pent01 Why I am not Pentecostal explains the doctrinal and practice errors of the Pentecostal movement. Note that not all Pentecostal groups nor Pentecostal churches are involved in these errors, just the majority.
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Why I am not Pentecostal
Do they truly represent the truth of God?
by David Cox
[pent01] v1 ©2006 www www.coxtracts.com
This tract can be photocopied and printed freely.
But now ye seek to Hill me, a man that hath told you the truth. John 8:40
Their History: Much of the theology of this movement began with Edgar Irving (the Keswick Movement, or Abundant Life) in England in 1873. These groups wanted spiritual cleansing and power to serve and promoted a renewal of the spiritual gifts to achieve this. They used the concept of the Spiritual baptism as a second work of grace after salvation and thousands supposedly received this. Others later associated this with speaking in tongues. In the US, A.B. Simpson and A.J. Gordon included divine healings in the atonement.
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why I am not pentecostal
Officially the Pentecostal Movement began in 1901 in Topeka, Kansas in Parham’s Bible Institute with a dozen students. Its roots run back to Methodism (Wesley) and the Holiness Movement that came out of the Anglican Church. In 1993 Pentecostalism had more than 420 million members around the world.
Their Authority IS in Not the Bible
Truthfully, the authority structure of Pentecostals is emotionalism. They use the Bible to promote their “take” on the things of God, but they themselves are not submissive to the divine authority God presents in Scripture. They feel that “something has to be” (their feelings), and for them, this is the truth that the Bible presents and nothing else matter. This is their foundation, that they seek miracles, healings, and supernatural experiences to establish their religious experience.
In Matthew 7:22, Jesus warned us of the false prophets and said that in judgment day they would defend themselves before God using their miracles. But Jesus said that they would be cast into hell anyway because they did not have a saving relationship with God. It is a grave error to seek and defend oneself with supernatural miracles and not with clear obedience to the will of God presented as essential in the Bible.
On the other hand, the Bible presents us with the Devil as the God of this world who can copy almost any kind of supernatural event that God can do, and he does this specifically to deceive the simple. We see this power in the conflict between Moses and Pharaoh’s magicians. The miraculous and supernatural should not surprise us, but should cause us to contemplate, Where did this power come from (from God or from demons)?
We can also say that their foundation is settled in the heart and not the mind. God has imposed spiritual importance on His very words. What we feel is not always the will of God. God has given us His word, and we have to believe it to be saved or blessed, and feelings are secondary. If the Bible is in agreement with what we feel, everything is fine. But if not, then the Pentecostal will reject the Bible to follow his feelings. They have lost sight of the blessing of God that comes from hearing, understanding, and obeying the will of God. Their approach to things is a mess where understanding and Scriptural logic is pushed out of consideration because they “feel the Spirit moving” in some other direction. They seek guidance from the Spirit yet despise the Word (Logos) of God (Jesus Christ), so they follow their slippery feelings which are unstable and changing.
They Abuse the Bible
Pentecostals are experts in the use of the Bible, but better said, in the abuse of the Bible. They are very adept at manipulating the Bible to show what they beforehand have already concluded is what it says (their feelings have guided them). When a Bible teaching touches their own doctrines and practices, they are very expert at not allowing the Bible to change or bother them, but simply twist verses and fabricate doctrines to defend themselves. We see that God put restrictions on speaking in tongues in 1 Corinthians 14, but Pentecostal churches unilaterally have set aside these guides. For example, it is forbidden that women speak (in tongues or in any other official, authoritative form) in the church. Paul explains that tongues will cease and that it was a sign for unbelieving Israel. But the Pentecostals take tongues as they want, ignoring the clearest biblical passage (Acts 2) where clearly it is known foreign languages of people present, never is more than one person speaking at a time, and never women speaking in the service. They ignore what they want, and pick what they will. In Rev. 22:18-19 God curses all who would add, take away, or change from the closed Canon of Scriptures, but Pentecostals regularly have visions and add to revelation as if this verse were not in the Bible. In many points, Pentecostals are extremists demanding obedience to Scriptures, yet in others, they just ignore what doesn’t suit them. They are extreme in outward visible details, but the obvious is very obscure for them. Christ rebuked these types of Pharisees in the Gospels.
Initiation by Experiencing
Their twisted view of biblical authority goes right along with their emphasis in experiencing “faith” instead of knowing by conviction (true faith). In other words, they seek mystic experiences and impose authority and validity in these supernatural experiences. Typically they reject biblical believers as being “dry” and “without the blessings of God” because they do not have or enjoy these mystic and supernatural experiences. Faith that is seen is not faith (Hebrews 11:1). Our faith is something that we follow even though there is no outward evidence. But the faith of the Pentecostal is a faith that dies quickly and fatally when there is not another dose of the emotional and mystical drug (sensationalism, the supernatural, and heavy injections of emotionalism).
They Honor Men Rather Than God
The typical Pentecostal service has a man and his carnal pleasure as the center. The music is always the type that pleases man instead of God. If you listen to this music, you will find it difficult to see a difference between it and typical bar music or night club music that raises the sensual. It is carnal. It is music to move the body, not reflect on God. God deserves something more than pagan leftovers. His music is distinct and solemn.
In place of preaching what God says to man, they preach that man likes to hear, the humanly popular. While God has a priority on salvation, true holiness (not sinning), and obeying God’s will, the Pentecostals preach what is superficial, external, and “light.” Instead of themes like mercy, grace, the Christian witness, and holiness, they try to deceive by shouting and screaming about externals of religion like hair length, using cosmetics, and other external superficial rules. They are extremely proud and arrogant about their own spirituality, their spiritual superiority over everybody else, and they like to parade this for all to see degrade everybody else. The external can be faked, but true love, mercy, charity, longsuffering, etc. are more difficult to fake.
They reject clear Bible Norms
God has given us clear Bible norms which the Pentecostals simply ignore. This is a grave error. For example, the Bible declares very clearly that women are not to be pastors, teachers (of men), preachers, or leaders (take the dominion over men) in any way. But they reason away all of this as if it were of minor importance, but to not obey is not spiritual. A few verses after Paul affirms the woman’s prohibition in the ministry, Paul says, “If any man thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord” 1 Cor 14:35. Their rejection or ignorance is a lack of spirituality.
It is equally impossible to understand why they pretend to be mature and close to God but at the same time, their preachers are commonly discovered to be living in carnality, worldliness, and scandalous sin. If they supposedly have a deeper filling of the Holy Spirit, why doesn’t it show up in holy living? Speaking in tongues, slain in the spirit, miracles, healings, are not signs of spirituality. Not sinning is the sin the sign God proposes. They struggle with sin, and it appears have less success than others at victory. Where’s the holiness that goes with true spirituality?
Their Emphasis in the Spirit, not the Son
God has exalted Jesus over everything else to be the center of our salvation and spiritual life. I doubt in the light of passages like John 10:1; Phil 2:9-10; 1 Tim. 2:5, and Acts 4:12 that somebody really saved can focus on the Spirit to neglect the Son (Hebrews 10:29). It is very telling that their priority is that others speak in tongues, experience the slain in the spirit, etc. and they have a minor or no interest in that person’s salvation relationship with the Son of God. It is not first.
They are Immature
The guiding principle of Pentecostals is that they always seek the blessing of God in everything. Their understanding of this is to enjoy, be served, and not necessary to serve. Any parent understands that true enjoyment comes in serving, not pleasing one’s self. Their mindset is stuck in entertaining their flesh. Their services, experiences, music, arrogance, entertaining preaching all orientate around this fault in their thinking. Parents understand that kids left to choose will always choose candy instead of what is good for them. Sacrifice is not what comes naturally except to responsible, mature people. Adults have learned to sacrifice their lives for the benefit of others (true love), and they become providers, not so many consumers. Centering on enjoying one’s own emotional and spiritual experiences is being a consumer, not a provider. This goes worse as we see their leaders failing in the biblical requirement of not seeking to enrich yourself in the ministry, i.e. ministerial covetousness. They are pastors that like to eat lamb chops.
They do not correct the wrong among themselves but do what is popular and likable. Being different from the typical biblical interpretation of things is their strength it seems. The novel is their delight even if it has no biblical basis. They never separate from erring ministers it seems, only covers their continuing sin before their flock.
More Tracts for Pentecostals
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All I can say is that you are so thoroughly deceived!
Paul never condemned the Corinthians for speaking in tongues, he simply told them to limit the occurrence to 2 or 3 per service. If you actually study God’s Word you would find that Paul teaches 3 different kinds of tongues 1) a spiritual language that is for your personal edification. 2) a prophetic utterance given by the Holy Spirit. 3) the Holy Spirit giving you the ability to communicate His word to someone supernaturally.
Also for you to say that healings no longer occur blatantly contradicts God’s Word. To say that speaking in tongues is demonic when God’s word plainly states that it is as the Spirit gives the utterance is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, a sin for which Jesus himself said there is no forgiveness.
I am truly sorrowful that you are so utterly blind to the obvious plain language truth that God is Spirit and those who worship Him, worship Him in spirit and in truth. These are the words of Jesus. He also said I go away so that I may send you the Spirit of Truth. Also He said that when the Spirit was come that those who believe would do greater works than He had done. Amazing that the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost and they all were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
I grew up in a conservative holiness denomination that denounced Pentecostal beliefs. When I became a man I made the choice to throw out everything I had been taught by man. I asked the Holy Spirit to become my teacher. I bound “in the name of Jesus ” all spirits of rebellion, deception, religion, false doctrine, bitterness, unforgiveness, selfishness or anything that would hinder my understanding and asked The Spirit of Truth (as promised by Jesus ) to guide me in to all truth! He has done so, as God’s Word promised “if any man seeks wisdom let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally. I challenge you to truly with a repentant heart to do the same!
I pray that God’s Grace shine upon you and the Spirit of Truth illuminate your path!
Hi John, Thanks for writing. I disagree with you conclusions, and the tract explains this. I have other tracts on tongues, read them. There are not 3 types of tongues, that is hog wash. Tongues was speaking in a known foreign language the gospel to people of that foreign language. Acts 2 lists the languages. Modern tongues is the old Gnostic error of a spiritual experience in which you lose control (a demonic thing). I would pray that God would open your eyes to the demonic influences in your life, and that you would rebuke the error of your ways and come into the truth of God. If you think speaking in tongues is of God, then how can Hindus, Mormons, and even the mentally insane speak in tongues? These are the work of demons, plain and simple. You speak like speaking in tongues was practiced from the day of Pentecost right down to last Sunday in your church. Do you realize that tongues stopped before the canon was closed? It is not mentioned in the later books. The church fathers didn’t experience it in their churches until Montanus started it up (just like today, rolling around on the floor and all). The churches of his day all branded him as a heretic for it, and eventually he went out and hung himself. Tongues speaking does appear again for another 700 years after Montanus. So what happened? It had stopped and modern cults have picked up the name and changed it from its biblical purpose (a sign to Israel that God had left them) and made it something else entirely.
there is nothing wrong with Pentecostal religion. I grew up like that and they preach and come right straight from the bible. please get your facts straight before you go trying to bad mouth them. have a nice day! (:
Familiar words that I hear all the time from the Catholics I am trying to win to Christ. If you would study what is going on in your own group, you wouldn’t say what you just said.
My personal opinion of the Pentecostals is that the old line Pentecostals (those from the holiness movement before speaking in tongues became a sign of spirituality) had my respect. The holiness movement sought to be closer to God, and they explored “avenues” such as personal times of intense prayer, fasting, abstinence in many things, and such “stupid ideas” (according to today’s viewpoints) as abstaining from all types of entertainments and diversions, such as dances, reading fiction and novels (their form of watching TV and movies), gossip, etc. These kinds of people had some seriousness to them.
In the forces that played on this movement, spirituality because associated with externals such as no make-up, extremes in hair styles (no cutting ever, nothing as far as arranging it), restrains in some areas while liberty was taken in others. From there certain items were picked up as absolute signs of the Holy Spirit, such as miracles, healings, speaking in tongues. (Paul rebuked the Corinthian church for their speaking in tongues and as such, manifesting a disorderly conduct in their services. This was the LEAST SPIRITUAL of the NT churches, not the most! Healings disappeared in Acts, and even Paul himself could not heal those traveling with him, nor remove his own thorn in the flesh. Instead of walking in the same character and lifestyle of Jesus, holiness and spirituality got redefined to externals that really don’t indicate true spirituality. Spirituality is (1) being holy like God is holy, which means not sinning. (2) discipleship – following the moral pattern that Jesus laid out, and which is defined by the Bible’s moral guidelines.
Talk to me about being right and just when Pentecostal preachers can “be filled with the Holy Spirit” on Sunday morning in a miraculous way seen by healings, miracles, new visionary revelations, and speaking in tongues and at the same time be with hookers on Saturday night. Something is wrong there. Tell me how they follow the passion of Jesus our Lord when they have gold jewelry danging from their necks and wrists with diamond rings on their fingers, flying around in their private jets from one of their mansions to another, when Jesus had no place to lay his head, walked for the most part where he wanted to go, and Jesus made no pushes to raise funds (we never have one instance of Jesus driving his hearers to give to his ministry), and yet Jesus gave to the poor all around him. He identified with the poor people, not the rich! This contrast between what is a man of God in Scripture, and what we see in the leaders of the Pentecostal movement (and many other groups, and here I don’t exclude Baptists from this condemnation, I heap it more on the Baptists) and what the pattern God set for us in the Bible. These people need to be rebuked strongly. This tract just isn’t good, not because it rebukes the Pentecostals, but because I didn’t go far enough!
May express the sadness that I have with a dear wife caught in the irresponsible tangle of Charismatic emotionalism?
Only after our wedding did I discover in shock how awful the demonic spell of complete possession is over those who have experienced the supernatural gibberish tongue. I have done somewhat extensive study into that unintelligible utterance, and it is specifically forbidden in all Hebrew Scripture. In fact, immediate stoning was commanded by Moshe’ for any who dared make any such utterance!
Recently I was drawn to a voice recording made by John Todd in the mid 70s, where he plainly outlined his commission by high Illuminati group members to form an assault upon the Church with a group of charismatic-voiced spiritists whose sole objective was to introduce the demons of the gibberish tongue, and thus confuse and divide thte Church into warring factions.
We see today what a success it is to seek more than Creator has made available in His Living Word, as those caught in the gibberish tongue demonic possession have one and all sought after a “word of knowledge” that is more than that given in Hebrew Scripture.
I have personally, first hand witnessed that every single person with this demonic possession is unable to find any rest and peace, and must continually go back to their demon worship services, seeking another dose of the poison, week after week after week. Never content, and never having a sense of blessing and quiet, sensible rest.
How awful! Yet, my dear wife has this disease, and now we are completely separated. I am at fault for the most part, and am seeking to more deeply align myself with Hebrew Scripture to correct my dealings with my beloved.
I recently found a blog where an obvious charismatic was advising her visitors to try the spirits when it came to all the confusing information put out by the pentecostal movement. I confronted one commenter who lamented that she could not find peace and a solid plan for her life, and I commented, “First, get o of all Charismatic fellowship!.” The blog owner shot back at me, “We must try the spirits to discern if they are truthful,” or similar.
I replied to her what she then ignored in her followup reply to me; “When anyone utters an unknowable utterance, there is no accurate, verifiable method to determine if it is truth. Only a person with the same demon that speaks the same gibberish maybe has the power of discernment, but, how can any human tell if the translation given is true? How can any human determine that what the gibberish utterance actually was was a worship and praise of Lucifer?”
She only shot back at me, “We have to try the spirits.” !!!
How completely misled Charismatics are! Apostle Paul’s severe warning in 1 Corinthians 14 is that the supernatural tongueS gift was to spread the gospel to those whose native tongue was not represented by anyone of an assembled group of Believers. He was overtly strong to warn against adapting the pagan Corinthian practice of gibberish tonguE speaking, which was being overtly done on nearby Delphi Island. Do a study on the Oracle of Delphi to grasp a full view of what Corinthian Believers were up against.
The Oracle of Delphi was making EXACTLY the same gibberish utterances that present day Charismatics make! The Witch of Endor, to who King Saul went in what he thought was secret, made the exact same utterances!
The Church of Rome rewrote the clear words of Apostle Paul, to make it appear that he was accommodating the practice of tonguE gibberish utterance, because the Church of Rome traces its history right back into Babylon, and the gibberish tonguE spoken there by heathen priests in their contorted worship of Lucifer!
May this word of REAL knowledge hopefully save someone the pure Hell of being possessed by the demons of gibberish tonguE !!!
Thank you brother. I feel exactly the same way. This is demonic activity, and to invite that into your life is to open the door to a lot of unknowns that all drag you to the demons!!!!