Interview with Rev. Dr. Tania Harris about her new book, God Dreams: How to Hear God’s Voice in Dreams and Vision

PneumaReview.com: You have recently published a new book about dreams and visions. Please name some New Testament believers who experienced dreams and visions.

Tania Harris: All the key characters – Joseph, Stephen, Paul, Peter, Agabus, John. Dreams and visions are the most common mode of divine communication under both the Old and New Covenants.

PneumaReview.com: A modern-day Christian might say “Those were the experiences of the biblical characters. But why should we think that we might have these same types of experiences in our time?” How would you answer that question?

Tania Harris: Because the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost gave every believer full and direct access to the voice of the Holy Spirit through visions and dreams (Acts 2:17, 2:39).

PneumaReview.com: Would you say that some Christians are more prone to experience dreams and visions than others?

PneumaReview.com: Do these experiences seem to come regularly in a person’s life or only at important or critical points in their life?

Tania Harris: It’s not really possible to accurately answer that question since everyone’s walk with the Holy Spirit is unique. It’s similar to the question, how often does the Holy Spirit speak? Perhaps the best answer is, as often as God needs to and as readily as we listen. The measure of someone’s walk is not the number of experiences or the level of their ecstatic nature, but how we respond to them. As Jesus said, “my people hear my voice and they follow.” (from John 10:27)

PneumaReview.com: Dreams and visions are very subjective experiences. What can we as individual believers do to help us determine which ones are from God and which are not?

Tania Harris: Every encounter with the Holy Spirit is subjective and must be tested (1 John 4:1). We need to have the confidence to know that we can hear from God as well as the humility to know we can get it wrong. As the Apostle Paul said, we don’t hear and see clearly (1 Cor. 13:12).

PneumaReview.com: In view of the fact that dreams and visions are personal experiences, can input from other Christians be helpful in determining the correct interpretation

Tania Harris: This is the second element of discernment we see in the early church. When God spoke to Peter in a dream-vision about the Gentile inclusion, others were involved in the discernment process – including Cornelius, and later – because it was a church-wide issue – the church leadership at the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:28)

PneumaReview.com: Why do you think that some visions are symbolic in nature rather than plainly stated? Peter’s vision in Acts 10 is one example.

Tania Harris: In fact, nearly all dream-visions are symbolic. They speak the language of pictures and imagery, which neuroscientists tell us is the most powerful and effective form of communication. Perhaps this is why dream-visions are God’s favoured mode in Scripture! It is the most basic of languages and transcends all communication barriers. You may have heard the phrase: “a picture tells a thousand words!” Once you understand the language of pictures, dream-visions are not difficult to understand.

PneumaReview.com: In your research have you found that more people have dreams or visions?

Tania Harris: I haven’t done quantitative research so can’t give a definitive answer on this. (Note also, in the biblical terminology, the terms for dreams and visions are interchangeable). I suspect more people admit to having visions because it is more socially acceptable to say, “I saw a picture as I prayed” rather than “I saw a picture/scene as I slept.” Having said that, anecdotally, I have noted it is not uncommon for at least 50% of congregations to say they’ve have had a God-dream – they’ve just never shared it with others for fear of being labelled strange!

PneumaReview.com: What advice would you give to pastors to help them guide the people under their care to be open to dreams and visions but not fall into error or fanaticism regarding them?

Tania Harris: As with any hearing God experience, we need to train our congregations to discern the voice of God. Telling people they can hear God’s voice without training them to discern it is like giving a toddler a loaded gun. In my experience, this is a common problem and why we have a strong emphasis in the God Conversations ministry in this area. See our resource that leads the whole church community on the hearing God journey, 50 Days of God Conversations.

PneumaReview.com: Please tell our readers a little bit about your latest book God Dreams: How to Hear God’s Voice in Dreams and Vision as well as where they can purchase it.

Tania Harris: Here is the blurb:

God Dreams: How to hear God’s voice in dreams and visions

God’s most common way of speaking in biblical history is through dreams and visions. But today many of us are more likely to dismiss our visionary experiences as the product of a spicy meal rather than a potential message from God. But could we be missing out on the voice we so long to hear?

Drawing on her ministry experience, theological research and the Revelation experiences of the early church, Tania Harris explores the nature of dream-visions, where they come from, and how to interpret their symbolic and sometimes confusing language. You will learn how to hear God’s voice more clearly and that a picture truly can tell a thousand words.

“A brilliant book!” (Pete Greig)

Available here.

Available from Amazon (USA): https://amzn.to/40PYyGI

In Battling the Demonic, prolific writer and chronicler of the moves of the Holy Spirit in the Western world, the Rev’d William L. De Arteaga PhD, has collected a series of essays on a selection of developments in theory and practise surrounding demonology in, roughly, the last century – and also an interpretative effort to discern some larger moves of society, culture and the spirits that influence our time.

De Arteaga introduces the reader to the subject with an essay that reads as a recollection of a yearning, almost a lament, of unfulfilled longing in his youth for something eternal and true. He quickly paints the theological landscape of 20^th century North America with broad brush strokes and explains how arguments raged among dominant voices in theology about whether the Scriptural miracle accounts were indeed factual, but that the proponents of the trustworthiness of Scripture, were almost exclusively cessationist. While this is in many ways an especially North American phenomenon, this is the context of these essays and it understandably resurfaces in many of the essays – alongside the humanistic and naturalistic assumptions of liberal theologians.

De Arteaga continues to insightfully note that there is something true and under-developed in our thought on spiritual inheritance; and the relation of the earthly saints (us) with the saints in the Lord’s Glory. The enemy sometimes uses this to sow delusions, but we would do well to seek the Lord’s wisdom to discover this inheritance. It seems to this reviewer, that some of the recent works on Impartation by Randy Clark (D.Min.), about the sharing and passing on of spiritual gifts such as by the laying on of hands, may be fruitfully expanded into the Communion of Saints. De Arteaga will return to the interplay between time and eternity, and the thin veil of death, in the latter essays in this collection.

De Arteaga offers a concise and helpful overview of the omissions of Christian churches over the last century regarding demonological awareness. This overview could have been strengthened by noting the occasional abuses and excesses that have driven many to prefer getting stuck in the proverbial omission ditch on the one side of the Way of Christ as the safer option instead of risking falling into the excess ditch on the other side.

This reviewer particularly appreciates De Arteaga’s honest wrestling with the place of deliverance ministry in the public space or without “proper” preparations (or authorization in some ecclesial contexts). De Arteaga tempers his desire for orderly ministry with the witness of Scripture where encounters with unclean spirits are rarely if ever taking place with any forewarning.

Looking to stock the Christian’s pro-active arsenal, De Arteaga examines St Paul’s encounter with Elymas Bar-Jesus in Acts 13 and explores how similar actions, what he calls “command disablement,” might be beneficial in encountering those under demonic influence. He notes this is a largely unexplored territory of Christian ministry. In addition to De Arteaga’ examples, it is worth remembering how Jesus, when encountering people with evil spirits in Luke 4:41, “would not allow them to speak”. This reviewer also calls to mind a testimony of “command disablement” in self-defence recorded by Rabi R. Maharaj in his autobiography, Death of a Guru (Harvest House, 1977), which led to exorcism and salvation of a young man called Raymond. De Arteaga concludes this section of the book with a selection of hypothetical scenarios. He hopes to prompt the reader to imagine, with the Holy Spirit, how to exercise the authority of the believer, seated with Christ at the Father’s right hand. This is a topic that will recur in a later chapter as well, as De Arteaga purposefully seeks to imagine what is possible with Christ.

The second part of the book deals with a number of historical case studies. The chapters do not form a linear read, which is understandable for an anthology. The first reads as a socio-political commentary, highlighting themes in history that De Arteaga interprets as demonically influenced.

The main locus where De Arteaga analyses demonic influences in Western culture is in Marxist and associated ideologies. Considering that De Arteaga has previously written a on political influences in his America in Danger, Left and Right, this reviewer wishes that De Arteaga had included some analyses from other ends of the spectrum of public life, to reduce the risk of the reader disregarding this important work as partisan.

De Arteaga continues with a series of illustrative treatises of spiritual engagement and the response of Western society – from missionary experiences of oppressive demonic forces to the deceptions of various occult practices. The theme that emerges is of overt enemy actions overseas, and covert in the West.

If memory serves, it was C.S. Lewis who in his Screwtape Letters imagined that the enemy actively promotes the modern materialist lie that personal evil spirits do not exist, as it allows the enemy much latitude to operate undetected. This reviewer would like to add a complementary lie, which is more commonly found in the global South: that personal spiritual beings are powerful, worthy of fear and/or reverence, usually (though not always) malicious and while they might be appeased or bargained with, they certainly cannot be opposed by normal people. This is a belief that can also be found in the West among occultists, and in some cultural/ethnic subgroups and opens the door to much more overt oppression and intimidation by the forces of darkness. This difference in strategy by the enemy, and in cultural expectations, can explain the appearance of more active demonic activity outside of the West; which this reviewer believes to be a false appearance.

This is a very worthwhile call, and this reviewer recalls that the Greek word for the Latin “Discernment” is “Diagnosis”. De Arteaga does not shy away from complex or hot-button issues like schizophrenia, transgender desires and even childhood psychopathy. He repeatedly asks questions about the source of these phenomena, prompting the reader to examine the fruit from every available angle – be it medical, philosophical or theological. De Arteaga clearly holds the medical profession in considerable regard, while noting that they are often called to answer challenges beyond their scope.

The final essay in the third section covers proactive prevention of, and reversal of, demonic afflictions or influence of our little ones. This topic, with its generation-spanning reach, leads into the fourth and final part of the book, which is the most difficult to digest, at least for this reviewer.

The first essay considers the possibility of more than two outcomes (heaven or hell) as we leave this earthly life – and De Arteaga rightly pokes a hole in the common equation of Hades/Sheol/the dwelling of the dead with Hell/the Second Death of Revelation 20-21. This is an elusive subject considering the scarcity of Scriptural witness, which De Arteaga notes with many Scriptural commentators, and then continues to explore possibilities from history and Scripture as they open up venues for ministry. Remaining essays continue to provoke to thought, and re-examination of our inherited worldview to ask just how much of it is less-than-fully supported by Scripture.

Reflecting on the final essays, the immediate state of the departed is not consistently attested to in Scripture – and where God leaves a gap, or ambiguity, in His revelation, we do well to tread with both humility and curiosity. This reviewer is not even sure how to use our temporal language of “after” death and “before” Christ’s return, since there is nothing in Scripture to say we will experience the passing of time in the way we currently do, when we have shuffled off this mortal coil. However, Christ’s words when speaking of the departed, about how God is a God not of the dead but of the living; coupled with the promise that God will answer prayers before we utter them, leaves plenty of scope for imagining our ministering the Reconciliation of Christ to generations both past and future, in order to see His glory manifest yesterday, today and forever.

In conclusion, I commend this book to any student of Jesus’ continuing ministry on earth, who is willing to challenge both their own inherited certainties and the pseudo-canons that we all have inherited through our secular and ecclesial cultures alike. It is unlikely that any reader will unflinchingly embrace every aspect of this collection of essays. Yet, let us embrace that paramount call of this book: the cultivation of discernment – both discerning the spirits we find speaking to us, and discerning the ones we see around us. Armed with that intention, we can read this book and hear what the Holy Spirit is saying herein to the churches.

Reviewed by S. Anders Litzell

I cannot recall exactly how I learned of this book that was published almost fifty years ago. The book is out of print and only available from used book dealers [Editor’s note: The same is true for the 1993 edition from Servant Books]. I may have discovered it via a footnote in a more recent book or academic paper, or a mention in a social media post. However I learned about it, I’m glad I did.

Bruce Yocum, the author, was one of the founding members of an ecumenical Charismatic Renewal community called “The Word of God” in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967, which places him in the rise of the Charismatic movement in the mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic churches. Yocum was also a leader in “Servants of the Word,” an international brotherhood of celibate laymen.

The book has two major sections, consisting of four chapters each. The first section discusses the role of the prophet in the church, and the second examines how to grow in the prophetic gifts.

In a statement that seems to prefigure Roger Stronstad’s The Prophethood of All Believers, Yocum writes in the introduction, “It is not only very special people who get to hear God speak. Every Christian can know God in a direct and personal way and can hear the Lord speaking to him.”

Chapter three, “The Prophet’s Role,” investigates what part the person with a prophetic gift plays in the church today. “A true Christian prophet has a role demanding the same vigilance and the same sustained exercise of responsibility. His role can be described under five headings: to receive and proclaim the word; to actively seek out God’s will and God’s word; to ‘stir up’ his gift; to ‘watch over’ the word given and see it acted upon and fulfilled; and to intercede before God on behalf of the church.” While a prophet can “stir up” the gift within, this “does not mean that a prophet can prophesy whatever he wishes and whenever he wishes. Prophecy will always depend upon the action of the Holy Spirit.” Yocum’s teaching here is in stark contrast to much of what we see in purported prophetic ministries today, especially those whose primary arena of influence is not in service to the local church, but on YouTube and other media platforms, where the constant expectation to have a “fresh word” for every new year or every new event in the news cycle drives people to speak out of their own imaginations, rather than from the Spirit.

The fourth chapter delves into how prophecy is governed and administered in the Christian community. Both prophets (by their way of life) and prophecies (by their alignment with special revelation recorded in Scripture) are to be discerned by the elders and the broader community, as there is always the possibility that someone could use the claim of having a prophetic gift to invest his or her own ideas with the authority of God. When God wants to speak a word that requires a definite response from His people, He will usually give the message to multiple people in the community, and not just to a single prophet. This helps protect the community from a “rogue prophet” who is using the guise of prophecy to manipulate. In the Christian community, “the elders have the authority to declare on behalf of the community that a particular prophecy is a word from the Lord. In other words, it is the heads who have the responsibility to discern and the authority to govern prophecy. They, and not the prophets, have the final word.” Contrary to some popular teachings today, the prophet is not the supreme authority in church leadership.

In the second section of the book, chapter five gives instructions about beginning to exercise the prophetic gift. Yocum makes it clear that even when someone receives the gift of prophecy, he or she should not expect to have prophetic revelations on a daily basis. Additionally, when one prophecies, the prophet does not need to speak in elevated language for the prophecy to have the effect God intends. “I have not yet heard a prophecy fail to communicate the Lord’s message because it was cast in simple everyday language. I have, however, heard people trying so hard to use beautiful language that they failed to express God’s word.” Even though the charismata are given as gifts by God, we have to learn how to administer them properly on His behalf.

The sixth chapter lays out various forms prophecy can take. Prophetic exhortation or encouragement, inspired prayer (where the Spirit is prompting and guiding the direction of the prayer topics and wording), prophecy in song, revelation (Yocum’s description of this form parallels what some commonly call a “word of knowledge”), personal prophecy, visions, prophetic actions, and tongues accompanied by interpretation are all possibilities.

The eighth chapter focuses on growing in prophetic service. The more people seek to serve one another out of holy love, the more their desire to see the Spirit’s gifts in operation will be properly motivated (to serve others and meet needs rather than draw attention to one’s self). If our focus is on being something in the church, rather than serving others in love (even possibly in obscurity), then something has gone wrong. A good test of our motives is how we react when another individual begins to be used more in the gifts than we are. “If we become unhappy or jealous, we show that our true desire is to earn ourselves a reputation or attract other people’s attention.” I once heard it said that if I am not willing to minister hidden behind a curtain, where no one knows who I am or what function I am performing, then I have no business ministering on the platform. “A servant is not supposed to do what he likes to do, but what his master gives him to do. The good servant is one who takes care to do just what his master instructs him—neither more nor less.”

Overall, I found Prophecy to be a very well-written treatment of this spiritual gift’s place in the church, with a healthy balance between being open to hearing God speak today, and weighing everything by the standard of the scriptural witness, while making sure our own motivations stay pure. As Yocum says in the afterword, “Certainly we do not have to have the gift of prophecy operating in the church. But if God offers the gift, if the gift will increase our effectiveness in serving God and our neighbor, then it is wrong to decline it. “

If you can find an affordable used copy of this book, or a library that still has a volume available, I highly encourage reading it.

Reviewed by Brian Roden

Dr. Paul King is a man with diverse ministry experience, he is both an academician and a practitioner. He has two doctoral degrees and has taught at a number of institutions of higher learning (which are listed on the dedication page of the book), including Oral Roberts University and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. He is also an experienced writer. In addition to the book that it the subject of this review, he has written others including: Finding Your Niche: 12 Keys to Opening God’s Doors for Your Life, Moving Mountains: Lessons in Bold Faith From Great Evangelical Leaders, and Anointed Women: The Rich Heritage of Women in Ministry in the Christian & Missionary Alliance. King also has practical ministry experience having served as a pastor. His denominational affiliation is with the Christian & Missionary Alliance.

As the later part of the subtitle of this current volume indicates, this is the second book that King has written on this subject. Volume one was published in 2019. In both books the author’s goal is to help believers in the process of spiritual discernment. The Bible instructs us to be discerning (1 John 4:1) but it is not always easy to do. This is especially the case when what we are hearing or seeing cannot explicitly be found in Scripture. King offers guidance in dealing with matters that are less clear. A tool that he employs is “the traffic light model.” If a belief or practice can be soundly supported from Scripture we may proceed with confidence, we have a green light. In short, it is of God. If we are less confident that what we are seeing or hearing is confirmed by Scripture we may have a yellow light. In this case we can proceed with the discernment process until it becomes clear one way or the other if it is of God. If we find it is not of God, we reject it as false. A belief or practice that is contrary to Scripture or not in harmony with it, or if it fails other criteria in the discernment process it is a red light: stop. The teaching or experience is not of God. The subject of spiritual discernment, while important for all believers, may be particularly relevant to Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians. This is because in meetings of these groups of believers one sometimes encounters unusual things. The author seeks to help readers in their quest for truth.

After reading the opening chapter I think reading through the rest of the book is the best course of action. However, with at least a basic grasp of the discernment process the reader will be in a better position to profitably read any chapter that he or she chooses. No doubt different readers will have different interests. I found some of the material in the chapter “Can a Christian Have a Demon” to be very informative.

As readers make their way through the various chapters of this book, they will encounter a lot of Scripture and much to think about, some of which they may not have previously considered. The author knows the Bible, church history, and he is familiar with the writings of other authors. I dare say that one can learn a lot from this volume. This book will be a help to many who may not even know where to start when it comes to dealing with some of the issues he covers. Though the author has strong academic credentials the book is written in plain language. It is an important work. This is because while we don’t want to accept anything that is not from the Lord we also do not want to reject anything that is from Him.

Reviewed by John P. Lathrop

This review was written based on an electronic copy received from the author.

Read the review of Paul L. King, Is It Of God? A Biblical Guidebook For Spiritual Discernment Vol 1

Image: Bourne Baljit

1. Discover Biblical Precedent.
2. Investigate for Scriptural Harmony.
3. Scrutinize for Sound Doctrine.
4. Confirm with Experience.
5. Examine the Fruit.
6. Receive Supernatural Discernment.
7. Note Examples and Lessons from the Past.
8. Sift and Weigh for Divine Equilibrium.

As we look at these principles, to make it simple, spiritual discernment is a bit like driving a car. We need to learn when to press down the accelerator, apply the brakes, or continue to move forward with alertness and caution. The illustration of approaching a traffic light while driving helps to picture the process of discernment: Green Light means Go for discernment. Red Light means Stop; go no farther. Yellow light means slow down and get ready to stop. A blinking yellow light is a modified green light when crossing some busy intersections, meaning continue to proceed with caution, looking both ways in case there are crosswinds or someone else wasn’t paying attention to the lights.[i]

Discernment Principle 1: Discover Biblical Precedent

Is the teaching, practice, or manifestation clearly found in Scripture? “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17). Biblical precedent may be demonstrated in one of three ways: 1) Commands—a direct command to do or not to do something (for example, the Ten Commandments); 2) Principles—guidelines for common or normal practice (for instance, most of the proverbs are observation of life truth, not commands); 3) Examples—demonstration through something that is said or done or not said or done (illustrations, real life instances, patterns, experiences). Based on these, we then can ask two questions:

• Do any biblical commands, principles, or examples clearly question or condemn this teaching, practice, or manifestation? This is an automatic red light.

• Do any biblical commands, principles, or examples permit or sanction this teaching, practice, or manifestation? This may be a green light, but it also may be a blinking yellow light that requires looking in all directions for further confirmation.
  ]]> https://pneumareview.com/basic-biblical-principles-of-discernment/feed/ 0 https://pneumareview.com/the-ancient-poisons-discernment-heresies-of-the-new-testament/ https://pneumareview.com/the-ancient-poisons-discernment-heresies-of-the-new-testament/#comments Thu, 18 Jan 2018 21:24:01 +0000 http://pneumareview.com/?p=13853

  Historian of Revival, William De Arteaga, makes it clear that heresy is an ancient and persistent threat to genuine revival. However, the heresies he examines might surprise you.

  

  This essay asserts that there have been three unrecognized discernment heresies in operation throughout Church history that have retarded revival and hindered the Church from coming into its Spirit-filled destiny. This insight came to me 30 years ago when I was a student at a mainline seminary.

  Heresy is an unpleasant topic to write about, but necessary. St. Irenaeus and many other leaders of the Early Church consistently struggled against one heretical group after another. Indeed, the 2^nd letter of Peter warned:

  But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute (2 Peter 2:1-2).

  Jude also encouraged fellow Christian to battle heresy and proclaim true Apostolic teaching: “I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 1:3). The anti-heretical effort was necessary to establish fundamental biblical truths against distortions from Gnostics (see below) and other groups.

   

  Biblical understanding of Heresy

  In the New Testament, the Greek word that is translated as heresy is hairesis, and it simply means groups or “sects.” At times in the New Testament it is used in a neutral sense, as we might mention a certain political party (see Acts 28:22). Josephus, the First Century Jewish historian, uses the word in this sense to identify three major Jewish “sects:” the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes. The Pharisees and Sadducees were often mentioned in the Gospels; not so the Essenes. The Essenes lived in ascetic monastic communities awaiting a political-military Messiah. They were not cited in the New Testament and disappeared after the Jewish-Roman war that destroyed the Temple in 70 AD.

  In their day, as in ours, the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Gnostics embraced heresies of flawed discernment.

  From the way hairesis is used in 2 Peter (cited above) we can conclude that certain sects have beliefs and ways of spirituality that are deeply destructive. But note that hairesis means a group, not just one idea. Sects may be known for a predominant idea, but are more typically known for a series of interlocking ideas and agendas. They look at things from a particular perspective. “Destructive heresies,” like the one prophesied in Peter’s letter, are groups or sects with interlocking attitudes or perspectives that take a person out of spiritual fellowship with the Body of Christ.
  ]]> https://pneumareview.com/the-ancient-poisons-discernment-heresies-of-the-new-testament/feed/ 0 https://pneumareview.com/tchallies-discipline-spiritual-discernment/ https://pneumareview.com/tchallies-discipline-spiritual-discernment/#comments Sat, 08 Oct 2011 10:05:57 +0000 http://pneumareview.com/?p=3041 Tim Challies, The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment (Wheaton: Crossway, 2007), 206 pages, ISBN 9781581349092.

  Challies, editor of Discerning Reader, a book review website and host of the Christian blog Challies.com: Informing the Reforming, premises his book on the stated intent to present a thoroughly bibliocentric approach in teaching principles of spiritual discernment that equip believers to carefully distinguish truth from error; right from wrong. He instructs the reader by explaining both the benefits of discernment and the cost of ignoring or minimizing this gift. The author carefully explores the definition of discernment and two primary areas of life requiring discernment: “knowing the truth and discerning the will of God for our lives” (17). He further examines discernment in its context as a gift of the Holy Spirit and the “potential dangers inherent in a distorted understanding of discernment,” concluding his study with an examination of “the commitments, context, character and confirmation of discernment” (17).

  The author maintains a high view of Scripture in supporting, as foundational to all Christian theology and practice, the five solas of the Reformation, specifically sola scriptura (Scripture alone). Challies adheres to the Cambridge Declaration, as written by the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, indicating that “The Bible alone teaches all that is necessary for our salvation from sin and is the standard by which all Christian behavior must be measured” (46). He views discernment as undergoing a battle of sorts, maintaining that over thirty years ago, “the doctrine of the Bible’s inerrancy . . . came under attack from both within the church and without” (46).

  Challies believes that the battle has been primarily won through the efforts of, among others, J. I. Packer, R. C. Sproul and Francis Schaeffer. He agrees with James Montgomery Boice’s assertion that “The most serious issue, I believe, is the Bible’s sufficiency” (46). In quoting Boice, the author emphasizes his concern that many Christians fail to approach the Bible as a preeminent document, instead charging “with reckless abandon” that too high a view of Scripture has resulted in bibliolatry (Bible worship), and denying that Scripture is sufficient to address evangelism, sanctification, counsel, reform, discernment and other matters (47).

  In Challies’ discussion of discernment as a spiritual charism, the author points to the dichotomy of opinion among cessationist and continuationist camps concerning miraculous gifts. His position is that there is much about which both camps can agree, especially that “God can and does dispense [today] a gift of spiritual discernment” (125). He emphasizes that all varieties of giftings are “not meant not to disrupt the church but to unify it through diversity” and to “build a stronger church” (125). The author underlines that it is through the expression of the Spirit’s gifts

  that God’s “power and presence can be manifested in the church” and for the purpose of the common good.  Challies highlights the importance of not allowing a particular gift, such as discernment, to become “the most prominent aspect of one’s identity as a Christian . . .” (127.) He also addresses the question: Is the gift of discernment in today’s church the same “gift of distinguishing between spirits as it existed in New Testament times?” (128). He is not convinced the question needs a resolution, indicating that for both the nascent New Testament Church and the contemporary Church, “the gift of discernment is the Spirit’s special defense against the lies that come from lying spirits” (129). Therefore discernment, he maintains, is not only a gift, but a responsibility in protecting the integrity of interpretation, doctrine, preaching, and teaching.

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