Sensations, in the context of the Bible, refer to the physical and emotional experiences that humans encounter. These experiences are often depicted in Scripture as part of the human condition, reflecting both the blessings and challenges of life in a fallen world. Sensations can be understood through various lenses, including physical feelings, emotional responses, and spiritual experiences.

Physical Sensations

The Bible acknowledges the reality of physical sensations, both pleasurable and painful. In Genesis 2:9, the creation of the Garden of Eden is described, where God made "all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food." This indicates that God designed humans to experience and appreciate physical beauty and nourishment. Conversely, the Bible also addresses pain and suffering, as seen in Job's afflictions (Job 2:7-8) and Paul's "thorn in the flesh" (2 Corinthians 12:7), which serve as reminders of the fallen state of the world and the hope of redemption.

Emotional Sensations

Emotional sensations are vividly portrayed throughout Scripture. The Psalms, in particular, capture a wide range of human emotions, from joy and gratitude to sorrow and despair. Psalm 16:11 expresses the joy found in God's presence: "You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." On the other hand, Psalm 42:11 reflects a cry of distress: "Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God."

Spiritual Sensations

Spiritual sensations are experiences that connect individuals with the divine. These can include feelings of peace, conviction, and awe. The Bible describes the peace of God as surpassing all understanding (Philippians 4:7), a sensation that guards the hearts and minds of believers. The conviction of the Holy Spirit is another spiritual sensation, as seen in John 16:8, where Jesus speaks of the Spirit's role in convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

Sensations and the Human Experience

The Bible presents sensations as integral to the human experience, influencing behavior and decision-making. Proverbs 3:5-6 advises, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." This suggests that while sensations are part of life, they should be guided by faith and trust in God rather than solely by human understanding.

Sensations in Worship and Community

Sensations also play a role in worship and community life. The early church is described as experiencing a sense of awe and unity (Acts 2:43-47), where believers shared meals and fellowship with glad and sincere hearts. Worship, as an expression of reverence and adoration, often involves physical and emotional sensations, such as singing, clapping, and lifting hands, as seen in Psalm 47:1: "Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy."

Conclusion

While sensations are a natural part of human existence, the Bible encourages believers to align their experiences with God's truth and purposes. By doing so, sensations can become a means of drawing closer to God and living out His will in the world.

To the Severity of God There Belong Accessory Qualities ...
... that, because in man's corrupt condition there are found passions of this description,
therefore there must be deemed to exist in God also sensations [2891] of ...
/.../tertullian/the five books against marcion/chapter xvi to the severity of.htm

Whether Impassibility Excludes Actual Sensation from Glorified ...
... impressions from without" [*Cf.[5078] Q[74], A[4], On the contrary] and much less
so than the heavenly bodies, because they will have actual sensations, not by ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether impassibility excludes actual sensation.htm

Faith and Knowledge.
... no names for these other organs, as we have for the five senses; yet we know that
from that invisible world we receive impressions, sensations, emotions; we ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxxv faith and knowledge.htm

Abram's Horror of Great Darkness.
... the divine friendship, it is not probable that his dreams would have been terrifying:
His situation would rather have inspired joyful sensations, and exciting ...
/.../lee/sermons on various important subjects/sermon v abrams horror of.htm

God is not a Being of Simple Goodness; Other Attributes Belong to ...
... to discussion, whether God ought to be regarded as a Being of simple goodness, to
the exclusion of all those other attributes, [2638] sensations, and affections ...
/.../tertullian/the five books against marcion/chapter xxv god is not a.htm

Questions About the Nature of the Body are Sufficiently Mysterious ...
... reason) exercises its universal rule, whether from the heart or from the brain,
or by a distribution, the motions from the heart and the sensations from the ...
/.../augustine/anti-pelagian writings/chapter 6 v questions about the.htm

A Detached Account of the Descent into Hell.
... John the Baptist. These souls did not at first recognise Jesus, but were
filled nevertheless with sensations of joy and hope. There ...
/.../chapter lix a detached account.htm

Lost Earnings
... is not so. The wages were earned, but lost. So you must not regard your
experience as the sensations of a dream. You had the blessing ...
/.../howard/standards of life and service/xiv lost earnings.htm

Conclusion. Points Postponed all Souls are Kept in Hades Until the ...
... experience sorrow or joy? Is it not sufficient, even of itself, to suffer both
one and the other of these sensations? How often, without ...
/.../a treatise on the soul/chapter lviii conclusion points postponed all.htm

Refutation of Marcion's Objections Derived from the Cases of the ...
... For if (on your terms) it was no difficulty to him to manifest true sensations and
actions in a putative flesh, it was much more easy for him still to have ...
/.../the five books against marcion/chapter ix refutation of marcions objections.htm

Sensations (1 Occurrence)
... Multi-Version Concordance Sensations (1 Occurrence). Job 20:2 Therefore my thoughts
cause me to answer, And because of my sensations in me. (YLT). ...
/s/sensations.htm - 6k

Trance (7 Occurrences)
... The condition expressed by this word is a mental state in which the person affected
is partially or wholly unconscious of objective sensations, but intensely ...
/t/trance.htm - 12k

Preacher (27 Occurrences)
... satisfaction in the pursuits of the scholar and thinker, taken by themselves, he
seeks to combine these with the pursuit of agreeable sensations-alike those ...
/p/preacher.htm - 48k

Ecclesiastes (1 Occurrence)
... satisfaction in the pursuits of the scholar and thinker, taken by themselves, he
seeks to combine these with the pursuit of agreeable sensations-alike those ...
/e/ecclesiastes.htm - 27k

Sennach'erib (13 Occurrences)
Sennach'erib. Sennacherib, Sennach'erib. Sensations . Multi-Version Concordance ...
(See RSV). Sennacherib, Sennach'erib. Sensations . Reference Bible.
/s/sennach'erib.htm - 10k

Quench (14 Occurrences)
... 1. (vt) To extinguish; to overwhelm; to make an end of; -- said of flame and fire,
of things burning, and figuratively of sensations and emotions; as, to ...
/q/quench.htm - 12k

Nettle (2 Occurrences)
... vt) To fret or sting; also a plant of the genus Urtica, covered with minute sharp
hairs; to irritate or vex; to cause to experience sensations of displeasure ...
/n/nettle.htm - 8k

Offensive (15 Occurrences)
... words. 2. (a.) Giving pain or unpleasant sensations; disagreeable; revolting;
noxious; as, an offensive smell; offensive sounds. 3 ...
/o/offensive.htm - 11k

Light (2869 Occurrences)
... The offspring of the divine command (Genesis 1:3). "All the more joyous emotions
of the mind, all the pleasing sensations of the frame, all the happy hours of ...
/l/light.htm - 31k

Locks (29 Occurrences)
... The prophet Ezekiel, describing his sensations which accompanied his vision of
Jerusalem, says: "He put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my ...
/l/locks.htm - 18k

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