THE ARMY OF GOD:
Spurgeon’s Vision for the Church
By Geoffrey Chang
Christian Focus. 353 pages. £14.99
ISBN 978 1 527 108 738
This book is a labour of love by one of the leading Spurgeon scholars of our time. The volume is scholarly, substantial, well footnoted and documented, but thoroughly readable and totally engaging. It is part of a series entitled ‘Spurgeon’s Legacy’.
Its aim is to set out Spurgeon’s doctrine/understanding of the church (universal and local) and, for me, succeeds admirably. In exploring any single subject area of Spurgeon’s thought, much trawling and weighing must be done! The sources utilised, both primary and secondary, are extensive and authoritative and skilfully used. In all this Spurgeon is given ample opportunity to speak for himself.
It covers the decline of a healthy ecclesiology and the threat to the church in Spurgeon’s time (19th century). It examines the roots of Spurgeon’s own understanding of the doctrine of the church – from the basic question of ‘what is the church?’ to the outworking of ‘the regulative principle’ – church practice directed by what Scripture commands, and his commitment to ‘a regenerate church membership’.
There is a stimulating chapter on ‘Elder and Deacon-Led Congregationalism’. The final two chapters deal with ‘The Church Militant’ and ‘The Army at War’ which encapsulate the dominant theme of the book. Each chapter has a clear and helpful conclusion and summary. Spurgeon’s self-confessed position as that of a ‘modified form of Episcopalian Presbyterian Independency’ could surely stimulate lively and useful discussion on church life and leadership! There are three ways in which this book serves us and is invaluable. 1. For those interested in Spurgeon’s life and ministry it is a must. It contains many fresh insights into this great 19th-century Christian leader and his conflicts. It will probably do for our time what I.H. Murray’s The Forgotten Spurgeon did for the 1970s (and for me personally). 2. For Baptist pastors and elders, it will inform, sharpen, and energise their ecclesiology, and has the potential to enrich important aspects of church life. For any Christian seeking to understand the Bible’s teaching on the church, membership and how live it out, it will be instructive and challenging. 3. For all it is both a reminder of the church’s battle in being faithful to the Lord, His people, and the gospel. Even when Spurgeon is provocative and dogmatic he is always Christ-centred, passionate, stirring and informing.
