John Owen Quotes

God is better served in resisting a temptation to evil than in many formal prayers.

Be killing sin or it will be killing you.

Do you mortify? Do you make it your daily work? Be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.

Temptation to behave is terrible.

We may not have demon fathers dangling offers of infernal power before us, but everyone understands what it means to struggle with temptation or resist the urge to give in to our baser natures.

Do you really think it is weakness that yields to temptation? I tell you that there are terrible temptations which it requires strength, strength and courage to yield to.

My 12th was my most Christian and most boring year of my life. Try as I did, day after day, to cling to righteousness, I was washed down in suds of sinful surroundings.

Avoiding the temptation to sin and being patient upon that, is greater than being patient whilst being afflicted with trials.

The sin that now rises to memory as your bosom sin, let this first of all be withstood and mastered. Oppose it instantly by a detestation of it, by a firm will to conquer it, by reflection, by reason, and by prayer.

When sin lets us alone we may let sin alone.

Lay siege to your sins, and starve them out by keeping away the food and fuel which is their maintenance and life.

'Tis no sin to be tempted, but to be overcome.

You tempt me. I can’t be tempted. I’m not made to be tempted.

If we didn't have to stand against temptation, we'd never know our own spiritual strength.

Let no man pretend to fear sin that does not fear temptation also! These two are too closely united to be separated. He does not truly hate the fruit who delights in the root.

The inner life must overcome the flesh or the flesh will overcome and destroy the inner life.

Tomorrow's character is made out of today's thoughts. Temptation may come suddenly, but sin does not.

When temptation comes your way, name that boastful, deceitful giant “Goliath!” and do with it as David did to the Philistine of Gath.

If we do not abide in prayer, we will abide in temptation.

Most people would like to be delivered from temptation but would like it to keep in touch.

One of the important things about temptation is, if I'm going to deal with it I'm going to have to recognize, this is an area of weakness in my life. I have been tempted here before and before and before.

We're all going to be victims of temptation at several points in our lives.

We are never like angels till our passion dies.

Temptation's something you have to deal with even if you're not famous. It's harder when you're famous because it's a lot more in your face, and that makes it a little more difficult to walk away from sometimes.

'Tis one thing to be tempted, another thing to fall.