In some parts of the Christian community, the great commission is understood as evangelism tout court and thus, once converted, the work of sanctification is in God’s hands—spiritual growth is assumed to be a natural process guided by the Holy Spirit. Formation, in short, will happen as an expected outgrowth of conversion. In other parts of the Christian community, formation is understood as learning to practice the spiritual disciplines, such as participating in regular worship, engaging in daily prayer and scripture reading, regular tithing and periodic fasting, and enjoying periods of quiet
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