BIBLE
DIGEST - Number 30 Revised
January 1997
BEWARE
OF COUNTERFEIT “SPIRIT” GIFTS
By Allon
Maxwell
|
Jesus left a VERY
important warning about the danger of "false Christs", whose "ministry"
would be accompanied by "great signs and wonders". (Matthew 24:24). These "miracles" would
appear so genuine that even the elect would be in danger of deception! Later, in 1 John 4:1, the warning is repeated by the Apostle.
We are NOT to accept at face value, the authenticity of any claim that the Holy
Spirit is the source of what we see or hear. We are to put it
all to the test to determine whether it really is from God, or not! The story that follows
is reported here for the solemn warning that it contains. This story is about
the experience of a young Christian whose meeting with Jesus has turned his life
around in a remarkable way. In his Christian walk, he shows clear evidence of
both the fruit and the power of the Holy Spirit. His "Baptism with the Holy
Spirit" and the verbal ministry gifts through which he bears witness to Jesus,
are clearly visible to those who know him well. He does not have those abilities
within himself. they are a gift from God ..... a gift of the Holy Spirit. For anyone to suggest
that he is not "baptised with the Holy Spirit", simply because he does
not have the gift of tongues, is a grievous and tragic mistake. Indeed, to make
such a suggestion, is a serious matter. It shows a spiritual blindness to the
work of the Holy Spirit, and the real nature of God's gifts to His children. There are indeed
some who press this mistake to the extreme, by claiming that the gift of tongues
is THE ESSENTIAL EVIDENCE of the baptism with the Holy Spirit, and therefore of
salvation. At this point, this dangerous error becomes a FALSE GOSPEL! Some time ago now,
(towards the end of 1991), our young Christian friend met a Pentecostal man who
told him of the "need" for all Christians to speak in tongues, so that
they could be sure they really were "baptised with the Holy Spirit".
He was told that his Christian experience was incomplete without it. If he was willing,
this man could lay hands on him and pray for him, and he would receive the gift
of tongues. This "evidence" would "prove" that he had received
the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. On the basis of
past teaching, he was not at all sure this was right. However, he did want all
that God could give him, and he agreed to allow the man to pray for him. He did also silently
pray, asking for protection from anything that was not of God. When the first prayer
was said, after a little while the man asked whether he could hear any strange
words at the back of his mind. When he said that
there was nothing like that in his mind, he was told again to listen carefully
for strange words. There must be something there. Again, he said that there was
nothing. He was told that
they would have to pray a second time. This time he was also told to picture a
glass of water before him which he should pretend to drink, imagining at the same
time, that he was drinking in the Holy Spirit. Again, after a short
time he was asked to search his mind for the strange words. When he still said
that there was nothing, he was told that this was very unusual. It had never happened
before. There must be some sort of "blockage". They would have to pray
yet again. This time the man
began to "pray" aloud in tongues. Our young brother,
of course, did not understand what was said. After listening to the "prayer"
in tongues for a little while, he was again asked to search his mind for strange
words. When, for the third
time he said that there was nothing, the man gave up and the evening concluded. He shared this experience
with me a couple of days later. By this time, he was thanking God that his prayer
for protection had been answered. There had indeed been a "blockage".
It was the protecting hand of God! He has now learnt
the lesson of caution about giving himself ever again, so easily, to a prayer
in which (with 20/20 hindsight) there is such danger. What, you may ask,
was so dangerous about praying for something with such outward appearance of good? Firstly,
he was being asked to reject his faith in the obvious reality of what God had
already given him, in order to receive the experience. Secondly,
the prayer was based on a lie. There is nothing in the Bible at all to suggest
that the gift of tongues is infallible proof of the Baptism with the Holy Spirit,
or that Christian experience is incomplete without it. In fact, the Bible
says quite clearly, that although all are baptised into the body of Christ by
the same Spirit, (1 Corinthians 12:13),
not all have the same gift. Especially, NOT ALL SPEAK IN TONGUES. (1 Corinthians 12:28-31). The young brother
had unwittingly, but cautiously, without realising the full implications of what
he was doing, exposed himself to a false gospel, with the very real inherent danger
of receiving a false spirit! (2 Corinthians 11:4) God was gracious
to him, accepting the honest prayer and heart's desire to receive only what came
from God and to be protected from all that was not from God. I have known others
who were not so honest with God, who were allowed to get a lot further into the
murky waters of false Pentecostal experience. They learned a hard
lesson about the hazards associated with some counterfeit "gifts". Thirdly,
those of you who know anything at all about HYPNOSIS, will recognise it in the
techniques of suggestion which were used by the man who prayed for my young friend.
Anyone lacking this familiarity with the very simple techniques of basic hypnosis,
is easily deceived into receiving a false "experience", through opening
their mind to suggestions of this sort. On those occasions
in the Bible where people actually did speak in tongues, it was completely spontaneous. No one planted suggestions
in their minds that they could find strange words there. No one planted actual
words in their minds by speaking aloud in tongues during that vulnerable time
when their minds were "open" to unite themselves with the prayer. No
one gave them imaginary glasses of water to drink. God does not need this sort
of help! God does not respond to attempts to force His hand in this way. In fact,
those who practise these mind-bending techniques are dangerously close to the
forbidden occult arts which God calls abomination. Those of you who
remember what Paul said about this, will have noted that third prayer, in tongues,
which the young brother did not understand. This use of tongues
ignores Paul's instructions that in situations like this, tongues must be interpreted,
so that others can say "amen" to the prayer. (1 Corinthians 14:13-17). My young friend
was being asked to give himself to someone else's "prayer" without knowing
what it said! That is extremely foolish. Not only does this
ignore Paul, but it is also disobedience to what Jesus calls the FIRST AND GREATEST
COMMANDMENT OF ALL. "You shall worship the Lord with all your Heart, soul, strength
and MIND". (Luke
10:27) WE MUST NOT ABANDON
OUR MINDS! This experience
is not unique. Anyone who spends much time at all around Pentecostals, with their
eyes and ears open to receive only the truth which comes from the Spirit of Truth,
will soon discover other similar things, by which the unwary who do not love truth
enough are so easily deceived. Many other equally
suspect techniques are used amongst Pentecostals to induce speaking in tongues.
These include: - *
Repeating the tongues, you hear spoken
by someone else, until you can do it easily for yourself. *
Repeating "spiritual tongue twisters"
faster and faster, until the tongue stumbles and the Holy Spirit "takes over". *
Making up some words and speaking them in "faith" that it is not just imagination,
but that it really is the Holy Spirit giving the words. When there are doubts
about the logic or sanity of doing these things (as there surely ought to be for
any sane person), you are likely to be told to ignore those feelings as they are
merely Satan trying to rob you of the blessings! My brothers and
sisters, none of these techniques are found in the Bible! That in itself ought
to sound loud alarm bells for those who love truth! It is not at all
reasonable to base "faith" in any experience so important as they claim
speaking in tongues to be, on things which are not plainly written, or else, not
found in the Bible at all. If there are any
of our readers, who have been in touch with one of these ministers of a false
gospel, perhaps even receiving an "experience" at their hands, we do
ask you not to take offence with our suggestion that you need to pray again about
what has happened to you. Through much personal
and sometimes painful experience, I have learned to value Paul's admonition to
the Corinthians to "grow up" about speaking in tongues! "Brethren do
not be children in your thinking!" (1 Corinthians 14:20) When Paul encouraged
the Corinthians to pray with both the mind and the spirit, I am certain that he
meant the fruitful exercise of BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. It is possible,
and normal, and expected, for Christians to speak with both the mind AND THE SPIRIT,
in their own mother tongue! For some, but certainly
not all, it is also possible by the Holy Spirit gift of tongues, to speak fruitfully
with both mind and spirit, in another language which can be interpreted for the
edification and common good of all. THIS is Paul's clear
message to the Corinthian Church! I do not believe
at all, that Paul was encouraging any unfruitful, mindless exercise of a "spiritual
gift", which requires the surrender of our minds to an experience where we
are unable to say "amen", either to another's prayer, or for that matter,
to our own prayers! Without interpretation,
"Tongues" does not edify the hearer. Neither, if he does
not understand what he is saying, does it edify the speaker. For my part I will
continue to obey the First Commandment of ALL. Especially, in the context of this
present discussion, I will try to obey with my mind. |