week 4 responds
arnita
week4respondsdb.docxJason Bowers
Forum 2
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“Spiritual formation means that God is in the business of forming us into his likeness so that we can have deeper fellowship with him and reflect the virtues of righteousness in our lives.” [1] Paul Pettit eloquently explains that God made humanity as a community and for community. Pettit gives Genesis chapter two verse eighteen as a scripture reference, which states “It is not good for man to be alone.” [2] Pettit went on to make the case that as humans we crave close community but sin alienates our relationship with God as well as with other humans. In the Old Testament, the Jewish people believed they were God’s chosen people and their redemption came from a covenant with God. They followed strict laws of purity and ritual cleanliness as a way of separating themselves from the unchosen peoples, and as an outward sign of their covenant with God. Pettit explains that the covenant between the Jewish people and God constituted a new community, relating to God and to one another based on their shared covenant with God. The community of faith served as a catalyst that cultivated ethical morality of the individual. [3] While the Old Testament community was separated for God in that they strived for moral righteousness and did not adopt pagan practices, they also served as a beacon drawing gentile converts who were drawn to their ethical practices. In the New Testament, Pettit breaks spiritual formation down into four units: The Holy Spirit as an Agent of Formation; who we are spiritually and how we are enabled; the heart attitude we need to have; and, holiness and mission to a needy world as the goal of spiritual formation. [4] While spiritual formation leads to evangelism and discipleship, it is a broader concept referring to how God brings us to maturity. A key difference in spiritual formation between the Old Testament and New Testament is the role of the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament only a select few, such as kings and prophets, were filled with the Holy Spirit. Most of the Old Testament Jewish community relied on the law, which was brought about by the prophets and the ten commandments as inspired by the Holy Spirit. The New Testament community of faith all have the Holy Spirit to guide and grow them spiritually. In addition to the Holy Spirit, we also have the community of other believers to strengthen and be strengthened by as we grow spiritually toward who we are meant to be in Christ.
[1] Paul Pettit. Foundations of Spiritual Formation: A Community Approach to Becoming Like Christ. (Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic & Professional, 2008), 104.
[2] Ibid; 75.
[3] Ibid; 76.
[4] Ibid; 104.
Bibliography
Pettit, Paul. Foundations of Spiritual Formation. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2008.
DB Forum 2
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Spiritual formation is the process in which God is transforming us into the image of His Son Jesus Christ. The Bible instructs us to "have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5). God created us, so that we can have an intimate relationship with Him as well as with others. Paul Pettit states that “scripture focuses on humans experiencing community with God and with one another.” [1] The more we seek God, the more we become spiritually mature with the help of the Holy Spirit. Aside from being spiritually matured individually, we are being spiritually transformed as a community. Paul Pettit explains in his textbook Foundations of Spiritual Formation the community and spiritual formation of both Old Testament and New Testament. After reviewing Pettit's description on community and spiritual formation, I will provide some similarities as well as differences on the Old Testament and New Testament.
In the Old Testament we learn that God created humanity for community. We read in Genesis 2: 18 “[that] the Lord God said, it is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” This verse illustrates that God not only create us to have community with Him, but also to have community with one another as a whole. Pettit states that “while God created only one couple for the primeval garden, he is re-creating a unified new community for the eschatological city.” [2] The Old Testament describes the importance of building community as believers. Building community with each other allows us to become spiritually transformed into the image of Christ. In other words, having “community is an essential element of spiritual formation.” [3] It is vital for a Christian to have a community with other believers because it is one of the way we mature in Christ. Being surrounded with other Christians becomes beneficial because it is how we can receive wisdom, accountability, support etc.
Pettit describes four key components of spiritual formation that are seen in the New Testament. They are “(1) an agent—the Spirit; (2) a dynamic—growth in the context of community identification; and (3) a goal—holiness in the context of mission. It also requires (4) an open and responsive heart that pursues formation as a key purpose in life.” [4] When it comes to community and spiritual formation, the New Testament compares to the Old Testament since God is changing us to his image to demonstrate the goodness in our lives. However, the difference with community and spiritual maturity in the New Testament from the Old Testament is our search and response for God’s desire, which manifests goodness in others. A believer that walks by the Spirit, carries out the fruits of the Spirit; of love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Pettit says that “what is so important to note about the fruit of the Spirit is how relational these virtues are. They cannot be worked out in isolation from others. They assume engagement with the community and even the world.” [5] When it comes to community and spiritual formation in the Old Testament, it focuses more on God creating humanity to build a relationship with Him and others. The New Testament in the other hand centers on our transformation of acting on God’s desires.
(Word Count 582)
[1] Paul Pettit. Foundations of Spiritual Formation: A Community Approach to Becoming Like Christ. (Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic & Professional, 2008)., 75
[2] Pettit, Foundations of Spiritual Formation.
[3] Ibid., 101.
[4] Ibid., 103.
[5] Ibid., 114.
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