Loving Jesus, the Church, & the Lost

What's the Big Deal About Holiness, Anyway?

2011-01-04T22:09:00.000-06:00

Jerry Bridges, in his classic work The Pursuit of Holiness, gives three reasons why the professing church often seems more conformed to the world than to the image of the beloved Son of God--"our attitude to sin is more self-centered than God-centered...we have misunderstood living by faith to mean that no effort at holiness is required on our part...(and) we do not take some sin seriously" (pp. 16-18). Not only do I believe that Bridges is correct in his assessment, but I also believe that there is a common deficiency that is intimated in each of these reasons--a lack of understanding of God and what He desires of His children. This leads us to the answer of the title question, "What's the Big Deal About Holiness, Anyway?" The big deal about holiness, my dear brother and sister, is that this is what God desires of His children--that they reflect His glory by conforming to His image. A few Scriptures will help us see this:

"For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy" (Leviticus 11:44).

"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, He has now reconciled in His body of flesh by His death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before Him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister" (Col. 1:21–23).

"Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints" (1 Thess. 3:11–13).

"For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you" (1 Thess. 4:7–8).

"Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, Who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of His own purpose and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began" (2 Tim. 1:8–9).

"As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy'" (1 Pet. 1:14–16).

"For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness" (Heb. 12:10).

"Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14).

So, as we have seen above, holiness is something that the Lord requires from all of His children, it is something that Jesus Christ died to accomplish in His redeemed ones, it is something to which God has called us, it is something God disciplines us for in order to acquire it, and it is something that is necessary in order for one to see God.

Now, the question is this: does can we, in our own power, be holy enough to please God? The answer is clearly no. In order to be justified, we need the pure holiness of Christ credited to our account. Only His holiness will satisfy the perfect, good, and right demands of God. It is this holiness to which we will turn tomorrow.

2011 Theme -- Pleasing God Through Holiness

2011-01-02T00:13:00.000-06:00

I recently returned from a much-needed vacation with my family. The Lord (as always) was good to me, giving me and my family plenty of celebration, joy, and rest with our extended family. During my vacations, the Lord usually providentially guides me in my study and prayer time, and His providence usually guides me to a particular focus he has for me to model in my pastoral ministry in the upcoming year. This past vacation was no exception. During my vacation/mini-sabbatical, I read one of 2010's best theological releases, For the Fame of God's Name: Essays in Honor of John Piper. 27 different theological and pastoral authors contributed to this festschrift, and each essay reflected not only an appreciation for this man of the faith, but also for the God whom John Piper has the utmost devotion. As with any work that has this many contributors, the essays vary in breadth and depth, but the vast majority of them reflect deep exegetical and theological reflection upon the themes that have been prominent in John Piper's ministry. It was one of these essays that struck a deep spiritual chord with me--"Pleasing God by Our Obedience: A Neglected New Testament Teaching," written by Wayne Grudem.

Now, within the new Reformed movement that has gained so much notoriety, attention, and popularity, there has been much ink spilled in defense of the Biblical gospel and justification by faith alone. This has been much-needed and welcome (especially since I have seen such a down-grade in both areas). However, a concern I have had about this movement is one that Grudem mentions within his essay, "...evangelicals today are generally afraid of teaching about 'pleasing God by obedience,' for fear of sounding as if they disagree with justification by faith alone. But when the need to please God by obedience is neglected, we have millions of Christians in our churches who fail to see the importance of obedience to God in their daily lives" (p. 273).

I would add only this: not only have I seen the fear of teaching this vital doctrine in evangelical churches, but I have also seen what I call "OTTO KOS"--"Over-the-top Outrage, Keith Olbermann Style."

Over-the-top Outrage, Keith Olbermann Style (modeled well here by Ben Affleck)

Why OTTO KOS, you may ask? I think this teaching draws this reaction for many reasons, but, for today, I'll only mention one--a failure to properly understand the necessity of pursuing holiness in our sanctification. And, as a pastor to many, I have seen this misunderstanding flourish in many of my ministry contexts. Some have an incorrect understanding of holiness--"Don't do this, don't do that, etc." Others believe some sort of variation of Keswick sanctification--"just let go and let God do the work in you." Others still erroneously hold to the idea that since believers are positionally sanctified by Christ at their conversion (a.k.a. justification), there is nothing they can do to displease or drive a wedge between themselves and God. All of these beliefs do not accurately reflect the Biblical teaching of the pursuit of holiness, and, as a pastor who deeply desires this teaching to be inculcated into the Church, this grieves me.

So, what can I do? The short answer--nothing outside of Christ and His glorious grace. With Him--perhaps be used to counteract this present shortfall.

So, for the next while on the blog, I will be exploring how exactly believers can pursue holiness and, by doing this, please the great and holy God.

Just Thinking...and Deciding

2010-09-14T14:42:00.002-05:00

My man over at Pyromaniacs--Dan Phillips--has done much for the cessationist cause by writing some excellent blog posts on why claims of modern-day prophecy and tongues cannot be viewed as divine gifts due to many reasons, but two that I believe are particularly insightful: 1) They bear no resemblance to the biblical sign gifts of prophecy and tongues, and 2) They are errant.

Now, due to the Lord's providential guidance of my theological journey during my college years (and a bit beyond) through painstaking exegesis, prayer, and serious theological study and reflection, I also came to these conclusions. I found that no matter what experience someone had, or no matter how many people disagreed with me, if the Bible, after careful, prayerful, exegetical examination, said a certain thing is true (or false), then it is...PERIOD. This conviction is one that most likely drove away some of my Pentecostal/Charismatic friends and acquaintances from me. They had the experiences, and they had the power of many back-slappers, but they didn't have the exegetical conclusions I had--and somehow, I think they knew that. What was extremely unfortunate and depressing for me, however, was that no one wanted to talk about and seriously (read objectively) consider my exegetical and theological conclusions. Why? Well, I think it maybe because they didn't know what they would do if my conclusions were true.

Thinking about all this (and more...for another post), I believe that there are many Pentecostals/Charismatics out there who are like I was--convinced of their position, but afraid that someone whose study of the issue would come along and knock over their house of cards. "What now?" they would say.

Well, my hope is that I could perhaps be of help to such a person. My hope and pray is that questioning Pentecostals and Charismatics would come and say, "So what if all of this isn't true? What if my "gifts" are really figments of my imagination...or something worse? What now, Jason?" I would be more than willing to help such a person by steering them to what I believe the Scripture actually says about the gifts, how we relate to those today, and how we are to live in light of that knowledge.

In light of this, I believe that something I have been wanting to do for some time now may actually help in this endeavor--give the story of my journey in some sort of a book format. I wonder, though--would this actually be helpful, so long as I stay anchored to the text and give its conclusions (and simply my interactions with it)?

More to ponder.

Invaluable Conversation over at Biblical Christianity

2010-09-03T16:37:00.000-05:00

My brother in Christ Dan Phillips has posted some videos of "The New Mystic" John Crowder over at his fantastic Biblical Christianity blog. There you will see some of the madness overtaking the professing church today. Make sure to check out the meta, as you'll see some believers (including yours truly) commenting on the dangers of the growing acceptance of charismaticism in the evangelical church today. To check it out, click here.

Eternity

2010-06-29T09:57:00.000-05:00

Eternity

I believe that after the closing of the millennium, the temporary release of Satan, and the judgment of unbelievers (2 Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 20:7-15), the saved will enter the eternal state of glory with God, after which the earth will be finally and completely freed from the curse, referred to in Scripture as the new earth, wherein only righteousness dwells (Ephesians 5:5; Revelation 20:15; 21:1-27; 22:1-21). Following this, the heavenly city will come down out of heaven (Revelation 21:2) and will be the dwelling place of the saints, where they will enjoy forever fellowship with God and one another (John 17:3; Revelation 21-22).

Our Lord Jesus Christ, having fulfilled His redemptive mission, will then deliver up the kingdom to God the Father (1 Corinthians 15:24-28), that in all spheres the triune God may reign forever and ever (1 Corinthians 15:28).

The Judgment of the Lost

2010-06-21T10:59:00.000-05:00

The Judgment of the Lost

I believe that following the release of Satan after the 1,000-year reign of Christ (Revelation 20:7), Satan will deceive the nations of the earth and gather them to battle against the saints and the beloved city, at which time Satan and his army will be devoured by fire from heaven (Revelation 20:9). Following this, Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10), whereupon Christ, who is the Judge of all men (John 5:22), will resurrect and judge the great and small at the Great White Throne Judgment.

I believe that this resurrection of the unsaved dead to judgment will be a physical resurrection, whereupon receiving their judgment (John 5:28-29), they will be committed to an eternal conscious punishment in the lake of fire (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:11-15).

The Second Coming & the Millennial Kingdom

2010-06-07T23:55:00.001-05:00

The Second Coming and the Millennial Kingdom

I believe that, after the tribulation period, Christ will come to earth to occupy the throne of David (Matthew 25:31; Luke 1:31-33; Acts 1:10-11; 2:29-30) and establish His messianic kingdom for 1,000 years on the earth (Revelation 20:1-7). During this time the resurrected saints will reign with Him over Israel and all the nations of the earth (Ezekiel 37:21-28; Daniel 7:17-22; Revelation 19:11-16). This reign will be preceded by the overthrow of the Antichrist and the False Prophet, and by the removal of Satan from the world (Daniel 7:17-27; Revelation 20:1-7).

I believe that the kingdom itself will be the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel (Isaiah 65:17-25; Ezekiel 37:21-28; Zechariah 8:1-17) to restore them to the land that they forfeited through their disobedience (Deuteronomy 28:15-68). The result of their disobedience was that Israel was temporarily set aside (Matthew 21:43; Romans 11:1-26), but will again be awakened through repentance to enter into the land of blessing (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:22-32; Romans 11:25-29).

I believe that this time of our Lord’s reign will be characterized by harmony, justice, peace, righteousness, and long life (Isaiah 11; 65:17-25; Ezekiel 36:33-38), and will be brought to an end with the release of Satan (Revelation 20:7).

It has been my personal observation, and, by extension, my belief, that the church today has by and large abandoned sound biblical exegesis, teaching, and preaching on the Millennial Kingdom, for fear of causing controversy. The unintended consequences of this are many; some of which I may write about in the future. I will give one here--believers do not know the glories that await them before the eternal state. I pray that premillennial pastors will muster some courage and begin to preach on this topic again. Believers need to hear its marvelous truths.

Here is an excerpt of a sermon on the Second Coming and the Millennial Kingdom by Dr. David Jeremiah. It specifically covers the GREAT applications one can take away from studying prophecy. I hope you enjoy it.

The Tribulation Period

2010-06-05T16:09:00.000-05:00

The Tribulation Period

I believe that immediately following the removal of the church from the earth (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) the righteous judgments of God will be poured out upon an unbelieving world (Jeremiah 30:7; Daniel 9:27; 12:1; 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12; Revelation 16), and that these judgments will be climaxed by the return of Christ in glory to the earth (Matthew 24:27-31; 25:31-46; 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12). At that time the Old Testament and tribulation saints will be raised and the living will be judged (Daniel 12:2-3; Revelation 20:4-6). This period includes the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy (Daniel 9:24-27; Matthew 24:15-31; 25:31-46).

Last Things Part 2: The Rapture of the Church

2010-05-17T00:05:00.000-05:00

The Rapture of the Church

I believe the personal, bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ before the seven-year tribulation (1 Thessalonians 4:16; Titus 2:13) to translate His church from this earth (John 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4:15- 5:11) and, between this event and His glorious return with His saints, to reward believers according to their works (1 Corinthians 3:11-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10).

Last Things Part 1: Death

2010-05-14T22:12:00.000-05:00

LAST THINGS

Death

I believe that physical death involves no loss of our immaterial consciousness (Revelation 6:9-11), that the soul of the redeemed passes immediately into the presence of Christ (Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:8), that there is a separation of soul and body (Philippians 1:21-24), and that, for the redeemed, such separation will continue until the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17), which initiates the first resurrection (Revelation 20:4-6), when our soul and body will be reunited to be glorified forever with our Lord (Philippians 3:21; 1 Corinthians 15:35-44, 50-54). Until that time, the souls of the redeemed in Christ remain in joyful fellowship with our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:8).

I believe the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life (John 6:39; Romans 8:10-11, 19-23; 2 Corinthians 4:14), and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Daniel 12:2; John 5:29; Revelation 20:13-15).

I believe that the souls of the unsaved at death are kept under punishment until the second resurrection (Luke 16:19-26; Revelation 20:13-15), when the soul and the resurrection body will be united (John 5:28-29). They shall then appear at the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15) and shall be cast into hell, the lake of fire (Matthew 25:41-46), cut off from the life of God forever (Daniel 12:2; Matthew 25:41-46; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).

Angels Part 2: Fallen Angels

2010-05-07T01:19:00.000-05:00

Fallen Angels

I believe that Satan is a created angel and the author of sin. He incurred the judgment of God by rebelling against his Creator (Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:11-19), by taking numerous angels with him in his fall (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 12:1-14), and by introducing sin into the human race by his temptation of Eve (Genesis 3:1-15).

I believe that Satan is the open and declared enemy of God and man (Isaiah 14:13-14; Matthew 4:1-11; Revelation 12:9-10); that he is the prince of this world, who has been defeated through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 16:20); and that he shall be eternally punished in the lake of fire (Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).

Angels Part 1: Holy Angels

2010-05-04T23:23:00.000-05:00

ANGELS

Holy Angels

I believe that angels are created beings and are therefore not to be worshiped. Although they are a higher order of creation than man, they are created to serve God and to worship Him (Luke 2:9-14; Hebrews 1:6-7, 14; 2:6-7; Revelation 5:11-14; 19:10; 22:9).

The Church Part 4: The Ordinances

2010-05-02T22:12:00.000-05:00

The Ordinances

I believe that two ordinances have been committed to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:38-42). Christian baptism by immersion (Acts 8:36-39) is the solemn and beautiful testimony of a believer showing forth his faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, and his union with Him in death to sin and resurrection to a new life (Romans 6:1-11). It is also a sign of fellowship and identification with the visible Body of Christ (Acts 2:41-42).

I believe that the Lord’s Supper is the commemoration and proclamation of His death until He comes, and should be always preceded by solemn self-examination (1 Corinthians 11:28-32). We also teach that, whereas the elements of Communion are only representative of the flesh and blood of Christ, participation in the Lord’s Supper is nevertheless an actual communion with the risen Christ, who indwells every believer, and so is present, fellowshipping with His people (1 Corinthians 10:16).

The Church Part 3: Spiritual Gifts

2010-05-01T17:21:00.000-05:00

Spiritual Gifts

I believe the calling of all saints to the work of service (1 Corinthians 15:58; Ephesians 4:12; Revelation 22:12).

I believe the need of the church to cooperate with God as He accomplishes His purpose in the world. To that end, He gives the church spiritual gifts. He gives men chosen for the purpose of equipping the saints for the work of the ministry (Ephesians 4:7-12), and He also gives unique and special spiritual abilities to each member of the Body of Christ (Romans 12:5-8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-31; 1 Peter 4:10-11).

I believe that there were two kinds of gifts given the early church: miraculous gifts of divine revelation and healing, given temporarily in the apostolic era for the purpose of confirming the authenticity of the apostles’ message (Hebrews 2:3-4; 2 Corinthians 12:12); and ministering gifts, given to equip believers for edifying one another. With the New Testament revelation now complete, Scripture becomes the sole test of the authenticity of a man’s message, and confirming gifts of a miraculous nature are no longer necessary to validate a man or his message (1 Corinthians 13:8-12). Miraculous gifts can even be counterfeited by Satan so as to deceive even believers (1 Corinthians 13:13-14:12; Revelation 13:13-14). The only gifts in operation today are those non-revelatory equipping gifts given for edification (Romans 12:6-8).

I believe that no one possesses the gift of healing today, but that God does hear and answer the prayer of faith and will answer in accordance with His own perfect will for the sick, suffering, and afflicted (Luke 18:1-6; John 5:7-9; 2 Corinthians 12:6-10; James 5:13-16; 1 John 5:14-15).

The Church Part 2: Church Government

2010-04-24T19:42:00.000-05:00

Church Government

I believe that the one supreme authority for the church is Christ (1 Corinthians 11:3; Ephesians 1:22; Colossians 1:18) and that church leadership, gifts, order, discipline, and worship are all appointed through His sovereignty as found in the Scriptures. The biblically designated officers serving under Christ and over the assembly are elders (also called bishops, pastors, and pastor-teachers; Acts 20:28; Ephesians 4:11) and deacons, both of whom must meet biblical qualifications (1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-5).

I believe that these leaders lead or rule as servants of Christ (1 Timothy 5:17-22) and have His authority in directing the church. The congregation is to submit to their leadership (Hebrews 13:7, 17).

I believe the importance of discipleship (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Timothy 2:2), mutual accountability of all believers to each other (Matthew 18:5-14), as well as the need for discipline of sinning members of the congregation in accord with the standards of Scripture (Matthew 18:15-22; Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15; 1 Timothy 1:19-20; Titus 1:10-16).

I believe the autonomy of the local church, free from any external authority or control, with the right of self-government and freedom from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations (Titus 1:5). I believe that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate with each other for the presentation and propagation of the faith. Each local church, however, through its elders and their interpretation and application of Scripture, should be the sole judge of the measure and method of its cooperation. The elders should determine all other matters of membership, policy, discipline, benevolence, and government as well (Acts 15:19-31; 20:28; 1 Corinthians 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1-4).

The Church Part 1: Its Identity, Formation, & Purpose

2010-04-23T00:16:00.000-05:00

THE CHURCH

Identity, Formation, & Purpose

I believe that all who place their faith in Jesus Christ are immediately placed by the Holy Spirit into one united spiritual Body, the church (1 Corinthians 12:12-13), the bride of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:23-32; Revelation 19:7-8), of which Christ is the Head (Ephesians 1:22; 4:15; Colossians 1:18).

I believe that the church is thus a unique spiritual organism designed by Christ, made up of all born-again believers in this present age (Ephesians 2:11-3:6). The church is distinct from Israel (1 Corinthians 10:32), a mystery not revealed until this age (Ephesians 3:1-6; 5:32).

I believe that the formation of the church, the Body of Christ, began on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-21, 38-47) and will be completed at the coming of Christ for His own at the rapture (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

I believe that the establishment and continuity of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:23, 27; 20:17, 28; Galatians 1:2; Philippians 1:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1) and that the members of the one spiritual Body are directed to associate themselves together in local assemblies (1 Corinthians 11:18-20; Hebrews 10:25).

I believe that the purpose of the church is to glorify God (Ephesians 3:21) by building itself up in the faith (Ephesians 4:13-16), by instruction of the Word (2 Timothy 2:2, 15; 3:16-17), by fellowship (Acts 2:47; 1 John 1:3), by keeping the ordinances (Luke 22:19; Acts 2:38-42) and by advancing and communicating the gospel to the entire world (Matthew 28:19; Acts 1:8; 2:42).

Salvation Part 6: Biblical Separation

2010-04-22T00:07:00.000-05:00

Biblical Separation

I believe that separation from sin is clearly called for throughout the Old and New Testaments, and that the Scriptures clearly indicate that in the last days apostasy and worldliness shall increase (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1-5).

I believe that, out of deep gratitude for the undeserved grace of God granted to us, and because our glorious God is so worthy of our total consecration, all the saved should live in such a manner as to demonstrate our adoring love to God and so as not to bring reproach upon our Lord and Savior. We also teach that separation from all religious apostasy and worldly and sinful practices is commanded of us by God (Romans 12:1-2, 1 Corinthians 5:9-13; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11).

I believe that believers should be separated unto our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; Hebrews 12:1-2) and affirm that the Christian life is a life of obedient righteousness that reflects the teaching of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:2-12) and a continual pursuit of holiness (Romans 12:1-2; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Hebrews 12:14; Titus 2:11-14; 1 John 3:1-10).

Salvation Part 5: Security

2010-04-20T23:42:00.000-05:00

Security

I believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 5:24; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 5:9-10; 8:1, 31-39; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8; Ephesians 4:30; Hebrews 7:25; 13:5; 1 Peter 1:5; Jude 24).

I believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion for sinful living and carnality (Romans 6:15-22; 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13, 25-26; Titus 2:11-14).

Salvation Part 4: Sanctification

2010-04-20T00:44:00.000-05:00

Sanctification

I believe that every believer is sanctified (set apart) unto God by justification and is therefore declared to be holy and is therefore identified as a saint. This sanctification is positional and instantaneous and should not be confused with progressive sanctification. This sanctification has to do with the believer’s standing, not his present walk or condition (Acts 20:32; 1 Corinthians 1:2, 30; 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 2:11; 3:1; 10:10, 14; 13:12; 1 Peter 1:2).

I believe that there is also, by the work of the Holy Spirit, a progressive sanctification by which the state of the believer is brought closer to the standing the believer positionally enjoys through justification. Through obedience to the Word of God and the empowering of the Holy Spirit, the believer is able to live a life of increasing holiness in conformity to the will of God, becoming more and more like our Lord Jesus Christ (John 17:17, 19; Romans 6:1-22; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4; 5:23).

In this respect, I believe that every saved person is involved in a daily conflict—the new creation in Christ doing battle against the flesh—but adequate provision is made for victory through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. The struggle nevertheless stays with the believer all through this earthly life and is never completely ended. All claims to the eradication of sin in this life are unscriptural. Eradication of sin is not possible, but the Holy Spirit does provide for victory over sin (Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 4:22-24; Philippians 3:12; Colossians 3:9-10; 1 Peter 1:14-16; 1 John 3:5-9).

Salvation Part 3: Justification

2010-04-09T01:37:00.004-05:00

Justification

I believe that justification before God is an act of God (Romans 8:33) by which He declares righteous those who, through faith in Christ, repent of their sins (Luke 13:3; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 11:18; Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians 7:10; Isaiah 55:6-7) and confess Him as sovereign Lord (Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 12:3; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 2:11). This righteousness is apart from any virtue or work of man (Romans 3:20; 4:6) and involves the imputation of our sins to Christ (Colossians 2:14; 1 Peter 2:24) and the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to us (1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21). By this means God is enabled to “be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).

This, friends, is the heart of the Gospel. Without this crucial, critical doctrine, Christianity falls apart. It is, as Martin Luther said, the doctrine upon which the church stands or falls. I would also add (as others have before me) that this is the doctrine upon which you stand or fall.

I leave you with some of my favorite YouTube clips which shows some great teachers of the faith clearly state this fundamental doctrine.

R.C. Sproul -- Justification and Imputed Righteousness

John MacArthur -- What is the Heart of the Gospel (2 Cor. 5:21)

John Piper -- If You Had 2 Minutes with the Pope, What Would You Say?

Salvation Part 2: Regeneration

2010-04-08T00:11:00.000-05:00

Regeneration

I believe that regeneration is a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit by which the divine nature and divine life are given (John 3:3-7; Titus 3:5). It is instantaneous and is accomplished solely by the power of the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of the Word of God (John 5:24). The repentant sinner, as enabled by the Holy Spirit, responds in repentance and faith to the divine provision of this monergistic, regenerative, saving work. Genuine regeneration is manifested by fruits worthy of repentance as demonstrated in righteous attitudes and conduct. Good works are the proper evidence and fruit of regeneration (1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Ephesians 2:10), and will be experienced to the extent that the believer submits to the control of the Holy Spirit in his life through faithful obedience to the Word of God (Ephesians 5:17-21; Philippians 2:12b; Colossians 3:16; 2 Peter 1:4-10). This obedience causes the believer to be increasingly conformed to the image of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Such a conformity is climaxed in the believer’s glorification at Christ’s coming (Romans 8:17; 2 Peter 1:4; 1 John 3:2-3).

Salvation Part 1--Election

2010-04-06T19:41:00.002-05:00

SALVATION

Today begins my posts on the doctrine of salvation (soteriology). They will be divided into several categories, ones that while they are not fully exhaustive, do provide very basic divisions in the application of redemption.

To begin, I believe that salvation is wholly of God by grace on the basis of the redemption of Jesus Christ, the merit of His shed blood, and not on the basis of human merit or works (John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

Now, part 1...

I believe that election is the act of God by which, before the foundation of the world, He chose in Christ those whom He graciously regenerates, saves, and sanctifies (Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:4-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 2:10; 1 Peter 1:1-2).

I believe that sovereign election does not contradict or negate the responsibility of man to repent and trust Christ as Savior and Lord (Ezekiel 18:23, 32; 33:11; John 3:18-19, 36; 5:40; Romans 9:22-23; 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12; Revelation 22:17). Nevertheless, since sovereign grace includes the means of receiving the gift of salvation as well as the gift itself, sovereign election will result in what God determines. All whom the Father calls to Himself will come in faith, and all who come in faith the Father will receive (John 6:37-40, 44; Acts 13:48; James 4:8).

I believe that the unmerited favor that God grants to totally depraved sinners is not related to any initiative of their own part or to God’s anticipation of what they might do by their own will, but is solely of His sovereign grace and mercy (Ephesians 1:4-7; Titus 3:4-7; 1 Peter 1:2).

I believe that election should not be looked upon as based merely on abstract sovereignty. God is truly sovereign, but He exercises this sovereignty in harmony with His other attributes, especially His omniscience, justice, holiness, wisdom, grace, and love (Romans 9:11-16). This sovereignty will always exalt the will of God in a manner totally consistent with His character as revealed in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:25-28; 2 Timothy 1:9).

The Doctrine of Man

2010-04-05T23:02:00.000-05:00

MAN

I believe that man was directly and immediately created by God in His image and likeness. Man was created free of sin with a rational nature, intelligence, volition, self-determination, and moral responsibility to God (Genesis 2:7, 15-25; James 3:9).

I believe that God’s intention in the creation of man was that man should glorify God, enjoy God’s fellowship, live his life in the will of God, and by this accomplish God’s purpose for man in the world (Isaiah 43:7; Colossians 1:16; Revelation 4:11).

I believe that in Adam’s sin of disobedience to the revealed will and Word of God, man lost his innocence, incurred the penalty of spiritual and physical death, became subject to the wrath of God, and became inherently corrupt and utterly incapable of choosing or doing that which is acceptable to God apart from divine grace. With no recuperative powers to enable him to recover himself, man is hopelessly lost. Man’s salvation is thereby wholly of God’s grace through the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:1-19; John 3:36; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:1-3; 1 Timothy 2:13-14; 1 John 1:8).

I believe that, because all men were in Adam, a nature corrupted by Adam’s sin has been transmitted to all men of all ages, Jesus Christ being the only exception. All men are thus sinners by nature, by choice, and by divine declaration (Psalm 14:1-3; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:9-18, 23; 5:10-12).

God the Holy Spirit

2010-04-02T23:43:00.000-05:00

God the Holy Spirit

I believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person, eternal, underived, possessing all the attributes of personality and deity, including intellect (1 Corinthians 2:10-13), emotions (Ephesians 4:30), will (1 Corinthians 12:11), eternality (Hebrews 9:14), omnipresence (Psalm 139:7-10), omniscience (Isaiah 40:13-14), omnipotence (Romans 15:13), and truthfulness (John 16:13). In all the divine attributes He is coequal and consubstantial with the Father and the Son (Matthew 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 28:25-26; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Jeremiah 31:31-34 with Hebrews 10:15-17).

I believe that it is the work of the Holy Spirit to execute the divine will with relation to all mankind. The Bible recognizes His sovereign activity in creation (Genesis 1:2), the incarnation (Matthew 1:18), the written revelation (2 Peter 1:20-21), and the work of salvation (John 3:5-7).

I believe that the work of the Holy Spirit in this age began at Pentecost, when He came from the Father as promised by Christ (John 14:16-17; 15:26) to initiate and complete the building of the Body of Christ, which is His church (1 Corinthians 12:13). The broad scope of His divine activity includes convicting the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ and transforming believers into the image of Christ (John 16:7-9; Acts 1:5; 2:4; Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 2:22).

I believe that the Holy Spirit is the supernatural and sovereign Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). The Holy Spirit also indwells, sanctifies, instructs, empowers them for service, and seals them unto the day of redemption (Romans 8:9; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 1:13).

I believe that the Holy Spirit is the divine Teacher, who guided the apostles and prophets into all truth as they committed to writing God’s revelation, the Bible (2 Peter 1:19-21). Every believer possesses the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit from the moment of salvation, and it is the duty of all those born of the Spirit to be filled with (controlled by) the Spirit (John 16:13; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27).

I believe that the Holy Spirit administers spiritual gifts to the church. The Holy Spirit glorifies neither Himself nor His gifts by flamboyant displays, but He does glorify Christ by implementing His work of redeeming the lost and building up believers in the supreme holy faith (John 16:13-14; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 2 Corinthians 3:18).

I believe, in this respect, that God the Holy Spirit is sovereign in the bestowing of all His gifts for the perfecting of the saints today, and that speaking in tongues and the working of sign miracles in the beginning days of the church were for the purpose of pointing to and authenticating the apostles as revealers of divine truth, and were never intended to be characteristic of the lives of believers (1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 13:8-10; 2 Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12; Hebrews 2:1-4).

God the Son

2010-03-26T22:43:00.003-05:00

God the Son

I believe that Jesus Christ, the second Person of the Trinity, possesses all the divine excellencies, and in these He is coequal, consubstantial, and coeternal with the Father (John 10:30; 14:9).

I believe that God the Father created according to His own will, through His Son, Jesus Christ, by whom all things continue in existence and in operation (John 1:3; Colossians 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:2).

I believe that in the incarnation (God becoming man) Christ surrendered only the prerogatives of deity but nothing of the divine essence, either in degree or kind. In His incarnation, the eternally existing second Person of the Trinity accepted all the essential characteristics of humanity and so became the God-Man (Philippians 2:5-8; Colossians 2:9).

I believe that Jesus Christ represents humanity and deity in indivisible oneness (Micah 5:2; John 5:23; 14:9-10; Colossians 2:9). I believe that our Lord Jesus Christ was virgin born (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23, 25; Luke 1:26-35); that He was God incarnate (John 1:1, 14); and that the purpose of the incarnation was to reveal God, redeem men, and rule over God’s kingdom (Psalm 2:7-9; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:29; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 7:25-26; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

I believe that, in the incarnation, the second Person of the Trinity laid aside His right to the full prerogatives of coexistence with God and took on an existence appropriate to a servant while never divesting Himself of His divine attributes (Philippians 2:5-8).

I believe that our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through the shedding of His blood and sacrificial death on the cross and that His death was voluntary, vicarious, substitutionary, propitiatory, and redemptive (John 10:15; Romans 3:24-25; 5:8; 1 Peter 2:24).

I believe that on the basis of the efficacy of the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, the believing sinner is freed from the punishment, the penalty, the power, and one day the very presence of sin; and that he is declared righteous, given eternal life, and adopted into the family of God (Romans 3:25; 5:8-9; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; 1 Peter 2:24; 3:18).

I believe that justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead and that He is now ascended to the right hand of the Father, where He now mediates as Advocate and High Priest (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:38-39; Acts 2:30-31; Romans 4:25; 8:34; Hebrews 7:25; 9:24; 1 John 2:1).

I believe that in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave, God confirmed the deity of His Son and gave proof that God has accepted the atoning work of Christ on the cross. Jesus’ bodily resurrection is also the guarantee of a future resurrection life for all believers (John 5:26-29; 14:19; Romans 1:4; 4:25; 6:5-10; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 23).

I believe that Jesus Christ will return to receive the church, which is His Body, unto Himself at the rapture, and returning with His church in glory, will establish His millennial kingdom on earth (Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 20).

I believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the One through whom God will judge all mankind (John 5:22-23):

• Believers (1 Corinthians 3:10-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10)

• Living inhabitants of the earth at His glorious return (Matthew 25:31-46)

• Unbelieving dead at the Great White Throne (Revelation 20:11-15)

As the Mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5), the Head of His Body the church (Ephesians 1:22; 5:23; Colossians 1:18), and the coming universal King, who will reign on the throne of David (Isaiah 9:6; Luke 1:31-33), He is the final Judge of all who fail to place their trust in Him as Lord and Savior (Matthew 25:14-46; Acts 17:30-31).

Tomorrow: God the Holy Spirit

God the Father

2010-03-25T23:21:00.003-05:00

GOD

I believe that there is but one living and true God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; 1 Corinthians 8:4), an infinite, all-knowing Spirit (John 4:24), perfect in all His attributes, one in essence, eternally existing in three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14)—each equally deserving worship and obedience.

God the Father

I believe that God the Father, the first Person of the Trinity, orders and disposes all things according to His own purpose and grace (Psalm 145:8-9; 1 Corinthians 8:6). He is the Creator of all things (Genesis 1:1-31; Ephesians 3:9). As the only absolute and omnipotent Ruler in the universe, He is sovereign in creation, providence, and redemption (Psalm 103:19; Romans 11:36). His fatherhood involves both His designation within the Trinity and His relationship with mankind. As Creator He is Father to all men (Ephesians 4:6), but He is spiritual Father only to believers (Romans 8:14; 2 Corinthians 6:18). He has decreed for His own glory all things that come to pass (Ephesians 1:11). He continually upholds, directs, and governs all creatures and events (1 Chronicles 29:11). In His sovereignty He is neither the author nor approver of sin (Habakkuk 1:13; John 8:38-47), nor does He abridge the accountability of moral, intelligent creatures (1 Peter 1:17). He has graciously chosen from eternity past those whom He would have as His own (Ephesians 1:4-6); He saves from sin all who come to Him through Jesus Christ; He adopts as His own all those who come to Him; and, at adoption, He becomes Father to His own (John 1:12; Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5; Hebrews 12:5-9).

Tomorrow: God the Son

The Holy Scriptures

2010-03-24T23:51:00.002-05:00

THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

I believe that the Bible is God’s written revelation to man, and thus the 66 books of the Bible given to humanity by the Holy Spirit constitute the plenary (inspired equally in all parts) Word of God (1 Corinthians 2:7-14; 2 Peter 1:20-21). I believe that the Word of God is an objective, propositional revelation (1 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 2:13), verbally inspired in every word (2 Timothy 3:16), absolutely inerrant in the original documents, infallible, and God-breathed. I believe the literal, grammatical-historical interpretation of Scripture which affirms the belief that the opening chapters of Genesis present creation in six literal days (Genesis 1:31; Exodus 31:17).

I believe that the Bible constitutes the only infallible rule of faith and practice (Matthew 5:18; 24:35; John 10:35; 16:12-13; 17:17; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

I believe that God spoke in His written Word by a process of dual authorship. The Holy Spirit so superintended the human authors that, through their individual personalities and different styles of writing, they composed and recorded God’s Word to man (2 Peter 1:20-21) without error in the whole or in the part (Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:16).

I believe that, whereas there may be several applications of any given passage of Scripture, there is but one true interpretation. The meaning of Scripture is to be found as one diligently applies the literal grammatical-historical method of interpretation under the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit (John 7:17; 16:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:7-15; 1 John 2:20). It is the responsibility of believers to ascertain carefully the true intent and meaning of Scripture, recognizing that proper application is binding on all generations.

Nevertheless the truth of Scripture stands in judgment of men; never do men stand in judgment of it.

Tomorrow: God the Father

The Faith Once for All Delivered to the Saints

2010-03-01T16:06:00.000-06:00

I've been thinking about this for quite awhile now, and, to be honest, I've been putting it off, thinking that I wouldn't be consistent with my posting of it. However, with a doctrinal position paper I've been working on, its time of revealing has come.

What am I talking about?

Quite simply: a series of posts concerning my understanding of Biblical truth--the faith once for all delivered to the saints. In these times of doctrinal crisis, a firm foundation is what is needed. It is my prayer that my understanding of Biblical truth will help others discover the firm foundation that God provides.

So, tomorrow: the beginning of our trek together concerning God's revelation of truth.

"Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ" (Jude 3-4 ESV).

What Does All of This Mean?

2010-02-20T00:05:00.000-06:00

So now we come to the conclusion of the discussion about tongues. I have attempted to make my own view on the matter clear. Tongues were a temporary sign-gift, given initially to the apostles, who then witnessed the gift manifest itself on a few other occasions for the specific purpose of demonstrating God's approval of their Gospel message to others. Tongues were also a tangible sign of judgment upon Israel for their unbelief. Once the temporary need for tongues ended due to the maturation of the early church and the AD 70 judgment of Israel, God permanently ceased bestowing the gift. An appeal to 1 Corinthians 12-14 is illegitimate, as this manifestation of tongues was a carryover from the Corinthians' former days in mystery religions, and Paul was carefully crafting an argument that would help them see that they should cease their ecstatic tongues-speech.

So, if my observations are correct (and I believe that they are due to a careful study of the text), then, the next question is: what does all of this mean? Well, I think this means a few things.

Pentecostals and Charismatics, while true brothers and sisters in the faith once for all delivered to the saints, are mistaken when they believe that modern-day tongues-speech is equivalent and of the same nature as authentic 1st century tongues-speech. Pentecostal and Charismatic tongues-speech, then, is either a product of their own wishful thinking, manipulation, and creation, or it is possibly a product of deceitful spirits.
Those who believe that they are participating in authentic tongues-speech do not have cessationist folks "over the barrel", so-to-speak, because they have "an experience", while the cessationist has "only" an argument. The cessationist has strong exegetical evidence, while the noncessationist has an experience that cannot be positively authenticated. In other words, a person with an experience is always at the mercy of the one who has rightly divided the word of truth.
Finally, I believe that this means that those evangelicals who have surrendered cessationism and instead adopted an "open-but-cautious" view to tongues due to the plethora of "experiences" attested to be noncessationists have not been faithful to adequately defending God's Word. In the face of opposition and potential embarrassment for looking so "dogmatic" when millions have been experiencing this "new move of the Spirit", evangelicals chose the praise of men instead of faithfulness to the text. In light of this, then, I would urge any evangelical reading this to study the biblical text again, think through what has been said in this and previous posts, and remember that no matter what people may say or experience, if the Word of God says it, then it is true. Period.

I hope that this has helped someone today. Pentecostal and Charismatic brother or sister, please know that I am not trying to embarrass or shame you or the movement. I am only trying to call the evangelical church back to faithfulness to the text and to leave subjectivity and personal experience where it should be--captive to the Word of God.

Robert L. Thomas Has Done It Again!

2010-02-12T00:33:00.000-06:00

Since the last time I posted on the topic of the sign gift of tongues, I have been reminded of a few objections that one of the core arguments in the cessationist view must answer. In 1 Corinthians 13:10, cessationists argue that the sign gifts (which includes tongues) will cease when to teleion occurs. Now, the debate is over what the Greek term to teleion means. Most cessationists (including this blogger) believe that the term is referring to the maturing of the church, which, due to other evidences too long to list here, occurred in the 1st century. Noncessationists, such as Wayne Grudem and Gordon Fee, believe that this interpretation is incorrect, giving instead the definition of "the perfect," which they interpret as the second coming of Christ. So, even though I stated earlier that I believe to teleion means "mature", many noncessationists choose to argue the point. So...what's a cessationist to do?

Go to an exegete who can help! And there just so happens to be one: Robert L. Thomas.

In this article he answers the objections to the cessationist's interpretation of to teleion and examines the noncessationist's interpretation, rendering it impossible and not a viable option. Once again, good exegesis triumphs over subjectivity (and thank the Lord for it).

Noncessationist, read if you dare.

Glossalalic Claims: Past and Present (Part 2)

2010-01-29T14:32:00.000-06:00

Anthony Hoekema, in his book What About Tongue-Speaking, does an unparalleled job of documenting the remainder of Christian history’s record of glossalalia, and his studies show an interesting trend. From church fathers Chrysostom and Augustine onward, the mainstream Christian church makes harmonized claims to the fact that glossalalia is no longer operating in the church.[1] Those who do make claims to glossalalia’s continued existence, ranging from the Middle Age Catholic monks, to the Jansenists, to the Shakers and the Mormons, all suffer from either gross embellishment or unorthodox theology that would disqualify them from any genuine move of the Holy Spirit.[2] Interestingly enough, Pentecostal scholar Janet Powers admits that if indeed biblical glossalalia contains only spoken human language, then church history proves that the gift of tongues ceased.[3] This leaves the noncessationist with only one era to bolster the claim of continued glossalalia—the Pentecostal outpouring of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

It has already been proven earlier that biblical glossalalia consisted of only human languages, so, if any claim can be made to the continuation of glossalalia, then the languages currently being spoken by noncessationists could be scientifically verified to determine if their properties do indeed match human languages. Powers, contemplating that this indeed may be the case, bluntly states this is impossible for noncessationists to do, for “the existence of foreign language glossalalia has never been proven linguistically.”[4] This has repeatedly proven to be the case, as linguist William Samarin detailed in his seminal book Tongues of Men and Angels: The Religious Language of Pentecostalism. After spending several years recording hundreds of examples of modern glossalalia, dissecting each and every syllable spoken, comparing it to thousands of languages and dialects, he came to the following definite conclusion:

“When the full apparatus of linguistic science comes to bear on glossalalia, this turns out to be only a façade of language—although at times a very good one indeed. For when we comprehend what language is, we must conclude that no glossa, no matter how well constructed, is a specimen of human language, because it is neither internally organized nor systematically related to the world man perceives.”[5]

This author’s research discovered that nearly every noncessationist resource they encountered did not engage Samarin’s findings, opting instead to defend the view that biblical glossalalia entails unknown, heavenly languages or ecstatic speech. This, however, irresponsibly discards the unambiguous exegetical, theological, historical, and scientific evidence and ignores its unmistakable conclusion—biblical glossalalia permanently ceased in the apostolic period.

[1] Anthony Hoekema, What About Tongue-Speaking, 16-23.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Janet Evert Powers, Missionary Tongues, 40.

[4] Ibid., 46.

[5] William J. Samarin, Tongues of Men and Angels: The Religious Language of Pentecostalism (New York: Macmillan, 1972), 127-128.

Glossalalic Claims: Past and Present (Part 1)

2010-01-28T01:05:00.006-06:00

Former cessationist Jack Deere’s conversion to noncessationism took the evangelical world by storm, and his book Surprised by the Power of the Spirit levied the most volatile charge against his former compatriots—“There is one basic reason why Bible-believing Christians do not believe in the miraculous gifts of the Spirit today. It is simply this: they have not seen them.”[1] D.A. Carson adds, “There is enough evidence that some form of ‘charismatic’ gifts continued sporadically across the centuries of church history that it is futile to insist on doctrinaire grounds that every report is spurious.”[2] These are indeed serious charges and strong statements, but the question must be asked: are these claims true? Are cessationists biased against glossalalia and other sign gifts because they have never seen one manifested? Is there enough evidence of the charismatic gifts to push aside theological concerns cessationists have with the participants? A close investigation reveals just the opposite—cessationism’s arguments, as this paper has shown, are based on solid exegetical and theological arguments, and supposed reports of charismatic events are spurious.

First and foremost, it has been well-documented that there is no evidence for the gift of tongues in thepost-apostolic church, which includes the time period between A.D. 100 to 400.[3] Even though this may be an argument from silence, the very fact that the Apostolic Fathers resided in the same places where tongues were most evident in the first century and do not speak of their continued existence is extremely meaningful.[4] The only reference to tongues during this time period is linked to the Montanists, and it is this evidence upon which both cessationists and noncessationists agree.[5] Interestingly, Ronald Kydd notes that Montanus would often enter an ecstatic state and speak in unintelligible speech, but, instead of doing further research into the biblical text and history in order to determine if this indeed matches biblical glossalalia, he rashly concludes that Montanus’ ecstasy was caused by being filled by the Spirit.[6] History notes that Montanus and his followers were deemed heretics for their unorthodox views, which included the belief that their ecstatic utterances were equal to and supplemented Scripture.[7] Any honest evangelical would certainly set aside Montanus’ experience, seeing as how one who is apostate would not receive a gift from the Holy Spirit who leads believers. However, Kydd shows his blatant disingenuousness when, despite Montanism’s disregard for the closed canon, declares them to be within the realms of orthodoxy.[8] Could this be what D.A. Carson is referring to when he declares that it is erroneous to eliminate a charismatic manifestation because of “doctrinaire concerns?” In any case, it would be wise to avoid using widely recognized heretics’ practices for evidence of glossalalia.

Tomorrow: Part 2.

[1] Jack Deere, Surprised by the Power of the Spirit (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993), 55, emphasis in original.

[2] D.A. Carson, Showing the Spirit, 166.

[3] Cleon L. Rogers, Jr., “The Gift of Tongues in the Post-Apostolic Church,” Bibliotheca Sacra 122 no. 486 (April 1965): 134.

[4] Ibid., 134-136.

[5] Anthony A. Hoekema, What About Tongue-Speaking? (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1966), 11; Ronald A.N. Kydd, Charismatic Gifts in the Early Church (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1984), 34-35.

[6] Ronald A.N. Kydd, Charismatic Gifts in the Early Church, 35.

[7] J.N.D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines, Revised ed. (Peabody, MA: Prince Press, 2004), 58-59.

[8] Ronald A.N. Kydd, Charismatic Gifts in the Early Church, 31.

How God's Plan for the Jewish People Relates to Glossalalia

2010-01-27T00:40:00.000-06:00

It has been noted earlier that 1 Corinthians 14:21-22 refers to a prophecy in Isaiah 28:11-12 in order to instruct the Corinthian church that glossalalia is a sign to the Jewish people that God is presently at work among them. This interpretation fits well with the three specific occasions of glossalalia in Acts, as each manifestation was directed with a Jewish audience in mind. What was not noted was the specific content and context of Isaiah 28:11-12. Isaiah prophesied to the Israelite people that because they did not obey God’s laws, they would be judged severely by God and that the specific sign for that judgment would be the invasion of a nation whose language was not their native tongue.[1] During Paul’s penning of the first Corinthian letter, the Jewish nation was again in steep rebellion against God, for they had adamantly rejected their Messiah. The Old Testament prophetic base, therefore, is giving Paul an occasion to use this passage, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to warn the unbelieving Jewish nation with the threat of impending judgment.[2] “This is brought out very clearly in the apostle’s use of the Greek word hoste (the word therefore)...(which means) what is to follow is plainly the result of a legitimate deduction from the Scriptures just presented.”[3] What is brought out from this Isaiah quotation is incontrovertible—the Jewish nation’s impeding judgment due to their unbelief. There can be no doubt that when Titus sacked Jerusalem—the center of Israel’s spiritual significance—in AD 70, this New Testament application of Isaiah’s prophecy was emphatically fulfilled. Once this judgment was fulfilled, there was no more need for the spiritual gift of glossalalia. Therefore, it can be intimated that authentic glossalalia ceased around or before AD 70.

Having given the argument for glossalalia’s cessation, this author must be fair and address the noncessationist’s claim that glossalalia could not have ceased in the first century because there is ample, historical evidence to the contrary. In reality, however, upon deeper-than-cursory, theological and scientific analysis, the evidence will show that no authentic glossalalic event can be verified since the close of the apostolic age.

Tomorrow: how church history testifies to the cessation of glossalalia.

[1] Isaiah 28:11-12

[2] Ronald Baxter, The Charismatic Gift of Tongues (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1981), 45.

[3] Ibid., 46.

Glossalalia until "the perfect" comes

2010-01-24T23:07:00.000-06:00

1 Corinthians 13:9-10 says, “For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.”[1] The Greek words for “the perfect” are to teleion, and, in the context of Paul addressing the Corinthian church as a body of believers, it is most likely best understood as referring to the maturity of the body of Christ.[2] This description encompasses the partial maturity in verse eleven and the complete maturity in verse twelve, and, contextually speaking, this view makes the best sense because this understanding of to teleion can be seen in 1 Corinthians 2:6, 3:1, and 14:20.[3] Paul was absolutely convinced that once the body of Christ matured to a certain point, the revelatory gifts such as glossalalia would no longer be needed.

There is, however, one serious problem this interpretation of to teleion that needs to be addressed. This interpretation does not necessitate a first-century fulfillment, so Paul must not have had one in mind. Skilled exegete and theologian Robert L. Thomas answers the objection admirably by pointing out the following: first and foremost, Paul expected Christ’s imminent return, so the church’s maturity had to be ready at any moment; secondly, he had to have been aware of his own writings being referred to as Scripture (cf 2 Peter 3:15-16), so a canon-in-process to complete the church’s maturity must have been on his mind if, in fact, Christ did not immediately return; and, finally, Paul intimates that the unity of faith, hope, and love were to last during the church’s entire existence, while the sign gifts (including glossalalia) were to exist only during a portion of this time—until the canon was completed.[4] It is worth noting here that charismatic theologian Roger Stronstad has a strong rebuttal in the fact that Peter in his Pentecost sermon appears to link glossalalia’s outpouring to the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy concerning the last days.[5] The line of reasoning is this: if glossalalia is part of the fulfillment of Joel’s eschatological prophecy, and since the eschaton has clearly not yet arrived, then glossalalia must certainly still be in effect. However, a better interpretation is provided by John MacArthur, who accurately notes that Joel’s prophecy, which includes blood, fire, and columns of smoke poured out on the earth, refers to the millennial kingdom, not the day of Pentecost.[6] Peter used Joel’s prophecy as a preview for the millennial kingdom in order for the Jewish crowd to have a foretaste of what power the Holy Spirit would bring in the future.[7] In fact, the Jewish nation is critical in an accurate understanding of glossalalia’s cessation, as they are the final reason behind why tongues-speech ceased.

Tomorrow: why the Jewish nation is a key to understanding the cessation of tongues.

[1] 1 Corinthians 13:9-10 ESV

[2] Robert L. Thomas, “Tongues...Will Cease,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 17 no. 2 (Spring 1974): 85-86.

[3] Ibid., 86.

[4] Ibid., 87-88.

[5] Roger Stronstad, The Charismatic Theology of St. Luke (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1984), 55-56.

[6] John F. MacArthur, Jr., Charismatic Chaos, 287.

[7] Ibid., 287-288.

The Apostles--The Key to Understanding the Church & Its Gifts

2010-01-22T23:52:00.001-06:00

No ecclesiology can be comprehensive without an understanding of the importance of the apostles to the early church. Ephesians 2:19-20 emphatically state that the Ephesian believers (and, by application, all believers) are members of God’s household—the church—which rests upon the foundation of the apostles.[1] “The apostles...are the foundation of the church because of their witness—their inspired, revelatory witness.”[2] Their one-lifetime witness to Christ’s finished atoning work, joined with Christ’s finished atonement, provide the union necessary for the New Testament canon, which is made to combine with the testimony of the prophets—the Old Testament canon—to form a complete revelation for the church.[3] Glossalalia, which is a gift given first to the apostles, naturally would cease to exist after the foundation had been laid, for not only was it a sign gift unique to the apostles, but only they could transfer this gift. Many noncessationists claim that the cessation of the sign gifts that would coincide with the settling of the foundation (apostles) of the church amounts to making the apostles “Protestant popes” and that the true foundation of the church is not Christ, but instead the New Testament canon.[4] This sort of critique is emotionally charged and not helpful to any theological conversation concerning apostolic authority, for it ignores the clear statement in the text that Christ is the cornerstone of the foundation and that it implies that Christ laid the apostles as part of that foundation. In reality, Ephesians 2:20 implies that the apostles—the foundation of the church—and their subsequent sign gifts would naturally cease when the church reached maturity. This is the theological basis of glossalalia’s apostolic age-cessation, and it will be further explored tomorrow.

[1] Ephesians 2:19-20

[2] Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., “A Cessationist View,” in Are Miraculous Gifts for Today?, ed. Wayne Grudem (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 44.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Jon Ruthven, On the Cessation of the Charismata, 217-219.

1 Corinthians 13:8--Tongues Will Cease?

2010-01-21T23:15:00.001-06:00

Cessationists and noncessationists alike agree that although its primary purpose is not to discuss the cessation of spiritual gifts, 1 Corinthians 13:8-10 explicitly states that authentic glossalalia will eventually cease to exist.[1] Both groups also agree that the key phrase in the text is “they will cease”, which comes from the Greek word pauo, meaning “to cease of their own accord” and implying that the cessation will be permanent.[2] They disagree, however, on the significance of the voice of the verb. Noncessationist D.A. Carson states that while the middle voice of the verb pauo can mean “to cease of itself”, it is exegetically irresponsible to demand that the verb be interpreted in this manner.[3] Pentecostal Howard Ervin goes even further, stating that Paul “simply chose the forms currently used for each word. It cannot, therefore, be deduced from the forms of these verbs that tongues ‘will stop themselves’ at the end of the apostolic age.”[4] According to noncessationists, the three gifts mentioned in the context—prophecy, tongues, and knowledge—will cease when “the perfect” appears—the second coming of Christ.[5] A closer look at the text, however, will reveal that the verb form plays a significant role in the interpretation of the passage.

One should take issue with Carson’s declaration of exegetical irresponsibility in regards to making a case for pauo being in the middle voice, since Paul has no qualms about using the verb katargeo (a passive voice verb meaning that an outside force will cause it to cease) four times in verses eight through eleven while only using pauo once.[6] It may be true that Paul utilized the middle voice for his own good pleasure and because it is theologically significant. Furthermore, other sharp contrasts are clearly set in the text, including the abiding character of love in relation to the cessation of the three gifts.[7] Seeing how these examples, coupled with the findings of the earlier posts, reveal that the verb pauo most likely has great significance, it should be noted by the reader that the passing away of tongues was or will be categorically different from prophecy and knowledge. This issue at hand, however, is this: when did authentic glossalalia pass away of its own accord? Scripture and good theological reasoning reveal that tongues-speaking ceased in the apostolic age.

Tomorrow: tongues ceasing in the apostolic age.

[1] Donald G. McDougall, “Cessationism in 1 Corinthians 13:8-12,” The Master’s Seminary Journal 14 no. 2 (Fall 2003): 184-185; Jon Ruthven, On the Cessation of the Charismata: The Protestant Polemic on Postbiblical Miracles (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1993), 125-126.

[2] John F. MacArthur, Jr., Charismatic Chaos (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992), 281; Carson, Showing the Spirit, 66-67.

[3] D.A. Carson, Showing the Spirit, 66.

[4] Howard M. Ervin, Spirit-Baptism, 174-175.

[5] Craig S. Keener, Gift Giver: The Holy Spirit for Today (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001), 105.

[6] Donald G. McDougall, “Cessationism in 1 Corinthians 13:8-12,”: 196.

[7] O. Palmer Robertson, The Final Word: A Biblical Response to the Case for Tongues and Prophecy Today (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1993), 68.

The "Glossalalia" at Corinth was DISCOURAGED, not encouraged

2010-01-20T23:38:00.001-06:00

It has been well-documented that the mystery religions of Corinth engaged in a particular form of glossalalia.[1] Furthermore, mystery religion worship was always connected with states of ecstasy, and Paul seems to emphasize the Corinthians’ ecstatic emphasis on tongues in order to apply a corrective.[2] Paul makes mention in 1 Corinthians 14:2 that “one who speaks in a tongue...in his spirit speaks mysteries.”[3] The Greek word musteria usually means something that was once hidden but has now been revealed by God, but, in this context, with the understanding of the Corinthian mystery religions in mind, most certainly refers to the pagan practice of revealing mysteries in an ecstatic manner, which only the initiated know.[4] Certainly Paul cannot be commending their unique of tongues but instead pointing out the differences between authentic glossalalia and their pagan substitute. It is worth noting that noncessationist scholars such as J. Rodman Williams readily admit that the tongues-speech at Corinth was ecstatic in nature.[5] Paul, therefore, must be referring to two types of tongues—one which can be readily interpreted since they are known, human languages, and one that is theoretically impossible to interpret due to its unintelligible, ecstatic nature and due to the fact that they have created it by pneumati—their own spirit.[6] Therefore, it can be rightly understood that Paul is crafting an argument in which he can, in the spirit of Christian charity, gently discourage the Corinthian church from continuing their pagan tongues-speaking. Corinthian glossalalia, then, does not fit within the biblical confines of authentic glossalalia found in Acts and should be approached with great care and trepidation when formulating a theology of biblical glossalalia.

During the past several blog posts, I have attempted to show biblical glossalalia’s true characteristics. What are those characteristics? They are as follows:

The gift of tongues was first given to the twelve apostles on the Day of Pentecost,
This gift was given as a sign to the Jewish people that God was indeed behind their work for Christ,
Those who spoke in tongues spoke in human languages that could be translated if necessary,
This gift was given to others only in the presence of an apostle,
The Corinthian church’s glossalalia was not authentic, Spirit-inspired glossalalia, as it was adopted from the pagan mystery religions that inundated Corinth, and
Finally, Paul wrote to the Corinthians in regards to their “tongues” in order to gently discourage them from continuing their fallacious exercise.

Keeping all of the aforementioned facts in mind, an exegetical-theological case for authentic glossalalia’s cessation is now in order. Tomorrow: the beginning of the exegetical-theological case.

[1] H. Wayne House, “Tongues and the Mystery Religions of Corinth,” Bibliotheca Sacra 140 no. 558 (April-June 1983): 135.

[2] Ibid., 140.

[3] 1 Corinthians 14:2 NASB

[4] H. Wayne House, “Tongues and the Mystery Religions of Corinth”, 140-141.

[5] J. Rodman Williams, Renewal Theology, 214-215.

[6] Zodhiates, Tongues?!, 50-51.

The Purpose of Glossalalia

2010-01-20T00:39:00.005-06:00

          It is agreed by many cessationists and noncessationists alike that, as 1 Corinthians 14:22 states, “tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers.”^{^[1]} The Greek word for sign, semeion, signifies “a sign, a mark, token, by which anything is known or distinguished.”[2] Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 12:12 uses the same Greek word for sign gifts, and it declares that these “sign gifts” are performed by apostles.[3] Something of great spiritual significance was signaled by glossalalia; what that particular detail is cessationists and noncessationists differ.
          Pentecostal scholar Frank Macchia believes that glossalalia should be understood as a sacramental gesture by God to a believer that is empowered in the Spirit’s presence.[4] Certainly those who presently engage in what they believe to be biblical glossalalia believe this to be the case, but is that what Scripture intimates? A simple look at 1 Corinthians 14:22 would emphatically deny Macchia’s and other charismatics’ case—tongues are a sign for unbelievers who encounter certain believers in order to convict them of their sin and the truthfulness of their connection to God.[5] This may indeed be the case, but for which group of unbelievers specifically is the sign meant, for in the context of 1 Corinthians, Paul continuously addresses groups of people, not indiscriminate individuals. A careful examination of the context, as well as an understanding of Old Testament prophecy, reveals for whom the glossalalic sign was meant.
          1 Corinthians 14:21 divulges a prophecy from Isaiah 28:11-12 “to show that the primary reason God enabled His people to speak in languages other than their own was for a witness to the unbelieving Jews.”[6] Verse twenty-two then begins with the word “therefore”, which is crucial to understanding Paul’s argument here. Paul is not pointing to the present day, saying, “Tongues are a sign for you to convince the unbelieving Jews in your community that I am really in your midst.” Instead, Paul is informing the Corinthian people that the inspired application of Isaiah 28:11-12 occurred at Pentecost and at the subsequent outpourings at Cornelius’ house and at Ephesus, at which all had both unbelieving Jews present and apostles present.[7] This would seem to be congruent with Paul’s injunction to the Corinthian believers to seek other spiritual gifts besides prophecy,[8] but this raises a final issue that must be addressed before an argument for tongues’ cessation can be delineated. If the sign gift of tongues was meant for unbelieving Jews, and since the glossalalic events in Acts seem to fulfill the requirements of the sign gift and prophecy, how does the Corinthian church’s glossalalia fit in? Properly understood, Paul’s address to the Corinthian church’s glossalalia was one of humble discouragement and gentle correction.
Tomorrow: why the Corinthian church's "glossalalia" was not affirmed but discouraged.

^{^[1]} 1 Corinthians 14:22 ESV; Merrill F. Unger, New Testament Teaching on Tongues (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1971), 115-116; Frank D. Macchia, “Tongues as a Sign: Towards a Sacramental Understanding of Pentecostal Experience,” Pneuma 15 no. 1 (Spring 1993): 63.

[2] Perschbacher, The New Analytical Greek Lexicon, 369.

[3] 2 Corinthians 12:12 ESV

[4] Macchia, Tongues as a Sign, 63.

[5] 1 Corinthians 14:22-25 ESV

[6] 1 Corinthians 14:21 ESV; Spiros Zodhiates, Tongues?!: An Exegetical Commentary on 1 Corinthians 12-14 (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 1974), 100.
[7] Zodhiates, Tongues, 100-103.

[8] 1 Corinthians 12:31; 14:26-39 ESV

Tongues--To Whom Were They Given?

2010-01-18T19:02:00.000-06:00

Noncessationists claim that when the Holy Spirit was given on the day of Pentecost, all one hundred and twenty people in the upper room received the gift of glossalalia (speaking in tongues).[1] Furthermore, noncessationists of the Pentecostal variety firmly hold to the doctrine of the baptism in the Holy Spirit, which they define as a second work of the Holy Spirit, subsequent to salvation, in which the believer is baptized by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of spiritual power, and that this power endowment is always evidenced through a person’s manifestation of glossalalia.[2] It can be intimated from this unique Pentecostal doctrine that the spiritual gift of glossalalia is available to every believer who receives the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Finally, other noncessationists—specifically those who do not hold to a baptism in the Holy Spirit subsequent to salvation—affirm that 1 Corinthians 12:30 would inform the reader that while all Spirit-filled believers do not possess this gift, according to 1 Corinthians 14:39, glossalalia should not be forbidden, and that God, according to His good pleasure, assigns certain spiritual gifts to each of His followers, including glossalalia.[3]

Cessationists, however, peruse the biblical text and see stringent limitations on God’s giving of glossalalia. It is widely assumed that the Holy Spirit empowered one hundred and twenty occupants of the upper room on the day of Pentecost with the gift of tongues, but the context indicates that the number of initial glossalalia receptors was twelve. The points crucial to this argument Norman Geisler delineates:

“First, only apostles were promised before Pentecost: ‘You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 1:5). It is clear from the context that ‘you’ refers to ‘the apostles’ (v. 2). Second, the ‘they’ (2:1) on whom the Holy Spirit fell refers back to the previous verse, namely, the ‘apostles’ (1:26). Third, likewise, ‘they’ and ‘them’ (2:3) on whom tongues of fire fell refer to the same ‘apostles.’ Fourth, further, the crowd heard ‘them’ (the ‘apostles’) speak in tongues (v. 6). Fifth, also, those who spoke in tongues were ‘all...Galileans’ (2.7), as the apostles were; even the angel called them ‘men of Galilee’ (1:11). The others present in the Upper Room were not all Galileans; some were from Jerusalem and Judea (vv. 12-14). Sixth, the group that responded when ‘they’ (2:13) had been accused of drunkenness was ‘Peter...with the Eleven’ (v. 14). This again indicates that those speaking in tongues were the apostles...later, whenever anyone received the gift of the Spirit and/or tongues in the early church, it was only through an apostle (Acts 8, 10, 19). Acts 8:18 teaches explicitly that ‘the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands.’”[4]

This contention seems to make sense exegetically and theologically. Furthermore, in regards to glossalalia being the initial physical evidence of the post-regeneration work of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, even many noncessationists easily refute this claim. Wayne Grudem correctly states that if 1 Corinthians 12:13 “refers to baptism in the Holy Spirit, then it is very hard to maintain that it is an experience that comes after conversion...Paul is saying that it happened to all the Corinthians when they became members of the body of Christ,”[5] that is, when they were regenerated. Clearly, then, tongues cannot be associated with regeneration, for the New Testament text is replete with examples of those whom God saved and yet did not receive the gift of glossalalia. Finally, it would seem that the three instances in Acts where glossalalia is manifested imply that an apostle had to be present. This line of reasoning is supported through an investigation into the specificity of the purpose of glossalalia.

Tomorrow: the purpose of glossalalia.

[1] Williams, Renewal Theology, 211.

[2] Howard M. Ervin, Spirit-baptism: A Biblical Investigation (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1987), 38.

[3] D. A Carson, Showing the Spirit: A Theological Exposition of I Corinthians 12–14 (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1987), 49-50.

[4] Norman Geisler, Systematic Theology, 662-663.

[5] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), 767.

Tongues--Human Languages or Ecstatic, Angelic Speech?

2010-01-17T17:53:00.003-06:00

Pentecostals such as Gordon Fee believe that biblical glossalalia encompasses unknown, heavenly languages due to Paul’s “analogy of earthly language in (1 Corinthians) 14:10-12 implies that it is not an earthly language... (and) in his description of the phenomenon in 1 Cor. 13:1 as ‘the tongues of angels.’”[1] Indeed, other Pentecostals and charismatics go further and claim that since the biblical text nowhere says that the presence of human languages is a viable test for glossalalia, it would be unwise to limit glossalalia in this manner.[2] While some may take this statement at face value to definitively say that glossalalia involved heavenly languages, it is not without a formidable rebuttal. The reference to angelic tongues in 1 Corinthians 13 more accurately resembles a figure of speech which means to speak eloquently, and even if this phrase were to be taken at face value, every angel who spoke in the biblical record spoke in a human language the audience could understand.[3] Secondly, in every occurrence of glossalalia in Acts the speakers speak human languages. Luke records in the second chapter of Acts that each foreigner heard “his own native language.”[4] Peter stated that the tongues in which Cornelius and his household spoke were “the same gift to them as he gave to us.”[5] The remaining explicit reference to tongues in Acts lies in chapter nineteen, and this passage states that John the Baptist’s disciples spoke in tongues just as the apostles and Cornelius’ household did.[6] Norman Geisler sums up the rebuttal well: “Thus, tongues throughout Acts (c. A.D. 33-62) were real languages. Since Corinthians was written during this same period (A.D. 55-56), there is no reason to believe it involved anything but real languages.”[7] In light of the biblical, contextual evidence, it would appear that a claim for heavenly languages in biblical glossalalia would not only be suspect, but it would also be unfalsifiable and disingenuous. Having determined the nature of biblical glossalalia’s language, it would behoove the investigation to determine the nature of the bequeathing of this spiritual gift.
Tomorrow: the circumstances of the giving of the gift.

[1] Gordon D. Fee, “Toward a Pauline Theology of Glossalalia,” in Pentecostalism in Context: Essays in Honor of William W. Menzies, ed. Wonsuk Ma and Robert P. Menzies (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997), 32.

[2] Janet Evert Powers, “Missionary Tongues?,” Journal of Pentecostal Theology 17 (2000): 47.

[3] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Vol. 4, Church and Last Things (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2005), 665; e.g., cf. Genesis 19; Exodus 5; Joshua 5; Luke 1; Jude 13.

[4] Acts 2:8 ESV

[5] Acts 11:17 ESV

[6] Acts 19:6 ESV

[7] Geisler, Systematic Theology, 666.

Tongues: Setting the Stage

2010-01-16T11:52:00.007-06:00

The Bible explicitly addresses the gift of tongues in five specific contexts—Mark 16:17, Acts 2, Acts 10:46, Acts 19:6, and 1 Corinthians 12 through 14. The Mark 16:17 passage recalls Christ’s specific promise of the gift of tongues, the Acts passages detail three specific accounts within early church history of the gift’s manifestation, and in the 1 Corinthians’ context the Apostle Paul is specifically addressing the Corinthian church’s glossalalia. In all of these contexts, the same Greek word for tongues is used, which is glossais. This word, in every aforementioned context, refers to “a language not proper to a speaker, (or) a gift or faculty of such language.”1 The root word from which glossais is derived is glossa, which can, depending upon the immediate context, describe either a literal body part or a language.2 Both cessationists and noncessationists concur upon the interpretation of glossa and glossais when the words refer to the spiritual gift—they refer to the actual language or the ability to speak a language of which the speaker had no previous knowledge.3 The groups diverge, however, when the nature of the tongues-speaking is discussed, for noncessationists believe that these languages could have been human languages, unknown angelic languages, or ecstatic speech,4 while cessationists firmly hold to the belief that in every occurrence, authentic glossalalia involved speaking in only human languages.5 To arrive at any meaningful conclusion regarding the nature of biblical glossalalia, this dispute must be resolved.

Tomorrow: which one is it--unknown, angelic languages or human languages?

[1] Wesley J. Perschbacher, ed., The New Analytical Greek Lexicon (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1990), 81.

[2] Ibid.

[3] John W. Wyckoff, “The Baptism in the Holy Spirit,” in Systematic Theology, Revised ed., ed. Stanley M. Horton (Springfield, MO: Logion Press, 1998), 440; Charles C. Ryrie, The Holy Spirit, Revised and Expanded ed. (Chicago: Moody, 1997), 141.

[4] J. Rodman Williams, Renewal Theology, Vol. 2, Salvation, the Holy Spirit, and Christian Living (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 214-215.

[5] Robert Gromacki, The Modern Tongues Movement (Phillipsburg, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1972), 67-68.

Did Authentic Tongue-Speaking Cease?

2010-01-16T00:54:00.000-06:00

With the recent devastation in Haiti (and for this we must all pray for God's mercy and grace), one particular Charismatic felt it necessary to point out an age-old story about how during the slave revolt the slaves exchanged their spiritual servitude to Satan in exchange for political independence. This legend has been repeated many times, and it actually appears to be just that--a legend.

This, however, is not what caught my attention about his statement. What struck me about it is how he presumed not only to speak for God in the matter, but also for Satan! One acquaintance of mine made some excellent comments on this issue; I have no need to elaborate on his fine statements. However, it did bring to mind something that Charismatics often do, especially when it comes to their unique perspective on "speaking in tongues." Charismatics often hold to erroneous ideas or teachings not because they find them in Scripture, but because of unsubstantiated hearsay and experience. I OFTEN did this as a Charismatic, and I haven't seen it slow down in my lifetime. The aforementioned Charismatic did this, and while many people have blasted him for his statements (and rightly so), very few hold his ideas up to biblical, exegetical scrutiny.

The contentious issue of speaking in tongues is like this. Many in the past have analyzed this issue; coming to conclusions on both sides of the issue. However, this is not often done today on the popular level, and I believe that this is because, for the larger part of Evangelicalism, most people believe that "speaking in tongues," as the apostles did, is still active and valid today. And these Evangelicals believe this, not because of good, solid biblical exegesis, but because of unsubstantiated hearsay and experience.

My response to this: a dodo bird in downtown Chicago today had a conversation with Jimmy Hoffa. My friend told me that his friend heard about this from some guy washing windows on North Michigan Avenue, and my friend would never lie to me. So go ahead and try to prove me wrong!

My point? I may believe my friend, and my friend may be sincere, but, in all likelihood, unless there is an infallible source we can go to to substantiate this, my friend is most likely sincerely WRONG.

I believe my Charismatic brothers and sisters, while being sincere in their belief that speaking in tongues is a valid, biblical, spiritual expression today, are sincerely wrong. And in the next week or so, I will be giving my argument as to why I believe that authentic tongues-speech has ceased.

Join me, won't you?

Joel Osteen's "Style"

2010-01-08T01:23:00.000-06:00

So, Joel: calling homosexuality sin isn't your "style", but being used as a tool to further the homosexual agenda in the public's eyes is?

NICE.

So I Said I Am a Student Pastor...

2009-12-29T19:33:00.000-06:00

But this is not exactly what I had in mind...

I first saw this over 6 months ago, and it still cracks me up! Obviously, it's a parody, but a frighteningly accurate one of many student ministers today. Youth/student pastors, stick to the Gospel, Christ, and His Word, and you'll please the only One worth pleasing.

There, but for the Grace of God, Go I

2009-12-22T00:17:00.000-06:00

As you may have noticed from my "Who Am I" post, I am a former Pentecostal.

Actually, this is not entirely accurate. I am actually a former Pentecostal/Charismatic. What is the difference, you say? Well, in a nutshell, Pentecostals believe that all of the "spiritual gifts" given to the church at Pentecost are still given by God to His people today, and, specifically, once a believer receives "the baptism in the Holy Spirit" subsequent to salvation, they will give evidence of such by speaking in tongues. Charismatics, on the other hand, do not necessarily hold that the main evidence of such a baptism is speaking in tongues, but they do hold to the continuation of all of the spiritual gifts, especially the sign gifts. Growing up, I have identified myself in either one of these movements.

So, anyway, I once was, now, I am not. What changed my position and conviction was not the rampant abuse/manifestation of these "gifts" in the churches I grew up in (although this did occur frequently), but instead the proper interpretation of Scripture. I attribute my journey from Pentecostalism to Cessationism to many things, but, ultimately, to the sovereign grace of God alone. I believe that in His sovereign will, He purposed that I would grow up in and experience the movement firsthand, come to a point spiritually where I would mature, both in my walk with Christ and in my study of Scripture, and, through Spirit-led study, leave the movement.

Sometimes I have wondered aloud, "Why, Lord? Why did I grow up in the movement, and why did you have the grace to remove me from its erroneous fellowship?" Since I have left the movement, most of my Pentecostal/Charismatic friends and family members have refused to discuss the matter, although those who I have met since that time have been intrigued by my journey, asking me many questions and coming to me with questions about the movements' theology, history, and a pontification or two about its future.

Today, however, I think I may have discovered a new reason.

I watched Oral Roberts' memorial live online today. It was held at the Mabee Center at ORU, and not only were there many Pentecostals and Charismatics in attendance, but there were also a litany of those certain kind of teachers that Pentecostalism and the Charismatic Movement naturally breeds--Word of Faith and Prosperity Gospel preachers. Kenneth Hagin, Jr., Frederick K.C. Price, Rod Parsley, John Hagee, Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Marilyn Hickey, Creflo Dollar--all there. Those who couldn't come sent letters that were read by Richard Roberts: Joel Osteen, David Yonggi Cho, Benny Hinn, & Paul Crouch. I felt like I was watching a parade of the worst false teachers of the 20th century.

I sat back in my chair, the heat rising from beneath my collar. All of those who have purposely attempted to spin Oral Roberts' legacy into one of biblical faithfulness were undone simply by the presence of all of those false teachers in that auditorium. I thought, "Where are the biblically conservative Pentecostals and Charismatics decrying this sham of a memorial? Won't anyone come out and tell the truth about Roberts' false teachings and the detriment he has caused American evangelicalism?"

Then it hit me: they won't. Why? Because Oral Roberts' legacy is this: he brought charismatics (and some Pentecostals) into a hellish unity with Word of Faith/Prosperity false teaching through their common union of "charismatic experience" (tongues, prophecy, etc.). Once he got the conservative charismatics and the WOFers to unite under the banner of ecstatic subjectivity, their unity would cause them to fight to the death for one another from outsider attack, for an attack on one of them is not an attack on their false teaching, per se, but an attack on their common experience.

Do "biblically faithful" Pentecostals and Charismatics try to call out WOFers and Prosperity hucksters? Sure...and some do a fine job of it. However, their voice is far too small to be noticed in the cacophony of noise that is Pentecostalism and Charismaticism, for the vast majority simply defend their "brothers" or ignore the critics.

This breaks my heart for many reasons, especially one reason in particular: if God didn't graciously intervene in my life, I would have been one of those deluded Pentecostals/Charismatics who would have defended and celebrated Oral Roberts today. My path would have been the same as all of those who I have just called out, but because of God's grace alone, I am where I am today. Praise be to God alone.

So, where does this leave me? Well, I believe that this convinces me to do more than I am doing now to try to wake up Pentecostals and Charismatics who refuse to disown the wolves among them. I must share my story with them, God's grace with them, and, if it be His will, a few may see the truth.

Who I Am: A Pictorial Explanation

2009-12-14T00:24:00.000-06:00

So...

Some of you may be asking, "Who exactly is Jason Woelm?"

Well...that's an excellent question! Allow me to give you a pictorial explanation...

First and foremost, I am a doulos of the Lord Jesus Christ...sort of like this man...

I also strive to be a dedicated husband...sort of like this man...

I also strive to be a loving and strong father...sort of like this man...

I am also a student pastor who strives to be a bold proclaimer of Christ and His glorious Gospel, like this man...

I am an evangelical who wishes evangelicalism was more like the evangelicalism of this man...

...or this man...

I was a former Pentecostal like this guy...

But now I am a cessationist like this guy (and partially thanks to his work)...

I used to be an egalitarian like this guy...

But now I am a complementarian, like this guy...

I used to follow this guy's soteriology...

But now I embrace the doctrines of grace made glorious by this guy's teaching...

At first, I really didn't know what I believed concerning a biblical theological system, but, after much scrutiny, study, and prayer, I have come to embrace, love, and firmly hold this one...

So, yes, I am a 5 pt. Calvinist and a dispensationalist...like these guys...

and, finally, my homeboy...

Hope that helps :)

If At First You Don't Succeed...

2009-12-13T23:39:00.000-06:00

Well over two years ago I attempted to start blogging on a regular basis. I attempted to blog regularly on theology, the evangelical church, and those who desperately need Christ. Like many hopeful, well-intentioned bloggers, I started off strong, but quickly wore out.

The reasons I wore out, I believe, were the following:

1. I did not schedule a regular time for blogging.

2. I did not have topics chosen and thought out before blogging, which led to my frustration and my laziness in blogging.

3. I did not think that my blogging would make much of a difference.

Well, I think that I have addressed these three issues and have adequately addressed them. So, with these important challenges met and overcome, I will once again attempt to blog daily on "Loving Jesus, the Church, and the Lost."

So...here it goes, again!