Summary Of Sanctity Without Starch

Dr. Tuttle does a marvelous job as he breaks down the deep theological ideas of John Wesley’s approach to “Grace” into simple applicable illustrations. In the book Sanctity Without Starch, Tuttle lays out simple formula for John Wesley Theology of Grace by explaining the gospel, “it is a good news, bad news, good news story” (Tuttle, 27). Tuttle then elaborates on this idea and breaks it down in following chapters, as he discusses Prevenient Grace, Justifying Grace, and Sanctifying Grace. As one explores Sanctity Without Starch, whether Methodist or not, they will see and experience the journey of Grace through the eyes of a Wesleyan. To which some may embrace, and others might refrain from accepting. In most other writings about Wesley’s

To often in reading books on theology, we miss out on some of the work of the Spirit, because the author is more concern with getting his or her points expressed through theological concepts of the past. Whereas, Tuttle does this in a beautiful way by also allowing the Spirit of God to make His presence within the dialogue and how important it is once one is Sanctified to allow that Spirit to continue to guide and direct one’s life into perfection (Tuttle, 156). It was also very refreshing to see how heavily relied on scripture it was. Tuttle not only spends time breaking down the theology of John Wesley, but he also seasons it with scriptures to support the ideas written throughout the book. Many theologians spend so much time quoting other theologians of the past, which is not bad, but sometimes one misses out on discovering who the author really is from his writing, because they are focused on gaining support from other theological writers. In addition to the focus of the Holy Spirit through out Tuttle’s book, and the heavy support of scripture, I also really enjoyed number of stories that were circulated throughout the book. Tuttle is a man with many stories of God’s grace in action, and it is such a refreshing experience as a reader, to see these theological concepts come to life in real life stories. Finally, I also appreciated the chapter-by-chapter reflection questions. I believe these were just as thought provoking as the readings. It helps the reader’s process through the depths of the content and apply it to ones personal theological / faith journey. All an all, Sanctity Without Starch, was not your typical Theological book written about Grace; no it was a book of living out John Wesley’s theology of God’s grace through the eyes of man name Dr.