Brad’s Blog

Well, I am on to a new book. I am now reading The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges. This is another classic book that I have yet to read. This is another short book, so I should be able to get through this one quickly.

From the back cover: “‘Be holy, for I am holy,’ commands God to His people. But holiness is something that is often missed in the Christian’s daily life. According to Jerry Bridges, that’s because we’re not exactly sure what our part in holiness is. In The Pursuit of Holiness, he helps us see clearly just what we should rely on God to do - and what we should accept responsibility for ourselves.

“Whether you’re continuing your pursuit of holiness or just beginning, the principles and guidelines in The Pursuit of Holiness will challenge you to obey God’s command to holiness.”

In the preface to the book, Bridges states that he deliberately stresses our responsibility instead of stressing God’s provision. So, I will keep that in mind as I read this book.

This book should be a pretty quick read. It has short chapters with a Bible verse about holiness opening each chapter.

I finally finished Basic Christianity by Stott. That was a very good book. I really liked how he ended. The last chapter was titled “Being a Christian.” Stott basically answers the question, “I am a Christian, now what?” He does a good job of explaining what a growing Christian should be doing: praying, reading his Bible, witnessing, etc. He also emphasizes the necessity of being a part of a local church body where you can worship and serve together.

Stott also spends a great deal of time on eternal security. He gives good information to help the new believer face the doubts that they will surely face as they start their Christian walk.

Quote from Stott: “Yet the way to be sure is not just to feel sure. Most people who are at the beginning of their Christian life make this mistake. They rely too much on their superficial feelings….And since they imagine that their feelings accurately reflect their spiritual condition, they fall into a frenzy of uncertainty.”

Stott also uses the example of a father and a son to explain security. He says just because a son my disappoint his father and misbehave, he will never cease to be a son. This is the same with us and God for those who know Christ as their Savior. Stott says, “Relationship depends on birth; fellowship depends on behavior.” For those of us who have had the new birth, our relationship is secure.

This is a great book. It should be a must read for every Christian. If you are a new believer, read this book very soon. But, it will also serve to grow those who have been believers for many years.

See my write up on this book on braddena.com here.

Since I started this blog in the middle of reading this book, my blogs and review are not complete. I will have more information from subsequent books.

I am still reading through Basic Christianity by Stott. I am currently in the section on man’s response. Overall, it is good, but I think that Stott goes too far here. He presents Jesus as a beggar waiting outside for man to invite him in. This is true to a point, but it sounded a bit too Arminian for my liking.

Taking his comments in context with the rest of the book, I know what he means though, and I like that he really emphasized the need to make a personal decision.

He once again emphasized that we must make Jesus Lord as well as Savior, which I really like. Stott says that we can’t leave any area of our lives just for us, but we must turn it all over to Him.

I did find some good quotes in this section.

“We should follow Him neither just for what we can get nor for what we can give, but supremely because of what He gave.”

“If humans can thus trust humans, can we not trust God’s Son? It is more reasonable to commit oneself to the divine Christ than to the finest and noblest of human beings.”

I really liked that quote because Stott was referring to people who do not want to trust Christ because of the fear of the unknown. He compares it to marriage. We pledge our love and devotion to a fallen human who is bound to hurt us, so why can’t we trust God. Excellent point.

I am continuing through Basic Christianity by Stott. I am currently in Part 4 discussing man’s response. Stott does a great job in presenting an accurate view of salvation. He spends a great deal of time discussing how Christ is both our Savior and Lord. This biblical principle has really been lost in the church today with many in present day evangelicalism subscribing to “Christianity Lite.” People have this weird idea that you can just say a prayer, and God is obligated to take you to heaven.

(Personally, I think James 2 completely puts “Christianity Lite” to bed. When our pastor was out of town back in January, I delivered a message on this very text. It can be found here. )

Now, don’t get me wrong, salvation is completely, totally, 100% grace. I even believe that the faith we have to believe is a gift from God and part of that grace. But, salvation in the Bible is always accompanied by a changed life. If the life does not change, the salvation experience was not real. That is it, plain and simple, and Stott does a good job communicating this to his reader.

Currently, I am reading Basic Christianity by John R. W. Stott. I should have read this book years ago. This is just a great overview of basic, historic, orthodox Christianity. The content is very accessible to a layman but still covers some deep topics. I just finished reading about the atonement. Stott does a good job laying out the necessity of a penal substitutionary atonement.

In chapter 8, he discusses what salvation accomplishes for us. I found this quote great and packed with good theology. “It is thus through his atoning death that the penalty of our sins may be forgiven; it is through his indwelling Spirit that the power of our sins may be broken.”

I also liked what he had to say about church membership. “It is nonsense of course to claim membership in a great world-wide body, the church universal, without in practice sharing in one of its local manifestations.”

Good stuff.

Brad

Well, this is my first post on my new blog. I am new to this and excited to check it out. I just registered braddena.com today with Bluehost.com.

Check back soon for more posts.

Brad