Encounter with Spurgeon
by Helmut Thielicke, translated by John W. Doberstein
The German theologian Helmut Thielicke comes to terms with the inheritance of the leading 19th-century preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon, and brings together a collection of the latter’s most important lectures and sermons.
In his introductory essay to this selection from the writing and preaching of C.H. Spurgeon, Helmut Thielicke – himself among the best preachers of the twentieth century – expresses his surprise and delight at his discovery of the great Victorian preacher. He draws out those qualities which made Spurgeon one of the most influential ministers of his day, and explains what it was that attracted him to the self-educated Baptist preacher. They share a recognition of the urgency of their message: ‘We stand in need of the simple way in which Spurgeon dares to say that what really and ultimately counts is to save sinners.’ Warmth, immediacy and directness are Spurgeon’s hallmarks; qualities which Thielicke’s own remarkable sermons share but whichhe felt much preaching of his day lacked. It is still a convincing testament to Spurgeon’s continuing vitality and relevance that Thielicke, one of the greatest modern preachers, should say, ‘Sell all that you have … and buy Spurgeon.’ Originally translated by the American Lutheran theologian John W. Doberstein, this reprinted edition of Encounter with Spurgeon was published to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of Helmut Thielicke’s death.
Helmut Thielicke was one of the most outstanding preachers and theologians of the German Lutheran Church. Dismissed by the Nazi regime from his post of Professor of Theology at Heidelberg in 1940, he came to prominence in Stuttgart where, during the worst of the bombing raids and in spite of continuing Nazi opposition, he continued to preach to a congregation of several thousand each week. After the war, he joined the faculty of the University of Tubingen as a Professor of Systematic Theology, later becoming Rector at the University of Hamburg, the first Protestant theologian to hold this position. During this time, he also became a world traveller, lecturing and preaching in the United States, South Africa, Australia and Latin America. He died in Hamburg in 1986.
- By (author) Helmut Thielicke
- Edited by John W. Doberstein
"A reading of these lectures will humble the most accomplished preacher." English Churchman "I am inclined to think that Encounter with Spurgeon ... is one of the most significant books of the century." Life of Faith
—
Other Titles in this Series
Similar Books
‘For You I Study, For You I Work, For You I Live, For You I Am Ready To Even Give My Life’
Essays in Honour of Francis (Frank) J Moloney, SDB
A Connecting Polemic in the Medieval Mediterranean
The Correspondence of Leo III and ʿUmar II
Volume 6
Ars Prophetica
Theology in the Poetry of Twentieth-Century Hebrew Poets Avraham Halfi, Shin Shalom, Amir Gilboa, and T. Carmi
As Messianism Turns to Heresy
The Regenstein Chair Lectures On Lurianic Kabbalah and Shabbatai Tzevi at Hebrew Union College - Cincinnati
Creating the Woman in Antiquity
Proceedings of the 16th Melammu Workshop, Innsbruck, 2–3 June 2022
Volume 13
Cultic Kisses
Fruitful Encounters Between Deities and Humans. Festschrift for Angelika Berlejung on the Occasion of Her 65th Birthday
De/colonizing Theologies
Glocal Histories, Contemporary Challenges, Theoretical Reflections
Volume 4
Drunk the Potion, No Whit Charmed
The Doctrine of Pure and Perfect Souls from Iamblichus to Damascius
Extracanonical Traditions and the Holy Land
Texts, Rituals, and Material Culture in Late Antique Palestine
Fear, Fear of God, God-Fearers
Philological and Historical Perspectives on the World of Ancient Judaism and Christianity
Gender and Iconography in Antiquity
Femininities, Masculinities, Ambiguities, and Beyond in the Ancient Levant, Near East, and Mediterranean
Hoghe minne es deen vor dander
Essays on the Christian Mystical Tradition in Honour of Rob Faesen SJ
Volume 122
International Comparison and Transfer in Religious Education
The Projects “RE at Schools in Europe” and “International Knowledge Transfer” in Dialogue
Isaiah in the Fourth Gospel
Use of the Citations of Isaiah in John’s Gospel in Comparison to the Synoptics and Other Places in the New Testament