So you want to live a life where your marriage & family, career, choices, free time, hobbies, relationships, entertainment, and ministry are all shaped by the gospel? Here are some resources to help.
The Transforming Power of the Gospel, Jerry Bridges
The apostle Paul wrote that we are to be transformed, but for many Christians, figuring out how to approach spiritual transformation can be elusive. Best-selling author Jerry Bridges (The Pursuit of Holiness, Respectable Sins) helps us understand that we have available to us the ultimate power source for true spiritual growth: the gospel. In The Transforming Power of the Gospel, you’ll be guided through an examination of:
- What the biblical meaning of grace is and how it applies to your life
- How Jesus’ work in His life and death applies to the believer in justification and adoption
- Why basic spiritual disciplines are necessary for spiritual growth
- What role the Holy Spirit plays in both definitive and progressive sanctification
The Prodigal God, Tim Keller
This short book is meant to do no less than lay out the essentials of the Christian message, the gospel. It can therefore serve as an introduction to the Christian faith for those who are unfamiliar with it or who may have been away from it for some time.
This volume is not just for seekers, however. Many lifelong Christian believers feel they understand the basics of the Christian faith quite well and certainly don’t think they need a primer. Nevertheless, one of the signs that you don’t grasp the unique, radical nature of the gospel is that you think you do. Sometimes long-time church members find themselves so struck and turned around by a fresh apprehension of the Christian message of grace that they feel themselves to have been essentially “reconverted.” This book, then, is written to both curious outsiders and established insiders of the faith, to both the people Jesus calls “younger” and “elder” brothers in his famous Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Desiring God, John Piper
Satisfaction…Happiness…Joy. According to John Piper, the pursuit of pleasure in God is not only permissible, it’s essential.
Desiring God is a paradigm-shattering work that dramatically alters common perspectives on relating to God. Piper reveals that there really is no need to choose between duty and delight in the Christian life. In fact, for the follower of Jesus, delight is the duty as Christ is most magnified in His people when they are most satisfied in Him.
Constantly drawing on Scripture to build his case, Piper shows why pursuing maximum joy is essential to glorifying God. He discusses the implications of this for conversion, worship, love, Scripture, prayer, money, marriage, missions, and suffering.
Piper beckons us to approach God with the hedonist’s abandon. Finally, we are freed to enjoy Jesus—not only as our Lord and Savior, but also as our all-surpassing, soul-satisfying Treasure.
Desiring God may turn your Christian world upside down. And that will be a good thing, for the glory of God, and for your deepest joy.
A Gospel Primer, Milton Vincent
To the Christian’s in Rome, the Apostle Paul says “I am eager to preach the gospel to you who are at Rome (Romans 1:15). Evidently, Christians need to hear the gospel even after conversion: and A Gospel Primer for Christians is designed to help you do just that. By showing how you can preach the gospel to yourself each day, this book will help you savor the glories of God’s love and experience the life-transforming power of the gospel in all areas of life. Use this book to preach the gospel to yourself on a daily basis, and be amazed at teh differences it can make in your life.