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SOCIETY
PRESIDENTIAL
FOR PENTECOSTAL
Stanley
M. Horton
November
As
president
press my appreciation
University.
All of our members
STUDIES ADDRESS
14, 1980
Studies,
let me ex-
greatest
Pentecostal appreciate
the
atmosphere on this
campus.
of the
Society
for Pentecostal
for the invitation to meet here at Oral Roberts
appreciate
the
part
of the Library here to
bring together
collection to be found
anywhere.
and the attitude of the students I sense
the tremendous effort on
what is
probably
the
I
personally
Conference in Vancouver, read there have
already appeared
Last
year
our
society
met as an
adjunct
of the World Pentecostal
Canada. Some of the excellent
succeeded
as a real
encouragement
papers in our new SPS
journal,
Pneuma. I
scholarship.
I want to
urge
wan to commend Dr. Bill Menzies for the excellent
job
he is
doing
as editor. He and I did our best this
year
to
get
new subscribers and
in
adding quite
a number. I believe Pneuma is needed
to Pentecostal
all of you to write to your friend and
urge your colleagues
to subscribe. We have no
subsidy,
and the need is
urgent.
We are
believing
to move on
your
hearts to
help
us.
Society
God
Stanley M Horton, (Th.D., Central Baptist Seminary), Immediate-Past-President of the
for Pentecostal Theology, is Professor of Old Testament Studies, Assemblies of God Graduate School, Springfield, Missouri.
48
1
Another
is the
encouragement I was
impressed
at Vancouver
scholarship
around the world.
Then from late December participate
Durope.
I was thrilled
especially
thing
I envision for the
Society
for Pentecostal Studies
of Pentecostal
with the evidences of God’s
blessing that is
reaching
out even in countries where we have no missionaries.
to the end of March it was
my privilege
to
in some of this
mighty
move of God in
India, Africa,
and
previous
response
Nairobi, spiritual,
West
by
what is
happening
in South India
They
were
intelligent, sharp, of cross-cultural communica-
which doesn’t
where in the last 5
years
more
people
have been saved than in the
200. In Madras I
preached
for the first
time, according
to their custom, with
my
shoes off. But it was
truly holy ground.
The
of the
people
to the
Spirit
and the Word was
beyond any- thing
I have seen in this
country
for a
long
time.
I was
especially impressed by
the caliber of the
young people God is
raising up
in the Bible
colleges
where I
taught
in
Bangalore,
Berlin,
and Brussels.
and with more
understanding
tion from their direction than I
expected. They
were all serious stu- dents of the Word, even
asking
for extra class
sessions-something
happen
here
very
often. I envision that some of them will soon be
ready
to enter into the kind of Pentecostal
Actually
in
Europe
society
is
trying
to
promote. ours is
already being
formed.
scholarship
our a
society
similar to
in
evangelical quarters
I have however found some are
surprised
that there are scholars of the Word
among
us. Too
many
non-Pente-
imagine
that Pentecostals
costal scholars but
experience.
fessor of
philosophy
quite
a few
things
I
appreciate.
about
experience. experience
are interested in
nothing
a man who
says
in his books
to do with
experience,
for
needs to be
guided
and tested
I am still
trying
to
faith that Bible calls for
A number of years ago at a
meeting
of the
Evangelical Theologi- cal
Society
I
engaged
in a conversation with Gordon
Clark,
then
pro-
at Butler
University,
When I
brought up
the
subject
of the baptism
in the
Holy Spirit
he cut me off by
saying,
“Now
you
are
talking
I don’t want
anything
can lead
you astray.
I
depend solely
on faith in the Word of God.” I realize that our
experience
by
the Word. But since I am not a
philosopher,
figure
out how one can have the obedient
and not have it
bring you
into
any
kind of
experience.
it is a thrill to me to look back over the
experiences
I have felt His
presence.
miracles. The
Holy Spirit
has made Jesus so
very
real to me. I also
progress
I have achieved as
part
of what
Actually, God has
brought
me
through.
include whatever intellectual God has done.
– 49-
I have seen
2
I had collected
dissertation. It
14:4 to
my
mind. “He that
speaketh I
dropped
desk,
and
everything the Lord.
One
thing
that stands out in
my memory
is the
point
of frustra- tion I reached when I was
trying
to
organize
the vast amount of material
during my
research for
my
doctoral
didn’t fit into
my
tentative outline and I couldn’t
get
it to
go together in
any logical way.
Then the Lord
brought
First Corinthians
in an unknown
tongue
edifieth himself.”
to
my
knees and let the
tongues
heart to the Lord and to the
Spirit.
After a time I went back to
my
fell into
place
with an ease that made me
praise
roll out as I
opened my
Clark,
Donald
Barn-
in
my teaching
Paraclete, my Helper,
Shortly
house came to
Springfield. terian Church in
Philadelphia years
he had been an
outspoken – and of about
everything
Many
other times the Lord has
given
me
help
in
tough problems
and
writing.
I have learned that the
Holy Spirit
is
my
in
every
area of
my
life.
after the time I talked to Gordon
He was then
pastor
of the Tenth
Presby-
and editor of
Eternity
magazine.
For critic of the Pentecostal movement
to
apologize
including to the Assemblies Assemblies.
else. But the Lord
gave
him a vision and showed him that He loved and needed His
people
in all
denominations,
the Pentecostals. So he came to
Springfield
of God leaders for the
things
he had said about the
I was invited to share in one of the sessions where he discussed his views. But he made it clear that
though
he still did not
agree
with us.
His chief
objection
he loved
us,
we
got
too much of our
was that he
thought
doctrine out of the Book of Acts. Acts, he said, was
simply
the
history
dispensations
and was not a church
of the
shifting
of
gears
between book. We needed
Others,
like
Anthony
Hoekema distinction between the historical
to
go
to the
epistles
for doctrine.
of Calvin
Seminary
make a
strong and didactic or
teaching
books.
pastors the Book
In
fact,
it is
quite
common to hear
people say
that we can’t
get
doc- trine or
theology
out of Acts because it is a historical book. We must go
to the didactic books for doctrine.
is that most of our Pentecostal
from the whole Bible and do not
overemphasize
it
may
seem that we talk too much about
Acts,
they neglect
it and then whenever
they
talk to us
there are
many
who think we are over-
it when we
give
it its
proper place.
We do admit that we find the Book of Acts the best
place
to find
for
believing
that the
baptism
for all believers.
Actually, my experience preach
of Acts. To outsiders but that is because
they bring
it
up. Unfortunately, emphasizing
encouragement
to be the normal
experience
– 50-
in the
Spirit
is intended Acts, too,
is the source
3
for the
teaching evidence of the
baptism
that
speaking
in other
tongues
in the
Spirit.
Ghost according
is the initial
physical
in the
Holy
As a
boy
I heard it over and over
again, “Baptized
to Acts 2:4.”
Actually,
there wasn’t
any
Pentecostal revival until people realized from the Word that the
baptism
Holy Spirit
was a distinct
experience periods
spoke
in other
tongues.
in the for
every
believer.
During many
it a
blessing
and was married she was
church near
Erie,
speaking
to a ladies
missionary Pennsylvania
speak
in
tongues
was all
Scripture
and fitted
together gathered
around afterward
excitedly
of church
history
the
Holy Spirit
filled individuals and
they
But
usually they
considered
that was the end of it. Before
my grandmother
group
in a
Baptist
about 1880. The
Spirit
came
upon
her and she
began
to
and then the
Spirit gave
her an
interpretation
that to form a
message.
The ladies and asked her what that
funny
the
foreign language
was. She didn’t know. She didn’t connect it with the Book of Acts or the First Corinthians either. She
just praised
and went on her
way.
In 1906 her
Lord for a wonderful
experience husband,
Elmer
Fisher,
was
pastor Glendale,
California. She she visited Los
Angeles,
You’re a
Baptist.”
an
experience
of
sanctification, you
could receive the
baptism
of the First
Baptist
Church in
the Azusa Street mission in
replied,
“You couldn’t have.
to have
style,
before
She didn’t
argue
with
she saw and heard what was
going
on and
exclaimed, “I
already
have this.”
They immediately
They
were
teaching
that it was
necessary
Holiness Methodist
in the
Spirit.
them. She
just
knelt down and
began
to seek the
Lord, and
in a few minutes she was
speaking
in tongues
again,
this time in Danish.
People were
coming
from all over the world to Azusa Street
So there was a Danish man there who understood her. A little later my mother,
then 11
years old,
received the
baptism
in the
Spirit
and
spoke
in French.
A
French-speaking
costal
experience. Or must we limit ourselves
at that time.
lady
there understood her. She
this.
ment that tell about Abraham
she
grew up
she
sought
out this
lady
and confirmed
There is no
question
then but that Acts is a valid source of Pente-
But is it a valid source of Pentecostal
to the
Epistles?
Where does Paul
go
in Romans 4 when he is
developing
of faith and
grace?
He
goes
to historical
and David. None of the
Epistles above
using history
to
develop
doctrine. Not
only so,
we read in one
3:16,
that all
Scripture
of the
epistles,
Second
Timothy inspiration
of
God,
and is
profitable. epistle says
it is
profitable
The
materialists,
the
humanists,
for?
Doctrine,
– 51-
theology?
Let’s
go
to the
epistles.
the doctrines portions
of the Old Testa-
are
is
given by And what is the first
thing
this
or
teaching.
the
antisupernaturalists picture
‘
4
mankind in the dark groping after
truth and
finding
a little here and
But this is
only
a false
applica-
there
by
some evolutionary process. tion of the
theory
of evolution. in the
days
of Abraham,
Ebla
recently
discovered
hundred
years
before Abraham.
The Bible
gives
a different
Men were
just
as smart as we are back in the
days
of ancient
Egypt,
and in ancient to have a
sophisticated
down into the stream
By
the
inspiration revelation
throughout were revealed
stand the
Scriptures. Cross and the Resurrection good understanding and
gave
that manifestation
civilization several
picture
than the humanists do. It
a
progressive history. Many great
truths
that is sometimes
Chris-
shows mankind fallen into the dark all right. But it shows God coming
of human life and
history
and
bringing light.
of the
Holy Spirit
He
brought
the Old Testament
early.
But more was added as time went on.
It was not
quite
the same in the New Testament. Luke 24:45 tells us how Jesus
opened
the minds of His
disciples
that
they might
under-
All of the New Testament was written with the
in full view. Acts 2 shows Peter had a
of all the facts of the
gospel
when he stood
up
of the
gift
of
prophecy
called his first sermon. Then as we go on in the Book of Acts we find in the sermons and in the
history
a great deal of very important tian
teaching.
Dr. Barnhouse has
gone
to be with the Lord. I am sure that he knows
by
now that the Book of Acts is indeed a Church Book.
ignore
the Book of Acts, however.
Quite
on the Book of Acts have come out in recent years.
But
they
all
forget
that Luke was a Pentecostal.
things
to avoid the Pentecostal cations of Acts. F. F. Bruce, for example, in his comments on Acts 2
on the
Day
of Pentecost can be called a
baptism
in the
Spirit.
All the other
experiences
But in Acts 11:16 he admits that Peter recognizes
as a
baptism
Not all non-Pentecostals a number of commentaries
do
devious,
almost subversive
says
that
only
what
happened
the House of Cornelius
Another recent commentary not mentioned
very significant.
people being
converted.
Many
of them
impli-
were
only fillings.
what
happened
at
in the
Spirit.
says
that the fact that
tongues
are
that Acts
me
again on the Book of Acts is that
when the Samaritans received the
Spirit
in Acts 8 is
Yet he does not seem to feel it is
significant
mentions water
baptism
in less than half the
places
where it tells about
One of the
things
that
impressed
and
again
as I was
writing my commentary
every
time. If he has some other
point
he will not
always repeat things
that are clear in other
they
needed a
convincing
Peter knew he would be called on the
carpet
for
going
into a Gentile home,
so he took six
good
Jewish
Christian
Luke does not tell
everything to
emphasize
places. Certainly
at Caesarea
– 52-
evidence.
believers
along
with him
5
as witnesses
of the statement must,
of course, manifestation
recognize
of edification
our
private
devotions. Spirit
in
proper perspective, be Pentecostal in our
theology, of the Christian
practise
of our
society accept.
We
But it
puts
no limits
and all the
gifts
of the
to
and in our
practise
theology
and lose the
power
and the
when he went to the house of Cornelius. The
convincing evidence that God
gave
was that
they spoke
in other
tongues.
In the midst of all the confusion today we still need a
convincing
evidence. Tongues
is still the
convincing
evidence. I am not ashamed that it is part
of faith that full members
that the Bible does
put
limits on the
of
tongues
in the
public meeting.
on it as the initial evidence of the
baptism
in the
Spirit
nor as a means
and of communication between our
spirit
and God in
Let us
keep tongues
of
course,
but let’s not be ashamed
in our
teaching,
life. Those who are
giving
Pentecostal
less and less
place
will
eventually
blessing. History
shows that this is
always
so. But we as the
Society
can
encourage
Then,
as Acts 3:19
indicates,
until Jesus comes.
It has been a
privilege
I never
expected
dent of this
great society
for Pentecostal studies this
year.
I thank you
for the honor and
pray
God’s continued
for Pentecostal Studies Church to become Pentecostal! have seasons of
refreshing
– 53-
and must
encourage
the whole
we can
or
hoped
for to be
presi-
blessings
on
you
all.
6
