Owen on the Christian Life: Living for the Glory of God in Christ

Theologians on the Christian Life

by Matthew Barrett, Michael A.G. Haykin, Stephen J. Nichols (Series Editor)

John Owen is widely regarded as one of the most influential English Puritans. As a pastor, he longed to see the glory of Christ take root in people’s lives. As a writer, he continues to encourage us toward discipline and communion with God. His high view of God and deep theological convictions flowed naturally into practical application and a zeal for personal holiness. In  Owen on the Christian Life , Barrett and Haykin guide us through the seventeenth-century theologian’s life and doctrine, giving us a glimpse into the majestic vision that served as the foundation for his approach to the Christian life―the glory of God in Christ. Part of the Theologians on the Christian Life series.

Genres: Theology, Biography, Christian, History, Christian Living, Church History, Nonfiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published June 30, 2014

About the author

Matthew Barrett (MDiv, PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is associate professor of Christian theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and the executive editor of Credo Magazine. He is the author of numerous books, including God's Word Alone, 40 Questions about Salvation, Reformation Theology, John Owen on the Christian Life, and Salvation by Grace. He is also the host of the Credo podcast where he talks with fellow theologians about the most important doctrines of the faith. He lives in Kansas City.

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Owen on the Christian Life is the newest book I've read in Crossway's Theologians on the Christian Life series. Is it fair to compare one book in the series with another? OR how does Owen on the Christian Life compare with other books in the series? I will say that Owen on the Christian Life is not as amazingly-wonderful as Newton on the Christian Life, Packer on the Christian Life, or Calvin on the Christian Life. But I'm not convinced its fair to compare books or theologians like that.

I'll admit it from the start--or almost the start as the case may be. John Owen intimidates me. I'm scared to pick up any of his books. I know that John Owen is a BIG theologian that I should be familiar with, or, more familiar with at any rate. But. He doesn't seem like he would be accessible and enjoyable.

For the record, since you might not have read other reviews I've written, I DO enjoy reading theology, actively enjoy it. Not as a duty or an obligation. But for the joyful challenge of it. I've discovered a few things. One, you can't judge an author's accessibility by the century in which they're writing. Two, you can't judge an author by just one work. For example, I found one or two of Jonathan Edwards' books to be really difficult, but, when I picked up a collection of his sermons, I was amazed by how accessible they were. Three, some authors are difficult to read, but, prove ultimately worth the effort in the end because of how much you do, in fact, learn.

I chose to read Owen on the Christian Life because I wanted someone to persuade me to read John Owen's actual works. Were the authors successful in persuading me? Yes and no. Yes, I do plan on reading John Owen eventually. By reading the book, I'm convinced now that he would be worth reading, worth the effort in the end. But no, I'm not in a rush to do so! I'm still a bit scared! If I do decide to pick up John Owen, I'll refer back to their guide to reading Owen today. The first book they suggest readers pick up is Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers.

In the first chapter, the authors provide a biographical sketch of John Owen. Eight chapters focus on his theology. These chapters are "Living by the Scriptures," "Communing with the Trinity," "Beholding the Glory of Christ," "Crushed for Our Iniquities," "Salvation Belongs to the Lord," "Justification by Faith Alone and Christian Assurance," "The Indwelling Spirit, The Mortification of Sin, and the Power of Prayer," and "Living the Christian Life as the Church under the State." The final chapter focuses on the legacy of John Owen. The book also includes Owen's The Lesser Catechism, which I found fascinating.

I had several favorite chapters. "Crushed For Our Iniquities" and "Salvation Belongs to the Lord" were GREAT chapters and a real treat for me.

The book grounds Owen's theology IN the times in which he lived. That is the authors provide thorough background and context for Owen's theological views and works. Often this means explaining who his opponents were, discussing his opponents' views, and how Owen's views differed--the ways in which they differed. Overall, I think this was helpful. But it also means that it is difficult to casually read.

[Tristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Need to buy some of the others in this series.

[Aaron Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to Owen with a very helpful guide to reading Owen at the end. The chapters on mortification of sin and Owen's congregationalism [chs. 8 and 9, respectively], are worth the price of the book. I'd recommend this book and subsequent reading of Owen for all young men going into gospel ministry.

[Vaclav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Owen on the Christian life is wonderful. Barrett and Haykin did a very helpful breakdown of Owen's extensive teaching on the subject. Reading Owen is more enjoyable.

[Derrick Kenyon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent introduction to Owen that both encouraged my love for the Triune God and makes me want to pick up and read Owen’s works. Would definitely recommend.

[Bradley Somers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent! I have been a fan of Puritans for some time. Have repeatedly began and abandoned Owen's Work of Communion with the Triune God. Each time have made it further into his teaching. This has reignited and clarified my reason to continue to wrestle out Owen's teachings for my Christian life.

[Samuel G. Parkison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent work here by Dr. Barrett and Dr. Haykin. This was deeply devotional for me. Owen still speaks, friends; he is Puritanism at its best, and contra popular belief, it offers not heavy handed condemnation, but sweet assurance in a beautiful and sturdy Christ. We all would do well to have more Owen in our lives.

[E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whenever I rate entries in this series, I feel like I'm rating the theologian just as much as this particular work. Well, if anyone deserves five stars, it's John Owen (and Barrett and Haykin do a good job of relating his theology, even managing to avoid hitting banging the congregationalist hammer over and over--Owen was a presbyterian who later became a congregationalist). Sinclair Ferguson wrote a very similar book on Owen about thirty years ago, and so these authors sought to focus on other loci of Owen's work rather than copying Ferguson's effort (which I've not read but which is surely excellent). Here we get to explore Owen's theology as it relates to communing with the triune God, beholding the glory of Christ, understanding his work on the cross and God's greater plan of salvation, sharpening our understanding of justification by faith and of assurance of salvation, and more. They are careful to be straightforward without being simplistic (always a danger when dealing with an intellect as bright as Owen's!) and allowing the man to speak for himself.

Great book, great series. Recommend it to all.

[Shawn Durham · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Owen on the Christian Life”, written by Barret & Haykin was one of the most in depth, & studied out books I have read in a very long time. With almost 1,000 citations (976 to be exact), it is safe to say that the authors wanted Owen to speak for himself. Having only read 1 book by Owen (The Mortification of Sin), it was very interesting & helpful to understand more aspects of his thought & theology.
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After giving us a brief introduction of Owen in ch. 1, the authors gives us in depth overviews of varying aspects of Owen, including his thoughts on 1) The Trinity, 2) The Scriptures, 3) Justification by Faith Alone, 4) the Glory of Christ, and 6 other interesting themes (11 chapters total).
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Along with the various citations of Owen, this work is full of Scripture references, so that the reader will be able to cross reference Owen’s thoughts with the Scriptures.
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Life every other book I have read in this series, this book was very enjoyable, & well written!
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I must say, this book is not something that one would choose for “light reading”. It is very detailed (which is a good thing), & is not a book that you would want to hastily skim through (it took me 14 days to complete it).
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I would like to thank @crosswaybooks for allowing me to review this book!

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am reluctant to say this--given the colossal impact of John Owen--but I struggled with this one. And I really can't say that this was the authors' fault. I mean, the book was well written. The authors have a love for their subject and his work. They also were intentionally trying to avoid significant overlap with Sinclair Ferguson's book. (In 1987, Ferguson wrote a book with nearly the same title ("John Owen on the Christian Life")) and in this book's intro, the authors praised Ferguson's work and said they attempted to avoid duplicating it.) Because they did, it felt like this book had some gaps, and, conversely, some things seemed repetitive. But again, I really can't blame the authors for not wanting to just repeat Ferguson's work. So, I recommend this book, but I also suggest that the reader first read Ferguson's book.

[Stephen Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fills a nice role within Owen studies by introducing some of his most important theological emphases: the doctrine of God, the doctrine of Christ, and the doctrines of grace. The authors are to be commended for incorporating a lot of primary and secondary source material on Owen and for handling some of the historical background for his more polemical writings. Moreover, they follow in the model of the Puritans by diligently applying such doctrines to the Christian life. Like Calvin before him, no one can write on Owen without emphasizing the significant role of the Spirit in his thought, and of the Trinity more generally, and this book does an excellent job highlighting these within each doctrinal consideration. This is another nice place to start for those interested in becoming better acquainted with Owen and his writing.

[Jon Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Owen lived an important life with a historic output of great theological writings and with interesting historical events. This book touches on both but focuses more on the theology of course. The book does at times try to tie the two together but mostly it gets his history out of the way and then gets into deep theological writings. It does a good job tieing the things he wrote about in great detail to the theological climate he was living in and to what he felt called to oppose and speak against. As with the other books in the series it's a great introduction to Owen and sparked my interest in reading more of his writing.

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. It's like taking a theology class through the lens of one particular theologian - this being John Owen. Worth the read, and inspired me to read a bit more of Owen himself. To say its quotable is an understatement. I have 177 sentences, paragraphs, or pages highlighted in this book now. So good.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow start...great ending....
I REALLY struggled with this book for a few chapters, especially after the biographical stuff...(it took me a four years to finish reading it!)but i have to say...

I'm so glad I decided not to give up. I started reading an abridged version of The Mortification of Sin by John Owen, then all of a sudden it all made sense and I really wanted to keep reading.
His ecclesiology was enlightening, and I loved the reading recommendations at the end.
I have to recommend this book.

[Nickolas Hartman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent biography of an English theologian that puts into perspective both a cultural and Christian battle for orthodoxy. Barrett and Haykin do a great job presenting the story of Owen and his theology and it’s impact today.

[Josh Kannard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this would have been better titled "John Owen on Systematic Theology" rather than "On the Christian Life" but it was a delightful read regardless. He does indeed belong with the likes of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin. Always an encouragement to read, despite the density.

[Austin Kuhn · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’re interested in reading Owen but don’t know what to expect or where to start, this is a helpful resource. While not able to cover all of his works and theology, this book lays out much of the essentials as well as the historical/ theological context in which Owen wrote.

[Alaric Aumann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book outlining the theology of John Owen in an understandable fashion. Be prepared though to be surprised at the intellectual thickness of the book.

[Jonathan Franzone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really good, comprehensive introduction to the life and theology of John Owen. I highly recommend it.

[Amy Talbott · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative book. It is a scholarly book which makes the reading slow at times. I am thankful and do appreciate the introduction to the Puritan thinker and author of John Owen.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic look into the theology of the puritan John Owen.

[Gareth Crawford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite dense, like all of Owen's work. Certainly not the best in the series.

[Nate Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent summation of Owen's life and theological defenses which defined his context and desires for the Christian life.

[Coyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

"John Owen was a terrible writer. Don’t get me wrong: I suspect he is the greatest of the Reformed theologians (so far, at any rate). In part, this is due to his habit of engaging his theological opponents by taking on their strongest arguments, rather than by setting up straw men and then declaring victory by easily knocking them over. Likewise, he is absolutely unhurried in dealing with theological matters. Owen is quite happy to spend a page articulating the meaning of a single word, a whole book exploring a single verse, or multiple volumes walking through one book of the Bible. But still, his prose is atrocious and his works are so dense as to be nearly unreadable by the layman. Even if American education weren’t in the middle of a slow collapse, Owen would be a challenge to read. Which is why works like Matthew Barrett and Michael Haykin’s Owen on the Christian Life are so useful and worthwhile."

Read the whole review here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/schaeffe...

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barrett and Haykin have given us a real gift in "Owen on the Christian Life." It's a great place to start for one who hasn't read any Owen as Barrett and Haykin begin with a biography and then manage to cover most of the major topics Owen addresses, everything from communion with the Trinity to Scriptures to Justification to Mortification and Sanctification.
One of the strengths of the book is how extensively and at what length Owen is quoted. Beyond being faithful in presenting Owen, Barrett and Haykin do an excellent job of letting us hear Owen for himself. The only weakness of the book was in the second to last chapter where Barrett and Haykin talk about Owen's legacy. There was much more that could have been said here and I think it would have been particularly interesting to hear more about how contemporary readers and theologians have wrestled with Owen.
Regardless, I highly commend the book. Owen is on the very top tier of my favorite pastors and theologians and this book more than does him justice.

[David Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good entry in the series providing a good introduction to Owen. At times it feels a little bit that the authors are trying to shoehorn Owen into their own agenda. Also has a slight feeling of running out of steam in the last few chapters. Sinclair Ferguson's John Owen On the Christian Life is a better introduction to the great man.

[Hobart · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. This was lacking something, not sure what, but it wasn't anywhere near as good as the rest of this series. Informative, yes, but not engaging.

2. I need to stop reading books about Owen and read more Owen.

[Wes Van Fleet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Such a helpful overview of the life and theology of one of the greatest minds ever to serve the Lord. Highly recommended.