The Gospel for Real Life [Hardcover]

Jerry Bridges (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2002

What difference does the gospel make?

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the door to eternal life, but what difference does it make once we’re inside God’s kingdom? Jerry Bridges says the gospel is the very lifeblood of our walk with God day by day. It is the key to our salvation, for sure, but it is also the power for our daily progress in holiness. In The Gospel for Real Life, Jerry helps you:

·Experience freedom from the grip of sin and know the joy of pursuing holiness

·Revel in God’s acceptance of you and participate in His grace as a daily reality

·Expose the subtle acids of legalism in your life and enjoy the liberty of the cross

·Understand the crucial doctrines of the gospel and their priceless benefits to you

·Discover how to "preach the gospel to yourself daily" and so partake of its continuous transforming power

·Carry the true fullness of the gospel to a desperately needy world around you

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Why do so many believers live in quiet desperation?

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most explosive news of freedom the world has ever heard. Yet, why do so many of His followers experience so little of the gospel’s liberating power? Regrets over our past haunt us, fear and anxiety clutch at us, subtle legalism oppresses us, outright sin entangles us, and we spend much of the day without even thinking of God.

Jerry Bridges maintains that the poverty of actual Christian experience is the result of an impoverished understanding of the depths of the gospel itself. The key is not to try a little harder, but to know more fully the incredible work of Christ on the cross—and to live in a more vital awareness of that grace day by day.

Jerry does not flinch from the hard facts of human sin and God’s wrath—not exactly popular concepts today. But understanding them is absolutely crucial. For without a knowledge of the depth of our sin, we cannot experience "the unsearchable riches of Christ" that are available to us in the gospel. And when we know those riches, we are empowered to live every day "glorying in a sense of acceptance and the experience of grace."

This gospel is not just for the afterlife, but for today—it is the gospel for real life.

From the Back Cover

What difference does the gospel make? The gospel of Jesus Christ is the door to eternal life, but what difference does it make once we're inside God's kingdom? Jerry Bridges says the gospel is the very lifeblood of our walk with God. Without doubt it is the key to our salvation, but it is also the power for our daily progress in holiness. The Gospel for Real Life will help you: ·Experience freedom from the grip of sin and know the joy of pursuing holiness ·Revel in God's acceptance of you and participate in His grace as a daily reality ·Expose the subtle acids of legalism in your life and enjoy the liberty of the cross ·Discover how to "preach the gospel to yourself daily" and so partake of its continuous transforming power ·Carry the true fullness of the gospel to a desperately needy world around you This new paperback edition includes a study guide to help you experience every day "the unsearchable riches of Christ" that are available to us in the gospel.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Navpress Publishing Group (October 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576833364
• ISBN-13: 978-1576833360
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #780,911 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jerry Bridges is a longtime staff member of the Navigators and currently serves with their collegiate ministry. In addition to his international speaking ministry, he has authored ten books and three devotionals; among them The Pursuit of Holiness, which has sold well over a million copies, and the award-winning The Discipline of Grace and I Will Follow You, O God.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My review from www.CompleteInChrist.net, March 10, 2005

By 

Craig N. Johnson (Windsor, VT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel for Real Life: Turn to the Liberating Power of the Cross...Every Day (with Study Guide) (Paperback)

Jerry Bridges is one of my favorite authors. He is so clear. He is so personable. He is Christ-centered and gospel-centered in everything that he writes.

I find today that many Christians do not understand how the gospel relates to every day living. The gospel saves us. We all know that. But, what does the gospel have to do with my life today? Bridges helps us with that.

The book will help you to enjoy the gospel. We sometimes skip over many of the incredible doctrines related to salvation. We don't savor the truths. We don't LOVE the truths. Our study of salvation is merely academic. After each chapter of Bridges' book, you will want to have your own little celebration with God. You will want to set the book down, and pray to your great Savior.

As I said before, one of Bridges' strengths is his clarity. This is especially important when it comes to the gospel. Can you explain the gospel clearly...from the text of Scripture? Bridges will help the truths to be clear in your mind so that you are better equipped to share them with others.

Do you find yourself having a 'ho-hum' attitude about your salvation? A 'take it or leave it' attitude? Do you yawn a lot when you read what the Bible says about justification or adoption? Those truths are amazing! Those truths are what should motivate you to live a life of worship to God.

With Bridges' you will celebrate your life with Christ.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why live in quiet desperation?, May 26, 2003

By 

Jacob Aitken (Pineville, LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel for Real Life (Hardcover)

I bought this book after someone recommended Jerry Bridges to me. I found this book a very basic, easy to read guideline to Covenant theology, namely the aspect of Salvation and the Christian Life.

Bridges Encourages believers to embrace the reality of Christ's finished work on the Cross, understand the meaning of reconciliation and Adoption by God, and no longer live with the knowledge and regret of past failure. Among the interesting points in the book is Bridge's interpretation of the word *propitiation* (which I fully agree, and believe it will satisfy the demands of modern, Reformed theologians). Chapters 5-9 contain the heart of the book as well as the heart of the Gospel. Bridges is able to take deep thought from modern and older reformers and put them into Everyman language.

Final Analysis: This book is basic. It contained no new truth, it just retold it in different terms (which is important). If you are familiar with the Catholic/Protestant debate over Sola Fide, then this book will not add anything new to the argument that both sides have not already heard. Try to find the book cheaper and it would well be a Sunday read which you could probably finish in a day. The book is aimed at those who are liveing their livies in quiet desperation. Only when we fully realize what Christ actually did on the cross will we ever truly live.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Visionary, passionately charged with faith and hope, August 7, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gospel for Real Life (Hardcover)

Jerry Bridges is an experienced Bible teacher and a member of the Navigator Collegiate Ministry Group. In The Gospel For Real Life: Turn To The Liberating Power Of The Cross... Every Day, Bridges offers a powerful testimony concerning human sin, God's terrible wrath, and the transcendent redemption offered by Christ on the Cross. Promoting the Gospel as directly relevant not only for the afterlife, but life today, The Gospel For Real Life is visionary, passionately charged with faith and hope, and vitally important reader for Christians of all denominations and backgrounds.