The dismissal of experience in discovering truth comes from our Enlightenment & Restoration Heritage. Is this, however, correct? I would say no on three levels.
1. In our everyday lives, we come to belief and truth primarily through experience.
When I was dating my wife, I did not merely accept a reasonable proposition that she would make a good mate for me. I experienced her--her presence, her laugh, her holding of my hand. In teaching Gina (our 5 year old daughter) to pray, I didn't teach her a proposition about God. I taught her to say prayers, and through that process she came to accept God as Father.
2. Scripture places a high value on experience.
Note these words from John:
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.
The earliest Christians believed in Christ not because it was merely "reasonable," but primarily because they experienced Christ.
3. People today especially value experience in coming to know truth. Part of this is because "reasonable" people have committed horrible atrocities (i.e., Nazis), and reason has not prevented continued wars, hate crimes, etc. Part of this is because we get so many advertizements that the only way to know if something really works is to try it--or to listen to someone else who has tried it.
So, in order to convince people of the truth of Christianity, we must be able to point towards our experience. What positive experiences can we share with others that demonstrate the truth of our faith?
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2 comments:
James, I don't think it's so much what we share from our own experience as much as that we DO share. I usually keep silent during prayer requests in class or in small groups thinking it's all about prayers that are needed at the time. But we forget that sometimes what a person might need is to hear about "answered prayers" or how God has been working in someone elses life. That is what comes to mind when I read the part about knowing truth by experiencing God. Sometimes it takes someone else sharing their own experience for us to realize the "truth" that we too have experienced God. The point here I think is "SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES" and pray that someone will hear and come to know the truth.
Kim,
What you say is true. Whenever we share an experience of God answering a prayer, it gives hope for someone else who is struggling. You and others who do this are so inspiring to us.
And yes, it is through the stories of other people's lives that we come to see how God has been at work in our own lives. That is why the Bible is filled with narratives, stories of men and women of faith.
By looking at Abraham, Joseph, Esther, Ruth, David, and others we see how God can work in our own lives. So share, as you say! It may be someone else's soul that you help save that day.
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