!