The Bookends of the Christian Life

Front Cover
Crossway Books, 2009 - Religion - 160 pages

The authors use an extended metaphor to serve up a little book with a big message about two essentials of the Christian life.

What do bookends have to do with the Christian life? They are a metaphor that Jerry Bridges has developed over the years, and which he and coauthor Bob Bevington flesh out in this small volume. The two ÒbookendsÓ explain not only how we as sinners can be made acceptable to a holy God but also we can find the power to change. They are thus essential for the Christian life.

In a unique book that should garner the attention of a wide range of readers, the authors use their extended metaphor to help readers answer questions like:

  • How can I overcome persistent guilt?
  • How can I deal with the pressure to measure up?
  • Where can I find the motivation it takes to grow?
  • How can I live the Christian life with both my head and my heart?
  • How can I be sure God loves me?
  • How can I change in an authentic and lasting way?

So what are the bookends of the Christian life? Christ's righteousness as it is transferred to dependent believers, and the Holy Spirit's power as it enables their transformation. In continuing their goal to re-center the church at large onto the historic gospel of Jesus Christ, Bridges and Bevington have served up this little book with a big message so that believers and seekers alike can understand these two keys to a genuine Christian life.

About the author (2009)

JERRY BRIDGES is a longtime staff member of The Navigators and currently serves with their collegiate ministry. In addition to his international speaking ministry, he has authored nearly fifteen books; among them, the bestseller The Pursuit of Holiness, which has sold well over a million copies, and the award-winning titles The Discipline of Grace and I Will Follow You, O God.

BOB BEVINGTON has practiced optometry since 1980 and cofounded several entrepreneurial companies. However, his passion is the message of the cross. He met Jerry Bridges in 2003, and their mentoring relationship-along with Bevington's writing skills and disciplines-eventually grew into the coauthoring relationship that produced this book and Crossway's The Great Exchange.

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