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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 that when God removes our earthly possessions and comforts, He compensates us with greater spiritual blessings. The sermon illustrates that losing temporal goods can lead to gaining more of God's presence, grace, and eternal rewards. Brooks encourages believers to view these losses as divine exchanges, where the temporary is replaced with the eternal, ultimately leading to greater spiritual wealth. He reassures that no loss in this life can compare to the richness of a relationship with God and the peace that comes from it.
Scriptures
When God Takes Away Your Carnals
One support to bear up the hearts of the people of God under the recent fiery dispensation, is this—That the Lord will certainly, one way or another, make up all their losses to them. Sometimes God makes up His people's outward losses by giving them . . . more of Himself, more of His Son, more of His Spirit, more of His favor, more of His grace. When God takes away your carnals, and gives you more spirituals; when God takes away your temporals, and gives you more eternals—your outward losses are made up to you. When God takes away a Christian's estate in this world, he looks for a better and enduring estate in heaven. If men should . . . take away your old clothes, and give you new clothes; take away your rags, and give you robes; take away your chaff, and give you wheat; take away your water, and give you wine; take away your tin, and give you silver; take away your brass, and give you gold; take away your pebbles, and give you pearls; take away your cottages, and give you royal palaces —certainly you would have no cause to complain! If God takes away your houses, your goods, your trades, your honors—and gives you more of himself, and more grace—He does you no injury. It is an excellent exchange, to get eternals for temporals. If God takes away your earthly riches, and makes you more . . . rich in grace, rich in spiritual comforts, rich in holy experiences, rich in divine enjoyments, then you are no losers—but great gainers! What are all the necessary comforts of this life, compared to union and communion with God, to a saving interest in Christ, to pardon of sin, to peace of conscience, and to that loving-kindness which is better than life?
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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.