BEYOND MANY INFRACTIONS of difference – the urge to present one’s side of a theological argument against another’s because it is ‘right’ – stands the wonderfully free phenomenon of Christian Mysticism.

The mystic does not see right or wrong, because they experience appreciation for the countless mysteries of God. Like the many scientific mysteries that will always remain, the mysteries of the Lord cannot be solved, only contemplated.

Right and wrong are no longer the point. Indeed, to land at right and wrong is to miss the point. But, all the same, there is an appreciation in the mystic of the right to choose what is right and what is wrong.

When we work with the mysteriousness of God, and we venture further into the mystery, we find we know less and less. But it is a gift to know less. It’s to know the boundlessness of grace, the unreachable heights of love, the flaming intensity of the Spirit’s power, and the untouchable scope of the sovereignty of God.

The mystic is thrilled to be in a place where God reigns supreme; when there is no room for human boasting. If everything and every thought is about God, the mystic is in heaven. Humanity is still too wound up in his or her own pride.

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The challenge for the true believer is to become more a mystic and less a self-confident theologian who is sure of the things of God.

God must reign in the believer’s heart. God must transform the believer’s mind unto renewal. That is the fruit of belief – to be changed.

The reason Christian mystics are unified in peace and love is that they see only the wonder in life and fellowship under God. They speak the common language of acceptance and tolerance. Indeed, this propensity toward unconditional love separates the lover of God who cannot help but love others from the person who is only a fair-weather lover.