MacArthur on Baptism in the Holy Spirit

image John MacArthur examines the Charismatic sects of the Church in his book Charismatic Chaos. His well reasoned critique is an indictment of a a faith based upon experience when that experience supersedes the Bible. As I have examined in a series of posts on this topic, at the core of Charismatic belief is the Doctrine of Subsequence (Fee), the second event that follows salvation in which the Holy Spirit is received. This doctrine is constructed around the event recorded in Acts 2:4: (1-4 included for context)

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

The Charismatic believes that this post-salvation experience of baptism in the Holy Spirit is a mark of spiritual maturity. When the Christian is lacking this experience, they are immature, carnal, disobedient, or otherwise incomplete. The danger in this approach, MacArthur says, is that it opens the door to the expectation of continued experience. He denies the validity of Subsequence, primarily because of its reliance on a very narrow interpretation of Scripture that does not consider passages that refute the position.

MacArthur begins by saying that doctrine constructed around the experiences in the book of Acts should at least be consistent throughout that single book. Subsequence as seen in chapter two should be witnessed in each recorded instance of baptism but this does not appear to be the case. In Acts 2 and 8, there appears to be subsequence. In chapters 10 and 19 however, the filling of the Holy Spirit accompanies salvation immediately. A secondary component of the Subsequence doctrine is that the Christian is to be earnestly seeking this second baptism. The scriptures in Acts do not support this expectation. In chapter two, the believers were simply waiting for their next move and in chapters 8, 10, and 19, no one is looking for the baptism. On this brief examination alone, MacArthur points out that the book most closely associated with the idea of subsequence does not provide the consistent pattern necessary to build a Christian doctrine.

It’s important to note that MacArthur is not denying the singular experiences of Acts and other books of scripture. The theological construct that applies to proper exegesis of these events is to view them in light of the transitional nature of the period. There was an overlap in the periods between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant and (MacArthur says) “Although the disciples knew and trusted Christ, there were still Old Testament believers. They could not have understood or experienced the Spirit’s permanent indwelling until the arrival of the Spirit at Pentecost.” (pg 177) In other words, markers defining transition served a specific, one time need in the establishment of the faith. MacArthur points out that this one time event is not meant to be translated as normative for all Christians.

Others First : Submission of Self

image Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. (The Christ Hymn, Phil 2:3-4)

The spiritual discipline of submission operates on two planes. We first submit ourselves fully to God and His Word and then we follow the example of Jesus and take an attitude of submission to others. Submission is not slavery. It is the willing humility of oneself to another, making their needs paramount to your own in emulation of the humiliation of Christ on your behalf. In addition to imitation, the Christian subordinates themselves to others in love, valuing them and treating them according to kingdom principles.

When this topic is preached in the modern Christian church it is often stated in general terms. We submit to our neighbors and those we encounter in our daily lives. True submission however requires that we be more intentional in our quest. We must remember to practice submission within our families carrying their burdens and being transparent in our own. We are to seek out opportunities to honor the broken and despised by being among them and loving them. Perhaps the great challenge of submission is to practice this discipline within our community of belief. As the Church mirrors the culture and its emphasis on recognition and position, we seek the lowliest ministries far away from the platform to demonstrate the love of Christ within the Body.

The discipline of submission is the least natural of all of the practices. Our self rebels against it, insisting that it get its own way. We train ourselves to control this desire, to understand that the sacrifice made on our behalf by the God of All makes it uneccessary to continue to demand what we see as ours. We can have confidence that as we submit ourselves to others, they may soon do the same for us.

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Hell, Literally

imageHell is portrayed clearly in the scripture as the punitive, eternal punishment of the unredeemed. It is not described geographically as the subterranean caverns of flame and horror somewhere beneath our feet. Instead, it is understood as a state of being as the wicked stand separated from God into eternity. The inspired authors of the references to Hell were less concerned with painting horrific visions of the nature of Hell and more motivated to spell out the seriousness of the coming judgment. The literal view of Hell has fallen from favor with modern Christians who often attribute it to the fevered dreams of the early fathers, saying that it is unseemly for the educated Church to further such a doctrine.

Three words are used for Hell in the Old and New testaments. In the Hebrew of the OT, the reader encounters the word sheol (שׁאול). The term appears 65 times with a variety of translations being made in the modern Bible (KJV): 31 times it is translated as ‘grave’, 31 times it is ‘hell’, and as ‘pit’ three times. It is important to note in the case of translations, this usage is not universal. The NIV does not apply the specific label Hell in the OT, unlike the KJV. Sheol is the destination of the dead and in many cases it carries the connotation of nothing more than the place of interment (cf: Ps 49:14, Num 16:33). The instances where sheol is translated more directly as hell do not present a consistent theological position. Some see a clear teaching of a place of judgment while others do not see the ultimate state as one of punishment. In order to decide contextually which translation is appropriate, the reader must evaluate the whole of OT scripture and theology. An understanding of final states emerges which can direct the exploration as the instances of sheol appear. There is a belief in life after death. For the righteous it will be blessed and for the wicked it will be punitive. Details on the nature of the punishment, destruction, etc. are obscure and the reader is cautioned against reading interpretations into the text that do not exist.

The Greek of the NT uses three different words for Hell. Hades appears 9 times, Gehenna is used 8 times, and Tartaros is used once. Hades is the Hellenistic translation of sheol while Gehenna is the more literal word for Hell. In the New Testament, the scriptures add considerably to the Christian doctrine of life after death and the doctrine’s concept of everlasting punishment. Jesus contributes significantly to the understanding of the punitive nature of Hell and the eternal length of one’s stay. The theological ideas are not always expressly stated but when read as a whole, the statements regarding Hell (Mt 5:22, Mt 5:29, Mt 18:9, Mk 9:43, Lk 12:5, etc.) carry the implication that the punishment of Hell will have a duration and that duration will be endless. Various word pictures portray an eternity of fire (cf Mt 13:18-23) and crushing sadness (Mt 22:13). The idea of degrees of punishment is also found in the words of the Lord. The severity of one’s punishment is dependent on their understanding of will of God.

Taken literally, the scriptures teach a doctrine of everlasting punishment though the details of that punishment are few. Like many theological concepts, it is not without challengers, especially in the modern Church where tolerance has become more important and the idea of everlasting punishment in flame and horror an embarrassment that the Evangelical church would prefer not to deal with. One point of difference has to do with duration and whether or not there is a chronological limit to the punishment. The Greek word aionios is often challenged but in every case, the word refers to eternity. (Many people challenge its use with regard to punishment but the same word, when associated with heaven or blessing, is found to mean eternity. Poor hermeneutics.) Another popular challenge to the notion of eternal punishment comes in the form of harmonizing this punishment with the love and grace of God. Many who would like to soften the doctrine say that the concept of unending horror is anathema  to God’s love, that He would not wish this retributive eternity on His creation. This theological desire does not align with the exegetical evidence presented in the Scriptures.

Conclusion

If the Scriptures are faithfully interpreted with sound exegetic principles as a guide, the literal picture of eternal blessing for the redeemed and eternal punishment for the wicked is clear. A portrait of an eternal duration for this punishment is also recorded; there is no promise of end to the horror. The nature of Hell is less clear and many through the centuries have been guilty of fabricating more and more horrific visions of the eternal fire that are not directly recorded in Scripture. If the picture of Hell is derived strictly from the words of the Bible, it can be said to be partly mental, partly physical, and partly emotional. Hell may be an unpopular doctrine but the Scriptures clearly support the concept.

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Healthcare Reform Mind Control Techniques

If I hear that people in America “can’t get healthcare” again, I’ll explode! Everyone in this country has access to healthcare. Not having healthcare insurance does not prevent you from receiving care, you simply must pay for the service. In a case of semantic infiltration, the takeover specialists have substituted ‘healthcare’ for the more accurate ‘healthcare insurance.’

Psalm 44 Awake O Lord! Why Do You Sleep?

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Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep?

Rouse yourself! Do no reject us forever.

Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression?

We are brought down to the dust; our bodies cling to the ground.

Rise up and help us; redeem us because of your unfailing love. (vv 23-26)

How do you face defeat and destruction when you sense that God himself has brought the calamity upon you? Despite your prayer and commitment to the covenant you come to the conclusion that the Lord has purposely directed defeat on your life. Do you abandon the covenant as it appears that God has or do you continue in your commitment, taking the long view of current struggle being a part of the eternal plan?

The psalmist models the latter for modern readers. The psalm relates the tragedy of an unnamed defeat on Israel, one that the writer is certain that God has brought about on His people. Often, the immediate response would be to curse God. He has made a covenant with the people and yet has injured them. Can God be trusted? A rehearsal of all that Yahweh has done forms the foundation for this reflection on current travail.

We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago.

With you hand you drove out the nations and planted our fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers flourish.

It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them. (vv 1-3)

If God has been consistently good there is no reason to consider His recent act as anything but a necessary moment in the eternal plan of the world. Doubt creeps in, despite this thought. Is it possible that we the people of the covenant have not held up our end? The psalmist also considers this option.

All this happened to us, though we had not forgotten you or been false to your covenant.

Our hearts had not turned back; our feet had not strayed from your path. (vv 17-18)

Ultimately, trust in God’s wisdom and the ultimate good of His eternal course of events brings us consolation. What alternative do we have?

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Submission Before the Cross

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“…he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” Phil 2:8

The cross life is for all of us but it also presents us with one of the Lord’s most challenging teachings. His most radical social teaching was that the leader of others would be subordinate to them, he or she must be the servant of all. The cross life consists of your free acceptance of this servant role.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Eph 5:21

We all, at various points in our lives, expect others to subordinate themselves to us and when they don’t do so, we’re offended and even, disrespected. Our difficulty in submission is rooted in this expectation. To consistently and regularly submit to others is not a natural desire, it runs contrary to our self’s desire to gain our own way. Practicing the discipline of submission helps us transition into the cross life and trains our self to put the needs and desires of others in a superior position to our own.

To begin practicing the discipline of submission in the Spirit of Christ, that is to begin the cross life he has ordained for you, requires the first step of submitting to God. You must return to the Cross daily, whispering a prayer that yields body, mind, and soul to God’s purposes before your own. Thomas a’ Kempis left us a morning prayer to be utilized upon awakening; “As thou wilt; what thou wilt; when thou wilt.” This consistent first act of submission builds the strength in our knees to submit to others in a similar fashion. A similar prayer before the long darkness of night reminds the soul in subconsciousness to focus on subordination rather than swimming in dreams of dominance.

Remember that we practice the spiritual disciplines as a means to an end. In themselves they are nothing but soul strengthening exercises. In the case of submission, we seek a new orientation to world that will hopefully be emulated by those that surround us. Our guide in these exercises are the Scriptures. We submit to them. We submit to hearing the Word, to receiving the Word and obeying it. In this way our submission does not become a way to draw attention to ourselves. It becomes a demonstration of the truths of the Bible to a world desperately in need of such truths.

Let’s bend a knee together this morning as the sun lights the sky…

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Hell, An Introduction

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C.S. Lewis postulated a view of Hell that says human sin is a person’s way of telling God to go away throughout life. Hell then is God’s way of saying okay, have it your way.

Hell is the final destination of the unrepentant sinner—the wicked—in God’s economy. Sheol, Gehenna, or Hades, all name an eternal condition contrasted with heaven in the Bible. Countless horrific images have been developed to describe the location or conditions of Hell and, no surprise here, many different theological interpretations have arisen through the centuries regarding the idea of Hell. Also unsurprising is the lack of attention Hell receives on Sunday morning. Hell becomes more culturally unpopular as the insistence on tolerance and accommodation works its way into the Church and sermons and teaching shy away from any topic that threatens to bring on the stamp of intolerant.

There are four general views of Hell that persist within the Christian theological community. Some originate in exegetical interpretation while others are more theological in nature. The views are categorized as the Orthodox position (hell is eternal punishment), the Metaphorical view (diminishes the punishment aspect), Purgatory (a place where divine cleansing takes place), and an very open view named the Conditional position which can describe both Universalism and Annihilationism. Separate posts will discuss each of these positions.

The view that the Christian adopts regarding Hell has an effect on numerous other aspects of life. A universalist belief, for example, will remove any sense of urgency with regard to the Great Commission. Though the modern Church may choose to avoid it, Christians who take their faith and theology seriously should not succumb to that intellectual laziness. Join me as we explore the Scriptures.

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No Fakin’ and Shakin’ Here – Holy Roller by Julie Lyons

clip_image002Sister Johnson had a way of cutting through the mess. I found this out after I started teaching a Sunday-school class, replacing the previous teacher who quit unexpectedly. Standing in front of a roomful of adults, I asked a question: “Why do we sin?”

Sister Johnson, who was in her sixties, piped up as soon as the last word left my mouth.

“Because we want to.”

At that moment, a thousand volumes of Christian theology were rendered redundant.

Holy Roller is two parallel stories; the birth and growth of a black Pentecostal church and its pastor and a white writer who unknowingly stumbles into its midst and discovers that the heart of the faith she has been seeking in her life beats within this unfailingly honest body. Julie Lyons skillfully intertwines her story with that of the The Body of Christ Assembly and Pastor Frederick Eddington. Many churches attach the label ‘spirit-filled’ to their biographies but you often discover little of His presence once you in the walls of their meeting hall. Pastor Eddington and the Assembly on the other hand are true believers in the power of the Spirit and demonstrate the power of His work over and over in the life of the church and community beyond its crumbling walls.

Lyons weaves the story of her early ‘faith of facts’ with the charismata of the Spirit driven Church. The dichotomous church life of her early life is familiar to many evangelicals, a church experience where one is said but another is done. Cynicism of some measure had set in when she proposed a story to her editor about churches on the fringes of South Dallas and their ministry in the midst of a crack cocaine crisis. As she passed by numerous small churches with their lights turned out she finds herself in front of the tiny, ramshackle house that strained to hold the Holy Spirit’s work. A young girl (?) points out Pastor Eddington to Julie and she asks the questions that will quickly transform her life.

“Do you pray for crack addicts?”

“Yes” replied the pastor.

“Are they getting healed?” asked Julie.

“Some are.”

The story that follows in Holy Roller is a multi-threaded page-turner rooted in a faith that takes the promises of power in the Holy Spirit at face value, believing the Bible and its promises of transformed lives and demonstrating for the world to see that these things are indeed true. It is not a Christianity of constant theological argument over arcane points or concern with the finer points of Greek exegesis where the truths are analyzed but not necessarily applied. Lyons tells the story of moving from one world to another as she witnesses the changed lives she spends time with in becoming a part of the Body of Christ Assembly and the challenges that came with the shift.

Transformation is the heart of the story. Frederick Eddington moving from psychologically challenged man to pastor. His wife Diane changed from a party girl to the first lady of the church and Julie and Lyons who were exposed to new racial relationships and faith founded in the living Spirit. As expected, the integration is not always easy and significant challenges are recorded for all of the people we encounter. The common thread linking them together is a profound trust in the power of Christ to make things right, even if it doesn’t happen overnight. The average American evangelical reading this book is going to come to one of two conclusions as the pages are read. Either they will continue to view the Pentecostal church in a low church light and with considerable skepticism or they will view the evangelical church and its lack of Holy Spirit power as needing a restorative dose of reformation itself.

Mrs. Lyons is transparent in documenting her personal struggles alongside the challenges she encounters as a member of the church. She has done a stellar job of telling all of these disparate stories while passing a connecting thread through all of them. I became deeply enmeshed in the lives she reveals to us and spent a good deal of time contemplating the sometimes weak power of the Spirit in my own faith life. At the conclusion of the book, I was immediately set to reread it again and consider how I have personally viewed the work of the Spirit and consider whether I desire more of Him or more arguments over the Arminian/Calvinist divide. I’m pretty sure the Holy Ghost is going to win.

 

More information on the book can be found here.

An Invitation to Submission

imageThe spiritual discipline of submission releases the Christian from the ongoing need to get their own way. When you consider the things that we all in one way or another struggle with — judging others, pride, demanding that we be first, etc. –  we discover at the core of each of these the demand that we get our own way in things. Submission is difficult to put into practice because it guarantees we will not get our own way. Letting go of that need/desire is one of the biggest, most challenging steps that the Christian takes.

Submission is at the core of a biblical faith in God. Consider these passages:

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other Gods before me.” (Ex 20:2-3)  (This includes the god of ME)

“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Mk 8:34)

“So the last will be first and the first will be last.” (Mt 20:16)

Submission is all encompassing. We submit to God and His Lordship. We submit to His Word and obey. We submit to one another within the Body, putting others ahead of ourselves. We submit to the world at large, even if they are not a part of the Body. We seek in every instance to reduce ourselves while lifting others. We do this all in the joy of knowing that our salvation and the new life of today and eternity was purchased with the ultimate act of submission.

The practice of submission is often abused and this abuse contributes to the struggles we have in putting it into practice. A prime rule for practicing submission is that we do so until it becomes destructive. That is, we submit to others until the practice becomes a denial of the law of love and our submission threatens to revert to a slavery outside of the boundaries of the Bible. We are then called to speak out and remedy the situation as best we can.

 

 

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