Mortification of Sin: In Modern English

by John Owen

A significant part of our warfare is: to set the wisdom of the Spirit against the cunning of the old self; to follow this serpent through all its twists and turns; to be able to say, at its most secret and (to an ordinary state of mind) imperceptible actions: "This is your old...

For example, when we recognize sin at work in our lives, we should bring it to the law of God and the love of Christ, condemn it, and pursue it until it's completely defeated.

First, the foundation of mortification lies in weakening sin's internal influence, which tempts, entices, and pushes us towards evil, while rebelling and fighting against God.

This is achieved by establishing and nurturing a principle of grace that directly opposes and destroys sin.

Overcoming sin is the work of believers, as seen in Romans 8:13 and Colossians 3:5.

They try to overcome sin but don't achieve it because they rely on their own efforts instead of faith.

People can try to refine brass and iron for a very long time, but they'll never become good silver!

So, I'm saying that self-improvement

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even though they see that they lose ground against their sins one day and regain it the next, they continue down the same path without questioning what's holding them back.

When the Jews, convicted of their sins, were deeply troubled and cried out, "What shall we do?" (Acts 2:37), how does Peter guide them? Does he tell them to go and improve their pride, anger, malice, cruelty, and so on? No, he knows that's not their main task right now. Instead, he calls them to conversion and faith in Christ in general (v. 38). First, let the soul be fully converted, and then, looking "on him whom they pierced" (John 19:37), humility and self-improvement will follow.

It's inevitable that every tree will produce fruit according to its nature.

He tells us, "Make the tree good, and its fruit [will be] good" (Matthew 12:33). The root must be dealt with, the nature of the tree changed, or no good fruit will be produced.

When an unbeliever focuses on improving their flaws, their mind and soul are occupied with something that isn't their main concern, and they are diverted from what truly matters.

The task is to awaken the whole person to the state and condition they are in so that they can be brought closer to God. But instead, they focus on improving the sin that troubles them, which is a result of self-love and wanting to be free from their problems, rather than addressing the work they are called to do. In doing so, they are diverted from it. This is one of the most common deceptions that lead people to ruin their own souls.

It is faith that purifies the heart (Acts 15:9); or, as Peter says, "you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit" (1 Peter 1:22). And without faith, it won't be done.

unregenerate

If the Word is preached, people's sins will be rebuked, lust will be restrained, and some opposition will be made against sin, even if that is not the intended effect.

Let people know that it is their duty, but in its proper place. I don't take people away from mortification, but direct them towards conversion. A person is not an enemy if they call someone away from fixing a hole in their house's wall to put out a fire that is consuming the whole building.

It's not enough to simply stop someone from being a drunkard and turn them into a sober formalist. A skilled preacher goes to the root of the problem and addresses the heart (Ecc 12:11).

Breaking people away from specific sins without breaking their hearts deprives us of opportunities to truly help them.

Some advisors among us also overlook the necessity of regeneration and confidently tell everyone who complains of any sin or lust to make a vow against it for a certain period, like a month. These people seem to have very little understanding of the gospel's mystery, similar to Nicodemus when he first came to Christ (John 3). They tell people to vow to abstain from their sin for a while, which often makes the lust even stronger. They might keep their vow, but with great difficulty, or they might break it, increasing their guilt and torment. Does this really mortify their sin? Do they conquer it? Does their condition change, even if they manage to give up the sin? Aren't they still in a bitter state? Isn't this like asking people to make bricks without straw or, worse, without strength (Ex 5:7)? What promise or assistance does an unregenerate person have for this work? Can sin be killed without a connection to Christ's death or mortified without the Spirit? Even if such directions could change people's lives, which they rarely do, they don't change their hearts or conditions. They might make people self-righteous or hypocritical, but not true Christians.

Without sincerity and diligence in obeying all aspects of our faith, we cannot overcome any specific troubling sin.

They cannot bear it, so they set themselves against it, pray against it, groan under it, and sigh to be delivered. But at the same time, in other duties - in constant communion with God; in reading, prayer, and meditation; in other ways that are not of the same kind as the sin they are troubled with - they are careless and negligent. That person should not expect to ever overcome the sin they are struggling with.

hatred of sin as sin (not only as troubling or distressing) and a sense of the love of Christ on the cross are the basis of all true spiritual overcoming of sin.

These are no less sins and evils than those you are groaning under. Jesus Christ bled for them as well. Why do you not set yourself against them as well?

If you hate sin as sin, every evil way, you would be no less watchful against everything that grieves and distresses the Spirit of God than against that which grieves and distresses your own soul.

It is clear that you fight against sin only because of your own trouble caused by it. If your conscience were quiet under it, you would leave it alone. If it did not ...

Do you think He will ease you of that which troubles you, so that you may be free to do that which no less grieves Him? No.

Instead, God says, "Here is one who, if they could be rid of this sin, I would never hear of them again. Let them wrestle with this, or they are lost."

Let no one think they can do their own work with...

God's work consists of universa...

How do you know that God has allowed the sin you are struggling with to gain strength in you and power over you in order to chasten you for your other negligence and general lukewarmness in walking before Him - at least to awaken you to the consideration of your ways, so that you may make a thorough change in your course of walking with Him? The rage and dominance of a particular sin is often the result of a careless, negligent course in general, and that for two reasons.

God often allows one sin to break out in order to chasten our negligence.

He may, He does, leave them sometimes to some distressing condition, either to prevent or cure some other evil. So was the messenger of Satan let loose on Paul so that he might not be lifted up through the abundance of spiritual revelations (2Co 12:7). Was it not a correction to Peter's vain confidence that he was left to deny his Master?