Kapic Kelly M. - Overcoming Sin and Temptation (Foreword by John Piper)

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The greatest Christian writers are those who most powerfully project to spiritual readers the knowledge of God, of ourselves, and of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Among these are Augustine, Calvin, Edwards, and the Puritan John Owen, who ought to be better known than he is. The editors of this volume have worked hard to make Owens unrivalled insight into the Christians inner war with sin accessible to all, and the result is truly a godsend. Filled with classic devotional theology which, like Bunyans Pilgrims Progress, needs to be read again and again to be properly grasped, we have in the three treatises presented here a companion for life.

J. I. PACKER, Professor of Theology, Regent College

John Owens three treatises on sin, mortification, and temptation are a priceless treasure. To read them is to mine pure spiritual gold. Unfortunately, as in mining, reading Owen is hard work. Now, through skillful editing, Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor have made Owens work accessible to modern readers while still retaining his unique writing style. Anyone concerned about personal holiness will profit from reading this new edition of a classic work.

JERRY BRIDGES, Navigators Community Ministries Group

Sin is tenacious, but by Gods grace we can hate it and hunt it. John Owen provides the master guide for the sin-hunter. Kapic and Taylor bring together three of Owens classics, clarifying them in simple waysbut all the substance, the careful, hounding arguments are still there to train our spiritual sight and love our souls.

MARK DEVER, Senior Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C.

With a volume of Owen in your hands you may wonder why you have wasted so much time reading lesser things. True, as Dr. John (Rabbi) Duncan once said, if you are going to read this you will need to prepare yourself for the knife. But that knife is the scalpel of one of the finest spiritual surgeons in the history of the church. Owen understood as few have how the gospel makes us well. Three cheers for everything Kapic and Taylor are doing to introduce a new generation of Christians to Owens peerless works.

SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON, Senior Minister, First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, S.C.

For over three hundred years the doctrinal and devotional works of John Owen have been a classic resource for the church. Though unusually insightful, Owen may be too challenging for many to read with benefit. Now, with brilliant editorial efforts and insightful introductions by Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor, Owens magnificent treatises on sin and sanctification have been made available for a new generation. I am confident that this welcomed volume will provide guidance and enablement for believers in need of Gods grace and blessing. The editors are to be congratulated for their fine work!

DAVID S. DOCKERY, President, Union University, Jackson, Tenn.

John Owen is a spiritual surgeon with the rare skill to cut away the cancer of sin and bring gospel healing to the sinners soul. Apart from the Bible, I have found his writings on sin and temptation to be the best books ever written for helping me to stop sinning the same old sins. Now Owens profound thinking on spiritual change in the Christian life is available in a user-friendly format that will help a new generation gain gospel victory over the power of remaining sin.

PHILIP GRAHAM RYKEN, Senior Minister, Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia

No writer has taught me more about the dynamics of the heart and the deceitfulness of sin than John Owen. Reading his writing has been life-changing, although at times his seventeenth-century style can be a challenge to modern ears. How grateful I am that Kapic and Taylor have invested their time and considerable skills to bring Owens profound and practical teaching to a modern audience. Read this book carefully; it will help you understand your heart and experience Gods grace.

C. J. MAHANEY, Sovereign Grace Ministries, Gaithersburg, Md.

OVERCOMING

SIN

and

TEMPTATION

EDITED BY

KELLY M. KAPIC

AND

JUSTIN TAYLOR

JOHN OWEN

FOREWORD BY

JOHN PIPER

Overcoming Sin and Temptation

Copyright 2006 by Kelly M. Kapic and Justin Taylor

Published by Crossway
1300 Crescent Street
Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided by USA copyright law.

This volume includes edited versions of three works by John Owen (16161683), which are in the public domain: Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers (1656); Of Temptation: The Nature and Power of It (1658); and The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalency of Indwelling Sin (1667).

Illustration on page 39 The British Library. All rights reserved (Wing [2nd ed.] / O785 ; Madan, III, 2308. / ; Thomason / E.1704[1]); illustration on page 143 The British Library. All rights reserved (Wing [2nd ed.] / O782 ; Thomason / E.2112[1]; Madan, III, 2404. / ); illustration on page 227 Edinburgh University New College Special Collections. All rights reserved (Wing / O775).

Cover design: Studio Gearbox

Reprinted with new cover 2015

First printing 2006

Printed in the United States of America

Scripture quotations marked esv are from ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission.

All rights reserved.

ISBN-13: 978-1-4335-5008-9
ISBN-10: 1-4335-5008-3
ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-5011-9
PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-5009-6
Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-5010-2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Owen, John, 16161683

Overcoming sin and temptation : three classic works by John Owen / edited by Kelly M. Kapic and Justin Taylor ; foreword by John Piper.

p. cm.

Includes texts of Of the Mortification of sin in believers, Of temptation, and Indwelling sin.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 13: 978-1-58134-649-7 (tpb)

ISBN 10: 1-58134-649-2 (tpb)

1. SinChristianity. 2. Temptation. 3. Christian lifePuritan authors. I. Kapic, Kelly M., 1972 . II. Taylor, Justin, 1976 . III. Title.

BT715.O932 2006

241'.3dc22 2006015124

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

This volume is dedicated to our children
JONATHAN TAYLOR KAPIC and MARGOT MONROE KAPIC
and
CLAIRA LUCILE TAYLOR and MALACHI XAVIER TAYLOR
Incredible gifts from God

I REJOICE AT THIS publication of John Owens works on the nature of our battle with sin. It is the kind of thinking we need. Therefore, I thank God for Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor. They have done a good service for the church. I hope teachers and pastors will help their people benefit from this book.