From the context of local church development and church growth conversations, when you talk about experience in metaphor, you're indicating that you've moved a fair distance away from the discussion of which is more important in communicating the gospel-sound or sight. But in postmodern culture, sound comes before sight. And in biblical culture, too, which is one of the things I find so exciting today. The Church is wringing its hands about how difficult it is to communicate the gospel in this new world, but I'm clapping my hands. Because in the Bible you do not see a vision, you hear a vision.
Sound becomes sight over and over again.
Faith comes by hearing. Now in postmodern culture it's even more than that, because sound becomes sight becomes taste, touch, and smell. To postmodernize it, it's not just, Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, I want to see you. It's, Open the ears of my heart, Lord, I want to hear you. Open the mouth of my heart, Lord, I want to taste you.