Hinduism & New Age Spirituality on Suffering
Hinduism & New Age Spirituality on Suffering
What does Hinduism say about suffering?
The most prominent of the six schools of Hindu philosophy is Vedanta Hinduism. It teaches that suffering comes from ignorance (maya). This view teaches that we can be freed from suffering when we recognize our oneness with the Divine. This form of Hinduism thus says since all is divine, there is truly no sin and no suffering. Salvation is thus through knowledge, the knowledge that one is actually God.[1]
It is important to realize that Hinduism “does not technically name one religion but is a broad term that includes the various religious beliefs and practices of India. Hinduism has no founder and no single authoritative text.” But, “all Hindus share some core beliefs, including the eternality of the cosmos, reincarnation, karma, the caste system, affirmation of Vedic scriptures, and liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth as the ultimate goal of life.”[2]
A second view of suffering from Hinduism is that our suffering comes from a previous life in which wrong was done. As the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler say in The Art of Happiness, “In the Buddhist and Hindu models… suffering is a result of our own negative past actions and is seen as a catalyst for seeking spiritual liberation”[3]
We, in this life, are thus paying for the wrongs we did in our previous lives. All suffering thus has its antecedent sin, somewhere.[4] We may not understand it but all suffering is thus just.[5] This is the doctrine of karma: people get what’s coming to them.[6]
A few questions come to mind. What acts of compassion to alleviate the suffering of others do you expect from Hinduism that does not believe in the reality of suffering? Also, as we have seen, Hinduism teaches Karma, people get the suffering that they deserve in this life. Does that lead to compassion for those who are suffering? Sadly, often it does not.
Think of the caste system. If someone was born into poverty that’s what they must deserve. If someone gets sick and dies that’s what they must deserve. Hinduism holds that humans “are directly responsible for the suffering (physical, mental, spiritual, existential, and so on) that they are experiencing.”[7]
That’s very briefly what Hinduism says about suffering.
The Bible as we will see teaches that we are not divine, we are not God; we are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27). Ignorance is a problem but it is not the problem.
The Bible teaches the decisiveness of this life, we had no other life in the past.[8] What we do matters more than we can know. It does not just affect the next life where we get a retry. It affects eternity. So, the way people live and how they treat people has a lot of significance.
Also, from a Christian perspective, there is judgment. People will get what they deserve, we can be assured of that, but it’s not through Karma. It’s through Jesus, the good and just Judge (Rev. 22:12).
Lastly, Christianity places huge importance on compassion (Col. 3:12-13). Jesus came and suffered for us to ultimately alleviate our suffering even when we didn’t deserve it. Therefore, Christians are to be compassionate and even sacrificial.
What does New Age Spirituality about suffering?
First, what is New Age Spirituality?[9] It is a mix of Buddhism and Hinduism and personal feelings. It is kind of the “mix n’ match” of religions.
It’s basically impossible to distill down what New Age Spirituality says about suffering because you’d probably get a different answer from each adherent to the many forms of New Age Spirituality. I hope here, however, to give a general perspective.
It seems suffering in this view is a result of not being awakened to our inner power. We need to relinquish negativity so that “the universe’s healing power might flow unimpeded.”[10] If someone is in your life that you’re having trouble with, then the solution is to cut them off. They are not helping your inner calm so they need to go. New Age Spirituality seems to teach that the solution to suffering is to focus on yourself.
New Age Spirituality seems very self and inward-focused. Of course, they say they are very inclusive and accepting of everyone. So, New Age Spirituality is also very pluralistic. ‘You have your truth and I have my truth. And that’s fine.” That’s what proponents of this view would likely say.
Primarily, though, suffering is something to be avoided. What is messy and unlikable is to be avoided. New Age Spirituality in that sense seems to be an escapist mentality. In contrast, “the Christian path of obedience, sacrifice, and suffering can seem foolish, even masochistic.”[11]
Suffering exists for various reasons, but Christianity teaches that it is primarily a result of sin. Sin is not really a category for the New Age Spiritualists. Christianity also differs in that it says suffering is not always to be avoided.
Jesus waded into our suffering to provide salvation. And Jesus very often calls us to also take up our crosses. And love people. Even when it is difficult. Even when it means sacrificial suffering. Christians believe that they cannot agree with everyone (for example, Jesus is the only way to God) but they are to love and sacrifice for anyone—even when they disagree with that person and caring for them requires sacrifice (think of the Good Samaritan).
Notes
[1] E. Stanley Jones, Christ and Human Suffering [New York: The Abingdon Press, 1937], 58.
[2] Tawa J. Anderson, W. Michael Clark, and David K. Naugle, An Introduction to Christian Worldview: Pursuing God’s Perspective in a Pluralistic World [Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2017], 269.
[3] The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, The Art of Happiness, 200.
[4] Jones, Christ and Human Suffering, 51.
[5] Some would take this to mean that we should not relieve the sufferings of others because it really is not helping them. They are getting their just desserts for their wrongdoing. If we relieve them in one way they will just suffer in another.
[6] Jones says, “There is a deep and abiding truth in the law of Karma. We do reap what we sow” (Jones, Christ and Human Suffering 54). See Galatians 6:8. However, the doctrine of karma is wrong although God does justly mete out justice.
[7] Scott J Fitzpatrick, Ian H Kerridge, Christopher F C Jordens, Laurie Zoloth, Christopher Tollefsen, Karma Lekshe Tsomo, Michael P Jensen, Abdulaziz Sachedina, Deepak Sarma, “Religious perspectives on human suffering: Implications for medicine and bioethics” in Journal of Religion and Health 2016; 55:159–173.
[8] The Bible says that it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes the judgment (Heb. 9:27).
[9] See also “Is the world enchanted?”
[10] Nicole Watt, “A Reiki Master’s Redemption,” 95 in Christianity Today.
[11] Watt, “A Reiki Master’s Redemption,” 95 in Christianity Today.
*Photo by Min An
Is the world enchanted?
Is the world enchanted? Or merely natural? Deterministic? Are we just chemical processes that have been wound up and will wind down? Or, is there a “ghost in the machine”?
Is there something before and beyond? Can everything be coolly explained or is there an Unexplainable? Could it be that fantasy and fiction are tapping into something true? Something fantastic and far beyond us?
Are there spells and spirits, or are we mere decomposing skulls with sinews?
The world we inhabit: is it wondrous, consisting of beauty, mystery, as well as sad irony? Or is the world a mere and meaningless blip before the heat death of the universe?
Is “the cosmos,” as Carl Sagan has famously said, “all there ever was and all there ever will be”?
If so, what explains the wonder and wild nature of life? What explains the science fiction like rhinoceros and the beauty and rapture of art? What explains those moments, those brief moments, with family or friends that feel so right?
Most people today, believe it or not, believe in some form of Higher Power.[i] Yet, that should bring up various questions. Like who or what is this Power? Is the Higher Power good or bad or indifferent and are their other powers? I believe we’d be wise to ask and pursue answers. This seems especially true for those who do believe in some form of Higher Power. If such a being exists, or may exist, wouldn’t it make sense to care?
I believe there are subtle hints all along the road of life that point us to something out of sight. Markings or tracings of something; distant echoes of a not distant presence; the quiet speech of the spirits.
Those moments of silence under the glow and vastness of the sky, the moon reflecting the glory and splendor of the sun, speak. Those moments speak not to our heads but reverberate in our hearts. Those moments awaken. They call us beyond, they say there is more.
We must ask: what if there is more? If so, what good, what beauty, and yet what hideous evil might there be? And, if there is more, if there is the equivalent of witchcraft and evil, what spells might be possible and cast?
Perhaps a sort of blindness? A dullness to what is real?
If there is more, and evil, beyond the great beyond, might there be a battle? A cosmic battle? A Saruman and Sauron? A Voldemort? A Frodo? An Aragorn?
Could our lives have cosmic significance?
Is the world enchanted?
There are many ways to contemplate and answer this question. And we all answer it one way or another. We just may not think it through as intentionally as we should. I propose we that’s not a good way forward. If the world is “enchanted” in some way, it would be good to know. Perhaps very helpful to know. Because, to use The Lord of the Rings as an example, what if we are in the equivalent of Hobbiton, but there is a hoard of raging orcs on their way?
The Bible says the World is Enchanted
If the world is enchanted, it is more wondrous and wonderful than we could possibly know. But it may also be more dangerous.
That’s actually what the Bible teaches about the reality of the world we live in. It is, so to speak, “enchanted.” It is “placed under a spell.” Like the witch in C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia that made an enchantment over the whole country so that it was always winter and never Christmas. What if there truly is “an evil power loose in the world, independent of human beings, a power that has an agenda of its own, and this power can only be defeated by another power greater than itself”?[ii]
What if there is a spiritual realm? What if there is more than the merely physical? Curiously, Christians talk about fiction made real. Christians talk about a hideous dragon set to destroy and deceive. They talk about an enemy that is crouched low like a lion ready to pounce and attack (1 Pet. 5:8). And they talk about a “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4) that is subtly influencing the world to lead it astray (Rev. 12:9). Satan’s influence is often less perceptible than the wind but with all the devastation of a furious tornado.
Isn’t it True that the World is Filled with Wonder?
The world, not just the hills, are alive with the sound of music. The universe roars with echoes of life. Sometimes we are just not quick to notice, perhaps we’ve become callous to the call of creation. G.K. Chesterton once said, “Fairy tales say that apples were golden only to refresh the forgotten moment when we found that they were green. They make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild moment, that they run with water.”
A quick google will return wonder: Walakiri beach sunset, Halong Bay, Huangshan. Most images will do. Or think of the amazing ability of a chameleon or the weird wiggles of an octopus or just look at a peacock spider. What a world we inhabit! What a surprising and often beautiful world we live in. C.S. Lewis wisely said, “Reality is very odd, and… the ultimate truth, whatever it may be, must have the characteristics of strangeness.”[iii]
There are some things in nature that you would never expect to happen and yet they do. Wildly, wood frogs freeze and die, then thaw out and come back to life. Or consider this, someone in a one-dimensional reality would have trouble conceiving of a two-dimensional reality, let alone what that reality would be like. Someone in the two-dimensional reality would have a greater likelihood of conceiving of and pondering a three-dimensional reality because they already know that there are more than one-dimensional realities. They know things that seem impossible to the one-dimension reality are very much possible.
We live in reality that sometimes doesn’t feel like reality. Should we speculate that there may be a spiritual reality; something different than the dimension that we are so used to? And what if that reality is more real than our current reality, and what if that reality is actually more present than we can conceive?
Leanne Payne shares an interesting thought,
Our eyes cannot see cosmic, gamma, or X-rays, nor ultraviolet, infrared, radar, television, or shortwave radio waves—not to mention other known and unknown wavelengths of light… Man’s other sensory organs are just as limited. What we ordinarily speak of as ‘the supernatural’ may consist of those parts of creation beyond our narrow sensory capacity.[iv]
The True Fantasy?
The Christian story—the true myth—is similar to many amazing myths in literature. But with a big difference: The Christian story claims to be true. “The heart of Christianity is a myth which is also a fact. The old myth of the Dying God, without ceasing to be myth, comes down from the heaven of legend and imagination to the earth of history.”[v] Similarly, Nancy Pearcey says, “The great events of the New Testament have all the wonder and beauty of a myth. Yet they happen in a specific place, at a particular date, and have empirically verifiable historical consequences.”[vi]
And is it not clear, that in most myths the evil person/force of the story would be happy if people thought that evil did not really exist? It seems to me that would be a worthy goal of evil, to make people think evil and enchantment weren’t real. Imagine the spell one could wield on the world if the world couldn’t imagine that there was such a thing as spells?! As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said, “None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.”
The world is enchanted. In the original use of the world enchanted. The world is ‘under a spell;’ ‘bewitched,’ ‘utterly delighted,’ ‘captivated,’ ‘fascinated,’ and ‘charmed’ by someone or something. I believe this someone is Satan, and the spell is sin. The curse and fall of humanity have long since happened. The fall was not just the fall of humans but encompasses the fall of angels. We are in a cosmic story. The Christian Bible tells us that the myths are not magical enough for the reality of the truth.
We may not wish for the world to be this way. But that is not for us to decide. As Gandalf said, “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
Of course, that’s not to say that all is bad. The story of the Bible is a wonderful, almost unbelievable story, that starts with a beautiful couple in a bountiful garden paradise and ends with a host of their descendants in an eternal paradise. The Bible is a comedy, not that it’s funny—though it has its funny parts—but because it has a U-shaped plot. That is, it starts out great but then a terrible seemingly insurmountable problem is introduced, but thankfully it doesn’t end in that sorry state.
As in any good fantasy there is a hero. And, as any good hero, He has many names: Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Son of God, Immanuel, Redeemer, Alpha and Omega, First and Last, Good Shepherd, Creator, Great High Priest, Holy One, King of kings, Lamb of God, Light of the World, Prince of Peace, Savior, and Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus is the truemythic hero. He is Aragon and Frodo. He is Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter. He is Aslan and Ransom. He is Iron Man, Black Panther, and Captain America. He is Avatar Aang. The God/Man, the Hero, offers rescue to the whole world.
The Bible is a big, amazing story. It surpasses Marvel and the Lord of the Rings. It tells us about God making the universe. It tells us about angels rebelling against God and starting a cosmic battle. It tells us about deception and romance.
It tells us that God became man and that this GodMan—Jesus Christ—had superpowers. And He used His superpowers for good. He fought the evil enemy, He defeated and cast out the great dragon’s evil henchmen.
It looked like the GodMan was going to win. He was going to defeat all the bad guys and even rule the world. He had a large, loyal following.
But, something happened. The GodMan, the all-powerful One, died. He died. He that brought people back from the dead, died.
That, that was unexpected.
damp, dark, cold, and silent
enveloped in a shroud in the earth
the Life lay lifeless
the only thing that truly is,
is not?
the Life lay lifeless?
the Immortal Infinite slain?
With the GodMan’s death, hope died. The GodMan’s followers fled in fear. They didn’t know what had happened… they hid in fear, hid for three days.
But the GodMan returned. He defeated death. He rose from the dead.
damp, dark, cold, and silent
from life’s surmise
but from a different gaze
outside of life’s maze
Life lay not lifeless
but death is now dead
defeated!
in violence He brought victory!
enveloped in mystery
the great God of history
was slain, for you, for me
the foil was sprang
it brought Him great pain
our sin is the hand that bore it
yet He took our blame
to purchase our name
He bore the frame of our cross
through vile, the victory
in wrote woe, to wonder
The Bible claims and shows us that this really happened. It’s not a “once upon a time” story. Although, for all those who trust Jesus as the Hero and Lord that He is, they will live “happily ever after.”
From Genesis, the very beginning of the Bible, through Revelation, at the end, we see one unified true cosmic story. We see God making a very good and beautiful world. But we see the serpent enter the scene and humans depart from God’s good plan and we see the devastation it brings. The world is torn in two. Relationships are ruined and rebellion spreads. The whole world whirls.
But, as God promised, He was not done. He loved the broken world and would be broken Himself to fix it.
The Bible tells the story of a terribly fierce dragon set to destroy the entire world. It’s really not so different from the Marvel myths in some ways. But it claims to be true, and it recounts the tales of one hero. A hero that loves the planet, the whole world, so much that He died for it. He, however, didn’t stay dead. He was so great and powerful that even death itself couldn’t defeat Him.
The story of Scripture is different from Marvel and other myths in various other ways. For one, it claims repeatedly to be true.
So, is the world enchanted? If you have suspicions that what you see in the physical world is not all there is, the Bible says that your suspicions are correct. The Bible says there is more. A lot more.
Jesus’ resurrection proves to us, the world is indeed enchanted. There is more to the world than we can see with our mere eyes.
But, just as there was fear and trepidation by the first brave souls aboard a boat, there is a healthy type of fear that we should have. These are very uncharted seas.
Life is not something to take lightly. There are spirits, and angels, and fallen angels. There is a dragon set to defeat us all. We may not see him breathe fire, but what comes out of his mouth is deceptive lies.
The enchantment of this world is all the more dangerous because it’s elusive. We don’t see the spell. Many disbelieve. But the reality is, there is more than meets the eye.
Christianity gives an answer for the strangeness that we sense in the world. Christianity gives a solid reason for believing in the spiritual realm and for us ourselves having a spirit.
Humans are not robots or automatons. At least that’s what the Bible says. Our actions matter. Our lives and decisions matter, even eternally. They ripple through the corridors of time. There was and never will be a meaningless moment.
In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis said, “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.”
Friends, our lives matter, our actions matter, our voices matter. That, at least, is true from a Christian perspective. If, however, as Carl Sagan said, “The cosmos is all there ever was and all there ever will be,” then this world is not enchanted and meaning is limited to what you make it.
I believe, however, if we knew a millionth of the magnitude of our lives, we’d be moved to wonder and crippled by the significance of it all. Our lives, every action, has significance because this world and this life is not all there is. So, friends, let’s live fierce, purposeful lives because we have purpose. Our lives matter more than we can fathom.
If there is more than the material, more than meets the eye, then what are we? What then are humans?
Are there Reasons to Believe in Enchantment?
Yes, beyond the fact that most people think there is more to the world than meets the eye,[vii] there are practical reasons for believing in enchantment. There are good reasons for believing in the existence of God. As the philosopher Alvin Plantinga has said, there are some very good arguments for believing in the existence of God, “arguments about as good as philosophical arguments get”[viii] (see chapter 3 on God). “If God is, what he is has far-reaching consequences for our lives—who we are, how we live, and what happens after death,”[ix] and I would say, what’s possible.
In other words, if God exists, then it seems clear that spirits and thus the spiritual realm exists. If this is true, as it seems to be, then there is a lot unseen and unknown that can act in and on the world, as we know it. This, at least in some ways, is a rather frightening reality.
There are different ways of being on a beach. If you confuse them, it won’t be good. Taking the day off to play in the sand and the ocean with your kids calls for relaxation, a good book, boogie boards, and sand toys. Being on the beach on D-Day during WWII is obviously a much different experience. War and relaxation are very different. If the two are confused it won’t turn out well. The Bible tells us that the earth we are on is not just for rest and relaxation because we are also at war. We have an enemy seeking to kill, steal, and destroy (Jn. 10:10).
If we are on the “beach of life” and we see it merely as a vacation and a day in the sun but it’s actually D-Day, then we will get utterly destroyed. If we are in an unseen battle then we should anticipate opposition and adversity. We should expect subtle and sneaky attacks.
The problem is not just out there, however. Yes, it’s in the world but it’s also in our own flesh. Sin is “bred in the bone,” it’s in our DNA.[x] And there’s also a devil. There is an external evil acting in the world, acting on our hearts. So, it seems we must “take a fearless inventory of our own hearts. No one is free from the Power of Sin and Death. No one has power in himself to help himself. No one can say to herself, well, I’m not a murderer, so I’m not so bad.”[xi]
We are very likely to be outwitted by Satan and his fellow conspirators when we are unaware of their schemes, let alone their existence.[xii] We live in a magic world. Satan lies, hinders travel (1 Thess. 2:18), and even appears as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). At least, that’s what the Bible says. The Bible says we are in a world where sinister evil lurks. But it also tells us about God’s rescue mission in Christ Jesus.
The world is at war. There is an enemy always seeking to do harm. We are in a world of magic, good and bad. As C.S. Lewis has said, “There is no neutral ground in the universe. Every square inch, every split second is claimed by God, and counterclaimed by Satan.” But the Bible says that the boss of the universe is good. And that’s a good thing. The Bible says that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow in heaven, on earth, and under the earth (Phil. 2:10-11). The sinister Satan will finally and decisively be defeated, never to work his woe again.
What do you think? Is the world “enchanted”? Is there an unseen spiritual realm? And if so, what ominous evil might lurk and unknowingly influence the world? If there are unseen evil spiritual forces at work, are there good forces at work as well? And what side are you on? Who or what are you being led by?
Questions to Consider
- Are there things that lead us to expect that the world is enchanted?
- What if the world is enchanted and “a great dragon” actually exists?
- If it’s possible the world is enchanted, is it also possible that our lives have significance beyond our physical lives?
- Fleming Rutledge, once said, “Unaided human beings can make no lasting headway against evil.”[xiii] What do you think about that? Is that true? How does history seem to answer that question?
Notes
[i] Jeffrey M. Jones, “Belief in God in U.S. Dips to 81%, a New Low” June 17, 2022
https://news.gallup.com/poll/393737/belief-god-dips-new-low.aspx
[ii] Fleming Rutledge, Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ, 93. Eerdmans. Kindle Edition.
[iii] C.S. Lewis, “Christianity and Culture.”
[iv] Leanne Payne, Real Presence: The Christian Worldview of C.S. Lewis as Incarnational Reality (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 1988), 23-24.
[v] C.S. Lewis, “Myth Became Fact” 58 in God in the Dock (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1970).
[vi] Nancy Pearcey, Saving Leonardo, 211.
[vii] Jeffrey M. Jones, “Belief in God in U.S. Dips to 81%, a New Low” June 17, 2022
https://news.gallup.com/poll/393737/belief-god-dips-new-low.aspx
[viii] Alvin Plantinga, Knowledge and Christian Belief (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2015), x.
[ix] Esther Lightcap Meek, Longing to Know (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2006), 17.
[x] Rutledge, Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ, 96.
[xi] Rutledge, Advent, 97.
[xii] See 2 Corinthians 2:11.
[xiii] Rutledge, Advent, 93.
*Photo by TOMOKO UJI
Satan Disguises Himself
“And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds” (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).
Satan disguises himself.
That is a rather scary prospect.
The serpent of old (Rev. 20:2), the great dragon (Rev. 12:9), the one who goes around like a lion just waiting to destroy (1 Pet. 5:8), disguises himself. And his disguise is not what we would expect.
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. He cloaks himself in radiant dress in order that he may deceive. He once took the form of a serpent (Gen. 3:1). If a snake came up to you and talked and tempted you today you’d probably see right through it. You’d probably run.
We’re not fighting a human war
“For although we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
The Christian battle is not a battle of the flesh. The Christian’s weapon is not physical and material. But the battle is no less serious. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12).
As Christians, we are to fight. But our fight is the fight of faith (1 Tim. 6:12). Our weapons are not human. We don’t use swords, knives, and guns. Instead, we carry “weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left” (2 Cor. 6:7). Our sword is the sword of the Spirit, the word of God (Eph. 6:17).
Our weapons, even though they are not of the flesh are powerful. They’re powerful because they are “through God” (2 Cor. 10:4). We are “strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might” (Eph. 6:10).
First Corinthians and the Continuation of the Gifts of the Spirit
I have written on this subject elsewhere but here we’re going to look at the text of 1 Corinthians and evaluate what it’s says regarding the continuation of the gifts of the Spirit.
First, it’s important that we acknowledge that this is a controversial issue. And it’s important that we consider these questions from an unbiased perspective.
What we were taught in the past should not determine our beliefs. We also should not let misapplications or extremes that people have that hold a certain belief dissuade us from holding a certain belief. The validity of a theological truth must be determined by what the Bible itself says. It’s important that we first agree on that.
Scripture is the final say on wether or not the gifts of the Spirit continue, not whether or not we understand each of the gifts perfectly or whether or not those who believe the gifts of the Spirit continue practice everything in a way that builds up the body of Christ in accordance with Scripture. Those other things are distractions (in logical argumentation they are referred to as the red herring fallacy).
So, what does 1 Corinthians itself say about the continuation of the gifts of the Spirit?
“Dear God, I want to be very rich…” (and other prayers)
“Dear God, I want to be very rich. I would like a Benz or at least a new Honda Civic with a sweet spoiler and racing stripe…”
Do your prayers sound like that? Probably not. You might prefer a BMW.
Realistically, our prayers don’t very often sound quite like that but sometimes that is about the gist of what we pray for. Stuff, sometimes good stuff, is what occupies the majority of our prayers. I am not saying it is always bad to pray for stuff. I am not saying it is bad for us to pray that our dear Aunt Ruth will get over her cold, we should do that, please do, but we must also pray for other stuff; spiritual stuff.
Religious Affections
“For although to true religion, there… must indeed be something else besides affection, yet true religion consists so much in the affections, that there can be no true religion without them. He who has no religious affection, is in a state of spiritual death, and is wholly destitute of the powerful, quickening, saving influences of the Spirit of God upon his heart. As there is no true religion, where there is nothing else but affection; so there is no true religion, where there is no religious affection. As on the one hand, there must be light in the understanding, as well as an affected fervent heart, where there is heat without light, there can be nothing divine or heavenly in that heart, a head stored with notions and speculations, with a cold and unaffected heart, there can be nothing divine in that light. If the great things of religion are rightly understood, they will affect the heart. The reason why men are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful things, as they often hear and read of, in the Word of God, is undoubtedly because they are blind; if they were not so, it would be impossible, and utterly inconsistent with human nature, that their hearts should be otherwise, than strongly impressed, and greatly moved by such things”
~Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (Yale University, 2009), 120-21
“Holy affections are not without light; but ever evermore arise from some information of the understanding, some spiritual instruction that the mind receives, some light or actual knowledge. The child of God is graciously affected, because he sees and understands something more of divine things than he did before, more of God or Christ and of the glorious things exhibited in the gospel; he has some clearer and better view than he had before, when he was not affected: either he received some understanding of divine things that is new to him; or he has his former knowledge renewed after the view was decayed”
~Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (Yale University, 2009), 266
Biblical Mysticism?
A Mystic’s Meter
The rhythms of a mystic’s faith are not drudgery upon duty and duty upon drudgery. The mystic’s meter, rather, is delight. Delight in a God they know. Yet, as much freedom as rhythm and cadence have, there is still structure. So, I want to look at the structure of the meter. What cadence does knowing God take?
Is Mysticism Wrong?
Is mysticism wrong? I think a lot depends on how it is defined. If you define mysticism as subjective vain emotional longings, then yes it is wrong. If you define mysticism as unbiblical, then yes it is wrong. If mysticism is set on anything else then God in the face of Christ (2 Cor. 4:6), then yes, mysticism is wrong.
Mysticism, however, is not wrong in itself. It is the focus that can be wrong. It is the information, or perhaps more often, the lack of information, that can be wrong.
Don Whitney instructs us:
“Don’t be deceived by a complex spirituality that gives the appearance of wisdom but doesn’t start with ‘Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge’ (Colossians 2:3). And don’t become entangled in any spiritual practices that sound good but incline your mind and heart away from the ‘things that are above’” (“Practice True Spirituality”).[1]
Not All Mysticism is Created Equal
Mysticism does not have “inalienable rights.” That is, not all mysticism is created equal.
Frist, some mysticism is based on illusionary dreams and speculation. However, there is a problem with this (1 Jn. 4:1). Satan parades himself around like an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14) so that he may devoir like a lion (1 Pet. 5:8). Subjective experiences alone cannot be our guide.[2]
Second, some mysticism contradicts the Word of God. Any word that contradicts His Word should not be our word. God is our authority. And His Word is our authority. There are many other good and important texts but they are not ultimate. They are subordinate.
Third, any form of mysticism that does not prize and exalt Messiah and His work is defective (1 Jn. 4:2). Mysticism is about knowing God. Jesus the Messiah is God in the flesh (Jn. 1:14). It is through Him that we can know God (e.g. 2 Cor. 4:4); that we can go boldly before the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16). Jesus reveals God. If we conceal Him, belittle Him, or don’t rightfully honor Him, we are not practicing mysticism but anti-mysticism; we are concealing God.
Good Mysticism
Mysticism, I believe, at it’s heart, is about knowing God deeply and experientially.[3] So then, how do we know God? We know Him through His Spirit, amen![4] And the Spirit, most typically, uses the means of His own inspired Word, the Bible. We meditate on His Word, as well as other good texts, and God, by the Spirit, reveals Himself to us. Good Christian mysticism thus relies on: 1) The Spirit for illumination, not vain visions or the like (Rom. 8:26; 1 Cor. 2:12-16; Eph. 3:14-19; 1 Jn. 4:1); 2) The inspired Word of God, not primarily other sources (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:3-4); 3) The Incarnate Son to show us God, and not visions (Jn. 1:1-14; 14:6; 2 Cor. 4:4; Heb. 1:3).
Good biblical mysticism (some may prefer “spirituality”) is about having a deeper sense of God’s truth. It’s seeking for God to open our eyes that we would be deeply impacted by His truth (Ps. 119:18). It is about knowing God’s love that surpasses knowledge that we may be filled with all the fullness of God (Eph. 3:19). It’s about being renewed by the transformation of our minds (Rom. 12:2; Eph. 4:23-24; Col. 3:10). It is about revival.
It short, mysticism does not seek mere knowledge. It seeks to also experience the truth of that knowledge. So, it seeks to taste the sweetness, and not just know hypothetically and intellectually that something is sweet.
Jonathan Edwards words are enlightening:
“There is such a thing as a spiritual and divine light immediately imparted to the soul by God, of a different nature from any that is obtained by natural means… This spiritual light that I am speaking of, is quite a different thing from inspiration: it reveals no new doctrine, it suggests no new proposition to the mind, it teaches no new thing of God, or Christ, or another world, not taught in the Bible, but only gives a due apprehension of those things that are taught in the word of God… There is a difference between having an opinion, that God is holy and gracious, and having a sense of the loveliness and beauty of that holiness and grace. There is a difference between having a rational judgment that honey is sweet, and having a sense of its sweetness.”[5]
Mystics, so to speak, not only want to know that something is sweet, they want to taste it’s sweetness.
A.W. Tozer: A Good Example of a Good Mystic
James L. Snyder points out that “the word ‘mystic’ did not scare Tozer. The term ‘mysticism’ simply means ‘the practice of the presence of God,’ the belief that the heart can commune with God directly, moment by moment, without the aid of outward ritual. He saw this belief at the very core of real Christianity, the sweetest and most soul-satisfying experience a child of God can know.”[6]
Tozer rightly reminds us—how sad that we need reminded!—that salvation is “not an end but an inception, for now begins the glorious pursuit, the heart’s happy exploration of the infinite riches of the Godhead.”[7] Conversion is meant to lead to communion. Orthodoxy must, if it is to be true orthodoxy, result in doxology. “’You can be straight as a gun barrel theologically,’ Tozer often remarked, ‘and as empty as one spiritually.’”[8]
The true Christian mystic should be heat and light. Heart, head, and hand. He should love the LORD with all that he is, his heart, soul, mind and strength; and his neighbor as himself.
Conclusion
So, you might say, a mystic’s meter, what gives him his aesthetic poetry and music, is knowing God by the Spirit, though the Word, and in Christ. This is where he can find true delight. He can know God and true joy in this rhythmic triad; instead of the clashing and subjective thrashings found elsewhere. A mystic’s meter in sum, should be rhythmic, not chaotic. It should have a distinguished element to it, not destructive and haphazard vague desires. God has, Paul reminds us, revealed Himself; we don’t worship Him as unknown, but as known (Acts 17:23). We can know God truly, if not fully.
Will you seek to know God? Will you dance to the melodious meter? Will you use the means He has given you? Will you be a Christian mystic?
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[1] Don Whitney, “Practice True Spirituality.”
[2] Let it be noted that exceptional things may likely still happen. See 2 Cor. 12:2-4, for example.
[3] Mysticism is “the belief and practice that seeks a personal, experiential… knowledge of God by means of a direct, nonabstract and loving encounter or union with God. Although a psychophysical dimension (including visions, dreams or special revelation) may be part of the mystical experience, this dimension is not necessary. Instead, Christian mystics generally teach that the true test of the experience is the resulting fruit of the Spirit in the mystic’s life” (Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms, 81). “The mystic,” Tozer said, “differs from the ordinary orthodox Christian only because he experiences his faith down in the depths of his sentient being while the other does not. He is quietly, deeply and sometimes almost ecstatically aware of the presence of God in his own nature and in the world around him” (The Christian Book of Mystical Verse).
[4] Mysticism, at least, true accurate mysticism, can only take place after the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit (see Jn. 3:3).
[5] Jonathan Edwards, “A Divine and Supernatural Light”).
[6] The Life of A.W. Tozer: In Pursuit of God, 155.
[7] The Pursuit of God, 13 cf. Jn. 17:3. Brother Lawrence reminds us that “Many do not advance in the Christian progress because they stick in penances and particular exercises, while they neglect the love of God, which is the end” (Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God, 24).
[8] The Life of A.W. Tozer: In Pursuit of God, 155.
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