Another article for the LaSalle News Tribune
I Feel, I Think, I Believe
As a Christian I am so thankful for the Biblical learning opportunities offered to me over the internet. Of course there should be a careful screening to make sure you are reading and viewing credible sites with solid Biblical sources, which will “weed out” many, but still there are a plethora of venues to grow in your walk with the Lord with the aide of this little screen. I have a blog and I am a blog reader. One of my favorite bloggers is Tim Challies at www.challies.com . For this article I am gleaning from a recent post that has had me thinking about how I say what I say. You can read the original blog post here. http://www.challies.com/articles/i-feel-i-think-i-believe
Challies gives definitions to these 3 phrases.
As a Christian I am so thankful for the Biblical learning opportunities offered to me over the internet. Of course there should be a careful screening to make sure you are reading and viewing credible sites with solid Biblical sources, which will “weed out” many, but still there are a plethora of venues to grow in your walk with the Lord with the aide of this little screen. I have a blog and I am a blog reader. One of my favorite bloggers is Tim Challies at www.challies.com . For this article I am gleaning from a recent post that has had me thinking about how I say what I say. You can read the original blog post here. http://www.challies.com/articles/i-feel-i-think-i-believe
Challies gives definitions to these 3 phrases.
· “The things I believe are the things of
which I have the highest confidence.
They are the things I am convinced of, the things I hold to be
absolutely true, even though you may disagree.”
· “The things I think are the things which
I have a little bit less confidence.
These are the areas in which I am in a process of growth in
understanding and conviction.”
· “The things I feel are the things I am
unsure of, the things I am encountering and responding to on an impulsive or
emotional level.”
These three very accurate
definitions have been dogging me as I listen to others and myself and finding
us saying “I feel” more and more
these days. The realization of this has
concerned me as I have heard fellow Christians and myself at times saying, “I feel” when talking about Biblical
truths. We state a Biblical truth and
then add, “That’s how I feel.” What we should be saying is “That’s what I believe. I have the highest confidence and am
convinced of the words of the Bible to be absolutely true, even though others
may disagree.” When we say “I feel” about an “I believe” Biblical truth then we reduce that Biblical truth down
to an opinion or something that is based on our emotions. When we speak of the Bible we need to be saying,
“I believe” just as we do when we
recite the Apostle’s or Nicene Creed. We
state those truths as facts.
The problem is that we live in a world where these definitions are flipped in their importance. Our world puts more emphasis and importance on personal feelings over the principled facts. We run on what we feel rather than what we know and don’t take the time to think about the issue. “Just go with what you feel is right” is a popular phrase that should be replaced with “Go with what you know is right” after you have processed from initial feelings to gathering more information, i.e. thinking, to something you can stand on, i.e. believe.
Another popular “feel” statement that has become a trumping value in our world is “I just want to be happy.” What if what makes you happy is wrong by Scripture? For the Christian, especially, the statement should be, “I just want to be holy.” What a difference by just changing one word. We change the value from what we feel to what we know from the truth of the Bible about our conduct. We should want to know what is right so that we can act upon it even when our feelings could be in favor or not. I have experienced a lot of problems when I did what I felt rather than do what I know.
Let’s end with a real life example in the proper order of the definitions. “I feel that ‘so and so’ would be a good presidential candidate. My emotions are stirred when he or she speaks at the debates. I need to gather more information about this person beyond my feelings. I need to think about this beyond the sound bytes offered that appeal to my feelings. I want to enter the voting booth believing that this person is the best candidate because I have found their life and words to be truthful based on supporting evidence of facts that are bigger than he or she.”
Let's pray.
"Lord may I evaluate what I say so that I do not diminish the truth that You have given me to live by. May I stand on what I believe and gather more information for what I think and be thankful for the ability of emotions for what I feel. Help me to keep them in the order of importance that keeps what I believe higher in value than what I feel. Amen."
Pastor Adam
The problem is that we live in a world where these definitions are flipped in their importance. Our world puts more emphasis and importance on personal feelings over the principled facts. We run on what we feel rather than what we know and don’t take the time to think about the issue. “Just go with what you feel is right” is a popular phrase that should be replaced with “Go with what you know is right” after you have processed from initial feelings to gathering more information, i.e. thinking, to something you can stand on, i.e. believe.
Another popular “feel” statement that has become a trumping value in our world is “I just want to be happy.” What if what makes you happy is wrong by Scripture? For the Christian, especially, the statement should be, “I just want to be holy.” What a difference by just changing one word. We change the value from what we feel to what we know from the truth of the Bible about our conduct. We should want to know what is right so that we can act upon it even when our feelings could be in favor or not. I have experienced a lot of problems when I did what I felt rather than do what I know.
Let’s end with a real life example in the proper order of the definitions. “I feel that ‘so and so’ would be a good presidential candidate. My emotions are stirred when he or she speaks at the debates. I need to gather more information about this person beyond my feelings. I need to think about this beyond the sound bytes offered that appeal to my feelings. I want to enter the voting booth believing that this person is the best candidate because I have found their life and words to be truthful based on supporting evidence of facts that are bigger than he or she.”
Let's pray.
"Lord may I evaluate what I say so that I do not diminish the truth that You have given me to live by. May I stand on what I believe and gather more information for what I think and be thankful for the ability of emotions for what I feel. Help me to keep them in the order of importance that keeps what I believe higher in value than what I feel. Amen."
Pastor Adam
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