Steve Bremner is a missionary to Peru. He co-hosts and produces the “Fire on Your Head” podcast and contributes to Fire Press, which is an online Christian magazine he founded in 2008. This book addresses questions on the baptism and in-filling of the Holy Spirit, which are commonly asked among Evangelical, Charismatic, and Pentecostal Christians. This book is written in a non-academic format that targets most adult readers who want to know more about the theological topic of being empowered by the Holy Spirit. The book is divided into three sections: Bremner’s personal story, common misconceptions, and intimacy with God. He includes one appendix on how to receive the baptism on the Holy Spirit and another appendix on how to lead someone else in the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The book is not a theological thesis; it is a practical response to questions, written in the tone of a gentle pastoral mentor.

Bremner states his purpose as twofold. He wants, “to help remove the stigma surrounding the gift of tongues… to help clarify the unfortunate misconceptions that prevent people from walking in the fullness of the dimensions this gift unlocks” (25). Later, he clarifies, “I wanted to make the focus of this book on only speaking in tongues and not all of the gifts of the Spirit, or even specifically Spirit baptism” (68). In thus stating, he addresses the multitude of books and articles that explore a wide variety of theological perspectives, but, more importantly, his pastoral heart is drawn to helping people experience a fuller dimension of the Holy Spirit, in order that they will be empowered to effectively minister to others.

Nine Lies builds its argument through four primary means.

Steve Bremner

First, the opening argument of the book surrounds the premise that “The baptism in the Holy Spirit is not synonymous for receiving the Holy Spirit upon salvation. Jesus told the disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they received power, and he did not tell them to wait until they ‘got saved,’ ‘reborn,’ ‘regenerated,’ or any other synonym we may use to describe the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives upon salvation” (75-76). Bremner argues for the filling of the Holy Spirit as an experience following salvation. He further builds his position by emphasizing the empowerment for ministry that is evident in the lives of the believers. Obviously, no one comes to knowledge of God without the Holy Spirit being at work in his or her heart. We were all pagans when we first experience the Holy Spirit at work, drawing us towards Christ. “Spirit baptism is an additional work of the already indwelling Holy Spirit. The empowerment that comes with the baptism in the Spirit is to strengthen their witness with other gifts and signs and wonders. As a result, the manifestation of tongues usually tends to accompany it” (83 – 83).

Second, Bremner leads the reader through common arguments against and for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, expanding on cessationist and continuist positions. He describes the cessationist argument against the gifts and particularly speaking in tongues as unneeded because, “the early church was immature and childish (Ephesians 4:11-13), and the gifts and ministries of the Holy Spirit were given to help mature the church in its infancy” (87 – 88). And he illustrated this with the example of adults not needing the persistent mothering in the same way that the infant needs it. Later, Bremner will use the illustration of an automobile. “Speaking in tongues in this sense is a mere indication that the engine is now turned on to a new level than when the car was parked. Once that contact is made from the key into the car’s ignition and turned correctly, something is ignited. It’s the same when the Holy Spirit comes on someone for the first time in this post-conversion way” (108).

Church of God Presiding Bishop Mark Williams preaching.

Official church historians consider the Church of God (Cleveland, TN USA) the oldest continuing, and one of the largest, Pentecostal ecclesial organizations in the world. It dates back to 1886 with roots in the Unicoi Mountains of Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina. It considers itself more of a movement than a denomination, more of a dynamic and organic union than an institution. Yet with around 7 million members worldwide and a constituency closer to 15 million the Church of God certainly has developed some of the trappings of an organized institution. One of these institutional necessities has been its biennial General Assembly.

True to its origins in the American Wesleyan Holiness Movement the Church of God early adopted a mostly Episcopal form of government. Among other things, this has meant a centralized polity, although with some admittedly hybrid elements of congregationalism showing through here and there. Every two years Ordained Bishops of the Church of God meet in a General Council to elect leaders, discuss business, and address pressing issues in the church and in society. Then the General Assembly, which still includes the General Council but adds other credentialed ministers as well as registered lay delegates, meets to confirm (or not) the suggestions of the Bishops. The General Assembly is the highest governing body of a group that insists it adheres strictly to the teachings of Scripture in its beliefs and practices. In between General Assembly sessions the Church of God is led by an International Executive Committee consisting of a Presiding Bishop (General Overseer), three assistants (executive bishops), and a Secretary General together with 18 councilors comprising the International Executive Council. The Presiding Bishop moderates the General Council and the General Assembly.

For me, this opening process suggests something of an interpretative key for the 75^th General and what it says about where the Church of God is today and what it is about. Two words come to my mind: retention and expansion. The course of this General Assembly suggests to me that the Church of God is engaged in Herculean labors to retain its Holiness-Pentecostal heritage and identity and also to expand its ministries and mission for contemporary relevance and effectiveness in a world that has changed dramatically since the turn of the 20^th century. As a Church of God member, bishop, pastor, and educator, as well as something of an interlocutor with others, I applaud these dual drives. However, I recognize that there is an inherent tension in remaining rooted in the past while taking wing into the future. Nevertheless, I’m convinced that the most consistent way forward for the Church of God still involves integrating just such continuity and creativity.