Sermons & Devotionals by William Bacon Stevens

The Almost Christian! William Bacon Stevens "Then Agrippa said to Paul: You almost persuade me to become a Christian!" There was in the character of Paul, a moral sublimity far excelling the loftiest of mere earthly heroes. In both phases of his life, as a persecuting Pharisee, and as a Christian ap... Read More

Sins of the Tongue William Bacon Stevens "When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Lik... Read More

Refuge, Refreshment, and Rest in Christ! by William Bacon Stevens "And a man shall be . . . as a hiding place from the wind; and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place; as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Isaiah 32:2 In this language, peculiar to oriental countries,... Read More

Parental Responsibility by William Bacon Stevens "Let me not see the death of the child!" Genesis 21:16 Thus spoke an Egyptian mother in the day of her hopeless sorrow. Moved by the jealousy of Sarah, and directed also by the Lord; Abraham, on the complaint of his wife that Ishmael, the son of Hagar... Read More

Waiting and Watching! William Bacon Stevens "Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks--they can immediately open the door for him." Luke 12:35-36 "What good is it, my brothers, if a ... Read More

Songs in the Night Season William Bacon Stevens, 1856 "Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night?" Job 35:10 The night is proverbially a time of festivity and song. The cares and business of the day are then over; the taxed mind and the wearied muscles seek relaxation; the stillness of the... Read More

Man's Universal Epitaph: "And he died!" William Bacon Stevens "And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years — and he died." Genesis 5:27 The book of Genesis is the only one that takes us back to the morning of the world's creation. Others begin with the origin of various tri... Read More

Opportunities Lost; Opportunities Improved William Bacon Stevens "Woe unto us! The daylight is fading, and the shadows of evening grow long!" Jeremiah 6:4 "But they urged him strongly: Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over!" Luke 24:29 I have put these two texts together bec... Read More

The Stones of the Heavenly Temple Prepared on Earth William Bacon Stevens "In building the temple, only blocks dressed at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool was heard at the temple site while it was being built. 1 Kings 6:7 The Temple of Solomon was the noblest struct... Read More

The Rainbow; Or, Covenant Promises Seen Through Tears William Bacon Stevens "I set my rainbow in the cloud." Genesis 9:13 "And there was a rainbow round about the Throne." Revelation 4:3 We have joined together the two extremes of Holy Writ — yoked in one text, passages from Genesis and from Revelat... Read More

The Christian Leaning on Jesus' Bosom William Bacon Stevens "Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom, one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved." John 13:23 The Evangelists rarely speak of themselves by name. When recording events in which they were actors — they used some descriptive epithet or allusion... Read More

The Noontide Eclipse by William Bacon Stevens "In that day," declares the Sovereign LORD, "I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight!" Amos 8:9 The sudden shutting out of sunlight by an eclipsing moon, is a solemn and impressive scene. The face of nature wears, at su... Read More

The Setting Sun by William Bacon Stevens "The daylight is fading, and the shadows of evening grow long." Jeremiah 6:4 There is something at once grand and solemn in a setting sun. It is the sinking to rest of the great king of day ; the withdrawing from the busy world, the light that has called out ... Read More

The Law of Spiritual Growth William Bacon Stevens "Exercise yourself unto godliness." 1 Timothy 4:7 In the text Paul sets before us a great aim --godliness; the means by which it can be obtained, by exercise; and our personal duty to strive for it, by the exhortation, "Exercise yourself unto godline... Read More

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made! Delivered before the Medical Students of the several Colleges of Philadelphia, on December 6th, 1857, by William Bacon Stevens. "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made! Your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Psalm 139:14 "Your hands shaped... Read More

The Loveliness of Christ! William Bacon Stevens "Yes, He is altogether lovely! This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend!" Song of Songs 5:16 Excellence, either mental, moral or physical — will always command attention. We are so constituted as to admire, almost instinctively, whatever is virtuous, ... Read More

Jesus Christ and Him Crucified! A sermon, preached by William Bacon Stevens in Philadelphia, October 11, 1865, on the occasion of the ordination of Charles Quintard "When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I r... Read More

Love is of God! William Bacon Stevens "Love is of God." 1 John 4:7 No writer gives us such lofty ideas of love as John. His First General Epistle is an epitome of the whole philosophy of love, human and divine; and all that subsequent authors have done has been to amplify and interpret the principle... Read More

The Missionary Woman by William Bacon Stevens "Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?' They came out of the town and made their way toward him." John 4:28-30 In the interesting... Read More

Causes of Unanswered Prayers by William Bacon Stevens "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." James 4:3 The question is often asked, "Why are not my prayers answered? And why, if granted, are the answers so often appa... Read More