Is One Church One City a bad idea or unBiblical?

[Cal]

"Christian mystic" can mean more than one thing. The benign meaning is someone like Brother Lawrence, who had 24/7 fellowship with God. I recall A.W. Tozer being called a mystic by one of his posthumous publishers. But no one more respected the Bible, nor was more suspicious of gnostic knowledge, than Tozer.

The term has fallen out of favor in the recent years, I would think, as 24/7 fellowship with God has come to be considered normal, rather than rare.

I never liked the term. It reeks of new ageism and Eastern counterfeits.

[Jo S]

Originally Posted by Igzy

"Christian mystic" can mean more than one thing. The benign meaning is someone like Brother Lawrence, who had 24/7 fellowship with God. I recall A.W. Tozer being called a mystic by one of his posthumous publishers. But no one more respected the Bible, nor was more suspicious of gnostic knowledge, than Tozer.

The term has fallen out of favor in the recent years, I would think, as 24/7 fellowship with God has come to be considered normal, rather than rare.

I never liked the term. It reeks of new ageism and Eastern counterfeits.

It's difficult to discern between a mystic "Christian" and a truly born again Christian. Both have fellowship with the spiritual realm and use the same terminology.

It's easier for a seasoned Christian to discern but for a babe in Christ it's hard. It's why the apostles repeatedly warned of them in scripture.

[Sons to Glory!]

Originally Posted by Jo S

It's difficult to discern between a mystic "Christian" and a truly born again Christian. Both have fellowship with the spiritual realm and use the same terminology.

It's easier for a seasoned Christian to discern but for a babe in Christ it's hard. It's why the apostles repeatedly warned of them in scripture.

Are you saying they warned of mystics? Please cite verses.

[Jo S]

Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!

Are you saying they warned of mystics? Please cite verses.

The term "mysticism" is a modern creation but it's derived from the Greek "mustikos" which means "secret", "mysterious", or "hidden".

A mystic (or gnostic in Christianity) wasn't specifically called such in scripture but these "false converts", "false prophets", or "false teachers" were referred to in generalizations.

Simply put, the term mystic points to someone seeking or teaching hidden knowledge or interpretations not plain to scripture.

To paraphrase the first lie recorded, it's this; Eat of the hidden knowledge and you shall be like God. This is mysticism in it's simplest form.

To break it down;

"Eat" alludes to a work or practice. In the LC's, this is the mystical practices of "Pray-reading", "calling on the Lord", ect.

"Hidden knowledge" refers to just that, knowledge not plainly revealed to us. In the LC's you'll find this type of special knowledge referred to as "high-peak truths" which are derived from the bible but from a manner which relies more on subjectivity rather than a literal and historical context.

And finally "be like God" refers to spiritual enlightenment. The teaching to attain Godhood in the LC's is found in their God-men doctrine.

In other words; Practice hidden knowledge in order to unite with the divine.

Truth is light. Light's plain to see if you only open your eyes. After all, truth was and is a human being. Satan, however, offers "deep" hidden spiritual knowledge (Rev 2:24) which ultimately leads to death.

In scripture we are warned not to deviate from the simplicity of Christ (2 Cor 11:13) into hidden knowledge such as promised to Adam and Eve by the serpent. By this, we can be led into a different Christ and a different gospel (2 Cor 11:4).

Such false teachers that taught "secret" interpretations not plain to scripture, ended up ultimately twisting Christ's nature. (1 John 4:1-3). This is why in the LC's you ended up with a mysterious, esoteric, and modalistic Christ rather than the humble and meek servant of God taught in scriptures.

To summarize, those that claim to be christian yet seek or teach unique spiritual knowledge through eisegetical biblical interpretations contrary to how Jesus and the apostles taught are technically what we today refer to as mystics or gnostics. These type of practitioners will always have a works based form of spirituality in one fashion or another.

[Sons to Glory!]

Maybe this definition between Gnosticism and mysticism I found here
would be helpful:

Simply put, they differ in their emphases. Mysticism values the supernatural, but seeks to unite the physical world to the valuable spiritual world. Gnosticism despises the physical world, and seeks to leave it behind in favor of the spiritual world.

Do you agree with that?

Another question: Are all people who experience Christ mystics in your view?

[Jo S]

Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!

Maybe this definition between Gnosticism and mysticism I found here
would be helpful:
Do you agree with that?

There's a lot of variety within mysticism and gnosticism so it's easy to get lost in semantics. It's best to try and stay as close to the root meanings as you can.

From all my study on this topic, and from my own experience, this is how i understand it;

A mystic is one who practices union with the divine through various practices and hidden knowledge. This can generally refer to many spiritual practitioners from all sorts of different backgrounds. For example you could be Sufist, a Kabbalist, a Gnostic, or a New Ager but at the core be a mystic.

A Sufist is a person that practices mysticism through a Islamic worldview

A Kabbalist is a person that practices mysticism through a Judaic worldview

A Gnostic is a person that practices mysticism through a Christian worldview

A New Ager is a person that practices mysticism through a eclectic mix of various spiritual beliefs.

The thing they all have in common is that they use various mind altering practices in order to gain spiritual experiences and through that, knowledge. That's mysticism.

A Christian's faith is based on trust, not practice. And through that trust we gain a tangible relationship with God.

Another question: Are all people who experience Christ mystics in your view?

I'd first ask you what you mean by "experience Christ".

Just consider your terminology for a moment.

Christ is a person and as a person has expectations. He seeks our trust, honesty, and respect.

Mysticism however seeks spiritual benefits without the struggles that accompany the willingness to trust.

Relationship vs relationship experience. That's the main difference between Christianity and mysticism.

A mystic or gnostic doesn't have a real relationship with God. Basically, sensations that are gained through general spiritual experiences are personified and then attributed to "God" but there's no semblance of an actual tangible relationship with God in their spiritual life.