 
Fire for Our Times

The Baptism in The Holy Spirit

Co-authored by Darrel Bird and Dr. Adrian Bury

Doctor Adrian Bury- University of London and Mattersey Bible College with religious studies at Cambridge University

Darrel Bird- Bakersfield College, author, writer

Copyright 2012 by Darrel Bird and Adrian Bury

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Most of this work is accredited to Dr Adrian Bury without whose work this book could never have been done.

I have felt for a long amount of time that a work of this sort is needed. I pray that it brings some semblance of order to this great question.

**The work of the Holy Spirit in the 20** th **century**

It is my own opinion that the churches in the United States, as a general rule, are and have been in the dark ages with reference to seeking the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

Said one well known theologian in objection to the baptism of the Holy Spirit, "If it's true where has it been for the last 1500 years?"

My question to him would be, "where was the reformation for the first thousand years?"

I have no objection to the statement that it hasn't been taught, but does that make the Bible wrong? Indeed it does not.

There have been many outpourings of the Holy Spirit over the centuries; most notably in our modern United States was the Azusa street revival in Los Angeles California that lasted from 1906 until 1915.

William Seymour, a humble descendant of slaves wanted so much to learn about God's works that he sat outside the class room in the hallway of Charles Parham's class to hear him teach in Houston Texas. He was not allowed to sit in the class room with the other students because he was black, yet he heard the teaching and simply believing the Bible he carried the message to Los Angles and a great revival broke out.

Yet in spite of this long lasting move of God, most of the main stream churches padlocked their doors on the message of Acts 2:4.

Since then some of the pioneer churches; who had received great awakenings from God in the past; have given over to allowing practicing homosexuals to become pastors and teachers in their churches. Many churches have acquiesced to a form of sub-prime Christianity. They cannot stand for the right and shun the wrong because the power and the fire is not there.

If ever there was a time when the United States needs another revival such as the Azusa street revival of 1906, it is now. It is time for revival, yet we cannot follow the status quo and receive it.

If we try to rearrange God's word to suit our comfort status and avoid offending anyone, it's just not going to happen.

William Seymour said this, "If you don't get rid of your is'em's and skis'ems this revival will not continue." It didn't. Before long, different churches sprang up and introduced their own is'ems and skis'ems to the work that God had done and ended up like the church at Corinth, desiring the gifts and manifestations of the Holy Spirit, yet mishandling them and the doors of the other churches remain padlocked against the true teachings of the Holy Spirit baptism as laid down in the word of God.

This has led to a dearth of the Holy Spirit's moving in so many lives and they keep attempting to spread the news of the Gospel of salvation without the power and the fire to do so.

John the Baptist said in Matthew 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

Matthew 3:12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

The chaff is mixed with the wheat and without that promised power we cannot burn it away.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (KJV)

To be effective witnesses for God we must have the power of the Holy Spirit on us and in order to do that we must be as humble as William Seymour.

No one could have imagined that the Azusa street revival would signal the greatest missionary movement the world has ever witnessed. Yet so many of the main line churches rejected the power and witness of the beginning of the Pentecostal movement.

Almost every nation and continent received new power to witness from the affects of this great outpouring. At the time William Seymour sat out in the hallway, it was against the law for a black man to attend those lectures, yet this was the man God used to start this great awakening. People received a new passion for prayer for the lost and the hundreds of thousands came to the Lord.

If there ever was a time we need that, the time is now, both across the waters of the oceans and in heart of America.

There are approximately 550 million Pentecostals world wide, and yet we have not grown much past the Church at Corinth as a general rule, in knowing how to handle the Pentecostal experience.

We seek the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, tongues and so forth, missing the prime purpose for the baptism in the Holy Spirit and then we end up misusing that, and the other churches rush to padlock the doors against such actions.

In all this we must not begin to:

1. Place an overemphasis on power rather than righteousness.

2. Place an overemphasis on praise, to a God they no longer pray to.

3. Place an overemphasis on the gifts of the Spirit - rather than on the Lordship of Christ.

In Matthew 23:23 Jesus exhorts, Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Have we left the other necessary things undone while we concentrate on our favorite theologies? Theologies that enable us to lean back in our seats in the pews every Sunday morning and yawn and quietly close our eyes while hell opens its mouth wide to receive the millions?

Back when the Chevrolet Automatic transmission first came out, a man in our community bought one of these new cars. He drove it home which was about sixty miles away and the next day he brought it back to the car company and complained that it took him forever to get home and make the trip back.

The salesman had him show him where he placed the gear indicator and said "Sir, you've been driving this car in low gear."

Without the baptism in the Holy Spirit, we are operating in low gear. John stated that he (The Lord) would baptize us with the Holy Ghost and fire and without the fire of the Holy Spirit anointing us, fueling us, we are at a great disadvantage. It's not about 'haves and have nots' it's about being equipped to do a job.

A question might be, "When did the church lose this baptism in the Holy Spirit?"

It was probably during the first four centuries when the church was very often besieged by Roman persecutors and much Christian literature was destroyed, hidden or lost. After this the church entered what has become known as the Dark Ages for a thousand years, until the dawning of the light which led to the Reformation. There was a widening rift between the Spirit-filled religion of Jesus and an alternative Christianity which married various philosophies and pagan ideas to a ritualistic and clergy-dominated organization. The spiritual fire simply went out!

Fox, in his book 'Foxes Book Of Martyrs' gives a good indication of the darkness of those times.

Perhaps during the reformation the church thought the reformation message was enough. Perhaps the church was so busy with the reformation that it had little time to go back for the fire that the Lord provided for the earliest Christians.

I have read of a time when a family would visit their neighbor and when the visit was over they would carry a bucket of coals back to their house to rekindle the fire to stay warm in winter.

The church has forgotten to take the fire of the Holy Spirit with them.

One night I took my grandson to a nearby church and a woman got out of order and I later complained to my pastor that I didn't much like wild fire and he looked at me and said, "I'd rather have wild fire as no fire."

Without the baptism in the Holy Spirit there is no fire and I suppose it is better to have fire out of control than no fire at all, however I just can't help but lay the responsibility at the feet of the pastors for not teaching the correct use of the gifts of the Spirit in the churches that have them in operation.

Jesus told Peter that if he loved him to feed his sheep, and feeding sheep entails quite a bit more than shoving food in their mouths as witnessed by the 23rd Psalm.

God send the comforter to every church in every nation and let us wait together in prayer until we receive our Pentecost. We can't go on the fire of our grandfathers. I pray the reader will consider the teaching of Dr. Adrian Bury as he addresses the problems in the church today.

We need to begin to prayerfully teach and that is the purpose of this book.

Dr. Adrian Bury

On the gifts of the Holy Spirit

Section 1

Introduction:

There are many churches and Christian movements in existence which claim to be Evangelical. Amongst them, as they teach dogmatics based only on the Bible, there is solid agreement on basic questions of theology, although there may be differences in matters which are more difficult to determine.

The Evangelical camp is divided, however, in one certain area – on the matter of one of the aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit. Charismatic and Pentecostal denominations claim that the spiritual gifts described in 1 Corinthians 12-14 are still to be used in the churches, whereas many other churches hold to the Cessationist view – that God caused these to cease, or withdrew them, around the end of the first century.

The practice of individual believers and churches is of course determined by their opinion in this regard, but the answer to the problem must not be sought primarily in practice or experience, but only in the Bible.

Why are there such marked differences of opinion?

Confusion has frequently been experienced in the Charismatic movement, and Derek Prince has written the following about mixed messages, "I have noticed that mixtures cause two things: first confusion, then division. For instance, we have a message which is partly true and partly false.

People react in one of two ways: some see and concentrate on the good, and so they accept the bad too. Others concentrate on the bad, and reject the good too. In neither case are God's purposes fulfilled." 1

The problem is, that people often do not examine phenomena on the basis of the Bible, but react emotionally, and two frequent reactions are: "swallow it hook, line and sinker," or "throw the baby out with the bath water." The Biblical approach is, "test everything, hold on to the good." (1 Thess. 5: 21).

One very frequent cause of problems is that rather than examining the details of a message, people look to the person who is teaching it. If the person has always taught well before, and is considered an authority, or particularly if he or she is a popular, and in the worldly sense a charismatic figure, then everything that he says tends to be accepted as correct. If for others this person is not a favorite or attractive, then what he says must be wrong.

This clearly leads to division. Another difficulty is that people examine seemingly new teachings on the basis of their own traditions, or favorite theological systems, many of which involve extra-biblical presuppositions. "We have always done it this way," is a difficult barrier to break through.

I should like to examine the teaching on spiritual gifts in the Bible, and then look at several Cessationist arguments, also in the light of Scripture. In subsequent sections I will deal with practical matters concerning the baptism in the Spirit and use of the gifts, and also examine what I consider to be unacceptable "Charismatic" phenomena.

You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit

John the Baptist promised that Jesus would baptize his followers with the Holy Spirit, "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." (Matthew 3: 11 – see also Mark 1: 7-8; Luke 3: 16; John 1: 33).

Before his death on the cross, Jesus also said to his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit, "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you for ever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you." (John 14: 16-17 – see also John 14: 26; 15: 26; 16: 7-15).

After his resurrection, before being taken up into heaven, Jesus emphasized that for the time being the disciples should do nothing, but they should first wait for this gift, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." (Acts 1: 4-5).

This was necessary for them to be able to bear effective witness to Jesus, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1: 8). This was the last thing Jesus had to say before he was hidden from their sight by the cloud (Acts 1: 9).

On another occasion, Jesus listed the signs which would follow the believers, "And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink poison it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." (Mark 16: 17-18).

These include miracles and spiritual gifts, which we read did in fact accompany the preaching of the gospel, "This salvation was first announced by the Lord... God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will." (Hebrews 2: 3-4).

Pentecost:

On the day of Pentecost, ten days after Jesus had departed, the promised Holy Spirit came, "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place... All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them." (Acts 2: 1: 4).

Because of this occurrence, and as many were present in Jerusalem at the feast, a crowd gathered. Peter grasped the opportunity and preached the gospel to them.

He explained what had happened in this way, "These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heaven above, and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.

The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Acts 2: 15-21).

Peter said that "this" (the events of Pentecost, including speaking in tongues) is that which was prophesied by Joel. If we look at the prophecy, however, we can see that even now only the first part has been fulfilled. The great day of the Lord, combined with the astronomical phenomena, has not yet come. This means that we are still in the last days, which began at Pentecost. There is no indication that the prophecies or visions would cease before the end of the last days.

At the end of his sermon, Peter says the following, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call." (Acts 2: 38-39). It appears that this promise is completely general. As long as the day of grace lasts, it applies to every single one who repents and believes.

The new covenant:

The promise mentioned above is particularly wonderful, as a huge change occurred in regard to the Spirit when the new covenant was established. Although a detailed study of God's covenants is not appropriate here, I will briefly list the features of the two most significant of these.

Mosaic covenant:

Established------between God and the people of Israel

Promise-----God will give the people a great land

Condition-----they will keep the Sinaitic law

Continuing sign, festival for renewal of the covenant-----they remember the Sabbath day

Sign and seal of entry to the covenant-----each male is circumcised following natural birth

New covenant:

Established-----between God and those who are "in Christ," regardless of nationality

Promise------eternal life

Condition------faith in and obedience to Jesus

Continuing sign, festival for renewal of the covenant-----they celebrate the Lord's supper

Sign of entry to the covenant baptism following spiritual regeneration

Seal of the covenant-----they receive the Holy Spirit

The concept of baptism as a new covenant fulfillment of circumcision can be seen in the following passage, "In him (Christ) you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead." (Col 2: 11-12).

We read of the Holy Spirit as a seal in the following verses, "Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession – to the praise of his glory." (Ephesians 1: 13-14); "He set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." (2 Cor 1: 22).

Under the old covenant, not every believer could enter God's presence as a priest, and not everyone received the Holy Spirit. Only a few privileged people who carried out certain tasks had the Holy Spirit, like priests, kings and prophets. Under the new covenant, everything has changed. Every believer is now a priest (1 Peter 2: 9), everyone receives the Holy Spirit (Acts 2: 38-39) and everyone can prophesy (1 Cor 14: 31).

Since the day of Pentecost, there has been no change in the covenant by means of which God enters into relationship with his people. The new covenant in the blood of Christ (Luke 22: 20) is still in force. We have no reason to assume that, in the meantime, God has decided he will no longer give us the Holy Spirit, or even that he will give him in a different way from in the Early Church.

Speaking in tongues and prophecy:

Four significant cases can be found in the book of Acts, where believers were filled with the Holy Spirit: these occurred in Jerusalem (Acts 2: 1-13); Samaria (8: 14-17); at Cornelius' house in Caesarea (10: 44-48) and in Ephesus (19: 1-7). In every case, certain visible phenomena accompanied the infilling of the Holy Spirit.

In Jerusalem, there was the sound of a wind, tongues of fire, and speaking in tongues (1: 2-4). We hear no more of the first two manifestations, either in Acts or in the teaching of the epistles. It is not written what happened in Samaria, but it must have been something spectacular to arouse the interest of Simon Magus (8: 18-19). At Cornelius' house they spoke in tongues (10: 46), and in Ephesus they also spoke in tongues, as well as prophesying (19: 6).

In all three cases, therefore, where the Bible writes what phenomenon accompanied the baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues occurred. It is not written specifically that speaking in tongues is the sign of baptism in the Holy Spirit, as is taught by many Pentecostals, but it is interesting to note that when Peter heard the Gentiles speaking in tongues, he accepted this as the work of the Holy Spirit, and immediately organized their baptism (Acts 10: 47-48).

In the first epistle to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul teaches in detail on the use of the spiritual gifts, and in chapter 14, he emphasizes speaking in tongues and prophecy. In spite of the fact that the Corinthians were disorderly in many of their practices, including the gifts of the Spirit, Paul does not forbid their use.

He teaches them rather how to use these correctly, and indeed exhorts them to use the gifts. "But eagerly desire the greater gifts," (1 Cor 12: 31); "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy." (14: 1). This following instruction of his is especially important for our subject, "Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues." (1 Cor 14: 39).

As I also mentioned above, prophecies certainly need to be examined. "Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said." (1 Cor 14: 29); "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good." (1 Thess 5: 19-21). It follows from this that individual prophecies should be neither accepted nor rejected without judging them.

From the above brief summary, we can see that the Bible teaches about spiritual gifts, speaking in tongues, prophecy, and this teaching is found in verses which are clear and easy to understand. Pentecostals have not invented these, they are to be found in the Bible. At Pentecost, Peter preached that the gift of the Holy Spirit is, "for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God with call." (Acts 2: 39). There is no restriction to be seen here, either in time or distance.

If God really did intend to discontinue the baptism in the Holy Spirit, therefore, or withdraw, change or modify it, as Cessationists claim, then there would have to be unequivocal teaching on this in the Bible too. Let us see if there is!

Cessationist arguments answered:

In this section, several common arguments raised against the use of gifts of the Spirit in the modern church are introduced, considered and refuted. Some of these I have heard personally, others, or the same ones, I have read in Legrand's book and on the bible.ca website (see Bibliography).

Spiritual gifts were in operation until the last Biblical book was finished, but there has been no need for them since then.

The argument is, that God spoke through the spiritual gifts until the Bible was written, but he has not spoken in this way since then, as we now have the final revelation.

It is written in 1 Corinthians 13: 8-10, "Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears." Here, "perfection" refers to the Bible, and after it was written, the "imperfect" spiritual gifts ceased.

The response to this would be:

In order to interpret the Bible, certain hermeneutical principles need to be applied, for instance, "Always interpret a particular passage of Scripture in the light of the systematic teaching on the subject. All verses which treat the subject must be considered, not just one," and "interpret difficult verses on the basis of clear passages. A favorite trick of cults is to select a difficult passage and then construct their unique teachings on it." 2 In the above case, these rules are broken, as a figurative passage is selected, interpreted in an arbitrary manner, and clear Biblical teaching is thus denied.

If 1 Cor 13 is considered in context, Paul's teaching is that the spiritual gifts are temporary, only to be used during our life on earth, but love remains for ever. "Perfection" thus refers to the condition following death, or the eternal state, when we see the Lord face to face and imperfect knowledge ceases. 3

The Bible cannot have replaced spiritual gifts, as the purpose of the Bible is not the same as that of the spiritual gifts.

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Tim 3: 16). Scripture is for the teaching of correct doctrine and practice. It can be said that the New Testament is equivalent to the "apostles' teaching" (Acts 2: 42), as they (or their companions) wrote it. God's final revelation was his Son (Hebrews 1: 1), and the teaching about the Son is found in the New Testament. With this, the canon was closed, and since then God has not revealed new information on dogmatics.

"But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort... he who prophesies edifies the church. (1 Cor 14: 3-4). As is the case with any of the spiritual gifts, we cannot claim that prophecy is infallible, as the Scripture tells us it must be tested (1 Cor 14: 29; 1 Thess 5: 19-20). It is not written anywhere that NT prophecy will contain new doctrine, but it can be a current message to a specific congregation, for edification or exhortation.

The content must be examined on the basis of Scripture, as it must not be in conflict with it. The Spirit of God does not contradict what He has already revealed. Let us look at an example, "During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers, living in Judea.

This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul." (Acts 11: 27-30). Agabus' message, that there would be a great famine, did not contain new doctrine, but simply encouraged the church to prepare for the difficult times, and to help their brothers and sisters who were struggling with these problems.

Speaking in tongues is not usually understood by those present, as a foreign language is spoken supernaturally, "For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no-one understands him; he utters mysteries by the Spirit." (1 Cor 14: 2); "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful... I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all.

But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue." (1 Cor 14: 14, 18-19). From these verses it is clear that speaking in tongues cannot be for teaching, as neither the speaker nor the listener understands it. On the other hand, the Bible is for teaching.

Even if there is interpretation of tongues, "so that the church may be edified," (1 Cor 14: 5), this does not contain teaching, but it is rather prayer (1 Cor 14: 14) or praise (Acts 2: 11; 1 Cor 14: 16), "For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God." (1 Cor 14: 2).

Paul wants all the Corinthians to speak in tongues (1 Cor 14: 5), and he himself speaks in tongues more than them (v. 18), but not in the church (v. 19). He uses speaking in tongues for prayer and worship, "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will also sing praise with my mind." (1 Cor 14: 14-15 – see also Romans 8: 26-27; Ephesians 6: 17-18). Just because we have the Bible, it does not mean we do not need to pray or worship. Speaking in tongues helps us to do this.

The Bible does not play the same role as the other spiritual gifts either, such as healing or miraculous powers (1 Cor 12: 9-10).

From the above, we can see that even if we have the Bible, we cannot claim that we do not need the spiritual gifts, as these have a different function. This is like saying that if I buy a washing machine, I do not need a vacuum cleaner, because both work by electricity.

In the same way, both the Biblical writings and the gifts are inspired by the Holy Spirit, but these are different works of the Spirit. To use another illustration, this would be like saying if I have an instruction manual on how to drive my new car, I do not need to put petrol in it. The truth is, that we need both the Bible and the gifts of the Spirit in order to live balanced, effective Christian lives.

2. The Holy Spirit was only given through the apostles, by laying on of hands.

The argument is, that the Holy Spirit was only given when the apostles laid their hands on someone. As the last apostle (John) died around AD 100, the last person who was able to use spiritual gifts cannot have lived later than AD 200.

My response to this would be the following:

It is written in Acts 8: 14-17, "When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit." It is not written in this passage, that exclusively the apostles had to pray for the Holy Spirit, it is just that it is what happened in this case.

Perhaps even the evangelist Philip thought that it was necessary for the apostles to be present for the Holy Spirit to be given, but Paul's later experience shows differently, see point D below.

Although their ministry was unique, the twelve were not the only apostles. Paul was not one of them, but he was the apostle who prayed for the Ephesians to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19: 1-7). Also mentioned as apostles are Barnabas (Acts 14: 14), Andronicus and Junia (Romans 16: 7) and Titus (2 Cor 8: 23). We do not know how these became apostles, how many of this type of apostles there were, or how long they lived.

The baptism in the Holy Spirit did not only occur by the laying on of hands. On the day of Pentecost and in Cornelius' house, it happened spontaneously, without anyone praying.

Who prayed for the apostle Paul? "Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord – Jesus who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here – has sent me that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'" (Acts 9: 17). Ananias was not an apostle, and not even a church leader, but according to verse 10, he was just "a disciple."

In the light of the above verses, the claim that the Holy Spirit was only given when the apostles laid their hands on someone has no support.

Speaking in tongues is a sign for unbelievers.

The argument is, that certain gifts were signs for unbelievers, like miracles, healing and speaking in tongues. These were only needed at the beginning of the church age, in order to accredit the message of Christ, and then they ceased. "Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers," (1 Cor 14: 22); "where there are tongues, they will be stilled." (1 Cor 13: 8).

I would reply to this as follows:

There are still unbelievers in the world, and the vast majority of them would probably never read the Bible, even if it were available to them. In fact, huge numbers have never heard of the Bible or even the name of Jesus. The idea that these signs are no longer needed is not very convincing.

The argument is that the so-called "sign gifts" have ceased, as we now have the Bible to confirm the message of the gospel. This would raise the problem that, if this were the case, there would now be only one witness to the truth. The Jewish law required that there be two or three witnesses for a matter to be established (Deut. 19: 15; cf. 1 Tim. 5: 19; Heb. 10: 28). There is also a Roman proverb which states, "Testis unus, testis nullus" (One witness is no witness).

Jesus himself stated that if people did not believe his words, they should look at the works he did as confirmation that he spoke the truth (John 10: 25-38; 14: 11). He also stated how serious a sin it was when his opponents claimed he did his miracles by demonic power (Mat 12: 24-32).

As there are many messages being proclaimed in the world today, all clamoring for adherents, it is as important now as it always was that the message of the gospel should not be just talk, but that it be confirmed with signs following, thus providing a second witness to the truth (Mark 16: 19-20; 1 Cor. 2: 1-5; Heb. 2: 3-4).

One purpose of speaking in tongues is as a sign to unbelievers, but this is not its only function. For instance, Paul writes that he speaks in tongues more that any of the Corinthians (1 Cor 14: 18), but he does not wish to do this in the church (v. 19).

Speaking in tongues also has an important purpose if someone is alone when he practices it, and it cannot be a sign to anyone. If someone speaks in tongues, his spirit is praying (v. 19), he prays, sings praises and gives thanks (v. 15-17), and edifies himself (v. 3).

The Holy Spirit helps us to pray when we do not know how to, and speaking in tongues may be included in such a prayer, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (Eph 6: 18); "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses.

We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will." (Rom 8: 26-27). We cannot assert that Christians since the Apostolic age have not been in need of help like this.

Tongues in the Bible were recognized languages

Another objection that is raised, in connection with the concept of tongues being a sign to unbelievers, is that tongues in the Bible were known, recognized languages, whereas the tongues manifested in modern times in Pentecostal/Charismatic circles have been analyzed by linguists and found to be non-recognizable, unstructured, repetitive successions of unconnected syllables, in other words, gobbledegook. The conclusion then drawn is that all modern tongues are of this type, and so they cannot comprise the Biblical gift.

The following counterarguments could be mentioned:

Although the idea is accepted that tongues are, or should be "real languages," the Bible does not indicate that tongues must be understood every time they are uttered. They were understood on the day of Pentecost, or at least, the language(s) of fifteen different regions are mentioned. There were 120 people speaking in tongues at Pentecost, however, and we do not know if all the languages they spoke were understood, and in the other cases in Acts, at Cornelius' house and in Ephesus, there is no mention that anyone understood the tongues.

When writing to the Corinthians, Paul says, "For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no-one understands him: he utters mysteries with his spirit." (1 Cor 14: 2). So in the case mentioned here, no-one is expected to understand the tongue. A tongue uttered in the context of a meeting must generally be interpreted (1 Cor 14: 27). This is to be done, however, with the help of another spiritual gift (1 Cor 12: 10; 14: 13), indicating that it is not understood in the natural way.

There are over 5000 living languages and dialects spoken in the world today, not to mention all the dead ones there have ever been, so the Holy Spirit has plenty of languages to choose from which are unfamiliar to the speakers and the hearers. We cannot expect them all to be well known, though they do all mean something (1 Cor 14: 10-11). Paul even refers in passing to "tongues of angels" (1 Cor 13: 1), though it is questionable whether this is to be taken at face value. Even so, why should we expect always to recognize a tongue, even if it is a living language?

When tongues are used for private prayer and praise, there is no real need for the utterance to be understood anyway. (1 Cor 14: 2).

It appears that tongues were only understood when this was in line with God's specific purpose, for example, at Pentecost. In this case, tongues were indeed "a sign for unbelievers," but as mentioned above, this is not the only function of the gift.

It is acknowledged by this writer that not everyone is filled with the Spirit who claims to be, just as not everyone is saved/born-again who claims to be. Due to this fact, there are undoubtedly cases of speaking in tongues which are not of the Holy Spirit.

These could be of the flesh, or even demonic, in which case it is unlikely that any sense could be made of the tongue, as it may not be a real language. This situation could even be common in certain circles.

It is not logical to conclude that this must be so in every case, however. This is the fallacy of extrapolation. This is like saying that, because there are some false prophets around, all prophets must be false (see below). This indicates the usual unwillingness to "test all things."

When it is God's will and purpose for this to be the case, utterances in tongues are still recognized and understood in a natural way in the modern age.

Although I speak several modern languages, I have personally never heard speaking in tongues which I understood. I am also aware that many "urban legends" are circulating on this subject, from both sides of the camp. I should like to just mention a few cases, however, which I have heard from people I consider reliable Christians of long standing, who would have no reason to exaggerate or give a false testimony.

First of all, the following is from John Edwards, who for a time was pastor of the Bangor Assemblies of God Pentecostal Church in North Wales, and who I have known for over 20 years. His wife is Pauline Edwards, also an AOG pastor, and now missions director for unreached people groups with British Assemblies of God. He mentions the following cases, I quote:

A lady we lived near to in London, who worked with the Apostolic Pentecostal Church told us that whilst in Ghana she heard an African speaking in perfect Welsh. Since the lady was Welsh, she understood the language. The African person had no knowledge of the Welsh language.

I, John, used to go to a meeting in Aylesbury in the home of a doctor who was a specialist at Stoke Manderville Hospital. During one of the meetings I brought a message in tongues and someone interpreted it. One foreign lady from the hospital was very excited as I had spoken in a Malaysian dialect that she understood.

My wife, Pauline, prayed for some pastors in Burundi to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. One of them began speaking in English, saying, "Jesus is king' etc.. He had no knowledge of English, as it is a French speaking country.

Many examples of recognized and understood tongues are documented in the book, "When the Spirit speaks" by Ralph W. Harris (see bibliography). According to this, there have been many occasions in recent years when languages such as French, German, English, Polish, Croatian, Hebrew, Greek and Latin as well as various African and Asian tribal languages have been spoken "in tongues" by those who never learnt or understood them, but these were understood by others who were present.

The spiritual gifts ceased at the end of the first century.

It is claimed that the use of spiritual gifts in the church ceased at a very early period, approximately at the end of the Apostolic age. The conclusion is then drawn from this, that God withdrew the gifts at that time. The modern use of certain spiritual gifts only dates from the beginning of the 20th century, but these are false, they are not from the Lord, as he withdrew the real gifts a very long time before this.

This can be answered as follows:

This argument is based on experience, not on the Bible. Experience should not be the basis of a theological viewpoint, though in certain cases it may be used for the sake of illustration or testimony. Experiences can be interpreted in several ways. The following alternative explanation is perfectly acceptable:

God did not withdraw the Biblical gifts, but rather Christians neglected and lost them. We learn from Church History that almost every Biblical doctrine was lost or became distorted over the years, at least in the official church. Since the 16th century Reformation, God has been restoring the knowledge of Biblical truths in the universal church.

This process has not proven simple, as at each step there has been resistance, as well as excesses. As part of this process of restoration, the use of the spiritual gifts has become widespread in the church since the beginning of the 20th century.

What happens if we take the above argument further? Is it really true that everything that happened in the early church was according to God's plan? If this is so, then was the mediaeval church right, and the Reformation a mistake? If the "Sola Scriptura" of the Protestant movement is correct, then the Reformation was not a mistake, but then neither was the restoration of the spiritual gifts as a subsequent step.

It is not even true that the gifts ceased at the end of the first century, because there are references to be found in the writings of the early church fathers on the use of e.g. tongues and prophecy in the 3rd (Novatian) 4 and even the 4th (Hilary) 5 centuries.

Modern speaking in tongues is of the Devil.

It follows from the previous argument, that as God withdrew the spiritual gifts at the end of the Apostolic age, then all such manifestations in modern times are an imitation of the Devil. (A less extreme view is that this could be simply gobbledegook, i.e. of the flesh).

I would answer this as follows:

We have already seen that the view, according to which God discontinued the spiritual gifts after the first century, cannot be supported from the Bible.

The Bible mentions speaking in tongues in five separate passages (Mark 16: 17; Acts 2: 4; 10: 46; 19: 6; 1 Cor 12-14). In every case, this is the work of the Holy Spirit. There is no case in the Bible where someone speaks in tongues under the influence of the Devil or a demon.

Jesus gave the following promise, "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For anyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11: 9-13).

Jesus clearly stresses, that if someone asks for the Holy Spirit from his Father, this is exactly what he will receive, and not something bad instead.

Certain experiences indicate that the Devil is able to imitate spiritual gifts. Apparently, some Satanists speak in tongues. Spiritists are able to heal to some extent. The Bible warns us that, as well as true ones, there will also be false prophets (Eph 4: 11; Mat 7: 15-20). Imitations do exist therefore, but Luke 11: 13 does not apply to cases like these. If someone is not born again, then God is not his Father, and if he simply opens himself up to some spiritual experience, it is possible that he will receive something from the Devil. The promise, on the other hand, definitely does apply to God's born-again children.

In the light of the points listed above, the claim that all modern speaking in tongues is of the Devil is clearly unbiblical.

There will be false prophets.

**The argument is as follows:** the Bible teaches that there will be false prophets, e.g., "I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied." (Jer 23: 21); "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time." (Mat 24: 24-25). This means that the Pentecostals and Charismatics are these false prophets.

I would respond in this way:

This argument "throws out the baby with the bath water." To draw a conclusion thus: "there will be false prophets, therefore all prophets are false," is not logical. If this were the case, then Jeremiah would have condemned his own ministry in the verse quoted above.

In the epistle of Jude and in 2 Peter 2, we read that there will be false teachers, but no-one concludes on this basis that all modern Bible teachers are false.

We read in the New Testament that there are also true prophets in the church, "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues." (1 Cor 12: 27-28); "And it was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up..." (Eph 4: 11-12); "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith..." (Rom 12: 4-6).

As there are both false and true prophets and prophecies, these must be tested in line with the verses already quoted (1 Cor 14: 29; 1 Thess 5: 19-21). Several criteria are to be found in the Bible, as to how we are to examine prophets. In summary, these are the tests:

A true prophet does not teach falsehood (Deut 13: 1-3; 1 John 4: 1-3). The message must be examined on the basis of the word of God.

If a true prophet predicts something, it will happen (Deut 18: 22). Not every New Testament prophecy foretells the future, as it may be a simple word of encouragement (1 Cor 14: 3), but if it contains prediction, this can also be tested.

A possible problem needs to be mentioned in this regard, however. As in Biblical times, the fulfillment of many modern prophecies is conditional. For instance, as the inhabitants of Niniveh repented on hearing Jonah's message, God did not destroy the city.

If a certain prophecy does not find fulfillment in the hearers' lives, but the reason is that they did not meet the conditions, this does not mean that the message was spoken by a false prophet.

A true prophet will have a Christ-like character (Mat 7: 15-16; Gal 5: 22; Phil 2: 5-8). According to the Bible, fruit is more important than gifts. The latter are free and appear instantly, but the former develops over a long period. A Christ-like character, however, remains in the eternal state too, but there will be no need for gifts then.

In line with the previous point, a true prophet will not just have external charisma and gifts, but will actually have a relationship with Jesus, and be obedient to his teaching, i.e. be born again. On the other hand, many will claim to have prophesied and done miracles in Jesus' name, but the Lord will state that he never knew them. (Mat 7: 21-23).

Why would the Bible tell us to test prophecies, if they were all automatically false? The claim that all modern prophets are false is not Biblical.

False signs and wonders

Continuing the previous thought, some make the assertion, that if Pentecostals work miracles, then it is because they are the false prophets that Jesus spoke about, "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time." (Mat 24: 24-25). Another approach is to claim that true, verifiable miracles never happen.

Although the possibility of trickery carried out by "ministries" wishing to authenticate themselves cannot be excluded, healings confirmed by doctors have also occurred at campaigns held by Pentecostal/Charismatic healing evangelists, such as T. L. Osborn. 6 Let us assume that occasionally real miracles do occur. Why would miracles happen, and what do we mean by a false miracle?

It appears that in the Biblical sense, a false miracle is not so much an apparent miracle, which is faked, but a genuine occurrence for which the power source is not the true God. The Egyptian magicians performed miracles by their "secret arts" (Exodus 8: 7), and consider also, "Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs..." (Rev 16: 13-14). It is possible for the Devil to perform miracles.

The purpose of false miracles is so that man will go astray, or accept a false message, "If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, 'Let us follow other gods' (gods you have not known) 'and let us worship them' you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer..." (Deut 13: 1-3); "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect – if that were possible.

So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time." (Mark 13: 22-23); "Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth... He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and all its inhabitants worship the first beast... And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men.

Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth." (Rev 13: 11).

False prophets, therefore, proclaim a false message, and may perform wonders in order to authenticate a false Messiah, the Antichrist, or a religion of lies. This does not apply to Pentecostals.

The majority of Pentecostal denominations are completely Evangelical. Pentecostal teaching is very close to that of the Evangelical Free Churches, with the one difference, that use of the spiritual gifts is accepted.

Charismatic believers are to be found within many traditional churches, e.g. Baptist, Methodist, Anglican and Presbyterian. In my experience, the use of spiritual gifts in the church exalts Jesus, encourages believers to serve others, and invites unbelievers to turn to Christ; as Jesus said, "When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me." (John 15: 26).

I quote T. L. Osborn, the healing evangelist mentioned above, "Some may ask, How may I know that I am saved? How may I be sure that my sins are forgiven? This is life's greatest question. The Philippian jailer asked, 'What must I do to be saved?' And they (Paul and Silas) said, 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved.' Jesus said, 'The one who believes and is baptized shall be saved.'" 7

Spirit-baptized Christians preach repentance and faith in Jesus as the only way to salvation. If a miracle happens to occur, it is only this message that is supported. They are not false prophets in the Biblical sense.

9. The Bible does not teach a second blessing.

Cessationists object to the idea that a "second blessing" exists, following the new birth. Thomas Edgar writes, "The concept of the "second blessing" or "baptism or fullness of the Spirit" presupposes that while Jesus' death on the cross paid for sin, it is insufficient to empower for service, to enable one to be spiritual, or to give effectiveness in prayer. This differs drastically from the teaching of the New Testament." 8

All I can say to this, is I don't see how this differs from the teaching of the New Testament.

Jesus' death on the cross and resurrection had already happened, when the Lord commanded the disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit in order to receive power. (Acts 1: 8).

The events of Pentecost and the three other cases in Acts demonstrate the reality of the baptism in the Spirit.

From Peter's Pentecost sermon we see that laying the foundation of the Christian life happens in several steps, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2: 38). Here we have repentance accompanied by the new birth, water baptism, and baptism in the Holy Spirit.

With Cornelius' household, it appears that repentance and being filled with the Spirit occur at the same time, and baptism follows soon after. (Acts 10: 44-48).

Also in Ephesus (Acts 19), they believed (v. 3-5), were baptized (v. 5), and were filled with the Holy Spirit when Paul laid his hands on them (v. 6).

Three days after being converted on the road to Damascus, Paul was baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit through the ministry of Ananias (Acts 9: 1-19).

We see most clearly from the case which happened in Samaria, that a period of time can elapse between the new birth and the baptism in the Spirit.

Philip preached the gospel in Samaria, "But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." (Acts 8: 12). After this, the apostles came down, "When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus." (Acts 8: 15-16).

From this it is clear that accepting the message in faith and being baptized, although it was enough for them to be saved, as faith is the condition (see Mark 16: 16, "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved"), did not mean that they automatically received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

For this, in this case, they needed laying on of hands, "Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit." (v. 17).

In order to illustrate the distinction between the new birth and the baptism in the Spirit, Kevin Conner draws an interesting parallel with the life of Jesus, which I should like to mention here. 9 In the life of Jesus, the Holy Spirit played a vital role on two specific occasions.

First of all, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit as he overshadowed the Virgin Mary (Mat. 1: 18,20; Luke 1: 35). Conceived and born in this way, Jesus always had a perfect relationship with the Father. He never sinned and always did the Father's will. Nevertheless, at his baptism at the age of thirty, the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus in a special way, in the form of a dove. After receiving this "anointing," the Lord began his public ministry.

In the case of Christian believers there are both similarities and differences with this situation. Before conversion, all men are in a state of spiritual death, the essence of which is that we are separated from God, unable to have a relationship with him (Eph. 2: 1-10). By repentance and faith we are reconciled with God, thereby coming into a relationship with him (2 Cor. 5: 16-23). This is the new birth, which is a work both of the Word and the Spirit of God (Jn. 3: 6; 1 Peter 1: 23).

Having never sinned, Jesus had no need to be born again, as he never came into a state of separation from the Father, but as we have seen above, he did need to be anointed by the Spirit before entering into public ministry. In a parallel fashion, after having been born again, we also need to be anointed or baptized in the Holy Spirit in a subsequent step, in order to be effective servants of the Most High. If Jesus needed to be filled with the Holy Spirit, I should not like to claim that I do not.

I should like to repeat, that acceptance of the message about Christ, justification by faith, is sufficient for someone to be saved according to the Bible. But why should I want to do just the absolute minimum to be saved myself? I consider that selfish. I should like to do everything I can to serve my Lord and others in the most effective way possible, and for this I need the power of the Holy Spirit.

Dogmatic theology cannot be obtained from the book of Acts

The argument has been advanced that teaching should not be based on Acts as it is a historical book and not didactic like the epistles.

Is this supposed to mean that some bits of the New Testament are more inspired than others? Or is this simply a pretext to disregard Acts, because the theology obtained from it does not conform to the preconceived ideas of certain theologians?

The following counterarguments can be mentioned:

It is generally accepted by conservative Biblical theologians that the whole of Holy Scripture is inspired by God and suitable for teaching (2 Tim 3: 16-17). A great deal of dogmatic information is contained only in the historical books of the Old and New Testaments, for example, much of our understanding of God's covenants with man.

There is a very significant area of teaching which can only be found in Acts. This is the only book in the NT and in the Bible which gives an account of how people became Christians in the first place. The Gospels describe the words and works of Jesus, before the church was formed. The epistles and Revelation were written to Christians, to inform, teach, exhort, warn and correct error. So if we want a "theology" of how a non-believer becomes a believer in the church age, the only place to find it is in Acts.

The pattern for this is seen to be that people repented, were baptized in water and were filled with the Holy Spirit. (See for example Acts 2: 38-41, Acts 8: 14-17, etc.). Can it be that a disregard of the book of Acts for teaching is a contributing factor in the use of other patterns in this modern age, such as, "Give your heart to the Lord." This formula is not to be found in Acts, but unfortunately, it is nowhere else in the Bible either.

Those who use this argument may well be guilty of inconsistency. For instance, the argument that the Holy Spirit was only given when the apostles laid their hands on people, although erroneous, is based on incidents found only in the book of Acts.

As a point of interest, just as the book of Acts is the only source of information on how people became Christians in the early church, the only passage where advice is given on how to conduct church meetings is 1 Corinthians 11-14. Chapter 14 verse 26 states, "When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.

All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church." This instruction does include encouragement for all to use spiritual gifts. Perhaps those who run their meetings in a different way to this should be challenged to justify their practices from the Word of God.

Pentecostals are bad.

Various arguments belong in this section. I have heard the following, "Pentecostals are uneducated and anti-intellectual, so it is not worth listening to their arguments," "Pentecostals deny the Trinity, so they are heretics anyway;" "unbiblical things happen at Charismatic meetings," and "many famous Pentecostals fall into sin, so it is clear they are basically bad."

It is possible to respond to these as follows:

These are "ad hominem" and "strawman" arguments. Ad hominem means "against man." The idea is, that if I can show that the representative of a certain teaching is a bad person, then that means his teaching is wrong too. This approach may be justified in certain cases, for instance, if I could show that Jesus did not live a sinless life, then Christianity would not be valid, or if I could prove Joseph Smith was a false prophet, then Mormonism could not be true.

However, the Pentecostal teaching on gifts of the Spirit does not originate from a modern prophet, it is in the Bible. If a certain person calling himself Pentecostal behaves badly, it means that Christians sometimes behave in an inappropriate way – nothing more.

What if we use the "ad hominem" approach against the Corinthian church? These so-called Christians behave in a carnal manner (1 Cor 3: 3): they are envious and argumentative (v. 3), they display party spirit (v. 4), tolerate immorality (5: 1), take each other to court (6: 1), get drunk (11: 21), and some of them deny the resurrection (15: 12). Are we to conclude from all this that their spiritual gifts were false? Paul writes, "You do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed." (1 Cor 1: 7). Even Cessationists must admit that the Corinthians' spiritual gifts were genuine.

We must remember that the Holy Spirit is a gift from God, which even a very young Christian can receive. Cornelius and his household were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues during the first few moments of their Christian lives (Acts 10: 44-48). For this reason, the Corinthians could behave in an immature manner and still use genuine spiritual gifts.

Therefore, if this problem is also encountered in the case of many modern Charismatics, this is not particularly surprising in the light of the Bible, and it definitely does not lead to the conclusion that their spiritual gifts are false. The continuous presence of the Holy Spirit in someone's life will also produce the fruit of mature Christianity (Gal 5: 22-24), but in contrast to the gifts, this does not appear instantly.

If strange things happen at certain Charismatic meetings, this may mean that a mixture of things is going on. The following is a possible explanation: Christians pray for the Holy Spirit, so God gives them the gift. They are filled and receive genuine spiritual gifts. Another group sees this: nothing happens to them, so, in order to conform to their own and others' expectations, they imitate the manifestations. A third group also sees that something supernatural is happening, and they also long for something like that. The problem is, no-one has explained the gospel to them and they have never met Jesus.

They simply open themselves up to some spiritual experience, and so expose themselves to possible demonic influence, as Luke 11: 9-13 does not apply to them.

Or some may even be liberated from demons under the influence of the presence of the Holy Spirit, and these "come out of them with shrieks" (cf. Acts 8: 7). Therefore, the divine, the carnal and the demonic are all going on at the same time. Then what Derek Prince described happens: the manifestations are not tested on the basis of the Bible, but, some see the genuine gifts, and in due course, the good fruit which comes from them, and think that the strange things must also be from God.

Others cannot accept that someone, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, would e.g. roll around the floor barking like a dog, so they attribute everything to the Devil. The opinion of this present author is that, in large, uncontrolled meetings, the above scenario can correspond with reality. Therefore, every single manifestation must be judged, and the good retained. This is the only correct procedure, and the church needs to grow up to this task.

Not all Pentecostals are uneducated. Derek Prince, for instance, was a respected Pentecostal scholar who was highly qualified in a number of fields.

A "strawman" argument means that I misrepresent the teaching of my opponent, then refute the position I myself have imagined, and the matter is considered dealt with.

Perhaps unwittingly, Mohammed, the founder of Islam, used this argument against the Christians. He stated that the Christian Trinity is the Father, the Son and Mary. As Mary is a human being, she cannot be part of the Godhead, so the Christians' teaching is false.

The above accusation, according to which Pentecostals deny the Holy Trinity, is of the same type. It is true that the United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) do not accept the Trinity, as they are modalists (Sabellians).

The vast majority of Pentecostals and Charismatics, however, regard UPCI as a cult, and do not agree with their teachings. It would be possible to argue against Cessationists in the same way: the Jehovah's Witnesses are Cessationists. The Jehovah's Witnesses deny the Trinity, so Cessationists are false teachers. Does this follow? No! Just a comment: if someone argues against the Pentecostals by confusing them with UPCI, he is either very badly informed as to what Pentecostals believe, or he is being deliberately deceptive. In either case, his credibility is compromised.

Let's just finish off with one or two thoughts. In my opinion, the Cessationist view is based on experience and the traditional teaching of certain denominations, not on the Bible. The greatest problem here is that Christians are immature and will not listen to each other – this comment applies to all streams of opinion.

I recently heard a couple of teachings, from which I should like to draw a few ideas: Fundamentalist, Evangelical Biblical theology is very thorough, and provides good defense against deception and the heretical teachings of the cults, but it can be somewhat theoretical and dry.

The fire of the Pentecostals gives power for ministry and practical Christian living, but their Biblical knowledge may be scanty, and if they prefer to concentrate on experience, things can easily go awry. Liberal theology is based on human reason, so many Biblical teachings are denied, but many of them do emphasize the "social gospel," which means they take care of people in need, such as the sick, the poor and the homeless.

When Jesus' disciples asked him what the last days would be like, he indicated what his followers should be like in those days. This teaching is found in Matthew 24-25. We should take care not to be deceived by anyone (Mat 24: 4-7, 23-27), which is only possible if we are thoroughly acquainted with the word of God.

We can see from the parable of the virgins that we need to have enough oil available, which is the anointing of the Holy Spirit (25: 1-13). We need to use the talents we have received from God, which are our abilities and gifts (25: 14-30), and from the story of the sheep and goats, we learn how important it is to take care of people who are suffering hardship (25: 31-46).

These teachings and practices can be adopted from the various branches of Christianity, with the condition that we test all things, and hold on to the good. It is my hope that Christians will soon realize that they all need each other. "Now you are the body of Christ and each one of you is a part of it." (1 Cor 12: 27).

Footnotes:

Derek Prince, Védelem a Hitetéstől, p. 235, Budapesti Autonóm Gyülekezet, 1999.

Avoid Scripture twisting: eight basic rules of Bible interpretation, Watchman Fellowship Inc., On Line http://www.watchman.org/reltop/8rules.htm

Norman Hillyer, Commentary on the Corinthian epistles, in The New Bible Commentary Revised, p. 1068.

"This is He (the Holy Spirit) who places prophets in the Church, instructs teachers, directs tongues, gives powers and healings, does wonderful works, often discrimination of spirits, affords powers of government, suggests counsels, and orders and arranges whatever other gifts there are of _charismata_ ; and thus make the Lord's Church everywhere, and in all, perfected and completed." _Treatise concerning the Trinity, XXIX,_ Novatian (died 257).

"For God hath set same in the Church, first apostles, in whom is the word of wisdom; secondly prophets, in whom is the gift of knowledge; thirdly teachers, in whom is the doctrine of faith; next mighty works, among which are the healing of diseases, the power to help, governments by the prophets, and gifts of either speaking or interpreting divers kinds of tongues. Clearly these are the Church's agents of ministry and work of whom the body of Christ consists; and God has ordained them." On the Trinity, VIII, 33, Hilary of Poitiers (died 367).

T. L. Osborn, _Healing the sick,_ esp. ch. 55; see also e.g. Roberts Liardon, _God's Generals,_ and bibliographies.

T. L. Osborn, _Healing the sick,_ p. 240.

Thomas R. Edgar, _The Cessation of the Sign Gifts,_ On Line  http://www.straitgate.com/articles/Issues/Charismaticism/edgar.html

Kevin Conner, _Understanding the New Birth and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit_ , Sovereign World, 1999, p. 9 ff.

Section 2

Practical Applications

With regard to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we have determined that according to the Bible these should be in operation in the church and in local congregations, as there is no indication that God would cause these to cease before the return of Christ.

In this following section, some practical instructions on the use of the gifts are given. In connection with these, and for the sake of clarity, a few ideas are to be found which were also contained in the previous section.

Foundations of the Christian life

At the end of Peter's sermon at Pentecost, we read the following exhortation, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call." (Acts 2: 38-39). From this verse, we can see that the personal Christian life has three foundations: 1) the new birth following repentance, 2) baptism in water, 3) receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit.

With regard to the Holy Spirit, Peter says that this promise applies to every Christian who will turn to the Lord from then on. His remarks do not permit us to conclude that anyone is left out.

Prophecies and promises

The following prophecy is to be found in the book of Joel, "And afterwards, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days." (Joel 2: 28-29).

This is written in the Old Testament, but it looks forward to another period, as under the old covenant, only certain people anointed for specific tasks received the Holy Spirit. Peter quotes this prophecy on the day of Pentecost, claiming that it was fulfilled at that time. (Acts 2: 15-21).

John the Baptist also speaks of the baptism in the Holy Spirit, "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." (Mark 1: 7-8; see also Mat 3: 11, Luke 3: 16; John 1: 33).

Jesus himself promises that the Father will give the Holy Spirit to all who ask him. (Luke 11: 9-13). For this reason, there is no need to be afraid that if we ask for the Holy Spirit, God will give us something bad instead.

Jesus also teaches at the Last Supper about the coming of the Holy Spirit. (John 14-16). Many verses could be quoted from these chapters, but I will just emphasize one or two points. Jesus must depart, otherwise the Holy Spirit will not come (16: 7).

The Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus (16: 16). If we are led by the Holy Spirit, then Jesus will be at the center of our meetings, our lives, and our thoughts (see also 1 Cor 12: 3). Jesus will send "another Counselor" (14: 16). We learn from 1 John 2: 1, that the first Counselor is Jesus himself, as the same Greek word is used – _παρακλητος (paraklétos)_. The meaning of the word is comforter, counselor, encourager, exhorter, advocate, helper.

Several spiritual gifts also feature on the list of signs, which Jesus claims will follow his disciples, "And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." (Mark 16: 17-18).

It is written in the Acts of the Apostles, that after his resurrection, Jesus was with his disciples over a period of 40 days, and he taught them (1: 3). In this teaching, the last subject he spoke about before his ascension was the Holy Spirit, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." (1: 4-5).

The disciples asked for some information on the role to be played by Israel in the kingdom of God, but Jesus got back to the point, "It is not for you to know... But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (1: 7-8). As these were the last words Jesus spoke during his time on the earth, they must be very important.

So the disciples had to wait for the Holy Spirit before beginning their ministry, as they needed power. Christians today do not need to wait for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, as the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, and has not departed from the earth since then. What this passage does say to us, is that ministry is difficult without the power of the Holy Spirit. If the apostles could not carry out mission work without the Holy Spirit, why should someone think that he can do so now?

Fulfillment

On the day of Pentecost, ten days after Jesus' departure, the promised Holy Spirit came. (Acts 2). We have seen in the previous section, that according to Scripture, speaking in tongues always features among the signs accompanying the baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 2: 1-13; 10: 44-48; 19: 1-7).

Baptisms

The letter to the Hebrews 6: 2 indicates that "baptisms" are part of foundational Christian teaching. Scripture recognizes the following three baptisms in the life of the Christian:

An existing believer baptizes a new convert in water, after he has been born again (e.g. Acts 2: 38). This symbolizes the change that has occurred in his life, and means that from that point on, he commits himself to follow Jesus.

Jesus Christ baptizes the born-again believer in the Holy Spirit (e.g. John 1: 33). He thus receives power for ministry.

The Holy Spirit baptizes the new believer into the body of Christ, which is the church. (1 Cor 12: 13 – "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.") This means that if someone belongs to Christ, he also belongs to the church. No-one can live an isolated Christian life.

The seal of the new covenant

In contrast to the old covenant circumcision (Rom 4: 11), the seal of the new covenant is the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, "Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession." (Eph 1: 13-14); "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Eph 4: 30); "He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." (2 Cor 1: 21-22).

With regard to the fact that the Holy Spirit is the seal of the new covenant, there are several aspects to the work he accomplishes in the life of the Christian believer. In his book, "The Covenants," Kevin Conner summarizes these as follows: 10

The Holy Spirit brings about the new birth (John 3: 3-6; Titus 3: 5),

The Holy Spirit indwells the believer's spirit (Rom 8: 9; John 14: 16-17; 1 Cor 3: 16; 6: 17; 1 John 2: 27),

The Holy Spirit is the anointing who abides within and teaches the new covenant believer (1 John 2: 20; John 16: 13),

The Holy Spirit gives assurance of salvation (Rom 8: 16),

The Holy Spirit fills the believer with himself (Acts 2: 4; Eph 5: 18),

The Holy Spirit by the baptism in the Spirit enables the new covenant believer to speak in unknown languages and edify himself (Acts 2: 4; 10: 44-48; Mark 16: 17; 1 Cor 14: 2, 4, 18),

The Holy Spirit enables the believer to pray (Jude 20; Rom 8: 26-28),

The Holy Spirit enables the new covenant believer to worship in spirit and in truth (John 4: 23, 24; Phil 3: 3, 1 Cor 14: 15),

The Holy Spirit leads and guides the believer into all truth (John 16: 13; Rom 8: 14),

The Holy Spirit enables the believer to put to death the deeds of the flesh (Rom 8: 13),

The Holy Spirit produces the Christ-like nature and character in the life of the believer (Gal 5: 22, 23; 2 Pet 1: 4),

The Holy Spirit empowers the new covenant believer to be a witness for Christ (Luke 24: 49; Acts 1: 8; cf. Isaiah 61: 1),

The Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to those whom he fills (1 Cor 12: 7-13),

The Holy Spirit will bring about the resurrection and immortality of the believer's body in the last day (Rom 8: 11; 1 Cor 15: 47-51; 1 Thess 4: 15-18).

In this article, the baptism in the Holy Spirit and the gifts of grace are dealt with in particular, but that does not mean that the other aspects of his work are not acknowledged.

Practical matters

How to lead someone into the baptism in the Holy Spirit

If someone asks for help in receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit, I would lead him through the following steps:

It is essential to make sure that he has understood the gospel, repented, been born again, and following this has been baptized. If this is the case, then just the third foundation is lacking. (Acts 2: 38-39).

It is important for him to understand the reality of the baptism in the Spirit from the Bible, the Old and New Testament promises, and their fulfillment (based on the above).

He should realize that if he is filled with the Holy Spirit, God will give him the ability to speak in tongues. He should expect and desire this to happen.

Some people have various reservations and fears with regard to this. The most frequent problems are the following:

"I am not holy enough yet to receive the Holy Spirit."

This can be answered thus: in the same way as salvation, the Holy Spirit is received by faith, not by works. It says in Galatians 3: 1-3, "You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish?"

Cornelius and his household received the Holy Spirit immediately on hearing the gospel, so they had no time for sanctification. (Acts 10: 44-46). We need the Holy Spirit in order to be capable of living holy lives at all (Gal 5: 16, 22-23). Whoever wants to be sanctified first and then receive the Holy Spirit has reversed the divine order, in fact, he may not have understood the gospel at all.

"We have to wait for the Holy Spirit. I may not have waited long enough."

Here is the answer: the disciples waited for the Holy Spirit until Pentecost, but then he came, and is still here. Since then, we have not had to wait. When Paul found out that the Ephesians had not received the Holy Spirit, he immediately took steps to rectify the situation (Acts 19: 1-7).

"If I open myself up to the Holy Spirit, how do I know I will not get a demon instead?"

The answer: this generally goes together with the misunderstanding dealt with under the first point, i.e., "I am still bad, so God does not love me." This is refuted by Romans 5: 8, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus also gave an answer to this, "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For anyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11: 9-13). In other verses, scorpions and snakes symbolize demons (Luke 10: 17-20; Rev 12: 9). So if we ask for the Holy Spirit from our Father, that is exactly what we will receive, not something bad instead.

"God gives other people the Holy Spirit, but maybe he does not want to give him to me."

Peter's promise can be given in answer to this, "... And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call." (Acts 2: 38-39). There are no exceptions.

"Do I have to speak in tongues? That's weird!"

I would answer in this way: speaking in tongues is not compulsory, but it is "part of the package" of the baptism in the Spirit, and it is an important practical tool/weapon to be used in the Christian life and in spiritual warfare. (We will return later to the question of why it is good to speak in tongues.)

"I have been prayed for several times and nothing happened; I did not feel anything."

I would answer thus: the Christian life works by faith, it is not based on feelings. The baptism in the Holy Sprit is frequently accompanied by powerful feelings, but not always. My wife and I once prayed for three members of the same family to receive the Holy Spirit. All three spoke in tongues, but one of them felt great joy, the second cried, and the third felt nothing at all.

If in reality, "nothing happened" with someone, maybe they were too passive when they were prayed for. When Peter said, "you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit," and also when Jesus told the disciples to, "Receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20: 22), the Greek word _λαμβανω (lambanó)_ is used. In contrast to the English, this verb is more active than passive, and it could be better translated as take, grasp. If someone sits there with lips tightly pressed together and expects the Holy Spirit to force him to speak in tongues, he will probably be disappointed.

A person speaks in tongues, not the Holy Spirit. It says in Acts 2: 4 that "they began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them." So they began to speak, and the Holy Spirit gave them the words. Of course, someone will not speak in tongues either, if when hands are laid on him, he prays a lot and very fast in his own language.

So my advice would be, that when someone has understood the foregoing, we should lay hands on the person and pray. His part is to accept in faith that the Lord has filled him with the Holy Spirit, thank the Lord for the gift, then open his mouth, switch on his vocal cords, and speak out loud. It is important that he should not speak in his own language, but just speak, and allow the Spirit to provide the words. It may help to use the illustrations found in John 7: 37-39 and 20: 21-22, by which we come to Jesus and drink in or breathe in the Holy Spirit, and then allow the anointing to flow up from our "innermost being" so that it breaks forth as words uttered in a new language.

In my experience, many people (particularly Europeans) do not obey the instructions given, and a certain amount of encouragement may be required before they actually start to speak in tongues.

Why should we speak in tongues?

It can happen, that someone is filled with the Holy Spirit at some point and speaks in tongues, but subsequently does not use the gift in his everyday Christian life. Because he does not understand the words, perhaps he thinks he is making it all up, and it is not worth doing. On the other hand, the apostle Paul claimed to speak in tongues more than all the rest of the Corinthian believers, although he did not want to do this in the church meeting (1 Cor 14: 18-19). I list here various reasons why it is good to speak in tongues regularly.

Jesus said that his disciples would speak in new tongues. (Mark 16: 17).

He who speaks in tongues, declares the wonders and mysteries of God in an unknown language (Acts 2: 11; 1 Cor 14: 2).

He who speaks in tongues, exalts, praises and gives thanks to God (Acts 10: 46; 1 Cor 14: 16). He can also do this in song (1 Cor 14: 15; Eph 5: 19; Col 3: 16). If we praise God in our own language, sometimes words and ideas fail us, but we would like to continue. We can do so in tongues.

He who speaks in tongues, speaks directly to God (1 Cor 14: 2).

If I speak in tongues, my spirit is praying (1 Cor 14: 14). Paul says he usually prays and sings praises both with his spirit and with his mind. (1 Cor 14: 15). We can also do this.

He who speaks in tongues, edifies himself. (1 Cor 14: 4).

Speaking in tongues also helps us to be edified in faith (Jude 20-21, "You then, beloved, edifying yourselves in your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God..." – based on Greek).

Speaking in tongues is a weapon to be used in prayer and spiritual warfare. Ephesians 6: 18 says, "With all kinds of prayer and requests pray always in the Spirit. So be alert and pray for all the saints with complete perseverance." We know from 1 Cor 14: 14 that speaking in tongues is one kind of prayer and praying with the mind is another. Paul uses both. The Holy Spirit can also lead us in prayer if we pay attention to him (be alert), whilst alternately praying in tongues and our own language.

We can pray in tongues (too), if we do not know what we should pray for. A prayer like this is always in perfect agreement with the will of God. Romans 8: 26-27 says, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our heart knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will."

The above points mainly apply to the use of speaking in tongues in our own private prayers and devotions, but it can also be used in a church meeting, with the proviso that the gift of interpretation of tongues is also in operation. In this case, speaking in tongues is a sign to unbelievers (1 Cor 14: 22), and it also fulfils the Old Testament prophecy found in Isaiah 28: 11, that "with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people." If an unbeliever hears someone speaking in a language he has never learned, he must realize this is a supernatural phenomenon. In the following verses, however, Paul also adds that this must not be done by everyone at once, as in such a case, the unbeliever will be offended.

If the gift of interpretation is in operation together with speaking in tongues, then the whole church is edified (1 Cor 12: 10; 14: 5).

Finally, together with Paul, "I would like every one of you to speak in tongues..." (1 Cor 14: 5).

So if a Christian thinks that he can always praise God perfectly, pray in accordance with God's will, he does not need to be edified, and does not require help with witnessing either, then he should not be filled with the Holy Spirit or speak in tongues.

The gift of prophecy

In 1 Corinthians 12, the apostle Paul teaches on the use of spiritual gifts, and in chapter 14 he particularly emphasizes speaking in tongues and prophecy. Between these two sections, in chapter 13, he indicates that it is great if we wish to use spiritual gifts, but we must always be motivated by love.

We surely know already that the general command of the New Testament is for us to love one another, but if we do not know what divine _agapé_ love is like, this chapter defines it rather well! If after this we still find it difficult to love one another, then the good news is that the Holy Spirit helps us in this area too (Gal 5: 22; Rom 5: 5).

So no-one should use prophecy, or speaking in tongues, or any of the other gifts, so that everyone will look up to him and see what a spiritual person he is. Paul also exhorts us to seek and use the spiritual gifts, not for our own benefit, but so that the church can be edified (1 Cor 12: 11; 13: 1; 14: 1; 14: 4).

In the previous subsection we discussed speaking in tongues, let us now consider the matter of prophecy. We find lists of gifts in three letters of the apostle Paul. In 1 Corinthians 12: 7-11 are the gifts of the Holy Spirit or the charismata, 12: 27-28 contains gifts for church government, Romans 12: 4-8 features the gifts of God, and in Ephesians 4: 11, Christ gives ministry gifts to the church.

The lists overlap to some extent, and prophecy/prophesying is found in all four passages. We know that there were prophets in the early church (e.g. Acts 13: 1, 15: 32), and we also have some insight into the ministry of Agabus (Acts 11: 27-28; 21: 10-11), when God gave him messages applying to current situations. There were also others who prophesied, but were not necessarily prophets (Acts 21: 8).

With regard to the charisma of prophesy, Paul wants us to desire and be eager to prophesy (1 Cor 14: 4, 31). Let us consider now what prophecy is to be used for, and what it is not to be used for: He who prophesies, edifies the church. (1 Cor 14: 4).

Prophecy generally speaks to believers. (1 Cor 14: 22).

However, prophecy may convince an unbeliever that God is present in the church, for the specific purpose of bringing him to repentance (1 Cor 14: 24; cf. John 16: 8). This is often the role of the "word of knowledge." If the Holy Spirit reveals through someone what is in the heart of a visitor, then it will be clear to him that this must be the work of God.

Prophecy is for edification, encouragement and comfort (1 Cor 14: 3). The content of spiritual gifts should therefore be basically positive and constructive. Even if the Lord points out some problem or misunderstanding, the purpose is to provide a solution, and emphasize the possibility of repentance. The Holy Spirit always exalts Jesus, and places him in the center of attention (John 16: 14; 1 Cor 12: 3).

The purpose of prophecy is not for someone to show everyone how well he can prophesy. Such a person exalts himself, and is therefore not acting in love.

Prophecy is not to be used by an embittered person to rebuke his brethren in the name of the Lord. [The fact that the traditional Hungarian Bible translated by Károli Gáspár frequently uses "rebuke" for the Greek word _παρακλησις (paraklésis)_ , including in 1 Cor 14: 3, is rather unfortunate, and has often led to incorrect practice.

The word here is in fact related to the _paraklétos_ name of the Holy Spirit, and it means encouragement, exhortation, supplication, request, comfort. A better word than "rebuke" would therefore be "encourage" or "exhort", as found in newer translations. For rebuke and correction, we have God's word (2 Tim 3: 16). If someone hurts us, we need to deal with the matter privately (Mat 18: 15). God has provided other means for rebuke, not the gifts of the Spirit.]

Prophecy is not for teaching. God's word is given for this purpose too (2 Tim 3: 16). If someone teaches something by means of a spiritual gift which is completely new, or is not in agreement with God's word, then it must not be accepted.

Prophecy is not to be used to manipulate people. It cannot be used to prove that a person's opinion is correct, because God has supposedly revealed this to him. Prophecy is not suitable for giving "guidance" to another Christian either. The Holy Spirit leads the children of God individually (Rom 8: 14).

It can happen, that by means of a gift of the Spirit the Lord can confirm guidance which he has already given to someone, but if an instruction is totally new and unexpected for a person, I would strongly suggest that he test it thoroughly, and continue to pray.

Prophecy does not exercise an irresistible influence on a believer. Our brother should not claim that the reason he interrupted the sermon with his prophesying, was that the Holy Spirit made him do it. The word says, "the spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets." (1 Cor 14: 32). So the prophet himself is able to choose the most appropriate time and means of passing on his revelation.

Prophecy does not necessarily contain information about the future, although it may do so, e.g. in the case of Agabus. The main purpose of prophecy is for encouragement, edification and comfort (1 Cor 14: 3).

Prophecy, as a gift of the Spirit, is not infallible and certainly not of equal value with the word of God, "For we know in part and we prophesy in part." (1 Cor 13: 9). Due to this, prophecies must be tested, "Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said" (1 Cor 14: 29); "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt; test everything; hold on to the good" (1 Thess 5: 19-21).

As prophecies are not infallible and need to be judged, then it is better if they are given in the church meetings, and not passed on privately. In this way, it is easier to avoid making mistakes, or even manipulating one another.

When dealing with usage of the spiritual gifts, therefore, two extremes must be avoided:

The use of spiritual gifts in the church must not be forbidden, because we are afraid people will abuse them, or make mistakes.

The reason Paul included this teaching in his letter, was so that the Corinthians would use the gifts correctly and not incorrectly, "Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant" (1 Cor 12: 1); "eagerly desire the greater gifts" (12. 31); "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy" (14: 1); "Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues" (14: 38); "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt." (1 Thess 5: 19-20).

Prophesies must not be accepted without question as infallible messages from God, but as we have seen above, they must be weighed.

The question therefore arises, how should we examine prophecies? I would suggest the following:

First of all, prophecies and spiritual gifts must be examined in the light of the word of God.

They must not contain any information which is in conflict with the teaching of the Bible. Some cults have been led astray, because they have explained the Bible (away) based on the revelations of a modern prophet, rather than testing the prophet's revelations by the teaching of the Bible. This first point is therefore perhaps the most important.

Prophesying should be carried out in an orderly manner.

Jesus must be exalted, not the prophet.

Prophecy should be encouraging, edifying and comforting, in other words, a positive message. Even if there is a call for the congregation to change, they should not be forced into depression!

Besides the above, the gift of discernment (1 Cor 12: 10) can help to determine the source of a revelation: demonic, divine, or simply human imagination.

If several prophets receive the same message independently of each other, and it also meets the above criteria, then it can be accepted with even greater conviction.

Another question is, who should examine prophecy? 1 Cor 14: 29 as well as 1 Thess 5: 19-21 compared with 12-13 would indicate that in the first place those who themselves prophesy should examine each others' revelations, with especial regard to the opinion of those in congregational leadership. Having said that, all believers are of course responsible for examining what they hear.

d). Other charismata

The apostle Paul lists nine spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12: 8-10. As this is just a list, various explanations exist as to how these gifts should be understood. It appears, however, that some of these worked in the lives of both Jesus and the early Christians. Let us see what these charismata could have been:

Word of wisdom

A person receives wisdom in a supernatural way, as to what he should do in a difficult situation, or how he should solve a particular problem.

Jesus always knew how he should answer the questions asked by his critics, and always managed to avoid the traps. For example, should tax be paid to Caesar or not (Luke 20: 20-25); should the woman caught in adultery be stoned or not (John 8: 1-11).

Jesus told his disciples that when they were persecuted and taken before the authorities, the Holy Spirit would give them what they should say in that situation (Luke 12: 12). This in fact happened with the apostle Paul (Acts 26).

Word of knowledge

The Holy Spirit provides information about a person or a situation, which could not have been known by natural means. This can happen in a church meeting, but it can also be useful in personal witnessing.

When Jesus talked with the woman of Samaria (John 4), he told her she had had five husbands, and the present one was not her husband. The apostle Peter knew that Ananias and Sapphira had lied about their giving (Acts 5).

Faith

It is interesting that faith is included with the gifts of the Spirit, as it is also found on the list of fruits (Gal 5: 22 – Greek _πιστις (pistis)_ = faith, trust, faithfulness), and it is also written that faith comes from hearing the word of God (Rom 10: 17). A special kind of faith is probably meant here, such as is needed for carrying out a particular task, or taking a specific step. In any case, the three areas should probably not be sharply distinguished.

Peter had enough faith to walk on water, as he had received the authority to do so, but only as long as he kept his eyes on Jesus (Mat 14: 29-31). The lame man in Lystra had the faith to be healed (Acts 14: 8-10).

Gifts of healings

The New Testament offers several means for physical healing, including healing received via gifts of the Spirit. Physical healing can occur gradually or suddenly, by faith or by receiving prayer, with or without the laying on of hands.

Jesus Christ healed many people in the course of his ministry (e.g. Mark 1: 29-34). Peter (Acts 3: 6-8) and Paul (14: 8-10) also performed healings. In the 20th century, the gifts of healings began to work in the church in greater measure once again. Many people have been healed at Kathryn Kuhlman's meetings and T. L. Osborne's evangelistic campaigns, among others.

Miraculous powers

A healing which occurs with dramatic suddenness can be considered a miracle, as the Holy Spirit intervenes in the general processes of nature. Other miracles can also happen, which conflict with the laws of the natural world. It is important to note, that these never occur without a reason. They always confirm the message of the gospel, and meet human needs as well.

Jesus changed water into wine (John 2: 1-11), multiplied loaves of bread (Mark 6: 30-44; 8: 1-10), and calmed the storm (Mark 4: 35-41). The apostles (Acts 5: 12-16) and even the deacons (Stephen – 6: 1-8, Philip the evangelist – 8: 6-7) performed miracles.

Prophecy

A message from God for the encouragement, edification and comfort of the congregation.

Examples have been discussed above, but it should also be mentioned, that Jesus himself was also a prophet, e.g. he predicted the fall of Jerusalem (which occurred in AD 70) and listed the signs preceding the end of the age as recorded in Matthew 24. It can seen in the book of Acts that in the early period church leaders frequently received wisdom, insight and guidance through gifts of the Spirit, often in the form of visions or prophecies (Acts 10: 9-16; 13: 1-3; 15: 28; 16: 6-10).

Discernment of spirits

Unfortunately, many excesses have resulted from this one verse. It probably means, that we can be shown by supernatural means what the spiritual source of a certain phenomenon, sickness, problem, teaching or revelation is. Of course, this should only be used in conjunction with application of the Biblical tests.

Jesus always knew what the source of a person's problem was, and treated it accordingly, e.g. he healed one deaf-mute (Mark 7: 31-37), but cast a demon out of another one (Mark 9: 14-29). In Philippi, the apostle Paul cast a spirit of divination out of the slave girl, even though she told the truth (Acts 16: 16-18).

Speaking in tongues

In a church meeting, someone may be prompted by the Holy Spirit to speak or even sing in an unknown language, as the Spirit gives the words. In contrast to speaking in tongues for prayer or praise, not everyone will do this (1 Cor 12: 28-30; cf. 14: 4-5).

Interpretation of tongues

Also in a supernatural way, someone will receive from the Holy Spirit an understanding of the content of the preceding tongue. This is not a translation, as neither the speaker nor the interpreter understands the language. Considering the fact that he who speaks in tongues speaks to God and not to men, and he who speaks in tongues prays, gives thanks and worships, then the interpretation should also be of this character.

How does it work in practice?

This is the most difficult question, as the Bible does not give detailed teaching on it. I can just pass on some advice here, based on the Word and my own experiences:

There are various kinds of gifts, and the Holy Spirit distributes these according to his will (1 Cor 12: 11). As the word "distributes" is in the present continuous tense in the Greek, this means that in a meeting, the Holy Spirit can give any one of the gifts to any one person, but it does not mean that if I have e.g. prophesied on one occasion, then I now "have the gift" and can prophesy at will at any time. This is a dynamic and not a static concept. (I should note, that this is not the case with the "ministry" gifts, but that is a different subject.)

The Word exhorts us to desire the spiritual gifts (1 Cor 12: 31; 14: 1, 12). We should do this, and expect our desire to be fulfilled!

In the same way as everything in the Christian life, the gifts operate by faith, but faith can be of differing degrees (Romans 12: 6). We should not force anything that we cannot do in faith. On the other hand, if we begin to step out in the gifts, our confidence can grow as we gain experience. The Bible indicates we are able to "stir up the gift of God" which is in us (cf. 2 Tim 1: 6).

With regard to the gift of tongues for the church, my experience is that I feel strongly prompted by the Spirit when I should do this. Interpretation, prophecy and word of knowledge have worked in a variety of ways. In some cases, I just know I should step out in faith and speak, even before I have received anything. At other times, I just receive one or two words, and I have to step out with the confidence that the rest will follow. But it can also happen, that I receive the whole message at once.

These gifts can be given in words, but visions are common too, and God can even speak in dreams (Acts 2: 17-18). In the case of a vision, it can be as clear as a cinema film, but sometimes a hazy picture just jumps into my mind for half a second, and I am not even sure if it was significant or not.

When someone thinks he has received something, then he must decide whether to pass it on to the church or not. The spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets (1 Cor 14: 32). But if due to laziness or fear, he does not pass it on, then he is being disobedient to the Holy Spirit, and is also withholding a blessing from the congregation. Of course, when someone is walking in love, he does not wish to do this.

Footnotes:

Conner, K. J., _The covenants_ , p. 89.

Section 3

Charismania

Introduction:

Although in the preceding sections, much has been brought forward to strengthen the Biblical basis for the Pentecostal/Charismatic teaching of spiritual gifts in the church, it is also clear to many observers that a great deal of chaotic and conflicting teaching and practice exists in this movement. On the surface, much of the criticism advanced by Cessationists may seem justified.

A distinction must be made, however, between problems with abuse or misuse of spiritual phenomena, and criticism of the Biblical gifts themselves. In this final section, therefore, I should like to deal with this issue of excesses.

How to recognize the work of the Holy Spirit

Many passages found in the New Testament warn us that the end of this present age will be characterized by unprecedented deception. Jesus told his disciples: "For false christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect - if that were possible.

See, I have told you ahead of time." (Mat 24: 24-25, see also 2 Thess 2: 9-12). This should not cause us as Christians to panic, as we are promised the gift and ability of discernment if we remain alert and close to the Lord (e.g. 1 Cor 2: 14-15; 12: 10).

It seems to be the case, however, that the majority of Christians totally ignore these warnings, taking the attitude that if something apparently supernatural is going on, particularly if it is happening in church, then it must be from God, because someone, somewhere, like the leader, pastor, prophet, teacher, apostle or Pope, will have it all figured out. Nothing could be further from the truth in most cases!

In the light of the above, I should like to look at a number of very clear Biblical principles on how to recognize a genuine work of the Holy Spirit, and hence it should be easier to spot phenomena that are not from God, should they occur.

It must be mentioned first of all that the only basis we have for knowing what the truth about spiritual manifestations is, is the Word of God. Good feelings, or even miracles, do not determine truth. The root of most of the error in this regard is that people tend to chase after feelings and miracles as indicative that God is at work.

There are, however, three possible sources for certain "manifestations" happening to people, and these are the Spirit of God, an evil spirit, or the person's own mind, spirit or soul. Any one of these could imaginably be a source of nice feelings.

Let us consider, then, what we should expect to accompany a genuine work of the Holy Spirit. I am indebted to Derek Prince and Andrew Strom for some of the following arguments (see Bibliography).

The Holy Spirit is holy

The first thing to mention is that as a member of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit is holy, and His presence and work will eventually result in holiness of life and conduct. Jesus said that when the Spirit came, he would convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16: 7-8).

If the Holy Spirit is at work, people will become aware they are sinners, they are subject to judgment, and are in need of forgiveness in order to become acceptable to God. Conviction of sin then leads people to repentance. When Peter's hearers on the day of Pentecost learnt that they had killed the Messiah, they were, "cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the other apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?'" (Acts 2: 37). The Philippian jailer, "fell trembling before Paul and Silas," and asked them, "'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'" (Acts 16: 29-30).

Once repentance has taken place, and Jesus Christ has been accepted as Savior, then the Holy Spirit can give 'refreshment' (Acts 3: 19) and assurance of forgiveness, salvation and sonship: "By him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." (Rom 8: 15-16).

These above features have characterized many genuine revivals in the past, whether they have been of a "charismatic" character, or whether they have not. As a result of John Wesley's preaching for example, grown men would fall to the floor in agony of conviction, and would not be able to get up again until they had repented of their sins and received the joy of reconciliation with God.

With today's widespread gospel of, "Ask Jesus into your heart if you want an exciting life, and hopefully get lots of money too," this vital step of genuine conviction and repentance may well be missing. This is not necessarily the fault of the "sinners" joining the church, as they are just not hearing what would be considered to be the unpopular message of the true gospel.

So it can happen that people in their still unrepentant state, though they may have been told they are now Christians, are looking for some sort of spiritual experience to give them a good feeling and to have a party. Under such circumstances, what they experience can by no means be guaranteed to come from the Holy Spirit.

The work of the Holy Spirit is inextricably linked with the work of Jesus Christ

It is notable in the teaching of the Bible, particularly the New Testament, that not one of the members of the Trinity works in total independence from the others, and each one seeks to glorify the others and not himself. The Father, for instance, created the world by means of the Son (Col. 1: 15-16; Heb 1: 2) and the Spirit (Gen 1: 2; Psalm 104: 30). The Father pointed to the Son, with whom he is well pleased (Mat 3: 16-17; 17: 5), and the Son always did what the Father commanded (Jn 5: 19-20; 8: 28-29).

Similarly, the Holy Spirit did not just decide to come of his own accord, but he was sent to the earth by the Father and the Son. Jesus gave this promise, "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you for ever – the Spirit of truth.

(Jn 14: 16-17), and Peter said on the day of Pentecost, " Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear." (Acts 2: 32-33). And when the Holy Spirit comes he will reveal what the Son gives to him, and always bring glory to the Son: "He will bring glory to me by taking what is mine and making it known to you," "When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me." (John 16: 14; 15: 26).

Because of these things, when we wish to experience the work of the Holy Spirit, we should, for instance, ask Jesus to fill someone with the Holy Spirit, as he is the one who baptizes in the Spirit (Mark 1. 7-8; John 1: 32-34), or we should ask the Father in Jesus' name (Luke 11: 13).

The Holy Spirit does not seek his own glory, does not desire worship, he should probably not be addressed directly, and he always exalts Jesus, drawing attention to his person and work, at least as far as Biblical precedent is concerned.

Two possible exceptions to this could be raised. In the Authorized Version of the Bible, 1 Peter 4: 14 says, "If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: _in their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified._ " It appears, therefore, that we should glorify the Holy Spirit after all. The phrase in italics, however, is missing from the oldest, best manuscripts, and for this reason, it is not included in newer Bible translations.

In the case of the dry bones, the prophet Ezekiel addresses the Spirit, and tells him to come (Ezek 37: 9-10). He only does this, however, at the express command of God, and furthermore he is prophesying to the Spirit here, not praying to him or worshipping him.

For this reason, we should probably not resort to the practice of asking the Holy Spirit to come and fill us. Although doing so should probably not be considered a serious sin, at best we would be "disregarding heavenly protocol," as Derek Prince puts it 11, and at worst we may be in danger of leaving Jesus out of the formula. And if we do this, who knows what spirit may turn up?

Manifestations of the Spirit

With all the supposed "manifestations" of the Spirit occurring nowadays, perhaps it would be useful to check if the Bible has anything to say about such things. The expression "manifestation of the Spirit" does in fact occur in the New Testament (Greek: hé phanerósis tou pneumatos so it is worth while noting what this might be. The phrase occurs in 1 Corinthians 12: 7, where the gifts of the Spirit are listed.

We have already discussed these in section 2, and they are: the message of wisdom, the message of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing of spirits, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues. (1 Cor 12: 8-10).

As has already been stated, where these gifts are manifested, and the content is tested by and is found to be in conformity with the word of God, then we can be reassured that we are dealing with the work of the Holy Spirit.

It could be mentioned in passing, that although the Holy Spirit does not send himself and does not glorify himself, he is the one who decides who to distribute his gifts to on each particular occasion, "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines." (1 Cor 12: 11).

Taking this list as a basis then, how do we assess the series of strange manifestations that often occur in "charismatic" circles nowadays? Caution must be exercised here, that we do not reject everything out of hand because it is "unusual" – God is creative, and 1 Cor 12: 8-10 is probably to be taken as a guideline and not an exhaustive catalogue.

The prophets in the Old Testament, for instance, had to do some very strange things, which actually were from God: one married an immoral woman (Hosea 1-2), another lay on his side for over three years (Ezek 4), and yet another buried a belt in a rocky crevice (Jer 13: 1-6).

People falling off their seats under conviction of sin during a time of revival is not actually mentioned in the Bible as a work of the Holy Spirit either. When assessing the source of certain occurrences, however, it is worth asking the following questions:

Is there any point or purpose to what is going on? Is Jesus glorified? Is the gospel being confirmed by signs? Are people's needs being met, for instance for healing or deliverance? Or is the whole thing just a chaotic mess, about which outsiders are going to think that everyone has gone crazy? (cf. 1 Cor 14: 23). For instance, if someone is healed of a physical ailment, this would fulfill a number of the purposes mentioned above. On the other hand, I personally do not really see the point of gold dust falling out of the air, or even of people just running aimlessly around the room.

Are genuine, Biblical gifts of the Spirit being manifested? Or is it a case of a whole bunch of other stuff instead, which is intrinsically more difficult to test? For instance, what does it mean if, supposedly miraculously, oil appears on people's hands?

Does what is happening, although it may be unusual, testify to the work of a Spirit who is holy? Or are people being induced to do things which are ugly, distorted, or degrading for them is some way? What is particularly concerning here, is not necessarily displays of emotion, like laughing or crying, but rather the strange, jerking movements that are sometimes seen, and especially the examples of animal behavior, such as barking, mooing, or strutting around and pecking like a chicken.

There is no example or precedent in the Bible where someone, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, began to behave like or imitate an animal. God created man to rule over the world, including the animal kingdom, and to subdue it (Gen 1. 27), not to take on its characteristics. There is an example of God having an animal speak like a man (Balaam's donkey, Num 22: 1-22), but not of a man making animal noises. When King Nebuchadnezzar lived like an ox for seven years (Dan 4), this was the result of God's judgment on his pride, not his blessing.

What kind of fruit does it produce?

We must also ask the question, what is the long term fruit in the life of a person, with whom "manifestations" have occurred? After all, what was the point of someone falling on the floor if they are exactly the same when they stand up? The question of fruit has already been touched on in other sections, but let us consider it in more detail here. In the New Testament, the fruit in someone's life refers to the kind of character a person has, and both good and bad fruit is mentioned.

Good fruit, in other words the development of good character traits, is to be considered a work of the Holy Spirit according to Galatians chapter five, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." (Gal 5: 22).

The production of this kind of fruit in someone's life is a work of the Spirit, but this is a different work from the distribution of gifts. The difference between the two can be pictured by thinking of two different kinds of tree, and I am indebted to Pauline Edwards for this illustration.

The first is a Christmas tree with presents hanging on it. The gifts are placed there by the giver so they appear instantly, they do not grow there, their nature does not depend on the type of tree, and they are freely given, not worked for or earned. These represent the gifts of the Spirit as listed in 1 Cor 12. The reception of a gift does not depend primarily on the goodness or most especially on the maturity of the recipient. (It does depend on faith, however, see Gal 3: 1-3 and Rom 12: 6).

This is why a Christian who is five minutes old may well be able to speak in tongues and/or prophesy (see Gal 3: 2 and Acts 19: 1-7 again). As a corollary, the fact that someone is able to move in the gifts is not to be considered a measure of that person's Christian maturity. This has already been discussed in section 1.

The other is a fruit tree. Fruit grows on the tree, and the type of fruit does depend on the nature of the tree. Grapes are not picked from thorn bushes (Mat 7: 16). Fruit does not appear instantly, but it does grow gradually if the tree is actually a fruit tree. This type of tree can represent the Christian life with development of the good character traits as listed, for example, in Galatians 5.

These begin to appear in a person's life after repentance, though they may take time to develop. The presence of fruit, however, is indicative of whether the person is a disciple, and it is also a measure of the Christian maturity of the person.

This is clear from passages such as the following: "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them." (Mat 7: 15-16).

"By this all men will know you are my disciples, if you love one another." (Jn 13: 35). "If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing." (1 Cor 13: 2). "No-one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.

This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are." (1 Jn 3: 9-10). "Then I saw another beast, coming out the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but spoke like a dragon... And he performed great and miraculous signs..." (Rev 13: 11, 13). This last quotation shows that even the false prophet in the last days will do great miracles (have gifts), but will be recognizable by his character (bad fruit).

The development of fruit in a Christian's life is, of course, not just something that occurs automatically if someone happens to "give his life to the Lord" on some occasion and subsequently does nothing else about it.

It depends on "remaining in Christ," which involves walking with him in obedience. Jesus said, "Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me... If you obey my commands you will remain in my love..." (Jn 15: 4, 10). And just as in the case of the gifts, the new birth, and pretty well everything else in the Christian life, the growth of fruit is also a matter of faith: "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value.

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." (Gal 5: 6). It is also true, that having been born again, a person does not only have a new, spiritual nature, but the old, carnal nature still remains and these two are in conflict. "For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want." (Gal 5: 17).

Nevertheless, the Biblical authors clearly expect the normal state of affairs to be that the believer will fight and overcome the carnal nature, so that the spiritual nature will dominate.

This is to be done by faith and with the help of the Holy Spirit: "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will in no way gratify the desires of the sinful nature... Those who belong to Christ have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires..." (Gal 5: 16, 24); "Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation – but it is not the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live..." (Rom 8: 12-13).

In contrast to the fruit of the Spirit, the acts of the sinful nature, which Paul refers to as the flesh (Greek: sarx), are also listed: "The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like." (Gal 5: 19-21). As well as specifically physical sins, it can be seen that transgressions in the area of soul are also included in this concept, involving the intellect, the emotions and the will.

The idea of someone being controlled or driven by the soul rather than the Spirit occurs elsewhere in the New Testament writings too, and it is clear this is not at all positive. "The man without the Spirit (Greek: - psuchikos - of the soul) does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned (Greek: pneumatikos). (1 Cor 2: 14). "But if you harbor bitter envy and ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven, but is earthly, unspiritual (Greek: - psuchikos), demonic.

For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every evil practice." (Js 3: 15). The following verse is also relevant here: "But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, 'In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.' These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts (Greek: psuchikos) and do not have the Spirit." (Jude 17-19).

Unfortunately, the type of carnal attitudes referred to here are not totally lacking from those who claim to be "Christians", even from those who are not "charismatic." Nevertheless, according to the Bible, these things belong to the territory of the flesh, are not of the Spirit of God, and according to the James passage quoted above, could even involve demonic activity.

The point of this being, if the long-term fruit produced in someone's life more resembles that of the flesh than that of the Spirit, then it does not matter what gifts they may have, or what manifestations they have experienced, Scripture would lead us to believe that they are not full of the Holy Spirit, even if they may have been at some time in the past. What occurred could have been of the flesh, of the soul, or even as a result of demonic intervention.

Just to summarize what we have discussed on recognizing the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is sent by the Father in the name of Jesus, and by his activities he will lift up and glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. Any Spirit which denies Jesus or draws attention away from him towards anything else, whatever that may be and however pleasant it may seem, has not been sent by God.

The work of the Holy Spirit brings conviction of sin which results in repentance before giving joy, peace and refreshment. Any activities which provide some "spiritual experience" without repentance and obedience to Christ, even if it is a good feeling and appears to be supernatural, is to be regarded with suspicion.

Any spiritual experience that does not begin to produce the fruit of the Spirit as indicated in Gal 5 is unlikely to be from God, and may well be harmful in the long term.

I should just like to finish off by offering yet another warning. The beginnings of the Pentecostal revival were rooted in various holiness movements, and so those involved knew all about living righteously and obedience to Christ even before they were filled with the Holy Spirit. One hundred years later, this is not necessarily the case any longer.

There was a prophecy recorded from the 1906 'Azusa Street' Revival, which is quoted by Andrew Strom: "In the last days three things will happen in the great Pentecostal Movement: 1) There will be an overemphasis on power, rather than on righteousness; 2) there will be an overemphasis on praise, to a God they no longer pray to; 3) there will be an overemphasis on the gifts of the Spirit - rather than on the Lordship of Christ." 12

This is rather tricky, of course, and much more difficult to spot than the simple case of carnal behavior, as discussed above. All these six things mentioned here are important. It is good if we can preach the gospel with power; it is a desirable and Biblical practice to praise God; it is useful if the spiritual gifts are in operation in the church.

Even so, the three things that will be neglected are much more vital issues, and in fact they lay a foundation for the other three.

Let us be careful, then, to return to a life of prayer, holiness and obedience, so that the world can truly see Jesus' disciples, and the genuine gifts of the Holy Spirit can be manifested amongst us.

Dr. Adrian Bury

Footnotes:

11. Prince, Derek, _Protection from Deception_ , ch. 1.

12. Quoted by Andrew Strom in _The Coming Great Reformation,_ ch. 3.

Bibliography:

Conner, Kevin J., Malmin, Kenneth P, _The Covenants_ , City Bible Publishing, Portland, 1997

Harris, Ralph W., Wenn der Geist redet..., Leuchter-Verlag EG, Erzhausen, 1974

Legrand, Fernand L.A., _A Levegőbe Fogtok Beszélni_ , Evangéliumi Kiadó

Liardon, Roberts, A Hit emberei, A hit gyülekezete, Budapest, 1996

Osborn, T. L., _Healing the sick_ , Harrison House, Tulsa, 1992

Petts, David, _The Holy Spirit_ , MFP Design and Print, Manchester, 1998

Prince Derek, _Protection from Deception_ , 1996, On line,

http://www.geocities.com/lostorfound_2/Deception.htm

Strom, Andrew, _The Coming Great Reformation_ , 1996, On line:

http://65.108.220.179/books/THE%20COMING%20GREAT%20REFORMATION.htm

20th Century Tongues, Faith or Fake?, On line:

http://www.bible.ca/tongues.htm

Conclusion

Again I want to thank Doctor Bury for whose help and excellent teaching enabled me to complete a work that has so long been on my heart to do.

The Holy Spirit does not always baptize the same way, so just about the time we think we have it all figured out, something happens to throw a stick in our spokes.

Recently I became acquainted with a lady whom God baptized in the Holy Spirit in her sleep. That's right, while she was sleeping.

Her husband knew it was of God even though he had never been baptized in the Holy Spirit himself. She has been able to pray in tongues ever since.

She so hungered for God that her sleep was taken up with her desire for him.

I was talking with her about what it was like to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and we both agreed that it is like sticking a V8 engine in a Volkswagen. It puts a fire in your heart and out of your belly flow living waters.

In my own case I was delivered and set free from alcoholism while drunk, I got up the next morning after passing out on the living room floor, poured my liquor down the kitchen sink and went to church that Sunday. I accepted the Lord as my savior, or more like, welcomed him as my savior and he turned my known world upside down. I so hungered for God I was there every time the church doors opened for service.

I was baptized in the Holy Spirit about a month or two later, I don't know exactly how long it was as that has been over 40 years ago, but I do know this, you can't put God in some box, he just doesn't fit in boxes.

God is a sovereign Lord.

No doubt my Pentecostal heritage goes back to the Azusa street revival, but now we need another Azusa street revival in this country and in countries around the globe.

In Genesis 6:3 it reads And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

Time will run out on our time to pray and serve God and God has sent his Holy Spirit to help us. We can except or reject his help, but it behooves us to believe and not doubt his word.

We can't make the Bible fit our theology; we need to make our theology fit the Bible.

We cannot treat the baptism in the Holy Spirit as an option and get away with it. Mag wheels and air conditioning is an option. Three bedrooms and one bath may be an option, but the baptism in the Holy Spirit is not.

That's why they were told to wait right there at Jerusalem until they received the promise. If it had been option, they would not have needed to wait for it.

Darrel Bird

