One of the auther's best. he faces complete grace more completely here than in some of his other works where he seems to fear that his readers may confuse "grace" with "license".

Slow but thought provoking

This book will change your heart and change your life. Takes the judgment out of religion and puts grace and mercy in it's place. One of my top 5 must reads.

The topic of grace is profound! Stories that touch the heart open our eyes to the most profound thing in the world... that's actually true. God extends to us what we don't deserve, his love... and it is greater than we could ever imagine.

This book changed my life! Wept on every page. Never knew God loved me. Was raised singing about the marvelous grace of Jesus but when the preacher came to the pulpit i was a sinner in the hand of an angry God. I hated my walk and was on the verge of leaving the faith. This book changed my life!

Charles R. Swindoll has written a 311-page book entitled “The Grace Awakening: Believing in grace is one thing. Living it is another.” Published in 1990 by Word Publishing, this book proclaims the grace of God in both a pastoral and personal tone.
Before beginning to answer objections, Swindoll assists the reader in formulating his or her concept of grace by illustrating how it emerges in common-day experiences. Many conservatives may share objections to grace that parallel their objections to liberal notions of tolerance. Some people are intolerant of intolerance, of course. And they have good reason to be so!
As Swindoll says: We all admit that grace is risky. Let’s also admit that some will live irresponsibly. You can detect such irresponsibility rather quickly. 1.) There is a lack of love for others… little care about anybody else. 2.) There is a rationalization of out and out sin. 3.) There is an unwillingness to be accountable. 4.) There is a resistance to anyone’s getting close enough to give them wise advice. 5.) There is a disregard for one who is a new convert and therefore weak in the faith.” (50-51). Unfortunately, God does not permit us to extend conditional grace contingent upon this system of exceptions, for His own Son was crucified on our behalf – entirely disregarding our repentance. Even John Calvin rejected the notion of limited atonement, for “Christ died once for all.” So, how could we refuse to extend grace?
Yet, what of the interaction between boundaries and grace? What of the boundaries Jesus set through confrontation with the Pharisees, and through voluntary withdrawal from His disciples into the wilderness? Grace denies moral systems a position in the life of the grace-giver. Receiving grace elevates a person to an unassailable position beyond human judgments – even when those judgments are aligned with the morality of God, revealed, for example, in the Ten Commandments. Indeed, “the power of sin is the law,” and the law has been fulfilled in Christ. Grace negates questions of balance between boundaries and grace, but it also ties a person inextricably to Christ from whom grace has been extended.
While tied to Christ, a person’s control is surrendered. Grace strips us of our illusions of control. We are entirely in the mercy of the Bridegroom. Here, we are “no longer helplessly bound by impulses or desires” (50). When we are released from our attempts to control, we find freedom!
Part of living out grace is opposing legalism. Swindoll believes that freedom is worth fighting for. But how do we fight for Christian freedom without being ungracious toward those subdued by moralism? Using the illustration of Paul and Barnabas who parted ways after a conflict concerning the presence of John Mark on their upcoming missionary journey. This conflict did end in separation, but the presence of grace prevented bitterness from hindering the ministry of these two men. We must not assume that God intended for these men to work together, for it is possible that God intended these men to separate at that time. If this is the case, we could assume that Paul and Barnabas sought God first and human companionship second. This permitted their gracious departure from one another. However, it is also possible that Barnabas’ compassion toward John Mark was a higher call than Paul’s insistence on the integrity of his mission, but even if Paul stumbled here, God still demonstrated His goodness despite the evil of Paul’s impatience, high expectations, and lack of grace.
It is not difficult to lack grace. Swindoll shows that we must accept the grace God bestows to us as well as extend that grace to others. There is no magic here, though Christ might once again multiply the youth’s surrendered loaves and keep the widow’s oil jars from emptying. Those who accept God’s grace may find themselves suffering when they extend grace to others. Extending grace in ministry can be draining. Swindoll expresses that “these five characteristics are true of those who serve others in grace: 1.) Generosity with personal possessions … absence of selfishness. 2.) Encouragement in unusual settings … absence of predictability. 3.) Life beyond the letter of Scripture… absence of dogmatic Bible-bashing. 4.) Liberty for creative expression … absence of expectations. 5.) Release from past failures… absence of shame.” (233).
Two of these absences are particularly difficult: the absence of predictability and the absence of expectations. Giving up our “rights” to predictability and expectations could be uncomfortable, but it isn’t likely to lead to suffocation via crucifixion – though it wouldn’t be the first time this has happened to a person of grace.
And marriage may be rough. Swindoll devotes a chapter to grace in marriage. I consider this a most appropriate response to the increase in divorce in our culture. The extension of grace is vital to the health of a marital relationship.
Another chapter addresses materialistic, consumerist, and commercial cultures. Generosity can be addicting, and it can also free us from our self-enslavement to novelty and material wealth.
Two particular ideas captured my attention in this book. The first concerns the distinction between unity and unanimity. Unity is produced by grace, and unanimity is produced through moralism or legalism. As Eugene Rossenstock-Hussey expresses in his profound book “Planetary Service,” true peace on a global (as well as local) scale depends upon grace and common purpose. The compulsion of moralism leads only to “cold war” in which there is – despite the absence of battle – no peace.
The second idea that interests me concerns a Christian’s willingness to release expectations and predictability. A zealous young believer may be determined to die a martyr’s death, but clinging to that expectation is a form of control that evinces a fear not contained in grace. Grace strips us of control, expectation, and fear, for “perfect love casts out all fear.” To nail oneself to a crucifix is to deny God the opportunity to deliver you, though it might provide a sense of security through the knowledge that you did not waver in your faith.
“The Grace Awakening” met me in my sorrows, and it preached the gospel to me, risking and suffering my anger. I set it down many times, frustrated because I could not refute the distasteful truths it gently presented. I’m thankful to the pastor who recommended it to me.

Addresses what so many religious people get wrong

I love this book and the perspectives therein. To be written by Charles Swindoll who interprets the Bible from a very conservative/fundamental perspective makes it all the more powerful.
I have a T-Shirt that says; “That’s not what I said. -Jesus.” The Grace Awakening is saying much the same thing in how I interpret my shirt. Christians should be grace-filled, accepting and loving. How sad this is so often not the case…at least in my experience. Thank you Pastor Swindoll

On the plus side of good.

Esa libertad esta motivada por un amor incondicional. Cuando la gracia de Cristo ilumine su vida, descubrirá que no hace las cosas por temor, vergüenza o por culpa, sino que las hace por amor. Se acaba para siempre la terrible tiranía de actuar para complacer a los demás.

In this book, Swindoll looks hard at an often-talked about yet also overlooked aspect of the Christian faith - grace. He shows how vital it is and how it needs to be woven into all aspects of our life in order for us to live truly free. Each chapter was a lot to take in, but I hope that in the reading of this book, my own viewpoint has been changed and I begin to implement the lessons I learned in my own life and walk. I look forward to sharing this book with friends.

Favorite quotes: "There are people who want to be told what to do and when... how to believe and why. And the result is tragic - perpetual adolescence. Without being trusted, without being freed, maturity never happens. You never learn to think on your own."

"Being free means you have no reason whatsoever to agree with my personal list; nor should you slander me because it isn't exactly like yours. That is one of the ways Christians can live in harmony. It is called living by grace... and it is the only way to fly."

"When grace is present there is plenty of freedom provided for creative expression. Paul writes of that this way: 'Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty' (2 Cor. 3:17). This means there is also an absence of expectations... Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is room - plenty of room - for liberty."

challenging, thought provoking,

But also liberating, I really don’t care to be more free, at 71, I am at peace with the boundaries that God and I have set for me. But I DO, very much, want to give others the grace to figure out with God’s Word and His presence and prayer, what their boundaries are without, as Marilla said to Matthew in Anne of Green Gables, “putting my oar in” .

SIMPLY LIFE-CHANGING. I was never the same after reading this book. Chuck helped me begin my own journey in discovering what God's grace really is.