In a recent conversation I was struck by a statement that has been made to me many times in the last 30 plus years of ministry. The statement is, “I have grown so much because of that experience”. So I ask the question, is experience the way to maximize spiritual wisdom, maturity and growth.
There is little argument that the “experience” of growing up in a Christian home, attending Church, going to summer camp, having Godly teachers etc. are wonderful growing experiences. But that is not what struck me. What I have heard over and over is just the opposite of that list. I have heard that experiencing the harsh reality of sinful choices and the consequences that result from it are the “experiences that have resulted in the greatest growth”. The real question is, do I have to experience sin and its awful results to enjoy maximum spiritual growth or is there a better way. Is the person who has walked the road of the prodigal son more mature and wiser then the one who didn’t experience those kinds of things?
Who is stronger, the person who succumbs to temptation and learns from it or the person who faithfully resists it and never learns that way? I find the answer in the life of Jesus–He was tempted in all points as we are but without sin–and he is in every sense of the word stronger and wiser than anyone of us who has succumbed many times.
It is a misnomer to think that a person who has experienced life’s harsh realities has in some way a deeper and more mature faith and wisdom. The opposite is what Scripture teaches. The person who obeys God and faithfully walks away from temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13) is the stronger by far. They learned by obedience, not by experience. I suppose some of us just have to learn things the “hard way” but that is not the best way and the final results are always compromised. There is no virtue or blessing in having experienced the harshness of sin’s penalties; rather, there is great virtue and blessing in obeying God and honoring Him with every choice. I Corinthians 10:6-11 tells us that the stories of the Old Testament are there for our example and instruction–we do not have to experience what they did to learn what God wants us to learn; to mature and grow in wisdom–what we have to do is obey and God will grow us far more.