If the mark of Christian religion is not that which befriends the world to such a degree that it looks, talks, walks like the world and loves the things the world loves but rather one that esteems Christ, holiness and His gospel as more precious than all earthly and worldly comforts, then I would lament that Christians would be far terribly few in number despite what is popularly known.

For what is a Christianity, a profession and confession of affiliation to the Lord Jesus Christ, that loves sin and the world, that is loose in it’s speech, that exalts self above God, that desires human pleasure more than the advancement of His kingdom; what is such a profession but a lie? Empty talk? Nay, a person still dead in his sins?

Oh, dear reader, if you are such, I urge you, make sure of it if it’s true or not! Examine yourself! Nothing is more frightening than the deceitfulness of sin to convince us of saving faith when it is not even there. Repent of your sins and cast yourself upon Christ, He is a perfect Savior!

Before I proceed to the consideration of the next principle, I cannot but by the way complain of many professorsⁱ of these days, who, instead of bringing forth such great and evident fruits of mortification as are expected, scarce bear any leaves of it.

There is, indeed, a broad light fallen upon the men of this generation, and together therewith many spiritual gifts communicated, which, with some other considerations, have wonderfully enlarged the bounds of professors and profession; both they and it are exceedingly multiplied and increased. Hence there is a noise of religion and religious duties in every corner, preaching in abundance—and that not in an empty, light, trivial, and vain manner, as formerly, but to a good proportion of a spiritual gift—so that if you will measure the number of believers by light, gifts, and profession, the church may have cause to say, “Who has born me all these?”

But now if you will take the measure of them by this great discriminating grace of Christians, perhaps you will find their number not so multiplied. Where almost is that professorⁱⁱ who owes his conversion to these days of light, and so talks and professes at such a rate of spirituality as few in former days were, in any measure, acquainted with (I will not judge them, but perhaps boasting what the Lord has done in them), that does not give evidence of a miserably unmortified heart?

If vain spending of time, idleness, unprofitableness in men’s places, envy, strife, variance, emulations, wrath, pride, worldliness, selfishness (1 Corinthians 1) be badges of Christians, we have them on us and among us in abundance. And if it be so with them who have much light, and which, we hope, is saving, what shall we say of some who would be accounted religious and yet despise gospel light, and for the duty we have in hand, know no more of it but what consists in men’s denying themselves sometimes in outward enjoyments, which is one of the outmost branches of it, which yet they will seldom practice?

The good Lord send out a spirit of mortification to cure our distempers, or we are in a sad condition!

There are two evils which certainly attend every unmortified professor— the first, in himself; the other, in respect of others.

In himself.

Let him pretend what he will, he has slight thoughts of sin; at least, of sins of daily infirmity. The root of an unmortified course is the digestion of sin without bitterness in the heart. When a man has confirmed his imagination to such an apprehension of grace and mercy as to be able, without bitterness, to swallow and digest daily sins, that man is at the very brink of turning the grace of God into lasciviousness and being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Neither is there a greater evidence of a false and rotten heart in the world than to drive such a trade. To use the blood of Christ, which is given to cleanse us (1 John 1:7; Titus 2:14); the exaltation of Christ, which is to give us repentance (Acts 5:31); the doctrine of grace, which teaches us to deny all ungodliness (Titus 2:1112), to countenanceⁱⁱⁱ sin is a rebellion that in the issue^iv will break the bones.

At this door have gone out from us most of the professors that have apostatized in the days wherein we live.^v For a while most of them were under convictions; these kept them unto duties, and brought them to profession; so they “escaped the pollutions that are in the world, through the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 2:20): but having got an acquaintance with the doctrine of the gospel, and being weary of duty, for which they had no principle, they began to countenance themselves in manifold neglects from the doctrine of grace. Now, when once this evil had laid hold of them, they speedily tumbled into perdition.^vi

To others.

It has an evil influence on them on a twofold account: It hardens them, by begetting in them a persuasion that they are in as good condition as the best professors. Whatever they see in them is so stained for want^vii of this mortification that it is of no value with them.

They have a zeal for religion; but it is accompanied with want of forbearance and universal righteousness.

They deny prodigality,^viii but with worldliness;

they separate from the world, but live wholly to themselves, taking no care to exercise lovingkindness in the earth;

or they talk spiritually, and live vainly;

mention communion with God, and are every way conformed to the world;

boasting of forgiveness of sin, and never forgiving others.

And with such considerations do poor creatures harden their hearts in their unregeneracy.

They deceive them, in making them believe that if they can come up to their condition it shall be well with them; and so it grows an easy thing to have the great temptation of repute in religion to wrestle with, when they may go far beyond them as to what appears in them, and yet come short of eternal life. But of these things and all the evils of unmortified walking, afterward.

—John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2006), p55-57

Read more of “Overcoming Sin and Temptation” here.

You can also purchase the book in paperback here, or read it in pdf here.

Footnotes

1. those who make a religious confession; professing Christians [↩]
2. Where, I wonder, is that professor [↩]
3. approve, condone [↩]
4. outcome [↩]
5. Of which professors ultimately evidenced the absence of any real work of regenerating grace in their life. [↩]
6. ruin, damnation, destruction [↩]
7. lack [↩]
8. reckless extravagance, especially with money [↩]