John Owen, in his work Of Temptation, talks about the trials that are coming upon the world. Of Temptation, to the reader, Christian reader, if you are in any measure awake in these days in which we live, and have taken notice of the manifold great and various temptations in which all sorts of persons that know the Lord and Professor's name are beset, and whereunto they are continually exposed, with what success those temptations have obtained to the unspeakable scandal of the Gospel. With the wounding and ruin of innumerable souls, I suppose you will not inquire any further after other reasons of the publishing of the ensuing warnings and directions, being suited to the times that pass over us, and our own concern in them. This I shall only say to those who think it fit to persist in any such inquiry. That though my first engagement for the exposing of these meditations to public view arose from the desires of some, whose avouching the interest of Christ in the world by personal holiness and constant adhering to everything that is made precious by its relation to Him, have given their requests power over me to require at any time services of greater importance, yet I dare not lay my doing of it so upon that account. is in the least to intimate that, with respect to the general state of the things mentioned, I did not myself esteem it seasonable and necessary to variety of outward providences and dispensations which I have myself been exercised in this world, with the inward trials they have been attended with, added to the observation that I have had advantages to make of the ways and walkings of others, their beginnings, progresses, and endings, their risings and falls in profession and conversation. in darkness and light, have left such a constant sense and impression of the power and danger of temptations upon my mind and spirit, that, without other pleas and pretenses, I cannot but own a serious call to men to beware, with the discovery of some of the most imminent ways and means of the prevalency of present temptations to have been, in my own judgment, in this season needful. But now, listener, if you are amongst them who take no notice of these things or do not care for them, who have no sense of the efficacies and dangers of temptations in your own walking and Christian profession, nor have observed the power of them upon others, who don't discern the manifold advantages that they have gotten in these days in which all things are shaken, nor been troubled or moved for the sad successes they have had amongst professors, but suppose that all things are well within, doors, and without. It would be better, could you obtain fuller satisfaction to some of your lusts and the pleasures or profits of the world, I desire you to know that I do not write for you, nor esteem you a fit reader or judge of what is here written. While all the issues of providential dispensations in reference to the public concern of these nations are perplexed and entangled, the footsteps of God lying in the deep where his paths are not known, while in particular unparalleled distresses and strange prosperities are measured out to men, yea, to professing Christians, While the spirit of their giddiness and delusion goes forth with such strength and power as it seems to have received a commission to go and prosper, while there is such division, strife, simulations attended with such evil surmises, wrath and revenge found amongst the brethren, While the desperate issues and products of men's temptations are seen daily in partial and total apostasy in the decay of love, the overthrow of faith, our days being filled with fearful examples of backsliding such as former ages never knew. While there is a visible declension from reformation seasoned upon the professing party of these nations, Both as to personal holiness and zeal for the interest of Christ, he that understands not, that there is an hour of temptation that is coming upon the world, to try them to dwell upon the earth, is doubtless either himself at present captivated under the power of some woeful lust, corruption, or temptation, There is indeed stark, blind, and knows not at all what it is to serve God in temptations. With such then I have not at present to do. For those who have in general a sense of these things, who also in some measure are able to consider that the plague has begun, that they may be further awakened to look about them lest the infection have approached nearer to them by some secret and imperceptible ways than they did apprehend. lest they should be surprised at, unawares hereafter, by any of those temptations that in these days either waste at noon or else walk in darkness, is the ensuing warning intended, and for the sake of them that mourn in secret for all the abominations that are found among and upon them that profess the gospel. and who are under the conduct of the captain of their salvation. Fighting and resisting the power of temptations, from what springs, soever they arise in themselves, are these ensuing directions proposed to your consideration. that our faithful and merciful High Priest, who both suffered and was tempted, and is on that account touched with a feeling of our infirmities, would accompany this small discourse with seasonable supplies of His Spirit and suitable mercy to them that shall consider it, that it may be useful to His servants for the ends in which it is designed, is a prayer of Him who received this handful of seed from His storehouse and treasure. John Owen Chapter 1 The words of the text, that are the foundation of the ensuing discourse, the occasion of the words with their dependence, the things especially aimed at in them, things considerable in the words as to the general purpose in hand, of the general nature of temptation in which it consists, the special nature of temptation, temptation taken actively and passively, How is it that God tempts any? His end in so doing, the way in which He does it, of temptation and its special nature, of the actions of it, the true nature of temptation, stated. Matthew 26 verse 41. Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. These words of our Savior are repeated with very little alteration in the three evangelists. Only, whereas Matthew and Mark have recorded them as above written, Luke reports them thus. Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation. So that the whole of his caution seems to have been arise, watch, and pray that you enter not into temptation. Solomon tells us of some that lie down on the top of a mast in the midst of the sea. Proverbs 23 verse 34. Men, overborne by security in the mouth of destruction, if ever poor souls lay down on the top of a mast in the midst of the sea, these disciples, with our Savior in the garden, did so. Their Master, at a little distance from them, was offering up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears, Hebrews 5, 7. being then taken into his hand and beginning to taste that cup that was filled with the curse and wrath due to their sins. The Jews, armed for his and their destruction, being but a little more distant from them. On the other hand, our Savior had a little before informed them that that night he should be betrayed and be delivered up to be slain. They saw that he was sorrowful and very heavy. Matthew 26, verse 37. Nay, he told him plainly that his soul was exceeding sorrowful even unto death, Ver 38, and therefore entreated them to tarry and watch with him, now that he was dying, and that for them, in this condition, leaving them but a little space, like men forsaken of all love towards him or care of themselves, they fall fast asleep. Even the best of saints, being left to themselves, will quickly appear to be less than men, to be nothing. All our own strength is weakness, and all our own wisdom folly. Peter, being one of them, who but a little before had with so much self-confidence affirmed that, though all men forsook him, yet he never would so do. Our Savior expostulates a matter in particular with them. Verse 40. He saith unto Peter, Could you not watch with me one hour, as if he should have said, Are you he, Peter, who but now boasts of your resolution, never to forsake me? Is it likely that you should hold out in this when you cannot watch with me one hour? Is this your dying for me, to be dead in security when I am dying for you? And indeed it would be an amazing thing to consider that Peter should make so high a promise and be immediately so careless and remiss in the pursuit of it, but that we find the root of the same treachery abiding and working in our own hearts, and do see the fruit of it brought forth every day. The most noble engagements to obedience quickly end in indeplorable negligence. Romans 7 verse 18. In this state, our Savior admonishes them of their condition, their weakness, their danger, and stirs them up to a prevention of that ruin which lay at the door. He says, Arise, watch, and pray. I shall not insist on a particular aimed at here by our Savior. and his caution to them that were then present with him. The great temptation that was coming on them from the scandal of the cross was doubtless in his eye. But I shall consider the words as containing a general direction to all the disciples of Christ and their following of him throughout all generations. There are three things in the words. One, the evil caution against. temptation, number two, the means of its prevalency by our entering into it, and number three, the way of preventing it. Watch and pray. It is not in my thoughts to handle the commonplace of temptations, but only the danger of them in general, with the means of preventing that danger yet. that we may know what we affirm and whereof we speak, some concerns of the general nature of temptation may be premised first. For the general nature of tempting and temptation, it lies among things indifferent to try, to experiment, to prove, to pierce a vessel that the liquor that is in it may be known. is as much as is signified by it. Hence God has said sometimes to tempt and we are commanded as our duty to tempt or to try or search ourselves to know what is in us and to pray that God would do also. So temptation is like a knife that may either cut the meat or or the throat of a man. It may be his food or his poison, his exercise or his destruction. Secondly, temptation in its special nature, as it denotes any evil, is considered either actively as it leads to evil or passively as it has an evil and suffering in it. So temptation is taken for affliction. James 1 verse 2. For in that sense we are to count it all joy when we fall into temptation. and the other, that we enter not into it again. Actively considered, it either denotes an attempt or a design for the bringing out of the special end of temptation, namely a leading into evil. So it is said that God tempts no man, James 1 verse 13, with a design for sin as such. or the general nature and end of temptation, which is trial. So God tempted Abraham, Genesis 22 verse 1, and he proves or tempts by false prophets, Deuteronomy 13 verse 3. Now, for as God's tempting of any Two things are to be considered. First, what is the end? Why he does it? And number two, the way in which he does it. For the first, his general ends are two. He does it to show to man what is in him, that is, the man himself, and that ether as to his grace or to his corruption. I speak not now of it as it may have a place and bear a part in judiciary obduration. Grace and corruption lie deep in the heart, and oftentimes deceive themselves in the search after the one or the other of them. When we give in to the soul to try what grace is there, corruption comes out. And when we search for corruption, grace appears. So as the soul kept in uncertainty, we fell in our trials. God comes with a gauge that goes to the bottom. He sends his instruments of trial into the bowels and the inmost parts of the soul and lets man see what is in him, of what metal he is constituted. So he tempted Abraham to show him his faith. Abraham didn't know what faith he had. I mean, what power and vigor was in his faith. until God drew it out by that great trial and temptation. When God says He knew it, He made Abraham to know it. So he tried Hezekiah to discover his pride. God left him. Did he might see what was in his heart, 2 Chronicles 32 verse 31. He didn't know that he had such a proud heart. so apt to be lifted up as he appeared to have until God tried him, and so let out his filth and poured it out before his face. The issues of such discoveries to the saints and thankfulness, humiliation, and treasuring up of experience I shall not treat of now. Number two, God does it to show himself to man that, in a way of preventing grace, a man shall see that it is God alone who keeps all from sin. Until we are tempted, we think we live on our own strength. Though all men do this or that, we will not. When the trial comes, we quickly see whence this is our preservation by standing or falling. So was it in the case of Abimelech, Genesis 20 verse 6. I withheld you. Number two, in a way of renewing grace, he would have the temptation continue with Paul that he might reveal himself to him in the sufficiency of his renewing grace. Second Corinthians 12 9. We know not the power and strength that God puts forth on our behalf. nor what is the sufficiency of its grace until comparing the temptation with our own weakness that appears to us. The efficacy of an antidote is found when poison has been taken, and the preciousness of medicines is made known by diseases. We shall never know what strength there is in grace if we do not know what strength there is in temptation. We must be tried that we may be made sensible of being preserved. and many other good and gracious sins he has which he accomplishes towards his saints by his trials and temptations not now to be insisted on. For the ways in which God accomplishes his search, trial, or temptations, these are some of them. Number one, he puts men on great duties such as they cannot apprehend that they have any strength for, nor indeed have. So he tended to Abraham by calling him to that duty of sacrifice and his son, a thing absurd to reason, bitter to nature, and grievous to him on all accounts whatever. Many men do not know what is in them, or rather, what is ready for them. until they are put upon what seems utterly above their strength, indeed upon what is really above their strength. The duties of God in an ordinary way requires that our hands are not proportioned to what strength we have in ourselves, but to what help and relief is laid up for us in Christ. and we are to address ourselves to the greatest performances with a subtle persuasion that we have not the ability for the least. This is the law of grace. But yet, when any duty is required that is extraordinary, that is a secret not often discovered, in the yoke of Christ it is a trial, a temptation. Number two, by putting them upon great sufferings, How many have unexpectedly found strength to die at a stake, to endure tortures for Christ, yet their call to it was a trial? This, Peter tells us, is one way in which we are brought into trying temptations, 1 Peter 1, verses 6 and 7. Our temptations arise from the fiery trial, and yet the end is but a trial of our faith. 3. By his providential disposing of all things, so as that occasions to send will be administered to men, which is a case mentioned in Deuteronomy 13, verse 3, and innumerable other instances may be added. now, they are not properly the temptations of God as coming from Him, with His end upon them that are here intended. And therefore I shall set these apart from our present consideration. It is, then, temptation in its special nature, as it denotes an active efficiency toward sinning, as it is managed with evil to evil that I intend. In this sense, temptation may proceed either singly from Satan or the world, or other men in the world, or from ourselves, or jointly from all or some of them in their several combinations. Number one. Satan tempts sometimes singly by himself without taking advantage from the world, the things or persons of it, or ourselves. So he deals with his injection of evil and blasphemous thoughts of God into the hearts of the saints. which is His own work alone, without any advantage from the world of our own hearts. For nature will contribute nothing thereunto, nor anything that is in the world, nor any man of the world. For none can conceive a God and conceive evil of Him. In this, Satan is alone in the sin, and shall be so in the punishment of it. These fiery darts are prepared in the forge of his own malice, and shall, with all their venom and poison, be turned into his own heart forever. Sometimes Satan makes use of the world and joins forces against us without any help from within. So he tempted our Savior by showing him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, Matthew 4 verse 8, and the variety of the assistances he finds from the world in persons and things which I must not insist on. The innumerable instruments and weapons he takes from this of all sorts and at all seasons are inexpressible. 3. Sometimes he takes an assistance from ourselves also. It is not with us as it is with Christ when Satan came to tempt him. He declares that he had nothing in him. John 14 verse 30. It is otherwise with us. He has, for the encompassing of most of his sins, a sure party within our own breasts. James 1, 14 and 15. So he tempted Judas. He was at work himself. He put it into his heart to betray Christ. Luke 22, verse 3. He entered into him for that purpose. And he sets the world at work, the things of it, providing for him thirty pieces of silver. Verse 5. They covenanted to give him money. and Aminovit, even the priests and the Pharisees, and calls in the assistance of its own corruption. He was covetous, a thief, and he had the bag. I might also show how the world and our own corruptions act, single by themselves and jointly in conjunction with Satan and one another. in this business of temptation. But the truth is, the principles, ways, and means of temptation, the kinds, degrees, efficacy, and causes of them, are so inexpressible, large, and various, the circumstances of them, from providences, natures, conditions, spiritual and natural, with the particular case thence arising, so innumerable and impossible to be comprised within any bound or order, that to attempt to give in an account of them would be to undertake that which would be endless. I shall content myself to give a description of the general nature of that which we are to watch against, which will make way for what I am aiming at. Temptation, then, in general, is anything, any state or way or condition, but upon any account whatever has a force or efficacy to seduce, to draw the mind and heart of a man from its obedience which God requires of him. and to any sin, any degree of it, whatever. In particular, that is a temptation to any man which causes or occasions him to sin or in anything to go off from his duty, either by bringing evil into his heart or drawing out that evil that is in his heart, or any other way, diverting him from communion with God in that constant, equal, universal obedience and manner that is required of him. For declaring of this description, I shall only observe that though temptation seems to be of a more active importance, and so to denote only the power of seduction to sin itself, yet in the scripture it is commonly taken in a neutral sense, and denotes a manner of the temptation or the thing in which we are tempted. And this is the ground of the description I have given of it, be it what it will, that from anything whatever within us or without us has advantage to hinder in duty or to provoke to or in any way to occasion sin. It is a temptation and so to be looked on, be it business, employment, course of life, company, affections, nature, or corrupt design. relation, delights, name, reputation, esteem, abilities, parts or excellencies of body or mind, place, dignity, art. So far as they further or occasion the promotion of the ends before mention, dare all of them no less truly temptations, did the most violent solicitations of Satan, or allurements of the world. And that soul lies at the brink of ruin who does not discern it. But this will be further discovered in our process. End of chapter one.