Jeremiah Dennis Preaching on Battling Lust

Book Review: The Complete Works of John Owen (Volume 15): Sin and Temptation

John Owen is done some great work on addressing the issues of sin and temptation. He is known for the phrase, "Be killing sin or sin be killing you." 

Granted most people who have read from John Owen has read the Puritan paperbacks which are great works of literature and would recommend them to anyone. Crossway is releasing the Complete Works of John Owen which is more detailed than what has been released in the Puritan paperbacks. 

In the latest released volume, Sin and Temptation, we see Owen's works on the Mortification of Sin, which addresses the Biblical foundations for mortification, what exactly is mortification and what it is not, and examining the symptoms of lust. 

Next, we look at Owen's work regarding Temptation. Owen addresses the nature of temptation, what entering into temptation is and not, and the duty of all believers not entering into temptation. Owen gives practical advice for his readers on how to deal with temptation which, as Owen puts it, is the duty for all Christians. We are not to fall into temptation. Thankfully, we do have a remedy when we do and that is confess our sins to God.

Next, we look oat Owen's work in dealing with indwelling sin. He begins by addressing the foundational passage for indwelling sin, Romans 7:21, which says "I find then the principle that in me evil is present—in me who wants to do good" (LSB). Owen writes about indwelling sin being a law, the natural properties of indwelling sin, fighting indwelling sin's deceit with the mind, and more. 

The final work in this volume is Owen's "Treatise of the Dominion of Sin and Grace." Owen addresses what exactly is the dominion of sin, does sin have dominion over Christians, and the sign of sin's dominion which is the hardness of heart. 

This is the fifth volume of John Owen's complete works that has been released, and I would have to say it is the most important so far. Christians need to be aware of sin and how it works. Owen does a great job applying the Bible to our fight with sin and temptation.

I received this book from Crossway in exchange for an honest review.

Jonny Ardavanis on Fighting Sin and Temptation

In this video, Jonny Ardavanis and Hank Bowen discuss practical to combat sin and temptation. 

A Prayer When Dealing With Temptation

Grant, Almighty God, that since Satan at this day sets against us many terrors to cast us down, and we are very weak— O grant that with our eyes lifted above we may meditate on that invincible power which you possess, and by which you can overcome all the hindrances of this world, and then, when nothing in this world but what is contemptible appears to be capable of confirming and supporting our faith, may we, nevertheless, by the eyes of faith, behold your hidden power and never doubt that you will at length perform what the world at this day thinks to be impossible, and therefore ridicules; and may we so constantly persevere in this confidence that every one of us may devote to you his labor to the end, and never faint in the work of promoting the spiritual building, until at length we ourselves shall be assembled, and others also shall be gathered through our labors, to offer to you not only spiritual sacrifices such as you receive now from us, but also to offer to you, together with the angels, that eternal sacrifice of praise and triumphant thanksgiving on seeing perfected what at this day is only feebly begun.

John Calvin

Adapted from the ESV Prayer Bible

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The Strategies of Sexual Temptation

The following is adapted from Proverbs: Wisdom That Works by Ray Ortlund:

My son, keep my words
and treasure up my commandments with you;
keep my commandments and live;
keep my teaching as the apple of your eye;
bind them on your fingers;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call insight your intimate friend,
to keep you from the forbidden woman,
from the adulteress with her smooth words. (Proverbs 7:1-5)

This is Old Testament language for what the New Testament calls being born again of the Holy Spirit (John 3:1-9). Something deep inside us changes. We start treasuring God’s commands from the heart. We experience the gospel as an intimate friend. We are not ourselves geniuses. We are just saying to God’s wisdom, “I want you more than I want any woman or man.” Here is why we all need God to give us new hearts like that. Look at the kind of world we are living in:

For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness. (Proverbs 7:6-9)

The father saw something. He wants his teenage son to see it too, so he can walk into adulthood fully alert. The father tells us three things about the strategies of sexual temptation: the approach of temptation (vv. 6-13), the speech of temptation (vv. 14-20), and the impact of giving in to temptation (vv. 21-27).

Who is involved? The man, in this case, is one of “the simple.” We have seen the simple before (Proverbs 1:4, 22). A simple person, a petî—related to the Hebrew verb meaning “to be open”—this person is keeping his options open, uncommitted, still “exploring life,” we might say. So this particular simpleton is feeling restless early one evening and takes a walk. He is curious. He has heard about a certain part of town—or certain sites on the Internet. So there he goes, probably thinking, “I can handle this. I’m strong. And I need to see these things for myself anyway.”

And behold, the woman meets him,
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.
She is loud and wayward;
her feet do not stay at home;
now in the street, now in the market,
and at every corner she lies in wait. (Proverbs 7:10-12)

“Wily of heart” means, literally, “guarded of heart.” She is unguarded in her dress, revealing much. But she is guarded in her heart, revealing nothing. There are men and women who do not know what a relationship is. They have never experienced it. They can role-play a relationship, but they do not give their hearts away. Sex they give, but themselves they guard. This young guy has no idea what he is walking into.

She seizes him and kisses him,
and with bold face she says to him,
“I had to offer sacrifices,
and today I have paid my vows;
so now I have come out to meet you,
to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.” (Proverbs 7:13-15)

Back in those times, religious sacrifices could include a meal from the meat of the animal sacrificed. Eating meat was a luxury anyway. So here the woman is saying, “Not only am I caught up on my religion, but I also have a feast of extra-special food waiting at home. It’s a special occasion, like Prom Night or Mardi Gras. Come on, everybody needs a break. And you’re the one I want to share all this with.”

“I have spread my couch with coverings,
colored linens from Egyptian linen;
I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.” (Proverbs 7:16, 17)

Only the rich owned furniture in their homes back in this world. So this guy thinks he is hitting the jackpot. A beautiful woman, a great feast, a luxurious setting, exotic experiences are all just waiting for him.

“Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;

let us delight ourselves with love.” (Proverbs 7:18)

The Hebrew here could be paraphrased and expanded, “Come, let’s saturate ourselves with love-making in all its forms; let’s enjoy ourselves with every act, all night long, slowly passing the night, no hurry.” But as one commentator points out,

To have a full sexual relationship with somebody is to give physical expression to what is meant to be a covenanted relationship—that is, stable, faithful, permanent. To say physically, “I am giving myself to you,” while emotionally and spiritually holding back from covenanted commitment is in fact to live a lie—a split in the personality which is ultimately stressful and destructive.

“For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey;
he took a bag of money with him;
at full moon he will come home.” (Proverbs 7:19, 20)

“Nobody will ever know” is the temptation. But if she is willing to betray her husband, why does Mr. Dimwit think she will be fair to him? The offer of sin-with-no-regret is how Satan lied to us in the Garden of Eden. When (not if) a man or woman tempts you with the assurance that no one will ever know, that person is really saying to you, “God does not exist.”

But this young man, on an impulse, falls for the temptation: “All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter” (v. 22). Why like a dumb ox? Because “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). They just are. We cannot change that by any amount of wishful thinking. We must not think, “What happens down in Mexico stays in Mexico.” It doesn’t. But by the time this young man feels the impact, it will be too late.

He is not the only one. History is like a battlefield, with casualties of sexual folly lying everywhere: “Many a victim has she laid low, and all her slain are a mighty throng” (v. 26). It is no accident that Babylon’s most important female deity, Ishtar, was the goddess of love and war, because in this world of folly, sex and violence have long gone together. But Ishtar is a powerful goddess. In our modern world, studies now show that pornography rewires our brains with addictive power, taking us prisoner. But we can be wired back for intimacy with God and real relationships with others through God’s redeeming love.

It is not enough for us to know how foolish we have been. We also need to know how good it is really to be loved. Maybe you have noticed that something is missing from this entire passage here in Proverbs. The word “God” appears nowhere in this text. But elsewhere in the Bible we find out how good it is to be loved by God.

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Book Review: Overcoming Sin and Temptation by John Owen

If I had to pick one Puritan to read for the read of my life, it would be John Owen. I love the depth he communicates in his writings and his passion for the gospel. His teachings on holiness and the mortification of the flesh is much needed in our day and age.

Crossway has produced a book, which contains three of Owen's classic works, The Mortification of Sin, Temptation, and Indwelling Sin in Believers, called Overcoming Sin and Temptation which was edited by Justin Taylor and Kelly M Kapic with John Piper writing the Forward for the book.

According to Justin Taylor, the goal of this book was to "reintroduce John Owen to the church today." One of the biggest complaints about Owen is that he can be hard to read, which the same can be said about a lot of the Puritans. This book takes the books I mentioned above, and make it where it is easier to understand so people in the 21st century can read it.

In dealing with the mortification of sin, Owen writes why is it important along with the nature and means of mortification. In temptation, Owen addresses the dangers regarding temptation and how a believer can overcome it. Owen talks about the power of indwelling sin in the life of a believer and what we do to fight it. All of these issues are important for every Christian and for the last 2,000 years since Jesus was on earth.

It is always a good thing for Christians to read works from those who have gone before us such as Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Watson, and even John Owen. Sometimes I find myself a little envious because they had a greater view of God than I ever will and did not have the distractions of 21st century life so they can see the greatest of God in the Bible.

Fans of John Owen will love this book. If you have never read anything by John Owen, this will be a great place to start.

Thanks Crossway for letting me review this book.

Is It Necessary For Temptations To Come?

Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! (Matthew 18:7)

It is necessary for temptations to come. What was Jesus thinking? Did Matthew misunderstood Jesus? This is one of those statements Jesus made that just make you scratch your head. What Jesus mean by this?

Before we being to think that God brings temptation, remember that "God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire" (James 1:13-14). So God is not the one bringing the temptation. Paul wrote, "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13). Temptation comes to what is common to man and God is the one who will provide a means for us to escape temptation.

This was a tough verse to figure out. One thing about the Bible you have to remember is context. Jesus in the verse prior to this verse talked about humbling ourselves like a child to enter the kingdom of heaven. The verses following, talk about cutting off (using metaphorical terms) what causes you to sin. Yet Jesus is saying, Woe to those who suffers from temptation which is all of us. He also said it is necessary that temptations do come. Why? What was he trying to say?

I searched through every commentary I can think of trying to see if a man, smarter than me figured it out. There was none. I looked through four study Bible. None. So I had to think about why temptations are necessary. I know it does not mean God endorses the sin that is tempting us nor He is the one doing the tempting. So here are practical reasons why temptations are necessary:

First, when temptations come, our response should be from the word of God. Just like Jesus did when he was tempted forty days and nights, He used the word of God to combat temptation.

Second, when temptations come, we can look to Jesus. The book of Hebrews reminds us twice that Jesus was tempted as we are yet did not sin. Hebrews also tells us, "let us...lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-2. We have hope in temptation because Jesus was tempted and can help us when being tempted and we can look to Him who endured temptation.

Third, when temptations come, it tests our conformity. Are you conforming to the world or to the likeness of Christ. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." The world will tell us to embrace temptation because it feels right and good. The Spirit will tell us not to because of the work He has done in us and it is not the will of God. When temptations come, we test it to see if it is from God or not. This is where scripture memorization comes into play because the Spirit will remind us of what Jesus has taught us through the pages of the Bible which leads us to conforming to the likeness of Christ.

Finally, when temptations come, it exposes our idols. John Calvin said, "The human heart is an idol factory." Our hearts have so many idols that we are not even aware of what they are. When temptations come, they are exposed. Like when you are in buffet, your idol could be food because you are tempted to get that third plate of eggrolls even though you have had two already. That leads to gluttony where your idol is food. Ever been tempted to lash out at other drivers during rush hour. Your idol is anger. Our temptations come from the idols of our hearts. Sometimes we are aware of what sins we struggle with and other times we are not. This is where we need to pray like the psalmist, "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24).

If you fall into temptation, remember Jesus can cleanse you from your sin: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 1:9-2:2).

Know Your Sin

John Owen once said that a believer who knows his sin is a solid, useful believer. Derek Thomas also said that sin will creep it's unwelcome head anywhere at anytime. The Bible tells us that no temptation has come on us expect what is common to man (1 Corinthians 10:13). Even Jesus was tempted yet was without sin. Every Christian has their own sin and temptations. The question is, do you know your sin? Do you know what triggers it? Jonathan Dodson, in his book, Gospel-Centered Discipleship, addresses the issue of knowing our sin by helping us ask three questions when it comes to our sin: What, When, and Why?

What: "Before you can fight your sin, we must know what sins are currently present in our lives. An unknown opponent is difficult to defeat. Knowing sin requires familiarity with our particular temptations, areas where we are prone to sin."

When: "When are tempted to sin? If we don't think about the when, sin will sneak up on us. Consider the circumstances that surround your sin, where and when you find yourself tempted. Identify your sins and the circumstances of temptation."

Why: "The why question is important because it gets to the motivation behind our sin; it addresses the heart. No one ever sins out of duty. We all sin because we want to, because our hearts long for something. If we don't address the motivational issues behind our sin, we will not only treat it superficially, adjusting our behavior, not our hearts."

Recommended Reading: Mortification of Sin by John Owen