Chapter One

The First Bookend: The Righteousness of Christ

1. What does the Bible mean by the word righteous? (p. 19)
2. Read Matthew 22:36-40 and I Peter 1:15-16. What is Gods

standard for the level of righteousness he requires of us? Why?

3. Read Romans 3:10 and Isaiah 64:6. What does Gods Word say

about our righteousness?

4. Read Galatians 3:10-13
a. What happens when we are unable to abide by all

things?
b. What did Christ do for us?
5. What is the difference between trusting in Christ for our eternal

destiny versus trusting Him for our day-to-day standing with

God? (21)
6.

Read 2 Corinthians 5:21.

a. In light of 2 Corinthians 5:21, read 1 Peter 2:22 and

Hebrews 4:15. What does Gods Word say about Jesus

level of obedience here on this earth?
b. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that God made Jesus to be sin.

According to 1 Peter 2:24, how did Jesus do this?

c. Read Matthew 27:46. Explain the significance of the first

sentence on page 24 of the book, The physical pain he

endured was nothing compared to the agony of being
separated from the Father.
c.i. What does this say about Jesus relationship with his

Father at the time of Jesus death?

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c.ii. How does Jesus relationship with the Father being

broken result in ours being restored?

d. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, so that in him we might become

the righteousness of God.

d.i. At the moment we put our faith in what Christ did for

us on the cross, according to Isaiah 61:10, what

happens?
d.ii. How are we presented before our God? When he

looks at us, who does he see?

d.iii. As a result of this Great Exchange, according to

Romans 5:1, By faith we are __________.

7. Explain the connection between Christs righteousness and our

justification. (p. 26)

8. Faith involves both a renunciation and a reliance.
a. In terms of the first bookend, what kind of renunciation is

required of us? (28)

b. Where must we place our reliance? Be specific.
9. What does it look like when we stand in the present reality of

our justification every day? What difference will it make in our

day-to-day, moment-to-moment lives? (27-30)
10. The final paragraph on page 30 asks several questions. Try to

answer them based on what you have read in chapter one.

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Chapter Two
The Motivation of the Gospel
1. Read Luke 7:36-50.
a. In the story of the sinful woman, why is Simon the Pharisee upset?
b. There is a profound difference between the way Simon and the woman

treated Jesus. What does this tell us about how they viewed their
sinfulness?
c. Thinking back on your last several months, has your attitude toward your

sin been more like Simon or the woman? Why?

2. None of us loves Christ the way he deserves to be loved. Genuine love for

Christ comes through two important understandings? What are they? (34)
3. How does the story of the sinful woman depict the truth of the first paragraph

on page 35? How can you apply this to yourself?

4. Read Isaiah 6:1-5.
a. How does Isaiah respond to seeing the Lord?
b. How does he view himself in light of being in the presence of a Holy

God?
5. Put yourself in Isaiahs place. Do you think you would have responded the way

Isaiah did in verse 5? Why or why not?

6. How was Isaiahs experience similar to that of the sinful woman of Luke 7?

What were the three common steps? (36)

7. In light of these three steps, what can you do to grow in your experience of the

motivating power of the gospel?

8. Read Philippians 3:4-9.
a. According to verse 6 if Pauls righteousness was based on following the

law, what would he be considered?

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b. According to verses 7-9, where does Paul realize his righteousness

actually comes from?

9. Read Philippians 3:7-14. Paul renounced his own righteousness

and relied solely on the righteousness of Christ. How did that

fuel his desire to pursue Christ-likeness and serve God wholeheartedly? (38)
10. Read Romans 12:1.
a. In light of the Gospel message of mercy, how are we to present our

bodies?
b. Explain the significance of the expression a living sacrifice. (39)
11. Consider making an application for your life based on Romans 12:1.

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Chapter Three
Gospel Enemy #1: Self-Righteousness
1. Describe in your own words what it means to be self-righteous?
2. What is the difference between self-righteousness toward God and self-

righteousness toward others? Which is worse, and why? (41-42)

3. Read Galatians 2:21. How does the belief that we have earned (merited) Gods

blessings nullify grace and set us up for committing self-righteousness toward

God? (42-43)
4. Read Galatians 1:6-9.
a. Why was Paul astonished with the Galatians?
b. Explain in your own words what Paul meant by a different gospel?
5. Read Galatians 2:16 and fill in the blanks. Yet we know that a person is not

justified by _________, but through _______ in _________.

a. In Chapter One we discussed that being justified means that we are declared

righteous (in right standing) with God. According Gal 2:16, how are we
justified?
b. Are we justified (declared righteous) by our own works?
6. The second paragraph on page 44 describes the basis most people give for their

belief that God will accept them into heaven.

a. Why is this approach considered to be self-righteous?
b. Read Matthew 7:21-23. What does Jesus indicate his response will be to

this large group of people who base their acceptance from God on their
own works?
7. Many people bank on the hope that God will consider their good deeds to have

enough redeeming value to offset the guilt of their bad deeds. Why is this a
dangerous assumption? (45)

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8. Think about your recent prayer times. Are you confident in your underlying

assumptions and attitudes about why God should favorably answer your
prayers?
9. Read Luke 18:9-14. Why was this Pharisee thankful that he was not like the

other men?
a. On what was the Pharisee basing his righteousness?
b. On what was the tax collector basing his appeal to God?
c. According to Jesus (verse 14) why was the tax collector justified, rather

than the Pharisee?

10. Describe the self-righteous moralistic believer (47-49). Based on your answers

to the ten questions on page 49, do you tend to fit in this category?
11. Why is persistent guilt actually a form of self-righteousness toward God? (50-

51)
12. Do you agree that most believers vacillate between moralistic, performance-

based self-righteousness on one hand, and persistent guilt on the other? Which
category do you lean toward more, and why? (50-51)
13. Explain the last sentence on page 51.
14. From everything youve read in chapters 1-3, how does leaning on the first

bookend slay Gospel Enemy #1?

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Chapter Four
Gospel Enemy #2: Persistent Guilt
1. Explain how those who embrace persistent guilt lean on the same object of

dependency as those who embrace self-righteousness. (53)

2. What is a conscience? Explain in your own words.
3. What did God design the conscience to do for us? What are its two purposes?

(54)
4. Why do we tend to use different escape mechanisms when dealing with a guilty

conscience? What is the purpose of these escape mechanisms? (55)

5. What have you used in the past to attempt to escape the voice of your

conscience? Is this sinful? Why or why not? (55)

6. Read 1 Timothy 1:19. What can happen to our faith when we repeatedly reject

our conscience?
7. How have the ten questions on pages 56 and 57 revealed the presence of

persistent guilt in your life?

8. The idea that we must forgive ourselves has no basis in Scripture. Why do

you think this concept has become so populareven among Christians? (57)
9. Read Hebrews 9:14. What purifies our conscience?
10. Describe how the first bookend is the only way to defeat persistent guilt. (57-

58)
11. Read 1 Timothy 1:13-14. Explain how a healthy remembrance of our sin can be

a blessing. (58-59)
12. Puritan Thomas Wilcox described six ways to deal with persistent guilt by

shifting our focus. Which of these do you find helpful and why? (59-61)
13. Describe how persistent guilt can be transformed into joyful gratitude for the

gospel. (61-63)

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Chapter Five
Leaning on the First Bookend
1. In your own words, what does it mean to lean on the First Bookend?
2. Our unchangeable, infallible God provides the bookendstherefore they never

move or fail. The problem is our failure to lean our books on them. Describe
how this happens. How can we correct this? (65-66)
3. Read Luke 19:1-10.
a. Why did the crowd grumble when Jesus invited himself to Zacchaeus

home?
b. How does Zacchaeus respond to being in the presence of Jesus? (verse 8)
c. Why do you think Zacchaeus responded in this way?
4. Why is it vital for us to see ourselves as desperately lost sinners? (67-68)
5. Explain in your own words what the author means when he says on page 68,

When we step into the light of Christs perfect righteousness, our utter
depravity is exposed?
6. In what ways does reviewing the list on page 68 help you see yourself as a

desperately lost sinner? What happens to our dependence? (69)

7. Read the paragraph that starts on the bottom of page 69 and describe why the

righteousness of Christ is all-sufficient for the needs of sinners.

8. It is not enough to merely see the righteousness of Christ as all-sufficient; we

must see it as all-sufficient for us. Think about specific areas you desperately
need the righteousness of Christ to substitute for your sin and failure. Is his
righteousness sufficient for even that? How does this realization make you feel
toward him?
9. What does it mean to preach the Gospel to yourself every day and why is it so

vital to your spiritual health? (70-72)

10. From the fill-in-the-blank exercise on page 73, identify your functional

savior(s).
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11. Read Jeremiah 2:11-13. Explain why functional saviors can be described as

evil? (72-74)
12. Once we have identified our functional savior(s), what are we to do with them?

What can happen when we dont reject our functional saviors?

13. Currently, what is God doing in your life to help free you from your functional

savior(s)? (74)

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Chapter Six
The Second Bookend: The Power of the Holy Spirit
1. Explain the difference between motivation and ability/power when it comes to

living a Christian life. (81)

2. According to Ephesians 1:13, when are we sealed with the Holy Spirit?
3. Explain the difference in the two categories of grace: the blessing of privilege

and the blessing of power. (82-83)

4. Read 2 Corinthians 12:9. Explain what this verse means in your own words.
5. Explain the difference between help and enablement. (85)
6. When discussing the role of our faith in leaning on the First Bookend, the

authors state that faith involves both renunciation and reliance. Explain how
these two terms apply to our role in leaning on the Second Bookend? (85)
7. From the section titled, The Sovereignty of the Holy Spirit, explain what the

Holy Spirit being sovereign means. (85-86)

8. Why is it that when we rely on the Power of the Holy Spirit, sometimes he

temporarily withholds his power while other times he dramatically manifests

his power in us? (86)
9. From the section titled, The Spirits Synergistic Work, explain what is meant

by the expression, qualified synergism. Describe how this relieves us from

the burden of having insufficient willpower and strength to obey God. (86-88)
10. Read 1 Peter 4:10-11 and Philippians 2:12-13. Explain how these passages are

examples of qualified synergism.

11. Describe the Spirits monergistic work. How you have experienced this in

your life. (88-90)

12. Describe the similarities between the first and second bookends. (92)
13. Describe the differences between the first and second bookends. (92)

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Chapter Seven
Dependent Responsibility
1. Explain the concept of dependent responsibility from Colossians 1:29. (95-96)
2. Explain the two sentences that start on the bottom of page 98:

Theres no conflict between our work and our dependence. In fact, the
harder we work, the more absolute our dependence on the Spirit must
become.
3. What is meant by the term spiritual disciplines? How do they benefit us? (99)
4. What two truths must we constantly keep in mind as we practice the spiritual

disciplines? Why are these two truths so important? (99-100)

5. Explain how reading the Bible can become a conversation, a process of talking

to God and listening to him in an experience of daily fellowship with him.

(100)
6. Read 2 Corinthians 3:18. Explain in your own words what it means to behold

the glory of the Lord. How does this result in transformation?

7. What is involved in preaching the gospel to yourself every day? Why is this

so important to your daily communion with God? (101)

8. Read Colossians 1:9-10 and Romans 12:2. Why is Scripture so instrumental in

renewing and transforming our lives? What are some practical ways we can
apply this truth to our daily lives? (102-103)
9. Explain in your own words how prayer is an expression of our dependency.

How does prayer cause our dependency to grow? (103)

10. Read Romans 8:28-29. How does God use the circumstances in our lives (both

good and bad) as a means of grace in our lives? (104)

11. Read 1 Corinthians 1:9 and 1 John 1:3. What are we called to have with the

Lord? In light of this, explain the differences between our union with Christ and
our communion with Christ. (106)

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12. Read Psalm 63:1 and Psalm 42:1-2. The Psalmists vivid desire for communion

with God is evident in these passages. From all you have read in The Bookends
so far, what is there about God that would make him this desirable to you?
13. What can you do to improve the quality of your daily communion with the

Lord?
14. Where will you find the strength to carry out these desires?

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Chapter Eight
The Help of the Divine Encourager
1. Why is the Holy Spirit referred to as the Divine Encourager? (109)
2. Read Galatians 5:5. Where does the Holy Spirit often point us for

encouragement? (109-110)
3. Read John 14:26 and 15:26. In your own words, explain what Jesus meant when

he said The Helperwill bear witness about me.

4. What is gratitude for purchased grace? Why is it life-changing? (110-111)
5. Read 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 and 1 John 4:9-10,19. Explain what Paul meant

when he said, the love of Christ controls us. (111)

6. Read the quote from Thomas Chalmers on page 113. Explain what it means to

replace the object of our sinful affection with an infinitely more worthy oneGod himself.
7. Explain the difference between the diagrams on pages 113 and 114.
8. Think carefully about your life and then fill in the blank on page 115. Now read

the paragraph that follows the blank and describe how you feel about God and
your sin.
9. In your own words describe what it means to enjoy your relationship with God?

(116-117)
10. Read John 17:22-23. What remarkable statements does Jesus make about the

impact of the Gospel on those who believe in him? (117)

11. How does a desire to enjoy your relationship with God empower your battle

against sin? (118)

12. From the paragraph that starts at the bottom of page 118, describe how the

Spirit uses the promises of God to equip us for our battle against sin.
13. From the paragraph that starts at the bottom of page 119, what spiritual

disciplines can you commit to in order to prepare yourself for your future
needs?
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14. List some of the promises from Gods word that the Spirit has used to motivate

or encourage you in your walk.

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Chapter Nine
Gospel Enemy #3: Self-Reliance
1. Why does it seem strange to think of self-reliance and its cousins as enemies

of the gospel? (123-124)

2. What is self-reliance? How does it compare to self-righteousness? (124)
3. According to John 15:5, what is wrong with a self-reliant approach to life?

(125-126)
4. According to 1 Corinthians 4:7, why do you think the authors state that we

should not be self-reliant about anything! Do you agree? Why or why not?
5. The last paragraph on page 126 states that all believers are inclined to fall prey

to self-reliance every day! Do you agree? What have you done in the last 24
hours that has not been done with 100% dependence on the power of the Holy
Spirit?
6. Read Matthew 26:31-35. What was the object of Peters dependence? In what

ways do our acts of self-reliance resemble Peters denial of Christ? (127-128)

7. Read Philippians 4:13 and 2 Corinthians 3:5-6. When we fall into a pattern of

self-reliance, how can the truth from these Scriptures shift our dependence back
onto the power of the Holy Spirit?
8. Read the story of Brians struggle with self-reliance on pages 128-131. What

similar patterns and outcomes have you seen in your own life?
9. Which of the four excerpts from John Newton do you identify with the most?

Why? (131-132)
10. Read 2 Corinthians 12:7-8. What insights and applications do you find in the

description of Pauls thorn in the flesh? (132-133) What types of thorns have
you experienced?
11. Now read 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. How did this promise help Paul deal with his

thorn in the flesh? Why do you suppose Paul was able to boast of and be
content with his weaknesses?
12. What thorn can you be content with in your life?
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13. In your own words, explain what Paul meant when he said, For when I am

weak, then I am strong?

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Chapter Ten
Leaning on the Second Bookend
1. The first paragraph in this chapter describes both bookends as infinitely solid

and weighty. Do you believe this? Why or why not?

2. Read Isaiah 41:14-16. How does an earthworm accurately portray our

weakness? What happens to transform us from worm to threshing sledge?

(136-137)
3. Explain the term progressive sanctification. How does it unfold in the life of

the believer? Which comes first, justification or sanctification? (138)

4. Read 2 Corinthians 3:18. Explain what the authors meant by saying, the

process of our transformation into Christlikeness, involved seeing?

5. Using 2 Corinthians 3:18, complete this sentence. For this comes from the

_________ who is the ________. What is the power source of this

transformation?
6. When we place our dependency on the power of the Holy Spirit, it seems like

sometimes he comes through for us, but sometimes he doesnt. How can you
explain this apparent inconsistency? (139-140)
7. Spiritual warfare is a daily battle. How does the truth from 2 Corinthians 10:3-4

and Philippians 1:6 give you hope for these battles?

8. Self-reliance is tenacious like poison ivy because its root system is extensive.

Identify and describe the root of the gospel enemies. (141-142)

9. What is humility? How does it address our self-reliance at its roots? (143)
10. Why is a fresh view of the cross needed in order to cultivate humility?
11. What is godliness? How does it address our self-reliance at its roots? (143-144)
12. Read 1 Corinthians 2:1-13. How are all three Focal Points for shifting our

dependence on the second bookend demonstrated in this passage?

13. Do you agree with the Daily Declaration of Dependence?
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14. How can the truths found in 1 Corinthians 15:10 and 2 Corinthians 4:7

encourage you in your dependence on the bookends of the Christian life?

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Conclusion
The Bookends: A Personal Worldview
1. What is a worldview and why is it important? (149)
2. Explain how the bookends can be a personal worldview. (149-150)
3. How is the Bookends Personal Worldview helpful in each of the three arenas of

sin? (150-151)
4. Other than helping in our battle against sin, in what other areas does the

Bookends Personal Worldview help? (152)

5. What does the Bookends Personal Worldview provide that makes it so helpful

and worthwhile? (152-153)

6. How does Isaiahs response, Here am I! Send me reflect the ultimate goal of

living between the bookends? (153-154)

7. Read the second paragraph on page 154. Visualize the activities of your life

from this moment forward as books that are stabilized and secured by leaning
on both bookends. How does this change your outlook on life? How does it
change your plans for the rest of the day, the rest of the week, and your longterm future?
8. Look back to the questions on page 16 and answer them again. How do your

answers compare to those you wrote when you studied the Introduction?
Summarize what you have learned from The Bookends.
Thanks for completing the Study Guide. If you have any comments or suggestions
for the authors of The Bookends of the Christian Life, please submit them on the
Contact page at: www.TheBookendsBook.com

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