GroshLink

As I did the other day, I'm recycling some thoughts posted on another blog. The topic under consideration was Legalism, both ethical and doctrinal, distorting spirituality. I think what is below largely stands on its own, but if you'd like to place it into its context, go to Divine Embrace 5.

The battles for orthodoxy, orthopraxy, and various institutional concerns of church structures fill the attention of many. But it is not new among the people of God for prophets/poets informed by (Note: influenced by the Wesleyan Quadrilateral and Blackaby's Experiencing God)

Scripture - the Holy Bible (Old and New Testaments)
Tradition - the two millennia history of the Christian Church
Reason - rational thinking and sensible interpretation
Experience - a Christian’s personal and communal journey in Christ

to rise to remind us of our First Love, enabling us to navigate our particular context by the Light born out of relationship with God. What happens to such labors? The ‘methods’ of the ’successful’ become canonized (worthy of proper initiation to and defence of) while the relationship which guided them fades from sight.

The Spirit moves, the Father calls, and Christ comes to other willing hearts, ready to live in the continual process of communion and conversion which leads to benediction informed by the proper theological teaching and benefaction informed by spiritual practice . . . returning again to communion and conversion. (Note: influenced by N. Graham Standish and Richard Lovelace).

Whatever our location in or out of the various evangelical traditions, the call is to

-love God
-proper self-understanding informed by love of God in order to live a life which

-blesses neighbor
-blesses creation
through our various secondary callings/vocations (Note: Influenced by Scot McKnight, Os Guinness' The Call and various Reformed thinkers).

N. Graham Standish in Discovering the Narrow Path: A Guide to Spiritual Balance discusses four paths to which by personality, tradition, and context one might be drawn:

-the mindful path which can devolve to rationalism (eg., Reformed)
-the passionate path which can devolve to Pietism (eg., Pentecostals)
-the emptying path which can devolve to Quietism (eg., Cistercians, Carmelites)
-the purging path which can devolve to encratism (eg., Quakers)

The narrow path is the one which out of humble obedience stands at the crossroads of these paths. Praying for the grace to do such today . . . praying also for the people of God. Sola dei gloria!