Heaven on Earth

by Thomas Brooks

The subject of assurance is one of the most important elements in Christian experience. There is no higher privilege than to be a child of God and to know it, for assurance brings joy to worship and prayer, and provides strength and boldness to our witness. Correspondingly, failure and weakness in all these areas can often be traced back to a lack of assurance, or even false assurance. This work of Thomas Brooks, first published in 1654, deals with all of these aspects of assurance in a way that is both biblical and pastoral. Brooks 'scatters stars with both his hands' wrote C.H. Spurgeon. His teaching is clear, thorough and greatly needed in the present spiritual climate. Brooks both explains what true assurance is and guides the reader in how it may be fully experienced.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Religion, Christianity, Christian Living, Spirituality

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1654

About the author

Little is known about Thomas Brooks as a man, other than can be ascertained from his many writings. Born, probably of well-to-do parents, in 1608, Brooks entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge, in 1625. He was licensed as a preacher of the gospel by 1640 at the latest. Before that date he seems to have spent a number of years at sea, probably as a chaplain with the fleet. After the Civil War, Brooks became minister at Thomas Apostle s, London, and was sufficiently renowned to be chosen as preacher before the House of Commons on 26 December, 1648. Three or four years later he moved to St Margaret s, Fish-street Hill, London, but encountered considerable opposition as he refused baptism and the Lord s Supper to those clearly unworthy of such privileges. The following years were filled with written as well as spoken ministry. In 1662 he fell victim to the notorious Act of Uniformity, but he appears to have remained in his parish and to have preached the Word as opportunity offered. Treatises continued to flow from his agile pen. In 1677 or 1678 he married for the second time, 'she spring-young, he winter-old'. Two years later he went home to his Lord.

Reviews

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I think the writings of the Puritans can no longer amaze or surprise me, when I think I have finally reached my fill of their stunning grasp of heavenly knowledge, I am once again humbled by the reading of another exceptional and praiseworthy work of a Puritan divine. Thomas Brooks is an outstanding writer (as is seen in all of his books). He always touches the heart of the matter. Read from Brooks and you will grow. You will truly benefit.
This work will open your eyes in regard to Christian assurance. And assurance is one of the choicest gifts a Christian can have.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

First published in 1654, Heaven on Earth is a treatise on Christian assurance. Brooks explores in great depth the roots, essence, and fruit of assurance within a genuine child of God. Brooks' contemporary Joseph Caryl summed up Brooks' treatise quite well: "All saints shall enjoy heaven when they leave this earth; some saints enjoy heaven while they are here on earth. That saints might enjoy two heavens is the project of this book."

As difficult as it is to review a treatise with some deep theology, it will suffice to extract some provoking thoughts from the pen of Brooks. Consider some thoughts about how God uses suffering to strengthen a believer's faith and to give him assurance of His love:

"Suffering times are times wherein the Lord is pleased to give His people some sense of His favour. When they are in sufferings for righteousness' sake, for the gospel's sake, then usually God causes His face to shine upon them. Now they shall hear best news from heaven when they hear worst from earth. God loves to smile most upon His people when the world frowns most. When the world puts its iron chains upon their legs, then God puts His golden chains about their necks; when the world puts a bitter cup into their hands, then God drops some of His honey, some of His goodness and sweetness into it." (65)

"The suffering siant may be assaulted, but not vanquished; he may be troubled, but can never be conquered; he may lose his head, but he cannot lose his crown, which the righteous Lord hath prepared and laid up for him.....The Lord causes His goodness to pass before His people, and His face to shine upon His people in times of suffering.....for the praise of His own grace, and for the glory of His own name." (69)

The last half of Brooks' treatise is a detailed analysis of "the eight special things that accompany salvation:"

1. Knowledge
2. Faith
3. Repentance
4. Obedience
5. Love
6. Prayer
7. Perseverance
8. Hope

Of knowledge, Brooks writes,

"Divine knowlege fills a man full of spiritual activity; it will make a man work as if he would be saved by his works, and yet it will make a man believe that he is saved only upon the account of free grace." (178)

"Notional knowledge may make a man excellent at praising the glorious and worthy acts and virtues of Christ; but that transforming knowledge that accompanies salvation, will cause a man divinely to imitate the glorious acts and virtues of Christ." (179)

A difficult read, but an extremely rewarding one!

[Jarrell Lemos · Rating 2 out of 5]

The way Brooks speaks of the joys of assurance is beautiful. It makes you yearn for it and Brooks is right in pointing out its great worth. 

His language is colourful and illustrations engaging. He has a lot of good insights. Though his methodology (continual listings of ten or so points) can be laborious and his ideas are quite repetitive at times.

Unfortunately, Brooks over estimates the rarity of assurance (i.e. chapter 2). It's good to recognise that many do not have it and why that may be. But assurance should be normative. The lack of assurance often comes by either prying into the hidden things of God and searching his hidden decrees, or basing our assurance on our own performance. But when we continue to place our cup upon the fountain of Christs finish work, and the things he has revealed that we rarely find ourselves without thirst. 

Another weakness is that Brooks, in chapter 5, contends that Christians cannot be assured by reading the promises of Scripture regarding there salvation. For, he argues, that there is not guarantee that those promises are for them. This basis for our comfort and assurance not in what God has said. The knowledge of our salvation becomes dependent on inward feelings and how we might feel God regards us. This is a man centred. We should not rely on how we feel. God has given us promises, and if we believe and receive God (true faith) then every promise in Scripture IS FOR ME.  Reading the Bible's promises, therefore, is the greatest source of assurance for any believer.

At the heart of Brooks theology of assurance is this idea that assurance (or some level of it) does not normally come with true faith.  However integral to true faith is assurance that not only for others but also for me Christ died for my sins (LD 7) and the Holy Spirit's most common comfort to the believer is that he assures them of eternal life (LD 1). This is why continental reformed theologians considered some measure of assurance to be of the essence of saving faith (Berkhof, Bavinck, Kuyper, Vos).

 I would however affirm with Brooks that assurance should be viewed as a gift and God reveals it in his own time. The elect in due time, though in various degrees and in different measures, attain the assurance of this their eternal and unchangeable election CoD 1.12 Truly when God reveals this assurance it is a priceless treasure. As the Christian plumbs the depths of it receiving more and more confidence in their inheritance, this truly is heaven on Earth.

[Laís · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muito bom!

[Hobart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---

Assurance is not of the essence of a Christian. It is required to the well-being, to the comfortable and joyful being of a Christian; but it is not required to the being of a Christian. A man may be a true believer, and yet would give all the world, were it in his power, to know that he is a believer. To have grace, and to be sure that we have grace, is glory upon the throne, it is heaven on this side heaven.

I am his. I am as sure that I am his, as I am sure that I live. I am his by purchase, and I am his by conquest; I am his by donation, and I am his by election; I am his by covenant, and I am his by marriage. I am wholly his; I am peculiarly his; I am universally his; I am eternally his. This I well know, and the knowledge thereof is my joy in life, and my strength and crown in death.

Here we have a description of assurance, and then an expression of the assured heart. Brooks' Heaven on Earth is both an explanation of the doctrine and an exhortation to pursue it. Quotations like this are just a hint of that. Brooks is one of the best Puritans on this topic—and everything the Puritans wrote about the doctrine is head an shoulders above their Continental brethren. This is pure gospel gold.

I liked my post about it last time more than anything I'd say this time, so let me just use it (the final paragraph is new):
I just might have myself a new favorite Puritan (I'm not the only one who has a list, right?). I'm kicking myself for not getting to Brooks earlier in life. What a wonderful book—I'm looking forward to getting to read more by him.

Aesthetically, this is fantastic. The language sings—the book begs to be read aloud (and I frequently did so, interrupting whatever anyone around me was doing). You can feel the passion, the fervor throughout. A few paragraphs from different chapters illustrate this:

Divine light reaches the heart as well as the head. The beams of divine light shining in upon the soul through the glorious face of Christ are very working; they warm the heart, they affect the heart, they new mold the heart. Divine knowledge masters the heart, it guides the heart, it governs the heart, it sustains the heart, it relieves the heart. Knowledge which swims in the head only, and sinks not down into the heart, does no more good than the unicorn's horn in the unicorn's head.

The only ground of God's love is his grace. The ground of God's love is only and wholly in himself. There is neither portion nor proportion in us to draw his love. There is no love nor loveliness in us that should cause a beam of his love to shine upon us. There is that enmity, that filthiness, that treacherousness, that unfaithfulness, to be found in every man's bosom, which might justly put God upon glorifying himself in their eternal ruin, and to write their names in his black book in characters of blood and wrath. God will have all blessings and happiness to flow from free grace.

Faith is the first pin which moves the soul; it is the spring in the watch which sets all the golden wheels of love, joy, comfort, and peace a-going. Faith is a root-grace, from whence springs all the sweet flowers of joy and peace. Faith is like the bee, it will suck sweetness out of every flower; it will extract light out of darkness, comforts out of distresses, mercies out of miseries, wine out of water, honey out of the rock, and meat out of the eater, Judg 14:14.

But beyond that, the book is sound, it is orthodox, it is Biblical—throughout Brooks points the reader to The Book and The One Who inspired it. His aim is to show "that believers may in this life attain unto a well-grounded assurance of their everlasting happiness and blessedness." He then goes on to examine the nature of that assurance, hindrances that keep believers from it, reasons to encourage believers to seek it, and how they can go about it, the difference between true and counterfeit assurance, as well as answering questions about assurance. Examining the doctrine from so many angles, you really feel (and probably do) that you come away from this book having an exhaustive look at the doctrine.

Chapter 6—which takes more than its fair share of space, almost half of the book—is an extended detour from the point of the book, but it still serves to support the theme. He begins by saying, "In the previous chapter, you saw the seven choice things which accompany salvation. But for your further and fuller edification, satisfaction, confirmation, and consolation, it will be very necessary that I show you," these seven choice things. Which are:

(1.) What knowledge that is, which accompanies salvation.

(2.) What faith that is, which accompanies salvation.

(3.) What repentance that is, which accompanies salvation.

(4.) What obedience that is, which accompanies salvation.

(5.) What love that is, which accompanies salvation.

(6.) What prayer that is, which accompanies salvation.

(7.) What perseverance that is, which accompanies salvation.

It is such a great chapter, and would make a remarkable little booklet unto itself that I really can't complain too much that it's such a departure from the rest of the book (though it did take me a little bit to get used to the notion).

Banner of Truth puts this out in paperback, monergism.com puts this out as a free e-book. Either way you go for it, this is a treasure I heartily suggest you grab.

When I read this five years ago, it struck me like a breath of fresh air, it was precisely what I needed at the time. I read it again last month, looking for the same thing. I didn't find it—don't misunderstand, it was very helpful, inspiring, and insightful. I was reminded and grew in my understanding of assurance. And, I collected a handful of great quotations from Brooks. But...the book as a whole didn't sing for me. The first time, I didn't know what to expect. This time, I probably came in with expectations that were too high. Last time I read it, I gave it 5 Stars. This time, I logged it as 3 Stars. So...let's call it 4, shall we?

[Kathy Penrod · Rating 5 out of 5]

I now have a new favorite Puritan author. The subject is assurance of heaven on earth. The book is very structured in its content and the listing of chapters is itself 6 pages long. However the structure does not hinder the majestic message nor the artistic and sometimes poetic way Brooks presents his thesis. It has taken me almost eight months to read not because I found it boring or dry but because there was so much substance in each sentence and paragraph. Sometimes I could only read a phrase without stopping to think about and ponder over it. This is not an easy read. It requires attention, thoughtfulness, and even soul searching to fully grasp the message Brooks presents. Some of my favorite quotes follow.

"Satan promises the best, but pays the worst; he promises honour and pays with disgrace; he promises pleasure but pays with pain; he promises profit and pays with loss; he promises life but pays with death."

"God loves to smile most upon His people when the world frowns most."

"Persecution brings death in one hand and life in the other; for while it kills the body it crowns the soul."

"Hope makes a man more motion than notion."

[Austin Puckett · Rating 5 out of 5]

“To son under assurance is to son in paradise; it is to sin under the flaming sword, it is to sin in the suburbs of heaven, it is to run the hazard of losing that favour ‘that is better than life,’ of that ‘joy that is unspeakable and full of glory,’ and of that ‘peace that passes understanding.’ To sin under assurance is to cast reproach upon Christ, to grieve the Spirit, to wound conscience, to weaken your graces, to blur your evidences, to usher in calamities, to embitter your mercies, and to provoke the tempter to triumph over your Saviour.” (p. 335)

[Mike Conroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really appreciated how careful Thomas Brooks was to speak to Christians who do not currently have assurance of their salvation. I think this book does a great job of not making assurance seem like something that Christians could have if they worked hard enough - and, at the same time, really challenging the belief that assurance is something that is completely passive. It was really helpful!

[Blue Morse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thomas Brooks is becoming my favorite Puritan (watch out Richard Baxter).

This book was such an encouragement to me, especially as one who has often struggled with assurance. Brooks' purpose for writing: "That these weak souls may be strengthened, that these unstable souls may be established, that these disconsolate souls may be comforted, I have presented this tract to the world."

Although, I'd argue there was almost a book within a book since Chapter 5 "Ways and Means of Gaining a Well-Grounded Assurance" was literally 157 pages long and almost veered off the "assurance" theme and focused more on "The Things that Accompany Salvation." While this confused me at first, I later came to suppose that this was Brooks' attempt to paint the picture of the Christian life (what right looks like) and thereby offer up the best litmus test whereby we may be most assured or challenged as to our own spiritual condition. And lest the reader become utterly discouraged after reading 157 pages of what a Christian should look like, he concludes this chapter by graciously saying that if "thou dost not find every one of those things in thee that accompany salvation ... thou but a few of those things that accompanies salvations, that comprehends salvation, that borders upon salvation, thy estate is safe, and happiness will by thy portion at last."

Yet, this detour ultimately keeps me from rating it 5/5 since the 365 pages (with this 157 page excursion) was quite long and that taking away Chapter 5 would have yielded a healthy 208 page encouraging book that would not have a higher likelihood of scaring potential readers away. Hence it receives 4/5 overall amongst fellow Puritan Paperbacks.

Below are my favorite quotes from each Chapter:

Intro "Epistle to the Saints":
- "Most Christians live between fears and hopes, and hang, as it were, between heaven and hell; sometimes they hope that their state is good, at other times they fear that their state is bad."
- "Assurance is a believer's ark, where he sits, Noah-like, quiet and still in the midst of all distractions and destructions, commotions and confusions."
- "Books may preach when the author cannot, when the author may not, when the author dares not, yea, and which is more, when the author is not."

The Preface "Touching the Nature of Assurance":
- "The being in a state of grace will yield a man a heaven hereafter, but the seeing of himself in this state will yield him both a heaven here and a heaven hereafter; it will render him doubly blest, blest in heaven, and blest in his own conscience ... it is heaven on this side of heaven."

Chapter 1 "Proofs that believers may in this life attain a well-grounded assurance of their everlasting happiness and blessedness":
- "Hope is a beam of God, a spark of glory, and that nothing shall extinguish it till the soul be filled with glory."
- "A good conscience will look through the blackest clouds and see a smiling God."
- Luther: "The whole Scriptures ... doth principally aim at this thing, that we should not doubt, but that we should hope, that we should trust, that we should believe, that God is a merciful, a bountiful, a gracious, and a patient God to his people."

Chapter 2 "Weighty propositions concerning assurance":
- "Assurance is requisite to the well-being of a Christian, but not to the being."
- "God delays the giving in of assurance ... because their souls are so taken up and filled with creature enjoyments as that Christ is put to lodge in an out-house, or else it is because they pursue not after assurance with all their might."
- "God loves to smile most upon his people when the world frowns most."
- "The surest and shortest way to assurance is to wrestle and contend with God for holiness ... when the stream and cream of a man's spirit runs after holiness, it will not long be night with that man."
- "As Noah's ark was lifted up nearer and nearer heaven by the rising of the waters higher and higher? So afflictions do but elevate and raise a saint's affections to heaven and heavenly things."

Chapter 3 "Hindrances and impediments that keep poor souls from assurance":
- "The only ground of God's love is His love."
- "As a circle begins everywhere, but ends nowhere, so do the mercies of God."
- "Oh! There is so much grace and goodness, so much love and favour, so much mercy and glory, sparkling and shining through these scriptures (Num 14:19,20, Exod. 34:6,7, Micah 7:18, 19, Isa. 30:18,19, Psa. 78:34-40; 103:8-13, Jer. 3:1-12, Luke 15:20-24, 1 Tim 1:13-17), as may allay the strongest fears, and scatter the thickest darkness and cheer up the saddest spirits."
- "Bu ah! how few there be in these days that keep a diary of God's mercies and their own infirmities, of spiritual experiences and the inward operations of heavenly graces."
- "Why then O doubting souls, will you make your sense and feeling the judge, not only of your condition, but of the truth itself? What is this but to dethrone God, and to make a god of your sense and feeling?"
- "Ah, how active and lively are men in pursuing after the world! but how lifeless and inactive in the ways of grace and holiness!"
- "Vanity is the very quintessence of the creature, and all that can possibly be extracted out of it."
- "All human consolations are but desolations."
- "You would not for all the world gratify your bosom sins upon a dying day, and will you gratify them on other days, which, for anting you know to the contrary, may prove your dying day?"

Chapter 4 "Motives to provoke Christians to be restless till they have obtains a well-grounded assurance of their eternal happiness and blessedness"
- Assurance is a fire that burns up all those cares that ordinarily fill the head and distract the heart. There is no way to get off the burden of cares but by getting assurance ... fears make men turn, like the chameleon, into all colours, forms, and fashions, yea, they make their lives a hell."
- "The truth is, your whole life is a life of doubting, and so it will be, till you attain a well-grounded assurance."

Chapter 5 "Ways and means of gaining a well-grounded assurance":
- None so humble as they that have nearest communion with God ... that knowledge that puffs thee will sink thee."
- "The faith that is not a working faith is no faith."
- "How shall God wipe away my tears in heaven, if I shed non on earth? And how shall I reap in joy, if I sow not in tear? ... The sweetest joys are from the sourest tears."
- "God measures all men's actions by their end ... the chiefest end, the target, the mark, at which the soul must aim in prayer, is God's glory."
- "Hope in the promise will keep the head from aching, and the heart from breaking; it will keep both head and heart from sinking and drowning. Hope exercised upon the promise brings heaven down to the heart."
- "Do not always side with sin and Satan against thine own precious soul."

Chapter 6 "The differences between a true and a counterfeit assurance"
- "Assurance raises a paradise of delight in the soul."

Chapter 7 "Answers to several special questions about assurance"
- "See to it that your hearts run more out to Christ than to assurance; to the sun than to the beams, to the fountain than to the stream, to the root than to the branch, to the cause then to the effect."
- "The highest heavens and the lowest hearts are the habitations wherein the Holy One delights to dwell."
- "Humility is both a grace , and a vessel to receive grace."
- "This is the believer's blessedness, that his condition is always good, though he doth not always see it to be good."
- "Though God be displeased with your sins, yet he is well-pleased with your tears ... nothing moves God like penitent tears ... the tears of the saints have such a kind of omnipotency in them that God himself cannot withstand them: 2 Kings 20:5."
- "God never hath failed, and never will fail the waiting soul."
- "Holiness differs nothing from happiness, but in name. Holiness is happiness in the bud, and happiness is holiness at the full. Happiness is nothing but the quintessence of holiness."
- "Assurance makes every bitter sweet, and every sweet more sweet."

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

A feast of Biblical truth, best savored slowly! Many quotable pithy statements. It is a great Puritan work and of great benefit to any believer seeking to 'confirm your calling and election' (2 Peter 1:10).

[James Horgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A warm Puritan work on the doctrine of assurance, why we need it and how to get it. Good devotional reading.

[Daevora Weger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great puritan work of Thomas Brooks! A must-read :)

[Jessica]

The nature of assurance of heaven and how it can be experienced.

[Jesus Salgado · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does a great job of describing in a beautiful fashion the doctrine of assurance, hard to put down, a lot to chew on!

[Caleb Hoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A long read, very typically Puritanically methodical. However, motivating while still being pastoral. Helpful if you have the time to read it.

[Hobart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just might have myself a new favorite Puritan (I'm not the only one who has a list, right?). I'm kicking myself for not getting to Brooks earlier in life. What a wonderful book -- I'm looking forward to getting to read more by him.

Aesthetically, this is fantastic. The language sings -- the book begs to be read aloud (and I frequently did so, interrupting whatever anyone around me was doing). You can feel the passion, the fervor throughout. A few paragraphs from different chapters illustrate this:

Divine light reaches the heart as well as the head. The beams of divine light shining in upon the soul through the glorious face of Christ are very working; they warm the heart, they affect the heart, they new mold the heart. Divine knowledge masters the heart, it guides the heart, it governs the heart, it sustains the heart, it relieves the heart. Knowledge which swims in the head only, and sinks not down into the heart, does no more good than the unicorn's horn in the unicorn's head.

The only ground of God's love is his grace. The ground of God's love is only and wholly in himself. There is neither portion nor proportion in us to draw his love. There is no love nor loveliness in us that should cause a beam of his love to shine upon us. There is that enmity, that filthiness, that treacherousness, that unfaithfulness, to be found in every man's bosom, which might justly put God upon glorifying himself in their eternal ruin, and to write their names in his black book in characters of blood and wrath. God will have all blessings and happiness to flow from free grace.

Faith is the first pin which moves the soul; it is the spring in the watch which sets all the golden wheels of love, joy, comfort, and peace a-going. Faith is a root-grace, from whence springs all the sweet flowers of joy and peace. Faith is like the bee, it will suck sweetness out of every flower; it will extract light out of darkness, comforts out of distresses, mercies out of miseries, wine out of water, honey out of the rock, and meat out of the eater, Judg 14:14.

But beyond that, the book is sound, it is orthodox, it is Biblical -- throughout Brooks points the reader to The Book and The One Who inspired it. His aim is to show "that believers may in this life attain unto a well-grounded assurance of their everlasting happiness and blessedness." He then goes on to examine the nature of that assurance, hindrances that keep believers from it, reasons to encourage believers to seek it, and how they can go about it, the difference between true and counterfeit assurance, as well as answering questions about assurance. Examining the doctrine from so many angles, you really feel (and probably do) that you come away from this book having an exhaustive look at the doctrine.

Chapter 6 -- which takes more than its fair share of space, almost half of the book -- is an extended detour from the point of the book, but it still serves to support the theme. He begins by saying, "In the previous chapter, you saw the seven choice things which accompany salvation. But for your further and fuller edification, satisfaction, confirmation, and consolation, it will be very necessary that I show you," these seven choice things. Which are:

(1.) What knowledge that is, which accompanies salvation.
(2.) What faith that is, which accompanies salvation.
(3.) What repentance that is, which accompanies salvation.
(4.) What obedience that is, which accompanies salvation.
(5.) What love that is, which accompanies salvation.
(6.) What prayer that is, which accompanies salvation.
(7.) What perseverance that is, which accompanies salvation.

It is such a great chapter, and would make a remarkable little booklet unto itself that I really can't complain too much that it's such a departure from the rest of the book (though it did take me a little bit to get used to the notion).

Banner of Truth puts this out in paperback, monergism.com puts this out as a free e-book. Either way you go for it, this is a treasure I heartily suggest you grab.

[Clay Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

#2 of 60+ in the Puritan Paperbacks series printed by Banner of Truth.

Heaven on Earth is Thomas Brooks at his best as the pastoral care of these literary, theological giants once again overwhelms the dated language. In fact, in this instance, the archaic language actually helps because it forces the reader to slow his progress and really digest the care for your soul that is being poured across the pages and time of centuries past.

The only downside to this book (and the reason it gets 4/5 stars), and it isn't really a downside, is chapter 5. This chapter is over 150 pages out of a total of 365 and deals more with how to test the genuineness of your faith than it does with assurance proper. That being said, chapter 5 was also pure gold. This should have been a stand-alone book which would have given an amazing, scripture backed, means of testing your faith. I would have liked to see either that or have the book start with this. After all, if your faith is not real, you shouldn't have assurance. If Brooks had started with the test and then moved on to the assurance you should have considering the reality of your faith as judged by scripture, the flow would have made more sense. In the end, this book will certainly be one I pass along to those struggling with assurance and also one I point to when confronting the common complaint against puritan writers that they are not pastoral. Once again, that serves as proof that said person hasn't actually read puritan writing or cannot comprehend what they've read. Do you struggle with assurance? If so, read this book.

Favorite quotes:
"Why, then, O doubting souls, will you make your sense and feeling the judge, not only of your condition, but of the truth itself?"

"Well, doubting souls, the counsel that I shall give you is this, be much in believing, and make only the Scripture the judge of your condition; maintain the judgment of the word against the judgment of sense and feeling."

"If you would have your assurance strengthened and maintained, then keep close to soul-strengthening ways, be serious and sincere, be diligent and constant in the use of those means and ways wherein you first gained assurance, as prayer, reading and hearing the word, breaking of bread, and the communion of saints." (If only we would do these few things, lack of assurance would likely be a rare event in the life of the believer)

[7jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough work on how to have assurance of Heaven while still on Earth. Including how one can be sure one can have that assurance in this life, why it's sometimes denied or found, why it should be obtained, how to gain it, and difference between true and false assurance.

I thought that this would be quite a dry read, and wondered how it would need so many pages to declare. But Brooks is thorough on this subject, and one does need more than a few solid sentences for the subject of assurance to feel as good as it does.

I think this might be for someone who has read a few Christian books already, and convinced on their faith, who wants to know (or know more) on this subject. But whatever way it goes, this is a good, solid book on this subject, and not to miss even when you're not of one of the Protestant churches - even Catholics might gain something from this (and the anti-Papism level is pretty cameo-level if not non-existent in this book, which is not always the case with Puritan books).

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though it took a while to finish (no bus commute to work) it is truly an excellent book! Written in the 1600’s and still timely for today and those who claim Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Some may say Thomas Brooks repeats himself too much but I see it as evaluating our assurance in Christ from every possible angle. His writings are deeply connected to God’s Word and he did it without the use of a search function. :-)

It’s impossible to select only one sentence to summarize this book so I will select one that I have imbedded in my heart: “. . . be fixed upon Christ, then will assurance bed and board with thee . . .”

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A treatise on Christian assurance. I found it helpful, with lots of Scripture references. Being a Puritan book, it is very structured on an outline. Not always "easy to read" but worth the extra effort.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clear, concise, and insightful treatment of the subject of assurance. Brooks is the ultimate pastor caring for his flock's souls in this volume. An absolute pleasure to read.

[Justin Andrusk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has to be the absolute best book on assurance that I have ever read. Highly recommend it!

[Seth Goodale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timeless treasure. Just so good.

[Benjamin Glaser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brooks is in many ways my favorite Puritan. Heaven on Earth is a great intro to his work.