Knowledge in the Context of Spiritual Formation
To Everyone an Answer: 10th Annual EPS Apologetics Conference
[The whoops at the beginning of this talk are so fun to hear. Evangelical philosophy geeks like me ;-) ]
Knowledge that comes from the experience of Xians with God is among the most precious on earth.
Knowledge on the basis of which I live the spiritual life and then knowledge of the spiritual life that is available to others.
Apologetics can be defensive, but I think of it more as laying out answers
Maybe apologetics should be more in answer to sincere questions than defending against attacks.
Why are you hopeful in suffering? What makes you tick?
1 Pet 3.14-15
What if a large part of the job of the apologete was to explain why Xians are so happy and full of righteous deeds and love?
Different ministries to those who want to know and those who don’t
Having real, live people who are good witnesses in their living changes everything.
One part of spiritual knowledge is knowledge of Xian living
To read: The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life
If we don’t have knowledge, we’re just trying to get people to do things.
The lives of the saints are worthy of enquiry. Hypothesis: Such lives are lived based on knowledge gained by engaging with the spiritual realm of God
What does the Bible do to you? You can’t take it like little pills. They’re not entering it a domain of knowledge
you have to seek knowledge to gain it. it won’t come any other way.
spiritual growth is a process of gaining knowledge, so prayer is theological research
If you don’t have to get what you want, you won’t be plagues by disappointment and depression.
Pascal’s Pensees 233
Wager
way of experience can be opened by taking simple steps
abate passions. learn of those who stake all their provisions on God.
the know the way you would follow. they’ve been cured of an ill you want to be cured of. follow the way they began by acting as if they believed.
the way of experience is open to everyone. it is a way of grace.
At each step you will see great certainty of gain over against nothing (by comparison) ventured.
[Why don’t I have more of an effect on those I know? I don’t pray for them much, for starters.]
If you dwell in my teachings, then you really are my apprentices, and you will know the truth, and truth will make you free. Jn 8.31-32
The truth by itself will not make you free. It’s more likely to make you flee. We don’t come to the truth. We come to Jesus. We step into His teaching as best we can.
Apologetics and evangelism would be helped a lot by visible fruit in the lives of Xians.
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