Customer Reviews

The Discipline of Grace: God's Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness

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When it comes to the area of books on Christian living, Jerry Bridges stands out among a very crowded field of authors. In the last 10 years, there has been an explosion of books on Christian living, with all kinds of authors trying to find a publishing niche - whether it's books that are geared specifically towards women, homeschoolers, men, parents, seniors, new Christians, seasoned Christians, etc. Thankfully, in the midst of all this we have an author like Bridges, whose 'niche' is writing thorough and challenging books that the entire body of Christ can profit from. This particular book certainly falls into that category.

The purpose of the book is to attempt to find a Biblical basis for understanding our individual pursuit of holiness. In particular, the book tries to explore what our role is, versus what God's role is, and then expanding upon not only what we should be doing, but what our approach and attitude should be in order for our efforts to be effective. This is a difficult area. As Bridges properly points out, teachings on personal holiness range from a 'God is in control so don't worry about your own conduct' approach to a legalistic rules and regulations approach that on a practical level leaves holiness entirely up to the individual. Bridges spurns both approaches in favor of a balanced approach that struck me as being very biblically responsible. That approach being that God is indeed in control and His grace is the ingredient that empowers our efforts to become more holy.

The strength of the book is the last six or so chapters where Bridges puts practical legs upon many of the Biblical concepts discussed in the first half of the book and develops several Biblical disciplines that all Christians should heed in their lives. Those who read the first part of the book and begin (as I admittedly did) to think that Bridges is soft-peddling sin by so exalting grace need to read through the entire book. The last several chapters really bring a solid balance to the presentation, and I found these disciplines to be substantive and challenging not only in the disciplines themselves, but also in the perspective we need to have about them as being spiritually worthless without the power of the Holy Spirit and the motive to discipline ourselves out of a love for God. Particularly insightful was Bridges comment that many folks who practice certain disciplines can get into a legalistic mindset because they don't practice the disciplines out of a love for God, but out of a fear of guilt or out of loving the disciplines themselves but not loving God. Very good point.

I would strongly recommend this book to all Christians at any stage of their Christian walk. There is some very good meat in here that personally convicted me, and I think many Christians who are trapped either in a legalistic or antinomian mindset will find the Biblical balance set forth by Bridges to be very refreshing. Those who struggle with understanding their role in holiness will find in this book a God focused perspective that affirms human responsibility in the context of God's sovereignty, and that these truths are complementary in the area of Christian living and pursuing holiness. A very good book.

The Discipline of Grace is a wonderfully clear explanation of how God's grace frees us from the impossible task of being self-made people. The central idea of this book is that grace is the key to enjoying the freedom that is offered in the Gospel of Christ. This is without question one of the most helpful and encouraging books I have ever read. It would be an excellent read for the Christian who struggles with guilt or having an assurance of their salvation. It would also be a good book for a seeker who wants a better understanding of how the gospel of Christ should be applied in practical living.

The Lord says to Moses, "Speak to the congregation of the children of Israel and say to them: `You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy'".

The Master calls His followers, saying, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect".

Yet we clearly are imperfect, and our response to this calling all too often smacks of striving, pride, and ultimately of hypocrisy.

So what are we to do? And who's responsible for what?

These questions are explored by Jerry Bridges in this excellent book. The title itself is a meditation on shared responsibility in the process of sanctification. On the surface it may seem that grace and the personal discipline to pursue holiness are opposed to one another, but Bridges argues that they are not. "In fact", he writes, "they go hand in hand. An understanding of how grace and personal, vigorous effort work together is essential for a life-long pursuit of holiness".

A foundational point that the author makes is that Christians must constantly preach the Gospel to themselves. The conventional paradigm is that the Gospel is relevant to unbelievers, and that after they come to the Lord, the essential focus becomes one of discipleship. However, Bridges reminds us that daily recognition of the saving grace of the Gospel message is necessary if discipleship is not to become a matter of performance and of empty striving.

He describes how the primary responsibility of the disciple is to behold the glory of the Lord as it is displayed in the Gospel; this opens us to the sanctification that is the work of the Holy Spirit. And as we receive this grace, the practice of the other spiritual disciplines that are discussed in the book becomes a natural out flowing of the love of God in the believer.

And so it is; as the Lord said to St. Paul, "My grace is sufficient; my power is made perfect in weakness".

This book, which grapples with some of the central issues of the Christian walk, should be required reading for all believers.

Overview - The pursuit of holiness requires vigorous effort on our part, but it is primarily the work of the Holy Spirit. Even though the believer is a new creation in Christ, the believer still sins every day. Therefore the gospel is not only for the unbeliever, the believer also needs to be reminded of the gospel ever day. Without the reminder that we are sinners and that Christ has paid for all of our sins, past, present, and future, we will either fall into self-righteousness and become proud or fall into the feeling of guilt and despair. The discipline of grace includes instruction, reproof and correction, providential hardships administered in love aimed at cultivating spiritual growth and godly character. Spiritual growth requires both dependence on the Holy Spirit and effort on our part

Critique - I think this is valuable book and think that it is a book that every Christian should read. The strength of the book drives the point that both dependence on the Holy Spirit and our own effort are both required. Often times it seems that we get an emphasis on grace where we may think that there is nothing we need to do or we get an emphasis on what we are suppose to do where we may think that it is all up to us. One weakness that I think is missing from the book is the idea of idols. All idolatry is sin, but I think we recognize sinful actions or desires before we recognize idolatry in our lives. If we also look for idolatry in our hearts we will also see what we are trusting in or finding comfort in place of God.

Best Quote - "no plane can fly with just one wing; both are absolutely necessary... As you look at the two wings you see the words dependence on the left wing and discipline on the right wing. This airplane illustrates one of the most important principles in the Christian life. Just as the airplane must have both wings to fly, so we must exercise both discipline and dependence in the pursuit of holiness... We absolutely need both."

I would recomend this book to anyone and everyone. I'm reading it for the third time right now, and I still get new depth and insight from it. It is filled with scripture and centered around that, so that is a very good thing. Jerry Bridges is an excellent author with a wonderful background in literature, and this book really just brings it all together. It has transformed my thinking about grace and how to apply it to my life daily.

This is one of those books that brought tears to my eyes. Not only can you not do anything to make God love you any less, you can't do anything to make God love any more! What a freeing truth! I would recommend this book to everyone.

First of all, thanks go out to Stephanie Chalfant at NavPress for this review copy of The Discipline of Grace and The Discipline of Grace Study Guide.

"So learn to 'preach the gospel to yourself' everyday, and in the joy and strength of knowing your sins are forgiven and sin's dominion is broken, press on to become holy as He is holy." This closing sentence succinctly lays out the major aims of The Discipline of Grace. Speaking with the heart of a pastor, Jerry Bridges encourages believers to take an active approach to discipleship, while keeping a proper grounding in the gospel as Christ-centered and Spirit-empowered. The message of the gospel as an essential element for both believer and unbeliever takes center stage. Bridges shows throughout the fallacy of thinking we can "earn" righteousness or holiness, while still lifting up a challenge to actively engage in the process of spiritual growth.

The heart of a pastor can be easily seen in the many stories and quotes offered, and a strong push towards action, towards application. The text strives to relate Biblical truth in an easily digestible form. Overall, Bridges is successful in demonstrating to the reader the need for personal and proactive action, and the need for dependence on God's gift of forgiveness and the empowering work of the Spirit as a foundation for discipleship. Bridges success in accomplishing his objective got better as the book progressed, especially after chapter 6. It is clear that this is not just some academic subject to Bridges, but rather worthy of deep, personal involvement, and with weighty implications for the life and mission of Christ's body.

Unfortunately, there is a certain lack of precision throughout. And while this does not necessarily affect the final outcome once the general tenor of Scripture is dealt with, when addressing specific verses and passages, Bridges sometimes makes some "blunders" that are common in popular "Bible study". The most common is over-reading, imbuing words with greater meaning, extent or specificity than a passage requires. This often puts his logic on an insecure footing exegetically, even when used to bolster a point that is in the end theologically sound. Frequent references to passive voice in the Greek language are used to make definite theological arguments about agency. This always makes me cringe a little, as very rarely is agency declared outright in these passages (the emphasis being on the subject's experience of the action, not on the action's agency), and when it is, it often is not so clearly or unambiguously the agent declared by Bridges.

In a couple places there are mistakes that seem to come from a failure to reference (or maybe a lack of availability of?) good background sources, trusting a "plain-sense" English reading of Scripture. For example, Bridges' use of the reference to "Daniel" in Ezekiel 14:44 (p. 158) is most likely inaccurate. And as this is used to make a multi-paragraph point, the whole logical progression is given a shaky footing. While the Mosaic Law is described and handled well for the most part, often it is described and related in terms and categories that are common (p. 116) but which are not found in the background material or in the historical understanding of these passages.

Bridges has a love for quotes in this book, and specifically for Puritan writers - though this is likely based on the subject matter of this book and the Puritan propensity to write on the topics of self-discipline, sin and the sin nature. That being said, I could have done with a few less quotes, paraphrased or otherwise. I felt that John Owen was quoted so much that were I to read him now, I would have a continuous experience of deja vu. John Murray also received a thorough coverage within these pages. I have nothing against quotes, and in more devotional or introspective works, this is somewhat common. But the length and frequency was probably excessive in light of his repeated need to paraphrase the antiquated quotes and the wealth of Scripture he was also trying to feed into his reasoning and pastoral musings.

While I may seem to have presented a lot of negatives, Bridges writing style is quite clear. A number of places stand out for their ability to relate theological truth in powerful ways. When he covers Deuteronomy 6, his progression (pp. 115-121) from love to obedience and the connection between the two is executed brilliantly. Similarly, the call to pursue holiness rather than passively wait is handled very effectively (p. 136).

Finally, if using this book in a group, I would suggest only the leader(s) getting the full book. The study guide covers much of each chapter verbatim, and what is not covered verbatim is rephrased into question form. These questions will provoke a lot of group thought. If reading on one's own without a group, I feel a struggle between suggesting just reading the book and also getting the study guide, thus having directed, response-generating questions. Having both the book and the study guide for personal study seems highly redundant based on the content. If you are just reading, I would make sure to read with Scripture close at hand, and plenty of time to pray over what you find.

Overall, a lack of exegetical and logical precision is overcome by some very powerful writing and keen insight into our sin nature and the spiritual tools at a believer's disposal. An overall emphasis on the gospel - on God's grace, Christ's suffering, and the Spirit's continued work - provides a solid foundation for spiritual growth.

It's rare that I would call any book life changing, but for me, this was. Although a life-long Christian, I never really understood the concept of grace. Once I understood God's grace to me, it changed me life. I felt released from guilt. I would highly recommend this book to anyone. I first did it as a women's study, but you could certainly do it alone.

I grabbed this book of the shelf at a bookstore, started reading the first chapter for a bit, then couldn't put it down. I finished this book faster than just about any book I've read. Bridges helps explain how Christians can become for Christlike in their lives and lead their lives by God's example...I know I will refer to this book many times in my search for answers.

Consistent with his other text I have read (Pursuit of Holiness, etc.), Jerry Bridges brings a good and balanced biblical view to his writing. While he clearly states he does not wish judge anyone in his writing, Bridges also clearly challenges the reader to not take God's grace so lightly since it cost Him so much - namely His Son Jesus Christ.

The first part of the book is spent clarifying what grace is and what our part is in growing more in God's grace. The second part mainly concerns how we can actually grow. Whether a new or mature believer, you will benefit from the reading.

The last few chapters are spent discussing how God will mature us through: commitment, convictions, choices, watching, and adversity. Included in these chapters are how we can experience spiritual growth when we obey God's leading and determine to apply these truths. In short, Bridges throughout the book maintains a balance between God's grace and what we have to do to experience that grace and growth.

All in all, an excellent read. Read and enjoy!