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Disciplines of Grace by Jerry Bridges
This is the second book that I have read by Bridges, the first being Pursuit of Holiness. He is quickly climbing my list of favorite authors. I was completely blown away by the depth of this man's understanding of the gospel. There are very few books that have rocked me to the extent that this book did and does. Simply put, this is one of the better books that I have read in a while. Bridges is very concise and readable. He doesn't waste a lot of ink with big words or confusing arguments. The book is crystal clear in its application of the gospel: “your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the needof God’s grace.” There isn't a page in my copy without some sort of underlining or writing in the margins. As great as the authors of old are, Bridges (in my opinion) eclipses them because of his accessibility. A jr high student could pick up a copy and understand while a seminary professor could also benefit from reading this. Bridges is the perfect wedding of deep deep theological truths with readability. Well done.
So my aim for the first portion of the upcoming year is to not buy more books. I want to reread a few before looking to get new ones. I even have some books that I have already purchased or been given that I have yet to read. This post is an attempt to put these thoughts to paper (digital) and to keep me accountable;)The next rule I shall lay down is, master those books you have. Read them thoroughly. Bathe in them until they saturate you. Read and re-read them, masticate them, and digest them. Let them go into your very self. Peruse a good book several times, and make notes and analyses of it. A student will find that his mental constitution is more affected by one book thoroughly mastered than by twenty books which he has merely skimmed, lapping at them, as the classic proverb puts it “As a dog drink of Nilus.” Little learning and much pride come of hasty reading. Books may be piled on the brain till it cannot work. Some men are disabled from thinking by their putting meditation away for the sake of reading. They gorge themselves with book-matter, and become mentally dyspeptic. (Lectures pg. 177)
“Why do you buy so many books? You have no hair, and you purchase a comb; you are blind, and you must need buy a fine mirror; you are deaf, and you will have the best musical instrument!”—a very well-deserved rebuke to those who think that the possession of books will secure them learning… In reading books let your motto be, “Much, not many.” Think as well as read, and keep the thinking always proportionate to the reading, and your small library will not be a great misfortune. (Lectures pg. 178)
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“How can the application of a Bible-saturated mind (Don’s) to a Bible-saturated life (Tom’s) produce an even more helpful story to encourage pastors? Let the ‘mind’ be carried on a river of love because the ‘life’ is his father’s. Then add a kind of narrative creativity. That’s how.”
John Piper, Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis
“A rare and precious gift from one of evangelicalism’s greatest scholars. How generous of Dr. Carson to bequeath his father’s quiet legacy to us all.”
C. J. Mahaney, Sovereign Grace Ministries
“Carson strikes at the heart of what’s wrong when we forget that, as servants, we were meant to live ordinarily under the gospel of grace. Read this book. You will be deeply encouraged in your life and ministry.”
Michel Lemaire, Pastor of Eglise Baptiste de la Foi, Drummondville, 1984-2005
“This personal testimony is a healthy reminder of heavenly priorities in the pastorate and Christian ministry.”
Pierre Constant, Associate Pastor, Eglise Baptiste Montclair de Hull, 1982-1997
“Read this book and be strengthened. You hold in your hands history, humor, and an amazing amount of wisdom for the Christian life (especially for pastors!).”
Mark Dever, Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church
D. A. Carson: "It is not easy to stand athwart the tides of the culture and challenge them without sounding either terribly prissy or hopelessly out of date. How can a thoughtful Christian be genuinely contemporary while never succumbing to the merely faddish and temporary? The challenges are enormous - but they are also tied to the most elementary tenets of Christian faithfulness. Tullian Tchividjian is a helpful and engaging guide through these troubled waters."
J. I. Packer: "Plainly, powerfully, and pastorally, Unfashionable gives a birds-eye view of the real Christian life - Christ-centered, church-committed, kingdom-contoured, future-focused, and counter-cultural all the way. It makes for a truly nutritious read."
Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,
Thou has brought me to the valley of vision,
where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights;
hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold
thy glory.
Let me learn by paradox
that the way down is the way up,
that to be low is to be high,
that the broken heart is the healed heart,
that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,
that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
that to have nothing is to possess all,
that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,
that to give is to receive,
that the valley is the place of vision.
Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,
deepest wells,
and the deeper the wells the brighter
thy stars shine;
Let me find thy light in my darkness,
Thy life in my death,
that every good work or thought found in me
thy joy in my sorrow,
thy grace in my sin,
thy riches in my poverty
thy glory in my valley.
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