The Practice of Godliness/The Pursuit of Holiness/The Pursuit of Holiness Bible Study

In title

This study bible is great for studying with your family. The print could be bigger but overall this is a great study bible. I love it and so does my family.

This book is fabulous! It is so eye opening and a must to improve your christian walk.

It took me twenty five years to read Jerry Bridge's book The Pursuit of Holiness. A short while ago I received the "25th Anniversary Edition" and devoted much of this weekend to reading and absorbing the book. This book has become something of a modern day classic. Having read it, I know why! It is a deeply challenging book and one I'm sure I will read again before another twenty five years have elapsed. The premise of Bridge's book is that holiness, like almost everything else in life, is something that we must strive for. Holiness is a gift of God and is something that can never be accomplished apart from the work of the Spirit. Yet it is our responsibility to strive for it and to work towards this goal. Bridges illustrates this by writing of a farmer. A farmer plows his field, sows the seed, and fertilizes and cultivates - all the while knowing that in the final analysis he is utterly dependent on forces outside himself. He knows he cannot cause the seed to germinate, nor can he produce the rain and sunshine for growing and harvesting the crop. For a successful harvest, he is dependent on these things from God. Yet the farmer knows that unless he diligently pursues his responsibilities to plow, plant, fertilize, and cultivate, he cannot expect a harvest at the end of the season. In a sense he is in a partnership with God, and he will reap its benefits only when he has fulfilled his responsibilities. Just as farming is a joint venture between man and God, in which man cannot do what God must do and God will not do what the farmer should do, so too is the pursuit of holiness. God will not bestow a life of holiness upon us the day we are saved. He requires that we pursue holiness with the confidence that He will work with us and empower us to achieve the desire of our hearts. He gives us the power to do what he requires and expects of us. The rest of the book is, then, an exhortation to holiness and practical advice on how to attain the holiness God requires of us. On one hand we face an impossible task, for we shall never be perfectly holy in his life. Yet on the other hand we face a task that brings great benefit, for God rewards those who diligently seek after Him. Holiness brings great joy. There were a couple of areas in which this book challenged me in a way that was unexpected. First, I came to see that much of my pursuit of holiness has been on a macro level. I have looked at my life and seen progress on a grand scale. I have seen areas where I have made much progress and have seen certain sinful habits and desires fall away. For this I am very thankful and acknowledge the Spirit's work. But the book helped me understand the importance of examining my life on the micro level. While I have certainly made great strides in some big areas, I continue to be amazed at my propensity for sin in small areas. There were several times that I was led to stare my sin directly in the face and react with amazement at just how polluted my h

Bridges has written a gem of a book that every Christian can benefit from, whether young or old, mature or young in the faith. The book purpose is to challenge the reader to become more like Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit combined with human effort. Among the important points covered include: 1. God calls us to be like Him and not like others. 2. Holiness is necessary for effective service. 3. 3 aspects of sin's nature and tactics. 4. We must discipline our bodies and treat them as temples of God. 5. 3 principles to practice to train ourselves in godliness. 6. Faith is necessary to living a life pleasing to God. 7. Instead of withdrawing from the world, we must resist its influence. Our holiness will be a strong living rebuke to others. 8. We must be concerned with not only our own personal holiness, but also the eternal destiny of others. 9. 2 ways to express dependence on the Holy Spirit for living a holy life. 10. While God provides the opportunity to be released from sin's bondage, we have the responsibility to act. In summary, this is a small but powerful book to inspire the reader to allow God, through His Holy Spirit, to live His holiness through us. Read and enjoy, highly recommended!

Someone has well said that nature forms us, sin deforms us, penitentiary reforms us, education informs us, the world conforms us, but only Jesus transforms us. But how does Jesus transform us to be holy and more like Him? Do we simply "let go and let God"? What should we rely on God to do? And what are our responsibilities in this pursuit of holiness? The book addresses those questions. This book is helpful for every Christian. It's true that we are saved not by what we do but by the perfect righteousness of Christ imputed to us by faith. But pursuit of holiness is not an option for Christians because saving faith creates within us the desire to be Christ-like. Jesus said, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32) By knowing the truth of who we are in Christ and the victory that Christ has overcome for us over sin, we can then claim this truth and be free--no longer slaves to sin (Rom. 6:17-18). This book reminds me again of this truth (who we are in Christ), what we should rely upon God to do, and what we should accept as our responsibilities in our pursuit of holiness. It discusses also the nature and tactics of satan's temptations, how to express our dependence on the Holy Spirit, principles for personal disciplines, how to put sin to death, etc. (There's also a sequel to this book titled The Practice of Godliness).