Spurgeon's: 'Not tragedy, but consequence'

“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10v12).

Spurgeon’s College has announced its closure - and though the building may be sold or left to crumble, the foundation was long abandoned.

Let us be clear: this is not the falling of a faithful house, but the collapsing of a structure that departed from its God a long time ago. The college that once bore the name of Charles Haddon Spurgeon no longer bore his convictions.

Not even appointing Rick Warren - a man known more for compromise than conviction, more for pragmatism than preaching - could rescue this sinking ship. That such a figure was invited to steady the helm only confirmed how far the vessel had drifted from the port of truth. Spurgeon would have called it betrayal.

Were Spurgeon alive today, he would have shut its doors with tears - not for the loss of brick and mortar, but for the truth long traded for modern fables. The very man who thundered against compromise in the Downgrade Controversy would have found no pulpit, no platform, no peace within its halls. This is not tragedy - it is consequence.

In recent decades, Spurgeon’s College has trained and promoted men who have brought grievous harm to the church of Christ. One of the most well-known is Steve Chalke, a man who has openly denied the Biblical doctrine of penal substitution - calling the atonement of Christ “cosmic child abuse” - and embraced the so-called “affirmation” of same-sex relationships within the church, trampling underfoot the plain Word of God. These are not minor errors; they strike at the heart of the gospel. Chalke is not alone. The College has produced and platformed many who twist the Scriptures to suit itching ears.

The blood of countless souls is upon their hands. When men preach a false gospel and deny the cross, they do not merely mislead - they destroy. And God will require it.

Yet, brethren, we must not gloat over their fall. The Bible calls us to expose error (Ephesians 5v11), but never to rejoice in the ruin of others. If anything, such a collapse should drive us to our knees. Even the most historic institutions, even those built on strong foundations, may fall if they forget to build with faithfulness, prayer, and humility.

The Lord is no respecter of names or legacies. If pride and compromise take root, the fall will surely come. We too are prone to wander. Pride and self-confidence are dangerous companions. The church must not only contend for truth - it must live it.

We rightly grieve the state of the church, but do we grieve our own coldness, our prayerlessness, our lack of zeal for the lost? Sound doctrine is vital - but doctrine without devotion becomes dry, dead orthodoxy. There is much talk of reformation, but where is the brokenness?

This closure is a trumpet-call to take a godly, separated stand. Let churches, pastors, and parents resist the tide of compromise. Let us build again on the old foundation - the infallible Word, the sovereign Christ, the free gospel, the holy life. Let us warn, yes - but let us also weep, repent, and seek the Lord for revival.

God has not changed. Christ is still building His church. Revival is still possible. But it will not come to the proud. It will come to the poor in spirit - those who tremble at His Word.

Spurgeon once said, “Fellowship with known and vital error is participation in sin.” Bishop Ryle warned, “No truth of Scripture is of more practical importance than that of separation from the world.” These men spoke as watchmen - let us not be found sleeping at our posts.

Truth will outlive its betrayers. But let us not be numbered among them.

“Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?” (Psalm 85v6)
“Be ye not unequally yoked... come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6v14, 17).

This article was originally published by Pooyan Mehrshahi on Substack, and can be viewed here.