Active Disciplines

Active Disciplines

The work of spiritual discipline has two aspects.

“See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do them….” Deuteronomy 4:5

We have seen that God is the source to Whom we look for guidance in disciplining our lives to know Him and enjoy His promises. We have also seen that this discipline is first of all focused on our hearts, to nurture both fear and love of God as the foundational affections of our covenant relationship with Him.

The work of spiritual discipline is thus an ongoing work, and it consists of two aspects. The first are what we might call active spiritual disciplines. These are the activities and exercises, prescribed by God, which His people are called to take up according to His direction to shape their souls for obedience and blessing. As we shall see subsequently, God has given us a number of such disciplines, and we, as His people, fearing and loving Him, must actively take up those which He has provided for us. We will not be able to know the Lord or to enjoy His promises unless we seek the Lord diligently through the active spiritual disciplines He has provided as means to those ends.

As we shall see, the active spiritual disciplines include hearing God’s Word, speaking to one another of His Word, seeking Him through offerings and gifts, keeping the Sabbath, observing sacred feasts and gatherings, exercising a continuous self-watch over our hearts and lives, maintaining everyday reminders of our calling, and holding one another accountable in love for seeking and obeying the Lord. Shortly we will examine each of these in more detail.

For more insight to the nature of God’s Covenant, order a copy of T. M.’s book, I Will Be Your God, from our online store. Visit our website, www.ailbe.org, and sign up to receive our thrice-weekly devotional, Crosfigell, featuring writers from the period of the Celtic Revival and T. M.’s reflections on Scripture and the Celtic Christian tradition.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T. M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.