The sheer volume of books dealing with the Christian life and sanctification in our world today can be overwhelming at times. If you were to check the Christian Living section on Christianbook.com you would find over 10,000 books listed. I’m sure some of these books would prove helpful, but the vast majority would fail to provide any lasting instruction for believers.
Sometimes its hard to know which book will give me and those in my church the truth about how to live the Christian life. Holiness by Grace by Bryan Chapell is a book you can put into the hands of church members and trust to give the biblical perspective on spiritual growth.
We may not think of holiness and grace as mutually exclusive, but we don’t often mention them in the same sentence. Most people think of holiness as something gained by rigorous effort and as a list of do’s and don’ts that can’t be broken. On the other side of the coin, many people think of grace as freedom from rules and regulations.
Even Paul felt the tension that arises when people are told God accepts them and forgives sin no matter what they’ve done. The fear is that men will count on God’s grace to the point that they sin because they know His grace will cover it. It’s quite difficult to walk the balance and preach God’s unending grace while at the same time encouraging the passionate pursuit of holiness. Chapell does more than adequately explain the balance of holiness and grace, he explains that holiness will never take place without a proper understanding of grace.
Chapell reveals the purpose of this book; “In technical terms, my intention is to explain the role of grace in sanctification. This progressive process by which God makes us more and more like Jesus cannot function if we think that our works earn God’s affection, or if we think that our works do not matter. Grace corrects both errors and in doing so grants us the unqualified joy that is our strength for obedience (Neh. 8:10).” (p. 13)
Holiness by Grace consists of three parts. First, Chapell explains the principles of grace. The two important principles which must be grasped before moving on to the rest of the discussion of grace are the power of joy to motivate us to obedience and the lifelong union believers have with Christ. Our obedience must overflow from our joy and not stem from our guilt. We also must understand the nature of our union with Christ. This union does not fluctuate based on whether we sin or not. Our union with Christ will remain despite our sin.
In the second part of the book Chapell goes on to explain the practices of faith that flow from a proper understanding of grace. This section of the book deals much with sin and covers topics such as repentance, temptation, freedom from the law and our personal war with sin.
Finally, the last section of Holiness by Grace deals with the proper motivation for obedience, love. Chapell explains the appropriate place of discipline from the Lord in the life of the believer, the power of mercy as a motivation for obedience and how the grace of God brings significance to our otherwise insignificant works.
I believe Holiness by Grace provides timely instruction for the church today. I know it was particularly needed in my own life. Many in the church misunderstand grace. We often do not preach grace in a way that makes it out to be completely free. We may feel that the offer of free grace will encourage a lifestyle of worldliness and license to sin.
Chapell’s book does a thorough job of debunking this idea and explaining the real effect of a proper understanding of grace, holiness. When we truly embrace the gospel and know that our works do not earn one ounce of favor with God, then we are profoundly motivated to obedience, not to a life of licentiousness. Here are some superb quotes from Holiness by Grace to encourage you in your deepening grasp of God’s grace.
“Grace is God’s willingness to look at us from the perspective that sees his holy Son in our place” (p. 8 ).
“Resting on God’s grace does not relieve us of our holy obligations; rather it should enable us to fulfill them” (p. 12).
“Thus to find release from the bondage and burden of sin, and to access the joy that is the strength of the Christian life, we must believe that we can rely entirely on our union with Christ to make us right with God” (p. 40).
“Spiritual pride dies when we realize that all of our comparisons with others based on relative levels of apparent goodness count for nothing in terms of gaining us standing with God” (p. 43).
“We progress in sanctification as we humbly and prayerfully depend upon the Holy spirit to mature our wills and transform our affections so that we stay in the course that he has designed” (p. 61).
“There is nothing more effective than guilt to get people to obey God’s standards, and nothing less efficacious in sanctifying them to God” (p. 188).
“The anger God expresses over his children’s wrongdoing is more concern for the damage we do to ourselves than for our crossing him” (p. 195).
Sometimes its hard to know which book will give me and those in my church the truth about how to live the Christian life. Holiness by Grace by Bryan Chapell is a book you can put into the hands of church members and trust to give the biblical perspective on spiritual growth.
We may not think of holiness and grace as mutually exclusive, but we don’t often mention them in the same sentence. Most people think of holiness as something gained by rigorous effort and as a list of do’s and don’ts that can’t be broken. On the other side of the coin, many people think of grace as freedom from rules and regulations.
Even Paul felt the tension that arises when people are told God accepts them and forgives sin no matter what they’ve done. The fear is that men will count on God’s grace to the point that they sin because they know His grace will cover it. It’s quite difficult to walk the balance and preach God’s unending grace while at the same time encouraging the passionate pursuit of holiness. Chapell does more than adequately explain the balance of holiness and grace, he explains that holiness will never take place without a proper understanding of grace.
Chapell reveals the purpose of this book; “In technical terms, my intention is to explain the role of grace in sanctification. This progressive process by which God makes us more and more like Jesus cannot function if we think that our works earn God’s affection, or if we think that our works do not matter. Grace corrects both errors and in doing so grants us the unqualified joy that is our strength for obedience (Neh. 8:10).” (p. 13)
Holiness by Grace consists of three parts. First, Chapell explains the principles of grace. The two important principles which must be grasped before moving on to the rest of the discussion of grace are the power of joy to motivate us to obedience and the lifelong union believers have with Christ. Our obedience must overflow from our joy and not stem from our guilt. We also must understand the nature of our union with Christ. This union does not fluctuate based on whether we sin or not. Our union with Christ will remain despite our sin.
In the second part of the book Chapell goes on to explain the practices of faith that flow from a proper understanding of grace. This section of the book deals much with sin and covers topics such as repentance, temptation, freedom from the law and our personal war with sin.
Finally, the last section of Holiness by Grace deals with the proper motivation for obedience, love. Chapell explains the appropriate place of discipline from the Lord in the life of the believer, the power of mercy as a motivation for obedience and how the grace of God brings significance to our otherwise insignificant works.
I believe Holiness by Grace provides timely instruction for the church today. I know it was particularly needed in my own life. Many in the church misunderstand grace. We often do not preach grace in a way that makes it out to be completely free. We may feel that the offer of free grace will encourage a lifestyle of worldliness and license to sin.
Chapell’s book does a thorough job of debunking this idea and explaining the real effect of a proper understanding of grace, holiness. When we truly embrace the gospel and know that our works do not earn one ounce of favor with God, then we are profoundly motivated to obedience, not to a life of licentiousness. Here are some superb quotes from Holiness by Grace to encourage you in your deepening grasp of God’s grace.
“Grace is God’s willingness to look at us from the perspective that sees his holy Son in our place” (p. 8 ).
“Resting on God’s grace does not relieve us of our holy obligations; rather it should enable us to fulfill them” (p. 12).
“Thus to find release from the bondage and burden of sin, and to access the joy that is the strength of the Christian life, we must believe that we can rely entirely on our union with Christ to make us right with God” (p. 40).
“Spiritual pride dies when we realize that all of our comparisons with others based on relative levels of apparent goodness count for nothing in terms of gaining us standing with God” (p. 43).
“We progress in sanctification as we humbly and prayerfully depend upon the Holy spirit to mature our wills and transform our affections so that we stay in the course that he has designed” (p. 61).
“There is nothing more effective than guilt to get people to obey God’s standards, and nothing less efficacious in sanctifying them to God” (p. 188).
“The anger God expresses over his children’s wrongdoing is more concern for the damage we do to ourselves than for our crossing him” (p. 195).
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