Do all Christians have encounters with God or do all just experience God? The holiness movement was known for believers being "slain in the Spirit," but this is not the norm. Truly, one would not assert the Billy Graham doesn't have the Spirit or doesn't experience God. We are not to compare our gifts or experiences according to 2 Cor. 10:12. No matter how great an experience you have in the Lord, you cannot walk in the "glow" of the encounter for the rest of your life (you will always need spiritual check-ups).
No matter how much surrender you may do, it is still a moment-by-moment and day-by-day experience and discipline. Like Joshua who "wholly followed the Lord." One mental illness is called bipolar affected, or what used to be called manic-depressive. What goes up, must come down! They were known as "moody" persons who were up and down unpredictably. There are some famous people who have this illness, and it can successfully be treated so that it is not as debilitating as it once was. There are some Christians who have had mountaintop experiences that are just labeled as bipolar.
The Spirit is given without measure so one cannot say that he has more of the Spirit; one can say that he is more yielded, though. Not all believers have unusual experiences to increase their faith, but just like Jesus said to Thomas, "Blessed are those who have not seen," so, blessed are those who don't need bizarre experiences to rest their faith on, which is wrong, too. Our faith should always be in Christ and we shouldn't test our doctrines by our experiences, but our experiences on the doctrines of the Bible. In summary, mountaintop experiences are no measure of maturity in Christ according to Oswald Chambers ecstasies are no measure of maturity.
When our faith gets mature God expects us to rely less on feeling, though feeling will be there. The order is FACT, FAITH, FEELING. Faith must have an object to be valid, and feelings may or may not always be there. It is not the amount of faith, but that the faith is genuine and sincere. A word to the wise: Obedience, not experience or ecstasy is the measure of maturity and God's favor. Soli Deo Gloria!
No matter how much surrender you may do, it is still a moment-by-moment and day-by-day experience and discipline. Like Joshua who "wholly followed the Lord." One mental illness is called bipolar affected, or what used to be called manic-depressive. What goes up, must come down! They were known as "moody" persons who were up and down unpredictably. There are some famous people who have this illness, and it can successfully be treated so that it is not as debilitating as it once was. There are some Christians who have had mountaintop experiences that are just labeled as bipolar.
The Spirit is given without measure so one cannot say that he has more of the Spirit; one can say that he is more yielded, though. Not all believers have unusual experiences to increase their faith, but just like Jesus said to Thomas, "Blessed are those who have not seen," so, blessed are those who don't need bizarre experiences to rest their faith on, which is wrong, too. Our faith should always be in Christ and we shouldn't test our doctrines by our experiences, but our experiences on the doctrines of the Bible. In summary, mountaintop experiences are no measure of maturity in Christ according to Oswald Chambers ecstasies are no measure of maturity.
When our faith gets mature God expects us to rely less on feeling, though feeling will be there. The order is FACT, FAITH, FEELING. Faith must have an object to be valid, and feelings may or may not always be there. It is not the amount of faith, but that the faith is genuine and sincere. A word to the wise: Obedience, not experience or ecstasy is the measure of maturity and God's favor. Soli Deo Gloria!
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