10 Views of Spirit Baptism

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My 4th book is now out. This book titled, "Have You Not Yet Received the Spirit?: Finding Unity Through Baptism in the Holy Spirit" is the second in a series related to the Holy Spirit. The first one "Promise of the Father" was a look at the early history of Pentecostalism in America an how it shaped the theology of Baptism of the Holy Spirit. This newest book is over 200 pages and takes a fresh look at what the Bible teaches on the Holy Spirit.

From the book cover:

Faith in Jesus must produce a natural love and generosity toward others and a desire for unity within the one Body of Christ. Sadly, this is not the condition of our Church today. There is much debate regarding the topic of Baptism in the Holy Spirit and it is unfortunate that people on all sides quickly dismiss others as evil or apostate. My hope is that this book will take this debate out of the hands of those who would divide the Church and place it back within the context of the whole Body of Christ. Read and discover the power of the Spirit and the bond of peace only He can provide.

My Newest Book on Amazon

This book is titled, "Promise of the Father: Healing The Christian Legacy of Segregation and Denominationalism" and is the first in a series on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. I began writing this book more than a decade ago when I was a MDiv student at Oral Robert's University. This first book looks at the historical development of the Pentecostal theology of Spirit Baptism and the many different views that exist in the church today. The book jacket description is as follows.

Ambiguous and man-centered teaching regarding Baptism in the Holy Spirit have over the past hundred years served to feed the problems we face and have lent to the decay of Christ's Body. This book takes a critical look at the history of denominationalism, separates the fact from the fiction, and paves the way to healing the legacy of division in the church.

I am also really pleased at how my cover art looks on the finished book.

Pick up a copy today at Amazon.com.

Charsimatics

This post is not about charismatic or pentecostal denominations. Instead, its about all of those who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit - that is, all Christians. You see, when the Spirit indwells and fills, He also gives gifts - the charismata.

In my recent reading of modern ecclesiologies, I ran into a couple of interesting quotes about believers serving through their spiritual gifts, meaning "charismatics". First, in The Church in the Power of the Spirit: A Contribution to Messianic Ecclesiology (trans. by Margaret Kohl, New York: Harper & Row, 1977), Jürgen Moltmann writes:

The New Testament knows no technical term for what we call 'the church’s ministry'. Paul talks about charismata, meaning the energies of the new life (I Cor. 12.6, 11), which is to say the powers of the Spirit. These are designations of what is, not of what ought to be. They are the gifts of grace springing from the creative grace of God. When he talks about the use of these new living energies, on the other hand, he evidently avoids all the words expressing conditions of rule. He does not talk about 'holy rule' (hierarchy) but chooses the expression diakonia [service].

There are a couple of interesting and important points in Moltmann's statements. In Paul's descriptions of the working of spiritual gifts, the apostle does not talk about hierarchy, or a rule associated with those gifts. Perhaps a case can be made that some gifts are more important than others (although an equal case can be made that we usually place importance on the wrong gifts), importance of gifts does not equate with importance of the individual, nor does it equate with a certain leadership. Instead, the Spirit works his gifts according to his own will - that is, through whom he desires and for the purpose he desires.

Also, instead of focusing on rule or control, Paul focuses on service. Thus, exercising spiritual gifts is not a function of leadership but of service - to service to other brothers and sisters in Christ and service to the world. These gifts exist (in reality, not in potential) for the benefit of other people, not primarily for the benefit of the ones exercising the gifts - although there may be some personal benefit as well.

This leads me to the second quote by Hans Küng in his book The Church (trans. by Ray and Rosaleen Ockenden, New York: Sheed and Ward, 1967). (I discusses another part of this book earlier in my post "Küng on the Church in Corinth".) Again concerning the charismata, Küng says:

By linking his teaching about charismata with that about the body of Christ Paul at all events made clear that the Church is never - as some people in Corinth seem to have supposed - a gathering of charismatics enjoying their own private relationship with Christ independently of the community. According to Paul, all charismatics are part of the body of Christ, of the community. The fact that all charismatics are members of one body does not of course mean uniformity, but on the contrary a variety of gifts and callings. But fundamentally all individual members, having been baptized, are equal. But, by contrast with this fundamental equality all differences are ultimately without importance.

Here, Küng makes another couple of important distinctions about spiritual gifts which follow nicely from Moltmann's observations. The body of Christ is not made of individuals who gather and exercise their gifts for the sake of the individuals and "their own private relationship with Christ". Instead, because of the work of the Spirit, the individuals become part of the body of Christ together. Thus, the gifts are to be exercised for the good of the community, not primarily for the good of the individual.

But, this does not mean that there is uniformity within the community. On the contrary, as Paul points out, the Spirit works in many different way within the community. The variety works to strengthen the body in a way that uniformity could not. The teachers need the prophets who need the helpers who need the exhorters, etc. The difficulty comes when the individual must deny himself and the importance of his own gift and service in order to receive help from someone who is gifted in a different way.

When we gather together with other believers, we should be gathering with people who are different from us. We should expect and encourage people who are different from us to exercise their spiritual gifts. We should recognize that our gifts and giftedness (even teaching!) is neither less important nor more important than the gifts and giftedness of the other people around us. Why? Because the community benefits through the variety of gifts that the Spirit offers.

But, when some people or some gifts are considered more important, or when some people or gifts are not allowed to operate during the meeting of the church, or when we make the church about hierarchies instead of service, then the spiritual health of the community is weakened.

The Challenge Ahead

Now that we have explored our history, we must explore the Scriptures and allow God's spoken Word to shape our destiny.

The goal of our coming exploration centers on the place and function of Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. The Holy Spirit is an integral and necessary part of God’s plan and there is no question that God’s Spirit works in our lives today. Again, the issue is when does Baptism in the Holy Spirit take place in the life of the Christian, not does it take place at all.

We must live each day knowing that the fullness of God dwells in us through the power of God’s Holy Spirit, and our only obligation is to submit to God in faith that our lives might continually be a sacrifice of praise to His name. Paul's instruction to the Ephesians reinforces the unity of our one Gospel founded in Christ.

Ephesians 4:9-13 Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he had first descended to the lower parts of the earth? 4:10 He, the same one who descended, is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, in order to fill all things. 4:11 It was He who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 4:12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry building up the Body of Christ, 4:13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God—a perfected Man, to the measure of Christ’s full stature.

God has given his Holy Spirit so that the whole Body of Christ may be built up and that we might as a people attain in full measure the fullness of Christ. There is a dynamic relationship described here in which God’s fullness, revealed in Christ and made manifest through the Holy Spirit, is working in every Christian from the very moment of salvation to bring each of us as individuals and as a Body into full maturity. We may lack in our experience the power of God’s divine love, but what we do not lack is God himself. Any view of Christian faith, no matter the source, which makes Jesus Christ impotent in His power to do all things in and through us is not a view shared by Scripture. Conversly, Scripture is clear the the Holy Spirit of God has been given to every member of God’s family. Every Christian has a part to play in the Body and is gifted accordingly by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:1-13 With regard to spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 12:2 You know that when you were pagans you were often led astray by speechless idols, however you were led. 12:3 So I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 12:4 Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 12:5 And there are different ministries, but the same Lord. 12:6 And there are different results, but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. 12:7 To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the benefit of all. 12:8 For one is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 12:9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 12:10 to another performance of miracles, to another prophecy, and to another discernment of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 12:11 It is one and the same Spirit, distributing to each person as he decides, who produces all these things. 12:12 For just as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body—though many—are one body, so too is Christ. 12:13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Whether we are Jews or Greeks or slaves or free we were all made to drink of the one Spirit.

We have all been made to drink deeply of the life giving Spirit. His life giving presence has been the seal of our salvation and His he baptized every believer with the person of Jesus Christ. History is full of stories of spiritual elitists trying to downgrade the experience of others and tell them they do not have the fullness of God dwelling within. Experience shows us that too many brothers and sisters are made to feel they are useless unless they speak in tongues, or perform some other arbitrary rite of false worship. Let that tradition cease today! Let our hearts be filled with the joy of our salvation; knowing that God dwells richly and without restriction in each of our hearts and all we need to is submit our lives to His leading and there can be nothing which will stop us form experiencing every great pleasure of salvation. Begin now to read the Scriptures through the light of revelation that God’s Holy Spirit has baptized you into the fullness of divine beauty. Jesus Christ has promised that when you repent of your sins, he will baptize you, not with water, but with His own Holy Spirit of comfort.

Choose to rest now in His comforting presence. Take joy in that comfort. Rejoice in that comfort, knowing that there is nothing that can separate you from the love of Jesus Christ. He has withheld no blessing from you and He has certainly not withheld from you His Spirit of Promise! Pray now for the peace that surpasses al vain tradition. Pray now that you can live in liberty from any teaching that has made you to feel as second class or less than worthy of God’s loving-presence. God is in you! God is with you! Pray now that He will confirm in you, through the reading of His spoken word, the truth a Spirit Baptism that has already come to you. Meditate daily upon His love that has consumed and empowered you to live in joy, hope and love and the greatest of these is certainly to live in His unyielding love!

BOOK COMING SOON TO AMAZON

Guest Blog: Frank Viola

Rethinking the Gifts of the Holy Spirit

I am often asked what I believe about “the gifts of the Spirit.” My typical answer is that I believe in them . . . all of them. However, I believe in and practice them without the classic charismatic packages and Pentecostal wrappings.

A large chunk of my life in the institutional church was spent in charismatic circles. About sixteen years ago, however, I came into an experience of the Spirit’s work and power that looked nothing like what I had seen in any charismatic or Pentecostal church to which I belonged or visited. For me, it was a new experience of the Spirit. One that was less artificial, less contrived, and less centered on the Spirit Himself. Rather, it was an experience that was authentic, pure, and centered on the Lord Jesus Christ.

For this reason, I am neither a cessasionist (those who believe that some spiritual gifts have ceased) nor a charismatic (those who emphasize spiritual gifts). Instead, I consider myself to be a post-charismatic.

I believe John Wimber was the first to use this term. Lee Grady, editor of Charisma magazine, estimated that in 1990 that there were as many as 92 million people who described themselves as post-charismatic. In more recent times, Rob McAlpine has been writing thoughtfully on the subject. I owe parts of my definition of “post-charismatic” to him and Wimber.

When I say that I’m a post-charismatic (or neo-charismatic), I mean the following:

I believe that the authentic gifts of the Holy Spirit are still operative in the church today. Not only do I believe in them, but I’ve experienced them. However, I also believe that the artificial wrappings that have been attached to them should be discarded. For they distract us from Christ.

I believe that being “Spirit-filled” cannot be narrowly defined to refer exclusively to those people who have demonstrated one particular spiritual gift at some particular point in their life. On that score, I had a particular experience with the Holy Spirit in 1983. Some would say that I was “filled with the Spirit” because of it. However, I would argue that I was filled with the Spirit before then as well as many times afterward (see Acts 2:4, 8, 4:31; Acts 9:17; 13:9, 52; Ephesians 5:18-20).

I’ve grown tired of the excesses and abuses that many modern charismatics have fallen prey to in both practice and teaching. These excesses and abuses go way back to when the movement was spawned. It’s one of the birth defects that Pentecostalism was born with.

I’m against humanly-engineered hype and pulpit showmanship and calling it “the moving of the Spirit.” Perhaps you’ve seen this before. You pour in the right prayers, sing the right songs with the right fervor, turn the crank, and “the Spirit’s moving” comes out of the bottom.

I’m leery of “personal prophecies” that justify ridiculous practices, ludicrous decisions, and fly in the face of Spirit-inspired wisdom.

I cast a skeptical eye on the exaggerated and sometimes fabricated stories of the miraculous. That includes the puffing up of numbers when healings or saved souls are calculated. (I’ve discovered that if a Pentecostal/charismatic reports a figure of souls saved or sicknesses healed, you would be wise to cut it in half and divide by two. Typically, that will yield the accurate number.)

I’m against the elitist attitude among some who purport to possess spiritual gifts.

I’m against views of the Spirit that end up dividing believers into the “haves” and the “have nots”—those who have had a particular experience and those who have not.

I’m against forcing the exercise of spiritual gifts on God’s people.

I’m against those doctrines that promote seeking wealth and material prosperity from God at the expense of caring for the poor and relieving the sufferings of the oppressed.

I’m opposed to the idea that spiritual transformation normally takes place in one-time miraculous encounters rather than by a long-term process of being conformed to Christ’s image by the instrument of His cross.

I’m against using the Holy Spirit and His gifts to make human beings the center of the universe.

I’m against promoting an intoxication with the restoration of the gifts of the Spirit. (The only thing worth being intoxicated with is Jesus Christ.)

I’m critical of the legalism that was born into the bloodstream of the Pentecostal movement and later infiltrated the charismatic mind.

I’m skeptical of any activity, natural or supernatural, that claims to be a work of the Holy Spirit if it doesn’t bring attention to the Lord Jesus.

I believe that the real fruit of prayer is not spiritual insight, spiritual revelation, or spiritual encounter, but the transformation of character. To my mind, the product of real prayer is what Ignatius of Loyola called the instrumentum conjunctum cum Deo (an instrument shaped to the contours of the hand of God).

I believe that spiritual maturity is not the ability to see the extraordinary, but the ability to see the ordinary through God’s eyes. Consequently, no matter how wonderful our experience or encounter is with God, the test of it’s worth is in the fruit it bears in our lives and the lives of others.

Consequently, I believe in the operation of the Holy Spirit, but without the classic charismatic and Pentecostal trappings. The reason is simple. To my mind, they are artificial, learned by imitation, and detract us from the reality and centrality of Jesus Christ. So while I’m post-charismatic, I’m certainly not post-Holy Spirit.

If we need a restoration of the Holy Spirit today, it’s a restoration of His pure and undefiled working. That’s my opinion anyway.

So if I’m against all of the above, what am I for? I’m for the centrality, supremacy, and exaltation of the Lord Jesus Christ.

To my mind, the Holy Spirit has but one job. It’s to reveal, to make known, to magnify, to glorify, to make central and supreme the Lord Jesus Christ.

The following is a revealing quote from Frank Bartleman. Bartleman was part of the Azusa street revival that gave birth to the modern Pentecostal/charismatic movement in the early 1900s. To my mind, his words were prophetic and ahead of their time. He foresaw the dangers of co-opting Jesus Christ by putting the Holy Spirit on the throne. He wrote,

In the beginning of the Pentecostal work, I became very much exercised in the Spirit that Jesus should not be slighted, ‘lost in the temple,’ by the exaltation of the Holy Ghost and of the gifts of the Spirit. There seemed to be a great danger of losing sight of the fact that Jesus was ‘all in all.’ I endeavored to keep Him as the central theme and figure before His people. Jesus will always be the center of our preaching. All comes through and in Him. The Holy Spirit was given to “show the things of Christ.” The work of Calvary, the atonement, must be the center for our consideration. The Holy Ghost will never draw our attention from Christ to Himself, but rather reveal Christ in a fuller way. We are in the same danger today.

There is nothing deeper nor higher than to know Christ. Everything is given by God to that end. The ‘one Spirit’ is given to that end. Christ is our salvation and our all. That we might know ‘the breadth, and length, and depth, and height of the love of Christ’ (Ephesians 3:18-19), ‘having a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him’ (Ephesians 1:17). It was ‘to know Him (Christ),’ for which Paul strove . . . We may not even hold a doctrine, or seek an experience, except in Christ. Many are willing to seek power from every battery they can lay their hands on in order to perform miracles, draw attention and adoration of the people to themselves, thus robbing Christ of His glory and making a fair showing in the flesh . . . Religious enthusiasm easily goes to seed. The human spirit so predominates the show-off, religious spirit. But we must stick to our text—Christ. He alone can save. The attention of the people must first of all, and always, be held to Him . . . Any work that exalts the Holy Ghost or the gifts of the Spirit above Jesus will finally end up in fanaticism. Whatever causes us to exalt and love Jesus is well and safe. The reverse will ruin all. The Holy Ghost is a great light, but will always be focused on Jesus for His revealing ( Frank Bartleman, Another Wave of Revival, Springdale: Whitaker House, 1982, pp. 94-96).

One of the churches I planted taught me a great lesson on this score. Their meetings were completely open, participatory, and indelibly centered on Jesus Christ. They had no building. No clergy. No set order of worship.

Each member would share his or her experience and insight into Christ as a result of seeking Him the week beforehand. That church had a steady flux of visitors. Most of these visitors would remark, “All they talk about is Christ. They seem to have a deep experience of the indwelling of Jesus.”

One particular Sunday, a couple of Pentecostals visited the church. When the meeting was over, they sat with some of the brothers and asked, “How come you guys don’t ever talk about the Holy Spirit? All you talk about is Christ.”

One of the young men who was in his early 20’s answered with wisdom that exceeded his years. He said, “Well, maybe it’s because the Holy Spirit only speaks about one thing—Jesus Christ.”

I was not present for that meeting; the story was rehearsed to me. But it is one I shall never forget.

If you wish to determine if a person is full of the Holy Spirit, listen to his words and watch his life. As far as his words go, he will have but one obsession. It will be Christ. And his life will match his words. He won’t be perfect by any means. Nor will he be above making mistakes. But he will exhibit a spirit of kindness, honesty, and an inclusive openness to all of God’s children . . . the outstanding marks of Christ’s character.

Awhile back a friend of mine was perplexed about a certain minister whom he had sat under for years. He said, “Frank, I don’t understand. This man’s message was Christ-centered. He talked a lot about Christ. But as I got to know him personally, I discovered that he lied constantly, he ridiculed and demeaned others, he was always jealous of other people whom God blessed, he was very sectarian, and he was highly egotistical. He also hurt many people even though he preached against hurting Christians. I don’t understand it.”

My response was simple. A person is not Christ-centered just because they preach the centrality of Christ. If they contradict the nature of Jesus by their character (their consistent, patterned behavior), they are not Christ-centered despite the rhetoric they parade.

Let me pass on a word of advice. If you ever hit a fork in the road with the people with whom you church, there’s one sure way that the Lord will get what He wants. Drop whatever is causing the problem, and let it go into death.

There is nothing that we must cling to except for the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing! So let that other thing that your group is dividing over go into death. Give it up, and watch what the Lord can do.

This is the principle of death and resurrection. Whenever we place something into death, if it was born of Christ to begin with, it will return again. It will come forth out of the ground. But when it comes forth, it will always look different from what it looked like before it went into death.

Everything looks different in resurrection.

A group of Christians that I was a part of did this very thing with respect to our initial differences about the Holy Spirit. The result: the gifts of the Spirit operated in a very natural, unassuming way. There was no grandstanding or bluster. It was truly organic—out of life. We had learned the lesson of stripping down to Christ alone. Somehow I believe that’s what the Lord desires when it comes to the work of His Spirit in the earth today.

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Taken from Frank's blog www.frankviola.wordpress.com/

My History With the Spirit

False tradition, arrogance, lust for power, greed, judgmentalism; these are the illnesses which plague God’s people and tear us apart. These vices disable the Body and render Her helpless to reach a broken world. We strive to give an account to all who ask us to explain the hope of our salvation, yet by our internal division we fall woefully short. If we can not stand together as Brother and Sister in Christ, if we can not hold fast to the hope of our salvation, how can we ever hope to fulfill the great commission of Christ to make disciples of all nations? Ambiguous and man-centered teaching regarding Baptism in the Holy Spirit have over the past hundred years served to feed the problems we face and have lent to the decay of Christ’s Body.  

More than 10 years ago, this blog began as a book.  Now with the age of the internet, I feel the content is much more appropriate for an interactive forum like a blog.  When I started writing this book (now blog), it was not for an academic study, written to sit on a shelf collecting dust. I do not write for the couch potato Christian unwilling to exercise his sprit and strip away the fat of false tradition. Rather I have undertaken the task of tearing down sacred cows of specious tradition so that we as a united Church might once again build up the true Temple of Christian worship. My prayer is that as we, the faithful Christ-followers, explore the Scriptures and our history to discern the truth regarding Christ’s Baptism in the Holy Spirit, and then a new era will begin. In the words of the great evangelist George Whitfield, “There is no running division upon truth; like a mathematical point, it will neither admit of subtraction nor addition: And as it is indivisible in its nature, there is no splitting the difference, where truth is concerned… For whatever is less than truth, cannot be truth; and whatever is more than true must be false.” By God’s grace, we may begin a new epoch that will serve to repair the breach of a century’s worth of bitterness and denominational rivalry and purify the wandering Bride of Christ.

Years ago when I was a sophomore at Pennsylvania State University, I led a Bible study of young men from an eclectic background of denominations. One day they approached me about a subject of which I had little knowledge, the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. They had heard some conflicting teachings regarding this topic and had come to me for answers, answers I could not give. They asked if I would teach them what Baptism in the Holy Spirit meant and if it was something that accompanied salvation or something that came as a later part of the Christian life. My church background left me incapable of giving an immediate answer, but I determined to study the Bible and by the wisdom of God provide a satisfactory answer. Little did I know that many years later this topic would once again come to the forefront of controversy in my life and I would be confronted with the confounding traditions that mar the image of God in His people.

As I began my studies at Oral Roberts University, I realized a depth to this topic my earlier studies of Scripture alone had not revealed. Through a variety of courses and numerous discussions with people from diverse backgrounds in the Pentecostal and Charismatic circles, I gained new insights into the subtle nuances of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, its meaning, application and implication to my life. During my journey, I found that almost everyone I talked with had a very different view of what Spirit Baptism meant. It was this glaring lack of unity on such an important topic that caused me to see the greater need for study and reflection. “But wait,” some have asked, “why not let everyone believe what they want and define Baptism in the Holy Spirit however they choose? After all, if someone is happy and they love God, why not just let them continue on believing as they do?” Unfortunately, the attitude expressed in these questions is not the loving approach that Scripture demands of you or me. True love means that we must constantly strive to provide correction, reproof, and training in righteousness that together, as one people of God, we may prepare one another for every good work that God has ordained. If we as Christians are so divided that we can not deal openly and honestly with one another on subjects of controversy, then we have failed to be the expression of God’s love and grace.

Through the shadow of my past experiences and in the light of God’s gracious love, I approach this topic, on this blog, not with the idea of proving an abstract argument, but keeping all viewpoints in mind, I hope to penetrate to the heart of the matter and bring clarity to this oft ambiguous and divisive topic. My prayer is that all who read this blog would have unity under the one Spirit who daily restores us into the image of Christ and the likeness of our Heavenly Father. All too often we use theology and the Bible to drive a wedge between ourselves and others who have different perspectives and backgrounds. To remain divided because of our uniqueness is a tragedy because it is never God’s desire that we create divisions within the one Body of Jesus Christ, rather let us read and work in prayer together to accomplish unity in our faith in God.

Read more in my book..

I am also really pleased at how my cover art looks on the finished book.

Pick up a copy today at Amazon.com.