Once again, don’t run away from this blog post just because it has a
Puritan flavor to it. I mentioned last month that I’ve been running
through John Owen’s Overcoming Sin and Temptation
and trying to distill each chapter to its essence—to a few choice
quotes that capture the flavor of what Owen is trying to communicate. I
recently summarized the first chapter, The Foundation of Mortification and then the second chapter, Daily Put Sin to Death.
Today
I am offering up this short summary of chapter 3, “The Holy Spirit Puts
Sin to Death.” This chapter was often focused rather narrowly on the
Roman Catholic Church, so I passed quickly over those parts (not that
they are any less true today). Here is what Owen says about the work of
the Holy Spirit in mortifying sin.
“The
next principle relates to the great sovereign cause of mortification.
[The Holy Spirit] only is sufficient for this work; all ways and means
without him are as a thing of naught; and he is the great efficient of
it—he works in us as he pleases.”
Other Remedies Are Vain
In
vain do men seek other remedies; they shall not be healed by them. …
The reasons why [some] can never, with all their endeavors, truly
mortify any one sin, among others, are: Keep Reading...
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