Ways to the Father

It seems to me that there exists a paradox in that there are both many ways and only one way in how we come to know God. On the one hand, as a Christian, I believe as fundamental and completely truthful Jesus' words that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that nobody comes to the Father but through Him. (John 14:6). On the other hand I am convinced that Jesus will come to each of us a little differently according to how we were created, our time in history, and our own experience. There is only one Jesus and He is the only way to know the father, but we all see and relate to him differently.

To be clear, I am not saying that other religions and unchristian ideas are also methods to come to the Father, only that everyone who does come to the Father comes through Christ and that this journey of going through Christ looks differently for each person because Christ relates to each of us according to who, where, and when we are. I don't think this is an especially novel or strange idea but it has been my observation that many who call themselves Christians interact with other Christians as though it were.

For many of us we came to know Christ in childhood through the example of our parents and the community of our local church. Others came to believe because of a sermon or a message spoken by a Christian preacher that struck them to the core. Others came to believe not because of their parents or a sermon but by being loved by the church community. Still others came to believe because of a powerful spiritual experience, others by witnessing a miracle, others by simply reading The Holy Bible, and some by other means. All of us start the journey of faith in Jesus at different spots and the journey itself also looks different according to who, where, and when we are. Some are called to be preachers, politicians, or philanthropists but not prostitutes. Others to be servants, song writers, or soldiers, but not sorcerers. Many are called to be mothers, martyrs or mostly ordinary but not murderers. Once again this shouldn't be a novel or strange idea, Paul's explanation of the spiritual gifts shows us that we are many members of one body, each of us given diverse and unique tasks suitable to the diverse and unique roles we all play. (1 Cor 12:12-27)

There are some who say that every Christian *must* possess a specific talent or gift or experience (such as being able to speak in tongues) but the wider body of the faith knows that they are mistaken and we try to love and work with them as best we can, and life goes on.

Where I see Christians acting is though this could be a lie (from the Devil no less) is when other Christians relate to God differently. Some of us naturally relate to God when we are reading the Bible. This is often held as the gold standard in Evangelical Christianity for how everyone should relate to God because the Bible is God's written word to us. It is God breathed, reliable, unchangeable, tangible, Spirit filled, living and active, sharper than a two edged sword dividing soul and spirit, joint and marrow, judging the thoughts and intentions of the heart (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12). The Bible is extremely important for the Christian faith but as important and grounding as it is, I am convinced that many Christians naturally relate to God better through other means. Music, for example, often makes Christians feel a close connection to God. Art or symbolism is another example as is simply being alone in God's creation perhaps beholding a mountain or the ocean or a sunset or a star-filled sky. Some of us naturally relate to and love to focus on Jesus (obviously) but the more charismatic among us naturally relate to and love to focus on the Holy Spirit while our Catholic and East Orthodox brothers and sisters have a greater elevation of The Father. I think this is only natural because all of us are created differently and have had centuries of the forces of culture and theological thought put the currents of today into movement.

Whatever activity, image, or frame of mind makes us feel a connection with God can, in the context of faith in Jesus, become an anchor in the life of the Christian, a spiritual discipline whereby the believer knows how to put him or her self into a position to better focus on communing with their God. As the Christian matures on their journey in Christ new (and I believe more traditional) ways of feeling a connection with God will take root and the things that have made them feel a connection in the past may fade or disappear as the Lord leads each of us forward.

Apart from Christ we all still have those things that raise our spirits as it were and make us feel some sort of connection with the divine but by themselves they do not lead us to really know God. We may be inspired, even elated by art, we may experience feelings of deep inner peace, being at one with the universe, or locate a special place or being that appears as holy or even as a god or goddess. God may even, by his grace, draw the spirit by these wild spiritualities into a rudimentary (and perhaps even saving) knowledge of Himself but these wild spiritualities are not inspired by God and should not be trusted.