Christian! Your present afflictions are not great—if compared
with the afflictions and torments of many of the damned, who
when they were in this world, never sinned at so high a rate
as you have done! There are many now in hell, who never
sinned against such clear light as you have done, nor against
such special love as you have done, nor against such precious
mercies as you have done! Certainly there are many now
a-roaring in everlasting burnings, who never sinned as you
have done!
What are your afflictions, your present torments—compared
to the torments of the damned, whose torments are . . .
numberless,
bottomless,
remediless, and
endless!
Whose pains are without intermission of mitigation; who have:
weeping served for the first course, and
gnashing of teeth for the second course, and
the gnawing worm for the third course, and
intolerable pain for the fourth course!
Yet the pain of the body is least part of pain. The very soul of
sorrow and pain is the soul's sorrow and pain! The everlasting
alienation and separation from God is served for the fifth course!
Ah, Christian! how can you seriously think on these things and
not lay your hand upon your mouth—even when you are under
the greatest temporal sufferings? Your sins have been far greater
than many of those who are now in hell, and your 'great' afflictions
are but a flea-bite! compared to theirs! Therefore hush your
murmuring, and be silent before the Lord!
Be the first to react on this!
Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680)
Much of what is known about Thomas Brooks has been ascertained from his writings. Born, likely to well-to-do parents, in 1608, Brooks entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1625, where he was preceded by such men as Thomas Hooker, John Cotton, and Thomas Shepard. He was licensed as a preacher of the Gospel by 1640. Before that date, he appears to have spent a number of years at sea, probably as a chaplain with the fleet.After the conclusion of the First English Civil War, Thomas Brooks became minister at Thomas Apostle's, London, and was sufficiently renowned to be chosen as preacher before the House of Commons on December 26, 1648. His sermon was afterwards published under the title, 'God's Delight in the Progress of the Upright', the text being Psalm 44:18: 'Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from Thy way'. Three or four years afterwards, he transferred to St. Margaret's, Fish-street Hill, London. In 1662, he fell victim to the notorious Act of Uniformity, but he appears to have remained in his parish and to have preached as opportunity arose. Treatises continued to flow from his pen.[3]
Thomas Brooks was a nonconformist preacher. Born into a Puritan family, he was sent to Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He soon became an advocate of the Congregational way and served as a chaplain in the Civil War. In 1648 he accepted the rectory of St. Margaret's, New Fish Street, London, but only after making his Congregational principles clear to the vestry.
On several occasions he preached before Parliament. He was ejected in 1660 and remained in London as a Nonconformist preacher. Government spies reported that he preached at Tower Wharf and in Moorfields. During the Great Plague and Great Fire he worked in London, and in 1672 was granted a license to preach in Lime Street. He wrote over a dozen books, most of which are devotional in character. He was buried in Bunhill Fields.