Biblical Answer

The Role of Christian Community in Spiritual Formation

Christian community plays a vital role in spiritual formation. It is through being part of a spiritual community that we are forced beyond reflection to action. This community enables transformation because spiritual disciplines are as much caught as taught. As Dr. Robert Mulholland puts it, spiritual formation is a process of being formed into the image of Christ for the sake of others. This process requires both a spiritual community and the church to support, instruct, and edify believers of all sorts and conditions.

The Christian community is not just a place where individuals go to practice spiritual disciplines, but it is a community that proclaims the gospel, guides the neophyte into it, and supports believers of all sorts and conditions. It is through this community that we are able to develop a new identity and a new outlook on life. As Dr. Joseph Hellerman notes, long-term interpersonal relationships are the crucible of genuine progress in the Christian life. It is through these relationships that we are able to grow and mature in our faith.

The importance of Christian community in spiritual formation cannot be overstated. It is through this community that we are able to apprentice under Jesus and learn what it means to live a life of agape. As the Bible teaches, Christian fellowship exists only between those to whom the message of Christ has become the very basis of all life. It is through this community that we are able to develop a Christian worldview and live out our faith in a way that is pleasing to God. Therefore, it is essential to be part of a spiritual community that supports, instructs, and edifies us in our walk with Christ.