As reader Charles likes to point out, we have a tendency to abstract our God so that we love his love, love his faithfulness, love his salvation, but don’t love God himself because we don’t know God as a person — not a human person, of course, but a being with a personality, emotions, desires, and free will — a real person to whom we may relate.
How is this done? How do we get past the stuff we know about God and find God himself? Well, I’m hardly the expert, but here are some suggestions —
A. Pray. Conversation with God on a regular, recurring basis helps us think of God as a person, especially if we truly pour ourselves out to him. And why not? He knows how we feel anyway.
B. Read the scriptures to meet God. Rather than reading to damn the Baptists or prove this or that point, read the text for what God meant for it to be: his own self-revelation. Just as you learn a lot about me by reading my writings, there’s much to be learned about God by reading the Bible for that purpose.
C. Look for the Spirit’s work. I’m a trinitarian, and so I don’t see particularly sharp lines between Father, Son, and Spirit. There’s actually a lot of overlap. And if you see the Spirit at work in this world, you’ll learn something about God — such as the fact that he is active and alive.
Watching the Spirit is, of course, like watching the wind through a window. You can see the results much better than the actual activity itself — and you have to have some experience in the wind to understand what you’re seeing.
Study your church or your family. Ask what the Spirit might have been doing among them lately. Think about it. Learn to see what is not obvious — except with practice.
As an elder, I’ve learned to see the Spirit at work in my congregation — which has been very humbling, because nearly everything that happens that really matters is clearly more by the hand of the Spirit than the wonderfulness of the elders. We really just don’t get to take much credit except for giving the Spirit room to do his thing. You know, elders often find themselves in the way of the Spirit, and learning how to get out the way is a skill that you only learn by experience.
D. Talk to other Christians about their experiences with God. You’ll be amazed. Give a classroom a sense of safety — freedom to say what they really believe — and you’ll be amazed at the stories you’ll hear about the working of God in their lives.
Indeed, one of the saddest problems in many churches, not just Churches of Christ, is how fearful people are to share what they experience from God. Get folks to really open up, and your faith will be strengthened and you’ll learn a lot about God.
Speak, O Lord, as we come to You
To receive the food of Your Holy Word.
Take Your truth, plant it deep in us;
Shape and fashion us in Your likeness,
That the light of Christ might be seen today
In our acts of love and our deeds of faith.
Speak, O Lord, and fulfill in us
All Your purposes for Your glory.
Teach us, Lord, full obedience,
Holy reverence, true humility;
Test our thoughts and our attitudes
In the radiance of Your purity.
Cause our faith to rise; cause our eyes to see
Your majestic love and authority.
Words of pow’r that can never fail—
Let their truth prevail over unbelief.
Speak, O Lord, and renew our minds;
Help us grasp the heights of Your plans for us—
Truths unchanged from the dawn of time
Let them echo down through eternity.
And by grace we’ll stand on Your promises,
And by faith we’ll walk as You walk with us.
Speak, O Lord, till Your church is built
And the earth is filled with Your glory
I think it’s interesting that we believe God hears us when we talk to Him but that He no longer has any interest in speaking to us.. We are to speak with him and then read what He said to others thousands of years ago to figure out His response to our prayers last night.. Really ?
I think it’s interesting that we look for “security” before speaking about our “encounters” with God. That is only true in assemblies that deny that God is still interactive with His people. Truth is, there is NO safety in faith heritages that deny God is active outside the Bible. Word will get out that Sister so-n-so or Brother so-n-so said that they heard from God and once the rumor mill gets going, people feel less and less “safe.” We ought to be shouting about it from the top of the church.. I mean, if the Bible takes so much space to speak about it, why would we be embarrassed by it ? Read your Bible but don’t expect it to make any difference … I think the secular world has noticed the contradiction..
How about the church teaching on the Holy Spirit ? How does one hear the voice of the Shepherd? How would you know.. How do you respond ? What do you do when you hear the voice and it says to do something for somebody when it makes no sense? Let me know when those classes start being taught..
I’ve never seen any topic tippy-toed around as we do the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives… except maybe gluttony…
Okay, Price, with that gluttony remark you have done quit preachin’ and gone to meddlin’.
And the first issue with the “Hearing God” class you are hoping for is going to be finding a teacher. Anybody who has enough experience hearing God to be qualified to help us, we don’t trust– because his experience is different from ours. We can’t go outside the club for a teacher because if a person knew enough to teach us, he would be in our club. Catch-22…
But, on a positive note, I like Jay’s suggestions here. As one who has has many conservative believing friends as otherwise, easily the most common question posed to me by the conservative believers is, “How do you hear from God?” With a very few belligerent exceptions, this means they really want to hear from God, but are missing the connection. These days, I find that the most helpful thing I can do is to help that person discover how he has been hearing from God already. In that “safe place” which Jay mentions, I have yet to have even a lifelong anti-charismatic who could not testify of a single incident where he heard from God personally. Sometimes, it takes a little digging, and a little work on our definitions, but so far, it is always there. We do not need much in the way of academics here. We need people who can lead us by prayer and by testimony. And you might be surprised just how much of both are available in your own club.
Through the efforts of Prison Fellowship I have had the privilege of serving prisoners in our state penitentiary system. Through their Transformational Ministries program I am involved with teaching Bible classes and mentoring inmates who are close to their parole elgibility dates. It is exciting, humbling, fulfilling, and many times a little frightening to see the work of the Spirit in the lives of these prisoners.
One inmate who is heavily and visibly tatooed with offensive artwork, and was the leader of the pagan worship in the prison, was allowed into our classes.
The lady who oversees the program was not sure why she accepted him into the program but credits the Spirit. His attitude was that he was not going to change but was only taking the class to look good for the parole board and facilitate his release. But in his own words, God had different plans.
Through the course of the year long program the spiritual battle for this inmates soul was physically felt by those of us teaching and mentoring him from week to week. He would ask difficult questions wanting the answers immediately, and by the power of the Spirit the answer was always provided.
Toward the end of the class he got rid of all the pagan books and papers he was using, saying that he could not continue in the pagan worship. Finally this past September, one week before the graduation from the Transformational Ministries program, this inmate was baptized into Christ.
I am convinced that the Spirit working in a very real and powerful way in the life of this inmate was the only way this kind of transformation could take place.
This inmate has since been granted parole and has secure a job and has a plan for success in society that relies on Jesus and his power to change lives. Praise God.
This is but one powerful example of the work of the Spirit in the lives of prisoners. I am also continuing mentoring another parolee in my home town that has been convicted by the Spirit and turned his life over to Christ.
I have seen many examples both in this prison ministry and with others outside this ministry where the Spirit has influenced people and situations to bring glory to God. So many examples that I have been compelled to reevaluate and change my long held views that the Spirit only works through the word.
Price and Charles,
Good stuff. I would like to add that, like Elijah, we first have to come out of our cave and EXPECT God to come near. Then we hear the whisper.
Excellent!