One of the first expressions of communication from God is that He describes Himself as a God who feels - Genesis begins with an expression of grieving and a heart filled with pain by chapter 6. For those acquainted with God having such intense emotion, we are sometimes tempted to humanize God at such times. We need to be very, very cautious that we do not take the terms in their human limitations and with connotations of finitude, but we will be equally in error to deem these words as purely metaphorical with no real emotion behind them. At the end of the day, I believe we are intended to grieve over evil and to rejoice over good.
John also started off with a description of God's word and being as identical - the incarnate Son of God felt, wept, laughed and hoped. In the beginning was a thinking, feeling God.
But this is where our difficulty begins. As godlike in their origin as feelings are, we must also learn to put them in perspective and protect ourselves from the glorification of feelings as the final affirmation of truth.
God feels with perfect knowledge, and His feeling is in conformity with what is true. He does not act because He feels as much as He acts because He knows.
Nothing is so important to the nature of a word as the truth, and truth is the property of propositions not feelings. Feelings are never described as true or false. Feelings may be legitimate or illegitimate, understandable or incomprehensible; but they are not true or false.
This is where we often get bogged down, longing for feelings when indeed those very feelings could be the most seductive force to take us away from the truth.
The apostle Peter learned this lesson the hard way when he revelled in the glorious feeling of witnessing the transfiguration - how inexpressible must have been the awe when they saw and experienced…
the whitest white the eye could ever contain -
the purest bliss the mind could ever imagine -
the greatest theophany one could ever describe -
the most esteemed human personages the Jewish person could ever have wanted to see – Moses and Elijah -
the grandest ecstasy of spirit the heart could ever yearn for -
the noblest sound the ears could ever desire when the voice came from heaven, “This is my Son. Listen to Him.”
Yet it was in the context of this experience that Peter said what he did about the superiority of the Word --
“For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honour and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”Peter saw the experience and the feeling as secondary to the certainty of God’s Word.
Knowing then that His Word is constant and eternal and personally applied, let us discipline our wills and minds to hear from Him each day --
•“Early will I seek thee” (Ps 63:1)Paul says something about this as well -- “That I might know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death” (Phil 3:10).Obviously it was not feeling that drove Paul but the knowledge of Christ.
•“Search me, O God, and know . . . my thoughts” (Ps 139:23)
•“Speak Lord, for your servant is listening” (1Sam 3:9)
•What do you want me to do? (Acts 9:6)
Even Samuel -- his message was one that broke his heart because he had a message of judgement to give his predecessor and mentor, Eli. I know that God had given me a word for someone and I did not give it because I knew this couple would be extremely angry. God had to use someone else in the church, that person knew to speak the truth, the couple were angry for months, but at the end, they thanked him for there was no way they could have dealt with the tragedy if it were not for his word he gave earlier. I learn a valuable lesson on how my feeling has nothing to do with what God wants for or from me.
"Listen" to these words penned by William Runyan --
1. Lord, I have shut the door,
Speak now the word
Which in the din and throng
Could not be heard;
Hushed now my inner heart,
Whisper Thy will,
While I have come apart,
While all is still.
2. Lord, I have shut the door,
Here do I bow;
Speak, for my soul attend
Turns to Thee now.
Rebuke Thou what is vain,
Counsel my soul,
Thy holy will reveal,
My will control.
3. In this blest quietness Clamouring cease;
Here in Thy presence dwells
Infinite peace;
Yonder, the strife and cry,
Yonder, the sin:
Lord, I have shut the door,
Thou art within.
4. Lord, I have shut the door,
Strengthen my heart;
Yonder awaits the task--
I share apart.
Only through grace bestowed
May I be true;
Here, while alone with Thee,
My strength renew.
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