Experiencing God

Question: Can you tell me anything about "Experiencing God" as to why I should be concerned about it's worth to me as a growing Christian?

God the Father is a Spirit, which means He does not have a physical body. He expressed Himself as the Son in the form of a man who was among us between the year 0 and 33 and by giving His life by His shed blood, He paid the price for all sin. At that point Jesus could send the Holy Spirit into our hearts if we receive Him. We receive the Holy Spirit by acknowledging that Jesus is God, that we are sinners and need His grace and by repenting of our sins. At this point we enter into an agreement with God. We exchange our bodies for eternal life in Christ Jesus. We die to our old selves and put on the new man motivated by the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

How does "experience" fit into that picture is your question. The word "experience" only comes up three times in the Bible because the Bible is a heavenly language. His kingdom is not of this world.

#1
"And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, [tarry: for] I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake." (Genesis 30:27)

This Scripture is a perfect example of how to interpret "experience" Scripturally. We discovered God by applying the Bible to our lives and God backed up His Word every time, sometimes not right away but eventually He would prove Himself. One could call that physical evidence that God, the Holy Spirit, is truth.

# 2
"I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all [they] that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge." (Ecclesiastes 1:16)

This is the other side of the coin. Again this is not the kind of experience one would have conversing with another being or eating an apple. How do we commune with our hearts? We can experience this wisdom and knowlegde ourselves through Bible study. God reveals and allows us to understand the Word by the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. We can experience the Holy Spirit's grieving when we sin or allow ourselves to be in the presence of ungodliness.

"And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." (Ephesians 4:30)

"But if we hope for that we see not, [then] do we with patience wait for [it]. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what [is] the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to [the will of] God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate [to be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. (Romans 8:25-30)

# 3

There are incidences where God spoke to the people. Let's take one for an example to show how out of normal realm those experiences are. These events were very specific major events and should not be construed to mean that we can expect such communication in every day life.

"And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw [it], he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold [it], the voice of the Lord came unto him, [Saying], I [am] the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold. Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground." (Acts 7:30-33)

Moses had been prepared for this experience for forty years in the wilderness and even prior to that as a shepherd separated from the world before God came near him.

# 4
Following is our communication system with God which we do have through the Holy Spirit.

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only [so], but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

"For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only [so], but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

But not as the offence, so also [is] the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, [which is] by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as [it was] by one that sinned, [so is] the gift: for the judgment [was] by one to condemnation, but the free gift [is] of many offences unto justification. For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) Therefore as by the offence of one [judgment came] upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one [the free gift came] upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:1-21) Amen