I often walk my library behind this keyboard, full of books well known. I'm not looking for anything in particular. Just… looking. I think subconsciously, as I scan or touch their old spines, I feel the encouragement of friends I've never met and instruction from teachers I could never thank. Often, I don't even need to get out of my chair. This man is staring at me all day.

Reverence for a Reverend

Few pastors have so arrested my attention as Wilhelmus à Brakel. He's a man whose name may not be as familiar to us as Calvin or Luther but whose influence in the Second Reformation is nothing short of remarkable. I feel an almost kindred spirit with this stalwart servant, not for his brilliance (which I do not share) but for his pastoral heart, which I covet. I'm drawn to him not for his theological acumen, which is substantial, but for the way he endeavored to weave the rich doctrines of the Scriptures into the fabric of daily Christian living.

The School of Christ: A Life-Long Learner

Born in 1635 in Leeuwarden, Netherlands, Wilhelmus à Brakel undoubtedly inherited a rich theological and experiential heritage from his father Theodorus, a minister of the Word. Like many Dutch fathers before and after him, Brakel honed his theological faculties at Utrecht and Franeker, bastions of Reformed thought in his day. Yet what strikes me most profoundly is his other school. The one not listed but attended all his life. The school of Christ. This is where Brakel shone, and still shines. For Brakel, doctrine was but the compass, while Christ was the journey and destination. He instilled this in every chapter. He demonstrated that head knowledge without heart application was hollow theology, and that orthodoxy and orthopraxy are inseparable twins. To Brakel, theology was the scaffold upon which lived faith was built. You get the sense that to Willhelmus, theology wasn't something so much to be studied as it was to be sung, prayed, and lived. He certainly has taught me that theology, without experience, is like a well never drawn from or a sermon written but never preached.

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Pastoral Tenure and Challenges

When I think about his long pastoral tenure in Rotterdam, I see a man who deftly navigated the roiling waters of a divided State Church and swiftly secularizing society. Amidst all these challenges, à Brakel remained steadfast, committed to upholding the glory of Christ in both doctrine and practice. This, I believe, is what pastoral ministry ought to be—a beacon of truth for the sinner and a wellspring of spiritual nourishment for the flock.

A Magnum Opus

Like many gifted and blessed ministers, Brakel had a magnum opus, "The Christian’s Reasonable Service."

Please, if you do not own this set, purchase it. And after you do, if you read it on Lord's Day evenings with a "bakkie" and a "stroopie" around your fireplace with your family, you will experience what so many of our forbearers did generation after generation, almost sacramentally. It's that good, especially Volume 4. This work alone would suffice to establish him as a pastoral theologian par excellence. What a blend of systematic theology coalescing with warm, pastoral application! Here, one finds no dry, scholastic musings but a feast of rich theological truths applied. The volume stands as a testament to what Reformed theology (when rightly understood and applied) can achieve for the edification of the saints.

Ministering to the Soul's Deepest Needs

à Brakel's pastoral heart shines brightest when dealing with the tender matters of the soul—those places where the rubber of theology meets the rugged, and often winding road of life. He knew that the same doctrines which illuminate the mind must also inflame the heart, else they remain but sterile notions. His work is experiential theology, weaving together the lofty doctrines of God's Word with the day-to-day experiences, trials, and afflictions of God's people.

When addressing the souls struggling with assurance, à Brakel brings to light the promises of the Gospel, urging the faltering heart to fix its gaze upon Christ alone. He echoes the Apostle Paul, who assures us that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39). There's a softness in his tone as he navigates through the struggles of the believer, making it clear that assurance isn't found in one's strength of faith, power of experience, or shifting frames, but in the object of that faith: Christ Himself.

In discussing the Lord's Supper, Brakel opens up the breadth and length and height and depth of Christ's love, inviting all true believers to the table to feast on Christ by faith. He untangles the thoughts that often beset wounded and tried believers: Am I worthy? Do I truly belong? His answers are pastoral and thoroughly biblical, offering comfort and urging self-examination.

As for the maladies of the soul, Brakel could be astonishingly penetrating. He was not one to skim the surface. He probed deeply, identifying the multifaceted ailments that plague the human soul—be it pride, hypocrisy, or lukewarmness—and then, with surgical precision, applied the salve of Scripture. His counsel can both convict and comfort, as it is well grounded in the eternal truths of God's Word.

Brakel's pastoral care had a surgical quality; he could touch the bruise without aggravating the wound, ministering to each unique condition with a scriptural tincture. He stood firmly in the conviction that doctrine and life are inseparable. Thus, the high doctrines of grace were, for him, not mere speculative points of theology, but truths to be lived out, struggles to be engaged with, and victories to be won in the hearts of believers.

Understanding the Heart's Anatomy

Brakel's ministry was marked by a deep understanding of the human condition, matched only by an unwavering commitment to the sufficiency and authority of Scripture. The true marvel of his work lies in its balance—truth and love, doctrine and devotion, scrutiny and sympathy—all carefully measured, faithfully taught, and pastorally applied.

Brakel is a soul doctor. He knows the heart’s anatomy and can touch the bruise with a physician’s trace. You get the impression in reading him that he combed his parish flock, looking over each sheep and lamb with care, discovering their maladies, and prescribing a scriptural blend, an elixir of doctrine and practice to each soul. He dives into the deep recesses of the human heart, sometimes shockingly so, diagnosing spiritual maladies of almost every stripe. He was a shepherd who knew each sheep by name, so to speak, attending to their individual spiritual needs with a pen and pulpit full of discernment and grace.

Legacy and Personal Impact

I don't read Dutch (for that, I’m told I need to wait for heaven), but from listening to others, beyond his writings and sermons, the very manner of his life spoke deeply to his flock. Here was a man who walked closely with his Savior—a man of prayer, devotion, and deep spirituality. His was not a superficial faith but one born from a living relationship with Christ. It was this inner wellspring of spiritual life that fueled Brakel’s pastoral ministry and enabled him to feed his and so many other flocks.

He wasn’t the most handsome of gents, and many a visitor to my study has said so. But his soul was beautiful. I often look up at his portrait, and I shrink in heart. His picture reminds me that my pastoral ministry is a high and holy calling. Too high, too holy, I often feel. And the second thing is that the wages of sin is still death. As Brakel went, so will I go to my long home. So will you. May it be to the same Father’s House as this dear elder brother.

And so, as I hold in my hands the weathered pages of "The Christian’s Reasonable Service," I am touched by, I hope, holy jealousy and deep gratitude for this servant of God who, 320 years later, has shown me and countless others what it means to be a shepherd after Jesus’ own heart. I thank my dear friend Rev. Bartel Elshout for translating his works so beautifully. It is a masterpiece.

But to God alone be the glory.

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The growth of His children is the goal and objective God has in view by administering the means of grace to them. This is also to be observed in 1 Peter 2:2: "as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby". God will reach His goal and His word will not return to Him void; thus God's children will grow in grace. 

It is the duty to which God's children are continually exhorted, and their activity is to consist in a striving for growth. "But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). The nature of this activity is expressed as follows: "Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after" (Phil. 3:12). If it were not necessary for believers to grow the exhortations to that end would be in vain. 

Some remain feeble, having but little life and strength. This can be due to a lack of nourishment, living under a barren ministry, or being without guidance. It can also be that they naturally have a slow mind and a lazy disposition; that they have strong corruptions which draw them away; that they are without much strife; that they are too busy from early morning till late evening, due to heavy labor, or to having a family with many children, and thus must struggle or are poverty-stricken. Furthermore, it can be that they either do not have the opportunity to commune with the godly; that they do not avail themselves of such opportunities; or that they are lazy as far as reading in God's Word and prayer are concerned. Such persons are generally subject to many ups and downs. At one time they lift up their heads out of all their troubles, by renewal becoming serious, and they seek God with their whole heart. It does not take long, however, and they are quickly cast down in despondency - or their lusts gain the upper hand. Thus they remain feeble and are, so to speak, continually on the verge of death. Some of them occasionally make good progress, but then grieve the Spirit of God and backslide rapidly. For some this lasts for a season, after which they are restored, but others are as those who suffer from consumption - they languish until they die. Oh what a sad condition this is!

The Christian’s Reasonable Service. Chapter 89. Spiritual Growth, pg. 140, 142-143

 ― Wilhemus à Brakel, The Christian's Reasonable Service