The Blessing of Humility *****by Jerry Bridges
This book goes through the beatitudes in Matthew 5.
Jerry Bridges first looks at what it means for the Christian to be "poor in spirit." Basically, he says it means that we realize that we are sinners and are utterly dependent on God...we are spiritually destitute outside of Christ. This understanding of our spiritual poverty lays the foundation for the rest of the beatitudes and understanding the full picture of humility.
My favorite chapter was the one on "meekness." He explains that meekness is two fold: how we respond toward God and His word and how we respond to people. He says, "The meek person earnestly desires the Spirit to use His Word to effect a deep change in his or her inner being." And meekness in relation to God "means that we accept the difficult and painful events of life, even those brought about by the actions of other people, as under the controlling hand of our loving and infinitely wise heavenly Father." And thus we are able to give thanks in all circumstances because we know God is with us and at work in us. Oh, how difficult sometimes to humbly submit to God's working in our lives!
At the end of the book, Bridges concludes that true humility is impossible without Christ. And that is why it is such good news that Jesus has died for our sins...our selfishness, pride, lack of faith, etc. He quotes Romans 4:7-8 "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man whom the Lord will not count his sin." And so we rejoice in our salvation, continue to seek after Him, and be thankful that He has the power to truly change us into more humble people.
The book is short and easy to read and has study questions for all ten chapters of the book. The book is full of scripture and would make a great group study or individual study. I plan to go back and revisit this book from time to time to be reminded of these truths.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment