The Bruised Reed by Richard Sibbes (A Guest Post by Cat Caird) | Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Richard Sibbes once said to Thomas Goodwin – “Young man, if ever you would do good, you must preach the Gospel and the free grace of God in Christ Jesus”. This is something I need to hear in my Christian walk, as a wife, in my job and as a member of the local church and this is exactly what the “Bruised Reed” by Sibbes did for me. It preached to me the Gospel and the free Grace of God. It reminded me of the beauty of Christ and the joy of knowing the Lord.

And I needed this because when I picked up this book, I was downcast, doubting and unsure in my Christian walk. I was not in a season of well-being. However as I picked it up and opened its pages and read the words of Christ’s gentle love for me, it reminded my heart of what a wonderful God we have and how he can soothe our soul. It was like a fire being held to my heart, melting away the aches, the ice and the hardness, and replacing it with Christ’s comfort and tender love which I felt I needed. This is probably one of my favourite book recommendations for anyone who is in a season of heartache, discouragement, tiredness or darkness. The reason I like it is that it doesn’t shout rebuke and it doesn’t make you feel guilty, but it brings you to Christ, our refuge, which is where we all need to go

Martyn Lloyd-Jones said that this book was “balm to my soul” at a time in his life when he was tired and downhearted. When we face a Psalm 42 season, it’s easy to look inwards and let sin and self-pity spiral out of control. But when we look outwards and towards the glory of Jesus Christ, then His words and Grace will certainly be a balm to our souls. This was what Sibbes was doing, by showing us that as bruised reeds, Christ will not break us but he will restore us and he will not allow us to wallow in self pity but he will win our gaze to him. 


Equally when we are a smoking flax, with hardly a flame, he will not put us out and deem us as worthless (as perhaps we ourselves, or other Christians would), but he deals gently with us and soon restores the flame as he warms our hearts. So, right now, no matter where you are spiritually and emotionally, you need to hear the Gospel, and so I would recommend you reading this book and let the Gospel minister to you, enjoy its rich imagery and let the love of Christ be a balm to your soul!

     He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,
        or make it heard in the street;
     a bruised reed he will not break,
        and a faintly burning wick he will not quench;
        he will faithfully bring forth justice.
                                                              (Isaiah 42:2-3 ESV)

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Cat Caird

Cat Caird is married and works as a Staff Worker with UCCF. She blogs at Sunshine Lenses.

Thank you, Cat!!