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Grace, All of Grace









Transforming Grace by Jerry Bridges
Few people have done a mighty work of shaping my view of Christian faith and theology like the late Jerry Bridges.  This book originally was written in 1981 and it still packs a strong punch of sound biblical teaching on grace alongside a healthy view of progressive sanctification.  Jerry Bridges is most known for his book, The Pursuit of Holiness, but this book, Transforming Grace is a work of great value as well.  The whole crux of the book is an answer to the question; now that we are saved by grace, how do we live the Christian life?  Countering the view that somehow grace is not needed or unnecessary for the daily Christian’s life, Jerry points us back to grace as fundamental to our life on Earth.
In fleshing out what it means for the law of God to remain in effect for the Christian today, Jerry does an excellent job at explaining the difference between legalism and grace.  He writes, “Under a sense of legalism, obedience is done with a view to meriting salvation or God’s blessing on our lives.  Under grace, obedience is a loving response to salvation already provided in Christ, and the assurance that, having provided salvation, God will also through Christ provide all else that we need.”  There is a change of reason or motive for following God’s moral commands when one operates under grace.  No longer is the moral law a law which only condemns us but it is a moral guide, wisdom for the right path.  Christ’s love compels us to love God through following his moral commands.  This view of law brings freedom and relief to the Christian, not pushing us toward merit keeping obedience.
Jerry gets to the heart of sanctification in his chapter entitled Holiness: A Gift of God’s Grace.  He writes, “Sometimes we think of salvation as more like a sports coat and a pair of slacks.  We think God gives us the sports coat of justification by His grace, but we must "buy" the slacks of sanctification by our own efforts.  But salvation is like a suit.  It always comes with the jacket of justification and the pants of sanctification.  God never gives one without the other because both are necessary to have the complete suit of salvation.  Sanctification in us begins as an instantaneous act of the Holy Spirit and is carried forward by His continued action in our lives." (116) There is a very real sense where the believer must put to death deeds of the sinful nature and yet we don’t even do this activity by our own mental efforts.  God’s work starts in election and ends in glorification for the Christian, and every step of the way God is working in and through him to conform him to the likeness of Jesus Christ.
Go get this book and in fact by 5 or 10, this is truly a book that will change lives because it changed my heart many years ago when I first read it.
Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.






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