Dallas Willard wrote, “spiritual formation for the Christian basically refers to the Spirit-driven process of forming the inner world of the human self in such a way that it becomes like the inner being of Christ himself.” Spiritual formation is the life-long process of the Christian becoming more and more like Christ. It involves the growth of the whole person: the mind, body, heart, and will.
“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” Ephesians 4:11-14 (ESV)
We are directed to attain “the fullness of Christ.” Why? What is the benefit? Paul continues, so that we will no longer be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, and deceitful schemes. In other words, attaining the fullness of Christ is the best protection from the cunning and deceitful men who would lead us astray!