We come now to an important biblical phrase: Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Why is this phrase such a problem all over Christendom? Why don't we hear it from the pulpit of churches not involved in the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement more often? It would be easy to find huge numbers of fellow believers who would argue with me no matter what I wrote about this.
As a historian, it is easy enough to find the source of modern popular belief about this. There are numerous good studies covering this on the web (see links below), and a handful of obscure books that do it justice. Several sources play into it: early New Age Paganism, a desire to continue the emotional fires of Great Awakening, the willingness of some to overlook rigorous textual study of Scripture, and perhaps nothing more than a bit of snake-oil sales pitching.
We normally credit Charles Fox Parham with founding the modern Charismatic Movement. Depending on whom you ask, he ranges between modern day saint and criminal huckster. Either way, when he stumbled upon an overt expression of what seemed to him the spiritual power to fulfill his longings, he embraced it and promoted it relentlessly, back during the turn of 19th and 20th Centuries. While we take issue with much that has arisen from his work, we know that at the same time the genuine article -- the genuine manifestations of the Holy Spirit's power -- continued throughout history from New Testament times. There are faint flashes of it recorded here and there, but with few names attached. That's because the true gifts of the Holy Spirit call attention to Jesus, the Giver of Gifts, rather than the recipient of those gifts.
First, let's examine how Baptism of the Holy Spirit is typically defined. Answers may vary, but it usually sounds like this: "An ecstatic experience of the power of the Holy Spirit, generally resulting in speaking in tongues." Take a look at 2 Timothy 2:14-17a, and remember: don't let someone else steal a blessing by forcing their definitions of terms on you. This Baptism of the Holy Spirit is for everyone! Let's observe some facts from the Bible:
James 4:1-10 -- Look at the context of this passage. James has a problem with how people act in a particular church. They act upon a sense of what the world values, not what God values. James warns them that they are making God unhappy with this. Verse 5: The Greek texts have a very difficult wording here, not easy to translate into English. There are two possibilities:
The debate is not our concern, because in the end, the net result is about the same: the Holy Spirit lives in us, but we tend to cut Him off from The Source. We tend to ignore that living connection between our reborn spirits and God's Spirit. It's not possible to put into words precisely how it is the Lord lives in us, while we yet live ourselves. But there's a sense in which His Holy Spirit and our individual spirits are blended, melded, connected -- and there's no words for it.
If that spirit/Spirit union is living and active, there would be a certain expectation of changed behavior, different from behavior the world would expect. We are told by James to resist evil, which makes the Evil One flee from us. We are told to humble ourselves before God, to make ourselves His servants. If there is any passage in Scripture that tells us how to be filled with the Holy Spirit, surely this is it!
What he refers to here is a distinct point in your spiritual walk: you no longer obey mechanically or from fear, but you want to obey. You have a strong desire to be connected to Him. You want to be right, your desire is genuine, your love for Him is a solid core of your being. It's not a matter of feeling guilty for not praying and reading your Bible, it's that you miss it, you long for it.
Acts 10:44-45 -- Notice what happened here: the Holy Spirit fell upon these newly reborn Gentiles. Indeed, it would seem to be a singular event, as manifested by their behavior. The reason the Baptism of the Holy Spirit got separated from the moment of spiritual rebirth has to do with some really bad theology, some really bad evangelism practices. We've lost the clear view of what Scripture teaches and adopted something that is popular, but overly simplified. We have strayed from the path because we have been trying to substitute the science of human development and learning theory for Biblical practice. We bought into the Western concept of following discrete steps, of performing a mental act, of adhering to Platonic logic.
That is one of the primary mistakes from thinking Greek, instead of thinking Hebrew. We focus so much on what is in the mind, that we forget this is a spiritual event. It is not what you know, what you can grasp, what you can understand after having all the bits and pieces presented in proper, logical order. If the Sprit of God does not open the heart's door, no amount of understanding can avail to save.
When someone states a desire to join in the Kingdom of God -- to become "saved" as we often say -- it is for us to describe to them what has already taken place. They have been touched by The Holy One, and He makes a demand of them: "give all of yourself to Me." Acknowledge Him in all He claims, and know that He will place your feet on the path that never ends, the Way of Eternity. He will then plant the seed of His very Presence in you, and it will grow. How well it grows will depend in some measure on your level of commitment, your level of surrender.
What is sometimes called "Decision Theology" is not biblical. Remember Romans 8:7? How about John 6:44? No one outside of Christ can be persuaded to repent and follow Him by simple knowledge. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that allows them to turn. The most compelling presentation of the Gospel, when the Holy Spirit has not already opened the heart's door, cannot do more than produce a merely psychological conversion.
Here is a concept: "spiritual stillborns." How come so many folks can spend their entire life as active church members, after apparent spiritual rebirth, and can become such a big problem for those clearly committed to serving Jesus? They honestly believe they are saved, that they are born-again. We have given them a false comfort with their eternal destiny, by selling the Gospel cheaply, by persuading to accept Christianity, but the Holy Spirit was never there.
No one of us is privileged to examine the Lamb's Book of Life to see whether or not the name of another is written there. But the warring factions and hideous conduct between supposed fellow servants of Christ is hardly reduced to a simple matter of spiritual immaturity. It's a matter of spiritual death. They are stillborn.
Pentecostals, Charismatics, and the Third Wave
by Michael R. Ramos
http://www.leaderu.com/isot/docs/3wave.html
What is a Charismatic?
John Richardson
http://www.btinternet.com/~j.p.richardson/definitn.html
Sins of "the Father": Charles F. Parham
Vicky Dillen
http://www.seekgod.ca/fatherparham.htm
(Highly critical of Parham.)
The History of the Charismatic Movement
By Gary Gilley
http://www.svchapel.org/ThinkOnTheseThingsMinistries/publications/pdf/histcharism.pdf
Note: This a PDF file, requiring the Adobe Acrobat
reader or something similar.
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Ed Hurst
15 June 2003, revised 06 November 2003
COPYRIGHT NOTICE: People of honor need no copyright laws; they are only too happy to give credit where credit is due. Others will ignore copyright laws whenever they please. If you are of the latter, please note what Moses said about dishonorable behavior -- "be sure your sin will find you out" (Numbers 32:23)