The Mystery of Providence

The Mystery of Providence 

John Flavel, 1678

The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006


John Flavel was a Puritan minister and author.  He lived and preached during times that were very difficult for non-conformists.   If you enjoy history you may enjoy reading about his life.

I had bought this book a few years ago but never got around to reading it, until this summer when Tim Challies invited his readers to a read-along of this book, and I started it then. 

 This is a book that I can't recommend to all - at least not to everyone, in all stages of life.   Although his ideas are Biblical and I think what he says is very good, the way he says it is very wordy, compared even to the other Puritans I've read (which admittedly are only a few).   You need some good uninterrupted chunks of time to read this book and the ability to read very long sentences and to follow long logical thoughts.  I do wish I had kept notes instead of just highlighting throughout the book, but I didn't know I was going to try writing out reviews when I started it.  

Flavel divides the book into three parts.

Part one is about the evidence of Providence.  He urges us to look around us, and to look back on our lives, to recognise God's hand upon us, in giving us life, in giving us our families and work, and in converting us.   He also teaches us how active God is in preserving His people from evil, either keeping them safe physically or preventing them from doing evil, and also in sanctifying His people, by working both inwardly by the Spirit and by acts of Providence.   In my Christian life I've noticed some people denying God's working, almost like they believe in coincidence, and who discouraged me from thinking God was behind various things, and this section was a good remedy for that sort of thought and habit. 

I really liked what he said about conversions at different ages.  So many people who come to Christ at a young age can later worry about the fact that they don't remember exactly when or how they came to faith.  Flavel writes:

Conversion, as to the subjects of it, may be considered two ways; either as it is more clearly wrought in persons of riper years, who in their youthful days were more profane and vile; or upon persons in their tender years, into whose hearts grace was more imperceptibly and indiscernibly instilled by God's blessing upon pious education.  In the former sort, the distinct acts of the Spirit, illuminating, convincing, humbling, drawing them to Christ and sealing them are more evident and discernible.  In the latter, these are more obscure and confused.  They can remember that God gave them an esteem and liking of godly persons, care of duty and conscience of sin; but as to the time, place, instruments and manner of the work, they can give but a slender account of them.   However, if the work is savingly wrought in them, there is no reason they should be troubled because the circumstances of it are not so evident to them as they are to others.  Let the substance and reality of the work appear and there is no reason to afflict yourselves because of the lack of evidence of such circumstances.  p 61


The second part is about meditating on the Providence of God.   Flavel points out our duty of meditating on God's Providence,  reminding us from the Scriptures that God commanded His people to remember His works, and that the neglect of this is condemned as a sin.   We cannot thank God properly, if we do not observe the works of Providence, and we lose the benefits of His works (remembering His past providences to us strengthens our faith in the tough times that will come later).  He tells us how we should meditate and tells us of the advantages of doing so.

A great part of the pleasure and delight of the Christian life is made out of the observations of Providence. 'The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein' (Psalm 111:2).  p 147


 The last part is about applying the doctrine of Providence.   He deals with practical implications, and some practical problems (how can I know what God's will is when everything seems so dark in my life, for example) and finishes with telling us why it's such a good idea to record our experiences  of Providence.  Not only does doing so help our memories, but our recordings can be a blessing to other people and help them too.   I don't have a lot of big dramatic examples (although I do have one fairly big one), but a fair few smaller ones, still encouraging, and I'm sure there are lots of things I have forgotten.  It's never too late to start, though, so I do hope to get to writing one very soon.  Just last night my error in not returning my set of chapel keys to their normal place in my home, turned out to be a blessing as my friend had not picked up the right set of keys before picking me up for music practice, and my having the keys meant we didn't have to turn around and go all the way back 4 miles to get them.    A small thing indeed (but it showed that even our mistakes, which we know are in God's hands, can be used later for good), but wouldn't it be good to have a whole book of them?  To see tracings of God's hands throughout our lives must surely be at least a little encouraging to ourselves and our families and friends.   I think that for me, that the big ideas I have taken away - for this reading of Flavel's book, anyway - is to recognise God's working in our lives, and to write down such occasions!

          Every man loves the mercies of God, but a saint loves the God of his mercies.  John Flavel

(Thanks to my son for helping me proofread.)