The Pilgrim's Progress: A Readable Modern-Day Version of John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (The Pilgrim's Progress Series Book 1)

by John Bunyan

“Good! Keep that light in your eye, and go straight to it,” said Evangelist. “When you arrive at the gate, knock, and you will be told what you are to do.”

“I’m searching for a joy that does not fade,” replied Christian, “a secure inheritance in Heaven that cannot be corrupted and will be given at the appointed time to those who earnestly search for it.”

“And you’re confident the words in your book are true?” asked Pliable, pointing to Christian’s book. “Absolutely!” said Christian without hesitation. “The book was made by Him who cannot lie.”

“There are three things in the man’s advice that you must absolutely hate: first, his cunning ability to turn you away from the true path; secondly, his work in displaying the cross as unpleasant and repulsive; and finally, that he points you in a direction that ultimately leads to death.”

Why would you listen to the advice of Worldly Wiseman rather than that of God?

“Did he think so little of the glories of Heaven that it was not worth a few risks to gain it?”

“This is Christ, who, with the oil of grace, continually maintains the work already begun in the heart.42 The grace He supplies ignites the soul of His people like a roaring fire that, despite the devil’s best efforts, will never be extinguished. This is a difficult concept for man to understand—that even when we are tempted, Christ is doing all the work by supplying the grace we need to stand firm.”

“I neglected to watch and be on guard. As a result, I stopped controlling my lust, and now it runs free; I sinned against the truth and goodness of God’s Word; I grieved the Holy Spirit, and now He’s gone; I flirted with temptation, and the devil came to me; I provoked God to anger, and He abandoned me. At last, I’ve hardened my heart to the point that I cannot repent.”

“Jesus has given me rest by means of His sorrow and life by means of His death!”

“Regardless of how high and difficult this hill is, I’m determined to walk up it because I know it leads to the Way of Life. I might become weak or even scared, but I will have courage and press on because it’s better to be on the right path, even if it’s difficult, than to go an easier way that ends in misery.”

The next day they led him into the armory, where they showed him all kinds of military weapons that their Lord had specifically provided to pilgrims for battle. There was a sword, shield, helmet, breastplate, all-prayer, and shoes that would not wear out. There was enough here to outfit as many men for the service of their Lord

God has said that although he made them, he will not save them just because they do not understand.”

Some pilgrims are strong, while others are weak; some have great faith, while some have little. This man Little Faith was one of the weaker types, and therefore he suffered exhaustion and humiliation.”

“So when we hear of such attacks taking place on the King’s highway, we should respond in two ways: “First, let’s be well equipped with our weapons, especially a shield. For it was the lack of a shield that made it impossible for the brave warrior who attacked Leviathan to make him surrender. It’s true that if our shield is missing, he does not fear us at all. That is why a skilled warrior like Paul said, ‘Above all take the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.’164 “Secondly, it’s also good to request the convoy of the King and that He will go with us Himself. This prospect made David rejoice when he passed through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, and Moses said he would prefer dying where he stood rather than to go one more step without his God.”165

“And how was He eventually revealed to you?” Christian asked. “I did not see Him with physical eyes but rather with eyes of understanding.”191 Then Hopeful began to relay the story. “One day I was very sad. In fact, I think I was more depressed than at any other time in my life, and it was because of fresh insight into how great and repulsive my sins were. As I was anticipating nothing but Hell and eternal damnation of my soul, suddenly I thought I saw the Lord Jesus looking down from Heaven on me, saying, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.’192 “But I replied, ‘Lord, I’m a very great sinner,’ and He answered, ‘My grace is enough for you.’193

“Then I responded, ‘But, Lord, what is the appropriate way for me to come so that my faith is properly placed on you?’ “Then He said, ‘Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.196 He is the end of the law for righteousness to all who believe.197 He died for our sins and rose again for our justification.198 He loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood.199 He is the mediator between God and us.200 He lives to make intercession for us.’201 “It was from all of this that I understood I must look for righteousness in the person of Jesus Christ and for satisfaction for my sins by His blood. In obedience, Christ submitted to the penalty of His Father’s law for those who will accept it for their salvation with thankfulness. As a result, my heart was full of joy, my eyes flooded with tears, and my affections overflowed with love for the name, people, and ways of Jesus Christ.”

“It helped me see that this entire world, despite all its allure and attraction, is in a state of condemnation and that a righteous God can also make sinners righteous before Him. Also, I was greatly ashamed for the sin of my past lifestyle while amazed that I could be so ignorant to have never thought about the beauty of Christ before. “Finally, it made me love the pursuit of holiness and long to do something for the honor and glory of the name of the Lord Jesus. Yes, I believed without a doubt that if I had a thousand gallons of blood in my body, I would willingly spill it all for the sake of the Lord Jesus!”

The Word of God says of our natural condition, ‘There’s no one who is righteous, not even one.’204 It also says, ‘Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time,’205 and again, ‘Every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood.’206 Now, then, when we think about ourselves in this sense, our thoughts can only be good when they’re in agreement with God’s Word.”

“God’s Word says that our ways are not good but rather crooked and perverse. It also says that by nature, we will turn from the good way and are predisposed to not even realize it. Now, when we consider our actions in this way, with a sensitive and humble heart, then we will have good thoughts about our own ways. Our thoughts now agree with the judgment of God’s Word.”

“Good thoughts about God are similar to what I said concerning ourselves. When our thoughts about God agree with what the Word says about Him, then they’re good thoughts. In other words, to rightly think about God is to think about His character and attributes exactly as the Word has taught.

True justifying faith directs the soul, which is aware of its lost condition by the law, to flee for refuge into Christ’s righteousness. This righteousness of Christ is not an act of grace by which He makes your obedience a justifying work acceptable to God. Rather, it’s His personal obedience to the law in suffering for us, which this same law required of us. I can tell you that true faith accepts this righteousness as if it were a blanket that completely covers the soul. In this way, the soul is presented as spotless before God and is accepted and acquitted from condemnation.”

I will boldly affirm, even as my good friend has already done, that no man can know Jesus Christ except by the revelation of the Father. And what’s more, I will also say that faith that takes hold of Christ, assuming it’s a saving faith, must be molded into shape by the exceeding greatness of His mighty power.

“How would you identify a fear of God that is right and true?” Hopeful asked. “I would say that you could identify it in three ways,” Christian said. “First, it begins with a serious concern for our sin that helps us see the need for a savior. Then, it motivates us to quickly turn to Christ as our only hope for salvation. And finally, it instills and maintains in us a great reverence for God, His Word, and His ways. This reverence keeps us mindful of God’s presence so that we would be careful in turning our affections to the right or the left or to do anything that may dishonor God, break its peace, grieve the Spirit, or give God’s enemies a reason to speak scornfully of Him and His kingdom.”

there are four reasons for backsliding. “First, even though the consciences of such people have been temporarily awakened spiritually, their minds are not yet changed. Therefore, when the power of guilt wears off so does their desire to pursue holiness, and then they return to their former sinful ways. We see this illustrated in a sick dog that vomits what he has eaten. He does not vomit because he has a free mind, if it can be said that a dog has a free mind, but rather because his stomach is upset. But once he is no longer sick and his stomach feels better, the desire for what he has vomited returns, and he licks it all up. And so that which is written is true: ‘The dog returns to his own vomit.’210 “This is like the person who initially is enthusiastic for Heaven but only because their fear and shame were strong and they sensed the torments of Hell. But as their fear and shame diminish, so does their desire to pursue holiness. Then, over time, when their fear and shame are gone, and their desires for Heaven and happiness die, they return to their former sinful way of life. “The second reason for backsliding is that people have unreasonable fears that overwhelm, as when they begin to fear man more than God, as is written, ‘For the fear of man will prove to be a snare.’211 So even though they appear to be enthusiastic for Heaven so long as the flames of Hell are real to them, when that terror has passed, they begin to have second thoughts. They begin to think that it’s wi...

share with me your thoughts on the progression of sin that causes people like Temporary to begin to backslide.” “Gladly,” said Christian as he started to list his reasons one at a time. “First, they stop thinking about anything that reminds them of God, death, and the judgment to come and instead, focus on thoughts that produce pleasure and comfort. “They give up any pretense of acting like a Christian in their personal life by neglecting prayer, giving in to temptation, and not feeling any grief over sin. “Then they avoid the company of joyful, vibrant, and mature Christians that are sharing personal testimonies and asking questions. “From there, they become less enthusiastic about church attendance and no longer listen to preaching or the public reading of God’s Word or participate in corporate worship. “To justify their actions, they start to nitpick and look for faults in the lives of other Christians. Their evil intent is to discredit religion and to provide an excuse for avoiding church. “Then they begin to find friendship and belonging by surrounding themselves with sinful, immoral, and godless people, who just lead them further into sin. “Eventually, they give in to immoral and ungodly conversations in their personal lives, hoping to discover others with whom they can relate and find encouragement as well as who will not put them down. “Emboldened and unrestrained by godly influences, they now begin to sin more openly and excuse and rationalize their sins. “And the...

In that place, you will wear crowns of gold and enjoy the perpetual sight and vision of the Holy One, for there you will see Him as He is.223 “You will also serve the one whom you desired to serve in the world with much difficulty because of the weakness of your flesh. You will do so with continuous praise, shouting, and thanksgiving. There your eyes will be delighted with seeing Him and your ears with hearing the pleasant voice of the Mighty One. There you will enjoy your friends again, who arrived before you, and in the same way, you will welcome everyone with joy who follows you into the holy place. “There also you will be clothed with glory and majesty and appropriately equipped to ride out with the King of Glory when He comes in the clouds with the sound of the trumpet upon the wings of the wind, and you will come with Him. When He sits upon the throne of judgment, you will sit by Him, and when He passes sentence upon all the workers of iniquity, whether angels or men, you also will have a voice in that judgment because they were both His and your enemies. Also, when He again returns to the City, you will go with Him with the sound of a trumpet and be with Him forever.”

“Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power to Him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb, forever and ever!”