I really enjoyed your post. It really captures the importance of narrative. Much of our preaching, theology, and thought about the faith is derived from what are called the didactyc portions of scripture. That teaching (sadly) has little outward effect on how we live our lives.

This is because we often see the didactyc as a source of easily derived principles that can be packaged in a three point sermon and delivered on Sunday. This probably goes back to the old Platonic concept that we would do The Good if we simply knew what it was. I would argue that when we read like this we are misappropriating Paul and the other epistlatory authors.

If we simply read Paul (for instance) on his own terms, we find that he spends more time establishing the believers identity in Christ, than on formal instruction or ethics. The operating principal here is that our behavior is not the result of being informed about what is right - but rather about who we are. The epistles therefore, are not at odds with Narrative, but rather point us back to it.