Last Sunday I shared a sermon from Luke 4:1-13 which covers the temptation of Christ in the wilderness. As part of my study I read through John Owen’s Overcoming Sin and Temptation, which comprises several separate books written by Owen many years ago. Though I wasn’t able to incorporate much of it into my sermon I found his pointedness about temptation and its push toward sinfulness to be especially convicting and helpful.
His framework became the backdrop I used for approaching the subject as a whole, even though I didn’t share much from his work. Here are a few quotes that stood out to me:
“It is to be feared that very many Christians have little knowledge of the main enemy that they carry about with them in their hearts.”
“Mortification of sin by self-strength, carried on by ways of self-discipline, unto the end of self-righteousness, is the soul and substance of all false religion in the world.”
“To kill sin is the work of living men; where men are dead, sin is alive, and will live.”
“Be killing sin, or it will be killing you.”
“Do not seek to empty your cup as a way to avoid sin, but rather seek to fill it up with the Spirit of life, so there is no longer room for sin.”
“Mortification of sin by self-strength, carried on by ways of self-discipline, unto the end of self-righteousness, is the soul and substance of all false religion in the world.”
Though pieces of this wonderful book were difficult to understand and work through, overall all Christians would be better for understanding what Owen highlights about temptation and sin.
