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Thomas Brooks
Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680). English Puritan preacher and author born in Glastonbury, Somerset. Likely educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, he entered ministry during the English Civil War, possibly serving as a chaplain in the Parliamentary navy. By 1648, he preached in London, becoming rector of St. Margaret’s, New Fish Street, in 1652, where he ministered through the Great Plague and Great Fire of 1666. A nonconformist, he was ejected in 1662 under the Act of Uniformity but continued preaching privately. Brooks wrote over a dozen works, including Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices (1652) and The Mute Christian Under the Rod, blending practical theology with vivid illustrations. Known for his warm, accessible style, he influenced Puritan spirituality, emphasizing repentance and divine sovereignty. Married twice—first to Martha Burgess in 1640, with whom he had four sons, then to Patience Cartwright—he faced personal loss but remained steadfast. His sermons drew crowds, and his books, reprinted centuries later, shaped Reformed thought. Brooks’ legacy endures through digital archives and reprints for modern readers.
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Sermon Summary
Thomas Brooks emphasizes the importance of trusting God for even the smallest needs, arguing that if God has given us great gifts like salvation and His Son, we should have faith that He will also provide for our lesser needs. He challenges believers to reflect on the abundance they have received and to not let fear or doubt hinder their trust in God's provision for daily necessities. Brooks encourages Christians to reason through their fears and recognize that the same God who has blessed them spiritually will not withhold what they need physically.
Will You Not Trust Him for a Crumb?
Believers should trust and lean upon God for lesser gifts. Has God given you a crown—and will you not trust Him for a crumb? Has He given you a house which has "foundations, whose builder and maker is God?" Has He given you "a kingdom which cannot be shaken?" And will you not trust Him for a cottage, for a little room in this world? Has He given you Himself, His Son, His Spirit, His grace—and will you not trust Him to give you bread, and friends, and clothes, and other necessary mercies which He knows you need? Has He given you the greater—and will deny you for the lesser? Surely not! Will you trust that man for much—who has given you but a little? And will you not trust that God for a little—who has given you much? Will you not trust Him for pence—who has given you pounds? O sirs! has the Lord given you Himself, the best of favors—and will not you trust Him for the least favors? Has He given you pearls—and will not you trust Him for pins? Does not the apostle argue sweetly in Romans 8:32, "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?" What! says the apostle, has God given us His Son, His only Son, His bosom Son, His beloved Son, the Son of His joy, the Son of His delights? Oh how can He then but cast in all other things into the bargain—such as wrapping paper and packing thread? Oh! that Christians would learn to reason themselves out of their fears, and out of their distrusts—as the apostle does. Oh! that Christians would no longer rend and rack their precious souls with fears and cares, but rest satisfied in this—that He who has been so kind to them in spirituals, will not be lacking to them in temporals.
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Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680). English Puritan preacher and author born in Glastonbury, Somerset. Likely educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, he entered ministry during the English Civil War, possibly serving as a chaplain in the Parliamentary navy. By 1648, he preached in London, becoming rector of St. Margaret’s, New Fish Street, in 1652, where he ministered through the Great Plague and Great Fire of 1666. A nonconformist, he was ejected in 1662 under the Act of Uniformity but continued preaching privately. Brooks wrote over a dozen works, including Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices (1652) and The Mute Christian Under the Rod, blending practical theology with vivid illustrations. Known for his warm, accessible style, he influenced Puritan spirituality, emphasizing repentance and divine sovereignty. Married twice—first to Martha Burgess in 1640, with whom he had four sons, then to Patience Cartwright—he faced personal loss but remained steadfast. His sermons drew crowds, and his books, reprinted centuries later, shaped Reformed thought. Brooks’ legacy endures through digital archives and reprints for modern readers.