Imperishable Inheritance

Ugghh... That "c" word makes me cringe, but that title has a different meaning than is espoused in popular Christianity. Adrian Warnock has done us all a favor by giving a situation that might shed light on if you are a "reformed charismatic:"

"You are in a reformed church but secretly long for more of an experience of God, you are in a charismatic church but secretly enjoy listening to preaching and reading books that teach substantial theology."

I would obviously be in the first category, but I'm sure there are many in the latter. It should be noted that there are many areas of popular charismatic theology that I outright repudiate. The following list is important to note.

Parting From Modern Charisma

• The subsequent experience of the Spirit was limited to a redemptive-historical shift in Acts. The common experience today is that every believer receives the Spirit after regeneration as a pledge of their inheritance (Eph 1:13-14).
• I do not believe that the miraculous gifts of the Spirit are necessary to verify salvation (although not all charismatics hold to this).
• I believe that the miraculous workings of the Spirit are not the norm for reached areas. The Spirit works in miraculous ways to validate the ministry of Christ largely in unreached areas. (See my article: A Theology of the Gifts.)
• With the point above, I would describe myself as "open but cautious" in regards to the miraculous gifts.
• I believe many charismatic churches worship the Holy Spirit more than He would be comfortable with. After all, the Spirit desires to magnify Christ to the praise of the Father: "the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me" (John 15:26).

What About Cessationism?

Most believers in the reformed tradition believe that the miraculous workings of the Spirit were confined to the Apostolic age. I disagree, because I believe you have to "tap dance" around the Scripture to verify such a position. In fact, I almost laugh out loud when I hear some cessationist arguments.

They love to confine the "perfect" in 1 Cor 13 to the completed canon of Scripture, and it boggles my mind how they can substantiate such a position. They'll openly admit that if the miraculous gifts of the Spirit work today than it could endanger the authority of Scripture yet most of their arguments revolve around church history and not exegetical arguments. Further, to build support for their position they tend to take the worst-case scenario in charismatic theology and brush it across all of Christendom (cf. John MacArthur's Charismatic Chaos & B.B. Warfield's Counterfeit Miracles). I am less than convinced by their straw-man arguments.

Final Thoughts

I don't have the time now to elaborate more on my theology of the gifts, but I have been burdened to publicly admit this theological leaning in my life. I came to a point where the following words by Daniel Wallace really struck me:

"The problem with some charismatics is that they believe that God not only can heal, but that he must heal. That is one reason why, up until fairly recently, charismata has been a movement among Arminians...At the same time, the problem with many non-charismatics is that although they claim that God can heal, they act as if he won't. We often don't believe in God's ability'we don't really believe that God can heal."

I want to know God in a deeper way then many of the Reformed churches I've been to espouse. We can worship God "in Spirit and truth," and I want to seek out a body of believers that has this at the forefront of their hearts and minds. I want to know God personally, to feel Him, to love Him, to know Him. I thank God that His Spirit is indwelling me, and I hope he uses my inadequate vessel to expedite the return of His Kingdom to earth to the honor, praise, and glory of His name.

Resources

• Who's Afraid of the Holy Spirit? The Uneasy Conscience of a Non-Charismatic Evangelical
• Answering the Cessationists' Case Against Continuing Spiritual Gifts
• Signs and Wonders: Then and Now
• Miraculous Manifestations of the Holy Spirit: Their Purpose and Relevance Today
• A Theology of the Gifts