Thought I'd rewrite something from some years ago (
riginal also included)
riginal also included)Galatians 5:13
For you have been called to live in freedom,
my brothers and sisters. But don't use your
freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead,
use your freedom to serve one another in love.
For you have been called to live in freedom,
my brothers and sisters. But don't use your
freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead,
use your freedom to serve one another in love.
you try or you fail;
But if you don't try,
faith will not avail.
If you live in freedom,
one thought at a time;
You'll live a life of love,
that'll purify your mind.
If you walk in the light,
As the Lord Jesus is in it;
Your time will be used right,
Your time will be used right,
in God the Holy Spirit.
One choice at a time,
Either you will stand or fall;
So if temptation is ringing,
So if temptation is ringing,
Let faith in Jesus take the call
05/11/2011
p.24
"Be killing sin or it will be killing you."
John Owen, The Works of John Owen, ed. William H. Goold, 24 vols.
(Edinburgh: Johnstone & Hunter, 1850-1855; reprint by Banner of
Truth Trust, 1965, 1991) (hereafter cited as Works), 6:9.
I sometimes think of Dr. John Owen as a perceptive physician who delivers both a terrifiying diagnosis and the means of a miraculous cure.
Kelly M. Kapic (Editor)
INTRODUCTION
25
In 1656 Owen first published Of Mortification of Sin in Believers. In 1658 that volume was slightly revised and another short treatise, Of Temptation: The Nature and Powe of It, was also printed.
Although written a decade later, Owen's explorations on these practical subjects are further unpacked in his book, The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalency of Indwelling Sin (1667).
25-26
[For] Owen, circumstances---wheter amiable or painful---were not an excuse to stop resisting sin. The call of holiness was a call from God himself, and thus not contingent upon the state of affairs in which one finds oneself.
Christians are called to war against sin. According to Owen, this means they are called to learn the art of battle, which includes understanding the nature of sin, the complexity of the human heart, and the goodness and provision of God. Following a classic stream of orthosdox theology, Wern arues that humility is crucial to growth in the Christian life, and proper humility comes from " a due consideration" both of God and of oneself. Only from this perspective can one be in a rith position to approach the call to holiness.
KNOWING YOURSELF
Owen's varied experiences, such as working with students (not to mention faculty) and providing pastoral care, gave him abple opportunity for reflection on the way that sin weaves its way into every aspect of people's lives. Two particulare challenges about human nature that appear in these volumes dererve brief comment: his attempt to present a holistic view of the human person, and his belief that personality differences must be considered when dealing with sin.
Engaging the Whole Person
Contempory readers may at first glance struggle with Owen's detailed parsing of human nature and sin, believing that his reflections are dated and irrelevant. However, upon closer examination the reader may begin to recognize that although Owen does not use current labels, he is dealing with very contemporary issues, such as depression, addiction, apathy, and lust.
One of Owen's concerns was that some people reduced the struggle with sin to a problem centered on the physical body. They had taken the biblical language of the "body of sin" (Rom 6:6, ESV) and inappropritely treated it as a literal reference to physicality. This misunderstanding leads to what Owen consider the monastic "mistake": beliveing that rigid regiments that yield greater physiological control will eventually diminish the sin that lies in a person. For Owen, while his body is important, it is but the instrument for the real problem.
27
Originally humanity was created without sin, and thus their mind rightly reflected on the Creator and his creation, their affections properly loved God, and their will followed after the good. However, with the fall these faculties became disordered. Even after believers are redeemed by God they will continue to struggle with the abiding vestiges of sin that disorient the faculties, a condition that remains throughout their erthly life.
Sin moves by drawing the mind away from God, enticing the affections and twisting desires and paralyzing the willl, thus stunting any real Christian growth. One of the most frightening truths that Owen wants the believer to recognize is that "Your enemy is not only upon you . . . but is in you also."
Part of understanding the battle against sin is seeing that the enemy, so to speak, is not only external, but internal, which s why Christians often have conflictiong desires within them. Most Christians seem unaware of or apathetic about the sin that remains in them, but whether they recognize it or not there is a "living coal continually in their houses," which, if not properly attended to, will catch their home on fire.
28
Healthy affections are crucial to the life of faith, and numbing them cannot be the answer. In Owen's estimation, because the affections are so important to faithful obedience, Scripture often interchanges the language of heart and affections, for here is "the principal thing which God requires in our walking before him. . . . Save all other things and lose the heart and all is lost---lost unto all eternity."
The goal of the Christian life is not external conformity of mindless actin, but a passinate love for God informed by the mind and embraced by the will. So the path forward is not to decrease on's affectins but rather to enlarge them and fill them with "heavenly things." Here one is not trying to escape the painfu realities of this life but rather endeavoring to reframe on's perspective of life around a much larger canvas that encompasses all of reality. To respond to the distorting nature of sin you must set your affections on the beauty and glory of God, the loveliness of Christ, and the wonder of the gospel: "We're our affectins filled, taken up, and possessed with these things . . . what access could sin, with its painted pleasures, with its sugared poisons, with its envenomed baits, have unto our souls?" Resisting sin, according to this Puritan divine, comes not by deadening your affections but by awakening them to God himself. 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.
29
While it is true that all humans are made in God's image, and that everyone is called to resist sin and seek righteousness, these commonalities do not cancel out undeniable particularities. In other words, what does righteousness look like in the lives of concrete individuals? How does sin tempt people in different ways? In many respects Owen's three treatises can be read as early modern attempts to explore human psychology as affected by sin and renewed by the Spirit.
[O] ne reason that Owen consistently call his readers to understand their own temperaments is because this will help them better appreciate how sin and temptation arise in their own lives. He recognizes that some people are by birth and experience "earthy," while others are "naturally gentle," and still others tend to have "passionate" dispositions. The challenge for all is to learn about their own constitution: "He who watches not this thoroughly, who is not exactly skilled in the knowledge of himself, will never be disentangled from one temptation or another all his days."
30-31
According to the Puritan pastor, there is no temperament that is free from temptation, and the trick is to be aware of the threats that are easily overlooked. for example, those who are naturally gentle and pleasant may be surprised to find themselves far down a path that they should have courageously departed from long ago. ... Others who tend toward the "eathy" may rightly uphold what is now commonly called authenticity, but in the process they foster "selfishness" and "harsh thoughts of others."
Past faithfulness is not a protection against present dangers.
In this life there is no escaping the challenges of temptation, and thus all---young and old, pastor and parishioner, poor and rich, wise and simple---must commit themselves to battle against sin. "Be acquainted, then, with thine own heart: though it be deep, search it; though it be dark, inquire into it; though it give all its distempers other names than what are their due, believe it not." Do not justify your own particular sin, but seek to recognize it so that you might fight against it with all you strength. Although sin and temptation affect everyone differently, none can escape the constant onslaught. Christians are called to wage war against this enemy, knowing that there are only two options: "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." While battlefield language may sound extreme to our ears, that is how Owen---following the Bible---conceives of this struggle. With this in mind, the only hope Owen can promise comes not through further self-examination but by embracing the love and provision of God.
31-32
KNOWING YOUR GOD
Owen's goal is not to have people remain focused on their sin but rather to embrace the redemption accomplished in Christ. The aim is not despair but freedom for what Owen often calls "gospel obedience." Obedience rightly understood is always a response to God's love.
A cricial work of the mind in the process of sanctification is the consistent consideration of God and his amazing grace. This does not mean considering God as an abstract metaphysical principle. Rather, the Christian meditates upon him and with him. this distinction makes all the difference, placing the discussion within the framework of relationality; rather than mere rationality. Owen's challenge is most instructive: "when we would undertake thoughts and meditations of God, his excellencies, his properties, his glory, his majesty, his love, his goodness, let it be done in a way of speaking unto God, in a deep humiliation . . . in a way of prayer and praise --- speaking unto God. the invitation here is not to impersonal theological studies but rathr to life-changing encounters with Yahweh.
One of the great promises of God is that he will preserve his people. In fact, the idea of the "perseverance of the saints" is frequently misunderstood, according to Owen, for so often discussion about remaining in the faith focuses on human efforts, as if it is up to us to avoid losing our salvation. In truth, the Christian hope rests not ultimately upon our own diligence, but on God's faithfulness. It is God, not us, who will ultimately persevere, and that is why he is able to promise us eternal life: "where the promise is, there is all this assistance. The faithfulness of the Father, the grace of the Son, and the power of the Spirit, all are engaged in our preservation." Christians can be confident about their growth in sancification and eternal security because they are confident in the God who promises it.
32
Ever deepening communion with God occurs as the Spirit draws us to the Father through the Son. The Father will allow none to be snatched from his hand, the Son incarnate is a truly sympathetic high priest who is the love of our souls, and the Spirit applies the atoning work of Christ to us. Thus, Owen rminds believers to keep these truths in mind as they face tmptation, bringing their "lust to the gospel," lest they lose sight of the sufficient sacrifice and restorative grace found in God's work. "What love, what mercy, what blood, what grace have I despised and trampled on! Is this the return I make to the Father for his love, to the Son for his blood, to the Holy Ghost for his grace?" Notice that the love is preexistent, the blood shed, and the grace extended. The beliver is not working to secure these realities, but seeking to live in light of them. Christians stand in the shadow of the cross, having experienced the tender mercy of God. They aim not to convice God that they are worthy of his love, but to grow in their knowledge and fellowwship with him. It is through this ever-growing communion with the Father, Son, and Spirit that the believer is most able to resist sin and temptation. "Let a soul exercise itself to a communion with Christ in the good things of the gospel--- pardon of sin, fruits of holiness, hope of glory, peace with God, joy in the Holy Ghost, dominion over sin---and he shall have a mighty preservative against all temptations."
33
True and lasting resistance to sin comes not through willpower and self-improvement but through the Spirit who empowers belivers with a knowledge and love of God. Throughout his writings Owen is always quick to highlight the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. Not only does the Spirit of God bring life to those who are dead in sin, thus causing a new birth, but he also continues the work of God in the renewing of that person in the image of Christ. The fundamental difference between Owen's proposal and self-help programs is that he believes that only as the Spirit communicates the grace and love of the Father to us can we experience genuine relief. Mortification of sin is "the gift of Christ" to believers, and this is given by the Spirit of the Son. Efforts apart from the Spirit do not bring sanctification, even if they do produce changed behavior. Although the Spirit oftern uses beneficial activities such as "fasting and watching," rituals and huan effort without the Spirit cannot ultimately brint liberation form sin and temptation.
34
Building on the language and imagery of Colossians 3:9-10, the idea of mortification was understood as a putting off of the "old man," and vivification was conceived as the reality of being made alive by the Spirit. Although the actual language of "vivification" is found less often in Owen than in earlier theologians like John Calvin or the renowned Puritan Thomas Goodwin, the idea is clealy present. These twin ideas of sanctification require not only the shedding of sin but also renewal in grace.
35
[S]anctification involves both putting sin to death and becoming free to love and obey.
CONCLUSION
We have briefly exploed a few themes from Owen's thought that might help prepare readers for what they are about to encounter in his writing on sin, mortification, and temptation.
The goal is not to create romantic views of the past, hoping to usher Christians back to some sort of "pure" seventeenth-century setting. Owen makes it perfectly clear that the power of sin and Satan were just as real then as now. Believers should read Owen not ro return to the past but to gain insight into how they might more faithfully live in the present and prepare for the future.
Culture has changed, but sinful human nature has not. For centures Owen's works have challenged Christians to think afresh about how they face the reality of sin and temptation. Now Owen serves yet another generation of believers, calling us to wake from sleepy and apathetic attitudes toward holiness, demanding that we engage in honest self-reflection. But he doesn't stop there, for he intends to excite in us a renewed sense of the tender mercy of God who delights to commune with his people. Owen's thoughts are before you. You stand at the threshold of Dr. John Owen's office. Will you enter and receive the diagnosis, and stay to hear your cure?
http://www.gnpcb.org/product/1581346492/browse/23#browse
-- "Joe and Deb Pollock" <jfdjp7@cox.net> wrote:
Hi Jeff,
I really like your "In Freedom" poem. Good stuff! How goes it in El Paso land?
Love ya' bro. Joe
From: Jeffrey E. Pollock [mailto:jepollock77@juno.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 12:14 AM
To: eveepollock@aol.com
Subject: IN FREEDOM
Galatians 5:13
For you have been called to live in freedom,
my brothers and sisters. But don't use your
freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead,
use your freedom to serve one another in love.
IN FREEDOM
One day at a time; you try or you fail,
But if you don't try, faith will not avail.
If you live in freedom, one thought at a time,
You'll live a life of love, that'll purify your mind.
If you walk in the light, as the Lord Jesus is in it,
Your time will be used right, in God the Holy Spirit.
One choice at a time; you will either stand or you fall,
So if temptation is ringing, let your faith take the call.
JEFFREE!
12/04/06
CHRISTIAN PERFECTION
Not as though I had already attained, either were
already perfect... .
Philippians 3:1
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=php+3:1&sr=1
It is a snare to imagine that God wants to make us perfect
specimens of what He can do; God's purpose is to make us
one with Himself. The emphasis of holiness movements is apt
to be that God is producing specimens of holiness to put in His
museum. If you go off on this idea of personal holiness, the
dead-set of your lift will not be for God, but for what you call the
manifestation of God in your life. "It can never be God's that I
should be sick." If it was God's will to bruise His own Son, why
should He not bruise you? The thing that tells for God is not
your relevant consistency to an idea of what a saint should be,
but your real vital relation to Jesus Christ, and your abandonment
to Him whether you are well or ill.
Christian perfection is not, and never can be, human perfection.
Christian perfection is the perfection of a relationship to God
which shows itself amid the irrelevancies of human life. When
you obey the call of Jesus Christ, the first thing that strikes you
is the irrelevancy of the things you have to do, and the next thing
that strikes you is the fact that other people seem to be living
perfectly consistent lives.
Such lives are apt to leave you with the idea that God is unnec-
essary, by human effort and devotion we can reach the standard
God wants. In a fallen world this can never be done. I am called
to live in perfect relation to God son that my life produces a
longing after God in other lives, not admiration for myself.
Thoughts about myself hinder my usefulness to God. God is
not after perfecting me to be a specimen in His show-room; He
is getting me to the place where He can use me. Let Him do
what He likes.
MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST - Oswald Chambers
Please note: forwarded message attached
From: "Jeffrey E. Pollock" <jepollock77@juno.com>
To: jfdjp7@cox.net
Cc: jepollock77@juno.com
Subject: RE: IN FREEDOM
Date: Fri, 8 Dec 2006 07:17:54 GMT
Hi Jeff,
I really like your "In Freedom" poem. Good stuff! How goes it in El Paso land?
Love ya' bro. Joe
From: Jeffrey E. Pollock [mailto:jepollock77@juno.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 12:14 AM
To: eveepollock@aol.com
Subject: IN FREEDOM
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 12:14 AM
To: eveepollock@aol.com
Subject: IN FREEDOM
|
