Some Official Assessment

The wonderful folks of Life Pacific College (International Church of the Foursquare Gospel), located in beautiful San Dimas, California, were exceptionally gracious hosts. It was a special pleasure to be greeted in the first plenary by Jim Adams, LPC president, and the famous Jack Hayford (King’s University). LPC facilities were perfect for the needs of the Society, with ample space in a compact setting. And what a gorgeous campus! Aside from aesthetics, the statistics are impressive as well. Kim Roebuck, Assistant to the Executive Director, reports that there were 331 in attendance. Zach Tackett, SPS Secretary/Treasurer, informed the membership at its annual business meeting that the SPS 2015 figures represent the best membership roll in 5 years and that the Society is financially solvent. Certainly these appear to be signs that SPS continues to flourish as a vital venue for Pentecostal scholarship.

SPS could not happen without the diligent work of a great team of Interest Group Leaders: Scott Ellington, Daniela Augustine, Christopher Stephenson, Leah Payne, Sarita Gallagher, Doug Olena, James Bowers, Clifton Clarke, and Sammy Alfaro. As well, the work of Diversity Committee leader Meghan Musy, Librarians and Archivist chair, Derrick Rosenior, and other session leaders such as Dale M. Coulter and Daniel Tobin (Roman Catholic-Pentecostal dialogue) provided spiritual refreshing.

The plenary sessions with Linda Ambrose, John Goldingay, Teresa Berger, the Latino/a Pentecostalism session with Daniel Ramirez, Urias Mendoza, and Sammy Alfaro, and the great presidential address by Michael Wilkinson, were invigorating. Further, the artistic expressions by Carlynn Reed and Carlos Zapata, Jennifer Miskov and team, and Steven Felix-Jager were a refreshing innovation that ministered to all.

Lois Olena

Outgoing Executive Director Lois Olena (Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, Springfield, MO) noted in her closing remarks at the SPS banquet that of its current membership of 557, SPS enjoys representation from 18 nations, 30 U.S. states, and 41 Christian denominations/traditions.

To me, in spite of its challenges, SPS has been to me “little taste of heaven,” because it has served in my life as a place where brothers and sisters in Christ, of diverse ethnicities and denominations, can experience “the other” in rich fellowship, mentorship, learning, collegiality, and laughter, as well as engage in times of challenging one another, searching and discovering, sharing ideas, celebrating one another’s accomplishments, and supporting friends through their struggles—not only once a year but all throughout the year as we continue to interact. SPS has been a place of vocational nurture, as our late president, Brother Jeff Gros, said in his 2012 presidential address: “The Pentecostal scholar in whatever church has a calling to be of service to the whole people of God and to the churches in their task of preaching, handing on the faith and nurturing the faithful. This Society has been a place where this ecclesial vocation has been and can be nurtured” [Pneuma 34, no. 2 (2012): 167.]

Similar stories of great men and women of God, who, like Luther, found little consolation amidst the darkest times of their lives, stir me and remind me that theological precision is a poor substitute for weathered faith. Life, it seems, has this annoying habit of knocking down our fragile, uncontested theological formulas like foul breath beating against a house of cards. Still we are troubled when we read about Luther, a champion theologian and accomplished composer, who was occasionally muted and numbed by personal tragedy. Nor is he an isolated example from church history. As we may recall that New England’s church leader, Cotton Mather, lost eight of fifteen children before reaching their second birthday. And if we are to add tragic marriages (John Wesley, William Carey) and constant illnesses (Charles Spurgeon, Mary Slessor) to the list of life’s tribulations, there would be no time left for the main point, which has been intentionally obscured until now. To the faithful pilgrim, there may be times in life when God alone has the answer for our grieving heart, and it may well be concealed until we pass beyond the veil of this life.

Image: Joshua Earle

I realize that this remark cuts across our American, have-it-your-way philosophy. Frankly, I don’t personally find these stories necessarily uplifting, but they are real and they remind us that death and sorrow are great equalizers while we sojourn on this planet. The first century Christians understood this truth all too well. Paul told the Corinthians of the many perils he faced constantly (II Cor. 11:23-29). The Hebrew author reminded his readers that faith is always rewarded, just not always in this life (11:35-39) as evident in the lives of past saints. Peter went even further, calling attention to our role as “aliens and strangers” (I Pet. 2:11) in this world. I take this to mean that we look to eternity for our ultimate hope, and not meaning that we forsake or despise our earthly, temporal existence. Even Jesus stated that, “in this world [we] will have trouble” (John 16:33a).

The stories we read from church history reinforce the notion that good and godly Christian people can often suffer inexplicably in this life. But having to wait for answers means that we must rely unconditionally on faith in God rather than the standard soapbox bravado and stereotyped propaganda-practices that are more deeply rooted in American business than the Bible. Of course we do not plan our “light and momentary troubles” (as Paul referred to them), but we expect good things from God and in this country we usually get them. But when difficult, even terrible times occur, it is best to remember that we are not entitled to always have a ready answer. Someday, God will “wipe every tear from [our] eyes. There will be no more death or mourning, or crying or pain, for the old order of things [will have] passed away” (Rev. 21:4). Faith is sufficient for the time being.

Copyright © 2003, Larry Taylor. Used by permission of the author.

Mark E. Dever, The Gospel & Personal Evangelism (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2007) 124 pages, ISBN 9781581348460.

Mark E. Dever believes that personal evangelism is the duty of every Christian. Although some may be more gifted for evangelism than others, he believes that all Christians have a responsibility to share the Gospel with unbelievers. This responsibility includes having a sound knowledge of the Gospel and a clear presentation that is supported by prayer and a life of faithfulness.

In his book, The Gospel & Personal Evangelism, Dever offers readers a number of reasons for sharing the Gospel on a personal level. He also includes some practical ways to conduct such a ministry. He supports his views with numerous Scriptures from the Gospels, Acts and other New Testament passages. He also draws on his personal experiences.

Dever serves as senior pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. A prolific writer, he is the author of several books by Crossway, including Promises Kept, Promises Made, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, and The Deliberate Church. He holds a Ph.D. from Cambridge University and a Th.M. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also is the executive director of 9Marks (www.9marks.org).

In The Gospel & Personal Evangelism, Dever attempts to answer some of the most common questions people have about the Gospel and personal evangelism. He focuses on “the best news that there has ever been, and how we should share that news” (p. 17). His goal is that readers find they “can be more understanding and obedient in evangelism” (p. 17). His desire is to help the church to develop a culture of evangelism. He defines this culture as “an expectation that Christians will share the gospel with others, talk about doing that, pray about it, and regularly plan and work together to help each other evangelize” (p. 17). In short, he wants evangelism to be normal in the Christian life.

Dever covers his topic in seven chapters, each of which addresses an important question on evangelism. He begins with, “Why Don’t We Evangelize?” This is followed with, “What is the Gospel?” He then proceeds with, “Who Should Evangelize?,” “How Should We Evangelize?,” “What Isn’t Evangelism?,” “What Should We Do After We Evangelize?,” and finally, “Why Should We Evangelize?”

In Dever’s view, there are five basic excuses that Christians have for failing to evangelize. Three of them are: “Evangelism could cause problems,” “Other things are more urgent,” and “I don’t know non-Christians.” To address these and other excuses, he offers a 12-step program in which he advises the Christian to pray, plan, accept, understand, be faithful, risk, prepare, look, love, fear, stop, and consider.

On the subject of the “Good News,” Dever explains some of the popular misconceptions and poor definitions of what the Good News is. He writes, for example, that it is not simply that we are okay, it is not simply that God is love, and it is not simply that Jesus wants to be our friend. He states emphatically that the Gospel is about the sin problem that all people have, and what God did through Christ to address the problem. He writes that God is holy and He hates sin, and the only way a person can be saved is through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Using the Gospels and Acts as examples, he writes that the true, biblical message of salvation is that people should repent and believe the Gospel.

Bible teacher Eddie L. Hyatt asks: What is the place of personal prophecy in the local church and our lives?

It seems that almost everyone has an amusing or thought-provoking anecdote about an encounter with personal prophecy. For example, a prophet once exhorted me that I no longer had to be concerned about my unsaved little brother. God had revealed to him, he said, that my little brother would be saved and there was no need for any concern. In private, I shared with this “prophet” that I had not been concerned about my little brother because I did not have a little brother. Obviously embarrassed, he replied, “I will have to be more careful.”

The above experience highlighted for me the potential danger of personal prophecy gone awry. An equal danger, however, is when the Church reacts to such extremes and rejects or discourages personal prophecy altogether. In 1 Thess. 5:19-20, Paul gives clear instructions in this regard. Do not quench the Spirit, he says, and Do not despise prophecies (NKJV). In vs. 21 Paul then balances the former two verses by saying, Test all things; hold fast what is good (NKJV). Paul’s approach to prophecy may be described as “openness without naiveté and discernment without judgmentalism.”

In Paul’s instruction on prophecy throughout his letters, several key guidelines emerge that are particularly relevant to personal prophecy: (1) It is given as the Spirit wills; (2) It is given for confirming and encouraging; (3) It is given as a free gift of grace; and (4) It is given to glorify Christ.

Prophecy Is Given As the Spirit Wills

Paul is very clear in 1 Cor. 12:11 that prophecy, along with other gifts discussed in this passage, are given as the Spirit wills. These are not gifts that a person carries and operates at his own will, but manifestations that come forth as the Spirit wills.

Recently my wife, Susan, and I were in our van about to back out of our driveway when the Holy Spirit interrupted us. As she was about to shift into reverse, Sue was suddenly aware of an inner compassion flowing out to our next-door neighbor who was working in her yard. We had only recently moved into this house and this neighbor, upon discovering that we were Christians, introduced herself as a backslidden preacher from Brooklyn, NY. We did not attempt to discuss our faith with her and in the succeeding days sought merely to be good neighbors.

On this day, with a sense of God’s compassion reaching out to our neighbor, Sue called her by name—“Adele!!” Upon hearing her name, Adele walked over to the side of our vehicle. Without a prior sense that it was coming, Sue broke forth with an utterance in tongues. I leaned across the seat and spoke the interpretation which was a personal word of prophecy to Adele, “My daughter, you are precious in my sight.” Adele burst into tears and then into praying in tongues. We had a mini-revival right there in our driveway. What a powerful experience it was, facilitated by a personal prophecy that came forth, not as we willed, but as the Spirit willed.