In Evangelical circles, Christians talk about discipleship. Perhaps it's a word that has become so familiar that we don’t even reflect on its meaning anymore. Discipleship means to follow Jesus—to be his disciple. As his disciple, I learn from him and then live out what I learn.
Where does Christian spiritual formation come into play? It's the inner process of discipleship. It's how Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, forms us on the inside in order to shape our character to reflect his image in who we are and what we do.
How then is Christian spiritual formation relevant not just for us as individuals but for how we respond to the world?
“The man who is wise, therefore, will see his life as more like a reservoir than a canal. The canal simultaneously pours out what it receives; the reservoir retains the water till it is filled, then discharges the overflow without loss to itself. … Today there are many in the Church who act like canals, the reservoirs are far too rare. … You too must learn to await this fullness before pouring out your gifts, do not try to be more generous than God.”
Our actions proceed from our character. We must be filled up to give out. We can’t give what we don’t have. We don’t want to be like the hypocritical teachers of the law and Pharisees to whom Jesus says, “You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness” (Matt 23:27b-28; NIV; BibleGateway and herein). We want our inner and outer selves to be congruent. It's only when our inner life is Christlike that our outer life will be Christlike. Jesus is so very wise. In Matthew 12:34, he said, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (NKJV) Our thoughts and feelings influence our heart, which influences our actions. The bottom line is this: our inner self influences our outer self. Who we are influences what we do.
Spiritual formation is not just for Christians. Everyone alive gets a spiritual formation.
“…all people undergo a process of spiritual formation. Their spirit is formed, and with it their whole being. As I said earlier, spiritual formation is not something just for especially religious people. No one escapes. The most hardened criminal as well as the most devout of human beings have had a spiritual formation. They have become a certain kind of person.
“You have a spiritual formation and I have had one, and it is still ongoing. It is like education: everyone gets one—a good one or a bad one.”
Since we all are spiritually formed whether we know it or not, we might regularly ask ourselves these questions:
- What/Who is shaping my spiritual life?
- What/Who is forming my spirit?
- What/Who am I allowing to shape me more: God or the world?
Daily we might ask ourselves:
- Whose voice am I listening to, that of God’s or the deceiver of this world? In other words, whose voice does my own internal voice or mental tape recorder (for those of us who remember these) sound like?
These questions can help us notice when we have taken our eyes off Jesus.
May our internal self be formed by Christ, and may God lead and empower us so that our outer and inner selves are congruent. May Jesus gift us grace on our journeys of becoming more like him.
