"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the
forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of
God's grace." Ephesians 1:7
O Lord! when I look upon my manifold weaknesses
and imperfections—I am many times not only grieved,
but also staggered! But when I look up to the covenant
of redemption—I am cheered, raised, and quieted!
What though my sins have been great and heinous—yet
they are not greater than Christ's sacrifice! He bore the
curse for great sins as well as small sins; for sins against
the gospel as well as for sins against the law; for sinful
omissions as well as for sinful commissions. The covenant
of redemption is so mighty—that none of my mighty sins
can stand before it!
If we look upon Manasseh, in those black and ugly colors
which the Holy Spirit paints him out in, (1 Kings 21:1-16;)
we must conclude that he was a mighty sinner, a monstrous
sinner! And yet his mighty sins, his monstrous sins—could
not stand before the covenant of redemption!
The greatest sins are finite—but the merit of Christ's
redemption is infinite. Though my debts are so many as
cannot be tallied—yet Christ has paid them all. Woe had
been to me forever—had Christ left but one penny upon
the record for me to pay! As I have multiplied my sins,
so He has multiplied His pardons!
All the Egyptians were drowned in the Red Sea—the high
and the low, the great and the small, the rich and the poor,
the honorable and the base—were all drowned. Just so, the
red sea of Christ's blood drowns all our sins—whether they
are great or small, high or low, etc., Though my sins are as
scarlet—my Redeemer will make them as white as snow!
Though they are as red as crimson, they shall be white as
wool! There is not one of my sins, for which Jesus Christ
has not suffered, and made atonement for, and purchased
pardon for! Though my sins are innumerable, though they
are more than the hairs of my head, or the sands on the
sea-shore, yet they are not to be named in comparison
with the merits of Christ, and the atoning sacrifice of Christ.
Be my sins ever so many; yes, though they might fill a scroll
which reaches from east to west, from north to south, from
earth to heaven—yet they could not bring me under the curse!
"For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and
brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom
we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Col. 1:13-14
"The cross of Christ is the golden key which opens paradise
to us!" All Christ's sufferings, were for His people. Oh, the
endless and matchless love of Christ!
O blessed Jesus, what manner of love is this—that You should
wash away my scarlet sins in Your own blood! That You should
die—that I may live! That You should be cursed—that I might
be blessed! That You should undergo the pains of hell—that I
might enjoy the joys of heaven! That the face of God should
be clouded from You—that His everlasting favor might rest upon
me! That You should be an everlasting screen between the wrath
of God and my immortal soul! That You should suffer for me
beyond all expression, and beyond all conception; and gloriously
provide for me beyond all expectation! What shall I say, what
can I say to all this—but fall down before Your grace, and spend
my days in wondering at that matchless, bottomless love, which
can never be fathomed by angels or men!
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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.