Latest / Reformed Thinking / True Affections Flow from a Spirit-Enlightened Mind | Jonathan Edwards

Transcript

True Affections Flow from a Spirit-Enlightened Mind | Jonathan Edwards · Reformed Thinking

0:00
Welcome to the deep dive from Reformed Thinking.
0:02
We take the sources you share, really dig into them, and try to
0:05
bring the key ideas right to the surface for you.
0:08
Glad to be here. Today we're looking at some,
0:11
well, classic writings about religious affections, really
0:14
getting into how you tell the difference between genuine
0:17
spiritual feelings and, you know, ones that might not be
0:20
what they seem. Yeah, this is a perennial
0:22
question, isn't it? How do we know if what we're
0:24
experiencing is truly from God? Right.
0:26
So this deep dive is based on sources that actually layout
0:30
criteria for figuring that out. Our job today is to unpack those
0:34
criteria, see why they're set up the way they are and what they
0:37
tell us about real spiritual experience.
0:40
That's it. The sources aren't just asking
0:43
if someone feels strongly, they're digging deeper.
0:45
Where do those feelings come from?
0:47
What's their foundation? It's about evaluating the root,
0:50
not just looking at the outward appearance of the fruit.
0:52
OK, so let's jump in. The very first principle that
0:54
comes up in these writings is foundational.
0:58
It's this idea that holy affections need light, not just
1:01
heat. Exactly.
1:03
That's the core idea. The point being made is that
1:05
genuine, gracious affections, the kind that are truly from
1:09
God's Spirit, aren't just this surge of emotion or intense
1:13
feeling that's separate from understanding.
1:16
So not just feeling really zealous or overwhelmed
1:18
emotionally. Right.
1:19
They argue that these true affections arise from the mind
1:22
getting spiritual instruction, from gaining light, from
1:26
actually having spiritual knowledge of divine things.
1:28
Meaning the believer sees something new or understand
1:32
something more clearly. Yes, precisely.
1:34
Caesar understands something more about God or Christ.
1:37
Or maybe gospel truths just become clearer, A deeper view of
1:41
things they thought they knew. And crucially, this
1:43
understanding, this light, comes before the feeling and actually
1:47
gives rise to it. So knowledge isn't just like a
1:50
nice add on, it's the necessary ground, the foundation for any
1:54
real spiritual feeling. Absolutely.
1:56
The sources frame knowledge is the key.
1:58
It's what unlocks the heart you know, which can often be
2:01
resistant or closed off, and it enlarges the affections.
2:04
And think about how often scripture itself links knowledge
2:08
with genuine spiritual life. The sources point to various
2:11
places, like in first John where it says everyone who loves God
2:15
knows God, or Philippians where Paul praised their love might
2:19
increase more and more in knowledge and all discernment.
2:21
Romans talks about zeal, a strong affection right?
2:25
But notes sometimes it's not according to knowledge.
2:28
Right. Zeal without understanding?
2:30
Yeah. Colossians speaks of the new
2:32
self being renewed in knowledge. The Psalms have prayers like
2:36
Send Out Your Light and your Truth.
2:39
John's Gospel highlights that those taught by God come to
2:41
Christ because they've heard and learned, and Luke critiques
2:45
those who took away the key of knowledge.
2:47
So all these examples are marshalled to show that
2:49
understanding divine reality is, well, indispensable for truly
2:53
spiritual affections. That's the argument being built,
2:55
yes, it's fundamental. And it feels pretty intuitive.
2:58
When you pause to think about it, how could you genuinely love
3:01
someone or something you don't really get?
3:04
You might feel something, sure, but maybe it's not based on who
3:07
they really are. Exactly.
3:09
And the sources draw a really sharp contrast here.
3:12
Affections that don't arise from this kind of light, this
3:15
instruction and the understanding, no matter how
3:18
intense they feel or how much they move a person, they're
3:21
considered not spiritual. Not just maybe, but definitely
3:24
not from a gracious work of the spirit.
3:26
That's a sure sign, according to these writers.
3:28
Wow, so someone could be, I don't know, weeping buckets,
3:31
feeling ecstatic, joy, fired up, a zeal.
3:34
But if it didn't actually spring from seeing or understanding
3:37
something true about God, Christ, or the Gospel, it's not
3:41
the real deal. That is precisely the claim
3:43
being made now. The mind has to grasp something
3:47
to be affected. You don't have feelings about
3:49
absolutely nothing but the apprehensions, the things
3:52
grasped that 'cause these non spiritual affections, they lack
3:56
that specific character of spiritual knowledge or
3:58
instruction about the core truth.
4:00
You're based on something else entirely, something that doesn't
4:02
actually make you spiritually wiser.
4:04
That's it. They don't illuminate the mind
4:06
in a spiritual way. And that something else
4:09
entirely. That's where we get into what
4:11
these sources call vein affections.
4:13
Where do those come from, if not from real spiritual light?
4:16
Right. The sources spend a good amount
4:18
of time detailing these alternative origins for feelings
4:22
that might look religious on the surface, but, well, aren't.
4:25
One major source they identify is affections that come from
4:28
impressions on the imagination and what they call external
4:31
ideas. It's.
4:32
The imagination. That's interesting.
4:34
How can religious feelings come from just imagining things?
4:37
Well, it's described as arising from lively ideas suddenly
4:42
excited in the mind. But these aren't abstract
4:44
spiritual truths we're talking about.
4:46
They're more like vivid mental pictures or sensory type
4:50
perceptions in the mind. Like what?
4:51
Give me an example. OK, so maybe seeing in your
4:54
mind's eye a beautiful face, maybe something you associate
4:58
with Christ or an Angel, or you get an impression of shining
5:01
light or some other kind of glorious outward appearance.
5:04
Or maybe sounds or voices, not necessarily audible ones out
5:07
loud, but strong impressions of them in the mind.
5:10
So like having a sudden, really vivid mental movie play out or
5:14
hearing an inner voice. Yeah, something like that.
5:17
And the sources really stress that these kinds of
5:19
apprehensions, even if they feel really striking or intense, they
5:23
have nothing of the nature of instruction in them, meaning,
5:26
Meaning having that kind of experience doesn't actually make
5:29
you any wiser about God's nature or gospel doctrine or the
5:33
reality of sin or the way of salvation.
5:35
They're just impressions on the imagination, stirring up what
5:38
are called external ideas. External ideas?
5:41
What exactly does that mean? The sources use that term to set
5:44
them apart from truly spiritual ideas.
5:46
External ideas relate to, well, outward stuff, shapes, colors,
5:50
sounds, words, just as sounds or letters on a page, or the
5:54
physical circumstances of things happening.
5:56
The problem, according to these writers, is when religious
5:59
feelings arise from these impressions on the imagination,
6:02
when that's their primary foundation.
6:04
It's the feeling being caused by the mental picture or the
6:07
internal sound, not by a spiritual grasp of divine truth.
6:11
OK I think I'm following. So vivid mental images or
6:15
internal sensations. If you misunderstand them as
6:18
being direct divine communication or presence, that
6:22
can trigger strong feelings, but those feelings aren't actually
6:26
spiritual in origin. Precisely.
6:28
That's the distinction. It's the difference between an
6:30
emotional response to, say, a subjective mental image versus
6:35
an emotional response to a perceived spiritual reality
6:39
understood through divine light. Very different sources.
6:42
What about Scripture then? Because, you know, people often
6:44
talk about verses coming to mind and feeling really powerful or
6:47
comforting. Are affections that come from
6:49
Scripture always genuine? Not automatically, no.
6:52
Not according to the distinctions these sources are
6:54
making. They argue that affections
6:56
coming from Bible texts suddenly popping into your head are
6:59
considered vain if the feeling is grounded mainly on the way
7:01
the text arrived. Like it's suddenness, or how
7:04
extraordinary it felt, or just the feeling of the text arriving
7:07
rather than on the actual instruction you got from the
7:09
text itself. The divine truths taught in that
7:12
text and backed up by other scripture.
7:16
That feels like a really fine line, but crucial.
7:19
The feeling comes from the event of the text showing up, not from
7:23
grasping the truth in the text. Yes, that's the distinction
7:26
they're making. And they contrast this with,
7:29
say, the disciples on the road to Emmaus.
7:32
Remember how their hearts burned within them?
7:34
Christ didn't just ZAP texts into their brains.
7:37
It says He opened the Scriptures to their understanding.
7:40
And it was that understanding of the divine truth in those
7:43
passages that caused their hearts to burn.
7:46
The instruction, the spiritual light on the text was the cause,
7:50
not just the text arriving in their consciousness.
7:53
Got it. And there's a specific kind of
7:54
misapplication of scripture they warned about too, right?
7:57
Something about thinking a text directly tells you you're
7:59
personally saved or forgiven. Yes, this is highlighted as a
8:02
really common and significant misunderstanding that can fuel
8:07
these vain affections. The sources argue that Scripture
8:09
itself doesn't actually contain direct, explicit, personalized
8:12
declarations like OK, you, Sarah Smith, are forgiven.
8:16
Really. But what about verses that sound
8:17
like promises? They contain promises,
8:19
absolutely, but the argument is that Scripture reveals the
8:23
qualifications of the people who are beloved and forgiven, the
8:26
character traits, the faith, the repentance.
8:29
So deriving true assurance or comfort from Scripture in this
8:33
view involves understanding those qualifications, seeing
8:37
them in yourself by faith, hopefully, truly, and then
8:40
drawing the conclusion based on what Scripture promises to those
8:43
who meet those qualifications. OK, so it's not about just
8:46
grabbing a verse, like if you're not, I am with you and taking it
8:50
as God speaking directly to you in that moment, confirming your
8:53
personal salvation without looking at the context or who
8:57
God originally said that to or whether you fit the description
9:00
of those He promises to be with. Exactly.
9:02
To assume that a text, just because of the way it came to
9:04
your mind, suddenly, powerfully, is God's immediate, individual
9:09
declaration that you are beloved or forgiven.
9:11
That's founding your affection on a mistake.
9:14
It's thinking Scripture teaches something it doesn't, at least
9:16
not in that direct, individualized way It's.
9:18
Like adding a personal message on of the text that isn't
9:21
actually there in the words themselves.
9:23
Precisely. The sources call this an
9:25
enthusiastical impression and application of Scripture.
9:28
It's cautioned against because it effectively adds to the word
9:31
by giving it this new subjective meaning just for you.
9:35
So again, the affection is rooted in a subjective feeling
9:39
about the text's arrival or a misinterpretation, not an
9:43
objective understanding of the truth the text actually conveys
9:46
to everyone. Exactly.
9:47
The light isn't coming from the inherent meaning and truth of
9:50
the word itself applied by the Spirit.
9:52
It's coming from a subjective event or a mistaken reading
9:56
surrounding it. OK, what about feelings that
9:58
seem religious but might stem from something even less
10:01
obvious, like ignorance? You mentioned that.
10:04
Yes, that's another source of vain affections identified in
10:07
these writings. It sounds a bit
10:08
counterintuitive, maybe, but a lack of true spiritual
10:12
understanding can sometimes fuel strong but ultimately false
10:15
religious feelings. How does that work?
10:16
Ignorance leading to strong feelings.
10:18
Well, the sources give a few scenarios.
10:20
Imagine someone praying and they suddenly experience great
10:24
freedom, maybe unusual fluency in their words.
10:26
Now that feels good, right? Significant, but because they
10:29
lack a full understanding of all the possible reasons for that
10:32
fluency. It could be natural eloquence,
10:35
emotional excitement, practice, even external influence.
10:39
The sources might suggest they might ignorantly leap to the
10:42
conclusion. Wow, this must be the special
10:44
immediate presence of God enabling me.
10:47
And that conclusion, based on ignorance of other possibilities
10:51
then generates feelings, maybe joy or a sense of being
10:54
specially favored. The feeling arises not from
10:57
clear spiritual insight, but from a mistaken inference drawn
11:01
from a lack of knowledge. Basically misinterpreting a
11:05
natural or psychological thing as a direct divine act just
11:09
'cause you don't know what else it could be.
11:10
That's one example. Another one given is having what
11:13
seem like apartment thoughts about scripture, divine things
11:17
pop into your mind. Thoughts that seem clever or
11:19
insightful. Again because of ignorance.
11:21
Maybe ignorance about how the mind normally works with memory
11:23
and association, or ignorance about what the spirits true
11:27
teaching really feels like. The person might immediately
11:30
conclude these thoughts are the direct, immediate teaching of
11:33
the Sirit. Instead of justice, thoughts
11:35
maybe good thoughts maybe useful, but just thoughts
11:38
arising from their own mind or memory, perhaps helped by common
11:42
grace. Right, And then being affected
11:45
by the supposed special teaching generates the feelings.
11:49
It's the feeling about being taught directly that's exciting,
11:52
not necessarily the objective truth or spiritual depth of the
11:55
thoughts themselves when examined closely.
11:58
It's like thinking wow that inside about that verse was
12:00
amazing. The Holy Spirit was be telling
12:02
me something special and then feeling really spiritual because
12:06
of that assumption rather than carefully checking the thought
12:09
against the rest of scripture. Exactly.
12:11
Or even more generally, the sources mention people ascribing
12:14
feelings or workings of their own mind that they happen to
12:17
like to special immediate divine influence, and then they get
12:20
really affected by this supposed privilege.
12:23
The feeling is built on the assumption of special divine
12:26
action, an assumption often born from ignorance about how our
12:30
minds and emotions actually function.
12:32
And the sources also link some of these affections to bodily
12:36
sensations, physical feelings. They do.
12:39
This is presented as yet another path for non spiritual
12:42
affections. They describe how pleasant
12:45
physical sensations can sometimes arise, maybe due to,
12:48
you know, physiological factors. The sources talk about motions
12:51
of the animal spirits, which was their way of talking about
12:53
nervous system activity, or maybe hormonal shifts or just
12:56
other physical states. So like a warmth or a tingling
12:59
or something? Could be a pleasant sensation,
13:01
maybe in the chest or head. It feels agreeable and again,
13:04
due to ignorance, the person might be surprised by this
13:06
unexpected physical feeling and immediately conclude this must
13:10
be the Holy Ghost literally entering my body.
13:13
This mistaken conclusion, based on misinterpreting A purely
13:16
physical sensation, then becomes the occasion for great joy,
13:20
excitement, maybe other strong, even tumultuous affections.
13:25
So a physical experience gets mislabeled as a spiritual event,
13:28
and that label triggers what seemed like religious emotions.
13:32
That's the mechanism described. While the soul, the mind and
13:36
heart is the ultimate seed of affections, physical States and
13:39
sensations can definitely be the trigger or occasion for them,
13:43
especially when interpreted through a lens of ignorance or
13:46
presumption. And they even suggest the devil
13:48
might manipulate this. Yes, they suggest the devil
13:50
might sometimes instigate these physical emotions or sensations
13:54
precisely to create a platform for this kind of
13:56
misinterpretation and delusion to mimic spiritual experience
14:00
through physical means. That certainly adds a layer of
14:03
seriousness to needing discernment.
14:05
It really highlights why we need to look at the source and the
14:08
nature of the apprehension, the understanding or lack thereof
14:11
that leads to the feeling, not just how strong the feeling is.
14:14
And finally, you mentioned one more category, affections
14:17
arising from understanding gained through like normal human
14:21
teaching or just natural thinking.
14:24
Yes, affections can definitely be stirred up by knowledge you
14:27
get through ordinary human ways. Reading theology books,
14:31
listening to sermons, engaging in philosophical arguments about
14:35
God, using just your natural intellectual abilities.
14:39
Like a philosopher getting excited about a logical proof.
14:41
Exactly just as they might be moved by discovering something
14:45
in natural science using reason, someone can be intellectually
14:49
affected by religious concepts when they're presented clearly
14:52
or argued persuasively. But that's still different from
14:54
spiritual understanding. Critically different according
14:57
to these sources, this category also includes effective that
15:00
come from what they call common illuminations of the Spirit.
15:03
Common illuminations? What are those?
15:05
These are seen as influences of the spirit that might assist our
15:10
natural abilities, maybe making the mind a bit more receptive or
15:13
clear, allowing a person to grasp certain religious truths
15:17
that natural unregenerate people can in some measure understand
15:21
just using their ordinary faculties.
15:23
It's not the special saving light.
15:25
Can you give examples of what this common understanding might
15:28
grasp? Sure, common illumination might
15:31
give someone a clearer, more affecting sense of the guilt of
15:34
sin, but mainly related to its consequences, like the fear of
15:37
punishment, the dread of hell, God's terrifying wrath.
15:41
It sees sin as dangerous or foolish because of where it
15:44
leads. But not its inherent ugliness.
15:46
Right. It doesn't typically grasp the
15:48
inherent moral evil of sin, it's intrinsic odiousness against a
15:51
perfectly holy God. Similarly, a common illumination
15:55
might help someone grasp God's natural perfections, his immense
15:58
power, his vast knowledge, his terrifying greatness, things
16:01
that naturally evoke awe or fear.
16:04
But it doesn't see God's holy beauty, his inherent loveliness,
16:07
the moral glory that makes him worthy of love for his own sake.
16:10
So it understands God as powerful, maybe just potentially
16:14
scary, and sin is something that gets you into big trouble.
16:18
But it misses the actual beauty of God's holiness and the deep
16:21
ugliness of sin as rebellion against that holiness.
16:24
That's the distinction, yes. Common illumination can also
16:27
grasp the natural good in divine things.
16:30
Natural. Good meaning things like the
16:32
outward glory, the ease, comfort, safety or honor people
16:35
associate with heaven or salvation, These are the things
16:39
that appeal directly to our natural self love, our desire
16:41
for our own happiness and well-being in a, well natural
16:44
sense. So love towards God or Christ or
16:47
Christian virtues that arises only because of the natural good
16:50
you see in them, because they're a way to get your own ease,
16:53
happiness, security, escape from pain.
16:55
That's not considered spiritual love.
16:57
It's really just self love using divine things as a means to its
17:00
own end. Loving God because you think
17:03
He'll keep you out of hell and give you a comfortable eternity,
17:06
versus living God simply because He is inherently beautiful,
17:10
glorious, and worthy of love regardless of the personal
17:13
benefits. That is the core distinction
17:15
being drawn there. The first kind is seen as rooted
17:18
in natural understanding, and self-interest may be helped
17:21
along by common grace. The second kind requires a
17:24
completely different sort of light.
17:26
OK, that really clarifies the landscape of affections that are
17:29
not considered spiritual by these sources.
17:32
It's quite a list. Imagination, bodily sensations,
17:36
misinterpreting scriptures arrival or meaning, Sheer
17:39
ignorance and understanding based just on natural thinking
17:42
or common grace. Focusing on consequences or self
17:46
benefit rather than inherent moral beauty.
17:49
And they all share that one fundamental lack.
17:52
They don't spring from that supernatural appreciation of
17:54
divine things in their essential spiritual nature, especially
17:58
their holiness and moral Excellency.
17:59
Which brings us right back to the positive side.
18:01
What is the nature of that true spiritual understanding that
18:04
does ground gracious affections? What is that supernatural light
18:08
actually show a person? Right.
18:10
This is where the sources really focus this understanding.
18:12
The spiritual light is described first as being peculiar to the
18:16
Saints, meaning only genuinely regenerate people have it.
18:21
Natural people, those not born again, have nothing of it.
18:24
Like Paul says in First Corinthians, the natural person
18:27
doesn't receive the things of the Spirit because they're
18:29
spiritually discerned. Exactly that passage, it
18:31
underscores that this isn't just about getting more facts or
18:35
becoming, you know, a smarter theologian.
18:37
It. Was fundamentally different.
18:39
Completely different in nature in kind from all merely natural
18:42
knowledge, no matter how detailed or accurate that
18:45
natural knowledge might be. It consists in having certain
18:49
ideas or sensations of mind that are just fundamentally different
18:52
from anything a natural person experiences.
18:55
It's described as having the sensations of a new spiritual
18:58
sense, a sense given by God in regeneration.
19:01
A new spiritual sense. Wow.
19:03
Like like getting eyes to see colors if you're born blind, or
19:06
ears to hear music. A whole new capacity to perceive
19:09
reality. That's precisely the kind of
19:11
analogy the sources use. Just like sight opens up colors
19:14
and shapes, or taste opens up flavors, spiritual regeneration
19:18
is said to implant this new spiritual sense.
19:21
And the immediate primary object of this sense, what it's
19:24
uniquely designed to perceive, is the supreme beauty and
19:28
Excellency of divine things as they are in themselves.
19:31
What aspect of divine things though?
19:33
Their power, their knowledge? What kind of beauty?
19:36
Primarily, the sources emphasize the beauty of their moral
19:39
perfection, their holiness. This is presented as the
19:43
essential loveliness of divine things, the quality that makes
19:46
them inherently desirable, and the proper foundation for true
19:49
love and delight. It's about seeing the glory of
19:51
divine things. Glory, meaning moral glory.
19:53
Yes, that's the focus. Passages are cited like in
19:56
Second Corinthians, talking about the light of the knowledge
19:58
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ or beholding the
20:01
glory of the Lord. This glory is understood
20:03
primarily as his moral attributes, His perfect
20:06
holiness, his love, his justice, his faithfulness, his goodness.
20:09
Not just his raw power or omniscience, though those are
20:11
true too. It's the beauty of his
20:13
character. And this seeing isn't just
20:16
intellectual agreement, right? The sources seem really clear.
20:18
It's more than just knowing about this beauty.
20:21
Absolutely critical point. Spiritual understanding
20:24
primarily consists in a sense of the heart of this beauty and
20:27
sweetness. It's not mere speculation, not
20:30
just notional understanding or abstract knowledge.
20:32
It involves the mind not only seeing this moral beauty, but
20:36
also relishing it, feeling it. Like a taste.
20:39
Yes, exactly. It's described as a sensible
20:42
perception, like tasting honey and finding it sweet, not just
20:45
knowing its chemical formula. It involves the soul's
20:48
inclination, the will, the affections.
20:50
It's a perception of what is truly lovely and what is truly
20:53
hateful, what is sweet and what is nauseous.
20:54
Spiritually speaking, it engages the whole person, not just the
20:57
intellect. So back to those analogies, the
21:00
difference between the chemist knowing the formula for honey
21:03
and someone actually tasting the honey, or the mathematician
21:06
calculating musical ratios versus someone hearing the
21:09
harmony and being genuinely moved by it.
21:11
Those are the very analogies used in the sources.
21:14
Knowing food by taste versus a physician knowing its
21:17
nutritional properties by reasoning this spiritual
21:20
knowledge, The sense of the heart is often represented in
21:23
scripture using sensory language, relishing, smelling,
21:27
tasting divine things. Like taste and see that the Lord
21:30
is good. Exactly.
21:31
Or think of Second Corinthians talking about the fragrance of
21:34
the knowledge of Christ. Or Christ telling Peter he
21:37
doesn't savor the things of God. Or First Peter urging believers
21:41
to desire spiritual milk having tasted that the Lord is
21:44
gracious. Or the Song of Solomon
21:46
describing Christ's name as fragrant ointment.
21:48
Or First John saying believers have an anointing and no things.
21:52
This is all language pointing to a sensible knowledge which is
21:56
distinct from just having the form of knowledge mentioned in
21:58
Romans, which might be intellectually correct but lacks
22:01
this spiritual sense or relish. And the sense of the heart, this
22:04
tasting, it's portrayed as opening up a whole new reality,
22:08
a new world, as the sources put it.
22:11
Yes, that's a key idea. When the spiritual sense of
22:15
moral beauty is given and starts working, it opens up a
22:18
completely new world to the soul's view.
22:20
It radically changes how you perceive everything related to
22:24
God in spiritual reality. How so?
22:26
What looks different? Well, it shows the glory of all
22:28
of God's perfections, but especially His moral ones.
22:32
Holiness, justice, mercy, truth. You see their inherent beauty.
22:37
It shows the glory in God's works, creation and Providence,
22:40
not just as displays of power, but as expressions of His holy
22:44
wisdom and goodness. It reveals the true sufficiency
22:47
of Christ, not just His ability to save, but the beauty of His
22:50
moral perfection, His perfect holiness, humility, love that
22:53
makes Him sufficient. It shows the preciousness of His
22:56
blood and righteousness, not just as a payment, but in light
22:59
of the infinite dignity and moral beauty of His person who
23:02
offered it. Who was seeing the why behind
23:03
the what? Seeing the beauty that makes
23:05
these things valuable. Yes, and it reveals the
23:08
exquisite beauty of the way of salvation itself, the gospel
23:11
plan, because in it God's moral perfections, like his justice
23:15
and his mercy, shine forth in perfect harmony.
23:19
It shows the fitness of this way of salvation because it's very
23:22
design is towards moral good, making believers holy like
23:25
Christ. So it's not just knowing that
23:27
God is just, but seeing the stunning beauty of his justice.
23:31
Not just knowing that Christ died, but seeing the inherent
23:33
glory and holiness embodied in his perfect sacrifice.
23:36
Exactly. And this new sense also unlocks
23:39
the true Excellency of the Word of God.
23:41
Without the spiritual sense to perceive the divine beauty of
23:44
the truths within it, the sources say the Bible remains in
23:47
a way a dead letter may be intellectually interesting, but
23:50
dry, dull, tasteless spiritually.
23:52
This sense also shows the true foundation for duty, acting out
23:56
of love for this holy beauty you now perceive, not just out of
23:59
fear of punishment or hope of reward.
24:02
It reveals the true evil of sin, not just that it's harmful or
24:05
breaks rules, but that it's inherently odious, disgusting,
24:09
ugly, because it's the opposite of this perfect holy beauty of
24:12
God. It shows the true glory of
24:14
heaven itself, which consists primarily in seeing God
24:17
beholding His glory, partaking in His Holiness, being perfectly
24:21
conformed to Him, not just in streets of gold or absence of
24:24
tears, though those are related. And it reveals the true
24:26
loveliness and happiness of Saints and angels as they
24:29
reflect something of this divine moral beauty.
24:32
The source is really make a strong claim then without seeing
24:34
this beauty of holiness, you haven't really seen or
24:37
understood anything truly worthwhile and divine things.
24:39
All other knowledge is just a shadow.
24:41
That's a very strong emphasis, yes.
24:43
It implies that just having an intellectual grasp of doctrine,
24:46
even if it's perfectly orthodox, or having powerful experiences
24:49
based on imagination or natural feelings, none of that gives you
24:53
access to the essential, most valuable core of divine reality,
24:58
its inherent holy booty. You might know a lot about God,
25:01
but you haven't truly seen or tasted Him in His most glorious
25:04
aspect. And this spiritual sense isn't
25:07
just for like mystical contemplation.
25:10
It's presented as vital for actually living the Christian
25:13
life day-to-day. Absolutely.
25:14
The spiritual sense of holy beauty is seen as the foundation
25:17
for all true experimental knowledge of religion, meaning
25:20
knowledge gained through actual experience.
25:23
Without seeing and savoring the beauty of holiness, you don't
25:26
really know what God's grace is like.
25:27
Faith, hope, love are in their true spiritual nature.
25:30
You don't understand genuine, gracious exercises of the soul,
25:34
or experience truly holy comforts, or recognize the real
25:37
effects of the Spirit saving work in you or others.
25:40
And it guides you. How does a spiritual taste guide
25:42
your actions? Does it replace like careful
25:45
thinking or obeying scriptures commands?
25:47
No, it doesn't replace them at all.
25:49
It works with them. It illuminates Scripture and
25:51
facilitates obedience. It enables believers to discern
25:55
and distinguish between good and evil actions, right and wrong
25:58
paths, often spontaneously. Spontaneously.
26:01
Yeah, like how someone with a healthy, developed natural taste
26:04
can instantly tell good food from bad without needing a long
26:07
chemical analysis. This spiritual taste allows a
26:11
believer whose heart is being sanctified to often perceive
26:14
what is consistent or inconsistent with divine beauty
26:18
and holiness, sometimes without needing a long, drawn out
26:21
process of logical reasoning for every single decision.
26:25
The sources connect this to passages like in Luke.
26:28
Why even of yourselves do you not judge what is right?
26:30
Or Romans 12 being transformed so you can prove or discern
26:33
God's will? It's like your inner spiritual
26:36
nature develops a kind of compass that's increasingly
26:38
aligned with God's own nature. A.
26:40
Spiritual compass, I like that. And this divine taste helps in
26:44
understanding Scripture rules more deeply.
26:46
It can remove prejudices we might naturally have against
26:49
it's difficult commands. It sheds light on the spirit and
26:52
intent behind the rules. It makes the true meaning come
26:55
more naturally and clearly because there's a growing
26:58
harmony between the souls sanctified disposition and the
27:02
meaning of God's word. Like the psalmist praying, open
27:05
my eyes that I may behold wonderful things out of your
27:08
law. It leads to a spontaneous
27:10
discernment where God's will feels right and fitting, not
27:13
just like an external obligation.
27:15
The sources use analogies for this right?
27:17
Like a naturally kind person, knowing how to act kindly almost
27:21
instinctively. Exactly.
27:22
Or someone who deeply loves a friend knows how to act in ways
27:26
that express that friendship without needing a rulebook for
27:28
every interaction. They're guided by their
27:31
disposition, their affection. The sources argue that a holy
27:34
disposition grounded in the spiritual taste actually guides
27:38
a person better in the practice of Christian living than having
27:40
great natural intelligence or vast doctrinal knowledge without
27:44
that sanctified heart sense. They point to wisdom literature
27:48
contrasting the wise and foolish heart, and how the wise person's
27:51
heart guides their speech and actions.
27:54
And the spiritual leading of the Spirit, mentioned in places like
27:56
Romans 8 and Galatians 5, is understood to consist partly in
28:01
this instruction by spiritual taste, working alongside the
28:04
spirit, powerfully inclining and enabling the will to obey.
28:07
OK, we've covered the true source, this supernatural sense
28:11
of holy beauty, and the various sources of vain affections,
28:14
including that big one, imagination.
28:17
Let's maybe dig just a bit deeper into how the sources see
28:21
Satan using the imagination. You said it's like his main Ave.
28:24
for delusion. They do present it that way.
28:26
The imagination, or fantasy as they sometimes call it, is seen
28:29
as the principal way Satan gets access to influence the soul to
28:33
tempt and delude. The idea, as they understood it,
28:36
is that the devil can't just directly access the soul score
28:39
or know our thoughts immediately.
28:40
So he works indirectly. Yes, primarily through
28:42
influencing the body first. Through the body?
28:44
How does that get to the imagination?
28:46
Well, the thinking was that Satan could cause motions in the
28:49
animal spirits, again their term for nervous energy or
28:53
physiological processes, or induce other changes in our
28:56
physical state. These bodily changes then excite
28:59
these external ideas, the mental images, sounds, sensory
29:02
impressions, which are processed or handled by the imagination.
29:06
So the imagination, being closely tied to the body and
29:09
brain, becomes the gateway for Satan's influence on the mind.
29:13
And is that why they mentioned that certain conditions like
29:15
melancholy might make someone more vulnerable?
29:17
That's exactly the connection they make.
29:19
Melancholy, or what we might call severe depression today,
29:22
was understood to physically affect the brain, seen as the
29:25
seat of imagination and disorder those animal spirits.
29:29
This makes the imagination more volatile, more easily stirred up
29:32
by external or even internal impressions, giving Satan as
29:36
they saw a greater opportunity to work on the mind through this
29:39
physical imaginational pathway. So Satan basically uses this
29:43
body imagination road to counterfeit the Holy spirits
29:45
work. Precisely since the Holy Spirit
29:48
genuinely works on the affections and gives true
29:50
spiritual understanding, Satan tries to mimic this.
29:54
He works on the imagination to stir up feelings that look or
29:57
feel spiritual but lack that true foundation of spiritual
30:00
light. He comes disguised as an Angel
30:02
of light, presenting experiences that feel glorious or powerful
30:06
or deeply religious precisely because they're delivered
30:09
through these vivid imaginative impressions.
30:11
What are some of the specific ways he might delude people
30:14
through this route? The sources list several
30:16
methods. He can excite really lively,
30:19
compelling imaginary pictures, maybe of Christ or heaven or
30:22
dramatic divine scenes. He can present vivid mental
30:25
images of tempting things to stir up sinful passions, maybe
30:29
disguised as religious fervor. He might inject horrid words or
30:32
blasphemous sentences into the mind to cause distress or doubt,
30:36
or conversely, seemingly holy words to puff someone up with
30:39
pride. Like whispers.
30:40
Yeah, inward whispers or immediate suggestions of facts
30:44
or future events that seem supernatural.
30:47
He might create impressions of pleasant voices speaking or
30:50
beautiful images appearing which are mistaken for divine visits.
30:54
And critically, he can excite the ideas of words, including
30:57
scripture words in the imagination, and then subtly
30:59
lead the person to interpret them subjectively as immediate
31:03
commands, personal promises, specific applications from God,
31:07
totally independent of their actual context or objective
31:10
meaning. And affections that arise from
31:12
these imagination based impressions are what?
31:15
Considered worthless and vain by these sources because they're
31:18
not based on a genuine spiritual perception of divine reality.
31:21
They're based on a subjective, often physically or emotionally
31:24
triggered mental experience that Satan uses to mislead.
31:28
This seems like a key explanation for how Satan can
31:30
introduce, well, counterfeit religion or try to derail
31:34
genuine revivals. It's described as Satan's go to
31:37
tactic, really, especially during times when God seems to
31:40
be genuinely working among people, when there's real
31:43
spiritual awakening habits happening.
31:45
Satan gets particularly busy trying to mix his counterfeit
31:48
work in with the true. He uses the imagination to
31:50
create this glaring and glistering show of high religion
31:55
that might grab attention and seem very intense, but it lacks
31:58
the substance of genuine spiritual light and true
32:01
holiness. And the warning then is we need
32:04
to guard against this, not even actively seek out these kinds of
32:08
vivid imaginative impressions. Yes, the sources warn that
32:12
failing to understand and guard these avenues through which
32:15
Satan works, or worse, actively seeking or inviting these kinds
32:18
of lively impressions, maybe because they feel special or
32:21
intense, perhaps driven by pride or a desire for spiritual
32:24
status, or just ignorance, makes a person highly vulnerable to
32:27
this whole type of delusion. Now, you mentioned a really
32:29
important distinction about imagination earlier.
32:30
Can we just revisit that quickly because it seems easy to
32:33
misunderstand? Yes, absolutely vital
32:35
distinction. The sources differentiate
32:38
carefully between lively imaginations arising from strong
32:41
affections versus strong affections arising from lifely
32:45
imagination. OK, break that down.
32:46
The first case, lively imagination arising from strong
32:49
affection, is seen more as an infirmity, a side effect of
32:53
intense feeling in our embodied nature.
32:55
So if your soul is deeply moved by a genuine spiritual sight of
32:59
God's glory, for instance, the intensity of that feeling might
33:03
then 'cause your imagination, linked as it is to your body, to
33:07
spontaneously produce related vivid images or sensory ideas as
33:11
a secondary effect. So the feeling came first from
33:13
the spiritual insight and the image followed.
33:16
Right, The imagination kicks in because the heart is already
33:18
strongly affected by something real.
33:20
That's seen as an accidental consequence, maybe even a
33:23
potential distraction sometimes, But the affection itself isn't
33:26
considered invalid just because the imagination got activated
33:28
afterwards. OK.
33:29
So that's different from different from the second case,
33:32
strong affections arising from lively imaginations.
33:35
This is the problem case here. The mental image itself, or the
33:39
supposed internal voice, or the physical sensation, or the
33:42
subjectively interpreted text coming to mind, that is the
33:45
primary cause, the foundation of the strong feeling.
33:49
The affection starts with the imagination impression.
33:52
That's the scenario the sources label as worthless and vain
33:56
because the affection isn't grounded in true spiritual
33:58
understanding of reality. OK, understanding that
34:01
difference, whether imagination is the cause or the effect seems
34:05
absolutely key to applying these ideas correctly.
34:07
It is. It stops you from wrongly
34:09
dismissing all strong feelings just because they happen to be
34:12
accompanied by some mental imagery.
34:14
But it also stops you from uncritically accepting every
34:17
vivid imaginative experience as automatically spiritual.
34:20
It requires discernment about the origin.
34:22
And the sources actually trace this pattern, this reliance on
34:25
imagination in religion through history, don't they, as a kind
34:28
of recurring issue? They do, yeah.
34:30
They provide a kind of historical survey to show that
34:34
this phenomenon, what they often call enthusiasm or false
34:37
religion based on imagination, isn't new.
34:40
It has popped up again and again across different times and
34:43
movements. Who are some of the groups they
34:44
mention as examples? Well, they cast a wide net.
34:47
They mention ancient Pagan philosophers like the
34:50
Pythagoreans known for mystical ideas, Jewish groups like the
34:53
Essenes, some early Christian deviations like Gnosticism with
34:57
its claims of secret knowledge and visions, and Montanism,
35:01
which emphasized new prophecies and ecstatic states.
35:04
They also point to figures within the history of the
35:06
Church, like some monks and anchorites, whose intense
35:10
ascetic practices sometimes led to vivid visions they perhaps
35:13
misinterpreted. Then after the Reformation,
35:16
certain radical groups sometimes linked with Anabaptists or
35:19
fameless figures like Thomas Mincer who claimed direct
35:22
revelations to guide their actions.
35:24
Also English enthusiasts during the turbulent Civil War period,
35:28
followers of Anne Hutchinson in early New England who claimed
35:31
immediate revelations separate from Scripture and later
35:34
movements like the French prophets in the early 1700s,
35:37
known for ecstatic episodes and visions.
35:40
And all these are presented as examples where religious
35:43
experience got tangled up with or even based on subjective
35:47
imaginative states rather than objective spiritual
35:51
understanding of God's revealed truth.
35:53
That's how the sources frame them, yes.
35:55
They're used as illustrations of this recurring tendency for
35:58
religion to drift towards being rooted in imagination and
36:01
intense feeling, rather than staying grounded in spiritual
36:04
light derived from God's Word and that spiritual sense of His
36:07
holy beauty. It's presented as evidence of
36:10
Satan's consistent strategy, especially during revival times,
36:14
to counterfeit the real thing by appealing to the imagination,
36:17
leading people away from the solid foundation.
36:19
So let's try to pull this all together.
36:21
Based on everything we've unpacked from these sources, how
36:24
would you synthesize the core difference between spiritual and
36:27
non spiritual affections? What's the bottom line?
36:29
The fundamental governing distinction really comes down to
36:32
the ground or source from which the affection arises.
36:35
Gracious, genuinely spiritual affections are those that are
36:38
rooted in and flow from a supernatural understanding, and
36:42
that understanding is described as this divinely given capacity,
36:45
the sense of the heart to perceive the holy beauty and
36:48
inherent Excellency of divine things as they are in
36:50
themselves. This understanding is specific
36:53
to the regenerate, different in kind from any natural insight.
36:57
And non spiritual affections then even if they feel really
37:00
intense or look religious. They lack that specific
37:02
foundation. They arise from those other
37:05
sources. We discussed things like
37:07
impressions directly on the imagination, images, voices,
37:11
physical bodily sensations that get misinterpreted,
37:14
misapplications or misunderstandings of scripture,
37:16
like focusing on how a text came to mind or thinking it grants
37:20
personal assurance apart from meeting scriptural conditions.
37:23
Sheer ignorance about the real causes of feelings or
37:25
psychological states. Understanding game just through
37:29
normal human teaching or natural reasoning.
37:31
Or those common illuminations that only grasp the natural
37:34
aspects of religion, like fear of punishment or hope for
37:37
personal comfort, without seeing the inherent moral beauty of
37:40
God's holiness itself. And that true spiritual
37:43
knowledge, just to reiterate, isn't merely intellectual
37:46
agreement with facts or doctrines.
37:48
Right. It's not just notional
37:49
knowledge. It's emphasized as a sensible
37:51
knowledge, a sense of the heart that involves actually
37:54
relishing, tasting, feeling the inherent holy beauty of divine
37:57
things. It's like having a spiritual
37:59
palette that can apprehend what is truly lovely and what is
38:02
truly loathsome, spiritually speaking.
38:05
This deep dive really provides a, well a robust way to think
38:09
about evaluating religious experience.
38:12
It pushes us beyond just looking at the outward signs, the
38:15
intensity to examine the underlying cause, and the nature
38:18
of what's driving our feelings. It definitely challenges us,
38:21
doesn't it, to look past the intensity or the drama of an
38:24
experience and ask the harder questions.
38:27
What am I actually seeing or understanding here that's
38:29
causing this feeling? Is it the inherent holy beauty
38:33
of God and His truth perceived by a spiritual sense?
38:36
Or is it something else, an image, a physical feeling?
38:39
A misinterpretation? May be an assumption rooted in
38:42
my own self-interest or fear. And recognizing that spiritual
38:45
sense, that ability to taste divine beauty, is what opens up
38:48
that new world, changes our whole perspective, and gives us
38:51
that inner taste or compass for living in a way that pleases
38:54
God. And on the flip side,
38:56
recognizing the various ways non spiritual affections can arise,
38:59
especially through the imagination, misapplied
39:01
scripture or bodily feelings, is so crucial for a avoiding
39:05
deception and making sure our religion is grounded in
39:07
spiritual reality, not just subjective experience or natural
39:10
emotion. So for you listening, maybe chew
39:12
on this idea that comes through so strongly from these sources.
39:15
True spiritual understanding doesn't primarily invent new
39:18
meanings or add things to scripture.
39:19
Instead, it's more like God opening your spiritual eyes to
39:22
finally behold the incredible glory and beauty that has always
39:25
been right there, inherent in His Word and His reality, but
39:28
was maybe hidden from view because that spiritual sense
39:31
wasn't awake or active. How might seeking that capacity
39:34
to truly see and relish the beauty of God's holiness change
39:38
the way you approach reading the Bible or how you evaluate your
39:41
own spiritual life day by day?