10 Readable Puritans

Mike Leake 3 Comments

Puritan.

It’s a word that for many is as abrasive as “ni” to Arthur and his court. The word conjures up witch burning and narcoleptic inducing sermons. H.L. Mencken once said that Puritanism is defined as, “the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy”.

Yet, in recent days the Puritans have enjoyed a revival of sorts, especially in Reformed circles. Thanks to men like Joel Beeke, a new generation of believers are encouraged to Meet the Puritans. And it seems that is about as far as we get.

The Puritans have become more like your grandma’s fine china than your mother’s worn out dinner plate. We talk about them. We like the thought of them. We know they have value. But we seldom bring them out.

I believe part of the reason for their neglect is that we have flattened the Puritans. We’ve leveled them in such a way that we don’t know the difference between William Perkins and Richard Baxter. To us they are just “Puritan”. And so young men go to conferences and get encouraged to read the Puritans. They pick up a valuable resource like Beeke’s book, Meet the Puritans, swirl their finger around and land on a name. They buy Stephen Charnock’s The Attributes of God and never get any further than page 20, with the sad conclusion that the Puritans are too tough to read.

You know what? Some of them are. Charnock, in my opinion, is a terror to read. John Owen can be just as difficult. But not all Puritans are tough to read. Some are about as easy to read as a book you would find in your local Christian bookstore. Here are ten of the most readable Puritans with a suggested book to get you started.

  1. Richard Sibbes, The Bruised Reed
  2. John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress
  3. Thomas Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance
  4. Richard Baxter, The Reformed Pastor
  5. Samuel Rutherford, The Letters of Samuel Rutherford
  6. Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment
  7. William Bridge, A Lifting Up for the Downcast
  8. Thomas Boston, The Art of Man-Fishing
  9. Anne Bradstreet, The Works of Anne Bradstreet
  10. Obadiah Sedgwick, The Anatomy of Secret Sins

These are ten books by Puritans that are very readable. There are within these a few speed bumps. Even if the writing is easy to understand, at times the work of God on your soul will be so intense that your only recourse is to put the book down for awhile and worship. At times you’ll trip over an archaic word. But most modern translations give footnotes to help you along.

Start with Sibbes and go from there.

Pray For Your Son: 31 Day Challenge—Day Twenty-One

Mike Leake

Day Twenty-One: That he would not be quarrelsome

It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool will be quarreling. Proverbs 20:3

The world exalts men that are quarrelsome. Why else would talk radio (from sports, to politics, to every asinine thing under the sun) be so popular? Men can quarrel about such silly things as whether or not Tom Brady is a better quarterback than Peyton Manning. The Bible says that a quarrelsome person is a fool. And at the center of his being is a heart that is not content. Let’s pray that the Lord would cause our sons to be men of valor—that stay aloof from unnecessary strife. Yet, let us also pray that they fight the battles that are necessary.

Lord, help my son to know what fights he is to undertake. I thank you that you have—and continue—to fight for us. We love to quarrel. Our prideful hearts want to be correct, we want to win every battle—even ones that we should never fight. Help my son to be content with who he is in Jesus. Help him to fight with valor when he should fight and help him avoid strife when he shouldn’t fight. Rescue him from being a quarreling fool. Amen.

Pray For Your Son: 31 Day Challenge—Day Twenty

Mike Leake

Day Twenty: That he would be an example and follow godly examples

Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. Philippians 3:17

At times our sons will follow examples and at other times they will be examples. It is imperative that our children follow godly examples. If our children are younger (and even if they are not) it important that we model Christ. Even when we fail in the way that we represent Christ we must model repentance and point to the grace of Christ. Let us pray today that our children will follow godly examples and also that they will be examples of Christ.

Lord, thank you for the example of Christ. I know that He is so much more than just an example—but He is certainly not less. Thank you for His sacrificial life and ultimately His sacrificial death. I pray that my son follows your example. I also pray that he follows other godly examples. May his mother and I be models of Christ that he can follow. Help us to repent when we fail in this. I also pray that he might be a faithful model of Jesus Christ. Thank you for grace. In Jesus name, Amen.

Pray For Your Son: 31 Day Challenge—Day Nineteen

Mike Leake

Day Nineteen: That He Would Become a Fool to the World

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.  1 Corinthians 3:18-23, ESV

Paul begins his letter to the Corinthians by confronting their carnality. They had followed crafty men and become distracted away from the centrality of Christ. At root to this drifting away is the folly of following after worldly wisdom. Here Paul shows that God has never used those that are proud, powerful, or wise by men’s standards. The Lord’s wisdom is shown in the weak–the antithesis of earthly reverence. God’s power shines brightest through a message that boasts in the sovereign power of a King hung on a cross. Paul reminds us that only a fool would believe this cross is where the power of salvation lies.

Father,

There is no logical reason in our human minds to place the fate of the world at the foot of the cross. In a day where this message is increasingly scandalous to those who are wise by man’s standards, I pray that you would grant my son the grace of foolishness. I pray that you might give him the foolishness to be wise to stand on the truth of the cross of Christ as the wisdom that saves. Amen.

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Marc Mullins is married to Amber, his wife of almost 10 years. They have 2 children, Ashton and Lacey. He serves as a bi-vocational Student Pastor in Mount Washington and works in product development and blogs Christ-Centered Reflections on Business, Calling, Vocation, Ethics and Life at WorkandKeep.com.