Heaven on earth by Thomas Brooks (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapter 7 (Containing answers to several special questions about assurance).
The first question is how do we strengthen our assurance. Brooks suggests:
(i) be serious and diligent in the use of the means and ways wherein you first gained assurance;
(ii) dwell much upon your spiritual and eternal privileges;
(iii) look that your hearts run more out to Christ than to assurance;
(iv) look that your hearts are more taken up with Christ than with your graces;
(v) labour to improve it to the strengthening of you against temptations;
(vi) walk humbly with your God;
(vii) take heed and watch against those very particular sins by which other saints have lost their assurance;
(viii) consider the wonderful difficulty of recovering assurance when it is lost;
(ix) consider the evils that will certainly follow upon loss of your assurance.
The second question is how to support those souls that have lost assurance. Brooks suggests that they should remember that:
(i) they have not lost their sonship;
(ii) they have eternal happiness and blessedness;
(iii) it is a recoverable loss;
(iv) the noblest and choicest saints have sustained the same loss;
(v) they have the blessed breathings and sweet influences of the Spirit;
(vi) they shall soon be with God.
The third question is about what means souls should use to recover assurance. The answer is to:
(i) find out that sin that has robbed you of assurance;
(ii) mourn much over that sin;
(iii) sit not down discouraged, but be up and doing;
(iv) wait patiently upon the Lord;
(v) take heed of refusing comforts of God.
Then to close the book Brooks gives us some uses for those that have assurance:
(i) be thankful for it;
(ii) do not envy the happiness of the men of the world;
(iii) give no way to slavish fears;
(iv) question God's love no more;
(v) live holily.
I liked Brooks' counsel to not sit down depressed about a lack of assurance: ' If you would recover assurance, then sit not down discouraged, but be up and doing. Remember what a pearl of price thou hast lost, and 'repent and do thy first works,' Rev. ii. 4, 5. Fall close to the good old work of believing, meditating, examining, praying, hearing, mourning, &c. Begin the world again, and set afresh upon those very ways by which at first thou didst get assurance ; fall upon family duties, apply thyself to public ordinances, be much in closet services ; stir up every gift that is in thee, stir up every grace that is in thee, stir up all the life that is in thee, and never leave blowing till thou hast blowed thy little spark into a flame ; never leave turning thy penny, till thou hast turned thy penny into a pound; never leave improving thy mite, till thy mite be turned into a million. God will be found in the use of means, and he will restore our lost mercies in the use of means, Ps. xxii. 26.'
Wallowing in your misery is not helpful. If you are concerned about your assurance get busy and do the things Brooks advises.
One sentence final verdict
If you want to be assured that you are a child of God and eternally secure in his love, then Brooks provides wise counsel on how to seek such wonderful assurance.
Next week's reading
Commence Glory of Christ by John Owen (Available from Amazon or free here) by reading the 'Prefatory note' and 'Preface to the reader'.
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
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