Quote of the Day

"Jesus is the (only) fire that burns up the very root of lust."  

This is from a classic book from a Puritan man named John Owen.  I've read it and it's a difficult read, but another pastor/blogger posted some of the quotes from this book, and this one reminded me why this book is so very important.  "Lust" means a very strong desire.  In itself it's not a sin, but it is the object of the desire that matters.  Sinful lusts, says Owen, can only be uprooted and burned by Jesus.  We may hammer away at the fruit of the sinful lusts all day long, but if the root is left intact the efforts are fruit-LESS so to speak.  It will continue to grow and grow.  

What powerful desires do you have that you continue to fight in your own strength?  You continue regularly to cut the top off, leaving the root in place.  The root has grown very deep, like an old tree in fertile, moist soil.  When you chop the top off, you feel as if the "weed" is gone, but within a very short period of time you find it's grown right back where it left off.  We must deal with the roots of the sins in our lives, and not simply the bad fruit.  Bad fruit comes from bad roots, which means essentially that this is a heart problem.  Heart problems can be dealt with in no other way than by Jesus' strength, power, and might.