Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life

First published in 1728, William Law's masterwork confronts a question most religious people prefer to avoid: what if your faith meant something? Using vivid fictional characters - a country squire obsessed with propriety, a lady lost in vanity, a devout man of business - Law dissects the gap between nominal Christianity and actual devotion. He refuses to accept that weekly church attendance and polite belief constitute a holy life. Instead, he calls for radical, total consecration: every action, every thought, every pound spent must serve God's purposes. The book struck with such force that a young John Wesley credited it with awakening him to genuine faith. Nearly three centuries later, its challenge remains. This is not comfortable reading. It is a summons to every Christian who has ever wondered whether there might be more to following Christ than they have dared to attempt.