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The Excellency of Christ and the Christian Life (Matthew Barrett)

The great Puritan theologian John Owen does not often give us insight into his personal life. He is more like Calvin than Luther, often expositing the text of Scripture but rarely talking about himself in the process. However, if you read Owen carefully, there are places where he lets us see behind the curtain. What we find when he does so is a remarkable and steadfast gaze upon the beauty, majesty, and glory of Jesus Christ.

Today I would like to point you to two passages (though there are more). The first comes from Owen’s series of sermons, The Excellency of Christ. Reflecting on Ephesians 3:17 (“Christ’s dwelling in us”) and Colossians 3:16 (“The word of Christ dwelling richly in us”), Owen writes:

I have had more advantage by private thoughts of Christ than by any thing in this world; and I think when a soul hath satisfying and exalting thoughts of Christ himself, his person and his glory, it is the way whereby Christ dwells in such a soul. If I have observed any thing by experience, it is this,—a man may take the measure of his growth and decay in grace according to his thoughts and meditations upon the person of Christ, and the glory of Christ’s kingdom, and of his love. A heart that is inclined to converse with Christ as he is represented in the gospel, is a thriving heart; and if estranged from it and backward to it, it is under deadness and decays (Works, 9:475).

Here, and in so many other places, Owen does what he does best, namely, connect the dots from doctrine to doxology. In this case, he shows us the inseparable marriage between Christology and sanctification.

First, Owen reveals that in his private thoughts it is Christ who he thinks about more than anything else in this world. Is that true of you? When your thoughts wonder throughout the day, is Christ, his person and work, the focus? In the busyness of your day, when you finally have a chance to take a break from life’s demands, are you anxious to spend time once again thinking about your Saviour, who he is and what he has accomplished? No doubt, this was the case with Owen, which leads us to our second point.

Second, Owen believes Christ dwells in our soul when we find our greatest satisfaction to be Christ. It is when our thoughts are elevated and exalted, our eyes lifted up to see Christ for who he is that we have sweet and intimate communion with our Savour.

Third, Owen believes that our spiritual health can be measured by our thoughts of Christ. It is no surprise that a believer who does not take time to meditate on the person and work of Christ is also one who is decaying spiritually. On the other hand, the believer who feeds on Christ is one who grows in Christ.

What are we to meditate on? Owen instructs us to think deeply about the kingdom of Christ, his love for us, as well as his gospel. The soul that does so will find his heart thriving! But the soul who neglects Christ will find himself estranged, under “deadness and decays.”

As I said, there is yet a second passage where Owen lets us into his personal thoughts. And this one is perhaps the most personal of all. The day Owen died, his friend William Payne came to visit him at home in the “quiet village of Ealing.” Payne brought news that Owen’s Meditations on the Glory of Christ was in route to publication. Owen was glad. But his gladness reached a new height that day as he prepared to meet Christ face to face. Owen said to his dear friend, “I am glad to hear it; but, O brother Payne! The long wished for day is come at last in which I shall see that glory in another manner than I have ever done, or was capable of doing in this world” (The Person of Christ, 1:CIII.).

Certainly what characterized Owen’s life was his relentless hunger to behold the glory of Christ. Is this true of you? If not, take Owen’s hand as he leads you to sit with him at the feet of Christ our Lord and Savior.

[Stay tuned, in my next post I will recommend where to start when reading Owen on the person of Christ.]

Matthew Barrett (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Assistant Professor of Christian Studies at California Baptist University (OPS), as well as the founder and executive editor of Credo Magazine. He is the author of The Grace of Godliness: An Introduction to Doctrine and Piety in the Canons of Dort, Salvation by Grace: The Case for Effectual Calling and Regeneration, as well as the coeditor of Four Views on the Historical Adam (Counterpoints: Bible and Theology), and Whomever He Wills: A Surprising Display of Sovereign Mercy. He is the author of several other forthcoming books, which you can read about at matthewmbarrett.com.

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