The Way of Jesus Christ

 What is The Way of Jesus Christ? I've written about it a lot, but what is it?
     Put simply, the Way or Path of Jesus Christ is voluntary submission to the Spirit of Christ with whom we are joined just as Jesus Christ voluntarily submitted to His Father with whom He is joined. It is the voluntary and intentional disengagement from one's own internal survival responses of fear, aggression, feeding, and the sexual drive and the voluntary engagement of the Spirit of Christ to respond, act, and speak through that person. In the New Testament, it is also called by John "remaining in or making one's home in Christ," and by Paul "walking in the Spirit." In so doing, the person following the Way remains connected through the Spirit of Christ to Christ and thus also to each and every other person who is also following the Way. One who is following the Way will manifest and demonstrate the person and power of Jesus Christ in their words and actions because it is Jesus Christ doing it through them just as the Head of a body is the one acting through the arm, leg, or mouth. In this way, the person will be demonstrating love in every action and word, as well as what Paul descibed as the "fruit of the Spirit;" joy, peace, patience, kindness, courtesy, trust, and self-control because these are the personal qualities of Jesus Christ. The person following the Way of Jesus Christ has no need for rules and regulations to censor his words or actions because he or she will not do anything to harm another person, but will only act in love towards the other person, no matter who it is.
      What the Way is not: the Way of Jesus Christ is not a set of rules, commandments, or religious regulations or traditions. It is not a certain set of theologies about God, the creation of the world, or political positions. The Way has nothing to do with any of these things. It's position on God is experiential and assumed. It's teaching on Jesus Christ is that He was born fully human while also joined as One with God His Father, of a virgin, lived and taught until He was crucified in 33 CE, was entombed, and then rose from the dead on the third day. Forty days later He ascended into the sky while on the road to Bethany across the Jordan. These things which His first disciples experienced ("what our eyes have seen, our ears have heard, and our hands have handled") are the only "theological teachings" which really matter to the Way.
     When someone practicing the Way re-engages with their own responses of fear, aggression, feeding, and so on, their connection with the Spirit of Christ is disengaged and they no longer produce or manifest Jesus Christ in their words or actions. They are still joined to the Spirit of Christ, but are choosing not to engage. In this case, they will begin to act and speak in fear, aggression, and so on, producing angry outbursts, lack of faith or trust, possibly thefts, discord with others, selfishness, and so on as Paul recorded what he called the "works of the flesh." The contrast will become clear, and there may be no warning as to the disengagement from the Spirit of Christ. When this occurs, the person may be ignorant of it and unable to see the contrast. Others who are still practicing the Way should point the contrast out to them. All this person need to do is acknowledge what has happened and return to following the Way. All errors committed while disengaged from the Spirit of Christ are seen equally, and equally dismissed once the Spirit of Christ has been re-engaged.
     The Way of Jesus Christ deals, not with the consequences of our errors, but the source of them and provides a way that those errors would not be committed in the first place as the Spirit of Christ is the One in control, and not the person's own responses.
     The Way of Jesus Christ is defined by love, kindness, and compassion, and where these are not found, then neither is the Way. The person who hates another cannot be a follower of the Way in that moment. The person engaged with Jealousy, hatred, cruelty, malice, lies, and so on cannot be a follower of the Way in that moment. The person engaged with greed and hoarding possessions cannot be a follower of the Way in that moment. The response of a follower of the Way is always to heal and never to harm. The follower of the Way is defined by "walking as He walked" and "living as He taught."
     To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to be a follower of the Way. To believe in Jesus Christ is to be a follower of the Way. How can you believe in someone you refuse to listen to? How can you be a disciple of someone you refuse to imitate?
     This is the Way of Jesus Christ.