In
the last post we read the account of Jesus’ healing the paralyzed man whose
friends lowered him through the roof. When Jesus saw the faith of the paralyzed
man and his friends, he forgave his sin and healed him. In
the weeks ahead, we will read of at least three other times when Jesus was
amazed by someone’s faith.
The
Greek word for faith is pistis
meaning a firm conviction, producing a full acknowledgement of God’s revelation
of truth, a personal surrender to Him, and a conduct inspired by such
surrender.[1]
Hebrews 11:1 describes the essence of faith as “...the confidence in what we hope for and
assurance about what we do not see.” In fact, Hebrews 11
is often called the “Hall of Fame” of faith listing the saints whom God
commended for their faith. For without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes
to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who
diligently seek Him.[2]
Through faith we are saved by grace as a gift of God.[3]
Within
the context of Jesus’ life and ministry in our reading so far, we see that faith
is rooted in Jesus’ identity as God in flesh, Messiah, the Promised One.
Although we have not yet come to the crucifixion, we also know that ultimately
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ includes His death, burial and resurrection on
our behalf. This is the good news, or gospel.
I am
taking a short break from our Harmony of the Gospel reading to post on a topic
that troubles me. Even though it is a break it is directly related to our
reading and applies to simple sheep like me. So please stay with me. It will
soon make sense.
It
has become very trendy in the past decades to set knowledge against experience
within the Christian faith. The idea is that experience trumps knowledge.
Supposedly, knowledge means just to know about
a particular experience. I may know about flying in a hot air
balloon, but I have never personally experienced rising slowly in the air, the
peaceful feeling of drifting on a breeze, or seeing the earth below from a
lofty perspective.
On a
superficial level, this seems to make some sense. By setting knowledge against
experience we can avoid the hypocritical traps of those who have claimed to
know God, but have committed horrible atrocities: the Crusades, the
Inquisition, the Reformation (both sides), slavery, and in recent years sexual
abuse within the Catholic priesthood and in Protestant ministries as well. Certainly the activities of Phelps and
his church could be included in this list, but so can the every-day variety of
hypocrisy that we are all guilty of.
Unfortunately,
the false dichotomy of setting knowledge against experience doesn’t end there.
Its proponents most often take it one step farther on a slippery slope and claim that experience must define faith. It
is at this point that I grieve for my fellow sheep. We are often told either openly or by implication that we must
feel His presence, hear His voice, or have a particular experience to validate our
faith.
Before
I continue, I want to be crystal clear: I hold dear many loved ones who promote
the very things that I am commenting on. I love them sincerely. I also love the
Lord Jesus Christ and His Word supremely. My heartfelt prayer is that my
readers will hear me out, consider my words, read the Scriptures in context,
and seek the Lord for truth, and I pray that you will receive this warning in the
genuine heart of love that I am trying to communicate.
When
we insist on feeling the presence of God, hearing His voice or having a
particular experience, we are vulnerable to several errors. First, all these
events by definition are no longer faith, but tangible experiences. The
disciple Thomas demanded to see Jesus so that he could touch the nail prints in
His hands. Jesus indeed did show Himself to Thomas, but said, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have
believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”[4]
Jesus was talking about you and me and our faith in His death, burial and
resurrection. Faith must have an object. For the Christian that object must be
Jesus Christ and His cross-work on our behalf, not an experience.
When
I was a young lamb in the faith, I was constantly aware that I did not measure
up to others’ who gave testimony of powerful experiences in the Lord. Even as a
leader in the church, I frequently felt the failure of my spirituality. To cover
up for my lack, I threw myself into children’s ministry where I could excel and
where my deficiencies would be less obvious. At times, I even felt the
temptation to lie and pretend to have experiences, except that I knew I would
fail even at that. Now, I realize how far I had wandered from the Word, and am
concerned for other sheep who also feel the pressure to have spiritual experiences
or attain a certain level of spirituality. Failure in experiences brings
defeat, breeds doubt, and often leads to a departure from the faith.
Experienced-based
spirituality potentially becomes a dangerous elitism. Those who have spiritual
experiences are held up as models and examples to follow. This is opposite of
the Bible’s teaching. Spiritual leaders are to be undershepherds who feed the
sheep from God’s Word, guard the flock, and model servanthood. Following experience-based
leadership can leave us prey to false teachers who seek new revelations that lead
us away from the truth of the Bible.
Without
faith it is impossible to please God. When we replace faith with experience we
put works before faith. Our experience becomes our central focus rather than
faith whose object is Jesus Christ.
Instead
of exalting experience, Scripture, in fact, exalts knowledge. The fear of the
LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is
understanding[5].
The Apostle Paul forsook all his experiences to gain the excellency of the
knowledge of Jesus Christ[6]. Twenty-first century western Christianity demands results. We make an idol
of pragmatism—what “works”, or what can be seen. But Jesus is looking for faith
in His identity as God in flesh who atoned for sin. This faith is a work of the
Holy Spirit in our hearts—it is not a work of the flesh. The church in Galatia
had made a requirement of circumcision both for salvation and for spiritual
growth. In Galatia the problem was circumcision; today, we require experience,
but it is the same principle. Paul rebuked the Galatians for preaching a gospel
of law or works. “O foolish Galatians!
Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes
Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to
learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the
hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being
made perfect [made complete] by the
flesh?”[7]
Our works
(experiences, fruit) must follow our faith. James said that
faith without works is dead faith[8].
We prove our faith by our works. When his friends lowered the paralyzed man through
the roof, Jesus first recognized their faith. The man experienced forgiveness
of sins and healing as a result of his faith. The problem
with people like Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church is not a problem
of experience, but a problem of faith, for faith works through love.[9]
Perhaps
experience has failed you, too—it fails all of us. But Jesus, the fulfilment of
the very Word of God—the Word made flesh—never fails. His coming was to
give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of our sins.[10]
In Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.[11]
Reading Scripture brings knowledge of
Him and His ways, prayer for God to continue His good work in us, and obedience
to His Word—all of these are His means of grace to produce His righteousness in
our lives.
My
prayer is that the words of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians be true of each
of us, “We continually remember before our God
and Father your work produced by faith,
your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus
Christ."
Next: Matthew 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32
Next: Matthew 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32
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