"Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the
hope that God will grant them repentance leading
them to a knowledge of the truth." 2 Timothy 2:25
Repentance is a turning from sin (the most darling sin)
to God. It is mighty work, a difficult work; a work which
is above our power. There is no power below that power
which raised Christ from the dead, and which made the
world—which can break the heart of a sinner, or turn
the heart of a sinner!
You are as well able to melt adamant—as to melt your
own heart! You are as well able to turn a flint into flesh
—as to turn your own heart to the Lord! You are as well
able to raise the dead and to make a world—as to repent!
Repentance is a flower which does not grow in
nature's garden!
"Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its
spots? Neither can you do good, who are accustomed
to doing evil." Jeremiah 13:23
Repentance is a gift that comes down from above.
Men are not born with repentance in their hearts, as
they are born with tongues in their mouths! It is not
in the power of any mortal to repent at pleasure.
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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.