In my presentation, I emphasized the need for a “deep view of Scripture” (in comparison to a low or high view of Scripture).

My presentation was 18 minutes, and it begins at the 0:23:45 minute mark. You can watch it here: https://video.horizon.edu/en/c/why-does-the-bible-matter.4818

You might also be interested in these posts:

• 10 Bible Verses You Can Legitimately Declare Over Your Life
• Pentecostal and Evangelical Bible Commentaries
• What is Discipleship? More than Praying and Reading the Bible

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

You might also be interested in these posts:

• Shouldn’t Faith Always Result in Healing?
• There is Power in the Tongue, but Not for Declarations and Decrees
• No, Indigenous Canadians Don’t Just Need Jesus: Reconciliation Requires More

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post Disability Theology and Pentecostalism appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

You are welcome to comment on the post below.

You might also be interested in these posts:

• Should I Declare the Blood of Jesus Over my Home to Stop COVID-19?
• 10 Ways to Pray the DEMONS out of Your Heathen CAT
• 10 Bible Verses You Can Legitimately Declare Over Your Life

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post Psalms for Divine Protection from COVID-19 appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

I am, nevertheless, concerned that many Christians who claim to declare “what the Bible promises” aren’t really declaring things that the Bible promises for them as individuals.

The Bible is not a List of Declarations

The Bible is not a God-given list of verses to declare over yourself. If it were, then why not declare over yourself

Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you shall be utterly despised.” (Obadiah 1:2)?

Or why not declare over yourself,

You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths” (Psalm 88:6)?

Of course we wouldn’t declare such things over ourselves because they aren’t God’s promises to us. But all the good things written in the Bible aren’t always God’s promises to us either.

Context, Context, Context

We have to consider the meaning of each Bible verse in context to determine if it is a general promise, or if it is something that God intended for a particular person or group of people.

Consider, for example, the often quoted text from Jeremiah 29:11.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

This verse is not a promise for each individual person. Instead, it was God’s promise specifically to Israel in the midst of their exile in Babylon. The Bible makes this clear just a few sentences earlier in verse 4. Moreover, it wasn’t even God’s promise for Israel for that very day, but for the future,  after “seventy years” of exile (verse 10). Yikes! Similarly, when it comes to our lives today, it is possible that God might actually be against a person for a time.

Like the above verse, we should not assume when God said, “I will send wild animals against you, and they will rob you of your children” (Leviticus 26:22), that this was God’s intent for every individual. Instead, the verses surrounding this one make clear that this was a warning for ancient Israel, should they choose to disobey God’s commandments.

We should not just decide to claim one verse and not the other simply because one makes us feel good. But we actually shouldn’t claim either of these verses, because God didn’t mean for us to claim either of them.

“ We should not just decide to claim one verse and not another simply because one makes us feel good.

Now, this doesn’t mean that we can’t apply Jeremiah 29:11 to our lives. BOTH Jeremiah 29:11 AND Leviticus 26:22 (and the rest of Scripture) are applicable to people today in some way. But we can’t just “claim” those verses without adequately considering what they meant in their original context.

Biblical Declarations

There actually isn’t a lot in the Bible about declaring things about ourselves. Instead we read of people declaring the praises of God: “I will declare that your love stands firm forever” (Psalm 89:2).

And yet, I do think there is some value in claiming or declaring over ourselves some of the general truths of Scripture, when they are properly understood as actually applying to us. We need to realize, though, that these declarations don’t make God act or do anything. By contrast, my concern is that many people who practice “declaring” things are actually trying to “decree” things—the former simply affirms what is already true, whereas the latter is a futile attempt to try to shape the future with one’s words.

“ There is value in declaring the truths of Scripture, when they are properly understood as actually applying to us.

Rather than changing our circumstances, legitimately biblical declarations are for our own benefit. They are a means of replacing falsehood with truth, they are a way we can encourage ourselves, and they can serve as of a means of being “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2).

10 Scriptures You Can Legitimately Declare Over Yourself

All this being said, here are 10 Scriptures you can justifiably declare over yourself if you are a Christian:

1. “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)
2. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
3. “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)
4. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-24)
5. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
6. “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” (2 Corinthians 5:20)
7. “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26)
8. “So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27)
9. “But he gives all the more grace; therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” (James 4:6)
10. “Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’” (Hebrews 13:5)

One thing strikes me as I read these verses. If these realities and promises are true, then I really don’t even need to declare them (even though there is nothing wrong with that). And I certainly don’t need to decree them (not that I could). Instead, I could just thank God for these things. And thankful, we should be.

Give thanks to him and praise his name” (Psalm 100:4).

You might also be interested in these posts:

• Is God For You…Not Against You?
• Should Christians Declare or Decree Things over Their Lives?
• How to Break Generational Curses

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post 10 Bible Verses You Can Legitimately Declare Over Your Life appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

About a year ago, I wrote a post, “Should Pentecostals talk about the Spirit on Pentecost Sunday?” Given that Pentecost Sunday is approaching soon, I thought I would put together a list of links to some of my resources that address Pentecost specifically as well as the closely related topic of Spirit baptism.

Blog posts:

• Pentecost: More than Acts 1:8
• Spirit Baptism in Current Pentecostal Theology: Part 1 – Frank Macchia
  •    Part 2 – Amos Yong
• Why do PENTECOSTALS care so much about SPIRIT BAPTISM?
• 3 Ways People Misunderstand Tongues as “Initial Evidence” of Spirit Baptism
• Tongues is NOT the Only Sign of Spirit Baptism

Academic articles:

• Spirit Baptism and the Intensity of the Spirit
  •    A slightly more challenging read, but probably one of the most important pieces I’ve published to date.
• The Holy Spirit and Eschatology—with Implications for Ministry and the Doctrine of Spirit Baptism
  •    For an academic article, its a fairly easy read.

You can also check out my NEW free ebook called:

• SPIRIT BAPTISM in the Old and New Testaments (Not Just Acts)

I hope you will find the above resources helpful to your thinking and ministry!

“ Pentecost Sunday is coming soon. Check out these “Resources on the Meaning of Pentecost and Spirit Baptism.”

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post Resources on the Meaning of Pentecost and Spirit Baptism appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

I cringed as I sat there listening to the preacher. He based his sermon on John 14:17: “…the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”

The preacher declared, “The Spirit is a ‘him’, and ‘he’ lives in you.” And on account of this he boldly proclaimed to the congregation, “The Holy Spirit is a ‘he,’ not an ‘it.’ Therefore the Holy Spirit is personal.”

The preacher was both right and wrong.

Not “He”

The Spirit is not “he.” Looking at your English Bible, you might think so. But you would be mistaken.

In fact, in the Old Testament, “Spirit” (Hebrew=ruach) is a feminine noun. As a result, historically the Syrian Christian tradition spoke of the Holy Spirit as “she.” And they were biblically justified in doing so.

When we come to the New Testament, though, “Spirit”  (Greek=pneuma) is a neuter noun. And in Greek the Bible explicitly refers to the Spirit as “it” (John 14:17). Therefore, in some places the King James Version of the English Bible refers to the Spirit as “it” (for example, Romans 8:16).

Of course, in language grammatical gender doesn’t determine physical gender or sex. So, for example, the word “house” in Greek (oikos) is masculine, but a house is no more male than female. Similarly, the word “church” (ecclesia) is feminine in Greek, even though the church includes both males and females.

How did we end up with “he”?

In the fourth century a monk by the name of Jerome produced the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible. This became the translation of choice in the Western Roman empire. And in Latin, the word for “Spirit” (spiritus) is a masculine noun. This is one of the big reasons that the Western Church (which includes the Roman Catholic and Protestant traditions) ended up speaking of the Spirit as “he.”

“ Bible translations can affect theology.

In addition, in a few places the Bible refers to the Spirit as “he,” namely when Jesus calls the Spirit the “Paraclete.” This word is a masculine Greek noun (John 15:26). But, again, grammatical gender doesn’t really refer to sex.

What Really Matters

The Holy Spirit is not a he, she, it. The Spirit does not have a physical body, and therefore has no sex.

“ The Spirit is not a he, she, it. The Spirit does not have a physical body.

Biblically, we are justified to speak of the Spirit as it, he, or she. Nevertheless, it is a problem if we only think of the Spirit as a “he.” Some theologians have even suggested that to think of God only as a “he” is a form of idolatry (creating a human image of God).

While many English speakers aren’t comfortable with referring to the Spirit as “she,” the Bible does describe the Spirit as giving “birth” to us (John 3:5-6). And that’s not something that a “he” can do.

At the end of the day, what matters most is that we recognize that the Holy Spirit is indeed personal. The Spirit “teaches” us (John 14:26) and “intercedes” for us (Romans 8:26). And you can “grieve” the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). So the Spirit is not just a divine force or power, but personal. And you can have a relationship with the Holy Spirit.

On account of this theological conclusion, historically most theologians have preferred not to speak of the Spirit as “it” since that would seem to imply that the Spirit is impersonal. And theologically, that implication would be incorrect.

(In case you are wondering, in this post I answered two questions: “Why do we refer to the Spirit as ‘he’?” and “How can we show others that he’s personal and not just God’s active force in the world?”)

You might also be interested in my blog series called “The Holy Spirit in Life” (#HSLife).

The post The Holy Spirit is not a “He” appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

I’m not talking about “fire tunnels,” where people walk in between two lines of people who place their hands on them and pray for them.

Instead, I’m talking about what John the Baptist refers to. He says that Jesus “will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:16).

What does it mean to be baptized with fire?

(Unlikely) Option 1: Fire = the Spirit

One might wish that being baptized with fire means the same as being baptized with the Spirit.

This might make sense since in the Old Testament fire sometimes was a symbol of God’s favorable presence (consider Moses at the burning bush, Exodus 3:2). Also, on the day of Pentecost, when people were baptized in the Spirit, “tongues of fire” rested on each of them (Acts 2:3).

(Unlikely) Option 2: Fire = Purification

In the Old Testament, fire sometimes symbolized God’s purification, much like fire is used to refine metals. For example, in Zechariah 13:8-9 the Lord said, “This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. … I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’”

If this is what John the Baptist means, then being baptized with fire would refer to an event of being made more holy, like increasing in the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5).

(More Likely) Option 3: Fire = Judgment

In the Old Testament, fire is sometimes used to refer to God’s judgment of Israel’s enemies. For example, Isaiah writes that “your many enemies will become . . . like blown chaff. …The LORD Almighty will come with . . . flames of a devouring fire (29:5-6).

Similarly, in the New Testament in the Gospel of Matthew, John the Baptist warns the Pharisees and Sadducees about “the coming wrath” (3:7). He adds that “every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire” (verse 10).

In the very next verse, John states that Jesus will baptize “with fire” (verse 11). And he immediately continues by adding that Jesus will burn “up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (verse 12).

In this passage fire is only presented in a negative light.

The same thing is true for Luke 3:9-17, the only other place in the Bible that speaks of being baptized “with fire” (3:16).

If this doesn’t convince you, let me give you…

Three more reasons that being baptized with fire means receiving judgement:

1) Jesus never told the disciples they would be baptized in fire on the day of Pentecost. Rather, he only said, “in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:5).

2) Even though they both quote John the Baptist as saying that Jesus “will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8, John 1:33), the gospels of Mark and John don’t mention being baptized with fire, and, likewise, they don’t mention anything about God’s judgment (unlike Luke and Matthew).

3) Even though Luke writes about being baptized with fire in his gospel, Luke never mentions it in the book of Acts (which he also wrote), and he also never says that anyone received the “fire” of the Spirit.

Baptism in the Spirit is great.

But, if someone asks you if you want to be baptized with fire, I suggest you run away from them while politely yelling, “No, thank you!”

In the meantime, please be careful that you “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire” (1 Thessalonians 5:19).  

You might also be interested in these posts:

• Why do PENTECOSTALS care so much about SPIRIT BAPTISM?
• Spirit Baptism in Current Pentecostal Theology: Part 2 – Amos Yong
• PAOC Clergy on Tongues and Spirit Baptism: Changing Views

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Touched by God: Experiencing the Holy Spirit (forthcoming) as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

The post What it Really Means to be BAPTIZED IN FIRE appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

The Bible only records two instances when Jesus commends people for their “great faith.” In one story, a Roman centurion asks Jesus to heal his paralyzed servant, who was “suffering terribly” (Matthew 8:6).

Jesus asks if he should go to heal him, but the Roman man replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it” (verses 8-9).

Jesus was amazed at the centurion’s response. This is where he mentions his “great faith.”

The other story where Jesus speaks of someone’s “great faith” involves a Canaanite woman, whose daughter Jesus heals (Matthew 15:22-28). In both of these stories, Jesus does not say that he decided to heal the person because of the amount of faith they had. Rather, he simply observes their “great faith.”

Why does Jesus say anything about how much faith they had?

Biblical scholars agree that the reason Jesus highlights the faith of these people is that Jesus was commending these non-Jewish people (a Roman centurion and a Canaanite Woman) in order to encourage his Jewish audience to have the same faith in him that these Gentiles had and to challenge the common Jewish belief that God’s grace did not extend to the Gentiles. Hence, regarding the Roman centurion, Jesus says explicitly, “I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith” (Matthew 8:10).^[1]

As with “great faith,” there are not many times that Jesus ever speaks of a person’s “little faith,” and it was never in connection to healing. Once Jesus said that those who don’t trust God to provide for their basic needs have “little faith” (given that “God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire” (Matthew 6:30).

On another occasion, Jesus remarked regarding the disciples’ “little faith” when they were afraid their boat was going to sink during a “furious storm” (Matthew 8:24-26). And many sermons have been preached on the story of Peter walking on the water. When he began to sink, Jesus remarked regarding Peter’s “little faith” (Matthew 14:31).

Finally, Jesus observed the “little faith” of the disciples when they were concerned about their lack of bread, even though Jesus had already miraculously provided bread on more than one occasion (Matthew 16:8-10). In each of these stories Jesus worked miracles despite their little faith. God is not limited by your level of faith! Hence, Jesus saved the disciples and calmed the stormy sea, even though they had little faith.

This blog post is an excerpt from a (non-academic) book I have written on the Holy Spirit and Spirituality, tentatively titled Simply Spirit-Filled.

Read Chapter 1 or Order Simply Spirit-Filled

Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor and VP of Academics at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.

[1] R. T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007), 589-91.

The post What Jesus Really Says about GREAT FAITH appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

First, a few important observations about the “prophecy” and the Bible:

1. What is “something big?” Such “prophecy” is so vague that almost anything can be taken to fulfill the prophecy. It seems to me that prophecy in scripture isn’t so vague.
2. Biblical prophecy is most frequently concerned with telling people to repent (turn from sin to God), and actually not that often about foretelling the future.
3. There are only three passages in the Bible that speak of the “moon turned blood red” (Revelation 6:12 and Joel 2:31, later quoted in Acts 2:19), but there are many other signs that are supposed to occur together with that one sign.
4. No biblical prophecy talks about four blood moons or links blood moons to Jewish festivals (see further below).

Now for a few important observations about the “four blood moons:”

1. Total lunar eclipses—aka Blood moons—are common and tetrads (four blood moons) can happen many times each century.
2. The four blood moons taking place now are supposedly special because they coincide with two historic Jewish festivals. And yet, the Jews follow a lunar calendar; hence, the Jewish feasts have to coincide with lunar eclipses (even four of them) now and then. It has happened before (apparently 8 times in the last two millenniums) and the apocalypse hasn’t come. I see no reason to think it will this Sunday either.
3. Most importantly, 3 of 4 of the current blood moons will not be visible from Israel. If these four blood moons are so important, it would seem odd that God is most concerned with people in North America seeing them—especially since the Jewish festivals are related to Israel, not North America.

Nevertheless, something BIG will take place this weekend. During this lunar eclipse the moon will appear particularly LARGE. Don’t miss the blood moon this Sunday (Sept 27). You can read more about it here, on the Weather Network’s web page (read below the video), including when it will take place in your time zone.

To conclude, I almost wish I wrote a book about the four blood moons.

The post The Fourth Blood Moon Happens this Sunday (Sept 27, 2015)! appeared first on Andrew K. Gabriel.

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8). For some Christians, this text is all that defines Pentecost.

However, Pentecost was a fulfillment of numerous Old Testament prophecies. Hence, to properly understand the significance of Pentecost, one must begin with the Old Testament expectations of the future coming of the Spirit.

OLD TESTAMENT EXPECTATIONS OF PENTECOST

Beyond the prophet Joel’s expectation that the Spirit would be “poured out,” resulting in prophecy and dreams (quoted in Acts 2:16-21), other prophets also anticipated a day when the Spirit would be “poured out.”

• Isaiah expected that when “the Spirit is poured upon us from on high” there would be justice, righteousness, and peace (Isaiah 32:15-18, cf. 44:3-5).
• Through Ezekiel, God spoke of a future time of cleansing: “I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” This would be a time when people would have a new heart resulting in obedience to God (Ezek 36:25-27).
• Ezekiel anticipates a day when God will “pour out” the Spirit (39:29), the Spirit would enter people, and they would have new life (Ezek 37:1-14).

PENTECOST: FULFILLMENT OF EXPECTATIONS

On the day of Pentecost the Spirit is finally poured out and the Old Testament expectations of the Spirit begin to be fulfilled. As classical Pentecostal scholar Anthony Palma notes, “The events of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) were the climax of God’s promises made centuries before about the institution of the new covenant and the inauguration of the Age of the Spirit.”^[1]

Even though Acts emphasizes the fulfillment of some Old Testament expectations regarding the outpouring of the Spirit, all of the Old Testament expectations began to be fulfilled at Pentecost. Hence, post-Pentecost, Paul affirms that now that “the promise of the Spirit” has come (Gal 3:14, similarly Acts 2:33), “the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor 3:6) as the Spirit writes “on tablets of human hearts” (v. 3).  The new covenant through the Spirit fulfils Old Testament anticipations of the law being written on people’s hearts (Jer 31:31-34) and of the Spirit giving people a new heart, thereby enabling them to obey God (Ezek 36:26-27). Furthermore, as the Spirit enables people to love (1 Cor 13:1), they thereby fulfil the law (Rom 13:10).

READING ACTS IN LIGHT OF PAUL?

Is this understanding of Pentecost guilty of reading Acts in light of Paul’s letters? No. Rather, I understand the event of Pentecost as it is presented throughout the whole canon. Luke, the author of the book of Acts, contributes important pieces to our understanding of Pentecost, but Paul (and other New Testament authors) should also contribute to our understanding of Pentecost.

SO WHAT?

Explaining Pentecost only with an emphasis on Acts 1:8 inappropriately limits the outcome of Pentecost, since Pentecost was a fulfillment of numerous Old Testament expectations of the coming of the Spirit. The Old Testament prophets looked forward to an age when the Spirit would continue the (re)creative work of God, restore the covenant, and restore order, as the Spirit would give people a new heart and lead them to obedience to God. The New Testament affirms that as a result of Pentecost these expectations are now being fulfilled.

[1] Anthony D. Palma, The Holy Spirit: A Pentecostal Perspective (Springfield, MO: Logion, 2001), 96.

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