Some Christians do not understand spiritual operations, but they do not want to appear inferior, and so they complain about mysticism. Mysticism is indeed wrong, if the term is used correctly. Some things have nothing to do with mysticism. If I punch you in the back of your head and you fall flat on your face, that is not mysticism, but physics. You might not know what happened, but I know. It is not unintelligible.

When Solomon dedicated his temple, the presence of God in the form of a thick cloud entered the building and prevented the priests from doing their work (1 Kings 8:10-12). Some people cannot understand this because they have made up their minds about how the things of God must function. If a manifestation seems to interrupt normal ministry, then it must be false. It must not be from God. This is not necessarily true.

A woman with an illness came to Jesus and touched his clothes. She was healed immediately, and Jesus said, “Who touched me? Power has gone out from me.” He did not deliberately release this power, but he was aware of its movement when it was taken out of him by faith (Mark 5:30, Luke 8:46). This is marvelous, but it is not unusual for those who know about spiritual operations (1 Corinthians 12:1). It influenced how Jesus conducted ministry, and he asked about it when the power behaved a certain way. If this was not wrong or strange for him, then it should not be wrong or strange for us.

The same power operates in the Christian who has received the Holy Spirit after he has believed in Christ (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8). There are numerous practical implications for Christian life and work. Sometimes in ministry, we would say certain things, time certain actions, or behave in certain ways because we are consciously working with this power. It happens not only in the ministry of healing, but also in prophecy, preaching, counseling, writing, and debates. When we talk about such things, it is not mysticism, but “spiritual physics” and spiritual reality. If these things do not fit into your theology, then it is your problem. You have a bad theology.

After you have constructed your system of doctrine, if you find hundreds of pieces of the Bible left on the floor, you need to make a choice. You can focus on admiring your grand design as you discreetly shove the pieces under the table with your foot. This is what most theologians have done throughout church history, so you would be in respectable, even if corrupt, company. Since most of them do this, it is unlikely you would be discovered and confronted about it. Your cute little religion would remain intact until the judgment. On the other hand, you can stop lying to yourself, tear down the whole thing, and start over. This time, use all the pieces and connect them with logic.