Having considered the power and efficacy of the law of sin, Owen now begins to discuss ways whereby the law of sin causes the hearts of believers to decay in the things of grace. When first brought into communion with God, we are full of humility and praise because we remember from the position we came. However, as we grow in the faith, that "first love" begins to wear off and we no longer consider grace a supernatural thing. This is what Owen would have us fight off. May we remember our first love, may we remember that we are sinners who deserve the absolute wrath of God because of His awesome holiness.
Owen first considers "the many streams and springs" that proceed from the heart upon our first conversion. These springs are what give our hearts the high "faith, love, holiness, fruitfulness, and obedience unto Christ." Owen gives a couple of reasons why this is true.
1. Newly professed Christians have a "fresh, vigorous sense of pardoning mercy." Remember how awesome it was when we considered from whence we came. Imprinted on the heart was that we deserve nothing that comes from the hand of God. Our hearts were filled with thanksgiving and humility. Owen illustrates this with Luke 7:47. She loved Christ so because of her being forgiven. The only way we will love Christ with a full heart is to have before us how much Christ has loved us. If we think this mercy a common thing, our love for Christ will be common and cold.
2. The newly professed have a "fresh taste of spiritual things." Owen illustrates,
As a man that has been long kept in a dungeon, if brought forth on a sudden into the light of the sun, finds so much pleasure and contentment in it, in the beauties of the old creation, that he things he can never be weary of it, nor shall ever be contended on any account to be under darkness again.
However, we see the marvelous light of the new creation in Jesus Christ. Do we keep before our minds the beautiful light of the Gospel we have been shown? Do we remember that we were dead in our trespasses and sins with no hope in the world? I believe that we do not remember that we came from the dungeon and have become used to the warmth of the sun. This is how indwelling sin captures us and causes us to decline in our spiritual life. Owen lists a couple of tangible ways this enemy captures our heart and causes us not to bask in the light of the Gospel.
1. It works in our hearts by "sloth and negligence." It causes our hearts not to continually be thinking about these truths of the Gospel. We begin to think about TV, schedules, assignments, money, responsibilities, and forget that our affections need stirring toward the Gospel. What does the Word of God remind us? Matthew 6:33, "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." I know how hard this is. I try to remind myself continually to allow the cross of Jesus Christ, in who are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, to fill all of my affections. Owen continues,
Let the heart never so little disuse itself to gracious, soul-affecting thoughts of the love of God, the cross of Christ, the greatness and excellency of gospel mercy, the beauties of holiness...
Allow these things I have put in bold print to fill your minds every hour. If you lack to do this constantly, your spirituality will decay and decline.
2. It works in our soul by "unframing the soul so that it shall have formal, weary, powerless thought of those things which should prevail with it unto diligence in thankful obedience." It causes our soul to see the beauties of spiritual discipline as common things. It makes our soul not "hunger and thirst for righteousness." It makes us see grace as a common thing. Is grace a common thing however? No, it is a supernatural thing! Owen commands,
When we have anything to do wherein faith or love towards God is to be exercised, we must do it with all our hearts, with all our minds, strength, and souls; not slightly and perfunctorily [performing as a routine duty; lacking interest or enthusiasm; apathetic], which God abhors.
Perform all spiritual duty with all your soul and so "engraft them upon your soul." This will cause those springs and streams in the heart to flow free and swift. No longer doing this will cause us to be slight in our affection toward God. We must always "Be serious in spiritual things if ever we intend to be bettered by them."
3. It will take the simplicity of the Gospel away from our soul. It will cause our minds to wonder and doubt. Do we need anything else to rouse our soul but the thought of forgiveness from sin? Do we need any other encouragement than that Jesus Christ is with us until the end of the age? I think not. This alone will fuel our heart to love God. Owen continues, "And he that really improves the gospel truths, thought he hears them a thousand times, they will be always new and fresh unto him, because they put him on newness of practice."
Not only does indwelling sin cause our affection for the gospel to be slight, making it a common thing, but it also causes us to be slight in our watching against Satan. It causes our minds not to be on constant alert from the enemy without. We have the enemy within, the law of sin that pleads for its obedience; the law of sin is a weapon Satan uses when he attacks our soul. However, we must oust the enemy within by filling our affections with the things above and we must watch and pray lest the enemy from without come and cause us to fall. Owen gives us a couple of ways he does this:
1. The law of sin "entangles the soul in the things of world, all which are purveyors for Satan." Satan causes the world in general to entangle our thoughts, emotions, and feelings. When this happens, this causes our affection for spiritual things to be nullified. It chokes us. We then become faint and choke the new man from breathing the life of Christ into our heart.
2. It makes the soul negligent in its duties. This has been considered some, but Satan has a way "which if he cannot obtain, yet he makes our lives uncomfortable to ourselves and unfruitful to others, in weakening their root." Owen explains,
Here, if it prevails, it will not fail to produce an habitual declension in the whole course of obedience. All neglect of private duties is principled by a weariness of God, as he complains (Isaiah 43:22) "Thou hast not called upon me, thou hast been weary of me."
Are you weary of God? If you are slight in your duties before God, Owen thinks you are and so does Isaiah!
3. Indwelling sin takes advantage in the soul by taking "evil examples from professors [believers] on how they should live." Remember, your example in life should be that of Christ. Though we have heroes in this life, they should never be our aim. Our affections, once again, should not be filled with them, but on Christ, who alone can satisfy. This is when we get in the attitude, "I am not as bad as he is." We see the bad example of others and justify our own actions. In addition, we actively perform the way others do. This is not the command we have in Scripture. We should only imitate those who imitate Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1).
4. Indwelling sin makes the soul "cherish some secret lust in the heart." What secret lust do you cherish your heart? Owen warns that even the smallest treasured lust will “in every way weaken spiritual strength. It weakens confidence in God in faith and prayer." Believers, we need the full armor of God to combat the enemy; one small defect in our armor will cause our spiritual death. Owen continues,
It disturbs the thoughts, and sometimes will even frighten the soul from dealing with it by meditation, lest, corrupt affections being entangled by it, grace loses ground instead of prevailing...By these and the like means it becomes to the soul like a moth in a garment, to eat up and devour the strongest threads of it, so that thought the whole hand loose together, it is easily torn apart.
In longing for sin, "If it be neglected, it certainly hardens the heart, weakens spiritual strength, enfeebles the soul, discouraging it unto all communion with God, and is a notable principle of a general decay." Why treasure your sin, when you can treasure Christ? This too is hard because the law of sin is strong in its command upon the soul, but brothers and sisters, fight it! Remember, he who dies fighting dies a victor!
6. It uses "growing in notions of truth without answerable practice." This also will cause the soul to decay and decline spiritually, as Paul reminds us, "knowledge puffs up" (1 Corinthians 8:1). If these truths are not changing and humbling our hearts, they will certainly lift it up against God. All truth from Scripture is meant for our spiritual growth. Satan causes truth not to have its right application. If the truth is not humbling you, it will build up pride.
7. It uses growth in carnal wisdom rather than spiritual wisdom. Owen comments,
So much as carnal wisdom increases, so much faith decays. They proper work of it is to teach a man to trust to and in himself; of faith, to rust wholly in another [God].
Growth in carnal wisdom destroys the work of faith altogether. It puffs up the mind, and causes the mind to leave humility.
These are some ways where the law of sin gains advantage in the soul causing its decay from the graces of God. I would ask you to consider these things and see if these are true in your life. The point is, is that some of them are true, if not all at some time! Allow the Holy Spirit to search your heart and ask Him to break away the dividing walls in your heart. Allow the Holy Spirit to conquer those fortresses that you have set up against your spiritual renewal. Remember, if you are not killing sin, sin is killing you! Allow the streams of mercy to run fresh and anew in your soul. May your heart be a tree firmly planted by the streams of living water! May you find your peace, your hope, and your joy in Jesus Christ!
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