Adversity, The Teacher

Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes. (Psalm 119.67, 71)

Jeremiah Burroughs, Moses His Choice, With His Eye Fixed Upon Heaven, p. 53:

They that are afflicted, do better understand Scripture, says Luther, but those who are secure in their prosperity, read them as a verse in Ovid.

Thomas Brooks, Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices, p. 90:

They that are in adversity, saith Luther, do best understand the Scriptures; but those that in prosperity, read them as a verse in Ovid.

Mary Rowlandson, British-born settler in colonial Massachusetts, was taken captive during the King Philip's War. Her account is told in the autobiogaphical The Narrative of the Captivity and the Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. During one period of her experience, the "Fifteenth Remove," she wrote about her hunger during the forced march, and takes note of how affliction enables us to take special note of the Scriptures.

And after I was thoroughly hungry, I was never again satisfied. For though sometimes it fell out, that I got enough, and did eat till I could eat no more, yet I was as unsatisfied as I was when I began. And now could I see that Scripture verified (there being many Scriptures which we do not take notice of, or understand till we are afflicted) "Thou shalt eat and not be satisfied" (Micah 6.14). Now might I see more than ever before, the miseries that sin hath brought upon us. Many times I should be ready to run against the heathen, but the Scripture would quiet me again, "Shall there be evil in a City and the Lord hath not done it?" (Amos 3.6). The Lord help me to make a right improvement of His word, and that I might learn that great lesson: "He hath showed thee (Oh Man) what is good, and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God? Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it" (Micah 6.8-9).

Noah's Dove

Thomas Shepard, The Sincere Convert (1641) in Works, Vol. 1, pp. 105-106:

Though thy good duties can not save thee, yet thy bad works will damn thee. Thou art, therefore, not to cast off the duties, but the resting in these duties. Thou art not to cast them away, but to cast them down at the feet of Jesus Christ, as they did their crowns, (Rev. iv. 10, 11,) saying, If there be any good or graces in these duties, it is thine, Lord; for it is the prince's favor that exalts a man, not his own gifts: they came from his good pleasure.

But thou wilt say, To what end should I perform duties, if I can not be saved by them?
...
First. To carry thee to the Lord Jesus, the only Saviour (Heb. vii.25.) He only is able to save (not duties) all that come unto God (that is, in the use of means) by him. Hear a sermon to carry thee to Jesus Christ; fast and pray, and get a full tide of affections in them to carry thee to the Lord Jesus Christ: that is, to get more love to him, more acquaintance with him, more union with him; so sorrow for thy sins that thou mayest be more fitted for Christ, that thou mayest prize Christ the more; use thy duties as Noah's dove did her wings, to carry thee to the ark of the Lord Jesus Christ, where only there is rest. If she had never used her wings, she had fallen into the waters; so, if thou shalt use no duties, but cast them off, thou art sure to perish. Or, as it is with a poor man that is to go over a great water for a treasure on the other side, though he can not fetch the boat, he calls for it; and, though there be no treasure in the boat, yet he useth the boat to carry him over to the treasure. So Christ is in heaven, and thou on earth; he doth come to thee, and thou canst not go to him; now call for a boat; though there is no grace, no good, no salvation, in a pithless duty, yet use it to carry thee over to the treasure -- the Lord Jesus Christ. When thou comest to hear, say, Have over Lord by this sermon; when thou comest to pray, say, Have over Lord by this prayer to a Saviour. But this is the misery of people. Like foolish lovers, when they are to woo for the lady, they fall in love with her handmaid that is only to lead them to her; so men fall in love with, and dote upon, their own duties, and rest contented with the naked performance of them, which are only handmaids to lead the soul unto the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thomas Goodwin, Christ Set Forth (1642) in Works, Vol. 4, pp. 13-14:

In the third place, Christ's person, and not barely the promises of forgiveness, is to be the object of faith. There are many poor souls humbled for their sin, and taken off from their bottom, who, like Noah's dove, fly over all the word of God, to spy out what they may set their foot upon, and eying therein many free and gracious promises, holding forth forgiveness of sins, and justification, they immediately close with them, and rest on them alone, not seeking for, or closing with Christ in those promises. Which is a common error among people; and is like as if Noah's dove should have rested upon the outside of the ark, and not come to Noah within the ark; where though she might find rest for a while, yet could she not ride out all storms, but must needs have perished there in the end.

Isaac Ambrose, The Practice of Sanctification (1650) in Prima, Media, & Ultima: the first, middle, and last things, in three treatises as found his Works, p. 84:

That duties may carry us to the Lord Jesus Christ: he alone is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, i.e., in the use of means. Hear a sermon, to carry thee to the Lord Jesus; fast and pray, and get a full tide of affections in them, to carry thee to Jesus Christ, i.e. to get more love of him, more acquaintance with him, more union in him, and communion with him: use thy duties as Noah's dove did her wings, carry thee to the ark of the Lord Jesus Christ where only there is rest: if she had never used her wings, she had fallen into the waters; and if she had not returned to the ark, she had found no rest. So, if thou shalt use no duties, but cast them all off, thou art sure to perish; and if they convey thee not to Christ, thou mayest lie down in sorrow.

Thomas Brooks, An Ark For All God's Noahs (1662) in Works, Vol. 2, p. 35:

A man that hath only the world for his portion, is like to Noah's dove out of the ark, that was in continual motion, but could find no resting place; but a man that hath God for his portion is like the dove, returning and resting in the ark.

Thomas Brooks, The Privy Key of Heaven (1665) in Works, Vol. 2, p. 253:

My fourth advice and counsel is, Take heed of resting upon closet duties, take heed of trusting in closet-duties. Noah's dove made use of her wings, but she did not trust in her wings, but in the ark; so you must make use of closet-duties, but you must not trust in your closet-duties, but in Jesus, of whom the ark was but a type.

Theatre in Dachau

Many years ago, I visited the infamous concentration camp at Dachau near Munich, Germany. It was a sight that is seared in my memory. Among the hellish places on earth, this camp stands out. Of around 200,000 prisoners, about 40,000 died during their internment. Within the Nazi system of concentration camps, KZ-Dachau was the primary camp dedicated to housing Christian prisoners, including around 3,000 clergy. This post concerns the story of one such prisoner, Hermanus Knoop, pastor of the Reformed (Gereformeerd) Church of Rotterdam-Delfshaven.

Knoop was among those within the Dutch Reformed Church who refused to compromise with the Nazi occupying authorities. After months of intimidation and threats, and hostility from those within the church who were willing to compromise with Nazi efforts to employ the church in its service, thereby removing the offense of the gospel from its message and advacing its own agenda, Knoop was arrested on November 19, 1941 in Rotterdam. After sentencing and transfers, Knoop was sent to KZ-Dachau where he stayed from April 25, 1942 to October 9, 1943. Amazingly, he was released and went on the resume his pastoral duties.

In his autobiographical memoir, Een Theater in Dachau (A Theatre in Dachau), he wrote of how hunger changes a man, how medical experiments were performed on him, how torture reaches the limits of endurance and somehow exceeds them, how godlessness reigned in that horrible dark place. The story is shocking, even to those who are acquainted distantly with the events that occurred there. But what is most wonderful to read, even to those who know the power of God in their lives personally, and how his light shines in the darkest of hearts, is Knoop's testimony to the grace of God which was at work in Dachau. Like the Apostle Paul, who was "made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men" (1 Cor. 4.9), the witness of Christ in that darkest of prison holes was made a spectacle, a theater, to the world, showing forth God's grace. Knoop was imprisoned for his faith in Christ, and though he spent a year and a half in a man-made hell, God did not leave him, but is greatly magnified in the story of his life.

Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. (Ps. 139.7-8)

He writes:

Indeed, in Dachau the God of all grace did wonders of grace by His Word and Spirit every day. Oh, it was indeed a dreadful time for me that I spent there, and yet it is not at all a hollow phrase when I say that I would for no amount of money have missed this time of my life, since it was so unspeakably rich in grace. I saw God there. The Lord was in this place. It was a house of God and a gate of heaven.

It is worth taking special note of the fact that Knoop, like the other prisoners, was not permitted to have access to a Bible during his time at Dachau. This forced him to rely upon the Scriptural passages and Psalms that he had memorized in times past. He wrote of the treasure that he was able to draw upon, having 'hid' the Word of God in his heart (Ps. 119.11). What a testimony to the value of Scriptural memorization.

Being deprived of my Bible was a heavy cross to bear. What riches of comfort I had received out of that Book during my stay in prison! It had been a fountain of strength to me! How the Holy Spirit had strengthened my faith by means of the Word! For there is, of course, no more restful living than in company with, and by the guidance of, the Word. Every day anew my hunger and thirst was to have my faith strengthened through the work of the Spirit by means of the Holy Gospel. But now I did not have a Bible anymore. How I missed it! Thus through this lack of the Bible, I was, as far as the Word of God was concerned, compelled to depend wholly on my memory. Never was I so glad that in my youth my parents had made me memorize so many passages, Psalms, songs, and hymns. I often grumbled about it at the time, of course. But now I experienced the blessing of it all.

The story of Hermanus Knoop in Dachau is a testimony to the truth told by Thomas Brooks (The Mute Christian Under the Smarting Rod) and Karl Bogatzky (Golden Treasury for the Children of God) that "Stars shine brightest in the darkest nights." As the cross represents both the worst, darkest depravity of men and the highest, deepest measure of God's grace, so Knoop's account of Dachau shows forth the worst suffering and the most wonderful grace of God.

Soon after he was first arrested, a poem was written about this prisoner of faith by Mrs. C.E.T. Luykenaar Francken-Schreuder. I record here the English version, translated by Roelof A. Janssen.

The Prisoner

He did not fear those who could kill the body,
Slowly murdering him in prison,
Or with a bullet, businesslike and quick;
He spoke that which Thou to him had bidden.

Now they have caught him in their cage.
But by singing prayer he frees his soul
Far above all hatred, mocking, and sympathy,
He flees to Thee, his highest goal.

They can bind -- but the Word stays free;
They can kill -- but the Saviour lives.
And with Him, freed of sin and ties,
Live those to whom He of His Spirit gives.

Thus grant all of us this comfort,
Which strengthens while mocked in loneliness.
For he who suffers for the sake of Christ,
Thou wilt preserve in eternal blessedness.

Favor of the Lord

In 1854, young Charles Spurgeon shared these lines from "Of Marriage," a poem from Martin Tupper's Proverbial Philosophy, with the woman who would become his wife, Susannah Thompson.

Seek a good wife from thy God, for she is the best gift of His providence;
Yet ask not in bold confidence that which He hath not promised;
Thou knowest not His good will: be thy prayer then submissive thereunto,
And leave thy petition to His mercy, assured that He will deal well with thee.
If thou art to have a wife of thy youth, she is now living on the Earth;
Therefore think of her, and pray for her weal.

Spurgeon indeed received favor from the Lord (Prov. 18.22). They married in 1856. After a honeymoon in Paris, Spurgeon years later wrote to his wife a line that seems like a gracious version of something out of Forget Paris.

Charles Ray, Mrs. C.H. Spurgeon, reports it thus:

A brief honeymoon of ten days was spent in Paris, and as Mrs. Spurgeon had often been to that city before and was a good French scholar, she acted as cicerone to her husband. Together they visited the various churches and palaces and museums, the lady finding a new interest in all these familiar places on account of “those loving eyes that now looked upon them” with her. Years afterwards during one of C. H. Spurgeon’s frequent visits to the French capital he wrote to his wife, “My heart flies to you as I remember my first visit to this city under your guidance. I love you now as then, only multiplied many times.”

Before they were married, Susannah began to help her future husband by, under his direction, collecting wisdom from the works of Thomas Brooks. This project resulted in great fruition as a book published later and entitled Smooth Stones From Ancient Brooks: Being a Collection of Sentences, Illustrations, and Quaint Sayings, From the Works of That Renowned Puritan, Thomas Brooks (1860). This is mentioned both as a singular instance of her role as a godly help-meet, and as an example of their shared love of Puritan literature.

Susannah became an invalid at age 33, but she aided her husband all her life in various capacities, most especially in her loving encouragement of his life and ministerial labors, and through her support of the Book Fund for ministers who were too poor to purchase books for their libraries, which became an invaluable resource for such pastors in need. She was "an angel of God" to her husband, in his words, and after a life of love together, when he died in 1892, she cabled a message to her son Thomas who was in Australia, "Father in Heaven Mother resigned." He died in his beloved French Riveria, in Menton, known as "the pearl of France." In her grief, she found peace in the magnificent botanical Hanbury gardens of La Mortola, Italy, overlooking the Mediterranean. She was later to write:

There amid the olive-groves and rose-covered terraces the dear Master taught me His estimate of true affection by recalling to my mind His own words to His disciples, 'If ye loved Me, ye would rejoice, because I go to the Father,' and thus He made me understand that the thought of my darling’s everlasting bliss must overcome and banish my own selfish grief and sorrow.

They were reunited upon her death in 1903.

Bless God At All Times

I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. (Ps. 34.1)

Thomas Brooks, The Unsearchable Riches of Christ (1655), in The Works of Thomas Brooks, Vol. 3, pp. 24-25:

The seventeenth property of an humble soul is this: an humble soul will bless God, and be thankful to God, as well under misery as under mercy; as well when God frowns as when he smiles; as well when God takes as when he gives; as well under crosses and losses, as under blessings and mercies: Job. i. 21, 'The Lord gives and the Lord takes, blessed be the name of the Lord.' He doth not cry out upon the Sabeans and the Chaldeans, but he looks through all secondary causes, and sees the hand of God; and then he lays his hand upon his own heart, and sweetly sings it out, 'The Lord gives, and the Lord takes, blessed be the name of the Lord.' An humble soul, in every condition, blesses God, as the apostle commands, in the 1 Thes. v. 18, 'In every thing give thanks to God.' So 1 Cor. iv. 12, 'Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer.' The language of an humble soul is, If it be thy will, saith an humble soul, I should be in darkness, I will bless thee; and if it be thy wil I should be again in light, I will bless thee; if thou wilt comfort me, I will bless thee; and if thou wilt afflict me, I will bless thee; if thou wilt give me the least mercy, I will bless thee; if thou wilt give me no mercy, I will bless thee. An humble soul is quick-sighted; he sees the rod in a Father's hand; he sees honey upon the top of every twig, and so can bless God; he sees sugar at the bottom of the bitterest cup that God doth put into his hand; he knows that God's house of correction is a school of instruction; and so he can sit down and bless when the rod is upon his back. An humble soul knows that the design of God in all in his instruction, his reformation, and his salvation.

It was a sweet saying of holy [John] Bradford, If the queen will give me my life, I will thank her; if she will banish me, I will thank her; if she will burn me, I will thank her; if she will condemn me to perpetual imprisonment, I will thank her. Ay, this is the temper of an humble heart. An humble soul knows, that to bless God in prosperity is the way to increase it; and to bless God in adversity is the way to remove it. An humble soul knows, that if he blesses God under mercies, he hath paid his debt; but if he blesses God under crosses, he hath made God a debtor.

William Secker, The Nonsuch Professor (1660), p. 128:

To bless God for mercies is the way to increase them; to bless God for miseries, is the way to remove them. No good lives so long, as that which is thankfully improved; no evil dies so soon, as that which is patiently sustained.

William Dyer, Christ's Famous Titles, or The Believer's Golden Chain (1663), p. 179:

To bless God for merces is the way to increase them; to bless God for miseries is the way to remove them: no good lives so long as that which is thankfully improved; no evil dies so soon as that which is patiently endured.

Sweet Meditation

Thomas Brooks, Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices, Preface to the Reader:

Remember, it is not hasty reading, but seriously meditating upon holy and heavenly truths, that makes them prove sweet and profitable to the soul. It is not the bee's touching of the flowers that gathers honey, but her abiding for a time upon them, and drawing out the sweet. It is not he that reads most, but he that meditates most, that will prove the choicest, sweetest, wisest, and strongest Christian.