"If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross and follow Me." Matthew 16:24
Let the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ, work us into
a gracious willingness to embrace sufferings for His sake,
and cheerfully and resolutely to take up His cross and
follow Him. Did Christ suffer—who knew no sin; and shall
we think it strange to suffer—who know nothing but sin?
Shall He lie sweltering under His Father's wrath—and shall
we cry out under men's anger? Was He crowned with thorns
—and must we be crowned with rose-buds? Was His whole
life, from the cradle to the cross, made up of nothing but
sorrows and sufferings—and must our lives, from the cradle
to the grave, be filled up with nothing but pleasures and
delights?
Was He despised—and must we be admired?
Was He debased—and must we be exalted?
Was He poor—and must we be rich?
Was He low—and must we be high?
Did He drink of a bitter cup, a bloody cup—
and must we have only cups of consolation?
Let us not think anything too much to do for Christ,
nor anything too great to suffer for Christ, nor anything
too dear to part with for such a Christ, such a Savior—
who thought nothing too much to do, or too grievous
to suffer—so that He might accomplish the work of our
redemption. He left heaven for us—and shall not we
let go this world for Him? He left his Father's bosom for
us—and shall not we leave the bosoms of our dearest
relations for him? He underwent all sorts of sufferings
for us—let us as readily encounter with all sorts of
sufferings for Him.
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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.