Can God be experienced?

[TruthSeek3r]

My question is motivated by the following excerpt from William Lane Craig's Reasonable Faith article The Witness of the Holy Spirit:

Plantinga's model involves crucially what is usually called the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. In his model the Holy Spirit functions on the analogy of a cognitive faculty, producing beliefs in us. I myself prefer to think of the Spirit's witness either as a form of literal testimony or else as part of the experiential circumstances which serve to ground belief in God and the great truths of the Gospel. In either case His deliverances are properly basic.

I have characterized the witness of God's Holy Spirit as self-authenticating. As I explain in Reasonable Faith,

By that I mean that the experience of the Holy Spirit is veridical and unmistakable (though not necessarily irresistible or indubitable) for him who has it; that such a person does not need supplementary arguments or evidence in order to know and to know with confidence that he is in fact experiencing the Spirit of God; that such experience does not function in this case as a premiss in any argument from religious experience to God, but rather is the immediate experiencing of God himself; that in certain contexts the experience of the Holy Spirit will imply the apprehension of certain truths of the Christian religion, such as "God exists," "I am condemned by God," "I am reconciled to God," "Christ lives in me," and so forth; that such an experience provides one not only with a subjective assurance of Christianity's truth, but with objective knowledge of that truth; and that arguments and evidence incompatible with that truth are overwhelmed by the experience of the Holy Spirit for him who attends fully to it.​

Notice the sentences in bold "experiencing the Spirit of God", "the immediate experiencing of God himself" and "the experience of the Holy Spirit". It is evident that William Lane Craig believes that God can be experienced.

Question

Can God be experienced?
What are ways in which God can be experienced today?
Can we experience God today as the early Christians did (e.g. Book of Acts)?

 

[Jonaitis]

My question is motivated by the following excerpt from William Lane Craig's Reasonable Faith article The Witness of the Holy Spirit:

Plantinga's model involves crucially what is usually called the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. In his model the Holy Spirit functions on the analogy of a cognitive faculty, producing beliefs in us. I myself prefer to think of the Spirit's witness either as a form of literal testimony or else as part of the experiential circumstances which serve to ground belief in God and the great truths of the Gospel. In either case His deliverances are properly basic.

I have characterized the witness of God's Holy Spirit as self-authenticating. As I explain in Reasonable Faith,

By that I mean that the experience of the Holy Spirit is veridical and unmistakable (though not necessarily irresistible or indubitable) for him who has it; that such a person does not need supplementary arguments or evidence in order to know and to know with confidence that he is in fact experiencing the Spirit of God; that such experience does not function in this case as a premiss in any argument from religious experience to God, but rather is the immediate experiencing of God himself; that in certain contexts the experience of the Holy Spirit will imply the apprehension of certain truths of the Christian religion, such as "God exists," "I am condemned by God," "I am reconciled to God," "Christ lives in me," and so forth; that such an experience provides one not only with a subjective assurance of Christianity's truth, but with objective knowledge of that truth; and that arguments and evidence incompatible with that truth are overwhelmed by the experience of the Holy Spirit for him who attends fully to it.​

Notice the sentences in bold "experiencing the Spirit of God", "the immediate experiencing of God himself" and "the experience of the Holy Spirit". It is evident that William Lane Craig believes that God can be experienced.

Question

Can God be experienced?
What are ways in which God can be experienced today?
Can we experience God today as the early Christians did (e.g. Book of Acts)?

I'm assuming that Criag attributes a resolved conscience, personal feeling of fulfillment and assurance, heightened clarity, and moral awareness, which are consequences of 'regeneration,' to be that divine presence to be experienced.

 

[TruthSeek3r]

I'm assuming that Criag attributes a resolved conscience, personal feeling of fulfillment and assurance, heightened clarity, and moral awareness, which are consequences of 'regeneration,' to be that divine presence to be experienced.

Why do you assume that?

 

[Br4nd0n]

My dear friend experienced it. It was a regular overnight church function. And they didnt ask God for anything, it was unsolicited, just regular prayer and worship, last words heard "you just gotta let go." And Holy Spirit just spontaneously rained down on them. It happened for maybe 5 hours. He said if Holy Spirit would have stayed long enough, my friend wouldve happily died of thirst, cause he had no desire to care for his physical body with the presence of God. Then eventually everyone filed out one by one, cause it was over. I pray to experience this one day. And if i dont, i pray somebody else does, so that it completely changes their life. But we will experience it in heaven if we dont get to now.

Edit: but we can experience Him in his word when He giftwraps verses just for you. And ive come to believe that concidence in a Christian life is simply God speaking.

 

[ARBITER01]

Question

Can God be experienced?
What are ways in which God can be experienced today?
Can we experience God today as the early Christians did (e.g. Book of Acts)?

Christianity is not a thing of the mind, a belief that you have accepted. It is an answer from heaven, directly from GOD.

That is why people say "the born again experience."

The life of a Christian should be a daily connection with GOD in prayer and worship and fellowship, a continual experience with Him.

 

[NBB]

Not only you can experience things that God does to you, he leaves a sort of spiritual 'print' and 'certainty' it was him, so you don't get confused. Like the passage says my sheep hear my voice, not only his voice is being recognized by christians but his spirit demonstrations too.

 

[NBB]

What ways you can experience God?

You can sense his presence.
You can feel living waters in you
You can sense how the Holy spirit can fill you.
You can even enter the Holy place like the bible says we are confident to do so, and you can know.
A lot more...

But, i didn't knew God until i went to church one day, so @truthseeker go to a correct 'spirit filled' believing church and ask the pastor all this questions. Pray before so you find a good one.
It doesn't need to be perfect, all that matters is that if God is there.

 

[Saint Steven]

Can God be experienced?
What are ways in which God can be experienced today?
Can we experience God today as the early Christians did (e.g. Book of Acts)?

Great topic, thanks!

Yes, God CAN be experienced today.
Like in the book of Acts? It's possible. I don't try to limit what the Spirit might do today.

Everyone has their own experience with God. Some don't testify to anything tangible.
But their changed life and peace is testimony enough of God's saving power.

I have had some unusual experiences with God. And know of people who have had similar experiences. I have been in church services where God's presence was so thick, it seemed you could cut it with a knife. Walking toward the front of the sanctuary felt like entering deep water. However, not every believer experiences such things. And it does matter if you do, or not. God loves you either way.

Skeptics are not likely to experience such things. Even Christ was limited by unbelief in his hometown.

Mark 6:4-6 NIV
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” 5 He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 He was amazed at their lack of faith.

 

[fhansen]

My question is motivated by the following excerpt from William Lane Craig's Reasonable Faith article The Witness of the Holy Spirit:

Plantinga's model involves crucially what is usually called the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. In his model the Holy Spirit functions on the analogy of a cognitive faculty, producing beliefs in us. I myself prefer to think of the Spirit's witness either as a form of literal testimony or else as part of the experiential circumstances which serve to ground belief in God and the great truths of the Gospel. In either case His deliverances are properly basic.

I have characterized the witness of God's Holy Spirit as self-authenticating. As I explain in Reasonable Faith,

By that I mean that the experience of the Holy Spirit is veridical and unmistakable (though not necessarily irresistible or indubitable) for him who has it; that such a person does not need supplementary arguments or evidence in order to know and to know with confidence that he is in fact experiencing the Spirit of God; that such experience does not function in this case as a premiss in any argument from religious experience to God, but rather is the immediate experiencing of God himself; that in certain contexts the experience of the Holy Spirit will imply the apprehension of certain truths of the Christian religion, such as "God exists," "I am condemned by God," "I am reconciled to God," "Christ lives in me," and so forth; that such an experience provides one not only with a subjective assurance of Christianity's truth, but with objective knowledge of that truth; and that arguments and evidence incompatible with that truth are overwhelmed by the experience of the Holy Spirit for him who attends fully to it.​

Notice the sentences in bold "experiencing the Spirit of God", "the immediate experiencing of God himself" and "the experience of the Holy Spirit". It is evident that William Lane Craig believes that God can be experienced.

Question

Can God be experienced?
What are ways in which God can be experienced today?
Can we experience God today as the early Christians did (e.g. Book of Acts)?

Faith, itself, is a supernatural gift of grace, a foretaste, as Aquinas taught, of the “vision” or direct knowledge of God that will completely enthrall, captivate, and satisfy us in the next life.
“For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” 1 Cor 13:12

So, yes, we begin to experience God now even as that experience is partial, not completed in this life. We don’t yet walk by sight. And yet, God can also be known or experienced much more profoundly and directly in this life, in “glimpses” of that vision, totally at His discretion, by His grace and for His purposes. Those are rare and ineffably extraordinary. Paul’s Damascus road experience or the transfiguration experienced by Peter are probably such experiences but in any case others down through the centuries have reported being blessed with the “immediate presence” of God as it’s sometimes called, or given other experiences: visions, locutions, etc.

The receivers are generally of the more humble and faithful variety, not seeking any such experiences, while desiring nearness to God. I don’t know if Mr Craig’s experience is anything more than the norm for all believer’s but I expect so.