Understanding Mysticism

IMAGINATION
Imagination is the gift of God to every individual who was created in God's image. It is part of our being made in His image:

• God created all material things out of the "nothing" - He "imagined" what they looked like and made them that way
• It is the foundational tool in our ability to "create" things - invention, etc.
• It is the foundational tool for teaching our children the way of life - Psalm 19:17
• It is the tool whereby we can understand the appearance or nature of an item being described to us by another
• It is one of the tools used to understand the Word of God
• It is the tool Moses had to use when making the items for the tabernacle from the things which he had seen in God's presence
• It is one source from which we are able to create art, literature, drama and music

Our imagination like the rest of our being has been stained and affected by sin:

• As with other items of nature which can be seen in Romans 14, imagination is not sinful but our use of it can be
• It is the tool in which people have imagined themselves carrying out some sin
• It has been the tool for creating unspeakable inventions of terror and suffering
• It has been the source of much deceitful behavior and stories
• It is the tool for creating fear in ourselves and in others
• It is the source of idolatry - Rom 1:21
• In sinful use, it is the source of all manner of wickedness - Gen 6:5
• Sinfully, it is used by the adversary to deceive us - 2 Cor 10:3-5
• Trained only by sin, it is the prison of the "gentiles" - Eph 4:17ff
• It is also a tool to enter into the realm of the "mystic"

The use of imagination is and has been a hotly contested issue over the centuries of church history and development. Next time.....visualization.