Transforming Grace

by Jerry Bridges

Living Confidently in God's Unfailing Love
The freedom in falling short of God's standard relies on His gift of grace. Unfortunately, too many of us forget the free offer. We spend our lives basing our relationship with God on our performance rather than on Him. We see our identity as never being worthy of His love.

Isn't it time to stop trying to measure up and begin accepting the transforming power of God's grace? The product of more than ten years of Bible study, Navigator author Jerry Bridges' Transforming Grace is a fountainhead of inspiration and renewal that will show you just how inexhaustible and generous God's grace really is.

This edition includes the full study guide, which was formerly available as a separate product (ISBN 9781600063046).

Genres: Christian, Christian Living, Theology, Nonfiction, Christianity, Faith, Religion

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

JERRY BRIDGES was an author and conference speaker. His most popular book, The Pursuit of Holiness, has sold over one million copies. Jerry was on the staff of The Navigators for over fifty years, and currently served in the Collegiate Mission where he was involved primarily in staff development, but also served as a speaker resource to the campus ministries.

Reviews

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was what I needed to read right now--not only personally but as a reminder for teaching at church how transformational understanding grace can be.

Jerry Bridges has a gift for writing clear sentences that convey deep subjects. Sometimes he can go a little long on a point, but it's not bad. Plus, he is very careful to be clear about God's work and our responsibility in the Christian life. I disagree with him on a few minor points, but overall I found it to be very helpful and encouraging.

[Matt Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's probably been 10 years since I last read this and though I remember it being so helpful the first time around, I'd forgotten just how good it is!

This is the kind of book that would be good on constant repeat - an annual read perhaps - to never lose sight of the fact that the whole of the Christian life is to be lived out breathing the fresh air of God's saving and transforming grace.

[John Brackbill · Rating 5 out of 5]

1st Reading Review: Get it. Read it. Read it again. I plan to. Highly profitable.

2nd Reading Review: See above. This time I read it with a small group at a coffee stop.

[Colin Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

While most theology books try to get you to some lofty relationship with God, Jerry Bridges’ Transforming Grace goes back to the foundation, firming up what we’re supposed to be standing upon.

With Jesus, it’s all about grace. You know that, right? Sure you do. It’s one of the three answers to Bible questions. (The other two are ‘prayer’ and ‘Jesus,’ by the way.) The problem is, we think that it can’t actually be entirely God’s grace and nothing from us, yet Transforming Grace does a great job of showing how this is the truth.

My standard for Christian books is fairly simple: As long as it’s Biblically sound, if it gets you back to the Bible and closer to God, use it. If not, chuck it. Jerry Bridges is a Navigator, a group known for being Scripture heavy, so he easily makes the grade there. Plus the grace issue is something so easily missed, so misunderstood or flat out not believed (when life gets in the way) that it doesn’t surprise me that there are so many books on the issue.

Jerry Bridges does it right though. Dedicating a couple of chapters to the Parable of the Workers in the Field (Matthew 20:1-16), Bridges establishes the point of the text quickly, then adds more meat from there. If the ending to Transforming Grace culminated in a summarizing punch rather than a ‘wait, is that it?’ moment this would be a five-star book, but with the letdown in the last few pages, it’ll have to settle for being the theology book I recommend most. Whether you know Jesus, or you came and left but still wonder if there was something more than the performance treadmill, Transforming Grace sets priorities straight. Four stars and reaching higher.

[Daniel Maurer · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Whether it is the continuing thorn in the flesh or the extraordinary crisis that sometimes occurs, both are intended by God to keep us conscious of our human weakness and our dependence on Him, so that we might experience the sufficiency of His grace and adequacy of His power”

Long and repetitive at times but an overall very solid book. Especially appreciated JB’s “sufficiency of grace” chapter (where above quote is found). Thought he did an excellent job of breaking that down on a heart level with some splashes of practical examples.

[Oscar Pawlus · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was so great at opening my mind to things I haven’t deeply thought about or known in my journey of faith. Very insightful and practical Christian book. Thanks Isaac!

[Jimmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the last few years my appreciation for the writings of Jerry Bridges has increased. His works have been tremendously edifying and encouraging for me to walk in grace in the Christian life. This book is another of Bridges’ writings that immensely blessed me spiritually.


I love how Jerry Bridges explains the Gospel and explain it in a way that is clear to understand, devotional and practical. I enjoyed especially Bridges’ illustrations. Two analogies stood out: The Bankruptcy analogy in chapter one and the analogy of the Grand Canyon in chapter two. With the bankruptcy analogy Bridges made the observation that there are two kinds of bankruptcy. One chapter means one is totally without any asset at all; Bridges point here is that when it comes to our standing with God we are totally bankrupt, with no credit of righteousness that can redeem us from God’s wrath against our sins. With the analogy of the Grand Canyon in chapter two Bridges makes the point that our self-righteousness in reaching God is like jumping from one side of the Grand Canyon to the other side. The problem for most people is that they unfortunately shorten the distance in their own mind. I thought these analogies are useful for evangelism and even with explaining and teaching the Gospel to Christians.

Every chapter was precious in what it teaches. For instance I appreciated chapter nine on sufficient grace. Here Bridges looks at 2 Corinthians 12:9 and noted how the grace of God here has the meaning of God’s divine assistance to us through the Holy Spirit (165). As a Reformed Christian I can easily think of God’s grace as God’s favor to deal with our sinfulness, guilt and us being ill-deserving but this chapter shows us that God’s grace is also to help us with our inability and weaknesses (170). How multi-facted is God’s amazing grace! I also enjoyed the second to the last chapter in the book for Bridges discussion of the four means of appropriating God’s grace. These are prayers, the Word of God, submission and ministry to others. It was useful to see the Christian responsibility to use God’s means of grace.

Again this is a great book to read for Christian spiritual growth. Whether one reads it individually or as a resource for discipleship with others or even small group, it would prove to be a blessing for those who read it.

[Noel (noelreads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me start by saying this book is biblically sound and accurately portrays the grace of God and how to live in his grace daily, and not just depend on his grace for salvation. The problem is in the delivery. It felt incredibly repetitive. God’s grace is a fairly nuanced topic in application in our day to day lives (it’s so easy to fall into a “works” mindset), but not as nuanced in theory (live by grace and not by works), and I felt like Bridges was over explaining a lot of things. He would have so many examples that it started to make his point seem muddy and unclear, and I started to get rather annoyed with it. God’s grace can only be fully understood by a personal revelation by God himself (as with all things really), and I feel like Bridges was trying to get the reader to fully grasp it by his words in the book. I don’t know, it’s hard to explain, but it was just too much, and it bothered me.

I hate to rate this book only two stars, as like I said it’s biblically sound, but I think there are better books on grace out there. I read Charles Swindoll’s The Grace Awakening a couple years ago, and it was wonderful, and that’s the book I would recommend on this topic.

[Naomi Bowen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jerry Bridges is one of my favourite writers. Thoroughly explores subjects and backs them up with Scripture, yet easy to read and understand.

In this book, Bridges reminds us that grace isn't just for salvation - it's needed everyday for the rest of a Christian's life.

We bring nothing to the table. We are totally dependent on the Giver of Grace - who never stops giving!

[Lauren Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only reason it gets 4 starts instead of 5 is because at times it was so mind stimulating that it took a lot of brain power to read and focus, but overall so so good filled with incredible truth about God’s grace!!

[Hannah Willson · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED THIS BOOK! It's message is extremely freeing. It opens your eyes to understand what it means to walk in Grace while not abusing your Christian liberty.

[Shane Lems · Rating 5 out of 5]

Martin Lloyd-Jones once famously said that the loud and clear preaching of salvation by grace alone will lead to a misunderstanding. The misunderstanding is this: if we are saved by grace alone, then it doesn’t matter how we live. Jerry Bridges comments on this topic:

That charge was brought against Martin Luther and all the other great preachers of the Reformation when they preached salvation by grace alone through faith in Christ. The charge was brought against the apostle Paul himself: ‘Why not say – as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say – “Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is deserved’ (Romans 3:8).

The grace of salvation is the same grace by which we live the Christian life. Paul said in Romans 5:2, ‘We have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. We are not only justified by grace through faith, we stand every day in this same grace. And just as the preaching of justification by grace is open to misunderstanding, so is the teaching of living by grace.

The solution to the problem is not to add legalism to grace. Rather, the solution is to be so gripped by the magnificence and boundless generosity of God’s grace that we respond out of gratitude rather than out of a sense of duty….

We have loaded down the gospel of the grace of God in Christ with a lot of ‘oughts.’ ‘I ought to do this,’ and ‘I ought to do that.’ I ought to be more committed, more disciplined, more obedient.’ When we think or teach this way, we are substituting duty and obligation for a loving response to God’s grace.

Let me be very clear at this point. I firmly believe in and seek to practice commitment, discipline, and obedience. I am thoroughly committed to submission to the lordship of Jesus Christ in every area of my life. And I believe in and seek to practice other commitments that flow out of that basic commitment…. But I am committed in these areas out of a grateful response to God’s grace, not to try to earn God’s blessings.

Bridges makes some helpful comments in this book on what it means to live by grace. For example, in one chapter he talks about how holiness is a gift of God’s grace and in another chapter he describes the sufficiency of God’s grace for living the Christian life. He nicely steers clear of both legalism and antinomianism in these pages by explaining the fact that both justification and sanctification are by grace:

We are brought into God’s Kingdom by grace; we are sanctified by grace; we receive both temporal and spiritual blessings by grace; we are motivated to obedience by grace; we are called to serve and enabled to serve by grace; we receive strength to endure trials by grace; and finally, we are glorified by grace. The entire Christian life is lived under the reign of God’s grace.

The above quotes are found in Jerry Bridges, Transforming Grace, p. 21 & 74.

(Note: I was given this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

[Nicole Rollins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Transforming Grace was a challenging read for me, perhaps because I am new in my walk with Christ. The idea that we are undeserving of God's free grace was not a difficult concept to grasp. What puzzled me throughout most of my read, and still puzzles me, is how grace is granted. Bridges reiterates throughout his novel that not only is God's grace free, but it is unmerited. There is absolutely nothing we can do that has any effect on the amount of God's grace that we receive. I can attest to recently receiving God's grace in a rather big way in my life, ultimately leading me to Him, His grace not allowing me to stray. As I realized how fortunate I was, I wondered why God would not bless others the way he had blessed me. If all of my works come from God (He enables me), and all of my blessings are totally unrelated to my works, then why not bless and enable the next person? (Mind you, my greatest blessing is having faith in God.) What is it that sets me apart from someone else who also wasn't actively seeking God? Why did God enable me to not only find Him, but stick with Him when I didn't trust myself that I could? And these very questions are what challenged me throughout this read, and ultimately led me to enjoy this book as one of my first Christian reads.

About 180 pages into Bridges' book, he stated that he assumed most of his audience was ministers. Well, I am not. In fact, I am newly saved. However, I have quickly learned that God can use Scripture and even Christian books to teach us something or bless us when we need it most. This I can attest to, as this has happened more often than not over the last two months. A friend gave me this book, never having read it but knowing what a difficult time I was facing. Having grown so much in my faith over the past two months, and recognizing I have so much more to learn, I feel fortunate to have read this book (supposedly written with a ministering audience in mind) so early in my walk with Christ. As someone who always believed in God but who was not active in her faith, I think it is crucial for me to understand that not only is God's grace free, it is unmerited. No matter how often I read the Bible, go to church, or serve others, none of that affects the amount of God's grace I receive. However, what I do believe is the more active I am in growing my faith, the more aware I am of God's grace. And perhaps that is the point of Bridges' book- everyone is capable of receiving God's grace, but it's our faith that allows us to recognize it.

I highly recommend this book to everyone, no matter where you are (or aren't) in your faith.

[Laurent Dv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deals with the grace of God starting with election and justification to sanctification, antinomianism, legalism (in fact all the misconceptions on grace). One can find good exegesis insights (Romans, Jesus parables ...).

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book!

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: A comprehensive study of the nature of grace and the experience of grace throughout the life of the believer accompanied by a study guide for group use.

"Sola Gratia!" was one of the rallying cries of the Reformation. We believed we are saved by God's grace alone rather than through anything we've done or will do. Yet we often have a hard time believing in and living into grace as a transforming, ongoing reality in our lives. More often, it seems it is simply a theological formula or a point in our presentations of the gospel message.

Jerry Bridges, who died in 2016, wrote this book to address the question of how we may live in grace and experience God's gracious transformation in our lives. Recently, the publisher released a new edition of this work, combining the text of the earlier work with a subsequently published study guide for groups.

The first couple chapters address a struggle facing many of us. We often profess to believe in grace but live Christian lives that are performance-based, where we tie God's work in us to the balance of our own merits and demerits. Our crucial need is to come to the place of understanding our utter, permanent bankruptcy. Bridges writes:

"To the extent you are clinging to any vestiges of self-righteousness or are putting any confidence in your own spiritual attainments, to that extent you are not living by the grace of God in your life" (p. 24, italics in original).

Part of the remedy for us is to understand how truly amazing is the grace of God that utterly blots out our sins and remembers them no more. God is like the generous landowner in Matthew 20, who pays those who work only an hour a day's wage, who gives us what we need and not what we deserve. This leads to godly lives motivated by the extravagant love we have received. Obedience is no longer adherence to a set of rules, but rather recognizing that the commands of God express how we might love him in response to the grace we have experienced.

We are called to live holy lives, even as we are already freely declared holy in the sight of God through grace. Grace also is evident in our growth into the holy character that is already ours as gift, a character enumerated in the fruit of the Spirit. This call to holiness is a call to freedom. Bridges uses the helpful illustration of a raised road running through a swamp where living by grace informed by the law of love that leads to liberty is contrast with going off one side into the  swamp of legalism or the other side of license. As we progress in grace, we discover that grace is sufficient in our lives, meeting us in our weakness and debilities, challenging our self-sufficiency, and bringing us to an awareness of both our own inadequacy and God's utter adequacy. 

Chapter Twelve was perhaps one of the most helpful in the book, on appropriating grace. We often struggle between our own desires and the will of God, and need to appropriate God's grace to become what we believe. Bridges believes this occurs as we seek God in prayer for this ability to do what God bids, as we lay hold of scriptural promises and principles (which in true Navigators ministry is scripture we have memorized), and as we submit to the providential working of God in our lives. Bridges also commends the importance of trusted companions with whom we honestly share our struggles. 

Finally, Bridges encourages us to put on "garments of grace" as we put on the qualities of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and forgiveness, and an overarching love, as commended in Colossians 3:12-14. He concludes the book in observing how forgiveness is possible because we recognize our own indebtedness or bankruptcy toward God, and thus forgive the small debts we are owed by others. In this, Bridges nicely closes the book where he begins.

I thought this book a very clear, biblical, and practical explanation about how we might live into the grace of God. Bridges own humility in sharing his experiences of struggling with this in his own life make this even more winsome. The incorporation of the discussion guide (a bit more than 100 pages) into this work enhances its usefulness to groups. Although there are thirteen chapters, the guide is organized into eight discussions. For each, the guide summarizes the central idea for the covered material, offers a warm-up exercise, provides selected text from the book to read ahead, questions to help in "exploring grace," a closing prayer, going deeper questions if there is time for this, and quotes from famous Christians to help us "ponder grace."

As a Christ-follower for five decades, it was a delight to be reminded of these foundational truths and how we may live into them. Yet the text is clear and basic enough to be understood by new believers, and rich enough to provide fresh nourishment for those who have walked long with Christ. All of us have in common the reality that we more easily profess grace than appropriate it for our lives.

____________________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

[Linda Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with other Jerry Bridges books, I am so glad I took the time to dig into this one. Mr. Bridges always writes with extreme warmth and humility...but also with hard-hitting truth. This particular book addresses an idea many Christians carry about with them their entire lives--that God's grace is necessary for our salvation, but after that, we are more or less on our own to muddle through the Christian walk. For some that means "a performance treadmill"--God blesses me if I do everything "right", but He will certainly "zap" me if I don't measure up. Or we may even believe that after our initial salvation, we no longer need God's grace but can live according to our own strength, gifts, and abilities. This book corrects these errors in thinking plus many more. Mr. Bridges presents the beautiful story of King David's grandson, Mephibosheth. "Just as Mephibosheth was elevated to a place at the king's table for Jonathan's (David's son) sake, so you and I are elevated to the status of God's children for Christ's sake." and "Mephibosheth never got over his crippled condition. He never got to the place where he could leave the king's table and make it on his own. And neither do we."

[Kayla Hager · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped me to understand grace in a deeper and more biblical meaning. I’ve struggled with staying out of the ditches of legalism and license and finding that balance between the two. I’ve also definitely struggled to live by grace daily and this book illuminated that. Jerry Bridges wrote in a style that was giving the “meat and potatoes” of the subject while also in a way that was easily digestible. I’ll definitely be reading more of his books!

[Bambi Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend. An extremely helpful and useful tool on the theme of law and grace. Not a complicated read, but very thorough and perfect for laypeople and ministry leaders both. Bridges is one of my favorite authors and Transforming Grace should be read regularly. He really identified some holes in my understanding. Packer described Transforming Grace as a "searching book" and he's right, so read it and prepare to be searched!

[Vanda Denton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring.

A pleasant, relaxing read concerning the free gift of God’s grace.

[Faith Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starts with the simple gospel and continues with the doctrines of grace— encouraging & challenging for believers in every walk & season. Plus comes w a cheat sheet of group study questions. Thanks Jerry for clearly stating Scriptures commands and the grace of God that enables us.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't read enough Bridges. His books keep getting better. This one, dealing with progressive sanctification, pairs well with Discipline of Grace.

[Ricky Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read anything by Jerry Bridges.

[Janet Reeves · Rating 5 out of 5]

An updated release of an amazing book, Transforming Grace is an eye-opening read. Author Jerry Bridges systematically takes his readers through several different facets of God's grace. His strongest point: God doesn't offer grace to the unbeliever then turn into a harsh task master. His grace is for everyone at any and every point along their spiritual journey. And everyone needs God's grace.

I loved the way Bridges used familiar Bible stories to illustrate his points, circling back to them in each new chapter to show what they revealed about our God. I also appreciated the examples he shared from his ministry and personal life.

This book is designed not only for personal reading, but for Bible study as well. An eight lesson discussion guide following the thirteen chapters makes it perfect for small groups. If you are looking for a clearer understanding of the grace God offers to you, I recommend this book. I received my complimentary copy through the Tyndale Blog Network, so I could share my opinion with you.

[C. J. Scurria · Rating 3 out of 5]

You hear about it here and there. You are asked to say it at the dinner table. You also whether believer or not hear the word over and over from a song from so long ago almost as a saying that is a small part of history.

But do we really know what true grace is? Is it something that we earn by works, that we receive because of actions? It might seem that way but Jerry Bridges draws parallels not just between humility and pride but other aspects of the Christian life that are important.

This book is an essential read for people who might be new to the faith or just need a gentle reminder about grace. It's points are hit home by the ever simple but strong prose of Jerry Bridges, a name that might be familiar with a similar book that was written long ago about holiness. This book, though admittedly not as memorable as his former work, still has its merits.

I feel though one might think they know "enough" about being a Christian they must get a warning as loud as a siren: Guess what? You don't know everything about the faith! The reason I sound so urgent about that is because if one thinks they have it all in the faith they are giving credit to themselves and that is pride. And what does pride not include? Grace.

It was humbling to read his many points about what we might think and what the truth is and it was worth reading. I saw how it impacted me when I went back to read it about eight months later and saw my notes; there were notes about parts I wanted to reread though I can't remember why I wanted to explore those sections of the book in the present. And that is what I want to hit on in this point.

I feel.... this one wasn't his strongest even though it was good. Overall it's a good meaningful book but it's not as deep as his understandably more popular one The Pursuit of Holiness. That one has lessons and things that I ponder of this day and yet it was with both of these books I was going over in a men's bible study where neither was regarded as better than the other.

Still I think one should try this book maybe as an intro to see a writer inspired by God. Then they could get to one that will be like the next step up in guidance toward living a godly life.

[Robert Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book, but I had to read it in an awkward way. Since it was for class, I had to read four chapters at a time and take a week off in between. As such, I became paranoid that Bridges is one of those "hyper-grace" people. (The old name is Anti-Nomian). He spends the first six chapters arguing so strongly against any action as Legalistic self-justification that I felt there was no room left to breathe! Eventually, as I kept reading, I saw that he is close to balanced, but I had already been poisoned against the book.

I learned a lot about myself reading this book. There are (at least) three approaches to the Christian life: Doctrinalist, Pietist and Transformationalist. Should Christians be oriented 1) Upward, 2) Inward or 3) Outward? The answer is YES. However, we all have a bent one way or another and as such regard with suspicion those of the other persuasions. I am an Intellectualist and a Doctrinalist. When someone (say, Jerry Bridges) spends their energy telling me about the inner-life first, without the facts to back it up first, all my defenses go up.
I think I would do well to find out what kind of book I'm getting into first and come prepared. If I can't, then I should at least be open and non-judgmental at the beginning. I can't expect Devotional writers to be Ideas First. I can't expect World-Changers to write exhaustive treatises before they do anything.

[Jeanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very much liked this book. It reminded me of the Chronicles of Narnia and Edmond and how he experinced grace. If you remember Edmond treated others that he was deserving. He was angry, jealous, bitter and resentful. All traits of someone who does not live in grace. You might think living thru WWII and being taken from his family might be excuse for that thinking and that might be but if you want to be free, those are the chains that keep you there. Edmond was attracted to the white witch for the empty promises she gave. You have the right. However, he soon found out and was broken. When we are broken and know our brokeness it is then we can know the grace of our salvation and live in the grace of who God is. Just like Edmond, we have to know God by the scripture. That is why we have the scriptures and that is why they have remain so that we can know the I AM and not a god that is made in our image. Edmond knew the grace of Aslan and was transformed. He was changed and that is what happens to us as we begin to know the God of the scriptures, we are changed. Grace is so misunderstood by us because it is so against our nature. This is probably one of the best books I have read of grace and I encourage to read it be transformed by God's grace that you will be able to live a grace-filled life. When trials, suffering comes, it is because of grace we can endure and and know the heart of God.

[Alexis Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really more of a four-and-a-half star book, and definitely Bridges' best so far. This book kicked my behind right proper. Substantively, it's quite similar to Forde's On Being a Theologian of the Cross, albeit a little easier to digest. As someone who struggles with legalism on a pretty much constant basis, I found this book quite challenging. Bridges reminds his readers that grace not only saves us, but also sanctifies us as well. And I for one definitely need the reminder. I still haven't really wrapped my head (or heart) around the concept of grace--not by a long shot--but this book definitely helped that process along. I highly recommend it.

[Olivia Schube · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a terrific read. I really nursed this book and savored every page because there was so much depth to be unpacked. This book really walked through the heart of God's grace and the way it truly transforms our daily lives as we come to understand it. Each chapter shared valuable insight and I took a LOT from this book that has already been helpful in my daily walk with God. I highly recommend it and will probably reread it again sometime.

[Emily Seydell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gosh I love Jerry Bridges so much.

“So God supplies perfectly measured grace to meet the needs of the godly. For daily needs there is daily grace; for sudden needs, sudden grace; for overwhelming need, overwhelming grace. God’s grace is given wonderfully, but not wastefully; freely but not foolishly; bountifully but not blindly.”