The Enemy Within: Straight Talk About the Power and Defeat of Sin (1998) by Kris Lundegaard is a remarkable little book. Channeling the wise Puritan John Owen, Lundegaard wrote 150 very practical pages on overcoming the power of sin in the life of the believer. He described the influence of John Owen in his life and thinking about sin but, like most of us, found Owen to be a cumbersome read. Owen is a lot of work; thankfully Lundegaard is not. He took the wonderful ideas of Owen and unabashedly re-worked them for the modern believer and did so commendably. He opened the preface with these words: "'If God has redeemed me from sin, and given me His Holy Spirit to sanctify me and give me strength against sin, why do I go on sinning?' This question has plagued me throughout my life of faith. In my lowest moments it has brought despair; it has even darkened the edges of my brightest times (p. 13). Who of us, if we take sin seriously, has not struggled with similar thoughts. Lundegaard takes the rest of the book to explore the hold that sin has over us and the power of Christ to help us to overcome. Lundegaard has provided a useful, readable volume that provides resources against sin and a simple introduction to Owen.
Now, to pull Owen off my shelf and try him again.
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