By studying closely the large chart (PNC-1) the differences between original Pentecost and the modern Charismatic movement can easily be seen as two very different churches with vastly different teachings. The Charismatic teaching and lifestyle is so departed from the apostle's teaching that Christians today must choose between them. Charismatics do not even enjoy attending a Pentecostal church and visa versa. They are two different gospels. The fact that they are so diverse means that they cannot both be right. By studying the large chart it can be seen that what we have in the Charismatic movement is the affluent apostate church that has come in its time as prophesied in the Word of God as the materialistic and apostate church of the end time that would emerge just prior to Jesus' cataclysmic return. (Matthew 24:4-5; Ephesians 5:6-8; 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 7-12; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-13; 4:3-4; 1 John 2:18-19; Revelation 3:17.) Charismatics and Pentecostal liberals have so complicated the truth with their substitute doctrines that often the perversion of truth is not easily discerned by new Christians who are often deceived because they have never heard an exposure of the error they are hearing. But after Charismatic teaching is compared with Scripture it becomes very clear how they wrest the Word of God. We will make these differences clear with Scripture. Satan's method of diversion is to create a doctrine that is similar in sound and meaning to Biblical truth and even with a Bible verse to (supposedly) support what they assert to be revelation knowledge. But once applied to real life it does not produce what was promised. Pseudo Pentecostals are connoisseurs of novel doctrines that upon examination are complete departures from the truth of Scripture. We advise Christians who have known nothing but the Charismatic environment to get out and listen to those who for some good reasons do not accept the Charismatic teaching. You must stand before God and give an account of your access to truth and how you sought it out.
Take a good look at the list of qualities on the
right side of the chart and you see the Charismatic movement and its characteristics.
Then look carefully at the list of virtues on the left and you see the
true church, true Pentecost and what the apostles taught as being the true
characteristics of Pentecost. Then study the opposites across from each
other and you see what the Charismatics have substituted for the original
qualities taught by the apostles, e.g., The apostle's in their inspired
writings teach character, the emphasis of the Charismatic teachers is personality.
Charismatic churches exploit the the human body (personality) in both the way their people dress and the shows they schedule on their church platforms. Body builders, karate experts (rooted in oriental religions), "Christian" TV sex symbols and sport stars appear on their programs (and often with a fee required by their agents). People actually applaud these performances and "testimonies." To believe that displaying the prowess of the physical body is even the least bit relative to a gospel ministry or Biblical Pentecost is an effront to God. Jude is right again - unbridled lust! Many Charismatic pastors would rather have a TV actress in their pulpit who plays the part of a promiscuous slut in the soapies than to have a man of God or a prophet preach truth to his people. This contrast between Charismatic church programs and Pentecostal meetings makes clear the big difference between Pentecostals and Charismatics.
Some Pentecostal pastors will say, I would never allow those excesses in my church . . . but there are some Charismatic ways that I think are good which we can learn from. How many pastors have said this in the beginning of their compromise and ended up being carried away in the currents of extreme Charismaticism? Many! Once you start wading in the waters of the Charismatic philosophies, you get deeper and deeper until you are helplessly being carried away in the rip tides of the Ladicean "revival." You ultimately end up in extremes that will bring you into judgment before God. The best advice to Pentecostal pastors is to remain loyal to the orthodox Biblical precedents set forth in Scripture by the apostle's and not depart from them. Those men used of God in compiling the Scriptures through the ages were God's spokesmen. We must not trifle with that revelation.
Hebrew dancing got its start in the churches because the Charismatics said, "its in the Bible." There are many things "in the Bible" that do not belong in the church! Study dancing carefully in the Bible and you will note it was never done in the temple, inside the church, as a part of church worship. The people rejoiced in the victories gained in the field of battle, and the triumphs of God over their enemies in a spontaneous and public display of jubilee - but never was there dancing carried on as a form of worship in the house of God. David danced before the ark as it returned to Jersulaem, in the streets, but this urge to dance before the Lord was not an orchestrated musical production. The Hebrew dancing going on in Charismatic churches today is not even similar to the dancing recorded in the Old Testament. If Hebrew dancing was to be in the church you would read all about it in the book of Acts and, or, it would be mentioned in the New Testament by the apostle's in their writings. Hebrew dancing is just another idea that was picked up on because it resembled something mentioned in the Bible but certainly not taught as it is being practiced by Charismatic churches.
To know we are pleasing God we simply stay within the Biblical boundaries of revelation. We must keep things in the Biblical setting and study them carefully. That's why God gave us His Word! Keep the practices of worship you allow in the setting of Biblical precedent and you will never start something that will ultimately get out of control and become a dangerous slide into excesses that violate the real work of the Holy Spirit. We, as minister's of the gospel must not allow the taste of carnal people in the church to dictate to us the program of the church. Ministers often tolerate compromise thinking they will gain people, and you will while at the same time experience a moral and spiritual decline. You may begin by thinking you can save them and end up with a lot of people but with a spiritual decline. Go by the Word! Live by it! Die by it! The raptures of heavenly visions and the manifestations of God were with our Pentecostal Daddies who taught that holy life. Scripture is the final authority and the only authority to govern the church by.
The beginning not as the ending.
In the months following the crucifixion there was a transition
from Judaism to Christianity. It was a time of much uncertainty, new direction,
and dramatic reforms for God's people. God sent a strong Spirit of revelation
to the church to carry it through this foundational period. It was a critical
time in the church's history. The beginning had to be right! The kingdom
of God on earth was passing from one system to another, from the old covenant
to the new. But the church today as it nears the end of its history is
not in a time of transition between two systems. The crisis of the end
time church, according to the prophetic Word is moral decline. The little
cliche' that God wants to do a new thing is deceptive and misleading. To
the contrary, when we have lost original Pentecost we don't charge forward
with emotional methods and programs forcing excitement on the people and
then shout "revival!" So long as there is prayerlessness, pride and sin
in the camp there will be no revival that comes from above.
Thinking that revival will come through our creativity and cleverness, through charisma, and business psychology, having a winning and winsome way with people, special movements such as the Promise Keepers, are all indications that in liberalism the Holy Spirit and all divine provisions are insufficient in themselves, that we need special new revelations and programs. Pentecostals don't believe that professionalism, full color graphics and masses of people who sacrifice the truth of pure doctrine under a banner of "unity" is even relevant to moving God. God's provisions of secret prayer, humility, confession of sin are the things that move God and rend the heavens. Why do we need these others "things?" If a Christian is praying and in communion with God and living the holy life, he has the all-sufficiency of Christ. These add-ons indicate only one thing about the modern Christian, that he or she is not in an intimate and personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and that we are suffering from deficiencies which these teachers and doctrines (we think) supplement our spiritual needs because of the world we are living in. The all sufficiency of Jesus certainly does not mean that Christians today need something more than the Christians of the first century who were being fed to lions!
If Christians today lack something, it is certainly not programs by professionals trained in secular colleges and universities. The answer to better homes and mates, to rebellion in our kids and the corruption reigning in high places is in the closet of groaning prayer, waiting there in brokenness and praise, waiting on the Lord in supplication and intercession; until the heart is pure and surrendered, until the renewed man of the Spirit renounces his bond with all the things of this depraved world and comes forth morally transformed and sensitive to what is sacred. What Charismatics are devising are substitutes for the power of pure Pentecost, they are broken cisterns that will not hold water with God. Show me a prophet or an apostle with a program. Jesus came with power to purify man, not 3 point or a seven point program. He came teaching against adultery and fornication never speaking of worshiping God with the phallus. The use of this word in speaking to men provokes wrong imagery and leaves a wrong impression about sexual behavior in the marriage. Jesus taught that adultery and fornication were sins unto death to be abstained from. But Scripture teaches no such thing as sexuality being related in any way to the worship of God!
It is not by our human resources, our intellect, our skills, our gifts in life that will bring God from the heavens with a new Pentecostal visitation, but going back to where we started losing the real Pentecost and at that point begin again and walk once again in the apostles footsteps. Then there will be no more need for special programs to restore us. Programs are like comets, they come and go with ooohs and aaaahs. But authentic Pentecost is really all we need and it is perpetual. The answer is found in the Word of God: For the church to go forward in God we must go back to the old paths and go back far enough that we have returned to where we lost our senses, our sense of divine direction, and get on that old path again. That is the path clearly laid out in the writings of the apostle's. Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein. Jeremiah 6:16; 2 Thessalonians 3:6.
Biblical Pentecost is not (supposed to be) "relative." But Charismatics say the church must be relative to win the world to Christ. It has been this obsession with relativism that makes Charismatics to resent the Scripture's literal ultimatum to the church to separate from the world (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1). This has led to a new morality among Charismatics that tolerates divorce and remarriage, wealth and materialism, entertainment, television, externalism, professional sports and public beaches. Charismatic morality ignores Biblical instruction against these things and accuses anyone who does regard this Biblical moral as spiritual Scrooges bound in legalism and tradition.
Original Pentecost teaches non-conformity and a non-affinity with the world. Biblical Pentecost follows Biblical standards in all matters of behavior and conduct They like to sing about Old Time Religion but then sarcastically villainize the very people who wrote the song by doing so. They sing their songs and venerate the old timers but reject the message these godly men and women taught and lived. The Word of God has never been relative to the preferences of depraved flesh! New birth is to makes the Word of God relative to me but there is no way to make the Word of relative to degenerate man until he is regenerate. To even think of making Christianity relative to pagans is irresponsible theology.
Pentecostals know that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who perish but to us who are saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18) It is not pleasing people that saves them but disturbing them that saves them. Pentecostals are not concerned about being relative to sinners, we are just being sure that we relate properly to God and His revealed Word. Relativism is the philosophy of Kierkegaard and relates very little to our common objective with Christ to destroy the works of the devil!
It is not appealing to the preferences of the sinner that wins him, but making him know the love of God and the pronounced consequences of sin. This is what peter did on the day of Pentecost in the first sermon preached in the New Covenant dispensation. That is not exactly being relative, and certainly not what they wanted to hear, but what they must hear to escape the wrath of God.
When Peter finished his Pentecost message the people didn't say, Oh my, wasn't that a wonderful message, it was so relevant." No! They said, "What shall we do?" and Peter answered, "repent!" This is still the Pentecostal message! The Charismatic philosophy of looking and acting and talking like the world to be relative is contrary to all that is taught in the New Testament. There is no message of relativity in Scripture unless you twist it and mutate it, and ignore the apparent message of repentance and transformation that runs through the Scriptures, through the lips of every prophet, the apostles in their writings, and the Savior Himself.
The Charismatics say, Pentecostal orthodoxy is antiquated
and not relative to the twenty first century Christian, And, It just doesn't
work any more. The Charismatic visionaries are like politicians; before
they can put over their own doctrine they first attempt to make the opponent
look bad. Once they make the righteous look bad they can better persuade
the same people that they are right. These are the devices of those who
deceive men with flattery. Being relative is vital to success in business
but not to being Pentecostal. It is the wisdom of this world which God
condemns in 1 Corinthians 1:19.
| Antithetic Parallel Chart Revealing Contrast Between Apostolic Pentecost and Apostate Charismatic Doctrines |
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