State of Arminianism

Following on the previous discussion, the question arises as to, Who are today's Arminians and what are they doing?

• Fundamentalist Wesleyan Vic Reasoner publishes the Arminian Magazine and is the leader among a group of articulate individuals who understand theology and contend for Wesley's vision.   In his book, The Hope of the Gospel, Reasoner shows how Arminianism naturally leads to a victorious postmillennial approach to history.   I would love to see Reasoner have a larger platform.
• The Free Will Baptists have had several thinkers.  Best among these are Robert E. Picirilli and Leroy Forlines who have both taught at Free Will Baptist College. 
• Asbury Seminary is probably the only openly evangelical Arminian seminary in America, and it is a good one.  Unfortunately it appears that Openness theology has some sway there.  Update:There is another seminary named Wesley Biblical Seminary which is more conservative and is Arminian and accredited  
• Some Southern Baptists are starting to fight back against the growing Calvinist trend.  This used to be documented on the BaptistFire website, but that site was suddenly removed, and has never been replaced.  It was a great loss to the internet community.
• In the Prophetic Movement, I believe that John Paul Jackson is the most thoroughly Arminian.  Although he does not use the term and probably has some doctrines which are more Calvinist in nature, his teachings on prophecy are very theological and have a truely unique emphasis on the agency of man.  For instance, he teaches that God actually limits himself through his law on how He will bless you, but Jackson at the same time holds to and emphasizes the true omniscience of God.   I'm curious to hear more of his teachings.
• The entire Word of Faith movement is very Arminian.  It emphasizes man's agency–success and health are contingent on your faith, not God's sovereignty.  I am opposed to the many excesses of this movement and also some of the core doctrine, but I think the emphasis it places on faith and spiritual warfare is helpful to a right understanding of the world. 
• Curry Blake, a relatively unknown but significant leader in divine healing, salvages what is good from the Word of Faith movement and builds a helpful Arminian worldview of life, including healing and miracles.

Blakes most helpful point–If something is wrong, the problem is not God.  This simple insight radically changed my Christian life.  We should pray for God's will to be done because it is not always done!  If you feel like God hates you, it's not because He hates you, it's because the devil is lying to you.  The perfect love of God remains at all times (even in correction).   When I do not “feel” like I'm in God's presence, I know that it is not God sovereignly pulling away but it is my need to volitionally draw in no matter how long it takes.  This is the root of prayer that prevails.  

Moreover, Blake says “If the Spirit does not move me, I move the Spirit.”  In other words, we know from Scripture that it is God's will is to heal (for example) and therefore, it does not require a special leading or feeling–we move out in faith and contend for it to happen.  Contend not against God, but against the world and the devil.   If you are fighting against God, you're on the wrong team.

The Resurgence of Calvinism

Calvinism is increasingly becoming identified with contemporary evangelicalism. Let's look at some of the evidences:

• Britain, after 200 years of Methodism, has emerged with an almost exclusively Calvinist evangelical community.
• The Southern Baptist church, the largest American evangelical denomination,was for more than one hundred years essentially Armianian butis having a resurgence of Calvinism.
• The Presbyterian Church of America, strongly Reformed in doctrine,  has become the de facto church of young intelligent evangelicals.
• Ultra-Calvinistic groups such as the Orthodox Presbyterian and Reformed Presbyterian churches are gaining influence. 
• Reformed Theological Seminary is a very popular place for young ministers to be educated. 
• John Piper, an ardent Calvinist, has become a near-celebrity through his many writings, especially Desiring God, which ties Calvinism to properly  loving God.
• While Pentecostalism was strongly rooted in Wesleyan Arminianism, and is the heritage of the modern charismatic movement, branches of charismatics have adopted traditional Calvinistic hermeneutics and idioms.  Talk about the “Word and the Spirit,” for example, has been very prevalent–intellectual leaders like the late Ern Baxter, and more recently R.T. Kendall, have essentially equated the “Word” with Calvinist theology. 
• The prophetic movement, with its emphasis on God's timng, has tended towards Calvinistic understandings of God.
• The apostolic movement has also been influenced by Calvinism. Both Every Nation and Grace churches, considered leaders in the movement, are clearly influenced by Calvinism.
• It is next to impossible to buy a book on theology, or nearly any Christian academic subject from an Arminian perspective. 
• In addition to all of this, Arminianism has become increasingly weak.  The only ardent Arminians seem to be those who either have strongly Fundamentalist roots, or who embrace openness.  There are very few voices strongly articulating the Arminianism of Wesley and Arminius himself.

In the face of all of this evidence, it would seem we would have to conclude that we were in the midst of a move of God which was causing a resurgence in true doctrine.   We would not want to be like those in Acts whom Gamaliel counseled to be careful lest they find themselves “only opposing God.”  in response to the burgeoning church movement.  With so many disparate voices advancing Calvinism one has to wonder if it is God Himself who is orchestrating the resurgence.

I, for one, have my doubts.  Rolling back the clock nearly 300 years, we find ourselves also in a time when Calvinism dominates the church, but the church is also dying.   At just this time, God raises up a young man named John Wesley, who has the guts to oppose nearly two centuries of reformation tradition, revitalize the formulation of an obscure Dutchman, and boldly confront the system.   This strained his relationship with the great reformer George Whitefield, but ultimately, as his ideas took root, it reshaped and revitalized the entire face of Christianity.  It is no overstatement to credit the Christianization of America, and the salvation of Britian from revolution to the ideas and boldness of this one man.  Because of the magnitude of his achivement in God, even most Calvinists have to tip their hat to Wesley–although he is the only Arminian for whom they do so.   In fact, it is because Calvinists are the ones writing the history and theology that we get the impression that everyone buy Wesley was a Calvinist.   If Arminians dominated the field, Wesley would take his rightful place next to Luther as one of the greatest reformers of all time.

This I believe may be the real root of the Calvinist resurgence.   Arminian doctrine leads one to the natural conclusion of taking action about the Gospel.   If human contingency is a significant or even primary factor in Gospel advance, then it is upon us to bring salvation to those who are lost, and if we do not, they will perish.   It is also upon us to take any other world changing action.  Therefore, the Arminian worldview leads to those who are compelled into the active roles of Christian service–especially evangelists.   The list of Calvinistic evangelists is about as short as the list of Arminians theologians.  Great evangelists have a deep burden for souls, and this burden is connected to knowing its your responsibility and ability to do something about it.  

Calvinistic doctrine, on the other hand, leads to identifying Calvinism as the Gospel. If Calvinism is the Gospel, then who are you most concerned about?  Well of course those “Christians” who have erroneously embraced some other understanding.  There is a great need to confront their error and protect the church from dangerous doctrinal error.    Moreover the Calvinist often places security in his or her election, which is the heart of the doctrine, and therefore defense of Calvinism is in some way also a defense of one's salvation.   Finally, since the lost are either elected or non-elect, there is no tremendous urgency in making effort to reach them.  This is not to say that all Calvinists do not care about evangelism, but that the system itself does not encourage this–evangelism is a command, more than a passion. .  

I believe further, that Calvinism has it's greatest appeal to the mind, while Arminianism has its greatest appeal to the heart.   Little dispute can be made that the greatest thinkers in Christian history, with the exception of C.S Lewis, were Calvinists.  On the other hand, the greatest “doers” of Christianity often were essentially Arminian.   Rarely, however, do these Armianians identify themselves as such.  However, as any thoroughgoing Calvinist will tell you–if you do not know you are a Calvinist, you are almost certainly not.    The “middle” path taken by those who do not understand or wish to enter the debate is almost always either intellectually incoherent, or a form of Arminianism.    This is where I take my greatest comfort.  Even today, it is rare to find a true Calvinist.  Most when asked about those elected to be damned will give a non answer.  If pressed about the extent of Christ's atonement they may hedge, and in their practical attitudes and living, they will often function like Arminians.   This kind of Calvinism does not bother me at all.

Therefore, one of the reasons that Arminianism seems so rare is that its proponents do not label themselves with the term, even if they do possses the education to understand its full meaning.  Why create conflicts with Calvinists by saying you are an Arminian (read as borderline heretic), when this will only stir up controversy, and draw attention to un-Biblical labels.  Instead, focus on winning souls, and let the Calvinists argue amongst themselves.    I think its time that some Armianians who understand the gravity and importance of the question start to stand up and articulate it.   Perhaps it will lead to another great Reformation in the Church.

20th Century US Revival Movements

• 1906 – Azusa Street — Started the Pentecostal Movement.  Speads like wildfire around America and around the world for decades to come.
• 1950s – Healing Revival — Brought Divine healing to America.
• 1950s – The Latter Rain — Contemporary to the Healing Revival.  Eventually reshaped the vision of church.
• 1960s – The Charismatic Movement — The Holy Spirit invades the traditional church.
• 1970s – The Jesus Movement — Massive numbers of hippies get saved in Pentecostal revival as the hippie lifestyle implodes.  Root of Calvary Chapel and Vineyard Movements.
• 1980s – The Vineyard — John Wimber brings “signs and wonders” to the evangelical church.
• 1990s – Toronto/Brownsville Movements.
• 2000s – What now????

Reading the Bible

Reading the Bible is not as simple as it sounds. I think the hardest thing is that we bring so much to it through our unknown pre-suppositions. Different parts of the Body of Christ use different hermeneutical systems. The way you read the Bible will underlie your entire Christian experience, also entire movements. Now that I’ve been under several systems, I’ve developed a real interest in starting from the best possible angle. Here are several approaches used today:

• Text and Background — This is my way of describing the approach commonly taught in the evangelical seminary. The emphasis here is placed on backgrounds to the text, the structure of the text, original language studies, etc.
• Inductive Bible Study — Inductive Bible Study places more emphasis on the reading the Bible in your vernacular language. Instead of spending lots of time in background study and original language, you spend lots of time in the Bible in your language. This method is more of a populist method, and is common among many evangelicals. Kay Arthur has written several good books on this. Although I’m just exploring it, I really like the premise.
• Imagery and Typology — This is not an approach all on it’s own, but it is sometimes a missing component from the other systems. Only recently are scholars starting to accept what has long been known by spiritual Bible readers– there are complex types and images which are important in truly applying the text. These should be studied as an enrichment.
• Prophetic Hermeneutics — The problem with standard Hermeneutics is that it leaves out the Spirit. The factual proof of this is that you cannot use seminary hermeneutics to explain the way that apostles quote the Old Testament in the New Testament. Charismatic/Pentecostal preaching uses what Mark Stibbe has called “This is That” hermeneutics. In this system, the context of the application draws meaning out of the text by the illumination of the Spirit that may not be visible from a “bottom up” rational investigation.

I’ve been trained in Seminary in the first method, and it has created a dissatisfaction It’s not practical enough, and drives you into knowledge, not into God or the Bible. I’ve been around a lot of people who use the second method, and I’ve sat under teachers who have used the last two methods, and I’d like to get more of that. I’ve been fishing up some books on the topic… more on that later.

Prophets that I know about

There are a lot of prophets in the Body of Christ although not nearly as many mature ones as needed. However, it’s hard to know who all of them are because they move in different streams. Also, if you google most of these names, almost all you find is sites full of confusing disinformation claiming they are heretics, so here is at least a little piece of truth.

Kansas City Stream

• Paul Cain — Unstated leader of the “Kansas City Prophets” who emerged from Mike Bickle’s church, and probably the leading prophet of our time. Fell into serious sin a couple of years ago, and is in a restoration process. Facing serious health challenges at this time as well. It’s amazing to me that someone so influential in our time, who has held thousands of incredible meetings in his lifetime could be in some ways such an unknown. In fact, with many of the names on this list, the same is true. I was in just one meeting in 1998, and that changed my life forever.
• Bob Jones — Kansas City Prophet. Gives unusual event prophecies including rhymes or song, but which often remarkably come to pass. Was disciplined by Bickle about 15 years ago over misuse of his gift. He appears to be functioning in a healthy way now. Hangs out with Jackson sometimes.
• Jim Goll — One of the Kansas City Prophets. Insight into Charismatic history. Overcame a bout with cancer a few years ago.
• Noel Alexander — Prophetic type who came up in Kansas City along with the other key guys. I saw him share a word at a meeting in Kansas City that he had gotten something like 20 years prior. His is now based in Olathe, KS. Don’t know much about him except that he is older, and sometimes shares words that he got N years ago.

John Paul Jackson

• John Paul Jackson — Kansas City Prophet. Extremely gifted. Has a unique insight into dreams and theology. He moved to North Sutton, NH around 2000 and started his own school, and really movement. His presence was definitely unique for the otherwise dry region. Unfortunately he’s now moved back to TX.
• Jim Driscoll — A prophet emerging from Jackson’s school. I received a word from him and found it to be quite accurate.

Morningstar

• Steve Thompson — Rick Joyner’s right hand prophet. Has a good spirit about him. I saw him at a couple of their meetings in Charlotte, and really liked him Very down to Earth, but clear in touch with God. I do not know why he has such an invisible role.
• Bobby Conner — Former Baptist minister. Intense. Has some dreams/visions worth sharing.
• Aaron Evans — Emerged from Rick Joyner’s ministry. Lost his precious wife a few years ago to death. Has moved to NH with his kids to be John Paul Jackson’s right hand.

CI Prophets

• Bill Hamon — 50 years in the prophetic. Wrote several great books on prophecy. Leader of a company of prophets. Prophecy is a throwback to the “old school” prophets who were Pentecostal in background. I heard him give a word in a meeting about a man who was having some inappropriate relations. It was heavy. I appreciate that he seems to flow in both the positive and corrective aspects of prophecy. We need both. I actually got to pick him up from the airport for that conference and had never heard of him. The other guy in the car said something like “How’s it feel to be on the cover of Charisma?” That got my attention. What I love most about Hamon though is that he has a passion and process for releasing people into the prophetic. Too often it is seen as something only for special people.
• Scott Webster — Trained under Hamon. Mentioned by MD pastor Charles Schmitt as having giving a significant prophecy about the future of their ministry which came to pass.
• Lew Mar – Also trained under Hamon
• Sharon Stone – Recently gave a very accurate prophecy about the economic crisis.
• Bill Lackey – One of Hamon’s key guys. Does great prophetic training.

British Prophets

• Rob Rufus — A British Prophet associated with New Frontiers ministry. God has catapulted him to be a key figure in Newfrontiers in this season, and to breathe a fresh dose of the Spirit into what they are doing. Kudos to Terry Virgo for giving a platform to a guy like this. Rob has had some very anointed things happen recently at their conferences. Reminds me of Graham Cooke when he first came out.
• Jon Cressey — I saw Jon mentioned as a prophetic guy within Newfrontiers on one of the English bloggers websites. He seems to be very seasoned and the Lord is showing up when he ministers. He actually contacted me and shared his “Prophetic Reformation” site. Clearly he has his finger on the pulse of some of the same things that have been on my heart at this site and seems like a really wonderful brother. Reviewing his site, I wonder if we are in a kind of prophetic wilderness, as God retunes his company of prophets for another move.
• Marc Dupont — This guy gets mentioned and has written some books, but I really don’t know anything. Graham Cooke said he loves him. Apparently he moved to Toronto before the revival based on a word from God. That’s points for accuracy.
• Graham Cooke — British prophet who appeared on the world stage during the Toronto revival. A real teacher with a love focus.  I saw him up in Vermont in 2006. It was a crazy meeting because it was in a tent in about 6 inches of mud. He basically shared some of the exact same things I heard him share on the Toronto tapes from ten years earlier.  He was separated and then divorced from his wife Heather a few years ago over his desire to move to the US.   He later married an American woman.  He released a public statement at the time of the separation, but there is currently no sign of it, so I have been getting hits on this blog about it.   I think I actually saved the statement somewhere.   We obviously don’t know the full story, but on the surface it really doesn’t look good.

Every Nation

• Jim Lafoon — The lead prophet for Every Nation. He came from Michael Fletcher’s Grace Church movement, and before that from the Latter Rain ministry of the Ewings. He is especially gifted in insight into the Scripture and a fabulous preacher. My wife and I received and extensive and accurate word from him in 2006. He has not really been the same man since the Every Nation scandals.
• Jim Critcher — Prophet in Every Nation, trained by Jim Lafoon. Accurate and pastoral words, and he can preach. Had dinner with he and his wife once. God really used this meeting to shake up my life. Like these other guys, I’d love to see him get out of the Every Nation system, and use his gift for the broader body.
• John Rohrer — Prophet in Every Nation. I never saw him minister. He was supposedly at the disposal of the main leader for apostolic related tasks.
• John Steele — From New Zealand. Although not an Every Nation guy I think he may have come out of Maranatha originally.

Other

• Chuck Flynn — Another old time prophet. Mentioned by Paul Cain on one of his tapes. Has ministered with the FGBMFI among many other places.
• Kim Clement — Known for political prophecies which have come to pass. There have also been concerns given the volume of his prophecies about ones that have not come to pass.
• Hank Kunneman — Known for political prophecies which have come to pass. A friend of mine saw him at Harry Jackson’s church and was definitely impressed that this guy has the heat not just in political prophecy, but in personal prophecy too
• Dennis Cramer — Smaller name, but has recently emerged as a prophetic figure in the Northeast region.
• Jimmy Evans, Clark Whitten, Wayne Drain. These three men are billed as coming to do prophetic ministry at Gateway Church in Dallas, TX.
• Ron Campbell — Has a prophetic ministry based in Dallas, just saw it on the internet. Seems to be fairly seasoned, but also not very widely known.
• John Mulindi — Prophet from Uganda. Had a vision of the collapse of the World Trade Center several years before it happen
  ed, along with a stunning warning of its meaning and our need to act. A close friend of mine was profoundly touched at a meeting where this guy gave his testimony.
• Ron Cassoni — Prophet who came out of the original Ft. Lauderdale 5 shepherding church. Still part of the staff there. An elder at a church here in town mentioned him a couple of times, and he clearly “has it.”
• Phil Cappuccio – Prophesied over a friend of mine. It was intense and accurate. Great gift. Now leads a church or church network.
• Kent Simpson
• Brian Weeks — Pastor of Jericho Christian Fellowship in Middleboro, MA. He has a prophetic flow. Saw him do some nice ministry including a couple of friends.
• Johnny Foote — Based in Pensacola, Fl.  Trained under Ken Sumrall of Shepherding movement connection.  I’ve heard good things about Foote.

Post-Reformation Hermeneutics

In the last post, I talked about various contributions made to Christian epistemology through Church History. Upon the core of post-Reformation Epistemology is hermeneutics. The seminal feature of the Reformation was its emphasis on the importance of Scripture for determining the truth, and therefore the great determinant factor in such a context is the method of obtaining truth from the Scripture-Hermeneutics.

What Luther initiated in his protracted struggle with the Catholic hierarchy was taken to its logical conclusion by John Calvin. Calvin is perhaps best remembered today for the so called doctrines of grace, or the five points of “Calvinism”, however his real contribution to Church history lies in his approach to Scripture. Luther had used Scripture to trim from the Catholic church that which was clearly unscriptural, and thereby created the Protestant “high church”, which retains many of the centuries old features of Catholicism by weight of tradition. Calvin, on the other hand, began to use Scripture as the exclusive source of truth. Scripture became a factual textbook from which one built the institutes of the Christian religion upwards. It was to be against Scripture which all things were measured. It is from this brand of Reformed thought that all later advances of the Church stem. It was uncompromising, but it also tended to be cold and rational.

Calvin’s system reached it’s zenith in the English Puritan movement. At the core of the Puritan revival movement were brilliant young Cambridge scholars who applied Calvin’s system to every sphere of life and eventually turned the world upside down. The power of their ideas and witness eventually dethroned the King of England, established America, and established a permanent beachhead for Reformation Christianity. It is upon the Puritans which all Anglo civilization rests, and it is the treasure house of their theology which has from time to time been raided as a compass in the darker straights of ensuing history.

From a hermeneutical perspective, very little changed until the middle of 19^th century when German higher criticism emerged. This system undermined the authority of Scripture and in so doing unhitched Germany from its Christian moorings, eventually leading to the moral bankruptcy which permitted the Holocaust. Germany’s pre-eminent position in Protestantism also provided a platform from which to infect the Anglo civilization. Although ultimately unsuccessful particularly in the United States, the cost paid by humanity for the embrace of these doctrines was immense.

In the United States an answer arose to Higher Criticism: Fundamentalism. Fundamentalism championed the literal meaning of Scripture thereby preserving the essential foundation of Protestantism. However, the fundamental system appeared to lose the deeper reading of the text which had been inherent to the Reformed perspective in favor a more literal, more individual, and more spiritual reading of the Scripture. D.L Moody was perhaps it’s founding father. Along with powerhouse thinker R.A. Torrey, he championed the idea that the Scripture was the “Word of God” and united this philosophy with dispensationalism. The weakness of this system was that its literalistic approach and exaltation of the text tended to put the Scripture “on” rather than “in”. The words themselves became very important while the principles slowly faded to the background. As the principles faded so did the emphasis on application and permeation of their truth into the rest of life. In many ways the evangelical movement fathered by Dr. Ockenga and Billy Graham starting in the 50’s moved away from the excesses of this movement while not essentially replacing the foundation.

The Pentecostal movement arose simultaneously as a branch on the same tree, and inherited many of the same emphases, but with the Spirit taking pre-eminence over the Scripture. This change was to lead to great confusion among Pentecostals throughout the 20^th century as “every wind of doctrine” blew threw the church. Fortunately, many of the winds were good, and contemporary to the rise of the New Evangelicalism, God planted the seeds for a more Spiritual understanding of Scripture through the Latter Rain movement, the seminal work being George Warnock’s Feast of Tabernacles. The typological or prophetic understanding of Scripture today traces largely back to this movement.

The Shepherding movement arose within the context of post-Latter Rain Pentecostal Christianity and had as a major thrust of its teaching the rebuilding of the architecture of Western Civilization, which they recognized as being essentially undermined by fragmented relationships. This understanding built the underpinning of a more principled approach to the Scripture and was carried to its logical conclusion by one of the leaders in the movement, Dennis Peacocke, who went on to become the leading Charismatic voice in Biblical Worldview. His approach to Scripture focused more on the principles which lay behind the text. Not only what does the text say, but what is assumed by the text, and what are the implications of the text when applied to a culture?

At the same time evangelicalism was experiencing a rebirth of Biblical Worldview through the enormously influential ministry of Francis Schaeffer. However, the weight of evangelical hermeneutics had unconsciously shifted to a blend of Higher Critical approach and Fundamentalist approaches to Scripture. While affirming the authority of the Word of God, grammar, background, and other extra-Biblical concerns gained greater and greater importance, making for a dry impractical reading of Scripture for which only the Scholar was qualified. This approach is common to nearly all of the Biblical resources popular today, and is very lean on personal application.

Most Christians are totally unconscious of their hermeneutical presuppositions, because they are so foundational to our understanding of reality. Understanding that such presuppositions exist, their implications, and the context in which they exist, bring us to the first step of choosing correct ones.

Christian Epistemology and Church History

One’s epistemology, or method of ascertaining the truth, is the foundation stone of all understanding. Not only is our epistemology the foundation of our own personal understanding, it is the foundation of culture. Culture, in turn, is decisive force in human history. It is through culture that the Christ is either corporately resisted or corporately welcomed, and it is therefore culture to which God’s hand of divine government ultimately responds. If history turns on our corporate method of obtaining truth, then the crux of any engagement must strike at the root of this tree.

There are several basic methods of discerning the truth, and many systems which can be built upon those methods. Much thought has been given to the various epistemological systems of the secular world, however, comparatively little attention has been given to the variety which exists, and has existed, within Christianity itself throughout the course of history. The key components of Christian epistemology have been tradition, authority, Spirit, and Scripture. The weight given to one of these factors has been largely decisive not just in events, but in the very context in which the events occur. The following are some brief reflections on the evolution of church epistemology. 

The Beginning
The Early Church for obvious reason placed a high value on tradition. Christ’s advent had been recent and the canon of Scripture had not yet occurred. Moreover, there was no unified church government, or even a method for communicating and enforcing one. With the coming of Constantine, the nature of the church fundamentally changed. Central authority was now both possible and enforceable. Moreover, it was politically desirable. As this unholy union of church and state solidified, the church became increasingly reliant on authority. The stage was set for the medieval church which defined truth not based on Scripture, but on the expediencies of an increasingly corrupt church leadership

The Reformation.
What Martin Luther challenged which fundamentally threatened the Catholic church was it’s epistemology. Faced with the choice between Church authority and Scripture, Luther, through an epic personal struggle, chose Scripture, and in so doing opened the flood gates of truth. Church authority now must be subject to Scripture, not vice versa. The ensuing centuries saw the outworking of this view. The gospel tide swept the northern European nations and the gospel truth sank deep into their cultures.  

Human Agency
John Wesley sowed the seeds of a new transformation by emphasizing the agency of man in determining what is true. The Puritan understanding, which was the great citadel of Reformation thought, had tended to emphasize the Providential or Sovereign hand of God. The unintended side effect of this stress was to unduly embrace the negative circumstances in life as God, rather than Satan. Wesley’s stress on the responsibility of man ultimately led to the natural conclusion that man has more control over his circumstances and experience of God that it might appear. A fervent pursuit of God would create a fervent response by God. 

A New Pentecost
Wesley’s idea ultimately culminated in the Pentecostal movement, which, when viewed in the context of all preceding history must be understood as a dramatic shift. The holiness movement had hungered for a “deeper life”, but Pentecostalism brought in a deeper experience. The reality of God demonstrated by the supernatural working of God in Pentecostalism ushered in an understanding of reality in which the person of the Holy Spirit was to become essential in determining the truth. Within this new Pentecostal context several movements would arise which would each bring into focus key elements which had been lacking in reformation epistemology. While each of these movements suffered from fatal flaws, they also each brought in missing elements in God’s truth.

The Latter Rain movement in the 1950’s extended upon this idea and released a new hermeneutical system to the church which would unlock the rationalistic foundation which had undergirded the Reformation church for over four hundred years. It revived the typological interpretation of Scripture, as well as emphasizing the reality of modern day Spirit inspired prophetic revelation of Scripture truth. 

The Word of Faith movement in the 1970’s extended upon both Wesley’s idea of man’s agency, as well as the Fundamentalist idea of The Word of God, and brought into focus the dominion which God intended for his Children. In a totally separate context, God used Francis Schaeffer to reinspire a new generation of Christians to reconsider the totality of God’s truth, thus provide a target for this newly appreciated dominion. Not only would the force of the believer’s authority be on the spiritual, but it would be on the natural, on the society.  

At the exact same time, God used the Shepherding Movement to address an imbalanced emphasis on the individual which had been latent in the Reformation understanding of truth. The Reformation had emphasized Scripture almost to the exclusion of all other sources of truth, thereby effectively atomizing the entire Protestant civilization. People existed in isolated spheres because the foundation of their society was the value that truth must be obtained personally and only personally. Church doctrine was always at risk, because it was never intentionally passed onward.
 

Where We Stand
Every arm chair church historian has a different view of the position of the Church as we enter the 21^st century, but I believe history clearly shows a dramatic acceleration in the work of God. More happened in the first 400 years after the reformation as happened in the preceding 1500 years, and perhaps more happened in the 20^th century as in both of these. From an epistemological point of view the 20^th century could be seen as having lain the foundations of a new era of victory and triumph for the 21^st century church because the church at large had a more total foundation-addressing each of these essential methods of obtaining truth.

A Vision of Church

No Substitutes
I believe the church in America is in a moment of transition and also in a moment of emerging hunger, and the current season of my life has caused me to share in this hunger. I have been exposed to radically different expressions of what church is supposed to be, and while each has elements which I cherish, none is really satisfying. A new paradigm must emerge which leverages the best of existing paradigms and perhaps other features which have not yet been introduced to the church.

The first question that any vision of church must answer is “What is Church?” Why does it exist? What does God want it to be like? The Church exists as the manifestation of Christ on Earth, as the vehicle of his ever-increasing reign, as a healing family, and as a mission to a lost and dying world. The church does not exist to fulfill our personal dreams, but we exist to fulfill the dreams of God. Looking back over centuries of Protestant history we see that God is progressively deformalizing and deinstitutionalizing the Church[i], fashioning a living body, bound together in love. At each step in this process, He reveals His awesome love and power in revival and revival movements. This is what I pray God would allow me to be a part of. Some have looked for a house church movement, and others are starting what is called the “emergent church”, but I am looking for a new movement among Charismatic/Pentecostal believers which eschews the excesses of the past but builds upon all of its strengths.

Satan has many ways of corrupting a church: Some he can corrupt through false doctrine. Some he can corrupt through bad practice. Some he can corrupt through personal sin in the leadership. Some he can overturn through rebellion or strife among the leaders. When the enemy gets a foothold in one of these ways and remains unconfronted, the presence of the Holy Spirit gradually begins to erode and we are slowly left with a substitute which may have the form, but not the power, of godliness. It this moment in history, it seems to me that while the church has been growing in influence and in breadth, it is in need of a major reformation of depth and vision. Large segments glorify money or men. Big buildings, outward appearances, fancy clothes and deceptive doctrines designed to increase giving seem to be the order of the day in some segments of the church. Pastoral personalities loom larger than even the building they occupy. In other places, there is less ostentation, but the meetings are wild and uncontrolled, the mind seems to be disengaged, and the lost ignored. Other places are often dead or dying. We cannot accept these as substitutes for what God wants to bring to the Earth, and I pray for a people to arise that will contend for purity and passion within it.

The Gospel Church
The very foundation of every church must be its commitment to the pure Word of God. This begins with a commitment to the authority of Scripture. Upon this we lay an honest and mutual submission to the authority of Scripture. From this position we may hope to remain in true doctrine. The most essential feature of the Gospel in my mind is that we must die unto ourselves and live unto Him. Much has been said recently about what God can do for us. We have been encouraged to tell God exactly what we want, and He will surely provide. We have been told that the Christian life is about finding and fulfilling a “personal destiny.”

While neither of these messages is completely wrong, when we remove convicting preaching of death to self, they lead us astray. First we die to ourselves and live unto God, and from this position, all of His power flows freely through us to accomplish His purposes. We die to our selfish appetite for more and for better, and we delight in what we have been given, and most in our relationship with Him. When the church preaches the right gospel, it will obtain the right results. Christianity is about a cross. It is an invitation to come and die, and in that dying to live forever. Too much of the church has lost this message and we must reclaim it. We have become enamored with the next move of God, defending and reviving the truth, or advancing our political agenda, but we have forgotten the foundation.

The Loving Church
We may have convicting preaching, but if we have not love, “we are but a gong or a clanging cymbal.” The church must have the heartbeat of God. If we miss the heartbeat of God, then He may move through us, but He will not dwell among us. A loving church must be relationally based. It must value individual lives more than a corporate vision. I believe this is part of the heart that Jesus reveals when he says that he will “leave the ninety-nine on the mountains in search of the one that went away.” The vision and goal for the herd is important, but loving the life of every single sheep precedes it.

Our fundamental relationships with other Christians feed our souls and propel us forward in God. A church may have thousands of members and amazing facilities but not really be a healing community. Various models of authority have seemed to sap the natural love of God’s people for one another. I believe that central to our attempts to love must be a model of true servant leadership. Rather than give people orders, or scare them with doctrine, we must show the way, and offer them the choice to follow.

A loving church must be evangelistic. The essence of why Christ established the church was to reach out to and transform the world. This must be our central mission above all others. It is my observation that when a church or movement loses this focus, it begins to become unhealthy or to die. Movements that keep reaching the lost at their center remain healthy and orthodox because they are truly practicing love. Some churches do not really evangelize, they recruit. More interest is taken in getting a person to join a certain church or assent to certain doctrines than to getting to know Jesus. Or perhaps people are encouraged to know Jesus apart from sharing Him with others, and it becomes introspective. Some churches do neither, and therefore die a slow death over many decades. First they die spiritually, and then they are either supplanted with a false gospel, or simply close their doors.

I believe also that our theology impacts how we see God. If we are not convinced in our hearts and minds that He is good, then how can we expect to be consistently good to one another? Even more, how can we believe that He will answer our prayers? The Scripture teaches that “whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.” This has led me to conclude both Scripturally and practically that Calvinism, which is currently experiencing a resurgence, is not the answer. The great evangelists are almost exclusively moved by the conviction that God wants to save all, not just a few chosen. Therefore, I believe that a balanced form of Arminian doctrine is part of a healthy evangelistic movement. My experience is that Calvinism leaves many unanswered “Why God?” questions, while Arminianism, questions man, and puts the weight upon us to do God’s will, or at least cooperate with it.

The Supernatural Church
It is good that we make all effort to love each other and love the lost, but this love is incomplete if we do not invite and welcome the Holy Spirit. The church must be supernatural. As the Church draws ever closer to His return, it becomes ever more fashioned in His Image, and therefore we should be ever nearer to His presence. Being supernatural in God is not about novelty, curiosity or personal glory, but it is about intimacy. If our life is “hidden with Christ in God” then being supernatural is really about God’s personality expressing itself through us, since God Himself is supernatural and desiring to demonstrate His love to the world. When I think of the supernatural church, I think of the touch of God and the prophetic word of God.

In the worship, God can deeply touch us, reshap our convictions, lift burdens, and change who we are. Likewise, when we receive prayer from someone else, God can deeply touch us, healing our wounds and drawing us closer to him. He may come in a way that we physically feel, or in a way that we emotionally feel, or one that we only later perceive. Regardless, this touch of nearness of God is essential to a healthy walk with Him. Without this, I believe church is bound to have many who come and go unfulfilled, and even those who are free will leave thirsty. There is no overestimating the impact of God being present in the midst of His people. In the wilderness Moses was sated in God’s presence, and he refused to leave the wilderness without it. We too should refuse to have church without Him. We have to be ready to set our agendas aside and invite Him to work in our lives.

I was in a prophetic meeting with a world famous prophet and I will never forget the impact that the accurate prophetic word had on my soul. Suddenly I realized that God loved us so much more than I had ever known. He really did know the hairs on our heads. When there is real and healthy prophecy people know His nearness, and they have expectancy for something to happen. They are motivated to serve God and to seek Him because prophets release vision into the church. Even more important, however, prophecy used correctly can avert personal disaster. In another meeting I remember the prophet identified a couple who had come to the conference with their marriage on the rocks, and encouraged them to stick it out. Imagine what would have happened, had the prophetic word not been spoken? The impact of a divorce can last for generations, so too can the impact of a single well timed word from the Lord.

The Victorious Church
A church may preach the Gospel, it may be loving, and it may be supernatural, but it must also be victoriously minded. We cannot roll over while the devil conquers the world-it is we who have been given the authority over every demonic power and have been promised that the gates of hell cannot withstand our assault, not vice versa. We must have faith that God will display His ability to overwhelmingly conquer through our faith. The church should have victory over sickness, over sin, and over our circumstances.

While not widely practiced, divine healing is one place where the Church must have faith for God’s power to move. Why should God’s children, who serve Him with their whole hearts, be afflicted and suffering, not to mention all of the unbelievers whose lives can be changed through the Healer? This was a central and regular feature of Jesus’ ministry, do we have any right to neglect it, especially when we know that God has done tremendous healing miracles even in modern times? He can grow back limbs, cure AIDS, cure cancer, and any other problem known to man. When people are on death’s door, they are suffering, they have no future, and then God comes in and conquers the sickness, we know the He is God. This is a God who is worthy to be served.

God also gives us victory over sin. It is easy to compromise or make excuses for sin While no one will be perfect in this life, it is important that we have faith for a life that is free of overt sin, and which grows progressively free of heart sin. Without such a vision for holiness, I believe we are destined to experience God from afar, and rob ourselves of the true joys of walking with God. This desire must be more than a fear based legalism, or a wild excitement, it must be a passion for intimacy with God and conformity to His image.

God’s power is also displayed in his provision. He can open doors that no man can shut. He can bring believers into sovereign relationships with important people. He can bring promotions. He can find facilities. He can bring in resources and He can cancel debts. He can restore broken relationships, and much more. In all of these ways, God displays not only His great love towards His people, but His power over all things which might hinder or oppress His Church. It is not that we love His power because we want personal gratification, but because this “fight of faith” advances His Kingdom and draws us closer to Him. As this Kingdom advances, we begin to know who He truly is in all His fullness, and His name is vindicated as truly a “name above all other names”, and worthy of all worship.

Community Impact
It is my firm belief that the healthy church does not have to strain to touch the community, but the life of God is like the vision of the temple in Ezekiel-the river of life flows freely from it and heals and feeds everything in its path. This is not at all to say that no active effort is made to reach the community, but that we must first be a vibrant body. When we are healthy, those who come will also be healed and bring others. Evangelism must be the heartbeat of our community outreach, and church vitality must be the heart of our evangelism.

From this context, I believe that is important that we both reach the city and the world. A church must be interested in “the least of these”-and not just because it will get us favor with the city or favor with God, but because it is God’s heart. The Kingdom of this world oppresses people through its systems. The Kingdom of God comes to “set the captives free.” This means finding the oppressed-all who are weak, tired, broken, and lonely-and “compelling them come in.” When we build our churches on these people, the true nature and heart of God is fulfilled.

We must reach beyond evangelism, and even social improvement, and into true community transformation. The Church must do more than save a few while the whole world burns-it must aggressively confront evil. The Church should be a place where members are equipped and inspired with a vision that extends beyond the walls of the church. Their minds should be discipled to understand the systems in which they find themselves and also impressed with the vision of God’s system. By changing the systems of the community, we can address more than the root, but also the fruit.

[i] This observation is original to Dr. Elijah Kim.

The Shepherding Movement

This book was very helpful, although not as unbiased as it claims to be. It is helpful because it helps us to see how Godly men with a good intention started and preserved something that ultimately hurt a lot of people.   These guys were not evil cultists, neither were they 100% wrong, but they had something in their system which was harmful, and never successfully dealt with it.