Adventures in Spiritual Formation: Exploring God’s Grace, Intentional Human Response, and Growth from the Holy Spirit

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Issue Date

2017-06

Authors

De Jong, Werner Herbert, 1966-

Advisor

Draper, Marilyn (Advisor)

Artist

Creator

Editor

Photographer

Type

Thesis

Keywords

Spiritual formation
Grace
Holy Spirit

Citation

De Jong, Werner Herbert. “Adventures in Spiritual Formation: Exploring God’s Grace, Intentional Human Response, and Growth from the Holy Spirit.” D. Min., Tyndale University College & Seminary, 2017

Abstract

In this research portfolio, the author explored spiritual formation as an ongoing, adventurous, individual and communal journey of becoming more like Jesus. The key question the research addressed was how Jesus’ followers can make progress on this journey, with an emphasis both on God’s provision and human responsibility. The author examined the question through three separate yet related projects: the author’s spiritual autobiography, which narrates a quest for God through a search for identity and love; the author’s articulation of his own philosophy of spiritual formation, viewed through the lens of Anabaptism, which describes the theology, goals, means, and methods of spiritual formation; and a research project into mutual accountability, which the author facilitated with a small group at his church. The conclusions are that the journey of spiritual formation is initiated and supported by God’s grace, with which Jesus’ followers are called to cooperate by faith (through receiving their identity as God’s beloved children, through participating in community, through practicing spiritual disciplines, and through participating in God’s reconciling mission), upon which the Holy Spirit blesses Jesus’ followers with growth into his likeness.

Table of Contents

Introduction – Orbit: The Spiritual Autobiography of Werner Herbert De Jong – A Model of Spiritual Formation – Action Research into Mutually Accountable Discipleship – Conclusion

Publisher

Tyndale University College & Seminary

Copyright Notice

Copyright, Werner Herbert De Jong, managed by Tyndale University. All rights reserved.

Rights License

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License

Rights License Link

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Alternative Title

Exploring God’s Grace, Intentional Human Response, and Growth from the Holy Spirit