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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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Thomas Brooks emphasizes that Christians are called to imitate Christ's moral actions, using His life as a model for virtue. He outlines that to walk as Christ walked involves humility, holiness, justice, meekness, love, fruitfulness, faithfulness, and uprightness. Brooks encourages believers to rise above worldly concerns and to respond to hatred and persecution with love and prayer, embodying patience and submission in the face of adversity. Ultimately, he reminds us that Christ left us an example to follow in His steps.
You Should Follow in His Steps
"He who says he abides in Him, ought himself also to walk even as He walked." 1 John 2:6 Christians are to set all Christ's moral actions before them as a pattern for their imitation. In Christ's life, a Christian may behold the picture or lineaments of all virtues—and accordingly he ought to order his life in this world. To walk as Christ walked is to walk . . . humbly, holily, justly, meekly, lovingly, fruitfully, faithfully, uprightly. To walk as Christ walked is to . . . slight the world, despise the world, make a footstool of the world, to live above the world, and to triumph over the world as Christ did. To walk as Christ walked is . . . to love those who hate us, to pray for those who persecute us, to bless those who curse us, and to do good to those who do evil to us. To walk as Christ walked is to be patient, and silent, and submissive, and thankful, under the vilest reproaches, the heaviest afflictions, and the greatest sufferings. "Leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps." 1 Peter 2:21
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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.