Timeless Wisdom for Today’s Christians

Timeless Wisdom for Today’s Christians

An Introduction to the Puritans

The Puritans and Why They Matter Today

Week 1

Who Were the

Puritans?

A Quick History

Grew in response to a spasmodic and mixed version of the Reformation in England Cp. Luther’s 95 Theses in

1517 Calvin’s Institutes in 1559

1560 got the nickname because seen as strict Yet, compare antics of

Henry VIII England didn’t have full

Reformation Church of England the result

Struggles continued for a century James I

1603: Millenary petition (e.g. no vestments) denied, but KJV produced (1611)

1604 James: “No bishop, no king!”

Had to be in Church of England

A Quick History - 2

1617 Book of Sports Had to be read in Anglican

churches Promoted Sunday

afternoon sports Contra Puritans wanting

Sabbath Into 1600s, Charles I more

reprobate king Arminianism rising Baptists (Calvinistic and

Arminian) arising Congregationalism

1620 Pilgrims to America to flee

Long Parliament set up Westminster without king’s consent

1648 Westminster Standards Calvinistic, though

divided on some issues, particularly form of polity

Puritans’ power short-lived, kicked out of Church of England 1662

How Like Today?

Overtly Christian nation, yet… 2 Timothy 3: 1-5, ending

with “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power”

Therapeutic gospel: God helps us vs. we serve God

Losing influence in the public domain E.g. morality

Tide turning to persecute Christians

Meanwhile, believers are largely immature

Why They Matter?

With much thanks to J.I. Packer’s“A Quest for Godliness:

The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life”

Three Reasons

Motives

Maturity

Methods

Why did the Puritans write? Heart Revival Revival did not come in their political activities for the most

part But their focus was revival where it matters most:

In the hearts of the followers of Christ And today?

Shallow Christianity is the norm Therapeutic gospel designed to comfort us not challenge us

Cp. Smith’s “moralistic therapeutic deism” But compare our prayers!

Hard times are coming for American Christians We need our hearts revived and strengthened!

1. Motives

Sadly, Americans are increasingly childish

Self-focused Seeking immediate gratification Wanting easy answers Examples

Children without parents Lack of commitment in relationships Entertainment focus…even in church

“Did you enjoy the service?” More about feeling good than being good

2. Maturity

Contrast the Puritans

Actually men (and women) with spiritual authority Today TV ratings and book sales are often our measure Or, people self-proclaim themselves as spiritual directors, etc.

Readiness to die Life the dressing room to prepare for heaven Packer: “Readiness to die [is] the first step in learning to live” (p. 13)

In their day, ½ of adults died young, and more than ½ of children died in infancy

Do we live ready to die, realizing we (and others) stand at the edge of eternity?

What they called spiritual mindedness vs. earthly mindedness Spiritual warfare made them strong

Today, tolerance tames us and makes us passive

2. Maturity

Finally, for Puritans, theology IS spirituality

Compare trend today to separate worship/experience from theology

But worship must have content, and we are to worship God as He is

To do that, we must KNOW what He is like Experience flows inevitably from knowledge Knowledge will soften the heart, not just fill the

head

2. Maturity

3. Methods

Knew God and man Kept a biblical view of

persons, not a modern psychological one

Lived integrated lives All pieces work toward

one end Passion for effective

action Less on was it a good

sermon and more on how it should affect me

Cultivated godly attitudes In our world, self-

esteem and confidence are valued

Puritans stressed humility and self-suspicion

3. Methods

Stressed family stability Deliberate focus of

godliness in families Both in marriage and in

parenting children Knew their families were

“different” from others’ Methods for church

renewal Not programs and

technology, but godly living and ministry one to another

Our Plan

Survey some exemplary themes by a variety of Puritan authors

Catch a “flavor” of their approach

Apply these today And hopefully leave

you hungry for more!!

Your Response?

Give further thought to how our times increasingly match those of the Puritans

How are they different? What might we change

based on these? Focus on one thing learned

about the Puritans motives or methods that you can prayerfully work on this week

NEXT WEEK: “All things for good”