Dancing to Doctrine: Following the Way

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”—John 14:6

Jesus called Himself, “the way.” He is the only way to God because He Himself is the incarnate God—the exact expression of the Father’s nature (Hebrews 1:3). Christianity is not just following a set of rules or being good, but it is embodying the person of Christ and adopting His way of life as our own. The Bible points to Christ in His Person and His work (Luke 24:45; John 5:39) and gives us direction to how we might joyfully and experientially live as God has purposed. While Christianity was still in its infancy, it was called “the Way” (Acts 9:2), because its followers sought to emulate Christ—who is the way—in everyday life. By living by faith in the Son of God, we demonstrate that we have been crucified with Him and participate in His resurrection life (Galatians 2:20; Romans 6:4).

Once we have placed our faith in Christ, we become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), temples of God’s Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19), and ambassadors in the world for God (2 Corinthians 5:20). However, we must learn how to “walk in the Spirit” or live the resurrection life of Christ in its fullness. How do we do this? By learning to dance to doctrine. As Kevin J. Vanhoozer wrote,

“The purpose of doctrine is to ensure that those who bear Christ’s name walk in Christ’s way. Far from being irrelevant to ‘life,’ then, doctrine gives shape to life ‘in Christ.’”—Kevin J. Vanhoozer, The Drama of Doctrine, p. 16.

When we endeavor to learn doctrine, we learn how to walk with Christ. Doctrine sets the parameters of who God is, the life He has promised and how we may enter into it. The more that we learn about God, the better we may learn how to walk with Him, in the same way we learn more about our spouse in order to love him or her better. I hope that we may all endeavor to learn how to dance to doctrine—not for mere head knowledge—but that we might grow closer to Him and experience the life He has intended for us.

Do you love the Savior? Is your relationship with the LORD growing, or is it stagnant? Are you learning to dance to doctrine in step with God? The only way to learn the steps is by reading, studying, and placing ourselves under the proclamation of God’s Word. And once we do, God will be glorified and we will experience the joy of doing what God has made us to do. Amen.