In this chapter, Owen wishes to discuss the ways and means in which mortification occurs. He lays down principles and rules that are necessary to understand for mortification:
There Will Be No Mortification Unless a Man Be a Believer
Mortification is the work of believers (Rom. 3:18, Col. 3:1-5). “There is no death of sin without the death of Christ (p. 79).” Paul speaks of those who seek mortification, but fail to become righteous. Why? Because they seek mortification through the law, not through faith (Rom. 9:31-32). All believers must mortify sin as a duty, but something must be done first before mortification can happen. Unless we are in Christ we cannot please God (Rom. 8:9). Thus the only way to please God is through the union with Christ achieved by the Holy Spirit (v. 11), when we are dead to the flesh and live in the Spirit. It is the duty of the regenerate to mortify sin and the duty of the unregenerate to be converted. That is why when the Jews were convicted of their sins and asked Peter what they must do, Peter told them to repent and put their faith in Christ, not mortify such and such sin (Acts 2:37-38).
Owen presents a common scenario of how men mistakenly try to mortify sin. God, through is word and law, convicts a man of his sins. Instead of turning to the gospel as the solution, he seeks to mortify his sins. This is an example of self-love, for such a man is only trying to be freed from his trouble. Thus the mortification of their sins eludes their grasp. We should not seek to satisfy our consciences through our own means. The duty to mortify sin is indeed a good one to fulfill, but I cannot be done without going to the great Physician. Sometimes, such men even try to mortify sin in secret as a way to prove to themselves their sincerity, yet they are hardened by a kind of self-righteousness. So what happens is the man finds that he cannot mortify the sin (either he cannot overcome a specific sin or new sins keep appearing to take the place of other sins) and so gives up, deciding to simply embrace sin for he cannot defeat it.
“Be sure to get an interest in Christ-if you intend to mortify any sin without it, it will never be done. (p. 83)”
Objection
What should unregenerate men do then when convicted of their sin? Should they simply not try to mortify them and embrace it? Will not the whole world be set into a state of confusion and sinful behavior run rampant?
Answers
No! The fact that unregenerate men seek to mortify sin is a sign of God’s kindness and goodness. God chooses to restrain men from fulfilling the full depravity of their nature. The word is to be preached and sin rebuked and restrained, although this is not the end effect that is aimed for. Though the conviction and restraining of sin is the work of the Spirit and the word, it is not good in and of itself. “You set yourself against a particular sin and do not consider that you are nothing but sin (p. 84).”
To plead with men about their sin, to try to get them to understand their unregenerate state, is a good thing. But we must not allow that to lead the gospel and not to self-mortification. Let our preaching be a call to believe, not a call to mortify sin. If not, faith becomes agreement with a certain doctrine in the church, and mortification simply means abstinence from particular sins and a lifestyle. Our directions must never only change lifestyles, but change hearts.
Read this chapter online (Banner of Truth/CCEL edition), click here.
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July 18, 2008 at 4:12 pm |
I thought you might be interested in an electronic version of the Goold edition of The Works of John Owen, newly available from Logos Bible Software. We have also just released Owen’s Exposition of the Epistle to the Hebrews.