Doctrine, Spirit, and Discipline

Kevin Watson (PhD, Southern Methodist University) is Director of Academic Growth & Formation at Asbury Theological Seminary. He regularly teaches on the history of Methodism and the Holiness Movement and Wesley’s theology of discipleship.  He is the author of Old or New School Methodism?, Pursuing Social Holiness, The Class Meeting, and Perfect Love.

'A faithful witness to the people called Methodists in England and in America, this colossal volume expeditiously moves from Wesley to American Methodism and its extended branches to the current state of Wesleyanism today. Watson masterfully retells a well-chronicled narrative in terse, accessible, lucid prose, covering not just the contours of Wesleyan history with its highs and lows but also its various doctrinal developments and disputes and ecclesial divisions. The moral of the story, as indicated by the quote from which the title is taken, is that Methodism at its best is a blazing, fiery force of renewal and at its worst an inert, acculturated institution. Although coming in at nearly 500 pages, this volume is concise and highly accessible. Well-illustrated, highly detailed, and informative, Doctrine, Spirit, and Discipline is suitable for the classroom and will make a fine addition to any shelf of classic volumes on Methodist history.'