Honestly, I don't think I can really nail down what I actually am. I don't claim to be anything other than a believer of Jesus Christ. I'm better at it some times than others, but one thing is certain - I believe the gospel, I study the Word of God, and I am trusting in Christ. And that sums me up pretty well.

Calvin, Luther, Edwards, Wesley, C.S. Lewis, (and even that heretic, Charles Finney) say a lot that identify with me. And yet, I ultimately will find things with all of them that I disagree with. But I make no attempt to reconcile any differences with them. Only with the Bible will I alter my ways to conform myself to it. Everyone else gets a good dose of my judgment.

But I can tell you plainly what I am not. I am not a Charismatic. Even though I started out that way, it was not very long before I and Charismatics parted ways.

Why?

Words and phrases such as:

On Fire for Jesus...
More Jesus...
Going after God...
Passionate about God (thanks to Mel)...
Hungry for Jesus...

What's the problem? I'll tell you the problem:

These words mean NOTHING. Or, worse yet, they mean anything, literally anything the speaker wants them to mean.

If I could sit down one of my former colleagues and just ask them, "What exactly do you mean by 'On Fire?'" I might get "a desire to pray." Or "a desire to read His word." Or, "I want to be more of a servant to those around me."

I would suggest, then, "Well, why don't you just SAY that? Why obscure it's meaning in a bunch of new-age, feelings-oriented, empty jargon that is no different than the language used by every other religion and cult in the world?"

But the truth is, they don't mean anything of the sort. They mean that they feel good about their "relationship" with Jesus. Whether they have any legitimate grounds to feel good about it, or anything else, they couldn't begin to comprehend - let alone affirm.

To most of them, its about the "experience" rather than about the Faith.

"Well, I came in, and I spent two hours singing love songs to Jesus, and I cried and got emotional, and I just felt so much love of Jesus coming over me that I just know that I'm 'on fire' for Him..."

For many of them, that's the whole depth of their theology.

For many of them, the mere use of the word "theology" or "doctrine" only makes them regard you as a serpent in their garden.

If you asked many of them "Have you examined yourself to see whether you are in the faith?" many of them would be offended and regard you as a "legalist". Or a "minister of doubt" when in fact, it's just the commandment of God's word that they do so - regularly.

In fact, what I believe happens is that "theology" and "doctrine" and "the faith" all brush up against their "experience" in a bad way. If experience is your foundation, then you are groovy so long as you're getting your groove on.

But doctrine has a way of rubbing the heart of man in the wrong way. And as soon as they even begin to consider that their doctrine might be important, it begins to rub their experience and feelings in the wrong way. The problem is simply that they have based their "religion" on feelings and they sacrifice all else to maintain the feeling. That means that when they have to choose between "feeling right" and "knowing that they are right", sound doctrine must, by necessity, go out the window.

Beyond “Hath God Said”

A conversation I had a few weeks ago with a Christian woman is illustrative.

“Do you want to know," she began, "how I learned about the Lord and Bible reading? God taught me. He said, ‘I want you to go home, right now. Close up the shop and go home. Take that [KJV] Bible that you have and throw it in the trash, and go to the bookstore and buy a [different] translation, and I will teach you about myself.’ So I did. And I set it out in front of me and wondered, ‘Now what?’ And God said ‘I want you to open to [thus-n-such] scripture.’ So I did, and I read it. And God asked me ‘Do you understand this?’ And I said ‘Yes, Lord.’ Then He said ‘Now I want you to go to this scripture… do you understand that?’ And I said ‘Yes Lord.’…”

On so on and so forth.

This lady just told me that, in spite of the fact that she was reading a Bible (if you'd care to call what she was reading a Bible), the real source of her knowledge was not the Bible itself that she was reading, but rather "direct, interactive, tutoring, directly from God." It's with the "interactive" part that she and I part ways.

God has never spoken to me. I’ve never heard Jesus say anything.

To her, and millions like her, God is a constant companion. Jesus is their friend. The Holy Spirit is a present guide. I have no problem with any of these things. The problem is that He is these things aside from, and apart from the Word of God. If you listen to some people, you get the idea that, to them, God is hanging just over their left shoulder, whispering in their ear. God is saying this, and God is saying that, and “oh, God just told me that I should do thus-n-such...”

This goes way beyond “Hath God Said?” So far in fact that we have gone to the far polar opposite: from Eve doubting God’s word to Eve putting words in God’s mouth.

On the other hand there are people like myself. God speaks, and guides and is a companion, but only through the reading of the Word of God. The Holy Spirit works by way of revelation in and through the Bible. But only through the Bible.

Thus, when I read, “for all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God” I immediately thought “this is talking about me.” And when the Bible says that “whosoever shall believe on Him shall not perish,” I again think, “this is me He is talking about.” And when in the Bible we are told to “cast all your cares upon Him, because he cares about you” - only then do I know that I have my companion.

I cannot hear Him any more than I can see Him. But the Holy Spirit, illuminating the pages of the Bible causes me to know that “He is a very present help in times of trouble.”

I am one of those whom Jesus had in mind when He said “blessed are they who have not seen and still believe anyway…”

There are lots and lots of other reasons, (utter abuse of the "gifts of the spirit" for one thing - see my other articles in that regard) but this is pretty much the main reason.

The whole thing has become experience-based instead of Bible-based. And they have begun to regard my position with suspicion. And I have, essentially dismissed theirs outright.

In the world of divorce law, this is called "irreconcilable differences." Perhaps I am a divorced-Charismatic.

But I'm content to so be.

Additional Reading:
Let No Man Deceive You

Settling Tongues