Nailing the Coffin Shut on Continuationism: the doctrine of the Holy Spirit (Part 3)

Many coninuationists, like Dr Wayne Garden referenced in the prior post, would affirm the completion of the Canon, the sufficiency of Scripture. But they, would argue, that cessationist's failure to recognize the present charismata shows a faulty understanding of pneumatology, the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, and a diminished appreciation of the Spirit. Does a proper understanding of the Spirit require an openness to experience Pentecostal phenomena? This post will attempt to survey certain aspect of pneumatology: Why did the Holy Spirit come; How is his work realized in a believer's life? 

From the middle of the 1st Century until the 1901 Azusa Street Revivals (1850 years) the charismata, tongues, prophecy knowledge, healings and miracles were nearly absent from the life of the church. Was the church blind to the accurate and full understanding of the Spirit; was there some reason God was withholding the Spirit's power; or was there a fuller experience of the Spirit that was to be expected in the last days (Joel 2:28-32)? Are these simply some kind of ecstatic or emotional experience, or are they a continuation of Pentecost for the church in the last days?

Jesus assured the believers assembled in the upper room that the coming of the Holy Spiriit would bring a fuller, and more glorious experience of God's presence and power than his [Jesus'] limited physical presence in His incarnation.  The glorious divine power and presence of the Holy Spirit is active throughout Scripture. He was present at the establishment of the Covenant of Redemption. The creation and redemption of all things was a result of the covenant between the Three-in-one before anything was (Gen 1: 26 & 27; Ps 2:7-12; Heb 1:8-14). God promised a kingdom for His Son, who promised to redeem and rule it, and the Spirit would Preside, Empower and Engage the King with His people. Jesus work is completed (Col 2:  9-16; Heb 10:9&10). The kingdom has been inaugurated. He has fulfilled the Old Covenant and established the New.

"But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises....In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (Heb 8:6&13 ESV)" The Holy Spirit is the fulfillment, the engagement, the realization of the New Covenant' it is he who is at work bringing the kingdom to consummation.:

"I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.(EZ 36:35-37; cf Jer 31: 32&33 ESV)"

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.(Rom 8:1-3 ESV).

John the Baptist who was the last Old Covenant prophet, prepared the way for Jesus Messianic coming (Lk 16:16&17), spoke of the Holy Spirit as the New Covenant's dynamic Person:

"The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!... [H]e who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ " (John 1:29-34 ESV) The Holy Spirit is the Personal God we know. He is the one who, identifies, initiates and sanctifies, convicts, renews, empowers and transfers us into the present and future kingdom reality (2 Cor 3: 1-17). 

The Holy Spirit is the Person of God who is with us. He is the Third Person of the Trinity. Jesus made specific promises about what the Spirit would provide. The Holy Spirit is our source of Peace, Our Counselor, He is our Friend, He is Our judge. It is he who transforms us, and shapes our character and produces fruit that manifest God's glory in our lives. He is the One who is realizing the Kingdom's presence and power in our lives. He baptizes us in to Christ Jesus and the Church. When we are baptized into his church he gives all Christians certain ministry gifts to be used to equip the body of Christ, the church, for service. He also gave revelatory gifts to some to reveal his will for living. Those gift appeared to cease as the Apostle Paul said they would, but some claim they have in the century manifest actively in the lives of some believers. 

Continuationist believe that Jesus taught that the kingdom of God is still moving toward its consumation and that Jesus taught the Holy Spirit would continue to show himself until the end of the age. That the Spirit anoints or fills some believers with a 2d baptism to fulfill his work in the believer, and that the baptism is confirmed in the life of the believer in their experience of the charismata. Many point to the anointing of the Spirit Jesus gave the apostles after his resurrection as a confirmation that the Spirit would come to believers in special filings and anointing. Cessationist's however, see that text as Jesus confirming on the revelatory function the Apostles were given in the first century. Let's look at that text:

[19] On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” [20] When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. [21] Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” [22] And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. [23] If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (John 20:19–23ESV)

 On a cursory reading of the upper room discourse (John 13-17) one is aware that Jesus tells his disciples that after he departs, they are to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit, and then he calls on them to receive the Holy Spirit while he is still present. Some charismatics take this passage as evidence that the reception of the Holy Spirit is an event separate from salvation and that those who were saved at that first Pentecost were to expect a further baptism. That is not what is happening at all.

As we have said earlier John the Baptist was the final Old Covenant prophet. [16] “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then, the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it." (Luke 16:16ESV) Each of the prophets had prepared and pointed the Jewish people to Christ (Luke 24:27). After John the covenant was going to be revealed to anyone "who could force their way into it." In other words, after John the promises and message of the covenant was no longer to be revealed through the Jewish nation and prophets. It was now open to anyone. Jesus made it clear that he was going to give a new revelation to the Apostles that establish a new covenant with all people and bring the Holy Spirit to dwell among all people through the church. The apostles were uniquely anointed for the revelation of the gospel to the nations. 

Although John was the final prophet the New Covenant had not yet been initiated as the Spirit had not yet come. The Old Covenant was still the ruling principle over God's people until Pentecost. This meant that until Pentecost the Holy Spirit would continue to function as he did in the Old Testament, instead of filling all believers, as He would from Pentecost on He, the Holy Spirit, filled Old Covenant believers to enable them to minister or prophecy as God required. As Jesus prepares to leave them prior to the realization of the New Covenant, he anoints them for the ministry God will have for them in revealing the gospel and founding the church. We know this because of the language he uses in this anointing. 

The Lord explained and commissioned the Apostles to establish the church, reveal the New Covenant and lead God's people. Jesus anointed them under the Old Covenant to prophetically establish the New. "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.' And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.' " 

Notice Jesus announce them with two things "Peace" and the ability to "forgive and retain sins."Jesus had earlier promised the disciples assembled in the Upper Room that the new revelation of spiritual truth and reality that he would reveal to them would be the source of Peace (John 14:12&13; 27&28). That the church would be the one through whom the gospel and, therefore, salvation came, and would be the moral authority for believers. (Mat 16: 13-20; 18:18-20).These are two roles the Apostles will fill, revealing the Scripture and identify true and false doctrine and teachers until the Canon is identified. In this final Old Covenant anointing Jesus identified and gave unction to the Apostle. This was a unique anointing for a unique role (Acts1:21-28). This defined Apostolic authority and role but didn't form the basis for special fi!!ings and giftings of the Spirit. The Post-resurrection anointing of the apostles sets no precedent for a distinct baptism of the Spirit, separate from salvation, nor, as we shall see is there any further evidence of such a filling in the book of Acts. There is no expectation in the gospels that Holy Spirit reveals himself in the life of believers through the charismata. There is simply no biblical grounds for contiunationism.