A Fight Worth Picking (Week 5)

The following blog entry is part 5 in a series of blog posts entitled “A Fight Worth Picking,” in which I’m writing about John’s Owen’s Biblical principles for fighting sin in ‘The Mortification of Sin.’  I’ll be referencing Banner of Truth’s 2004 edition, abridged by Richard Rushing.

(If you’d like a detailed outline of Owen’s work, click here.)

John Owen lays out 2 general directions (or rules) and 11 particular directions for mortifying sin.  This week, we’ll look at his 2 general directions.

The first rule – become a Christian.  Mortifying sin is impossible for someone who is not a Christian.  To clarify, a Christian is someone who is devoted to Jesus as his highest King, Savior, and Treasure.  Jesus alone saves me (Savior); Jesus alone rules over me (King); and Jesus alone is the greatest source of my joy (Treasure).  I’m guessing if you’re reading a blog about ‘fighting sin’ you consider yourself a Christian.  But, as Owen would say, make sure.

Is Jesus your King, Savior, and Treasure?  Remember, the validity of your Christianity does not hang on what you do, but on whom you worship.  You’re not a Christian because you’re a good person, you go to church, you like Michael W. Smith, you pray before you eat, you raise your hands in worship, you tithe, you lead Bible studies, you dress modestly, you home-school your children, you only watch PBS (except for specials on evolution), you say ‘God bless you,’ you don’t smoke, drink, or cuss.  The validity of your Christianity hangs on whether or not Jesus is the center of your universe.  Is He the one you submit to?  Is He the one you rest in?  Is He the one you delight in?  Don’t answer quickly.  If you try to fight sin without Jesus you’ll either fail and be devastated or you’ll seemingly succeed and exalt yourself.  Simply put, God does not refine silver (unbelievers), but only gold (believers).

Jeremiah 6:29-30

The bellows blow fiercely; the lead is consumed by the fire;
in vain the refining goes on, for the wicked are not removed.
30 Rejected silver they are called, for the LORD has rejected them."

The second rule – hate all sin.  Do you see all your sin (from minute to massive) as offensive to God and in need of mortification?  Or are you only concerned with those sins that cause you heartache, embarrassment, or shame? 

“We must hate all sin, as sin, and not just that which troubles us.  Love for Christ, because He went to the cross, and hate for sin that sent Him there, is the solid foundation for true spiritual mortification.  To seek mortification only because a sin troubles us proceeds from self-love.” (page 50)

Many are content to leave private sin alone while they invest passion in purging public sin that causes great humiliation.  We must understand that God is equally grieved over our quietest sin.  Sins such as white lies, common gossip, complaining, meddling, and private gluttony all served to further excruciate Christ on the cross.

2 Corinthians 7:1

Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

Brothers and sisters, let us love only Jesus and hate every sin.

A Fight Worth Picking (Week 4)

The following blog entry is part 4 in a series of blog posts entitled “A Fight Worth Picking,” in which I’m writing about John’s Owen’s Biblical principles for fighting sin in ‘The Mortification of Sin.’  I’ll be referencing Banner of Truth’s 2004 edition, abridged by Richard Rushing.

(If you’d like a detailed outline of Owen’s work, click here.)

So what is the mortification of sin?  For the first 5 chapters, John Owen has offered general principles and negative definitions, but now he sets out to actually define the necessary work ahead.  It’s three things:

1. A habitual weakening of the lust (or sinful desire).
2. A constant fight and contention against sin.
3. A degree of success in the battle.

So the mortification of sin is a deep, constant, and fruitful battle.  First, it’s a deep battle.  Slapping ourselves on the wrist or simply taking a cursory look at our sin won’t cut it.  If our sin is going to be mortified, it will involve a scalpel and a magnifying glass.  We’ll have to discover our deep sinful desires and deal with them aggressively.  (Romans 13:14; 1 Peter 2:11; Galatians 5:24)

“[Some men] set themselves with all earnestness and diligence against the breaking out of a lust, but they leave the principle and root untouched.  They will make little or no progress in this work of true mortification.” (page 36).

Second, true mortification takes no holidays.  This deep battle is constant.  So it will be an exhausting war that will require strength from God.  (Colossians 3:5; Psalm 40:12)

Third, if we’re truly mortifying our sin, we will experience victory.  We won’t be “spinning our wheels;” but rather, we’ll be bearing fruit.  To be sure, the war won’t end until we are with Jesus in heaven.  But until then, battles can be won.  We may end up bloody and bruised, but we mustn’t raise a white flag.

Remember, a battle begins with temptation and our sinful desire.  And a battle is won when we resist temptation, stand firm, and find our satisfaction in Jesus – not the luring sin. (1 Corinthains 10:13)

Understanding these principles, in Owen’s opinion, is an essential foundation to fighting sin.  So girded with these truths we’ll look next week to engage the battle.

A Fight Worth Picking (Week 3)

The following blog entry is part 3 in a series of blog posts entitled “A Fight Worth Picking,” in which I’m writing about John’s Owen’s Biblical principles for fighting sin in ‘The Mortification of Sin.’  I’ll be referencing Banner of Truth’s 2004 edition, abridged by Richard Rushing.

(If you’d like a detailed outline of Owen’s work, click here.)

In March of 2000 I became a youth pastor.  No longer was I a bush league college-student-volunteer.  I was a bona fide, getting paid, name on a door, business card youth pastor.  Bam.  That said, the job was not what I expected.  I was looking forward to eating red vines, playing games, going to concerts, sleeping in, and other various ministries.  But this job required much more thinking and standing than I anticipated.  Consequently, my misconceptions led to some early frustrations.

When it comes to the mortification of sin, there are many misconceptions that, if left uncorrected, will lead to frustration.  Owen lists five things mortification is not:

1.     Mortifying sin is not rooting it out and destroying it.  If we think that we’re embarking on a process that is going to destroy our sin and leave us spotless (in this lifetime) we’re setting ourselves up for disappointment.  Even Paul admits in Philippians 3:12 that he is not yet perfect and is pressing on.  Mortification is not a quick-fix.

2.     Mortifying sin is not changing the outward aspects of a sin.  The jealous husband who brags that he has mortified his anger while he sips his fifth glass of Johnny Walker has not actually mortified his sin.  He has merely exchanged outbursts of anger for excessive alcohol consumption (also a sin).  Only the outward aspects of the jealousy have thus been changed, and that is not true mortification.

3.     Mortifying sin is not just improving our outward behavior or nature.  Mortifying sin goes after the root of our sinfulness, not just the fruit.  It’s one thing to change the way we act in public and look less sinful.  It’s another to change the way we are in private and mortify our sin.  Besides, as Owen points out, some people naturally “appear” less sinful - they are quiet and nice and Fireproofy.  (But inside they may be a sinful mess)...

“Someone may not have so much trouble all his life, perhaps with anger and passion, as others, and yet not advance as far in true mortification.  Our natural tempers are not a good test for true mortification.  Let those with gentle natural temperaments consider the need for self-denial, or such spiritual sins as unbelief and envy, to get a better view of their true selves” (page 28).

4.     Mortifying sin is not merely diverting sin, or exchanging one sin for another.  Owen points out that “Simon Magus left his sorceries for a while, but then he turned to covetousness and ambition (Acts 8)” (page 28).   

5.     Mortifying sin is not temporary holiness following a great conviction or affliction.  A good stretch of holiness after re-dedicating our life at junior high camp (conviction), or a good stretch of holiness after a painful season of life (affliction) is not necessarily the mortification of our sin.  The book of Judges is full of this – People who were convicted and afflicted who then seemingly turned to God and away from their sin.  But in the end, it proved temporary.  Psalm 78:32-37 describes this:

Psalm 78:32-37

In spite of all this, they still sinned;
despite his wonders, they did not believe.
33So he made their days vanish like a breath,
and their years in terror.
34When he killed them, they sought him; they repented and sought God earnestly.
35They remembered that God was their rock,
the Most High God their redeemer.
36But they flattered him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues.
37Their heart was not steadfast toward him; they were not faithful to his covenant.

So, in fighting our sin, we must first throw out these misconceptions.