façonnés à son image

by Kenneth D. Boa

What does a relationship with God look like and how do we obtain it? It is vital for church leaders to grapple seriously with this question, for pat answers no longer suffice. Lives well-lived, not just words eloquently spoken, must become our response. The quality of our relationship with God is what will influence the health, potency, and witness of the church in an increasingly complex and hostile world.

Designed for use as a college or seminary course, Conformed to His Image helps us build our lives on a fully biblical perspective. Exploring twelve approaches to Christian spirituality in depth, Dr. Kenneth Boa corrects our tendency to pick and compartmentalize. Pointing the way instead to an integrative, whole-life approach, Dr. Boa shows how each spiritual paradigm discussed is just one important facet in the gem of authentic and powerful New Testament living.

With chapter overviews and objectives, questions for personal application, a glossary, and a list of key terms, Conformed to His Image will prove a defining text for the student, pastor, and church leader of today . . . and tomorrow.

12 Facets of the Complete Christian Life

Relational Spirituality: Loving God Completely, Ourselves Correctly, and Others Compassionately
Paradigm Spirituality: Cultivating an Eternal versus a Temporal Perspective
Disciplined Spirituality: Engaging in the Historical Differences
Exchanged Life Spirituality: Grasping Our True Identity in Christ
Motivated Spirituality: A Set of Biblical Incentives
Devotional Spirituality: Falling in Love with God
Holistic Spirituality: Every Component of Life under theLordship of Christ
Process Spirituality: Being versus Doing, Process versus Product
Spirit-Filled Spirituality: Walking in the Power of the Spirit
Warfare Spirituality: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil
Nurturing Spirituality: A Lifestyle of Discipleship and Evangelism
Corporate Spirituality: Encouragement, Accountability, and Worship

Genres: Christian, Christian Living, Discipleship, Theology, Nonfiction, Faith, Religion

Unknown Binding

First published August 1, 2001

About the author

Kenneth Boa is an author, a speaker, and the president of Reflections Ministries. He is the author of over fifty books, including Conformed to His Image, Faith Has Its Reasons, Face to Face, and Rewriting Your Broken Story. He is a contributing editor to the Open Bible, the Promise Keepers Men's Study Bible, and the Leadership Bible, and is the consulting editor of the Zondervan NASB Study Bible.

Boa earned a BS from Case Institute of Technology, a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary, a PhD from New York University, and a DPhil from the University of Oxford. He teaches a weekly Bible and Faith study at Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Georgia, where he resides with his wife.

Reviews

[Jason Kanz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conformed to His Image was one of the required texts for the Centurions Program. In fact, it was the only book that was assigned to take the entire year--one section at at time. I am glad it took that long. There is a lot to chew on in this book that deals with the development of Christian spirituality. Unlike many Christian books, which either generally confirm what you already believe or are completely in a different camp, Boa recognizes the richness of Christian tradition and how it influences our spirituality. I was deeply challenged by this book. Often, I will wait a while to begin a book again, but this one I am going to start reading again right away.

I would commend it to you as well.

[Joy Strube · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boa has important and very helpful insights on spiritual growth; however, his continuous use of the words “should” and “ought to” slightly negate his stated emphasis on avoiding legalism or seeing Christianity as solely behavior modification. To be clear, I am not against doing the necessary work to grow in your relationship with Christ; moreso, I would have appreciated a deeper integration of his concept of longing to be conformed to God’s image throughout the book rather than reaching the conclusion with a laundry list of “shoulds.”

[Doug · Rating 5 out of 5]

an excellent, comprehensive resource on Christian spiritual formation. I've been using it with a weekly men's group for some time now.

[Kellie Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is more of a textbook that I’ve been studying off and on for the past six years or so thanks to my former discipleship group leader (thank you Amy!!). It is dense but packed full of wisdom. I will probably start it from the beginning again here soon and continue to gain new insight.

The section on relational spirituality provided a summary of our purpose to “love God completely, love self correctly, and love others compassionately” that has become a guiding mission statement for my life.

[Karen L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fabulous discipleship book compiled of all of the most wonderful traditions of Christianity from the early church fathers to the 20th century Christian thinkers such as C.S. Lewis and Francis Schaefer(sp?).It is both Evangelical and Catholic in its material. We are using it in our Discipleship/ Bible study group. It's only draw back is that it has so much spiritual meat in it , that it is like taking a drink from a fire hose!

[Matt Barcalow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book full of simple truths that must be revisited time and time again. It needs to be in the bookshelf of any practicing Christians.

[Michael Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Conformed to His Image is Kenneth Boa’s comprehensive review of approaches to spiritual formation. There is much I admire about the book.

First, it is very well ordered and structured, making it easy to know exactly what he is discussing and how it fits within the broader framework of the book.

Second, rather than setting forth “the” method of spiritual formation or treating it in a cookie cutter fashion, he explores twelve facets of spiritual formation, essentially twelve different takes on how to do spiritual formation.

Third, within each facet, he presents a thorough overview of the ways each approach has been practiced by individuals or groups and asks some good review questions at the end of each section.

Finally, I appreciate the Conclusion and Appendices for bringing what could be a disjointed review together in a more holist manner. One appendix, The Richness of Our Heritage, looks at how different Christian traditions have approached spiritual formation. The other, The Need for Diversity, included a (to me) somewhat odd evaluation of the twelve facets by tying them to the Myers Briggs assessment types. I assume this could help someone (who knows their MB type) to figure out which facet will appeal to them the most or that they need the most.

Some will be turned off by his continuationist views on spiritual gifts, others will be thankful for it. It does bring an added emphasis to the role of the Spirit.

Facet 10, Warfare Spirituality, seemed to me to not be a separate method of spiritual formation as much as a common threat that all approaches must work toward (fighting the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the Devil). There are several of the facets that seem to overlap, some more than others, leaving it hard to parse out exactly how these methods might differ in practice.

Rather than evaluate these approaches, Boa presents us with a smorgasbord of options. I wish he had spent more time evaluating strengths and weakness of each. This book is a good way to sample the options, but to really use the approaches you decide on, you will need to move on to other resources; the coverage is just too cursory.

[Wesley Roth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic book. As someone who is focusing on spiritual formation right now ,this was a treasure trove of Biblically-centered approaches to deepen my in my Faith walk with Jesus Christ. There is so much to glean and learn from this book by Mr. Boa, that I carefully highlighted and took notes in the margins throughout. Great possibilities for sermon topics or series as well. I went back through again with my sticky notes to quickly reference key ideas, definitions, quotes/poems and ways to better walk with Christ daily. A great book and a must-add addition to any Christian's library.

[Michael Schmid · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book certainly has a lot of good, biblical material, but I was very disappointed with the promotion of the mystical practice of "lectio divina" in this book, which I consider to be a dangerous pathway to New Age practices. I also found the differentiation between "Spirit-centered believers" and "Word-centered believers" to be misleading in some ways, as though a Christian who "centers" on the Word must be lacking something of the Spirit or vice versa.

[Josh Samarco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible wisdom and insights by Ken Boa. I refer to this book as unlimited bars! Seriously, this book is holistically what every follower of Jesus needs to soak in and grasp. I'll be chewing on this book and what I've read for the rest of my life. I would also suggest going through this book with a small group. It makes for phenomenal conversation.

[Joseph Holzman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conformed to His Image is one of the most influential books on Christianity that I have ever read. I learned more about what it means to follow Christ in the last year from reading this book than I had in the previous ten years as a Christian.

I am grateful to Dr. Boa for this foundational guide to Spiritual formation, and it will forever be a source that I refer to during my journey.

[Kathryn Sandquist · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entering this slowly. This is not a book through which you rush. It is one in which to take bites and contemplate and dig into your soul. Plan to spend time meditating on the ways to enrich your spirituality. Plan to examine the facets of a gem--as described by Ken Boa--the facets of spirituality in which to deepen your relationship with God and be "Conformed to His Image".

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great intermediate introduction to the Christian disciplines and the Christian life. Full of balanced formulaic teaching, the audiobook is nicely done, though it is not reading the text of the book directly. It covers the same material.

I have a few minor quibbles with it, but overall a nice comprehensive intermediate text.

[Tony Wolfe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boa links spiritual growth (spiritual formation) with being transformed into the image of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 3:18). Not a difficult read, but encouraging and challenging for all Christians who are interested in deepening their faith in Christ and walking more closely with Him.

[Damon Hawkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has changed, is changing, and will change my life forever! I wish I had read this book much sooner, but God knew I would read it now. I took my time and contemplatively answered each end of chapter question. Conformed to His Image has now become a desk reference for me.

[Rob Markley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This should be a seminary text ...as it possibly is. This is really good quality stuff and useful in all many of ways and in many contexts. Highly recommended

[Philip Dampier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on spiritual formation. Lots of good stuff about the work of the Holy Spirit. Fun to read and study and great to use as a springboard for sermons or classes.

[Robert Lewter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A text book truly. The answers to many questions are here. Wonderful!

[Steven Stack · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a book one will want to continuously return to.

[Daniel D. Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very convicting, but worth the effort. Best read over the course of a year (one chapter per month) like a devotional.

[Jonathan Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A foundational consideration of all the ways we become more and more like Jesus

[David Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

Use it mostly as a reference book. Check out the appendices.

[Jorge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una presentación sistemática, clara y abarcadora de las formas que se utilizan en el cristianismo para el desarrollo espiritual. El autor describe cada aproximación y deja que el lector tome partido.

[Benjamin Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly deep well.

[Kristel Acevedo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book! Full of wisdom and practical tools, written in accessible language.

[Eduardo Ocampo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un estudio extenso acerca de las disciplinas espirituales que Dios a provisto para tener una relación constante con él, tanto de manera individual como comunitaria.

[Katelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good resource for a deep dive into spiritual formation, if a bit academic and wordy. I found authors Ruth Haley Barton and M. Robert Mulholland more interesting and easier to follow than Kenneth Boa. Conformed to His Image reads like a textbook, which it is, and will continue to be a resource for future reference.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a pastor at a local church, I’m often asked by people “how do you grow” or “how do I follow Jesus?” At the root of these questions is a desire to change. In His Image has taken different aspects of spiritual formation and grouped them together in facets that show various ways that people can grow to be more like Christ. Dr. Boa outlines 12 facets that lead to spiritual formation in the believer.

Going through the book, I responded differently to each facet. Some I resonated with and could identify with in my own life, (Relational, Exchanged Life, Motivated, Holistic and Process Spiritually). Others where aspects of spirituality that I know of or had learned, but hadn’t practiced as much as I’d thought (Paradigm, Disciplined, Devotional, and Spirit-Filled). The remaining were more foreign concepts to me that I hadn’t really been exposed to (Warfare Spirituality, specifically the World and Devil), or areas that I’d gotten familiar with but had either become numb to their power or not experienced personally (Nurturing and Corporate spirituality). Below is a summary of what each facet entails.

Relational spirituality focuses on loving God more fully and intimately, loving ourselves correctly and seeing ourselves the way God see us in Christ and loving others the way God has loved us. We grow as we love God, ourselves and others the right way. Exchanged life spirituality (for me) built on the relational facet because it centers on our identity that comes from Christ’s life as our life. This is an inside out approach that starts with our needs and desires as humans and how God fulfills them. Motivated spirituality (again, to me) connects with the previous facets in that it focuses on our inward desires and motives, specifically the need for security, significance, and fulfillment. With a Christ-centered and eternal perspective, we are motivated by our a fear and respect of God, love for God, love of others, eternal rewards, identity, purpose, and longing. Process spirituality focuses on the process by which we live out of our identity in Christ, again an inside out mindset. Holistic spirituality focuses on putting Christ as the center of all things and all areas of our life (work, relationships, etc). These facets resonated with me deeply.

The remaining facets (growth areas for me in terms of spirituality) are summed up as such: Paradigm spirituality aims to shift the underlying assumptions we have about life and the world, by shifting from temporal to eternal things. Disciplined spiritually opened my mind up to the many practices we can do that allow God to work in us, balancing out our doing and our depending on Him. Devotional spirituality focuses on enjoying God rather than just learning about Him and his ways (very challenging for me as a learner). Spirit-filled spirituality focuses on walking in step with, depending on, being filled with the Holy Spirit. Again, an area I’ve overlooked most my journey as a follower.

Warfare spirituality focused on the unseen world of demons, powers and the flesh and the believers struggle with each. Nurturing spirituality focuses on the process of growing in general and how we’re called to evangelize and disciple others and by doing so, grow as disciples ourselves. Finally corporate spirituality focuses on Christ’s Church and growth through community.

I loved this book and plan on re-reading it at a much slower pace. Once finished, I was either reminded of the power of methods I’d already adopted into my own life, I was challenged to try new ways to grow in spiritually or I was challenged to think outside what I considered normal and education myself on some methods I might not otherwise try.

[Tom Bazan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conformed to His Image is a textbook. Boa goes through 12 "facets" of Biblical spirituality. Many of them--if not all of them--overlap other facets, but each looks at God, scripture, and community in a slightly different way. In the introduction, Boa describes the book as sort of like taking a gem and looking at its different faces in the light. It is the same gem, but you see it in a different way as you rotate it. That is what Conformed is about.

I would try to get into some of the things that stood out to me most in this book, but that would take too long. We studied it over the course of nearly a year--studying one of the 36 chapters (plus an introduction and a conclusion) takes considerable time--and I don't think I would recommend anything shorter. The drinking from a firehose metaphor would not be inaccurate here.

For each of the facets, Boa describes a bit of the history, a bit of why it is important, some practical ways to apply it, and some resources for learning more. The biggest point of Conformed might be growth. There are always areas where we are good at things; and areas where we could use some growth. Boa calls it the need for "diversity." (See Appendix A) There are Biblical practices that will be natural for some people to do, but will be a huge challenge for others. What Boa points out is that they are all part of the same "gem"--they are all ways of pursuing the same God. And, rather than that being an excuse for staying in our comfort zones and never trying anything new, he encourages readers to look for ways to grow; to pursue and see God in a new way.

Boa has an ability to pack a lot into a small space. That does not mean that Conformed is small (or short) by an means. It means that there is a lot within its nearly 550 pages. Even having taken the better part of a year to read, study, and apply it, I am still going to have to go back and remind myself of how I can practice many of the principles that Boa points out. And I have the feeling that I will be doing so for a long time.

I wouldn't start Conformed unless you are prepared to put the time into it that it takes to study Biblical spiritual formation. It is a textbook, after all. And if you are going to study it, I would highly recommend doing so in a group setting--the discussion is helpful because people see facets in different ways, and readers can encourage each other to not only prepare, but apply what they learn. As with many things, you get out what you put in.

[Brenna Simpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid book if you’re into theology and a deeper insight into the spiritual disciplines and their practical applications. This is not a casual read. You really have to focus and comprehend what you’re reading. At times it can feel more like a description of a mold of how you “should” be but it’s important to remember that this was ultimately written by a man. How we really should be is outlined for us in the Bible. Overall, this book can be helpful and beneficial for understanding more about the spiritual disciplines, and I’ve found it to be relevant and full of practical ways to apply them. It’s a hearty book though. Again, not a casual read.