John Owen on the State of the Country

John Owen writes:

“I can testify that I never saw our land in such a complacent security as it is at present. In former days there were continual warnings that God had a quarrel with the nation and those that feared God spoke to one another about it, and we saw and discovered that these warnings were not empty words. But now, today, there is just a general sense of security. Men complain of adversities, needs, poverty and so on, but as far as anything to do with God’s involvement in the world is concerned, either my judgment deceives me or I never saw the land so complacent and at ease. And this indifference has affected us all, even the churches of God themselves.

These things are a matter of fact. The question is: are we to be greatly concerned with these things or not? They are the sins of wicked men and of the persecutors of God’s people. What have we to do with them?”

- John Owen, Searching Our Hearts in Difficult Times, circa 1660

Owen’s remarks could have well been written in 2024 in America. Let us notice that in 400 years, precious little has changed. People are more concerned with personal prosperity than they are with the blessing of God in their lives. Wickedness is rampant, and it has surely influenced the church.

Yet Owen wrote in a period of time where God used a group of men called the Puritans to shape the life and culture of a generation. In fact, one could make the case that our own country was a direct result of the Purtian movement in England in the 17th century.

When you see the wicked world around you, do take heart. Commit yourself to the Lord. Keep yourself from the world. And trust, that even if things do not go according to our own plans, that the Lord can surely bring good in His own time. Let us seek Him and trust Him in these difficult days.