This week, the Advertising Standards Authority upheld a complaint against a Christian group who’s leaflet claimed God can heal today. To be fair, their adjudications do not represent a legal judgement as such, and nobody is going to be sent to prison. But they apparently do have the power not only to stop people advertising in the printed press, but to command someone to take down a website advert.  I suppose potentially, even, they could criticize this post.  If they do, my defense would be that I am not advertising any service or event in it.

It is easy to have a knee-jerk reaction to something like this as a Christian.  It can all seem like just another attempt to suppress freedom of religion in what is increasingly starting to feel like an atheocracy. I mean, are we moving towards a society where to quote the following list of Bible verses would not be allowed?

•     Bless the LORD, O my soul,and forget not all his benefits,
  who forgives all your iniquity,
  who heals all your diseases,
  (Psalm 103:2-3)

•     “‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me;
  I kill and I make alive;
  I wound and I heal;
  and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
  (Deuteronomy 32:39)

•     “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”
  (John 14:12-14)

•     “Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed. 
  (Acts 5:12-16)

•     “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”
  (James 5:14-16)

It does seem outrageously very possible that somewhere down the line someone will try and use a legal remedy to force publishers of the Bible to take an editor’s scissors to bits like this that they do not like! There are of course many other portions of the Bible that could very well be in the secular gestapo’s gaze.

But I do think it is important that we actually try to understand to an extent the position of the ASA.  Lets look at the details of the latest case, and think it through together.

In the full text of their adjudication, the ASA quote the leaflet they condemned as follows:

“”NEED HEALING? GOD CAN HEAL TODAY! Do you suffer from Back Pain, Arthritis, MS, Addiction … Ulcers, Depression, Allergies, Fibromyalgia, Asthma, Paralysis, Crippling Disease, Phobias, Sleeping disorders or any other sickness? We’d love to pray for your healing right now! We’re Christian from churches in Bath and we pray in the name of Jesus. We believe that God loves you and can heal you from any sickness”.

The ASA concluded

“We told HOTS not to make claims which stated or implied that, by receiving prayer from their volunteers, people could be healed of medical conditions. We also told them not to refer in their ads to medical conditions for which medical supervision should be sought.”

The ASA did note that the group involved had “offered to amend their ads to state “We believe God can heal” and “See God heal the sick” or “Pray for the sick”, to include the words “We believe” in any references to healing, to include a prominent reference to medical treatment on their website, and to remove the leaflet from their website,” but concluded “their suggested amendments were not sufficient for the ads to comply with the CAP Code.”

So what does the relevant code actually say?

The  sections cited in the adjudication are as follows:

1.3 Marketing communications must be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society.

12.1 Objective claims must be backed by evidence, if relevant consisting of trials conducted on people. If relevant, the rules in this section apply to claims for products for animals. Substantiation will be assessed on the basis of the available scientific knowledge.

Medicinal or medical claims and indications may be made for a medicinal product that is licensed by the MHRA or EMEA, or for a CE-marked medical device. A medicinal claim is a claim that a product or its constituent(s) can be used with a view to making a medical diagnosis or can treat or prevent disease, including an injury, ailment or adverse condition, whether of body or mind, in human beings.

Secondary medicinal claims made for cosmetic products as defined in the appropriate European legislation must be backed by evidence. These are limited to any preventative action of the product and may not include claims to treat disease.

12.2 Marketers must not discourage essential treatment for conditions for which medical supervision should be sought. For example, they must not offer specific advice on, diagnosis of or treatment for such conditions unless that advice, diagnosis or treatment is conducted under the supervision of a suitably qualified health professional. Accurate and responsible general information about such conditions may, however, be offered. (See rule 12.11.)

12.6 Marketers should not falsely claim that a product is able to cure illness, dysfunction or malformations.

3.1  Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.

3.47 Claims that are likely to be interpreted as factual and appear in a testimonial must not mislead or be likely to mislead the consumer.

3.6 Subjective claims must not mislead the consumer; marketing communications must not imply that expressions of opinion are objective claims.

3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.

To help us put ourselves in the shoes of the ASA, lets consider another couple of cases where our perspectives and beliefs are less likely to influence our opinion of the decision.

We would, no doubt, agree with the decision to censure the following wording found in a leaflet:

A circular, for Mr Morro, stated “African Spiritual Healer Mr Morro Can Help with your Problems Maintain family ties and Relationships Keep loved ones, gives you and your family wellbeing Sustain love and enliven love, get rid of bad luck, Black Magic Or get rid of Evil Spirits from the affect [sic] one. Become Healthy from Sickness of all kinds He is also capable of solving all Psychological, Financials [sic], Socials [sic] and Academic problems …”.

Using a similar basis for the decision, Mr Morrow was told he should not say that in future advertising.

Again, the ASA critiqued a healer who was charging for his services in the following advertorial:

“Chris Howe has helped many people over the last 20 years. Try Healing for £10.00 per session until the end of February 2009. Many have suffered from illness such as Cancer, ME, Depression, Sports Injuries, Arthritis and many more . . . Chris feels that he can convince you of the Healing which runs through him and has done since he was a small boy”

Similarly, the ASA censured the following wording of an advert:

“THE LITTLE JAR OF MIRACLES ADVANCED FORMULA SKIN THERAPY GEL THE RED CARPET REMEDY FOR SCARRING, SOOTHING AND SMOOTHING . . .It always seems our delicate skin is under attack and there’s no denying that razor burn, bruises and often the unsightly appearance of raised scars ruins the look of your favourite outfits. Thankfully there’s now a miracle worker which can help have you back to your normal self in no time at all by aiding the skins [sic] natural healing process and helping to reduce the appearance of scars for all skin types.”

There are a number of other decisions that have been made over the years involving Christian and other groups. Reading them shows that some are clearly over the top, and involve attempts to exploit people out of money.

How can the ASA prevent genuine abuses while allowing a simple offer of prayer for sickness?

UPDATES
I plan on sharing links to helpful posts here. Own a blog? Write about this and let me know and I will put a link here.

• God and Politics

I know, some of my readers will have read a headline like that and panicked. Has Warnie slipped into “Health wealth and prosperity” or “Word of Faith” ?

Nope, not at all.

But I do feel that it is so easy for us to throw out the baby with the bathwater. I remember at one point a few years ago I even began to wonder if we would be better off to stop talking about faith. Perhaps, I argued, we should simply talk about “trust” in God.

Trust is a much more passive thing, and it is a component of faith.

But God says it is faith that pleases him.

Full blooded, rip-roaring Faith with a capital F. Faith that propels us to take risk. Faith that is relentlessly full of positivity and hope.

Faith that dares to believe that Romans 8:28 is true, quite literally. God is structuring the entire universe for the good of those who love him.

Me and you.

Wow!

Shouldn’t that thought thrill us. Why then do we settle for a weak, passive faith that is basically no different from fatalism all too often.

Can I guarantee you will be healed? No

Am I saying that God will give you all the stuff you lust after?

Of course not.

But only because if he did, it wouldn’t be good for you!

He really, truly wants your good. He longs to bless you, to make you a demonstration of his undeserved favor.

Oh, and if you follow his principles and walk with him, guess what, the concept of a “lift” is often right. There are many things he will teach you, that just might make you a better candidate for that promotion at work.

But the first thing he will teach you, is to die to selfish ambition. The irony is, that very first lesson, to put others needs before your own, could be the very key to unlock doors for you.

Basically, although Jesus promise that those who are last will be first, and those who try to save their life will lose it, are both perfectly fulfilled in the next age, they are principles that often work out in the here and now.

Don’t seek your comfort, seek the Kindgom. But, it was Jesus himself who promised that if we did so he would give us “all good things.” (Matthew 6:33)

Terry Virgo recently preached for a weekend at Covenant Life Church, the church previously lead by C.J. Mahaney. Virgo preached his heart out about the Spirit-Filled church to a strong response. Virgo is no merely aspirational charismatic, and reports are that many received a touch from the Spirit after these sermons.

Today, in the tradition of my previous Arminocalvinist Spectrum, Evolution vs Creationism Spectrum and Spectrum of belief on hell and salvation  I present a “Charismatic-cessationist spectrum.”  For some more background on this issue, and a fairly typical charismatic perspective see my series of posts on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.  As usual this may be a bit of a living document for a couple of days as I welcome suggestions for improvement from others.

Intriguingly this spectrum is much harder to label than the previous ones.  There are many differing views about the role of the Spirit in the Church today, but the key differences are really the answers to a series of questions that do not always go together.  Some have tried to delineate the positions something like the list I created below  (and I would be very glad of any further comments), but a number of the following labels are not entirely accurate in that people will “pick and mix” on this issue somewhat.  In fact (and I do try to reflect this in the spectrum below) there are two distinct areas which are often not answered consistently: I call these charismatic beliefs and charismatic experiences.  Before reading the rest of the article, why not scroll down to the bottom of this article and take the following questionnaire to calculate your own personal “charismatic quotient” an idea I have developed from John Piper. My survey deliberately distinguishes between belief and practice, and I would welcome feedback on its validity.  But first, here is my attempt at delineating a charismatic-cessationist spectrum:

1. Strong cessationist  Perhaps this is something of a caricature, but there are a number of Christians who would basically deny that a modern Christian can have any sort of relationship with God today except  exclusively though prayerfully reading the Bible.  God’s word to us today would be entirely  limited to reading the Scriptures, and some would not expect any kind of excitement or emotion about the Christian’s time of worship.  Many in groups below would accuse these people of having a relationship with a book rather than the living God, while they would presumably dismiss all reports of divine activity today as either lies or delusions.  It is debatable how many people would truly be in this group. It should be noted, however, that when Piper wrote about how he heard the voice of God, some did criticise him for sounding too charismatic, when in fact his experience of God speaking to him through the Bible would surely have been entirely consistent for anyone who was a moderate cessationist.

2. Historic cessationist  I have often argued that prior to the pentecostal and charismatic movements, the mainstream view seems to have been one which claimed that God was very much active today, and was aware of the potential for a living relationship with him.  In fact, there have been many documented descriptions of what a charismatic today would call a word of knowledge, or a healing, or a prophecy associated with previous heroes of the faith.  But many of them would have been theologically cessationist, in that they would not have described their experiences with the language of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  There are many today who would also feel comfortable with descriptions of an experience of God, perhaps believing in a “call” to ministry, but who would not believe that gifts continue. In fact, it is very possible for someone in a group like this to have what some would term a stronger so-called “charismatic” experience than someone who would be theologically charismatic.  It is vital to remember that not only charismatics believe in the Holy Spirit, and some of the arguments are about terminology (see this article for example).  It is fair to say that most people who claim to be a cessationist have at least some sense of a personal relationship with God.

3. Aspirational charismatic  This is a term I have shamelessly stolen from Ed Stetzer who seams to have coined the phrase.  It seems to be something of a majority view among many reformed people today, especially younger ones who have read Grudem, and perhaps watched Piper or Driscoll sermons online. People in this group are theologically convinced that gifts of the Spirit are at least potentially available today. Many would not have seen any gifts in operation, or at least not in a safe, controlled environment.  At an emotional or experiential level, many might even have more distrust for the gifts in actual operation than some who call themselves a cessationist.

This is, in my view, despite its popularity, an inherently unstable position.  This is because it is a fact of human nature that our beliefs influence our behavior in every area. It would, for example, be odd indeed if someone claimed to be a baptist but did not practice adult baptism.  I suspect that many in this group of necessity will eventually either have to embrace a pursuit of the Spirit and his gifts more actively, or retreat into historic cessationism.

4. Third Wave charismatic  Popularised by the Vineyard and men like Sam Storms, this position would definitely be open to gifts, and will often have a significant experience of them. It rejects any notion of a “subsequent” Holy Spirit baptism, however.  (See Sam Storms detailed article.) It is perhaps an unfortunate term and I wish I could come up with a better one, but for the record, the term reflects the fact that this view was dominant among a historically distinct movement subsequent to both the charismatic movement of the 1960s and the pentecostal movement of the early 20th century. (see wikipedia on the three waves of the Spirit’s activity in the last century)  Some in this movement have adopted the term “continuationist” to distinguish themselves from other charismatics.

5. Strong charismatic This position advocates an eager pursuit of the Holy Spirit and all his gifts.  It would also advocate a distinct experience of the Spirit’s filling or Baptism with the Holy Spirit.  Prophecy, tongues, and other gifts would be common in these circles, but most charismatics would not insist on tongues as being the only or necessary evidence of the Spirit’s baptism.  Many point to Lloyd-Jones description of the “sealing” with the Spirit which gives assurance, and is associated with the love of God being poured out into our hearts as the root of the experience, with gifts being important but stemming from this anointing in which God visibly acknowledges our sonship. Advocates of this position would argue that receiving the Spirit is a conscious thing that may not happen at conversion. These would agree that every believer is regenerated by the Spirit and in-dwelt by him, but not every believer is conscious of a relationship with God through the Holy Spirit. Believers are urged to seek and “receive” the Holy Spirit as experienced in the book of Acts.

6. Apostolic  In addition to all the points in the “strongly charismatic” position, these people believe that Ephesians 4 ministries are all to be expected, recognized and released in the global Church today.  If this view is new to you, and you want to understand it further, I strongly recommend Terry Virgo’s book The Spirit Filled Church, followed by Dave Devenish’s Fathering Leaders, Motivating Mission, or why not just attend our next 300 leaders conference here in London?  In case you are a new reader, it is this group that I fall into, despite (just like Devenish and Virgo) being firmly in the reformed camp.

7. Traditional Pentecostal or “tongues as the initial evidence” Some traditional pentecostals would agree with the strong charismatic position, and in some cases the apostolic also.  In some cases they have emphasized tongues to such an extent that it becomes a necessary sign that God has granted the baptism of the Holy Spirit to someone.  This position is far from universal among pentecostals, as this interview I did with Jack Hayford makes clear, and sometimes can be misunderstood with to a closely related position that encourages people to expect and pray for tongues, but without making them an absolute requirement.  Again, I am struggling for a label here, so any suggestions very welcome!

8. Extreme charismatic This label is intended for a disparate group of people who emphasise an experience of gifts to such an extent that at least one doctrinal position held by other evangelicals is displaced. Most seriously, some would begin to de-emphasise the role of the Bible in testing gifts, and even in some cases allow a so-called “revelation” to trump the clear teaching of the Bible. Some have argued that since we have a “now” word we do not even need the Bible at all! Clearly this is the way a non-Christian cult can arrise, and it is striking how often “angels” have apparently appeared to people and taught things contrary to Scripture.

Less apparently extreme (and not always stemming from a denial of the Bible), but dangerous nonetheless we see a revaluation of “standard” doctrines among some in this group, perhaps because of a feeling of alienation from mainstream evangelicalism. So, for example, the doctrine of the Trinity can sometimes be denied (eg “oneness pentecostals“), or the notion of God blessing the believer is taken to an extreme where any sickness is a sign of unbelief, or speaking in tongues is seen as necessary for salvation.  Most charismatics and pentecostals would strongly repudiate all of these positions.

So, there are some of the labels, but how charismatic are YOU in your beliefs and practices? Please complete the survey below and let us know what you think of it! You are welcome to remain anonymous if you prefer!

I had a fantastic weekend listening to the man I am officially nicknaming “the Gentle Prophet.” If you are intrigued as to what a non-freaky modern day prophetic ministry could look like, this video sermon is well worth a watch:

Download options at Hearing the Holy Spirit for Yourself – Keith Hazel.

I just had to share this quote with you, do pop by the blog I found it on to read the rest of the article.  The writer is speaking about a verse in 1 John which says essentially that the Holy Spirit is directly involved in giving us assurance of salvation.  There is some similar material in my book Raised With Christ, but to be honest, I think this guy says it more clearly than I did here, and much as I know many of my loyal readers would disagree, I am not ashamed to nail my colors to the mast on this point:

Notice that John isn’t saying if we are Christians, we know we have the Spirit; he is saying if we have the Spirit, we know that we are Christians.This reminds me of Acts 19:2, where Paul asks some men if they received the Spirit when they believed.  Paul is assuming they know whether Almighty God came upon them or not; an assumption we no longer make.  Lastly, there is the passage in Acts 8 where Simon goes to Samaria and leads many to Christ, but the apostles “…came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.  For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.”  Forget for a moment that this passage is theologically incredible.  For our purposes, just note that they knew the Holy Spirit hadn’t fallen on these believers.  They could tell that the Spirit hadn’t come upon them. Maybe Christians shouldn’t assume the Spirit is present and acting when there is no evidence.  According to the Bible we should be able to tell, at least some of the time.

via The Holy Spirit as Evidence of our Salvation « Scholarship in the Glory.  (emphasis added)

During Adrian’s month away from the blog, he has hand-picked a selection of the most popular posts of the year so far to re-run. 

Today we feature, “The Spirit-Filled Church.” Adrian’s posts on Terry Virgo’s book the Spirit-Filled Church have been quite popular this year.  This book describes a biblical model for the church, and whether you agree with all of it or not you will benefit from reading.  Video interviews, a chapter extract and Adrian’s forward are all availalbe.

The Spirit-Filled Church

Terry Virgo is a leader I have been looking up to spiritually for more than three decades. The founding leader of a family of over eight hundred churches in sixty nations, he is a godly, humble man whose preaching has shaped many thousands of lives, including my own. Newfrontiers, is a unique movement, being reformed in doctrine, charismatic in experience, missional in outlook, and strongly rooted in relationships.

Terry’s book The Spirit-Filled Church forms an excellent introduction to the principles that have shaped his ministry.

The rest of this article is available through the following link:

The Spirit-Filled Church by Terry Virgo

Here is the video and transcript of the second part of my recent interview with Terry Virgo.

Adrian: We’ve spoken so far about the first 300 session that was painting the big picture of what the Church should be like. I have to admit I got to the end of that session and I thought ‘What could he possibly speak on in the second?’ It was almost like you had covered everything in one hour! But I loved the way you opened the second. You just stood up and said something like this: “To have a Spirit-filled Church, you need Spirit-filled people.” Maybe lets talk a bit about that. Tope what was your take-home message from that second session?

Tope: You know… I thought the second session was extremely helpful, even if you are a Spirit-filled believer and a Spirit-filled church. If you’re a leader, you need somebody to almost help you step by step explain why it is you believe this thing that you believe. Where they are in the Scriptures, with personal experience massaged into the sermon so that you could identify, and I tell you this, to help you explain to your people… and the importance of it in your own life – that’s how this thing works. So it was very practical. It was not wishy-washy. It was based in the Scriptures – I just loved it so much.

I loved the way you started it: Spirit-filled church, you need this. Because I think sometimes we ask the wrong question first. So it was a great session. I tell you something, I said to Terry “Do you need your notes, are they in the car?” And he said “No, I’m fine.” These are not just doctrines memorised as sermons being brought out – it’s a life being lived. And so it was easy to just talk about it and we were all just enraptured by the whole thing.

Terry: I certainly love to speak about how I can see Biblically the place of the coming upon of the Spirit. And I think when Jesus said it to his follower they were from a Jewish background – they knew Old Testament characters who had known the Spirit coming up them and transforming their lives. I’m sad when people say ‘at conversion the whole thing is done’, because what about that ‘coming upon’? How come Gideon got so transformed? How come Elisha said ‘if I don’t have that power, how can I do what you did?’ That to me is such a real tangible thing. How could these scared fishermen turn the world upside down if they didn’t have the same power that rested on Jesus? So just to interpret a few New Testament verses ‘I’ve got it all’, it manifestly doesn’t work.

And I think we’ve got to see the difference between what I would call a ‘contemporary’ church and a ‘charismatic’ church. So I think some people would say ‘Oh, we’re a charismatic’. But what do you mean? ‘We have modern songs, we have guitars, we have overhead – we are charismatic’. No, no no! We are talking about people filled with the presence of God, which yes, does affect the way we worship, but we’re not simply talking about a charismatic style of meeting, we’re talking about a meeting deeply rooted in the word. And so we would preach the word for an hour and so we really go through the truth all the time. But we are also looking for the presence of God and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which we need to teach people. In the main I find Christians are shy, they’re not always pushing themselves so they need to be encouraged into engagement with the Spirit – but how do I do that? How does this gift work? We need to lovingly shepherd people into life in the Spirit and understanding that all of this comes under the Word of God. We’re not going to run away, we test all things by Scripture. But we’re gathering to the presence of God. So we anticipate He will make His presence known.

Adrian: I tell you what I love most is this whole thing of the corporate and the individual coming together. I think often those are so separate. And so I know one thing you mentioned that you would like to have had a bit longer to talk about if you had was about the prayer life – and particularly the prayer life of the leader. I know this is something that people have often asked you about and I know you sometimes don’t like to say too much. But can you just talk a little bit about what you, over the years, what personally it’s been like for you? How have you walked with God faithfully all these years? I think it was Driscoll who said about you that you still like God. When not everybody does, apparently, according to him.

Terry: I’m glad, really, that you combined reference to corporate prayer and personal prayer. I think there is a strong inter-link. And I’ve been encouraged that although the book has only been out a little while I’ve had letters from people saying ‘you’re chapter on leading a church in prayer has been so impacting’. So I’m encouraged.

I thank God I was saved from a non-Christian background but I joined a Baptist church where the pastor was a man of prayer. He was a man of the word and he was a man of prayer and he was a man for missions. Now probably we do church almost exactly different to the way he did church. So at our meetings and so on he wanted me to wear a clerical collar – I mean a very different world, but prayer – that man taught me to pray. Loving the Bible – that man taught me ‘Love the Bible, that’s the authority’. Mission – world mission. I learnt so much kind of subliminally although the outward way I’ve done it completely different. But those values – so I learnt to pray. I feel that over the years I’ve had that influence from godly men and from the early years. So it was fundamental to me right from the beginning that prayer was the key. I read a lot of missionary biographies – Hudson Taylor is a huge hero of mine. J. O. Fraser, and George Muller, the man from Bristol – I love reading stories of men who prayed and just seeing the power of it. And really, J.O. Fraser was just pragmatic – he said, like a business, ‘I’ve found a line that works so I’m going to give my best energies to it.’ I mean that’s just pragmatism – it works!

And then you read about Praying Hyde and Jim Simbala in Brooklyn and you just feel like ‘I want to pray and I want to get a church that prays’ – gather people to pray together. So it’s been a motivation for me, it would be a motivation for me to pray each morning. Tope and I had just a wonderful time this morning, just praying, I don’t know, for an hour or two just enjoying the presence of God. Just wonderful! And with a Bible there, I’ve just been nourished by some truths in the word and just began to share and ‘woah let’s pray’. And the sense of God being there – some people say ‘Oh, only two or three turned up… let me just pray for a little while’. I think ‘Two or three – it’s wonderful!’ God’s here. So to pray is just really heart and soul of everything for me.

In this video, you will hear some of Terry Virgo’s practical wisdom on how to steward and handle Spiritual gifts in church life. Hear about weighing, timing, anchoring meetings, the positive purposes of prophecy, and hearing God’s voice.

In this final part of the interview we discuss Baptism with the Holy Spirit:

By now you should hopefully be able to watch the sessions from the recent 300 Leaders conference where Dr. Hayford was the speaker and book into our next event with Terry Virgo.

Someone recently challenged me about my belief in what he called a “two-tier” Christianity. He seemed to strongly disagree with the idea that we might need at times to be prayed for by a Christian who clearly had a special anointing from the Holy Spirit. I thought I would share here an edited version of my response.

I do believe that the Spirit blesses us in different measures and in different ways. I believe that every Christian is being worked in by the Holy Spirit or they could not be a Christian in the first place. I believe, however, that there is a greater awareness of the Spirit’s blessing that we should all be striving for. We are commanded to “be being filled” with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:!8, its a present continuous). For me, even today, I want more of the Holy Spirit, don’t you?

Biblically one of the ways that the Spirit is imparted is through others who have the Spirit (often including laying on of hands). There is something godly about humbling ourselves and being willing to receive from God via the instrument of someone else. It’s not so very different from receiving good teaching from a teacher far wiser than us.

God gives different measures of gifting and different kinds of gifting deliberately to the body to make us dependent on each other. It certainly is not true that all Pentecostals have something that all non-pentecostals do not. Probably the preacher I have listened to who seemed to bring with him (at least for me) the strongest sense of God’s presence was actually John Piper (see for example this post) who is not a Pentecostal and does not speak in tongues.

I don’t believe in two-tier Christianity, I believe in multi-tier Christianity. I am always looking for people that might be able to contribute something to me to help me get to the next level. I am far from satisfied, and long to benefit from all kinds of different people and in all kinds of different ways. I have often spoken about people needing to be prepared to go to a Pentecostal because some people look down on our Pentecostal brothers (believe it or not including many charismatics!). If you watch the video of Terry from which the quote came, it spoke of him being eager to receive the Spirit, and eventually asking a Pentecostal to pray for him. To me, if we are really hungry for God we will ask whoever is around and available to pray for us, and go and hear them.

I think sometimes though, the problem with a post like this one is that it uses all kinds of language and all kinds of assumptions that might well not be common to some of my readers. Some of my posts appeal more to my charismatic and pentecostal readers, and some more to my reformed readers. I sometimes feel that it is very possible I may be loved and hated in equal measure by charismatics and reformed alike! You may also want to read an old post of mine called “How do I know I am Spirit Baptised?“

We actually do have a few more places available for THIS SATURDAY’s 300 conference. Coming to us is Jack Hayford who is well known internationally for the level of anointing or “unction” that he has spent decades living in the good of (see my previous post on why we are excited that he is coming).

If you intend to come with an open heart, willing to receive from God, and to learn from a seasoned leader, I encourage you to clear your diary and snap up one of the few remaining tickets and come. Those who welcome a prophet can expect a prophets reward, the Bible tells us.

God changed the whole world through 120 men who were gathered in the Upper Room when the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost. God could quite literally change our whole nation through 300 men and women gathering eager to receive fresh anointing, fresh gifting, and fresh commissioning from the same Holy Spirit. Are you a pastor who is tired and weary and in need of a fresh touch from Jesus? Are you aspiring to some form of church leadership in the future? Are you desperate enough for more of God to go to a pentecostal and say, “I want what you’ve got”? If so then come this weekend, moments like these can often change the course of a person’s life. Perhaps this article is God’s gentle prompting for someone who will as a result decide to come and receive an impartation that will effect thousands of others.

My life is full of surprises and unusual experiences. One such experience recently was when I was asked to voice over a trailer for the same conference. Another first for me, but I thought I would share it here and let you be the judge of whether I have a possible future career as a presenter or shouldn’t give up the day job! Here is the video:

Today Terry continues to argue for the Baptism with the Spirit as a distinct experience (though one that can happen on the day of someones conversion). He was asked about people who feel that they have received all that there is of the Spirit at conversion:

“I have read so much of Martyn Lloyd-Jones that his answer comes to me, if you have got it where is it? . . The coming of the Holy Spirit on people was so transforming. Even JEsus himself was anointed of the Holy Spirit. . . There is plenty of Scripture to show this as a separate experience. , . I think that we should see God . .there is a faith element, we come to God to receive. The laying on of hands is quite common, and it shouldn’t be ignored. . . Having received the Spirit one should be aware, he is a seal which is meant to be something recognizable. “

You know how it works. Here are some extracts to whet your appetite, followed by another video of Terry Virgo. This time he is speaking about the importance he places on a clear, distinct experience of baptism with the Holy Spirit:

“I remember reading Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones who said that receiving the Spirit is different to conversion, and then read John Stott who said the Baptism with the Spirit is conversion. I thought I honor both of these men so massively, so if they disagree who am I to come up with the answer. . . Then to be honest I became very desperate about my lack of courage. . . I wanted to be a witness. Jesus said when you receive the power of the Spirit you will be witnesses. . . I met a pentecostal who was so outgoing . . he was fearless and bold. . . I asked him “what is it?” He said “O, I have been baptized with the Holy Spirit.” . . . I went to a pentecostal and I said, “I need what you’ve got.”

I am thrilled that Terry has now announced that he will be publishing a new book this year. The subtitle is “Finding Your Place in God’s Purpose.”

Just reading the title, and seeing the name of the man who has written it should be enough to tell you this is a book that will be worthy of your investment, and also likely to rock your world! I will no doubt be telling you some more about this book in the future, but for now, suffice it to say that you can already pre-order this from Amazon.co.uk and register your interest at Amazon.com. Go do so right now!

Spurgeon spent a whole sermon arguing for the desperate need of the preacher to be annointed of the Holy Spirit in order that souls may be saved. We would do well to listen and be inspired to cry out to God for greater fullness of the Spirit on our leaders:

There is a necessity that the preacher himself, if we are to have souls saved, should be under the influence of the Spirit. I have constantly made it my prayer that I might be guided by the Spirit even in the smallest and least important parts of the service; for you cannot tell but that the salvation of a soul may depend upon the reading of a hymn, or upon the selection of a chapter. Two persons have joined our church and made a profession of being converted simply through my reading a hymn —
“Jesus, lover of my soul”

They did not remember anything else in the hymn, but those words made such a deep impression upon their mind, that they could not help repeating them for days afterwards, and then the thought arose, “Do I love Jesus?” And then they considered what strange ingratitude it was that he should be the lover of their souls, and yet they should not love him. Now I believe the Holy Spirit led me to read that hymn. And many persons have been converted by some striking saying of the preacher. But why was it the preacher uttered that saying? Simply because he was led thereunto by the Holy Spirit. Rest assured, beloved, that when any part of the sermon is blessed to your heart, the minister said it because he was ordered to say it by his Master. I might preach to-day a sermon which I preached on Friday, and which was useful then, and there might be no good whatever come from it now, because it might not be the sermon which the Holy Ghost would have delivered to-day. But if with sincerity of heart I have sought God’s guidance in selecting the topic, and he rests upon me in the preaching of the Word, there is no fear but that it shall be found adapted to your immediate wants. The Holy Spirit must rest upon your preachers. Let them have all the learning of the wisest men, and all the eloquence of such men as Desmosthenes and Cicero, still the Word cannot be blessed to you, unless first of all the Spirit of God hath guided the minister’s mind in the selection of his subject, and in the discussion of it . . .

When Jesus Christ preached, there were very few converted under him, and the reason was, because the Holy Spirit was not abundantly poured forth. He had the Holy Spirit without measure himself, but on others the Holy Spirit was not as yet poured out. Jesus Christ said, “Greater works than these shall ye do because I go to my Father, in order to send the Holy Spirit;” and recollect that those few who were converted under Christ’s ministry, were not converted by him, but by the Holy Spirit that rested upon him at that time. Jesus of Nazareth was anointed of the Holy Spirit. Now then, if Jesus Christ, the great founder of our religion, needed to be anointed of the Holy Spirit, how much more our ministers?

Charles H. Spurgeon, Sermon No 201

It is interesting to me how many great pioneers of the past believed in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit as something that is needed, subsequent to conversion, to empower the believer for works of service. One example of this is seen in the following quote from C.T. Studd (see also for example, Lloyd-Jones on Baptism with the Holy Spirit).

“The fiery baptism of the Holy Ghost will change soft, sleek Christians into hot, lively heroes for Christ, who will advance and fight and die, but not mark time . . .  Nail the colors to the mast! That is the right thing to do, and, therefore, that is what we must do, and do it now.

What colors? The colors of Christ, the work He has given us to do – the evangelization of all the unevangelized. Christ wants not nibblers of the possible, but grabbers of the impossible, by faith in the omnipotence, fidelity and wisdom of the Almighty Savior who gave the command. Is there a wall in our path? By our God we will leap over it! Are there lions and scorpions in our way! We will trample them under our feet! Does a mountain bar our progress? Saying, Be thou removed and cast into the sea, we will march on. Soldiers of Jesus! Never surrender! Nail the colors to the mast!”

C.T. Studd (1860-1931), quoted by Norman P. Grubb in C. T. Studd: Cricketer & Pioneer.

Quoted at Missionary Mentors – CT Studd Pt 2 – Confluence | Newfrontiers USA Charismatic Reformed Blog | Confluence Blog.

At the recent Mobilise USA event, Tope Koleoso spoke in a seminar about receiving the Holy Spirit. I encourage you to listen to the audio of the session and some notes follow. Other audio is available from the Newfrontiers USA site.

1. The Mandate

• THE WELL John 4:14
• “Receive the Holy Spirit.” John 20:22
• “be filled with the Spirit”, Ephesians 5:18

2. The Means

Jesus is the – Baptiser in the Holy Spirit  John 1:33-34 (ESV)

JOHN 7:37  “On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. . . This He said about the Holy Spirit”

3. The Moments

Acts 2:4 “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Peter explains, “This is that”

Their response to the sermon: what shall we do? (Acts 2:37)

What shall we do?

• Repent of your sins
• Be Baptised in water
• Be Filled with the Holy Spirit
• Be Added to the Church

(Acts 2:38)

Acts 8:14-17
Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John,
who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.

Acts 8:14-17
Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.

Acts 9:17
So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Acts 10:44
While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”

Acts 19:6-7
“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied

What we can learn

1. There is a separate event of being filled with the Holy Spirit.
2. A distinct evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit is, speaking in tongues.
3. Jesus wanted all believers to be filled
4. The New Testament church expected Christians to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

What about me?

• This is for you (John 7:37)
• He is still here – Today, until Jesus comes back

THE BENEFITS …. What can I expect from the Holy Spirit?

1. Direct communication with God (I Cor14:1)
2. You will be edified (Jude 20), 1Cor 14:4-stimulates faith
3. Experience Gods Love like never before (Rom5:5)
4. Power to conquer fears and habits 2Tim1:7; IJohn:4:18.
5. Demolishes doubt: (Eph. 1:13-14; John 16:13,14)
6. Calms inner turmoil and brings peace
7. Boldness (Acts 4:8-13)
8. Gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12-14)
9. Prayer – Romans 8:26
10. Worship – 1 Corinthians 14:2
11. Warfare

How to receive the Holy Spirit

Three requirement (John 7:37-39)

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive…..

Your part to do:
1.Be THIRSTY

2.COME to JESUS the Baptiser

3.DRINK

Why some people don’t receive
Fear

• Bad Teaching
• Bad experiences
• General fear of the unknown

LOVE MUST REPLACE FEAR

DOUBT

• Pessimism
• Feeling unworthy (Lack assurance of salvation)
• Worry about past sins or habits

Faith must replace Doubt

Be THIRSTY
It is for those who are thirsty
Thirsty – desperate for one thing – drink

Come to Jesus
If any thirst, come to me
He will receive you

Drink
By a voluntary act, you will receive within you

Jesus’ part – to give the Spirit
Your part – to actively receive by faith

This quote from Terry Virgo is just too good not to share.  Many people fail to appreciate the two very distinct yet crucial sources of comfort to the Christian.  They miss the power that is available to us. They miss the transformation God intends us to experience:

Unbelievers are under the impression that Christians are forced into morality, obey rules and go to church. If they really understood that we’d found the secret of being content they’d wonder where we got it. And they’d queue up outside our churches to find the secret for themselves. Paul’s great claim has been tested through the centuries, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’

It’s about fellowship and communion with Christ. Now we must distinguish between these two different things: first ‘being united with him and declared righteous as a gift’ and second ‘enjoying communion with him’. In his book, ‘Communion with the Triune God’, John Owen speaks about union and communion with Jesus.

First, he says that we are united with Jesus and have received his righteousness for ever and that this is the basis of our relationship with him. Our relationship is never based on how much we’ve enjoyed his fellowship. Sadly, many believers think that if they have a season of remoteness from God, he’s unhappy with them and they end up in condemnation. Jesus is our righteousness for eternity. God poured out his wrath on his Son and we escape. We never move from our righteousness in Christ. Even if we don’t have an extended time of fellowship with him, we can still say, ‘Thank you, Lord. You’re the same yesterday, today and for ever, my righteousness.’ That’s union with Christ.

Second, Owen says that once we have union with Christ, we go on to have communion with him. We talk to him and listen to his voice. We hear him through the Scriptures and sing praises to him for the sheer joy of knowing that he’s our God. This is how we get strengthened with might in our inner being. We have fellowship with Jesus.

Day after day we experience fear, battle, hurts, sickness, wounds, unkindness and perplexity. We didn’t expect what’s happened to us. . How do we get through? ‘Well, pull yourself together!’ No! Our strength comes from Jesus. Isn’t he the Saviour? Doesn’t he save? Fellowship with him!

Salvation is a huge thing. Jesus saved me back in the ‘50s and has been saving me daily ever since. One day he’ll save us when he presents us to himself in glory. But while we’re on earth things will go wrong. And then we’ll need to draw close to Jesus to be daily, continually, repeatedly saved.

READ MORE at Terry Virgos Blog » Blog Archive » Strengthened in the Lord.

Do you live in the USA? Are you reformed, and theologically persuaded that the charismatic gifts continue? Perhaps like many you have not seen a positive model of how they can be expressed in a Bible-loving environment. Are you longing for a more dynamic experience of the Spirit’s power?

If the above describes you, please come to St Louis January 14-16 2011 for the Mobilise student and twenties conference. I will be there live blogging this exciting conference, and my pastor Tope Koleoso will be one of the main speakers. Tope is an engaging preacher who is sure to inspire and inform in equal measure. It has been a real delight for me to be in the same church as him since 1995. After a church planting phase of ten years, Jubilee moved to a cinema with 100 people. Since then God has granted remarkable growth, and almost 1000 people gathered on Easter Sunday 2010. It is thrilling to see what God is doing, and it is such a privilege to me to follow Tope’s leadership.

Take a look at this description of Tope’s seminar track to whet your appetite, and the video that follows. This conference could alter the direction of the rest of your life. Can you afford not to come?

The Holy Spirit – Living a Spirit-Filled Life (Tope Koleoso)
The Christian life was never intended to be solely characterized by an academic approach to theology, but by the Word of God made alive by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit-filled life should never be perceived as an optional extra for the Christian, but become the daily pursuit of the disciple. In this seminar we will look at the components of a Spirit-filled life, church and walk.

BOOK IN BEFORE NOVEMBER 23 FOR EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT