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Question 6

He calls William Law’s *A Serious Call* the best book for “progress toward a fully surrendered life” and says it helped fuel the Great Awakening and Methodist revivals; what does that suggest about the relationship between personal holiness teaching and widespread spiritual awakening, and why might that make some modern Christians uneasy?

Another way to ask: Bercot says holiness teaching helped spark big revivals like the Great Awakening. What might that show about the link between personal holiness and widespread renewal, and why could that make some Christians uncomfortable?

Direct Answer The transcript suggests that teaching aimed at “a fully surrendered life” can have ripple effects far beyond personal devotion, even shaping major movements of revival. This may make modern Christians uneasy because Law’s emphasis is strongly on surrender and holiness, which can feel demanding compared to more comfortable forms of Christianity.

Support from Transcript:

Bercot calls *A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life* his “all-time favorite spiritual classic.”
He says, “For someone wanting to progress toward a fully surrendered life, I can recommend no better book.”
He states it “so inspired John Wesley, Charles Wesley, and George Whitfield.”
He says it “lies at the foundation of both the Great Awakening and the Methodist revivals.”
He adds that through their preaching, “the Wesleys were attempting to bring the spirituality of *A Serious Call* to the masses.”
He frames these writers as addressing “the kingdom life…along this narrow way,” implying costly discipleship rather than easy religion.

Discussion Follow-ups If holiness teaching helped fuel awakening then, what might that imply about what we’re missing when holiness is minimized today? Are you more attracted to revival as excitement, or revival as deeper surrender and obedience?

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