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Continuing his reflections on Indwelling Sin in Believers, John Owen noted in chapter eight how powerful it is—how the mind is drawn from its duty by the deceitfulness of sin. He advised all who value their souls to guard against the efficacy of deceitfulness, as it magnifies the power of indwelling sin. He warned: “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire” (James 1:14). However, before turning to examine what this deceitfulness consists of, Owen cited some evidence from Scripture regarding the general nature of this deceitfulness.
Hebrews 3:13 urged that we exhort one another daily, in order to not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. “Deceitful it is; take heed of it, watch against it, or it will produce its utmost effect in hardening of the heart against God. It is on the account of indwelling sin that the heart is said to be ‘deceitful above all things’” (Jeremiah 17:9). Every lust is deceitful. And when there is poison in every stream, it must be corrupt at its source—the heart.
Paul urged us to put off our old self, which is “corrupt through deceitful desires” (Ephesians 4:22). We were once led astray; deceived. We were slaves to various passions and pleasures (Titus 3:3). All who desire to live a godly life will be persecuted, while evil people “will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13). We are at a loss when dealing with such an adversary. “He knows he can have no security against one that is deceitful, but in standing upon his own guard and defence all his days.”
In order to show the strength and advantage sin has by its deceit, Owen observed that Scripture placed it as the head of every sin. Even with the first sin “deceit went before the transgression.” In 2 Corinthians 11:3, Paul said sin and Satan still take the same course. There is the same method—beguiling, deceiving comes first, and sin follows afterwards. “Hence, all the great works that the devil doth in the world, to stir men up to an opposition unto the Lord Jesus Christ and his kingdom, he doth them by deceit.” Therefore, the many warnings given to us to be careful that we should be deceived (Ephesians 5:6; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 15:33; Galatians 6:7; Luke 21:8). When the law of sin prevails to deceive, “it fails not to bring forth its fruit.”
The ground of this efficacy of sin by deceit is taken from the faculty of the soul affected with it. Deceit properly affects the mind; it is the mind that is deceived. When sin attempts any other way of entrance into the soul, as by the affections, the mind, retaining its right and sovereignty, is able to give check and control unto it. But where the mind is tainted, the prevalency must be great; for the mind or understanding is the leading faculty of the soul, and what that fixes on, the will and affections rush after, being capable of no consideration but what that presents unto them. Hence it is, that though the entanglement of the affections unto sin be ofttimes most troublesome, yet the deceit of the mind is always most dangerous, and that because of the place that it possesseth in the soul as unto all its operations. Its office is to guide, direct, choose, and lead; and ‘if the light that is in us be darkness, how great is that darkness!’”
Deceit hides what ought to be seen and considered; it conceals circumstances and consequences. It represents things as other than what they are. We see this in what Satan did with original sin. He focused on the advantage of knowledge—and by doing so presented the whole case as other than it truly was. “This is the nature of deceit; it is a representation of a matter under disguise, hiding that which is undesirable, proposing that which indeed is not in it, that the mind may make a false judgment of it: so Jacob deceived Isaac by his brother’s raiment and the skins on his hands and neck.”
Deceit is always carried on by degrees, little by little, so that the end result is not seen. The manner and progress of sin is fully expressed in James 1:14-15: “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” Owen said the truth of these verses must be insisted on.
In the foregoing verse the apostle manifests that men are willing to drive the old trade, which our first parents at the entrance of sin set up withal, namely, of excusing themselves in their sins, and casting the occasion and blame of them on others. It is not, say they, from themselves, their own nature and inclinations, their own designings, that they have committed such and such evils, but merely from their temptations; and if they know not where to fix the evil of those temptations, they will lay them on God himself, rather than go without an excuse or extenuation of their guilt. This evil in the hearts of men the apostle rebuketh, verse 13, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man.” And to show the justness of this reproof, in the words mentioned he discovers the true causes of the rise and whole progress of sin, manifesting that the whole guilt of it lies upon the sinner, and that the whole punishment of it, if not graciously prevented, will be his lot also.
The entire progress of lust or indwelling sin is expressed in these words. First, the ultimate end aimed at in all the actions of sin is death—the everlasting death of the sinner. “Pretend what it will, this is the end it aims at and tends unto. Hiding of ends and designs is the principal property of deceit.” Second, the general way of acting towards that end is temptation, which proceeds by degrees, as illustrated here in James 1:14-15: (1) Each person is tempted when he is lured (2) and enticed by his own desire. (3) When desire is conceived, (4) it gives birth to sin, (5) and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
Thirdly, the mind is drawn away by the deceit of sin. The affections or emotions are enticed or entangled. The consent of the will is the formal conception of actual sin. Fourth is the conversation in which sin is brought forth; where it exerts itself into the lives of men. Lastly it consummates and shuts up the whole world of sin with death or eternal ruin. “Now, it is the mind that this effect of the deceit of sin is wrought upon. The mind or understanding, as we have showed, is the guiding, conducting faculty of the soul. It goes before in discerning, judging, and determining, to make the way of moral actions fair and smooth to the will and affections.”
There are two things which belong to the duty of the mind, which God requires: 1) to keep itself and the whole soul in such a frame and posture that it may render all duties of obedience and 2) to attend to all particular actions so that they are performed as God requires. “In these two things consists the whole duty of the mind of a believer; and from both of them doth indwelling sin endeavor to divert and draw it off.” Owen went on to describe how indwelling sin sought to draw the attention of the mind away from a due consideration of its own vileness and the dangers with which it is faced. A second method of drawing the mind away is known, but not sufficiently guarded against—filling the mind with earthly things.
What wisdom, what watchfulness, what serious frequent trial and examination of ourselves is required, to keep our hearts and minds in a heavenly frame, in the use and pursuit of earthly things, is not my present business to declare. This is evident, that the engine whereby the deceit of sin draws off and turns aside the mind in this matter is the pretence of the lawfulness of things about which it would have it exercise itself; against which very few are armed with sufficient diligence, wisdom, and skill. And this is the first and most general attempt that indwelling sin makes upon the soul by deceit,—it draws away the mind from a diligent attention unto its course in a due sense of the evil of sin, and a due and constant consideration of God and his grace.
John Owen saw that we have a blind spot and that sin will always attempt to catch us off guard, coming at us through misdirection and deception. It takes advantage of our particular, personal weaknesses; we are lured and enticed by our own desires. And when sin is fully grown, its end game is death and eternal ruin.