Fast-Day Service

This sermon was delivered on a national day of fasting called in response to the Indian Mutiny of 1857, where Spurgeon preached from Micah 6:9 about "hearing the rod" that God had appointed as judgment. He argues that while he doesn't believe every accident is divine punishment, nations do experience God's judgments for their sins, and the brutal violence and rebellion in India was such a rod from God meant to wake England up to repent of its many sins—including the government's toleration of Hindu practices involving immorality, the oppression of poor workers by wealthy factory owners, dishonest business practices, public prostitution in London streets, and the general spiritual apathy of churches and individuals. Spurgeon calls the nation to genuine repentance rather than empty rituals, warns that people will likely forget God's discipline as soon as the crisis passes (just as they did after previous cholera outbreaks), and urges his listeners to truly turn to Christ for salvation while encouraging them to give generously to help the victims of the violence in India.Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on October 7th, 1857.