Formed in the Image of Christ for the Sake of Others
You formed my innermost being,
shaping my delicate inside and my intricate outside,
and wove them all together in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, God, for making me so mysteriously complex!
Everything you do is marvelously breathtaking.
Psalm 139:13-14 TPT
Spiritual formation is “a process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others.”
Invitation to a Journey, M. Robert Mulholland Jr.
A spiritual formation movement has arisen and has taken many forms. The movement arose in response to a loss of meaning, value and purpose in our culture due to a materially driven, consumer oriented-worldview. Human hearts hunger for deeper realities which bring wholeness. They seek deeper experiences with God to find meaning, purpose, and identity.
Jesus is the answer to this heart-cry of our generation. He liberates us, heals us, cleanses us, restores meaning, and brings us life.
Spiritual formation is being “shaped by God toward wholeness.” God is the potter and we are the clay. He is the initiator of our growth toward wholeness. Wholeness restores us to displaying the image of God, just as we were formed in the beginning (Gen 1:26-27). Although we have all been mired by the effects of the fall, Jesus restored the way for us to be “transformed into his image with an ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV).
Holistic spirituality takes place in the midst of our thoughts, emotions, and physical selves, which are reflections of our spiritual lives. We are each uniquely handcrafted by God. The process of spiritual formation towards wholeness can look very different for each of us. Our role is to entrust ourselves into his faithful hands.
When spirituality is viewed as a journey, spiritual wholeness is:
“an increasingly faithful response to the One whose purpose shapes our path, whose grace redeems our detours, whose power liberates us from crippling bondages of the prior journey and whose transforming presence meets us at each turn in the road. In other words, holistic spirituality is a pilgrimage of deepening responsiveness to God’s control of our life and being.”
Invitation to a Journey
Although we have all fallen short, God is unceasing in his gracious and patient work of restoring us to wholeness. Spiritual formation is cooperating with His work in our lives. This cooperation leads us towards the wholeness found in being formed in His image. When spiritual formation is understood as a process, we begin seeing his work in all of life.
Spiritual formation requires that we deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23). It requires surrendering our ways of old ways of bondage and brokenness. Wholeness in Christ is lived out by nurturing one another toward wholeness, both within the body of Christ and in the world. Culture will display the image of Christ as His people are transformed into His image.
Want to learn more? This has been adapted from Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation by Robert M. Mulholland Jr. The book will further equip you for the journey.
If you would find spiritual companionship valuable along your formational journey, you may be interested in Spiritual Direction.