The Spurgeon Series 1857 & 1858. Charles H. Spurgeon

for saints; and the second, a lesson of searching for all who are professors.

      4. I. First, here is A LESSON OF HUMILITY for all of you who have “tasted that the Lord is gracious.” “How is the vine tree better than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?”

      5. In looking upon all the various trees, we observe, that the vine is distinguished among them — so that, in the old parable of Jotham, the trees waited upon the vine tree, and said to it, “Come and reign over us.” But merely looking at the vine, without regard to its fruitfulness, we would not see any kingship in it over other trees. In size, form, beauty, or utility, it has not the slightest advantage. We can do nothing with the wood of the vine. “Shall wood be taken from it to do any work? or will men make a peg from it to hang a vessel on it?” It is a useless plant apart from its fruitfulness. We sometimes see it in beauty, trained up by the side of our walls, and in the east it might be seen in all its luxuriance, and great care is bestowed in its training; but leave the vine to itself and consider it apart from its fruitfulness, it is the most insignificant and despicable of all things that bear the name of trees. Now, beloved, this is for the humbling of God’s people. They are called God’s vine; but what are they by nature more than others? Others are as good as they; yes, some others are even greater and better than they are. They, by God’s goodness, have become fruitful, having been planted in a good soil; the Lord has trained them upon the walls of the sanctuary, and they bring forth fruit for his glory. But what are they without their God? What are they without the continual influence of the Spirit, begetting fruitfulness in them? Are they not the least among the sons of men, and the most to be despised of those that have been brought forth from women? Look upon this, believer.

      What was there in you to merit esteem,

      Or give the Creator delight?

      Yes, look upon yourself as you are now. Does your conscience not reproach you? Do your thousand wanderings not stand before you, and tell you that you are unworthy to be called his son? Does not the weakness of your mental power, the frailty of your moral power, your continual unbelief, and your perpetual backsliding from God, tell you that you are less than the least of all saints? And if he has made you anything, are you not by it taught that it is grace, free sovereign grace, which has made you to differ? Should any here, supposing themselves to be the children of God, imagine that there is some reason in them why they should have been chosen, let them know that as yet they are in the dark concerning the first principles of grace, and have not yet learned the gospel. If ever they had known the gospel, they would, on the other hand, confess that they were less than the least — the offscouring of all things — unworthy, ill-deserving, undeserving, and hell deserving, and ascribe it all to distinguishing grace, which has made them to differ; and to discriminating love which has chosen them out from the rest of the world. Great Christian, you would have been a great sinner if God had not made you to differ. Oh! you who are valiant for truth, you would have been as valiant for the devil if grace had not laid hold upon you. A seat in heaven shall one day be yours; but a chain in hell would have been yours if grace had not changed you. You can now sing about his love, but a licentious song might have been on your lips if grace had not washed you in the blood of Jesus. You are now sanctified; you are quickened, you are justified; but what would you have been tonight if it had not been for the interposition of the divine hand? There is not a crime you might not have committed; there is not a folly into which you might not have run. Even murder itself you might have committed if grace had not kept you. You shall be like the angels; but you would have been like the devil if you had not been changed by grace. Therefore, never be proud; all your garments you have from above; rags were your only inheritance. Do not be proud, though you have a large estate, a wide domain of grace; you have not one single thing to call your own, except your sin and misery. You are now wrapped in the golden righteousness of the Saviour, and accepted in the garments of the Beloved, but you would have been buried under the black mountain of sin, and clothed with the filthy rags of unrighteousness, if he had not changed you. And are you proud? Do you exalt yourself? Oh! strange mystery, that you, who have borrowed everything, should exalt yourself; that you, who have nothing of your own, but have still to draw upon grace, should be proud; a poor pensioner dependent upon the bounty of your Saviour, and yet proud; one who has a life which can only live by fresh streams of life from Jesus, and yet proud! Go, hang your pride upon the gallows, as high as Haman; hang it there to rot, and stand you beneath, and curse it to all eternity; for surely of all things most to be cursed and despised is the pride of a Christian. He of all men has ten thousand times more reason than any other to be humble, and walk lowly with his God, and kindly and humbly towards his fellow creatures. Let this then humble you, Christian, that the vine tree is nothing more than any other tree, except for the fruitfulness which God has given it.

      6. II. But now here comes A LESSON OF SEARCH. As the vine without its fruit is useless and worthless; so, too, the professor, without fruit, is useless and worthless; yes, he is the most useless thing in the wide world.

      7. Now, let us dwell upon this point. A fruitless profession. And while I am preaching on it, let the words go around to each one, and let the minister, and let his deacons, and let his hearers all try their hearts and search their innermost being, and see whether they have a fruitless profession.

      8. 1. First, a fruitless professor. How do we know him? what his character? Secondly, What is the reason he is fruitless? Thirdly, What is God’s estimation of him? He is good for nothing at all. And then, fourthly, What will be his end? He is to be burned with fire.

      9. First, Where are we to find fruitless professors? Everywhere, dear friends, everywhere — down here, up there, everywhere; in pulpits and in pews. False professors are to be found in every church. Let us leave other denominations alone, then. They are to be found in this church; they are to be found in this present gathering. To whatever denomination you may belong, there are some false and fruitless professors in it. How do you know that you may not belong to those who bring forth no fruit? There are fruitless professors to be found in every position of the church, and in every part of society. You may find the false professor among the rich; he has much wealth, and he is hailed with gladness by the church. God has given him much of this world’s goods; and therefore, the church, forgetful that God has chosen the poor gives him honour, and what does she get from him? She gets very little to help her. Her poor are still neglected, and her means not in the least recruited by his riches. Or if she gains a portion of his riches, yet she gets none of his prayers; nor is she in the least supported by his holy living, for he who has riches often lives in sin, and rolls in uncleanness; and then wears his profession as a uniform, by which to cover his guilt. Rich men have sometimes been false professors; and they are to be found among poor men too. Very many a poor man has entered into the church, and been cordially received. He has been poor, and they have thought it a good thing that poverty and grace should go together — that grace should cheer his hovel, and make his poverty stricken home a glad one. But then, this poor man has turned aside to follies, and has degraded himself with drunkenness, has sworn, and by unworthy conduct dishonoured his God; or, if not, he has been idle, and sat still, and been of little service to the church; and so he has been false and fruitless in his profession.

      10. False professors are to be found in the men that lead the vanguard of God’s army; the men who preach eloquently, whose opinion is law, who speak like prophets, and whose language seems to be inspired. They have brought forth the fruit of popularity, indeed, and the fruit of philanthropy too, but their heart has not been right with God, therefore, the fruit, good in itself, was not fruit to holiness; the moral benefit of their labours does not extend to everlasting life. They have not brought forth the fruits of the Spirit, seeing that they were not living branches of the living vine. Then there have been false professors in obscurity; modest people who have said nothing, and seldom been heard from; they have glided into their pews on the Sunday morning, taken their seats, gone out, and satisfied themselves that by their presence they had fulfilled a religious duty. They have been so silent, quiet, and retiring; lazy fellows, doing nothing. You may think that all the fruitless trees grow in the hedge outside of the garden. No they do not. There are some fruitless trees inside it,