When I was a seminary student, one of the most intriguing parts of the Wesley brothers' theologies to me was the notion of "going on toward perfection" and the resonances the idea had with Eastern Orthodox theologies of theosis, or deification -- the process of entering into the divine life through Christ in the Spirit with the Father. Kimbrough's masterful book takes all that Charles Wesley has written -- both the prose and the lyrics -- to explore the deeply pastoral, thoroughly spiritual and complexly theological account of that process. For Wesley, this process went beyond one's own spiritual life to find expression in the corporate life of the fellowship of the Spirit as the Body of Christ in the world.
In other words, what one finds here is a ground of the spiritual life in its proper ecclesial context with a deeply woven trinitarian expression -- one that ultimately leads to doxology or worship.
The resonances with Eastern Orthodoxy are not accidental, either. As other Wesleyan scholars have been quick to point out (e.g., Ted Campbell's John Wesley and Christian Antiquity), what the Wesley brothers sought to accomplish was to reclaim the earliest Christian life in God expressed in the Fathers and Mothers of the Church. That's a theme that echoes again in Kimbrough's work in a variety of places, but most explicitly here.
Kimbrough's book is a must-read for Wesleyans who want to explore the richness of their own theological traditions -- sung every Sunday in Methodist churches throughout the land.
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I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review here.