Are You Killing Sin??

Over the last week I have been exercising these principals, toward my sin, that I have gleaned from John Owen and I thought I’d put them out here for everyone to benefit. I’m always trying to be deliberate and think of ways to mortify my sin and this has been great. Check out these principals…

In order to kill sin you have to do the following...

To labour to be acquainted with...

(1) “Ways, wiles, methods, advantages and occasions of my lust’s [sin’s] success.”

(2) “Counsels, designs, their ends, how and by what means they [sins] have prevailed.”

(3) “Subtilties, policies, depth of indwelling sin, where does it’s greatest strength lay?”

a. “What advantages does it use to make of occasions, opportunities, temptations?”

b. “What are it’s pleas, pretences, or reasonings?”

c. “What are it’s stratagems, colours, excuses?”

To have a knowledge of all of this in order to…

(4) “To set the wisdom of the Spirit against the craft of the old man, to trace this serpent in all it’s readiness and windings; to be able to say… ‘This is your old way and course; I know what you aim at.’”

[Edited version of a paragraph in John Owen’s “The Mortification of Sin in Believers” The Works of John Owen Volume VI pp. 31. Banner of Truth. Forgive some of the spelling…it’s 17th Century English.]