CS 501 Introduction to Christian SpiritualityThe Journey of the Christian Life

Deadly Thoughts and Godly VirtuesGluttony

AngerGreedEnvyPrideLust IndifferenceMelancholy or depression

TemperanceMildnessGenerosityHappinessHumilityChastityDiligenceWisdom

Gluttony overcome by Temperance

Gluttony – the insatiable

desire to take things, in, to consume and to attempt to satisfy desire

through gorging

Temperance – recognizes that

there will always be more

to come and that God will

provide due to trust in God

Anger overcome by Mildness

Anger – arises from a sense of

violation of self, of agreements, of principles and

from a feeling of threat to social status or the

desire to control others

Mildness – the capacity for self-restraint due to

confidence in God

Greed overcome by Generosity

Greed – boundless in its grasping for money or fame

and its need to fill others’ minds with ourselves

Generosity – recognizes that

the greatest good is found in sharing

with others in community due to

recognizing the sufficiency of

God’s provision

Envy overcome by Happiness

Envy – awakens when feelings of

inadequacy about one’s gifts and abilities lead to resentment of

the gifts and abilities of others

Happiness – recognizes one’s

own competencies and celebrates the skills and

abilities of others

Pride overcome by Humility

Pride – results from a

disproportionate sense of one’s own

contribution, manifested in an

inordinate belief in one’s own importance

Humility – recognizes that one’s own gifts

and abilities need to be developed further without

feeling threatened by the

achievements of others

Lust overcome by Chastity

Lust – results from egocentrism

and the belief that the person after whom we

lust exists only to satisfy one’s

unbridled desires

Chastity – works to properly

balance love with capacity to be

loved by honoring and

caring for those we love

Indifference overcome by Diligence

Indifference – reflects a belief that what one is

doing has no outcome worthy of respect due to

a loss of confidence that

one’s life matters

Diligence – reflects the

perseverance that helps one through

tough times, believing that the ultimate purpose of life rests in the

hands of God

Melancholy overcome by Wisdom

Melancholy and depression –

concludes that the priorities by which one has structured his or her life will have no lingering effect after he or

she is gone

Wisdom – recognizes the role one’s life plays in the greater affairs

of the world, finding

contentment in one’s contribution

to it

THE SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES

The Corporate Disciplines• Augustine said that the Christian

should be an alleluia from head to foot or, as Anthony Campolo said, the Christian should be a party waiting to happen!

• Psalm 98• Psalm 150

Celebration

• Disciples are those who intentionally discern the direction and leadership of the Holy Spirit corporately.

• John 16:13-15• Galatians 5:24-26

Guidance

The Corporate Disciplines• The Discipline of Confession brings an

end to pretense. God is calling into being a Church that can openly confess its frail humanity and know the forgiving and empowering graces of Christ. Honesty leads to confession, and confession leads to change. May God give grace to the Church once again to recover the Discipline of Confession (Richard Foster).

• Psalm 51:6-7• James 5:13-16

Confession

The Outward Disciplines

• This is what worship looks like to the world.• Romans 12:1, 2 • 1 Peter 4:7-10

Submission and Service

• We must seek out the recreating stillness of solitude if we want to be with others meaningfully. We must seek the fellowship and accountability of others if we want to be alone safely. We must cultivate both if we are to live in obedience (Richard Foster).

• Psalm 46:10-11Solitude

The Outward Disciplines• To live life in the

courage, the wisdom, and the strength to hold the kingdom of God as the number-one priority of our lives is to live in simplicity (Richard Foster).

• Matthew 6:19-21, 33-34

Simplicity

The Inward Disciplines• In study there are two “books”—verbal and

nonverbal. Books and lectures are one part, the world of nature and the careful observation of events and actions are the primary nonverbal fields of study. The principal task of study is a perception into the reality of a given situation, encounter, book, etc. We can go through a major crisis, for example, without any perception of the real nature of the tragic situation. But if we carefully observe and reflect upon what occurred, we can learn a great deal. Study is well worth our most serious effort.

• 2 Timothy 2:15• Isaiah 55:8-9

Study

The Inward Disciplines• Some have exalted religious

fasting beyond all Scripture and reason; and others have utterly disregarded it (John Wesley).

• Isaiah 58:6-9

Fasting

• Christian meditation, simply, is the ability to hear God’s voice and obey his word

• Psalm 1:1-3• Hebrews 12:25-29

Meditation

The Inward Disciplines• Of all the spiritual disciplines, prayer is

the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father. Meditation introduces us to the inner life, fasting is an accompanying means, study transforms the mind, but it is the Discipline of Prayer that brings us into the deepest and highest work of the human spirit. To pray is to change and to see things from God’s point of view. Listening to God is the necessary prelude to intercession. We must hear, know, and obey the will of God before we pray it into the lives of others.

• Romans 8:26• Ephesians 6:18

Prayer

The Inward Disciplines• Worship is an ordered way of acting and living that sets us before God so he can transform us.

• John 4:23-24

Worship

A PRAYER FOR THE INCORPORATION OF THE SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES

Father of Beauty, how great is your creative power! Give me eyes to recognize every “tool” in your hands as you work to reshape me in the immortal image of your Son . . . all the words and people and circumstances that gouge, as well as those that smooth.I trust you, Father. Shape in me the beauty of a life set apart for you.

RESPONDJournal your answers to these questions

What did you hear from God during the reading and reflection on the disciplines?

How will you respond to what you heard from God?

Which of the disciplines are disciplines for you?

Which of the disciplines are not disciplines for you?

THE ULTIMATE GOALEvagrius

• The state in which every thought, desire, and action is properly ordered.

• In this state, the passions of the soul are overcome by love of God and neighbor, and the passions of the flesh are overcome by self-discipline.

Apatheia

THE ULTIMATE GOALEvagrius

• “The proof of apatheia is had when the spirit begins to see its own light, when it remains in a state of tranquility in the presence of images it has during sleep and when it maintains its calm as it beholds the affairs of life.”

Apatheia

THE ULTIMATE GOALEvagrius

• “To achieve apatheia is to achieve a full and harmonious integration of the emotional and spiritual life under the direct influence of God’s divine love. It creates a state of deep calm based on obedience to the commandments of God and the practice of virtue.”

Apatheia

THE JOURNEY OF SUFFERING

Definitions – 1 Peter 2-4

Physical suffering

• Abuse• Poverty• Disease

• Persecution

Consequences of

wrongdoing - 1 Pt 2:19-20

Willingly giving up

one’s rights in obedience

to Christ

Desert and Wilderness

Desert

• The choice to separate oneself for discipline, instruction, solitude, preparation

• Examples• Jesus• Paul

Wilderness

• A time of sending by God to learn from God through discipline; may include consequences of sinful behavior

• Examples• Children of Israel – Heb 3-4• Jesus – Mt 4