Searching Our Hearts in Difficult Times
| Weight | .36 lbs |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 7.13 × 4.75 × .4 in |
| ISBN | 9781800404595 |
| Binding | Paperback, eBook (ePub & Kindle), Paperback & eBook (ePub & Kindle) |
| Topic | Christian Living |
| Banner Pub Date | Nov 20, 2019 |
| Page Count | 160 |
| Format | Book |
| Series | Puritan Paperbacks |
| tags | Affliction, afflictions |
Endorsements
‘How many people have said to you this year that these are difficult times? COVID-19 alone has produced widespread anxiety which has been coupled with widespread unrest in society, and deep-seated divisions in our political world. What are we to do? Who can draw on deep personal experience of such days to give us wise guidance? John Owen lived in precisely such a time of suffering, of terrible political divisions that cost many lives, of war and of plague. So in Searching our Hearts in Difficult Times we find the voice of Scripture married to a life of deep personal experience to bring us exactly the counsel we need.’ — SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON
Book Description
‘O that we might advise one another as to what to do; to help one another to recover from our weaknesses!’
Following Jesus is not easy. It involves self-denial, daily cross-bearing, and lifelong obedience. Salvation is promised to the one who ‘endures to the end.’ Christians need much encouragement, especially in ‘difficult times’. This the Lord supplies through pastors who love him and care for his people.
John Owen was such a pastor. One way he sought to help his fellow-believers was to hold occasional meetings for spiritual conference and fellowship at which various topics were addressed and discussed, with Owen providing a concluding summary of the proceedings.
The short chapters in Searching Our Hearts in Difficult Times contain a number of Owen’s talks and sermons on a wide range of subjects which are as relevant to Christians today as they were to believers some three and a half centuries ago.
Abridged and made easy to read.
‘In these records we are transported back three hundred and fifty years to a relatively small gathering of serious Christians. We have the privilege of eavesdropping on one of the great spiritual masters answering questions that arose in the hearts and minds of the congregation he loved and served. They are also perennial questions. Owen deals with the issues that trouble serious-minded Christians in every age: “How much conviction of sin do I need to have?” “Can sin and grace both be in my life simultaneously?” “How can I overcome a sin-habit?” “How can I be sure I really am a Christian?” We may not be able to listen to Owen’s voice on the web; but we can easily enough allow our imagination to wander back to these gatherings and almost hear his voice as we benefit form these wonderfully preserved transcripts of spiritual counsel. They are a banquet for hungry souls!’ — SINCLAIR B. FERGUSON
Table of Contents Expand ↓
| Preface | vii | |
| Part I: Searching Our Hearts | ||
| 1 | Conviction of sin before conversion | 1 |
| 2 | Assurance of salvation | 5 |
| 3 | The sins of our day and age | 10 |
| 4 | Spiritual backsliding | 15 |
| 5 | Praying to Christ | 21 |
| 6 | Applying to Christ for grace | 26 |
| 7 | Weak faith when praying | 31 |
| 8 | Prevailing sins | 34 |
| 9 | Can habitual sin coexist with grace? | 42 |
| 10 | How may we be delivered from a habit of sin? | 49 |
| 11 | Days of judgment | 52 |
| 12 | Preparation for Christ's coming in times of judgment | 62 |
| 13 | The contest between Christ and Antichrist | 67 |
| 14 | Christian duty under divine warnings | 70 |
| Part II: Difficult and Dangerous Times | ||
| 1 | The nature of the warning | 75 |
| 2 | The evil of which they are warned | 78 |
| 3 | How this evil will be introduced | 78 |
| 4 | The time and season of it | 79 |
| Applications | 95 | |
| Part III: Living By Faith in Difficult Times | ||
| The use and advantage of faith: | ||
| 1 | In a time of national adversity | 101 |
| 2 | In a time of reproaches and persecutions | 116 |
| 3 | In a time when Roman Catholicism is on the increase | 127 |
| 4 | In a time when true religion is declining | 136 |
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Arthur J Fox –
I love Owen, but sometimes it takes a long time to “translate” his sentences and thoughts into 2020 English. It is always worth the hard work, but this book did it for me, and did it with a book not in the collection of his works. I am finding him truly practical in a pastoral way. It is a great warm up read prior to my personal study of God’s Word and Prayer in the mornings.
Stephen Owen –
I have just finished this book and found it absolutely excellent.
Having recently read Owen’s ‘The Mortification of Sin’ with much profit but also much effort, I was delighted with the abridgment and modification of the language. Owen is made truly accessible to the modern reader.
The sermons contained in the book were given at a time of declension in the churches, and as such they speak very clearly to the present day. Owen is very practical. There are chapters on ‘spiritual backsliding,’ ‘prevailing sins’ and ‘days of judgement’ but there are always steps given whereby the Christian may overcome and encouragement to the reader to do so.
I especially appreciated the sermon on 2 Tim. 3:1 in Part 2. Owen’s diagnosis and applications are right up-to-date. It was hard to believe that I was reading something written 350 years ago. Likewise his sermons on ‘Living by Faith in Difficult Times’ (Part 3). I finished the book both challenged and encouraged.
To sum up, this book speaks into the present situation with remarkable clarity. Every pastor and elder should have a copy to read, mark, study and act upon. Highly recommended!