The next book on our reading list is Jerry Bridge’s The Pursuit of Holiness. This book is on many evangelicals’ top list of must-read books.  It, along with Stott’s The Cross of Christ and (at least in some circles) Piper’s Desiring God are books that challenge how we think about God, Christ, the cross, and the world.  But The Pursuit of Holiness is more than a theological treatise; from its opening pages it brands itself a book of immense practicality and application.  Even the title screams application as we think of holiness as something given by God and coming only from God, yet it is also something to be pursued.  This tension between the action of God and the action of man spans the book and is instrumental in tearing down the excuses that we give in order to escape what is inevitably our own responsibility of pursing a life that is pleasing to God.

In order to better understand this book (and the subsequent book on our reading list by the same author, entitled The Pursuit of Godliness), it is wise to know a bit about the author.  So until next week, here is a short biography of Jerry Bridges found on christianbook.com:

The Pursuit of Holiness. Trusting God. The Practice of Godliness. The Joy of Fearing God. . . . One look at these book titles gives you a clear indication of what author Jerry Bridges is all about—teaching readers how they can know and understand God in a deep and meaningful way, and how that knowledge can literally transform their lives.

Jerry’s own life changed while serving as an officer in the United States Navy. It was during his military career that he first came into contact with The Navigators, an organization committed to this holy mission: “to reach, disciple, and equip people to know Christ and make Him known through successive generations.” Jerry soon felt God’s call to work for The Navigators ministry, and, in time, he became the vice president of its corporate affairs, applying his University of Oklahoma education. His relationship with The Navigators began in 1955, and it’s still going strong. Today, Jerry is a staff member with The Navigators Community Ministries Group, where he is engaged primarily in a Bible teaching ministry.

One major avenue for Jerry’s seasoned teaching abilities has been books. He’s written six to date: the four above, Transforming Grace, and The Discipline of Grace, which won a Gold Medallion Book Award from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. The Practice of Godliness has been honored as well with sales of more than 400,000 copies (and counting). But it is The Pursuit of Holiness for which Jerry is best known.

Selling over a million copies, Pursuit explains clearly how God has equipped us to lead holy lives, how reason and emotion influence our will, and how habits and personal discipline play a part in holy living. One satisfied reader, whose opinion is shared by many more, reviews the book on amazon.comand says that Pursuit “is one of the greatest motivating books I have ever read. Jerry Bridges, through illumination from God, reveals what holiness is . . . and what that means to a Christian life.”

What Jerry Bridges means to his audience is evident—he’s a trusted, reliable source of spiritual wisdom that always leads them to the source of all things right and true: God.

[For next week purchase the book and read the preface and chapter one.  Every week following next week we will take one chapter at a time.  Good reading!]