Deeper Study Guide: Real Change for Real Sinners (Union)

such a good book would definitely read again

Buy this book. Just do it.Deeper is a follow-up to Dane Ortlund’s book Gentle and Lowly. The latter looks at sanctification and the process of growing deeper in one’s faith (hence the title); the former is a look at the heart of Jesus and how he relates to us. It’s possible to read Deeper without having read Gentle and Lowly – the first couple of chapters in Deeper summarize the crux of Gentle and Lowly pretty well – but you’ll get more out of both of them if you read them in order.I got the set of the hardcover Deeper book itself as well as the softcover study guide. Some study guides seem to be a marketing gimmick, but not this one! It has thoughtful questions that really help you to more deeply contemplate the chapters of the book.Deeper is really, really good. I think I annoyed my husband and my small group at church by how often I brought it up in our discussions -- it is so relevant to so many different topics. It helped me see how grace is not a one-time thing, but the very foundation and sustenance of our daily walk in Christ. Ortlund’s writing style is excellent – he makes complex theological ideas simple and easy to understand, but he doesn’t dumb things down or shy away from the beauty of what he’s describing. Think of it as cutting up a really good steak into bite size pieces, rather than pureeing it.The book has nine main chapters. “Jesus” is the first chapter and it looks at who Jesus is, focusing on eight of his primary attributes. “Despair” shows how we need to give up on saving ourselves so that we can rely on Jesus. “Union” looks at what it means to be “in Christ.” “Embrace” explores God’s deep love for us. “Acquittal” teases out the relationship between justification and sanctification. “Honesty” looks at how sanctification plays out in our relationships with other people. “Pain” explores how suffering helps in our growth. “Breathing” compares Bible reading and prayer to inhalation and exhalation. And finally, “Supernaturalized” shows the necessity of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives for sanctification.In his conclusion, Ortlund writes: “Be astonished at the gracious heart of Jesus Christ, proven in his atoning work in the past and his endless intercession in the present. Receive his unutterable love for sinners and sufferers. Stop resisting. Let him draw near to you. Gaze upon him. As you do so, transformation will come in the back door.”

This study guide is very thought-provoking! The questions ensure that you're not just flipping through pages. It helps you slow down and realize how certain things are relevant (or not) in your own life. I don't care for the questions that feel like there's a "right" or "wrong" answer, but I appreciate the level of introspection that this book inspires.

I appreciated every chapter and I thought the first half of the book was especially insightful. Each chapter has a specific thing to concentrate on. Jesus, despair, union, embrace, acquittal, honesty, pain, breathing, and supernaturalized. The subtitle was a little bit misleading but not entirely incorrect. "Real Change for Real Sinners." This book doesn't really deal with sin directly. It takes an approach where growing deeper in certain areas allows be further in Christ and further out of sin. I think that is one of the best approaches to sin.At some point, this book felt like a study on the spiritual disciplines. I was worried at times because it almost presents the material as something that is new or novel and that often comes across as pretentious in books. Thankfully, that was never really an issue as I kept going. In fact, there were things that felt novel. There are common spiritual disciplines (fasting, prayer, Bible reading, worship, etc.) but this book felt like a study in spiritual disciplines that most Christians wouldn't often think about. Though the breathing chapter is about breathing in scripture and breathing out prayer.There are a lot of quotations from great historical theologians, especially C.S. Lewis that really add to the ideas in the chapters. I would say that each chapter does a good job at helping the reader think of an aspect of Christianity that isn't often explored. It definitely was effective for me to think more deeply on my relationship with Christ.The "Study Guide" is pretty straightforward. There are questions for every chapter that I would say are useful. There isn't much else except the introduction to the study guide. It's useful but not as useful without the book. I would gladly suggest these this book and guide for someone who has been a Christian for a while. There are probably more basic disciplines to learn for a newer Christian though they too could benefit.