Lenny Smith shares the story of how he wrote the song, “Our God Reigns.”

Sometimes you have to reach bottom, in order to bounce off the floor and fly up into the air. Back in 1973, I was out of work, again, and pretty depressed. I should say I was “very depressed.” My wife and I had a son, an apartment, a car, and lots of bills to pay. I had also rendered myself unemployable as a high school teacher, just too much Jesus talk in class! I was naive to think that talking about Jesus was more important than teaching Latin or English literature. What a fool!

One morning when I was reading the Bible and I came to Is. 52:7: “How lovely on the mountains are the feet of Him Who brings good news, announcing peace, proclaiming news of happiness: your God reigns.” Well, my heart began pounding in my chest, because what I read said: “You are going to get through this and you will be fine. In fact you will do very well.” Words fail me now. I just felt this dark cloud lift off me. I picked-up my Gibson J45 guitar and in a few minutes “Our God Reigns” was born. I had one verse and the chorus. It wasn’t so much that I wrote it as it was that I received it!

Every one of us has had disappointment, failure, and had our hearts broken. But we need not get bitter about it. If we look closely, we can see how God has worked it out for our good. We have become more understanding, more patient, and more kind to others who have been overlooked and forgotten. Before the resurrection was the crucifixion. I never would have taken up learning how to play the guitar in seminary in the 60s, if I had not been so desperately lonely for so long. I never would have started writing Scripture songs if I had not needed so deeply the comfort of the psalms of David, who also knew something of loss and pain and heartbreak.

Now, looking back, I am grateful I was fired from that last teaching job. It proved to be the door God closed before, before, He opened a new door for me. That open door has allowed me to enter into a wonderful world of miracles and revelation.

Thank you, Lord, for being such a good, loving, kind, determined, faithful shepherd. I know I am in Your good hands and that will never change.

Image: Samuel-Elias Nadler

PR

Lenny Smith, “Welcome to the End of Entertainment Worship” (October 1, 2018).

In case you missed it: The author of the worship song, “Our God Reigns,” reminds followers of Jesus what worship is all about.

John Lathrop, “Rejection” PentecostalPastor.com (January 15, 2020).

“If you are going to be involved in Christian ministry you are going to experience rejection.”

LaTonya Taylor, “Remembering Dr. Edith Blumhofer (1950-2020)” Wheaton.edu (March 6, 2020).

Roscoe Barnes III, “Remembering Dr. Vinson Synan, Historian Extraordinaire of Pentecostal Church History” Roscoe Reporting (April 3, 2020).

Harold D. Hunter, “Pentecostal Response to 1918-1919 Influenza Pandemic” iPHC.org (April 4, 2020).

Craig S. Keener, “Crooked Spirits and Spiritual Identity Theft: A Keener Response to Crooks?” The Journal of Mind and Behavior 39: 4 (Autumn 2018).

On April 5, 2020, Craig Keener wrote: “Today’s post will be of interest mainly to academics who allow for the possibility of spirits. I try to address it from a somewhat neutral academic standpoint, though neither those who know my biblical convictions nor my African experience will be surprised at my conclusions.”

Roscoe Barnes III, “F.F. Bosworth’s Connection to the Spanish Flu: His first wife, Estelle, was possibly a victim of the deadly virus” Roscoe Reporting (April 5, 2020).

Daniel D. Isgrigg, “Aimee Semple McPherson and the Spanish Influenza In Tulsa” DanielDIsgrigg.com (April 5, 2020).

Image: Wolfgang Hasselmann

Michael Brown, “Some Practical Thoughts on Contemporary Prophetic Ministry” In the Line of Fire (April 16, 2020).

John Lathrop said, “Michael Brown touches on the Coronavirus prophecies in this article.”

Spencer MacCuish, “3 Lessons From a Decade of Teaching Online” TheGospelCoalition.org (April 19, 2020).

Every preacher a televangelist: What lessons can church leaders learn about teaching online from those that have been doing this longer?

John Lathrop, “I Am Pentecostal” PentecostalPastor.com (April 21, 2020).

Chris Green, “Coronavirus Calls for Revival of Real Pentecostalism” Christianity Today (April 30, 2020).

The subtitle of this article reads, “Despite failures, Spirit-filled theology can show us how to respond to the pandemic.”

John Lathrop, “Jesus in the House” Berita Mujizat (April 29, 2020).

Eddie L. Hyatt, “Why Revival Doesn’t Always Require Great Preaching, Big Crowds” Charisma (May 12, 2020).

“Dr. Eddie Hyatt says great revival sometimes does not require eloquent preaching or great crowds. Rather, there are battles to be won in the spiritual realm that mainly require one-on-one intercession, where one person prays fervently to God in private.” Dr. Susan Hyatt, Eddie’s wife, introduced this link: “This is an 11-minute excerpt from last Tuesday night’s session [May 5, 2020] on Yahweh-Nissi, picked up by Charisma Magazine online. The Power of Holy Spirit-Inspired Prayer.”

John Fea, “Remembering Donald Dayton” TheWayOfImprovement.com (May 13, 2020).

Christian historian John Fea says that “Dayton tried to imagine what the story [of American Evangelicalism] might look like if told through a Pietist/Wesleyan/Holiness lens.”

Michael Ireland, “Healing Evangelist Franklin Hall Honoured” AssistNews.net (October 19, 2018).

In case you missed this earlier news, PneumaReview.com would like to extend thanks to Hall’s nephew, Chaplain (MAJ) James F, Linzey, USA (Ret.), a PneumaReview,.com author, who donated an extensive collection of Pentecostal history at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center in Springfield, Missouri.

Image: Alex Motoc

Andrew K. Gabriel, “Psalms for Divine Protection from COVID-19” Horizon.edu (May 28, 2020).

A timely message from PneumaReview.com author Andrew Gabriel.

Eddie Hyatt, “America’s Abolitionist Founding Father” Biblical Awakening (May 29, 2020).

From Eddie Hyatt’s new book, 1726: The Year that Defined America.

Daniel Silliman, “Have Pentecostals Outgrown Their Name?” Christianity Today (May 29, 2020).

The subtitle of this article reads, “More than a quarter of the global church falls under new and debated label: “‘Spirit-empowered Christianity.’”

Esau McCaulley, “A Nation on Fire Needs the Flames of the Spirit: As racism tears the country apart, the message of Pentecost can help the church find its voice” ChristianityToday.com (June 1, 2020).

Frank Viola, “A Jesus Response to the Race Problem” FrankViola.net

Originally published in 2014, this article by Derwin Gray and Frank Viola, with a later introduction from Frank Viola, is as relevant today as when it was written.

PR

John Lathrop wrote to many Pentecostal/charismatic Bible teachers to ask them if they have found that God is speaking to people more frequently or vividly through dreams during this time of isolation. Here are some of the responses that he received, may they become prompts to you for prayer.

Carolyn Tennant

A former student (graduate) of IBRP (Instituto Biblico Rio de la Plata) in Buenos Aires, Argentina recently woke up with a vivid dream of the holy city drawing near to the earth.  Some people were already in it, but it would soon be populated with more.

Interestingly enough, that night I was reading (as I was progressing through Revelation) from the church at Pergamum in Rev. 3 and found this very thing referenced there.  It was very impacting to me.

Addendum: Many IBRP students and faculty are reporting having dreams and visions during the pandemic.

J.D. King

Yes, John, I’ve been hearing a number of interesting reports. There are some individuals in my church that are seeing different things. Many of them are discussing notions of intense spiritual warfare. Even some kids seem to be having profound encounters. These sensations are extremely vast on one hand, but also understated.

Let me clarify that these are not weird or irrational people. So, I am listening attentively to their thoughts.

Most specifically, I’ve been hearing things from my daughter. She is nineteen-years-old and currently suffering from auto-immune disease. She has had several visions/dreams. The reoccurring vision is something along lines of a dark and sinister aura trying to advance toward the earth to crush and counteract that which is virtuous and good. She suggested that this evil force is desperate—reaching, grasping—but much of what it’s struggling to clutch, it cannot actually reach. She’s seeing something of the Spirit of God pushing back against this treachery and stopping it. Her takeaway is that Satan wants to obstruct and destroy—and is making an extraordinary effort. But God is on the threshold of bringing life and glory. She feels that God is about to release a remarkable move of the Spirit in the United States. From the darkness comes the glorious dawn.

It seems that one’s theology colors their prophetic experiences. Those with a more pessimistic outlook, see darker pictures and themes, but the more hopeful see ultimate victory. Obviously, the prophetic, and all non-scriptural impressions, must be diligently scrutinized and interpreted (1 Thes. 5:19-21). Christians are inadvertently filtering events through pre-existing worldviews and theological constructs. There should be humility in all of this.

I will conclude by saying this, perhaps both warnings and hope are messages from God. Both give relevant guidance to believers who are in a place of deep intercession and need.

Carolyn Tennant

Craig Keener

A dream that has become a prayer point:

Early in the process of COVID spreading I dreamed that it was caused by the devil tweaking an existing virus to weaponize it against humanity, and that some scientists were on the forefront of finding a solution against it, God being with them.

But I think you had asked if there were more prophetic dreams after COVID than before, so I didn’t mention that. I’ve been having prophetic dreams for a few years now.

Loren Sandford shared his April 15, 2020 newsletter, that has much to say about dreams.

“What has Happened… and What is Coming?”

More from Loren Sandford at PneumaReview.com: http://pneumareview.com/author/rlorensandford/

Craig Keener

Craig Keener shared an email newsletter from Will and Dehavilland Ford titled, “Update On Our 7 year Old’s Covid 19 Dreams For 7 Nights In A Row! Here’s What God Revealed To Us.”

Here is one place that article was reprinted: https://soundofheavenblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/30/update-on-our-7-year-olds-covid-19-dreams-for-7-nights-in-a-row-heres-what-god-revealed-to-us-will-ford-dallas-tx/

Spiritual explosion in the Middle East

Included here is the April 21, 2020 Press Release from Christian broadcaster SAT-7, “COVID-19 Lockdown Ignites ‘Spiritual Explosion’ as Middle East Clamors for ‘Real Hope’: Christian broadcaster SAT-7 reports surge in viewer numbers, social media interest, as coronavirus shutdown ‘opens hearts’ of millions ‘stuck at home.’” Although this report does not mention dreams, there are many sources that describe how God is using dreams to awaken hearts to the reality of the love, power, and forgiveness found only in Jesus.

Amid strict coronavirus lockdowns, millions of people across the Middle East and North Africa—“clamoring” for a spiritual and practical lifeline—are finding help right in their own homes through “living television.”

CORONAVIRUS IGNITES ‘SPIRITUAL EXPLOSION’ IN MIDDLE EAST: Christian satellite television broadcaster SAT-7 (www.sat7usa.org) reports a dramatic surge in viewer numbers and social media interest, as the coronavirus lockdown ‘opens the hearts’ of millions of people stuck at home in the Middle East and North Africa. The ministry continues to broadcast across the region 24/7 in local languages.

In the region where Christianity began but is now a minority faith, Christian satellite television broadcaster SAT-7 (www.sat7usa.org) has seen viewer numbers surge and social media interest skyrocket since the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.

“There’s an explosion of spiritual hunger across the Middle East and North Africa right now as people stuck at home seek real hope and real answers,” said Dr. Rex Rogers, president of SAT-7 USA. SAT-7 continues to broadcast shows 24/7 that present Christians as ‘living epistles’ who speak to people where they are in life.

“Millions of people in countries like Iran, Iraq and Turkey are clamoring to see and hear in their own language what it’s like to be a follower of Jesus in a time of crisis,” Rogers said.

In coronavirus hotspot Turkey, where 99 percent of the population is non-Christian, more viewers have contacted the SAT-7 TÜRK channel daily in the past few weeks than any day in the previous five years since broadcasts began.

In Iran, another virus hotspot, viewers’ calls and messages to the live, Farsi-language Signal show—beamed into millions of homes across the nation—jumped to seven times the usual number last month, as Iranians rattled by the pandemic turned to the show’s hosts for reassurance and practical advice.

One viewer shared how God was looking after her family, even though “we don’t even have any loose change.” She told other Signal viewers: “We’re living in faith, and we’re praying for everyone else.”

Across the Middle East and North Africa, SAT-7 KIDS Facebook audience has soared more than 500 percent as children stream videos offering encouragement and hope based on Bible passages.

Total Lockdown, Open Hearts

“Coronavirus has locked people inside their homes, but it’s opening hearts to God,” said Rogers. “Lockdown and social isolation do not stop our unique satellite and online Christian programs from reaching millions of adults and children where they live.”

A total of 30 million viewers are tuning into SAT-7’s uplifting Christian live shows and recorded broadcasts that take a holistic view of life, addressing spiritual, emotional, physical, and social concerns. Hosted by Christian presenters, shows tackle the topics that most deeply affect everyday life in the volatile region, and invite viewers to join in the discussion.

“When people have hope, they find the strength to carry on,” said Lebanon-born SAT-7 CEO Rita El-Mounayer, based at the ministry headquarters in Cyprus. “Our broadcasts and social media channels are needed more now than ever.”

The ministry reports 160,000 people watched “God, Fear, and the Coronavirus,” one of SAT-7’s mental health programs, featuring church leader and psychiatrist Dr. Maher Samuel.

An online video—featuring the popular presenter of the ministry’s Family of Jesus children’s show—reached more than 425,000 people and was shared 2,700 times. Meanwhile, the ministry’s SAT-7 Academy—a social development and education channel—doubled its audience on social media.

Image: Joshua Newton

Paul King

Another of our prayer intercessors shared with me another dream she received. It does not appear to apply to our own church fellowship, but it appears to me to apply to the Church, the Body of Christ as a whole. Even with the Coronavirus, although we have seen some great inter-cooperation between churches and pastors, the Church as a whole is still not united. The moved table is significant. It reminds me of the saying and book, Who Moved My Cheese? Everyone has their set way of doing things, and when things get moved or changed, people in the church can’t handle it. I am no Joseph, so I don’t have the whole picture, but this little bit may shed some light. Here is her dream:

Last night, I had a dream that seemed significant enough to share, based on your request:

There was a large gathering at a house, or maybe an apartment. There were a lot of little details, such as the wooden floor, tall windows, upper level, etc. that I’m not sure mean anything, but the actions did.

The people there were gathering together for a meal. All of them seemed to be extended family, though I recognized no one. There was a definite sense of it being a religious celebration, but no one was celebrating; they were too busy bickering with one another. There was obvious jealousy, apathy, and drudgery among the people regarding the event.

One man tried to lead the group, and I sensed his faith was genuine. However, he also showed little humility or compassion. He was more concerned with how he was being unnecessarily persecuted by another man (a brother?) mocking him.

Another seemingly important detail (though I don’t know why) is the table was moved from the room where it usually sat, into an adjacent room very similar in size and structure.

My one memorable role was when a “cousin?” asked where she was supposed to sit, because there was no table. I joked about sitting on cushions like Jesus’ disciples. She was not amused. I then pointed her to the other room where everyone was sitting down and the one faithful man had begun to pray. Although he was sincere, his prayer was weak and he was clearly distracted by the others’ indignation.

The room was crowded with people, but no one was there with the right heart, including me. I was a confused outsider who was somehow supposed to be a part of all this.

My sense upon waking was this was a picture of church disunity, apathy, and disregard for the LORD’s worthiness of celebration. It was disheartening, but also confusing, as those I’m surrounded by don’t seem to fit this model at all.

What about you? What have you experienced in this season? What is the Holy Spirit saying to those that have ears to hear?

Growing authoritarianism and surveillance

The pandemic has seen a dangerous expansion of power by autocratic governments and excessive use of force by law enforcement authorities to administer preventive measures. As stated by Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, countries disregarding the rule of law to combat the crisis in the guise of exceptional or emergency measures could spark a human rights disaster. Governments are also increasingly using surveillance technology to gather information, trace movement and track individuals. This is a cause for concern as there are serious questions whether such measures could meet international human rights standards of necessity and proportionality. In some countries such as Sri Lanka and Israel, military intelligence is used for contact tracing. In the hands of restrictive governments, intrusive surveillance could lead to increased restrictions on minorities and pose serious challenges to human rights.

Rising Islamophobia and hate speech

In Sri Lanka, compulsory cremations in violation of WHO guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic have hurt the religious feelings of Muslims, who are a minority in the country.  In one example, the death of a Muslim woman was wrongfully identified as caused by COVID-19 by the authorities. The family was then compelled to cremate the body against their religious sentiments. Moreover, hate speech against Muslims in the country has also been on the rise, after there was severe religious profiling of victims in mainstream media. Similarly, in the UK, far-right groups have used the Coronavirus crisis to fuel anti-Muslim sentiment. According to monitoring groups, fake news has circulated on social media that Muslims were breaching the lockdown by continuing to attend mosques.

Discrimination of religious minorities in the provision of relief

In Myanmar, the Burmese military has been accused of denying Rohingya Muslims access to medical care during the COVID-19 crisis. In Pakistan, a Muslim cleric faced criticism from Christian leaders and human rights activists after he claimed that his organization, Dawat-e-Islami was converting non-Muslims to Islam using COVID-19 aid. According to reports, Christian minorities in the country have also been discriminated in the provision of emergency relief. In Bangladesh, too, there have been reports that the government has provided relief to only Muslims from the Prime Minister’s relief fund. In the Philippines, since pastors are not categorised as self-employed, they have been left out of government welfare schemes.

Inconsistent measures concerning the reopening of religious places of worship

In New Zealand, the government has faced criticism that it had failed to consider the rights to freedom of religion when it drafted the COVID-19 Public Health Response Bill, after concerns were raised that places of religious worship were ordered to remain closed while malls, bars, and other public places were deemed safe to reopen.

A cover for Islamist extremism

Arrests of leaders of minority faiths

In India, a pastor and 7 others including 3 Christians were arrested while they were preparing relief packs. The authorities accused them of illegally gathering to worship during the COVID-19 lockdown. While in detention they were questioned on whether they were receiving money to convert people. Also, in Nepal, a pastor was arrested on charges of misinformation for stating that prayer could heal COVID-19. He was released and then rearrested on trumped-up charges of outraging religious feelings and proselytism.

A positive development

Conclusion

Religious minorities are facing new challenges and increased vulnerability owing to COVID-19. This requires urgent attention and action on the part of governments and the health authorities battling this crisis. Preventive measures followed by governments must be adequate, proportionate, and guarantee equal treatment. While exercising patience and goodwill during this global pandemic and continuing to follow health regulations as deemed necessary by the authorities, it is also important that human rights agencies, civil society actors and faith groups, where necessary, proactively question the legality of preventive measures and advocate for the rights of religious minorities to ensure their protection and halt governmental overreach. The rights and well-being of religious minorities should not be neglected or undermined in the pursuit of a safer world.

WEA-RLC Research and Analysis Report
June 18, 2020

World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) Religious Liberty Commission (RLC) sponsors the WEA-RLC Research & Analysis Report to help individuals and groups pray for and act on religious liberty issues around the world. WEA has a consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council. This report was researched and written by Jose Henriques, and moderated by the WEA-RLC Executive Director, Godfrey Yogarajah.

First Virtual Global Pentecostal Studies Conference: “Mapping Global Pentecostal Issues”

When: Saturday, 31st October 2020, from 12:00-20:00.

What: The European Research Network on Global Pentecostalism (GloPent) will be having its first Virtual Conference, hosted by The Centre for Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies at the University of Birmingham. The theme is “Mapping Global Pentecostal Issues.”  

Keynote Speakers

J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu (Trinity Theological Seminary Ghana). “The Lord is the Spirit (II Corinthians 3:17): An African Critique of Global Pentecostal Theologies.”

Corneliu Constantineanu (Aurel Vlaicu University of Arad). “The Spirit Engaging and Transforming Life: Tenets of Romanian Pentecostalism.”

Daniel Chiquete (Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey). “¿Lugares del espíritu? El pentecostalismo y sus representaciones espaciales en América Latina” (in Spanish).

Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen (Fuller Theological Seminary). “Identities of Global Pentecostalism(s) in the Pluralistic and Secular World: Theological Tasks and Challenges.”

More Information: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/ptr/departments/theologyandreligion/events/2020/glopent-world.aspx

Antipas Harris introduces his new book, the serious challenge behind it, and his invitation to join him in proclaiming anew that Jesus is Good News for everyone.

Without doubt, we are living through troubled times. The world is engulfed in noxious uncertainties: contentious politics, racial unrest, hate groups and global warming, to name a few. Now, amidst the devastation of coronavirus, or COVID-19, many people are turning to – or back to – faith. Amid the constant resurgence of blatant racism, as exemplified in the recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, reminds us that we are really battling two pandemics, simultaneously. People are looking for answers, seeking the “peace that passes all understanding,” and a new and better normal. As president of a divinity school, my primary aim is ensuring that current and future ministers are prepared to bear witness more effectively for such a time as this. To that end, seminarians and faith leaders alike will discover refreshing new strategies for overcoming obstacles and deepening faith in my forthcoming book, Is Christianity the White Man’s Religion?

Americans searched for God with renewed interest in the last decade, and it seems that COVID-19 has only intensified this quest. Spiritual fulfillment, after all, is an important dimension of the human psyche. While many people will continue to look to the Bible and their Christian faith for guidance, others question the relevance of the Bible for contemporary times. In any case, people in general are scouring America’s spiritual landscape, hoping to find a faith that is real, one that heals and unifies. I explore this faith anew in Is Christianity the White Man’s Religion?

Let me share an experience I had a few years ago while teaching a graduate course on leadership. A 22-year-old student interrupted my lecture with a question: “What do you say to people who are leaving the church and arguing that Christianity is the white man’s religion?” I was taken aback by the question. First, it was unrelated to the topic. Second, I wondered who in the world would argue such a thing. I knew that this had been a common question back during the Jim Crow era, and I almost brushed it off. However, the discussion that ensued opened a world of discovery. Apparently, my ethnically diverse class of millennials was more attuned to the relevance of the question than I.

Unable to shake the discussion from my thoughts, I embarked on a journey of research and found that many Christians are unaware that much pondering about faith exists outside the church. How relevant is the Bible for understanding today’s complex issues? What does the Bible offer to a nation of multi-ethnic, multicultural, multi-generational individuals? The answers to these and similar questions led me to write Is Christianity the White Man’s Religion?

De Arteaga suggests there are several dangers in the present demonstrations to produce some collateral damage, especially damage that would result if extremists got control of the demonstrations. He encourages Christians to pray specifically for good fruit to result from the demonstrations.

Quotations from the article:

Historically, the assertion that frustration leads necessarily to violence is nonsense. Such statements give the TV commentators or politicians who say that a feeling that he or she are making a worthy moral observation. In fact, in regimes where injustice and tyranny are highest but the police apparatus brutal and merciless, the public swallows its anger and suffers its injustices without comment.

It would have been spiritually beneficial for prominent clergy to say the simple, biblical thing, “Sin should not be met with counter-sin. Police brutality is a sin, but looting is evil and a sin also.”

The famous Russian dissident and prophet, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, in his Harvard commencement address of 1978 noted that the abrupt end to the Vietnam War, forced by the anti-war movement, cost millions of lives. I and many of us who were in Vietnam agree. Had we stayed a bit longer, and continued to give the South Vietnamese Army our air support, we would have today in South Vietnam a democratic, economically vibrant and spiritually healthy county similar to South Korea.

Politics normally breeds exaggeration, and protest movements exaggerate the exaggerations. The TV reporters and pundits often use the phrase “endemic racism” about Americans. This is an exaggeration that is convenient to the protest organizers and politically Left groups, but this can be a sin of false or exaggerated judgment. … Also note how many Whites participate in the demonstrations. This alone should be cause to temper the accusations of “endemic racism.” Let us begin using the phrase “vestigial racism” to signify those who have not yet overcome their prejudices.

Protests on May 31, 2020 in Washington, D.C.
Image: Koshu Kunii

“A Charismatic Historian’s Response to the George Floyd Demonstrations”
Link to the blog: http://www.pentecostaltheology.com/a-charismatic-historians-response-to-the-george-floyd-demonstrations/

The Bible has much to say about racial reconciliation. Join New Testament scholar Craig Keener in his basement study for this timely investigation of how the church is called to be ambassadors of ethnic and racial reconciliation.

More from Craig Keener:

Listening for God’s Voice and Heart in Scripture

New Testament scholar Craig S. Keener speaks with PneumaReview.com about his book, Spirit Hermeneutics.
Our God is With Us through It All

Doctors Craig and Médine Keener speak with PneumaReview.com about their book, Impossible Love.
 Rightly Understanding God’s Word

Take a course on biblical interpretation with New Testament scholar, Professor Craig S. Keener.

Christian historian Woodrow Walton investigates the origins of the modern movements that inspired Christians to go and share the mission and message of Jesus throughout the world.

The Making of the Christian Global Mission

Part 1: Jan Hus and the Moravians

It may seem odd to associate the making of the Christian global mission to the trans-oceanic voyages of the maritime ventures of the merchant ships of Spain, Portugal, The Netherlands, England, and the Baltic countries of Europe in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Yet it is not without reason when one considers what was happening in the world at that time. A trans-oceanic trade network was opened between East and West, North and South. The ports of entry receptive to the merchant marine also became the harbors who welcomed the newcomers who were tradesmen, many of whom were Christians.

1587 woodcut of Jan Hus by Christoph Murer.
Image: Wikimedia Commons

It would be easy to think of Western European Christians going overseas to the Americas or to the East Asian landmass without considering what was happening to Christians in central and eastern Europe, places where Christianity was more Orthodox than Catholic or Protestant. We seldom consider the reverberations of the Protestant Reformation upon those areas. We focus primarily upon Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Menno Simons, and William Tyndale who reshaped the Christian landscape of western Europe and the British Isles. We forget that it was a Christian priest in Moravia, now known as the Czech Republic, known as Jan Hus (also spelled John Huss), who lit the fire of the Reformation. Before the Lutherans, there were the makings of the Moravian Christians who in later years had a significant impact upon John Wesley. Another seldom considered contribution to the Christian world mission came out of Russia and the Russian Orthodox Church. Among the Orthodox Churches, the Russian Orthodox were probably the most mission oriented, spreading Christianity across the Asian steppes and beyond the Ural Mountains. This became more so in the late 1600s as a result of Patriarch Nikon’s move to modernize the Liturgy of Worship which caused the first major split.

Those who split referred to themselves as the “Old Believers,” and it was they who spearheaded a mission clear across the top of Asia to Siberia and to the coast of the Bering Sea. That is a story in and of itself, and it becomes part of a larger story played out through the 18^th and 19^th centuries when Slavic Christians started spreading out beyond their initial homelands.

Jan Hus at the Council of Constance, by Karl Friedrich Lessing (1842).
Image: Wikimedia Commons

Reverse image of the German or Austrian 16th century Jan Hus Centenary Medal.
Image: Wikimedia Commons

As a constructive theologian, Kärkkäinen works to create a coherent explanation of religious belief (in this case Christian) by honest engagement with a variety of voices, including Christian (i.e. Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, third-world, feminist and mainline.), non-Christian (Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist), and scientific. In this sense, Kärkkäinen’s work is negatively described as non-foundational and non-dogmatic and positively as inclusive and dialogical flowing from an attitude of hospitality. This text is Kärkkäinen’s fourth of five installments in the development of that coherent theology.

As in the previous volume, Kärkkäinen divides this work into two main but interrelated topics, the Spirit (third person of the trinity) and Salvation. Readers are cautioned that while this project gives the appearance of a systematic theology, it is not a typical one. Kärkkäinen’s approach engages questions that have been neglected by traditional theologies as well as discusses questions typically never asked. In light of this non-traditional approach, readers must read Kärkkäinen’s ideas carefully lest they make premature judgments about what is being proffered.

Chapter 2 is where Kärkkäinen discusses the theology of the Spirit in earnest. He properly reviews some key theological points concerning the Spirit and then delves into the challenge of the filioque. Following a brief historical-theological discussion of the debate surrounding the topic, he ultimately concludes that the clause can be removed or amended in a manner that satisfies the eastern church without undermining the Spirit’s place in the Godhead.

In part 2, Salvation, the author reviews different steps of the Ordo Salutis. He is somewhat critical of the way the topic has been historically discussed, noting that the early church did not investigate the steps of salvation and that the church (Reformational?) had not paid sufficient attention to the role the Spirit played in salvation.

As with other doctrines, Kärkkäinen surveys how other major religions conceive of salvation, noting areas of agreement and divergence. What is useful about these explorations of other faiths is that readers can discover different illustrations and descriptions to articulate Christian doctrine. In this regard, this theological series can jump start a theologian’s entry into understanding non-Christian religions.

As a relatively newcomer to Calvinism, I had difficulty reading Kärkkäinen’s treatment of the doctrines of grace as taught by Reformed theologians. My challenge lay not with the author’s rejection of TULIP, but the nagging suspicion that his characterization of the system was not fully accurate. I will leave the ultimate verdict to those more grounded in Calvinism than myself. But I will say that very little attention was paid to the exegetical foundation of Calvinism’s view of salvation. This was disappointing. For even though Kärkkäinen is correct that Calvinistic understanding of salvation is somewhat absent in the church fathers, that fact does not by itself answer the question of whether Calvinism’s view of salvation is correct.

Chapter 12 covers the often-neglected topic of healing, restoration and empowerment. Kärkkäinen is to be commended for discussing the healing work of God and the thorny question of baptism of the Holy Spirit. While rejecting cessationism, he does not accept the Pentecostal notion that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is always subsequent to conversion. He strangely accepts the sacramentalist notion that Spirit baptism can, but not exclusively, occur at the event of water baptism. Here, as in his treatment of salvation, a greater focus on key scriptures would have been helpful.

At times, however, the theological discussion seemed quite disconnected from a biblical foundation. I often had this nagging suspicion that key theological issues (e.g. justification/sanctification) whose edges are established by scripture were weakened or ignored in order to bridge divides toward an ecumenism. I could be wrong. Perhaps the resources Kärkkäinen appeals to provide the evidence for his positions. But by not providing that evidence in his volume he undermines the impact of his argument. Readers interested in ecumenical and constructive theology will find much in this book and Kärkkäinen’s previous volumes to stimulate and challenge ideas. The breadth of his reading across the major religions and leading lights in mainline Christian theology is truly remarkable. Sadly, the author paid little attention to evangelical theologians and so should be read with that understanding.

Reviewed by Stephen M. Vantassel

Publisher’s page: https://www.eerdmans.com/Products/6856/spirit-and-salvation.aspx

Preview Spirit and Salvation: https://books.google.com/books/about/Spirit_and_Salvation.html?id=EIy9CwAAQBAJ

Read Stephen M. Vantassel’s reviews of all five books in Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen’s series A Constructive Christian Theology for the Pluralistic World:

Volume 1: Christ and Reconciliation

Volume 2: Trinity and Revelation

Volume 3: Creation and Humanity

Volume 4: Spirit and Salvation

Volume 5: Hope and Community