Pleasing God by R. C. Sproul

“Every Christian should have a passion to please God,” Sproul writes. “We are to delight in honoring Him. It should be our greatest desire to please our Redeemer.” The priorities of the Christian life are to be seeking the kingdom, seeking righteousness.

Spirituality is often confused with righteousness. “Spirituality can be a cheap substitute for righteousness.” Righteousness is doing what is right in the sight of God. The demand of true righteousness is so great that no one will achieve it in this world. (Sproul distinguishes the righteousness we have in Christ and righteous living – pleasing God.)

Sproul covers several topics as he discusses the behavior that pleases God. He is pleased when we obey the Golden Rule, when we pursue justice and mercy, and when we practice loyal love. God is please when we resist Satan, when we throw ourselves on His mercy when we sin, when we gratefully accept His forgiveness, and when we make amends for the sins we commit against others.

He also covers a variety of other topics in his discussion. He writes about God demanding a transformed mind. He distinguishes forgiveness and the feeling of being forgiven (and the same with guilt). He writes on the error of the “carnal” Christian. He looks at pride, slothfulness, and dishonesty.

He ends with the necessity of right doctrine for right thinking and right living. His final encouragement is to never give up.

R. C. has written this book as a practical guide to Christian living. He covers a variety of issues dealing with righteousness and pleasing God. This is not light reading. Sproul doesn't like fluff and it shows. Any Christian desiring to know what it means to please God will benefit from reading this book. 

Find out more at www.ligonier.org.

This book was originally published in 1994 (Tyndale House).

R. C. Sproul is the founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian education ministry based in Orlando, Florida. He also serve as senior minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's, a Reformed congregation in Sanford, Florida, and as president of Reformation Bible College. He is the author of more than eighty books. He and his wife live in Longwood, Florida.

David C. Cook, 208 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.