Puritan Profile (Page 3)

Donald Cargill (1619-1681), a Scottish Puritan died in 1681, and his last words were recorded saying, “The Lord knows I go on this ladder with less fear and perturbation of mind than ever I entered the pulpit to preach.” Cargill grew up in a Christian home, but during a trying season in his adolescence, he struggled with depression and doubt. One day, his mental struggle became so strong that he contemplated taking his own life by hurling himself into a…

“Oh be of good comfort, we hold Christ by faith and not by feeling.” – Richard Greenham Richard Greenham’s (1540—1594) life emphasized the ‘Puritan Work Ethic’ of diligence and hard labor. The details of his birth and upbringing are scarce, but sources say he studied at Pembroke hall, Cambridge as a mature student in 1559. He earned his M.A. degree and spent about twelve years studying and teaching. When he left his comfortable position at university around 1570, he moved…

“Christ is a sea of sweetness, without one drop of bitterness.” – John Flavel Flavel was born at Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, about 1630 and died June 26, 1691, he was 64, in the city of Exeter. In 1656, Flavel became the minister at the seaport town of Dartmouth and spent most of his life ministering in the area. His constant prayer and hope were that Dartmouth would be a town of people who loved to pray and commune with God.  In…

“Look not to what you have done, but to what Christ has done; you neither share in whole nor in part with Christ: good works are mentioned, not to buy or purchase glory by, but to evidence an interest in Christ and sincerity in grace; if there be as much as will evidence sincerity, there is enough. The least gold is gold as well as the greatest piece.” James Fraiser of Brea James Fraser of Brea (1638-1699) was a Scottish…

“A praying man can never be very miserable, whatever his condition be, for he has the ear of God; the Spirit within to indite, a Friend in heaven to present, and God Himself to receive his desires as a Father. It is a mercy to pray, even though I never receive the mercy prayed for.” — William Bridge. William Bridge was born in 1600, and he died in 1670. He studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. At the age of twenty-three,…

“Though Satan has his devices to draw souls to sin, yet we must be careful that we do not lay all our temptations upon Satan, that we do not wrong the devil, and father upon him what is to be fathered upon our own base hearts. Man has such an evil root within him, that were there no devil to tempt him, no wicked men in the world to entice him, yet that cursed sinful nature that is in him…

While many Puritans faced persecution, shamming, banishment, and even death, not many experienced it to the level of Dr. Alexander Leighton (1568 – 1643). Leighton was a Scottish medical doctor, teacher, and Puritan preacher who gained attention by writing “An Appeal to Parliament; or Zion`s plea against Prelacy” which was to call out the unbiblical acts of the Anglican Church. He hoped that parliament would see the error of their ways to rescue the nation from the bishops. He provided…

Richard Sibbes was called “Heavenly Doctor Sibbes.” He was known for his God-honouring preaching and living as if heaven was always before his eyes.  Richard Sibbes (1577–1635) was born at Tostock, Suffolk, of old England. As a young boy he loved his books and was uninterested in following his father’s trade as a wheelwright. Instead, Sibbes went into academics where he received a Master or Arts at the age of 25. During his years of studying he sat under the teaching…

Be not troubled to think what shall become of thee and thine after my death, for be assured that my God, and the God of the widows and the fatherless, will not forsake thee, but will wonderfully provide for those and be comforted in this, that tho’ men take thy husband from thee, they cannot take thy God from thee; and so, do not think that thou hast lost thy husband, but only parted with him for a while, and…