The full issue of The Pneuma Review (14:3) Summer 2011, now in digital format. Find all of the articles and reviews, in easy-to-read format on the Archive page.

This essay will examine some of the more prominent biblical imagery associated with the incorporeal and invisible Holy Spirit. The biblical imagery employed is to be understood from a metaphorical symbolic perspective. These metaphorical symbols are not simple flat literal empirical descriptions of the Spirit but are powerful metaphorical symbols, which open up the mysterious and hidden work of the Spirit to us. From this perspective, these symbols help us apprehend and experience the invisible and ontological otherness of God

The biblical images of the Holy Spirit are tangible means that convey the character and activity of the Holy Spirit to us. These images enable us to experientially know the personal presence and power of the invisible and incorporeal Living God. These scriptural symbols testify to the ways in which the people of God have experienced the Holy Spirit throughout history. The invisible Spirit communicates to us by means of our human senses. We hear and feel the Spirit of God, just as they did! God then condescends to us through human avenues so that we can experience God. The symbols provide us with analogies so that we can understand the working of God. This is a redemptive knowledge of God. It is God who reveals Himself to us.

The biblical symbols enable us to relationally and experientially understand the mysterious work of the Spirit. The metaphorical symbols convey the presence of the Spirit in such a way as those who encounter the symbol experience the reality of the Spirit. The Lord has chosen these particular symbols as a way for us to experientially recognize the presence of God in our lives.

Scripture, then, provides us with an authoritative narrative to validate our experiences. If our experience does not line up with Scripture then we need to prayerfully reconsider the authenticity of our experience. The Spirit who breathed upon the writers of the Bible is still breathing upon the people of God. We should expect God to encounter us and even more so as we the people of God long for God’s Spirit to be poured out afresh upon us!

How Shall We Lead the Church?

In this Pneuma Review conversation, preacher and international instructor Aldwin Ragoonath asks, what is hindering church growth in North America? How can we can lead towards growth in the church in the Twenty-first century?

Where I am Coming From

Aldwin Ragoonath

I was born into a nominal Hindu home that progressed to a nominal Christian in Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies. I became a committed Christian at age 15 and received some of my theological training in Trinidad where I pastored for a few years. Later, I pastored for more than 20 years in Canada. I earned a Doctor of Ministry in homiletics and a Doctor of Theology in Pentecostal preaching. My book, Preach the Word: a Pentecostal Approach (Canada: Agape Teaching Ministry, 2004) has been printed in several languages and is being used around the world.¹ In the last thirteen years I have facilitated Pentecostal preaching seminars and courses in Pentecostal preaching all over the globe to more than 4,000 pastors, mainly in the 10/40 window—among the highest populations of non-Christians in the world.

Problems within the Western Church

David Mains, founder of the national Christian Canadian TV program 100 Huntley Street, did a survey of 100 cities in Canada trying to find out what are some of the problems hindering church growth. He discovered that the major problem in the church is apathy. People don’t care about the church and its ministry.² This can also be said of America.

Selfishness, in all its manifestations, is the second problem. When a proposal is presented to a pastor or lay person, the usual response is, “What’s in it for me?” Historians in the future will refer to this generation as the “I” generation. People are preoccupied with “I.”

People in the church and outside the church are not only concerned about “I” but are very materialistic, overly concerned with money and possessions. Success is measured by how many things i.e. houses, money and cars one possesses. And everything else is sacrificed at this altar of “me, myself and I” including: family, relationships, friends, and commitment to God.

Richard N. Soulen, Sacred Scripture: A Short History of Interpretation (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2009), xv + 216 pages, ISBN 9780664232467.

There are numerous books presenting overviews of the history of biblical interpretation. This book belongs near the top in terms of readability—it can be read at a fast clip with hardly any loss of comprehension.

Soulen takes the reader through more than 2000 years of reading Scripture, beginning with a survey of how the later books of the Old Testament engage the earlier books. (This part of the book is basically an extended report on Michael Fishbane’s treatment of the subject.) Soulen briefly discusses how different Jewish groups and the NT writers interpret Scripture. He then moves on to the patristic writers, introducing the most important figures and describing their contributions to the field of biblical interpretation. Soulen then moves to a trio of representative figures from the twelfth century, and then on to Luther. In a work that seeks to give only occasional and representative samples, there are, at this point, some rather surprising omissions. One certainly would have expected some discussion of the Reformed tradition, especially John Calvin himself. Wesley is likewise completely skipped, as is the entire Great Awakening. There is also no discussion of the turn-of-the-twentieth-century Princetonians (Warfield, etc.), an omission that perhaps accounts for the fact that the index to this work contains no entry for “inspiration”. I will grant that a work of this sort must skip some things, but the choices of what to skip and what to include often seem rather odd.

Another drawback of the book is that it attempts to promote the rather troubling (and poorly argued) views of Hans Frei. It almost seems, in fact, that the reason for the above-mentioned omissions is that the book’s real purpose is not so much to provide an overview as to serve as an apology for Frei. Soulen discusses Frei in two chapters, both times presenting him not so much as a historical subject but rather as a messenger of the truth regarding how Scripture should be read.

Readers who want an overview of the interpretation of Scripture should look elsewhere.

Reviewed by John C. Poirier

Preview: books.google.com/books?id=SXgAjvKQXBIC

Publisher’s page: www.wjkbooks.com/Products/0664232469/sacred-scripture.aspx

Pneuma Review: What was it like growing up in a household where your parents had such a distinctive ministry? Please tell our readers about your own journey and how you came into prophetic ministry.

R. Loren Sandford: There were strong positives and strong negatives. It wasn’t just that the ministry was distinctive, but that it was also pioneering in three areas (the charismatic movement in general, inner healing and the prophetic) not well understood or received in the early days. This drew persecution both from the local congregations my father pastored and from the wider body of Christ. As children (I’m the eldest of their six) we felt it and were deeply wounded by it. It drew a lot of energy from our folks which often left them with a deficient awareness of how it affected us. Those were lonely years for me at a time when I was really too young to understand or process what was coming at us.

The turning point came in 1988 when John Paul Jackson prophesied over me in a pastors’ meeting that my own prophetic calling was not my father’s calling and that the fear of my father’s calling had kept me out of my own prophetic destiny. I began to pay attention to things I simply “knew” in ways I cannot describe. Even so, twenty-five more years would pass in a dark night of the soul designed to crush and break me to conform more to His image before I came into what has now unfolded. I began to realize that I had so often been right when others had been wrong. While much of that error was born in dreams, visions and mystical experiences, I just knew things in my spirit. It wasn’t until about five years ago, however, that the Lord told me clearly to put myself on the line and go public with the things I was hearing from Him in that simple rational knowing.

Pneuma Review: What kind of experiences does the Lord use to train and mature the truly prophetic person?

Sandford: Character formation and wholeness are everything. These can only be accessed through what Paul described as, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Galatians 2:2). In Romans 12:14-15 he called us to, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.” There must be a dying before there can be a resurrection. This is more than positional. It’s a real experience that more often than not involves some pain.

Mark Allan Powell, Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009), 560 pages, ISBN 9780801028687.

In the long line of NT introductions, there are some whose chief merits lie in the depth of their analysis, and there are others that are judged better for their pedagogical merits. Powell’s NT introduction scores well in both departments. Powell has not skimped with respect to either the difficult questions or in presenting the necessary background material to understand a particular NT writing—with one exception (see below). Yet his writing is everywhere clear, and presumes no prior technical knowledge of the field. (Powell even defines words like “passion” and “synoptic” as he goes along.) The book’s layout is strikingly beautiful, with plenty of brightly colored photographs and charts, and lots of sidelights. (This is in keeping, of course, with the changing style of the college textbook. What the devolution of the college textbook to this more high-schoolish mode of presentation says about the modern college student is perhaps a depressing question.)

This book is poised to become one of the leading NT introductions in the coming decades. Its chief competitor will be Bart Ehrman’s The New Testament, now in its fourth edition.

Given the depth of Powell’s discussion, a course designed around this book could easily make due without assigning any supplementary reading. There is, however, one exception: teachers should beware that Powell’s discussion of the synoptic problem fails to mention any of the main arguments lying at the center of the debate, and the student will get a poor grasp of the field from Powell’s superficial (but drawn-out) discussion. (For example, the term [or concept of the] “minor agreement” does not appear anywhere on the eight pages devoted to the synoptic problem, and, indeed, there is no paragraph in which it might naturally fit, and yet the minor agreements are one of the main points of contention in the debate.) In the past 100 years, no expert on the synoptic problem has written a NT introduction (except perhaps Kümmel). Powell’s book is a reminder of that fact.

Reviewed by John C. Poirier

Companion site: www.introducingnt.com

Stephen J. Nichols, The Reformation: How a Monk and a Mallet Changed the World (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2007), 159 pages, ISBN 9781581348293.

Stephen J. Nichols has written a book on church history that is interesting, informative, and entertaining. The book is titled, The Reformation: How a Monk and a Mallet Changed the World. According to Nichols, the book is developed on two ideas: “First, the Reformation matters. Second, history can be fun” (13).

Using Martin Luther as his starting point, Nichols describes how the Protestant Reformation began, and its impact on future generations. He writes that when Luther took a mallet on Oct. 31, 1517, and nailed his Ninety-Five Theses on the church door in Wittenberg, he started a movement that would spread across the world. He writes: “Luther’s act gave birth to the Protestant church, now nearly 600 million members strong. Luther’s act also brought the world out of medieval times and into the modern age” (11). Nichols argues that what Luther and the other Reformers did in terms of ministry and church doctrine provide lessons for the contemporary church.

Nichols holds a Ph.D. from Westminster Theological Seminary. A professor at Lancaster Bible College and Graduate School, he has written a number of books, including Heaven on Earth, and The Pages of Church History. He is also the author of An Absolute Sort of Certainty: The Holy Spirit and the Apologetics of Jonathan Edwards.

Stephen J. Nichols was named the new President of Reformation Bible College and Chief Academic Officer of Ligonier Ministries in March, 2014. ReligionNews.com press release

In The Reformation, Nichols presents his work in eight chapters. In his first chapter, he explains why the Reformation matters today. This chapter is followed by a look at Martin Luther and the German Reformation. The next chapter focuses on Ulrich Zwingli and the Swiss Reformation. The chapters that follow feature the Anabaptists, John Calvin and the Swiss Reformation, the Anglicans and the British Reformation, the Puritans and the British Reformation, and women and the Reformation.

In the Appendix, Nichols includes a collection of original writings under the heading, “In Their Own Words: Selections from Documents of the Reformation.” Here, he includes important texts of the Reformation such as Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses, and the works of John Calvin. This section also contains the confessions of the Reformation, the catechisms of the Reformation, and the prayers of the Reformation.

The final section of the book includes a “Reformation Scorecard.” It is a chart that presents an overview of the entire book. Among other things, the chart features the respective regions of the Reformation, the key players in each area, as well as the significant events and writings that occurred. A mere glance at this chart allows readers to get a quick overview of what happened during the Reformation.

The Reformers were known for their stand on the Word of God as the final authority, and the doctrine of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. In showing why the Reformation matters today, Nichols reminds readers of the Bible five important doctrines that became the foundation of the Reformation. In his first chapter, he discusses:

(1) “Sola Scriptura,” which means, “Scripture alone.” This is the view that Scripture is the final and sole authority for the church.

Thomas E. Reynolds, Vulnerable Communion: A Theology of Disability and Hospitality (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2008), 256 pages, ISBN 9781587431777.

Difference, normalcy, embodiment, community, and redemption are all topics that relate to disability. Disability studies have greatly increased with the onset of late modernity, and this is a blessing to all those who seek to serve those touched by disability. I know this first hand, a traumatic brain injury has caused me to experience mental disabilities.

Thomas E. Reynolds (PhD, Vanderbilt University, professor of theology at Emmanuel College) knows disabilities too, for he has a son with multiple disabilities including Tourette’s syndrome, Asperger’s syndrome, bipolar disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Thus, from both a theological and experiential perspective, Reynolds has the requisite base of knowledge to write about a theology of disability. In fact, in his argumentation, Reynolds brings together sociological, philosophical, and theological resources in order to challenge non-disabled individuals.

Reynolds begins the book with a story about his son and a non-welcoming church. Chris, due to his disabilities, often made impromptu screams laden with profanity while at church, as well exhibiting aggressive behaviors toward other children his age. Apparently, the outbursts were too much for other parents to take, so they chastened the Reynolds, ultimately leading the Reynolds family to leave the church (it is unfortunate how common this experience is). In part due to this experience at his former church, Reynolds seeks to reflect theologically on how Christians may think and act differently toward people with disabilities. After all, the vulnerability that is expressed through disability is the starting point for discovering what humanity shares in their differences. However, this book is not all about Reynolds’ personal narrative, as it mainly analytical and theological in nature. Reynolds does not believe that people with disabilities are merely moral lessons—though they are certainly those—or means of inspiration for ‘normal’ people. Making his point poignantly, Reynolds notes that Jesus’ body remained scarred after the resurrection; the glorified body was still marred. Perhaps, then, disability is not a thing to get rid of, but a thing to cherish.

Thomas E. Reynolds is Associate Professor of Theology at Emmanuel College of Victoria University in the University of Toronto.

Reynolds notes that living with a child with disabilities has opened him to a surplus of grace that can only be called divine. Reynolds argues that the Christian story is one of strength coming from weakness, of wholeness emerging from brokenness, and of power in vulnerability. He argues that disability is the norm, the image of God means not rationality but relationality, redemption is a result of God’s own vulnerability, and the proper Christian response to otherness is hospitality. The key insight (of many) within the title is that the basic question of human existence is whether we can find a home with others who recognize us, value us as we are, and empower us to truly become ourselves. Reynolds understands disability not as a human deficiency or something to be pitied, but is a way to explore vulnerability with others and God instead. As such, then, disability should be privileged—perhaps by even a preferential option. Having a disability is not equivalent to being ill or needing a cure, but is a blessing instead. In the metaphorical reversal of Christianity, to be disabled is to be vulnerable, and to be vulnerable is to be whole. God embraces vulnerability.

Reviewed by Bradford McCall

Preview: books.google.com/books?id=QxoZ6FRIcUgC

Publisher’s page: www.bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/vulnerable-communion/269870

Loren Sandford, senior pastor of New Song Fellowship, is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary and a widely recognized leader within the charismatic renewal. He has authored several books, and written, produced, and recorded several music CDs. This monograph, The Prophetic Church, comes at the heels of a transition in the prophetic streams of the renewal movements. As the prophetic outpouring revivals of the nineties waned, new prophetic ministries have come to the fore. As his title begs the question, Sandford’s thesis argues that intimacy with God is the power and primary mark of the prophetic church to be a light in this generation (18). He argues that “a season of the emergence of lighthouse churches and ministries is now upon us” (16). Sandford’s symbolic writing style, combined with numerous biblical examples provides the reader with vivid images to conceptualize the major thrusts of his proposal. The author’s themes build together to communicate his thesis.

Sandford opens by making bold proclamations regarding an ensuing revival in the church of the Western world. However, he conveys with sadness that the revival will stop short of creating a cultural change or lasting impact on secular society. He supports this premise based upon a hermeneutic in which he utilizes biblical narrative to support end time events and then applies these interpretations to the current state of affairs. He records a few of the historical outpouring events of the nineties by giving account of the Toronto Blessing, Brownsville, Smithton, and Pasadena revivals. Sandford argues that the subsequent rejection of these outpourings by the church, degradation of morality as it relates to God in society and liberal views regarding doctrine and authority of Scripture within the church, have caused an irreversible judgment or course within society that will prevent revival from pervading the current culture (13─16).

Sandford highlights the destiny of the prophetic church in part three. He describes this destiny through a Daniel-Joseph anointing motif and the characteristics of the life of Moses as “force multipliers” (101). He defines this concept of force multipliers as factors which seek to “dramatically increase the effectiveness” of something which already exists (187). The writer’s use of exhortation is befitting to build up the ideas of a bold and faithful community, ready to serve, and shining as the light in the darkness as a result of the their participation with these force multipliers. Part four transitions the reader into a counter-cultural theme of the meanings and biblical importance of honor. He links this culture of honor with the release of God’s power and provides several biblical narratives to demonstrate the correlation. After a short excerpt on the importance of faith, Sandford writes to the issues of prophetic prayer and praise. In this chapter, a prophetic church is described as one who knows its identity, position, and prays and praises with declarative statements which builds an atmosphere of faith. The latter theological concepts are familiar to the various streams within the Word of Faith Movement. However, they may seem somewhat foreign for the evangelical reader.

John Goldingay, Genesis for Everyone Part One: Chapters 1−16 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 197 pages.

John Goldingay, Genesis for Everyone Part Two: Chapters 17−50 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 186 pages.

Genesis for Everyone lives up to its name. This two volume contemporary commentary of the book of Genesis is a refreshing and straightforward read of the creation account and the Genesis stories. John Goldingay is a prominent Old Testament scholar and theologian whose wealth of knowledge and insight contributes greatly to the understanding of these narratives. He writes in such a way as to inspire readers to engage in the spiritual and theological concepts of the book of Genesis in a modern context. Goldingay has written extensively on Genesis and Old Testament theology. However, this two volume commentary is worlds apart from his trilogy, Old Testament Theology that represents his magnum opus. Both works do give readers an appreciation for an Old Testament theologian whose rigorous readings of the final form of the text produce significant insights for both the church and the academy. Goldingay has benefited from the resurgence of Brevard Child’s canonical approach and from the possibilities of contextualized interpretation influenced by postmodern epistemologies. His long and prestigious career is marked by a keen methodological reflection and creative insights of the text with a commitment to the academy, as well as the contemporary church.

This two volume work is specifically targeted for the lay church audience. This commentary is not concerned with textual or critical methodological approaches. The author’s purpose is to highlight the importance of what he prefers to name “The First Testament” and the depth of understanding God’s ways through these Scriptures. Its aim is to provide the historical and theological implications to assist lay readers with the interpretative process for the book of Genesis. Goldingay’s respect for the Jewish sources is apparent within his interpretations of various texts; although, not explicitly cited. However, Goldingay treats the Hebrew canon from a Christian canonical context and incorporates the New Testament into his reading. The volumes are user friendly with key historical and theological terms in bold corresponding to a glossary at the end of each volume. Goldingay divides the volumes by chapters instead of by content for a practical split.