A TIME FOR WAR

“A time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:6-8

For generations Christians have struggled to reconcile their faith with the terrible demands of war. The bib­lical perspective seems to be that war is sometimes in the will of God.

I realize that to say that war may sometimes be in the will of God is to jump into a firestorm of controversy. Such a view is not popular today. I ate lunch with several fellow pastors and heard one of them say emphatically that war is always a sin.

Let me say that I think my pastoral friend is partly right and partly wrong. War is terrible in all its aspects, and I would never want to be known as someone who is “for” war. I’m not even sure what a statement like that would mean. I don’t know any sane person who is for war.

I think my friend is right to this degree: Wars come about because of the sinfulness of the human race. War­fare comes from the fallen nature of man. Whenever two nations go to war, sin is never absent. There may be sins of pride and oppression, or there may be sins of brutality and naked aggression, but sin is always part of the equa­tion.

I would go a step further and say that there is rarely a war so “pure” or “clean” that one side is totally right and the other side is totally wrong. Even where such a case ex­ists, there will almost always be some wrong motives on both sides.

But is going to war always and in every case sinful? I think not. Just before the Persian Gulf conflict started, Billy Graham said, “There come times when we have to fight for peace. Unfortunately, that’s been true of the whole history of the human race.” That doesn’t make every war right, but it does mean that some wars are in­deed justified in the eyes of God.

Better days are coming. In the last days God’s king­dom will finally be established on the earth and all the nations will be at peace. The law of the Lord will go forth from Jerusalem and the Lord Jesus Himself will settle the disputes that today end in war. So wise will be His rule that weapons of war will become obsolete. People will take their tanks and turn them into combines; their cruise missiles will become tractors; B-52 bombers will be melted down and transformed into solar-powered water purifiers. Bullets will become obsolete. All the gas masks will be thrown away. They won’t be needed in the king­dom Jesus will establish.

Best of all, the nations will not take up swords against one another. The old spiritual says it very well: “Gonna lay down my sword and shield, down by the riverside. Ain’t gonna study war no more.”

That’s how God intended it to be. Between now and then, nations will still go to war, but let us keep our eyes on the goal and let us work and pray for that day of last­ing peace to come.

Prince of Peace, show me what it means to be a peace­maker in a world filled with war. Amen.

SLAIN IN THE SPIRIT - DEMONIC DOCTRINE?

This has to be one of the most poisonous doctrines within the churches today, especially "charismatic" churches. I have seen people suddenly "pass out" after being shoved on the forehead by a minister and lay on the ground trembling and twitching, while the congregation praises God for the Holy Spirit "slaying" this person "in the spirit". 

I have also heard and read of more extreme cases where people being "slain in the spirit" have jerked and twitched to the point of where they hurt themselves and others (one man actually jerked so hard, he broke his neck and died); people have been slammed to the floor or have been thrown up to fifteen feet away, have barked and snapped like dogs, have laughed uncontrollably for hours (now called "holy laughter"), have been stuck to the floor unable to move, etc. 

And all of these things are being praised as being works of the Holy Spirit! Really? Passing out in church? Laughing uncontrollably? Jerking and twitching? Barking and snapping like dogs? Is this really the power of the Holy Spirit working within someone? The answer to that question is emphatically NO! Demonic manifestations? YES! 

There is nothing anywhere in Scripture to support the doctrine of being "slain in the spirit"! First of all, being "slain" is to be killed, and our spirits are eternal and therefore cannot be "slain", so therefore the very title of this phenomenon is wrong. 

Jesus never knocked anyone unconscious when He touched or healed them. The disciples were fully conscious when they received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and they ran into the streets rejoicing and praising God in other languages. There is no recording of fainting, twitching, snapping, barking or anything else of the sort in Scripture where God or the Holy Spirit were involved. 

JOHN 3:34
34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure [unto him]. 

Did Jesus cause violent reactions in people when He healed them? The Scripture above reports that Jesus had the Holy Spirit given to Him without measure! Did He pass out, twitch uncontrollably, or bark like a dog? If He did, He would have been declared to be demon-possessed and would have been hauled away to the loony bin, and His message and work here would have been lost. 

But there are at least two documented cases of demon activity causing similar manifestations to those "slain in the spirit.". 

LUKE 4:31-37
31 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.
32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.
33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,
34 Saying, Let [us] alone; what have we to do with thee, [thou] Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.
35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.
36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word [is] this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
37 And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about. 



MARK 9:14-27
14 And when he came to [his] disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them.
15 And straightway all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to [him] saluted him.
16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them?
17 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
19 He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
20 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things [are] possible to him that believeth.
24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, [Thou] dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And [the spirit] cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose. 

LUKE 9:38-42
38 And, behold, a man of the company cried out, saying, Master, I beseech thee, look upon my son: for he is mine only child.
39 And, lo, a spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he foameth again, and bruising him hardly departeth from him.
40 And I besought thy disciples to cast him out; and they could not.
41 And Jesus answering said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you, and suffer you? Bring thy son hither.
42 And as he was yet a coming, the devil threw him down, and tare [him]. And Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the child, and delivered him again to his father. 

Note some similarities here? The man in the synagogue was thrown to the ground by the demon before it came out. The demonic spirit in the boy "tears at him" and "bruises him", causes him to gnash (snap) his teeth, and throws him about, trying to destroy him. The both behaviors are marked with violence caused by these demon spirits, the same kind of violence that some Christians now claim is the power of the Holy Spirit! 

It is noteworthy here also, that the boy described above was possessed by a deaf and dumb spirit. There have been reported cases of being "slain in the spirit" where people were unable to speak for hours at a time. 

Note that the demonic spirit tore the child so badly before he came out that he required healing by Jesus! And note especially in Mark 9:25 that Jesus commanded that the spirit not re-enter the child. Those of you involved in deliverance ministries, please take careful note of this. 

These behaviors during the time that people are "slain in the spirit" are definitely not from God! They are the work of demonic spirits, and yet the churches praise God for His work in the lives of these poor deluded people. Satan must be holding his sides laughing at our gullibility. 

The work of the Spirit is never violent. As the apostle Paul says; 

GALATIANS 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 

Notice the key words in these two verses. Meekness, gentleness, peace, temperance (self-control). No violence of the types reported in the "slain in the spirit" phenomenon in the lives of believers is caused by the Holy Spirit. 



Jesus Himself said; 

MATTHEW 11:28-30
28 Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light. 



Being knocked unconscious or being thrown about is a common occurrence in Occult rituals and demon possession. So why do we allow it within the church, if there is no Scriptural instruction concerning it? Because members are not vigilant in discerning errors in doctrine within the church! I will be so bold as to say that we are so anxious to see some display of God's power within the church that we will accept anything that looks legitimate, even if there is no Scriptural basis for it! 

I have noted with great interest as have others, that those who are "slain in the Spirit"invariably fall backwards, usually because they are pushed or shoved on the forehead by the person doing the "slaying". And yet Scripture records that those who fall down in worship, fall forward on their faces in reverence to the Lord. Note the following Scriptural references; 

Abram (later called Abraham), called the Friend of God, fell on his face whenever God spoke to him directly. 

GENESIS 17:3
3 And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, 

GENESIS 17:17
17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall [a child] be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? 



Joseph's brothers fell on faces before him, not knowing he was their brother, giving him the reverence due his office;
.
GENESIS 50:18
18 And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we [be] thy servants. 



Balaam fell on his face before angel sent to destroy him; 

NUMBERS 22:31
31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head, and fell flat on his face. 



Joshua fell on face & worshipped before the Lord who appeared to him just before the battle of Jericho; 

JOSHUA 5:14
14 And he said, Nay; but [as] captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? 



Ezekiel, considered one of the greatest prophets of the Old Testament, fell down and worshiped on his face before the Lord; 

EZEKIEL 1:26 - 2:2
26 And above the firmament that [was] over their heads [was] the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne [was] the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.
27 And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.
28 As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so [was] the appearance of the brightness round about. This [was] the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw [it], I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake. 

Ezekiel 2:1-2
1 And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.
2 And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me. 



EZEKIEL 3:23
23 Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river of Chebar: and I fell on my face. 



When on the mount where Jesus was transfigured, Peter, James and John fell on their faces infear at His glory and at the voice of the Father when He spoke to them; 

MATTHEW 17:1-8
1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
6 And when the disciples heard [it], they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
7 And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
8 And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. 



Jesus Himself, in the Garden of Gethsamene, fell on His face before His Father giving Him reverence; 

MATTHEW 26:39
39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou [wilt]. 



A leper, hoping against hope to be healed of his disease, worshipped Jesus by falling on his face in reverence; 

LUKE 5:12
12 And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on [his] face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 



One of ten lepers healed by Jesus returned, loudly praising God, and worshiping Jesus; 

LUKE 17:16
16 And fell down on [his] face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. 



Paul, in speaking of the gifts of the Spirit mentions that if the whole church prophesy concerning an unbeliever; 

I CORINTHIANS 14:23-25
23 If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in [those that are] unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad?
24 But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or [one] unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all:
25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on [his] face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth. 



Now the OTHER side of the coin. Scripture records that falling backward is a sign of unbelief, sin and fear, not reverence!
The Lord speaking of rebellious Israel, stating that they were weary of following the Law spoke through Isaiah, saying; 

ISAIAH 28:13
13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, [and] there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. 



When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsamene, Jesus asked them whom they sought. They replied, "Jesus of Nazareth." 

JOHN 18:6
6 As soon then as he had said unto them, I am [he], they went backward, and fell to the ground. 

As Scripture reports, falling forward is a sign of worship and reverence, whereas falling backward is just the opposite! 



Invariably, with the "slaying in the spirit" phenomenon, there is no testing of the spirit(s) involved to see if they are from God. There are documented cases of demon infestation knocking a person unconscious, but nowhere is it recorded in Scripture that the Holy Spirit does such a thing. 

If you cannot prove or support a doctrine or practice with solid Scripture, in context, you have no right teaching it. Jesus condemned the Pharisees for this very thing, saying, 

MATTHEW 15:7-9
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias (Isaiah) prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh to me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. 9 But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 

The apostle Paul says, 

I THESSALONIANS 5:21
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 

And if one were to get strictly legal about this, there are only two cases in Scripture of someone being actually "slain by the Spirit" and that was Ananias and Sapphira, who died at the feet of Peter through the exercise of the power of the Holy Spirit as a lesson to others about deceit. 

ACTS 5:1-11
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 And kept back [part] of the price, his wife also being privy [to it], and brought a certain part, and laid [it] at the apostles' feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back [part] of the price of the land?
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried [him] out, and buried [him].
7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
9 Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband [are] at the door, and shall carry thee out.
10 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying [her] forth, buried [her] by her husband.
11 And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. 

Note, Peter never touched them. They merely fell down and were NOT violently thrown about, or anything else. 

The Lord gave me a dream some years ago. I was standing in a beautiful green field, watching a herd of fat, white sheep feeding. About twenty feet away from me crouched a huge tiger, who had killed and devoured at least one sheep already, for he had blood and wool around his mouth, and there was blood and bits of wool on the ground in front of him. He was looking at the other sheep, and snarling, and I could tell he was looking for his next victim. Yet the sheep continued to graze, seemingly totally unconcerned that this tiger was in their midst. 

Then the tiger saw me. He raced over and began to spring up and attack. I looked at him and commanded, "In the name of Jesus Christ, get down!" He immediately crouched at my feet, snarling and glaring at me with eyes that literally glowed yellow with hatred. He wanted to tear me apart, but could not. 

I awoke after that, and wrote it off as being a weird dream. But it kept nagging at me throughout the day, so I asked the Lord if He was trying to tell me something. He then told me that the sheep were the churches, and the tiger was Satan. Satan was destroying the churches one by one, and not only were the churches unaware of this, but they were totally unconcerned that it was happening. The destruction was of a spiritual nature, rather than physical. 

I hadn't thought about the dream in years, but recently when I was worshiping at church, I suddenly saw this tiger again, in my mind. I guess one could call it a vision. He was pacing at a distance in the parking lot, glaring at the church and snarling in rage and frustration, because the worship and the Spirit of the Lord was so strong that he couldn't come anywhere near it. 

Pastors of churches are set up by the Lord to feed and guard His flock. Yet many are falling under the condemnation of Isaiah in which the Lord says, 

ISAIAH 9:16
16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed. 

God speaking through Hosea, laments;
HOSEA 4:6
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. 



False doctrines such as "slaying in the spirit" which have no foundation in Scripture are being taught in the church fulfilling Paul's prophecy of, 

I TIMOTHY 4:1
1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils. 

And he sets an even harder line when he tells the Galatians, 

GALATIANS 1:8-9
8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. 

Note that Paul was so serious about this issue, that he included angels, himself and his companions under the curse! Note also, that curse is still active today. Pastors and elders, please take careful note of this! 



The apostle Peter also warns, 

2 PETER 2:1-2
1 But there were false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 



God gave us His inspired Word to instruct us as to what is required of us, and to help us discern errors that Satan tries to introduce among us. That is why it is so important that we study and understand the Scriptures, and carefully follow what they say. For if God demanded exact, careful attention to detail concerning worship and ordinances in the old Law, is He any less diligent that we follow the same exacting detail to the commandments in the New Testament today? 



God considers His Word to be so important that David says, 

PSALMS 138:2
2 I will worship toward Your holy temple, and praise your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; for you have magnified your word above all your name. 

God considers His Word to be so important, that He has elevated it above His own name! 

This also brings up another point aside from the issue at hand, but one that I feel should be included here. 

I have been to churches where as the pastor was preaching, people would jump up and "speak in tongues" or some other such thing. But as God has elevated His word above His name, He would never, ever, interrupt the preaching of the Word with a display of a spiritual gift!People that do this are following either their own desire for attention, or are attempting to display "gifts" that they do not have! And if you interrupt the preaching of God's word, will He not have an accounting of you for that? Especially if by your interruption you might be blocking a message that someone desperately needs to hear? (I'll deal more with this issue in the study on the Gifts of the Spirit) 

If you are a pastor of the church, it is your responsibility before God to teach your flock sound doctrine, as you will be held responsible by the Lord for what you teach. James says; 

JAMES 3:1
1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgement. 

In other words, those called to teach and preach the Word of God, will fall under a harsher judgement, as we are not only required to thoroughly know and understand what we teach and will be judged for our teachings, but we need to live as examples of that teaching. And while the judgement may be harder, the rewards for diligence as a teacher or preacher will be great also! 



Paul warned the leaders of the churches of Miletus and Ephesus to; 

ACTS 20:28-30
28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 



Pastors, elders, and teachers, God has given you an awesome responsibility, namely to shepherd His people. You are required to feed them, and shield them from false doctrines by providing sound teaching from the Word, much as a shepherd leads the sheep to pasture for feeding, and protects them from attacks from wolves. 

Note some of the requirements of a bishop (Greek episkopos, meaning a general overseer, or superintendent, not an established office of that title like some churches have). 

I TIMOTHY 3:2-6
2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. 

I TIMOTHY 3:11
11 Even so [must their] wives [be] grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. 

Leaders should be married, gifted with the ability to teach, vigilant to watch over the flock, and sober so they can readily discern attacks by Satan and his servants against the church. 

Paul further reiterates these rules to Titus, whom he had ordained to oversee the churches in Crete that had been formed, telling him; 

Titus 1:5-11
5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:
6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.
7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;
9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake. 

TITUS 2:1-8
1 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:
2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.
3 The aged women likewise, that [they be] in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
5 [To be] discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.
6 Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.
7 In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine [shewing] uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,
8 Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you. 

Church leaders are required to exhort good doctrine, expose false teachings, and counter those who teach falsehoods, so that the enemy cannot gain a foothold in the church. And yet it seems that few leaders follow these teachings, fearing to offend those in their congregations who might disagree with them. The Gospel being preached today is, "Let's not offend each other, but just love each other in the Lord."
This may sound good on the surface, but if you REALLY love someone, you will teach them the truth, even if it hurtsor offends them. Do you think Jesus will follow the "Let's just love each other" concept at the judgement? What will you say to these people when they receive the sentence of Hell, and ask you why you didn't tell them the truth? 

God told the prophet Ezekiel; 

Ezekiel 3:17-21
17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked [man] shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
20 Again, When a righteous [man] doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous [man], that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul. 

Ezekiel 33:1-9
Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman:
3 If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people;
4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.
5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul.
6 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take [any] person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.
7 So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.
8 When I say unto the wicked, O wicked [man], thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked [man] shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
9 Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. 

Note that God considered warning the wicked so important that He spoke twice to Ezekiel concerning it! How much blood will be on our hands because we allow false teachings within the church to lead people to Hell because we don't want to offend them? 



The dream I mentioned previously about the tiger is God's graphic example of what is happening to the churches today. They are being spiritually devoured, and they either are unaware or don't care that spiritual destruction is imminent. 

And sadly, these people will be deceived and brought under the sway of the Antichrist, for if they receive false doctrines now, how hard will it be to deceive them when the doctrines are accompanied by false signs and wonders? As Paul warns; 

2 Thessalonians 2:9-12
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [will let], until he be taken out of the way.
8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
9 [Even him], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 



Peter, warning the Jew and Gentile believers says; 

2 PETER 2:1-2
1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. 

Corrupt doctrines are being brought into the church by people distorting and twisting the Gospel to the point of where the Gospel itself is being rejected, and Christians are being held in contempt and derision by the world. Satanists I have spoken with have told me that members of their order are ministers of churches, and considering some of the unscriptural doctrines I hear being preached from the pulpits of some churches I have been to, I believe it. In fact, one church I attended had a demon-possessed pastor preaching in it, and his congregation didn't know it. 

Fair warning: When you allow a minister, elder or other church member to lay hands on you, you are not only submitting to the person, but to the spirit within the person! And if that spirit is a demon, you are submitting to the demon as you would to the Lord! This gives the demon legal right to have access to you. 

Paul, knowing what was to come gave this last ministerial charge to young Timothy, and through him, to us; 

II TIMOTHY 4:1-4
1 I charge [thee] therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4 And they shall turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. 



You who are pastors or church leaders have an awesome responsibility as a shepherd of your flock, and the spiritual welfare of your congregation is in your hands. And if you allow errors in doctrine or teaching to enter your church, God will hold you responsible for it, and for the blood of those whom you teach. And if you cannot square something with God's Word, in context, I would be wary of teaching it. We rather need to be like the Jews of Berea, who listened to the preaching of Paul, but as Scripture records; 

ACTS 17:12
12 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so. 

They indeed listened to Paul with open minds, but examined the Scriptures daily to verify what he preached before they accepted it! How many church leaders and members do that today? Sadly enough, from what I have seen in churches I have attended, not too many. Far too many have become like the Jews that Paul bewails in Romans, when he says; 

ROMANS 10:2
2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. 

In other words, they wanted to serve God, and were enthusiastic to do so, but were in ignorance of the Scriptures. And just like we say today, ignorance is no excuse especially when we have the Word readily available to us today. 

Be warned! Jesus said that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the only sin that will not be forgiven. Just as the Pharisees thought that Jesus cast out demons by the power of Satan, even so calling demonic activity the work of the Holy Spirit blasphemes the Holy Spirit. Paul was apparently aware of this while in Thyatira, in Asia; 

Acts 16:16-18
16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.
18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. 

On the surface, this seems odd that Paul would cast out the spirit of divination which was proclaiming that he and his companions were preachers of the Gospel. But if you consider the matter, the people of Thyatira knew this young woman was a fortuneteller, and Paul didn't want the people thinking she was speaking through the power of the Holy Spirit, because as Paul performed miracles, both he and the woman would be held in equal esteem, as people would assume that both powers came from the same source. And people would then attribute the power of the Holy Spirit to demons, thereby blaspheming the Holy Spirit. 



Jesus Himself warned the Pharisees; 

MATTHEW 12:22-32
22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?
24 But when the Pharisees heard [it], they said, This [fellow] doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
25 And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand:
26 And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?
27 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast [them] out? therefore they shall be your judges.
28 But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.
29 Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.
30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.
31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy [against] the [Holy] Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the [world] to come. 



One of the biggest errors of the "slain in the spirit" doctrine is that it glorifies the Holy Spirit more than Jesus. Yet Jesus Himself said, 

John 16:13-15
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you.
15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you. 

Note that Jesus said that the Spirit will glorify Him (Jesus). The Holy Spirit does not glorify Himself. And yet many charismatic churches concentrate on the gifts of the Spirit and give more glory to the Holy Spirit, than they do to the One who sent Him! 

Another error is the very reactions of the people who are "slain". If an unbeliever walked into a church where this was going on, he would probably flee in terror. People passing out, twitching, snapping, barking, etc. He would think he'd stumbled into an insane asylum! And yet what does Scripture say? 

1 Corinthians 14:33
33 For God is not [the author] of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints. 

1 Corinthians 14:40
40 Let all things be done decently and in order. 

2 Timothy 1:7
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 

In virtually all cases of people being "slain in the spirit" that I have seen, there was no order, but bedlam. Ministers shoving people on the forehead or blowing on people while demanding that God provide more of His Spirit by shouting "More! More!", people falling down, some twitching, others speaking in tongues, etc. Total confusion and chaos in virtually every case. And the use of tongues in each case is in clear violation of the order that Paul says they are to be used in I Corinthians 14. (For further information on this subject, please see the study on the Gifts of the Spirit.) 



In summary, the doctrine of being "slain in the spirit" has absolutely no foundation in Scripture, but does have foundation in the Occult. The Scriptures also record that demons will react with violence within a person, whereas the Holy Spirit does not. 

Scripture records that demon spirits will cause activity similar to that described in some of the "slain in the spirit" sessions, such as snapping of teeth, violent behavior, and slamming people to the ground. No doubt demons also cause people to bark like dogs, become stuck to the floor and other weird behaviors. 

Those of you who continue in this blasphemous practice are in danger of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, for you are calling these demonic works the work of the Holy Spirit even though Scripture clearly shows that this is not the case. 



Scripture warns us that we are to test the spirits, because not every spiritual manifestation is from God. John says; 

I JOHN 4:1-4
1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that [spirit] of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
It has been my experience that the person you question can say that Jesus is come in the flesh, but if you ask the spirit withinthe person, if the spirit is a demon, you will get a quite different answer, if they answer you at all. 

The very title of being "slain in the spirit" is a clue to the falseness of this doctrine. Our spirits are eternal; where we spend eternity depends on acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, accepting His sacrifice on the cross for our sins, believing that God raised Him from the dead, and being diligent to follow His commandments. And just as those found worthy to enter the kingdom of God are eternal beings, those who are sentenced to Hell will be tormented for eternity. 

All doctrine must be measured against God's Word and doctrines that cannot be supported by God's Word, in context, must be rejected! 

I have proven from Scripture that the "slain in the spirit" doctrine cannot be supported by Scripture, and in fact goes against Scripture. Those of you who read this, are now responsible for this information. If you continue to support this doctrine, then I will be free of your blood, for I have done as the Lord has commanded me, and have shown you the truth concerning this blasphemous doctrine. 

And if you choose to reject what I have written here without solid Scriptural proof that I am wrong, then you have rejected the One who inspired the very Scriptures I have used for my proof. Remember, Jesus said; 

JOHN 12:46-48
46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. 

May the Lord Jesus Christ open your eyes and grant you the discernment needed to recognize the truth of what I have written here.

IS THE PHENOMENON OF BEING SLAIN IN THE SPIRIT BIBLICAL ?

The phenomenon of 'falling down backward' is one which has gained unprecedented popularity in today's churches. However, it is a phenomenon which has absolutely no biblical standing whatsoever. In fact, it would indeed be laughable if it weren't so deadly serious an issue for the Church. There are many Christians who are curious about these odd occurrences and have asked if there is any biblical validation for these events. Subsequently, I am obliged to give a response, and a warning.

This phenomenon is usually declared to be the product of the act of 'laying on of hands,' which is the belief that a person receives the Holy Spirit of anointing when this is done. The subsequent falling down backward is defined as the physical response to the strong power of the Holy Spirit coming upon these people.

These curious events are known by many different names, including, 'falling down backwards, falling out, drunk in the Spirit, sleep in the Spirit, going down, slain in the Spirit, overcome by the Spirit, resting in the Spirit, and the sleep blessing..' As best we can tell, Maria Beulah Woodworth-Etter, a woman who preached in the holiness movement of the 1880’s, started this practice by falling out in her popular services of the time. She would often go into a trance-like state and fall down during her performances. She died in 1924, but her legacy of falling down backward in Church services has lived on. In modern times, it was brought back to great popularity by people in great numbers falling down in a small church in Toronto Canada. From this resurgence, many have also labled this, 'The Toronto Blessing,' where it is mixed with what is termed holy laughter.

Many Charismatics claim that apart from the anointing, falling down backward is also a phenomenon which brings both physical and emotional healing. They believe that it is a blessing of the spiritual gifts that God gives. However, the most agreed upon explanation or purpose for this act is that it is that of the anointing of the Spirit for the service to God. Much like Christ was anointed for the service of God when the Spirit descended like a dove. But all of these explanations are in stark contrast to all of the actual Biblical references to falling down backward. These are 'always' (without exception) seen in the context of God's judgment upon man, and are 'never' seen as any type of blessing, anointing, or healing. So if falling down backward is not anywhere seen in scripture as good or a blessed thing, then the question is, why are some professed Christians emulating this?

In order for faithful Christians to honestly establish if there is any real support in the scriptures for these experiences, we must be willing to examine the passages which have been offered up by these people as evidence that it is a Biblical practice. Therefore, in the first part of this article, we will examine the scriptures which actually speak about people who fall backward. And in the second part, we will address some of the scriptures which Charismatics use in an attempt to support their belief. If falling down backward is really a biblical practice, then we should clearly see it illustrated in the Bible. And if it is not a Biblical practice, then what we see in scripture should illustrate that this falling is unchristian, and unprecedented. If we are willing to surrender to the authority of the Word, we can clearly tell what is not the product of the Spirit of truth, and what is the working of a seducing spirit of deception. Because it's not as if God has not warned us false practices were coming upon the Church.

Passages Illustrating Falling Down Backwards

When we search through the scriptures we are struck by the realization that the witness of canon is that any and all 'falling down backward' is invariably in the context of God's Judgments upon man. It is never in the context of believers receiving the Holy Spirit, or of any blessing or benefit. We should not lose sight of the 'fact' that all other scriptures which those who profess belief in this phenomenon offer, do not actually speak of any 'falling down backward.' And most speak of no falling down at all. The first reference we will look at is in Genesis:

Genesis 49:16-17

• "Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.
• Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward".

Dan is your classic example of a man under Judgment of God who goes forth an adversary, that others may fall backward under that same judgment. The tribe or family of Dan was infamous for it's fall to idolatry (Judges 18:30-31), and their turning away from God to serve false gospels and false gods. In Genesis, Dan is equated with the serpent who bites at the heels of horses that the horsemen might 'fall backward.' i.e., it is a spiritual picture signifying his bite is to make the strong people to fall into judgment. In point of fact, the name Dan itself is the Hebrew word [dawn], meaning 'judge.' Indeed, Rachel herself declared that she named him Dan because God had judged her. Dan being 'the serpent' biting at the heels that one falls down backward, is God inspired spiritual truths concerning the evil spirit and God's judgment. From the beginning in the garden of Eden, in Genesis chapter 3 we see this symbolism of that Spirit Satan, as the serpent:

Genesis 3:15

• "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

Dan is equated with this serpent, Satan. He lies by the way attempting to bite the heel of the strong (horsemen are a symbol of strength) people that they fall backward, coming under judgment of God. Dan is a vessel of judgment. This tribe brought idolatry and false gospel to Israel so that it is cut off and not even mentioned in the census of revelation chapter 7, of the 12,000 sealed of "all" the tribes of Israel. By Dan's wickedness, he is used to Judge Israel. Much like God prophesies that he will send deceivers (2nd Thessalonians 2:9-12) with lying signs and wonders to deceive the unfaithful of the Church who will not receive the love of truth. It is illustrating that God uses false teachers to judge His Church. Likewise,

Genesis 49:16

• "Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.
• Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward."

This falling backward of those whom Dan accosts, signifies they are come under Judgment. In no way does this scripture showing 'falling backward' signify the anointing of the spirit, or a blessing of God. On the contrary, it signifies God's judgment, and an evil upon man.

1st Samuel 4:18

• "And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck brake, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years."

Likewise, this falling backward is in the context of the judgment that God sent upon the people of Israel for their rebellion. There was a great slaughter of Israel by the Philistines, and the ark of the Covenant, the symbol of God's promise to Israel, was taken by the heathen. God had foretold of His judgment upon Israel, and now he was bringing it to pass. That any of the examples of falling backward in scripture can be construed or used as proof that it illustrates a blessing, or an anointing, is beyond all rational thought. This man fell backward, broke his neck, and died 'because' the Ark of Israel was taken in Judgment. In no instances of scripture is falling down backward ever seen as anything but judgment. The Charismatic church should testify to the passages which 'actually' speak of this falling backward.

Isaiah 28:13

• "But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken."

The Lord is speaking here of rebellious Israel, that they would not hear His Word of truth, and He declares that they would be broken, caught in their own snare or web, to be trapped. And He uses the terminology of His judgment as them, 'falling backward.' We see that all roads lead to the same conclusion. And the conclusion is that the Biblical references of 'falling backward' do not ever signify the anointing of the Spirit of God, but signifies the wrath of God in his judgment upon rebellious man.

Likewise, when Judas betrayed Christ and the soldiers came to arrest Him in the Garden of Gethsamene, Jesus asked them who it was they sought, and their reply was, Jesus of Nazareth:

John 18:6

• "As soon then as he had said unto them, I Am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground."

Note that the word 'he' is not actually in the original manuscript, it was placed there by translators in an attempt to make the sentence flow smoothly. Jesus literally says, I AM, announcing He was the Great I AM (Exodus 3:13-14), the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. As soon as Christ said I AM, these wicked men who would come to accuse God, fell backward to the ground, signifying their own judgment. They had come to arrest righteous God for violation of the law, and God (not willing to stop His arrest, but to show forth His Authority), has them all 'fall backward' at the sound of His Glorious Name, 'I AM!' This isn't the picture the Charismatics want to paint of those who fall down backward, but it is the picture which God paints. No one 'caught' these men who fell backward, no one saw or alleged any anointing of them by the Spirit, and no one claimed that this was God's blessings upon these men. Because falling backward is a 'sign' of God's Judgment in scripture, not His Blessing. And in an ironic twist, this verse of John 18:6 is one which many attempt to use to support their claims of Biblical precedence for their belief in falling backward. On the contrary, it illustrates just the opposite. That it signifies those who come under Judgment of the Great I AM, and not those who are blessed of God.

These are the passages which speak of falling backward in scripture, and not one of them give one shred of support to such doctrines as Christians being slain in the spirit or Holy laughter. It supports the truth that this event signifies God's judgment. If we are going to go by the scriptural record of what men falling down backwards entails, then we have clear validation that it involves those under the Judgment of God. It is not something which any Christian would ever want to be associated with.

Passages purported to support Falling Down Backwards

Advocates of this practice allege that there indeed is Scriptural warrant, but does this claim hold up under close biblical examination? There are no explicit biblical references, but there are some passages which Charismatics say 'imply' the act of falling down backward or being slain in the spirit. The passages which they most often submit as supporting their beliefs are Genesis 15:12 and 17:3, Numbers 22:30 and 24:4, Joshua 5:14, Ezekiel 1:28, Matthew 17:5-6, Revelation 7:11 and 11:16, and Acts 9:3-4. Let's look at each of these scriptures in their proper context, and without prejudice.

Genesis 15:12

• "And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him."

This scripture says a deep sleep fell upon Abraham, it doesn't say a word about being slain in the spirit, falling backward, fainting, or passing out. Nor does this biblical reference bear any resemblance whatsoever to what goes on in the Churches today. This passage fails miserably as a proof text for the teaching that Christians fall down backward as a sign of anointing. At best it says when darkness came, he fell asleep. It doesn't say that Abram fell, it says a deep sleep fell upon him. A totally different context.

Numbers 22:27

• "And when the ass saw the angel of the LORD, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a staff."

This Hebrew word translated fell is [rabats], which means to crouch or to lie down. In no instance does it mean an involuntary falling backward. To use this passage as support for such events is taking liberties above and beyond what can be 'honestly' justified. The ass simply crouched down or lay down under Balaam because of what he saw. He did not fall backward, nor is there anything here that would allow this episode to be used to support such actions in the Church today. It's ridiculous to say this proves we can fall down backward in the Churches.

Genesis 17:3

• "And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,"

Joshua 5:14

• "And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant?"

Ezekiel 1:28

• "As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake."

These are people going down to the ground in reverence for God, a 'voluntary' act of obeisance, respect, and submission, not the spirit knocking them down or putting them to sleep. Obviously these people have no concept of the application of the Hebrew word 'fell' [naphal] in the sense of going down. Nevertheless, these also do not show an involuntary falling either backward or forward. We plainly see all throughout scripture that the prophets of God, acknowledging the Glory, Vision, and Magnificence of God's presence, would fall (that is to say, drop or go down) with their face to the ground as a sign of reverence and obeisance. None of these Holy men were stupefied, fainting, passing out or confused, nor were they prodded by other Prophets, nor did they fall backward as is the practice of Charismatics. Scripture tells us that they fell on their faces, which is a synonym for going down to their knees to kneel and bow in fear and reverence to God. None of these scriptures support the phenomenon of falling down backward. They are used by the proponents of these doctrines unjustifiably. It is simply another classic example of people 'reading one's own views into the scripture,' rather than actually reading these scripture.

Numbers 24:4

• "He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:"

This passage doesn't speak of being slain in the spirit, doesn't show the act of falling down backward, or falling at all. And again, it doesn't bear any resemblance to what is today's Church phenomenon. It merely speaks of a man receiving a vision of God, and going into a trance. The very same application used if we were to say, 'the soldier fell into formation.' It is not falling 'as in' losing balance and falling down, but he fell in the causative sense of having gone into the formation. Likewise, the application of the word here is that this prophet has gone into a trance, not physically fell down. There are many different applications of the word fall, as we saw it used in the sense that prophets (voluntarily) fall (go down) with their faces bowed in worship. These have nothing whatsoever to do with a Preacher touching a christian on the forehead, and him falling backward to the ground in an uncontrollable fashion. More examples of this voluntary going down is illustrated in New Testament passages such as Matthew and Luke:

Matthew 17:5-6

• "While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
• And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid."

Luke 17:16

• "And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan."

Again, just what saw in the Old Testament passages. The Apostles of God fell to their face voluntarily, in fear, or reverence and obeisance to the presence of God.

Revelation 7:11

• "And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,"

Revelation 11:16

• "And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,"

To suggest that these verses are picturing falling down backward or being slain in the Spirit would be laughable if it wasn't so serious. What this actually does is support just the opposite. Namely, this falling on the face is a voluntary act, and in reverence and to worship God. It is not the anointing of the Spirit, and it is not falling down backwards.

Acts 9:3-4

• "And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:
• And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?"

Even in our day (in war for example), when a man comes face to face with his opponent who has the power to kill him, he goes down to the ground or to his knees in submission and fear. We saw this in the Gulf war. How much more Saul standing in the presence of the Light of God from Heaven? But it has nothing to do with being slain in the spirit phenomenon. Man is in fear when in the presence of the Almighty God, and he falls to the earth in terror at the voice of God. We have scripture after scripture in the Old Testament Proving just that, and I'm sure we all know them. Man falling to the ground in fear has nothing to do with being drunk in the Spirit, but with his knowledge of his frailty before a great power, or that he is in the presence of the Almighty God, the Great 'I AM!'

And so considering all these scriptures which the Charismatics use in the attempt to support their actions, we can only humbly conclude that not one single passage supports this unbiblical phenomenon. It is a case of men grasping at straws in order to rationalize their unGodly actions. Moreover, in none of these verses, was there ever anyone actually falling down backward because of things that happened during a worship service or a Church gathering. In fact, there was no falling down period, there was a voluntary falling to their face in reverence or fear. This is very significant. It is the same as if we were to say, "Bill saw the vision, and fell to his knees in prayer." For someone to take from this statement that not only did Bill fall down backward, but that this also now gives us warrant to do this in the Churches, is nothing short of ludicrous. These men did not lose control of their senses. They did not fall down. They were not twitching and jerking uncontrollably. There is no warrant in any of these verses for the practice that we see in the Churches today.

Conclusion

In this study we have shown that there is no real scriptural support for the falling down backward experience. The precedence in scripture is that such experiences signify God's judgment, and this seems to me in perfect harmony with the Churches which practice this. They are false Churches under judgment. No 'Bible believing' Christian should want to have anything to do with this plague of falling down backwards. While Charismatics claim that they are following the Bible, this is an untenable declaration, as the witness of Holy Canon is void of any accounts, testimonies, experiences or doctrines like the ones they are attributing to God. These are very serious offenses, and are not non-essentials which we can just wink at.

Search as we may, we will not ever find anything in scripture where Christians were lined up, catchers stationed, and The Apostles or Christ tapped them on the forehead and watched them 'fall down backward.' The idea is foreign to scripture. We're not going to find it there because it is a ridiculously unbiblical practice. When the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus, anointing Him for His ministry (by the baptism of John), Jesus did not fall down backward. No one that Jesus or the Apostles ever touched or laid hands on fell down backward. The truth is, this is a doctrine pulled from the dark inner minds of the imaginations of men, not from the pages of Holy canon. It does not draw from Scripture. The claim of a Scriptural foundation for it does not hold up under the light of God's Word. Both the historical and the modern 'slain in the spirit' services are more from pagan themes and the occult, than from anything in scripture. And since these experiences are obviously not by the Holy Spirit of God, we can only conclude that it is by the spirit of disobedience. Another substitute (anti) spirit, masquerading as the Spirit of God. A spirit of lust for the fleshly and temporal experience. A spirit of deception, wherein Satan's lie is made to appear as God's truth. The spirit of Dan, a serpent nipping at the heels of horsemen that the rider may fall backward and be trapped or caught in a web. A spirit of Judgment, where the wrath of God abides upon it. For no false gospel shall be a Saving gospel, nor false spirit a Saving spirit, and no sign of Judgment a sign of Blessing. Christ is not in the business of mocking Himself. These are two different gospels, and two different spirits.

In conclusion, we can see that the popularity of this phenomenon is just another example of a 'spiritual' falling backward. A falling away or apostasy which is devastating the Churches in our day. It is professed Christians departing from the faith, and falling away from God. We are in a time where there is little reliance upon the Authority of the Word of God, as men change these laws to suit their own agenda and beliefs. God has always used falling as a 'sign' that His people are coming under judgment.

1st Timothy 4:1

• "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;"

People of the Church giving heed to seducing spirits, not the Spirit of Christ, and because of this they shall be Judged. As the Bible clearly indicated, falling backward is a 'sign' of Judgment. The product of a seducing spirit, not the anointing Spirit.

To be sure, when true believers fall, it isn't a involuntary fall, as the Charismatics do, but rather a fall or quick decent to our knees, faces bowed to the earth in humble prayer and worship of God. No preacher pushed us, we fell to our knees voluntarily. As did Jesus Himself, our precious example (in the Garden of Gethsamene). He fell on His face before His Father giving Him reverence. He did not actually 'fall down,' as Charismatics attempt to use the word, rather, He voluntarily dropped or went down with his face to the earth. To fall is by implication, to go down. It doesn't mean literally falling as these suppose, and as was so clearly illustrated in that garden:

Matthew 26:39

• "And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Jesus, as all the Prophets and believers, fell forward in prayer, not backward. And they fell or dropped down in reverence. Falling backward is shown by God as Judgment, not anointing, healing, or blessing. So let us all in subjection pray that many will begin to learn the difference between falling backward, and falling on our faces to worship our God.

And may the Lord who is Gracious above all, give us the wisdom to 'Stand' and to discern His truths in these days of the rampant degradation of the Church.

1st Thessalonians 5:21

• "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good."

Amen!

GOD IN THREE PERSONS' : A DOCTRINE WE BARELY UNDERSTAND

By Ray Pritchard

All Christians believe the doctrine of the Trinity. If you do not believe this—that is, if you have come to a settled conclusion that the doctrine of the Trinity is not true—you are not a Christian at all. You are in fact a heretic. Those words may sound harsh, but they represent the judgment of the Christian church across the centuries. Christians in every land unite in proclaiming that our God eternally exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Those who deny that truth place themselves outside the pale of Christian orthodoxy.

Having said that, I admit that no one fully understands it. It is a mystery and a paradox. Yet I believe it is true.

I can think of at least three reasons for believing in the Trinity:

1. The Bible teaches this doctrine.

2. Christians everywhere have always believed it.

3. No other explanation makes sense.

Someone has said it this way: If you try to explain the Trinity, you will lose your mind. But if you deny it, you will lose your soul.

The Doctrine Defined

There are many places we might go to find a suitable definition. Any of the great ecumenical creeds would serve us well in this regard. However, let's stick closer to home and simply reprint Article B—The True God from the Calvary Memorial Church Articles of Faith.

We believe in one living and true God who is the Creator of heaven and earth; who is eternal, almighty, unchangeable, infinitely powerful, wise, just and holy.

We believe that the one God eternally exists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and that these three are one God, co-equal and co-eternal, having precisely the same nature and attributes, and worthy of precisely the same worship, confidence, and obedience. Matthew 3:16, 17; Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 12:29; John 1:14; Acts 5:3, 4; II Corinthians 13:14.

While I am sure that this statement is biblically accurate, I also understand that it can seem very intimidating. Let's break it down into six smaller statements:

One God and One Only

Exists in three Persons

Equal and Eternal

Worthy of equal praise and worship

Distinct yet acting in unity

Constituting the one true God of the Bible

As you might imagine, the early church struggled mightily over this doctrine. They eventually reduced their belief in the Trinity to two short statements. They concluded that God is …

One in Essence

Three in Person

When we say these things we mean that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, but they are not three gods but only one God. The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, the Spirit is not the Father, but each is God individually and yet they are together the one true God of the Bible.

Have you ever seen the word "Godhead?" Theologians sometimes use that term when they want to refer to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit as three divine Persons in one God.

At this point I think we should acknowledge the chief objection to the doctrine of the Trinity, which is that it is absurd. Sometimes the Jehovah's Witnesses (who pointedly deny the Trinity) ridicule it with this little equation: 1 + 1 + 1 = 3. In their minds Christians worship three Gods, not one. The answer is quite simple. The doctrine of the Trinity is not absurd if that's what the Bible teaches. Furthermore, there is more than one way to play with equations. You could also say it this way: 1 x 1 x 1 = 1!

The Doctrine Explained

What exactly do we mean when we speak of the Trinity? Let's start with the negative and work toward the positive.

A. What we don't mean

First of all, Christians don't believe in three Gods. That's a heresy called Tritheism. Second, we don't believe that the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit are three "forms" of God—like, steam, water and ice. That's the heresy called Modalism. Third, we don't believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are "parts" or "pieces" or God. That would imply that Jesus is 1/3rd God, the Father is 1/3rd God, and the Holy Spirit is 1/3rd God.

B. Where do we find this doctrine in the Bible?

I would answer that the Trinity is taught in both the Old and the New Testaments. It is taught by implication in the Old and by direct statement in the New.

For instance, the Bible contains numerous clear statements regarding the unity of God: Deuteronomy 6:4 tells us that "the Lord is one." 1 Corinthians 8:4 adds that "there is no God but one." 1 Timothy 2:5 explicitly says "there is one God." All Christians heartily affirm this truth.

However, the Bible also contains clear statements regarding diversity within that unity. For instance, in the very first verse of the Bible we are told that "In the beginning God." The Hebrew word for God is elohim, which is actually a plural form of the word el. It's a word that in other contexts is sometimes translated as "gods," referring to heathen deities. Later in the same chapter we have one of the most striking statements of diversity-in-unity:

Then God said, ‘‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:26-27

Notice the shift in pronouns. "Let us … in our image … So God created man in his own image. … he created him." From us and our to he. Why the shift? Commentators speak of a literary form called the plural of majesty or the "editorial we." This much is certainly true. If Genesis 1 does not explicitly teach diversity-in-unity within the Godhead, it certainly leaves room for it to be developed later in the Bible.

Isaiah 48:16 seems to explicitly refer to all three Persons of the Trinity (with my additions in parentheses): "And now the Sovereign LORD (the Father) has sent me (the Son), with his Spirit (the Holy Spirit)." I'm not suggesting that Isaiah fully understood the Trinity or that the Jewish readers would have understood what it meant, but I do think that in the light of the New Testament, we can say that this seems to be a clear statement of the Trinity in the Old Testament.

Consider further this line of evidence. All Three Persons are called God in different places in the Bible.

Father — Galatians 1:1

Son — John 20:28

Spirit — Acts 5:3-4

How could the Son and the Spirit be called God unless they somehow share in God's essence? But if they share in God's essence, they are God alongside the Father.

Finally, all three Persons are associated together on an equal basis in numerous passages:

Jesus' baptism—Matthew 3:13-17 (voice of the Father, Son baptized, Spirit descending like a dove).

Salvation—1 Peter 1:2 (chosen by the Father, sanctified by the Spirit, sprinkled with the blood of Jesus).

Sanctification—2 Corinthians 13:14 (grace of the Lord Jesus, love of God, fellowship of the Holy Spirit).

Christian Baptism—Matthew 28:19 (baptized in one name, yet three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).

Prayer—Ephesians 3:14-21 (strengthened by his Spirit, know the love of Christ, filled with the fullness of God).

Christian Growth—2 Thessalonians 2:13 (chosen by God, loved by the Lord, sanctified by the Spirit).

This list of passages might be extended. It simply shows how easily the writers of Scripture passed from one Person of the Trinity to another, doing so in a way that assumes their equality of nature while preserving their distinct personhood. If the doctrine of the Trinity is not true, it would seem to be blasphemy to speak so freely of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in one and the same breath.

The Doctrine Examined

In this section of the message I want to examine some of the common questions about the Trinity.

A. Where in the Bible do you find the word Trinity?

The word "Trinity" is not in the Bible. Neither is the word "Inerrancy" but we don't discard it simply because it isn't found in the Bible. The issue is not the word, but the concept or the idea. We don't believe in the Trinity because of the word, but because of what the Bible teaches.

B. Is there another word we could use?

Yes there is. Theologians sometimes speak of the Tri-Unity of God. That's a good word—even though it sounds odd to our ears—because it combines the two ideas of unity and diversity in one word. There is a third word you should know. Sometimes we speak of the "Triune" God. That's also another word that means the same thing as Trinity.

C. How can we illustrate the Trinity?

A number of illustrations have been suggested. They all are useful as long as you remember they are only illustrations. For water can exist as solid, liquid, or steam. That's okay, but usually water only exists in one state at a time. However, there is a physical condition in which water can exist as solid, liquid and steam at the same time—which would be a much better illustration of the Trinity.

There are others we could mention. An egg is made up of a shell, the eggwhite, and the yolk. All three are needed for an egg to be complete. One of the more interesting illustrations note the different roles a person can play. I am a father, a son and a husband at one and the same time. Yet I am only one person. Perhaps a more biblical approach is to consider that a husband and wife are two persons yet in God's eyes they are "one flesh." Add children and then you have the family as a miniature (and very imperfect) version of the Trinity.

Tony Evans commented that the pretzel is a good illustration because it consists of one piece of dough with three holes. Take away any one of the holes and the pretzel isn't really a pretzel anymore. (According to some people, the pretzel was actually invented in Europe several hundred years ago by a monk who wanted to illustrate the Trinity to the children of his village so he took some dough, looped into the familiar three-hour shape, based it, and gave it to the children as an edible object lesson.)

My personal favorite illustration comes from noted scientist Dr. Henry Morris. He notes that the entire universe is trinitarian by design. The universe consists of three things: matter, space, and time. Take away any one of those three and the universe would cease to exist. But each one of those is itself a trinity.

Matter = mass + energy + motion

Space = length + height + breadth

Time = past + present + future

Thus the whole universe witnesses to the character of the God who made it (cf. Psalm 19:1).

It's important to remember that all illustrations fail eventually. They don't "prove" the Trinity, they simply help us understand the concept.

The Doctrine Applied

I am sure that many Christians think this doctrine has no practical value. That is, even if it's true, it doesn't and shouldn't matter to them. However, that simply isn't true. Let me suggest five important ramifications of this truth.

A. The Trinity helps us answer the question, "What was God doing before he created the universe?"

This is a question little children like to stump their parents with. But skeptics like to ask it as well. You may remember Augustine's answer: "He was preparing Hell for people who ask questions like that!"

But the Trinity teaches us that before the foundation of the world, God was having fellowship within his own being. That's why the Bible tells us that the Father loves the Son (John 17:24). In some sense we can never understand that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit have forever communicated and loved each other.

Francis Schaeffer emphasized this point in his books. This, he says, is where the human desire for intimacy and communication comes from. We were made to communicate. That design is part of the image of God within each of us.

It also teaches us that God is never "lonely." He didn't create us because he "needed" us. God could have existed forever without us. That he made us at all is a statement of his great love and the wisdom of his plan.

B. The Trinity sets the limits on human speculation about the nature of God.

There is so much we would like to know about God, but our finite minds cannot comprehend it. We are not free to create God in our own image. The Trinity sets the limits for human speculation. God is more than the Trinity, but he is not less than that.

C. The Trinity teaches us that God is beyond all human comprehension.

After all, if we could explain God, he wouldn't be God. I have no doubt that God is much more than "one in essence, three in Person," but since I can't even understand those simple phrases, I don't worry at all about what else might be true about God. If you feel baffled by the Trinity, join the crowd. The greatest minds of history have stood in amazement before a God so great that he cannot be contained by our puny explanations.

D. The Trinity exalts the Son and the Spirit.

We all know that God the Father is to be worshiped. But what about Jesus Christ? If he is God, should we not also worship him? The answer of course is yes. But that truth leads us back to the Trinity. He is not merely the Son of God but also God the Son. The same thing may be said about the Holy Spirit. He is not just a "force" but a Divine Person. Not an "influence" or some vague power, but the Third Person of the Trinity.

Let me draw one important inference. Since all Three Persons of the Trinity are equally God, we may pray to any member of the Trinity. That, by the way, is the number one question I have been asked about the Holy Spirit since writing Names of the Holy Spirit. Many Christians simply do not feel comfortable praying to the Spirit even though we often sing songs that are essentially prayers to the Spirit, such as "Spirit of God, descend upon my heart" and "Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me." Surely if we may sing to the Spirit, we may also pray to him. If he is God, our prayers may be directed to him.

I do agree that Christian prayers will customarily be made to the Father (e.g. The Lord's Prayer). But let us not quibble or imagine that the Father is slighted if we direct our prayers to the Son or to the Spirit, according to the need of the moment. There is no jealousy among the members of the Trinity nor could there ever be.

E. The Trinity helps us understand what really happened at the Cross.

At the climax of Jesus' suffering, he cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" What do those strange, tortured words mean? We have a hint of the answer in that every other time Jesus prayed, he used the term "Father." But at that moment, when he bore the full weight of the sins of the world, when all that is evil and wretched was poured out upon him, in some way we cannot begin to fathom, God—who cannot look upon sin—turned his back on his own Son. Sin as it were (though not in ultimate reality) caused a rupture in the Trinity. Instead of "Father," Jesus cries out, "My God, my God!" It is God speaking to God. The eternal Son cries out to the Father at the moment when the penalty of sin has been laid upon him. If it be asked, how could one man pay for the sins of the entire race, we find the answer in the doctrine of the Trinity. Only an infinite God could bear the sins of the world!

A Doctrine that Unites and Divides

The doctrine of the Trinity has been called the most puzzling doctrine in the Christian faith and the central truth of the Christian faith. Which is it? Inscrutable puzzle or central truth? The answer is, both are true.

This doctrine unites all true Christians and separates us from those who are not Christian. You may believe and still not be a Christian, but if you deny this doctrine in your heart, you are not a Christian at all.

I come now to the end of my sermon. In so doing I end where I began. The Trinity is a doctrine that all Christians believe but no one really understands. That much should be clear from this message. If you try to explain the Trinity, you will lose your mind. But if you deny it, you will lose your soul.

The Arithmetic of Heaven

Someone asked Daniel Webster, who happened to be a fervent Christian, "How can a man of your intellect believe in the Trinity?" "I do not pretend fully to understand the arithmetic of heaven now," he replied. That's a good phrase—the arithmetic of heaven.

The Trinity should cause us to bow in humble adoration before a God who is greater than our minds could ever comprehend.

Let us rejoice that we have a Triune God who has provided for a Trinitarian salvation. When we were lost in sin, our God acted in every Person of his being to save us. The Father gave the Son, the Son offered himself on the Cross, and the Holy Spirit brought us to Jesus. We were so lost that it took every member of the Godhead to save us.

In 1774 a man named Ignaz Franz wrote a hymn of praise to the Trinity: Holy God, We Praise Your Name. Verse three may serve as an apt conclusion to this message.

"Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit, Three we name you;

While in essence only one, undivided God we claim you.

Then, adoring, bend the knee, and confess the mystery."

Indeed it is a mystery, and with all the saints we bend the knee in worship before our great God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

For more answers to questions about the Trinity and other topics, visit Jesus.org!

Dr. Ray Pritchard is the president of Keep Believing Ministries. He has ministered extensively overseas and is a frequent conference speaker and guest on Christian radio and television talk shows. He is the author of 27 books, including Credo, The Healing Power of Forgiveness, An Anchor for the Soul and Why Did This Happen to Me? Ray and Marlene, his wife of 35 years, have three sons - Josh, Mark and Nick. His hobbies include biking, surfing the Internet, and anything related to the Civil War.