John Owen's Indwelling Sin in Believers is a guide
to knowing our enemy, a field-manual for the lifelong war Christ's soldiers must
wage against the sin that remains in them after conversion. Like an experienced
general, Owen sets out the strategy and tactics of indwelling sin with
unrivalled insight and clarity.
Based on Romans 7:21, I find then a law, that, when I
would do good, evil is present with me, Owen's work shows that sin is a
powerful inward law or principle lodged in the heart whose whole nature is
enmity against God. This powerful river, flowing from the Fall, can only be
brought under control by regenerating grace. However, sin's enmity remains in
believers after conversion, and the long war against it is one in which all
Christians must engage.
Though this is a book about sin, it is no less about the
all-sufficient grace of Christ. There is much here to strengthen and comfort the
believer. Owen never lets us think that we must depend on our own unaided
efforts. Nor are we sent to the law for help, since defeating sin is something
the law cannot do. Our victory lies in seeing to it that the springs of grace
remain open, and that communion with God in Christ remains our joy and delight.
This abridgement seeks to make Owen more accessible to
present-day readers, but carefully retains the essence of his thought and as
many as possible of his own expressions. It is a companion volume to The
Mortification of Sin and Temptation Resisted and Repulsed, also
published by the Trust in the same series. |
Cart is empty