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Misconstrued Scriptures that Pentecostals Use (From a Continuationist’s Perspective NOT a Cessationist)
Luke 11:13 Luke 11:13 NRSVue This isn’t referring to a separate and second infilling of
the Holy Spirit for a Christian sometime later after they get saved. It’s referring to their initial salvation. This verse is saying that God will not turn
down anyone who truly comes to Him
for salvation. This is why shortly
before this verse, we see in the Lord’s Prayer, “may your kingdom come.” And then shortly after the above verse, it relates
Jesus casting out a demon and then teaching that if we don’t replace that demon
with the Holy Spirit (verse 13), then perhaps more demons come in, instead. John 20:22 John 20:22 NRSVue Pentecostals believe that the Disciples received the Holy
Spirit and salvation at this point, and then they got baptized in the Holy
Spirit and receive their heavenly prayer language of speaking in tongues at
Pentecost in Acts 2. The disciples could not have received the Holy Spirit within
them at that time in John 20:22, because the other two places in the New
Testament that parallel this account, given in Luke 24 and Acts 1 tell clearly
that Jesus was saying that that was a future event; they didn’t receive the
Holy Spirit within them yet at that time. The confusion with the above verse is a question of
tenses. The ancient Hebrew of the Old Testament
and the Koine Greek of the New Testament didn’t portray tenses in simple past
(she did), present (she is doing), and future (she will do) the same way we do
in English, as I just demonstrated in the parenthesis. Often a future prophetic event would be given
in the Koine Greek in the past tense, even though it was a prophecy of the
future. Often this was done to emphasize
the certainty of that prophecy coming to pass. If you read the YLT Bible, the original tenses of the
ancient Hebrew and Koine Greek are maintained, rather than translated into
English tenses. Thus you’ll see
prophecies portrayed in the YLT Bible as what we’d call past-tense terminology
in English, yet the Hebrew and Greek used past tense to predict the future –
prophecy. There are a few places in the Bible where the tenses get
confused between how the originals used them, versus how we do so in the
English. For example, Revelation 11:7 is
one such place. Revelation 11:7 NRSVue This language is confusing, and sounds like English present
tense to many people, but the tense in the Koine Greek is future, as is verified
by Revelation 20, where it gets into this in more detail: Revelation 20:1-2 NRSVue This tense discrepancy in Revelation 11:7 is recognized in
many circles, so some Bible translations correct the tense here. The Weymouth Translation is one such
translation to fix the tense: Revelation 11:7 Weymouth Notice the Weymouth corrected the present tense that was
given in the NRSVue and many other translations into a future tense. Sometimes the Bible gives a future prophecy
in the present tense, and that is what’s occurring in John 20:22, but it’s hard
to see in translations that change the tenses.
Thus, let’s take a look in the YLT, which preserves the Koine Greek
tenses and doesn’t change them to English understood tenses: John 20:22 YLT There are two things we immediately see in the above that
are different from many other translations which aren’t as literal as the Young’s
Literal Translation: 1) We see the above word “them” is in brackets! This means “them” is added, and is not in the Greek in this verse. Jesus did indeed breathe out or blow, but the
Scriptures don’t specifically say it was on or in anyone. The blowing here is from the Greek word ἐμφυσάω
(em-foo-sah'-o) which means to breathe, or to blow on. This Greek word is etymologically related to
our English word Emphysema. “On” above
is assumed, but not there for certain, and “them” isn’t in the Greek in this verse
at all, so now we can more accurately translate this portion as “and this
having said, he breathed, and saith to them…”
Seeing it translated more literally like this now recalls Jesus’ death
to us: 2) The second thing we notice when we carefully look at this
verse in the YLT is a tense change. “
and having said,” “and saith to them.” The text could not use past-tense terms to dictate a future
event in this case, because past tense was just used to describe an action that
had just occurred – Jesus breathed. Thus
the text had to move to present-tense to describe the future event to happen
after Jesus’ ascension. It’s no secret that John 20:22 and verse 23 are very hard to
translate into English. Thus it’s best
to understand these verses from their sister Scriptures in Luke 24 and Acts 1,
which clearly show that receiving the Holy Spirit was a future event, not one
that happened right then and there. Acts 2, Acts 10, Acts
19 Acts 2:1-4 NRSVue Recall that Jesus had to ascend before anyone could be baptized
in the Holy Spirit: John 16:5-7 NRSVue The Holy Spirit could not come to stay within anyone
(baptism of the Holy Spirit) until Jesus completely fulfilled His
ministry. He completed it on earth and
ascended, but then He needed to complete it in heaven. Jesus, our High Priest, had to enter the Holy
of Holies in heaven to complete His perfect atonement for us. It was only then
that the Holy Spirit Baptism was possible, and it began on Pentecost with the
Jews, fulfilling what Jesus had said to them in Luke 24 and Acts 1 – to the Jew
first, then to the Samaritans, and then to the whole world (the gentiles.) This is the order that we see the Holy Spirit
coming in the book of Acts, which is a transitionary book – transitioning out
of the Old Covenant and into the New one. Thus we see to the Jew first in Acts 2. Next it goes to the Samaritans, who were part
Jew and part gentile. This occurs in
Acts 8, and none of them spoke in tongues, as that sign was not needed. It was needed by the Jews in Acts 2, because Pentecost
brings Jews and proselytes from all over the known world to Jerusalem at that
time. The disciples speaking in tongues (literally – languages) enabled them to
tell the Gospel to everyone in their own language. In Acts 8 there was no sign needed, so the new converts
there (including the later Ethiopian eunuch) did not speak in tongues. Then finally in Acts 10 the Holy Spirit comes to the
Gentiles. The Gentiles did speak in
tongues, as it served as a sign to the Jewish Christians to show them that the
Holy Spirit comes to the Gentiles equally as it does to the Jews. We then see just one more time in the Bible of a group
getting saved and speaking in tongues.
This is in Acts 19, where we meet 12 people who were disciples of
John. They only knew the Old Covenant
and John’s teachings. They knew little about Jesus and His atonement for
sins. Once they heard the full Gospel,
they believed, got saved, and received the Holy Spirit. The speaking in tongues here was an end
punctuation mark on the transition from the Old Covenant – to John the Baptist –
to the New Covenant. There are no more instances of speaking in tongues after
Acts 19, because at that point the New Covenant was fully ushered in, and this
is important to notice, because a lot more people get saved in Acts after
chapter 19 – and not one is recorded as speaking in tongues. From that point on, under the full force of the New Covenant,
only those who are gifted with the gift of languages (tongues) speak in
tongues/languages. Not everyone is a
tongue in the Body of Christ. Some are
feet that carry the Gospel and evangelize.
Some are elbows that poke at false doctrine. Some are hands that heal
the sick, etc. Upon the moment of true (with
true intentions that God sees) belief and salvation, one is baptized in the
Holy Spirit, which is the Power that literally makes the person’s inner self
born again. This then puts them into the
Body of Christ as a specific body part with a specific gifting from the Holy
Spirit. We all don’t have the same gifting,
just as we are all not the same body part with the same function. Some will argue that all those who received the Holy Spirit
and then spoke in tongues afterward were already saved, thus this was a second
infilling. This is not the case. Look
closely at the Scriptures: John 16:7 NRSVue While the disciples believed, they were still not baptized
in the Holy Spirit and were not yet a part of the Body of Christ, as the Body
of Christ wasn’t yet formed as the Church.
This couldn’t happen until the New Covenant was being brought into
effect. The Body started with Jesus as
the Head/Source, and then there grew body parts of Jewish Christians, and then
body parts of Samaritan Christians, and then body parts of Gentile Christians.
This Body is still being added to today.
This couldn’t happen until after Jesus finished His full atonement in
the Holy of Holies in heaven – thus why He had to ascend before the Holy Spirit
could descend. In Acts chapter 10 it is obvious that none of the Gentiles
were yet Christians, as they were assembled to hear the full Gospel for the
first time. After they heard it, they
got saved and spoke in tongues, demonstrating to the Jewish Christians a sign
that they’d recognize – indicating that Gentiles receive the Holy Spirit too. The group in Acts 19 were not yet saved, because they were
previously disciples of John, and hadn’t heard the full Gospel yet. You can’t believe something if you don’t know
what to believe in. Acts 19:1-4 NRSVue Who were these disciples?
They weren’t Jesus’ disciples, for Paul came upon them. As we see, they were believers in what John
the Baptist taught, and John the Baptist taught the baptism of repentance, and
to believe on the one who is to come.
That is as much as these disciples of John the Baptist knew. They were then given the full Gospel message, and got saved. This was the last group to speak in tongues, as
a sign indicating that at this point the Body of Christ was formed, the Church
began, and the New Covenant is in effect; thus why we see many other salvations
after Acts 19, but no more speaking in tongues.
Meanwhile, if you keep reading in chapter 19, these previous disciples
of John then became disciples of Paul for 2 years. Now that’s a real seminary
education. Romans 8:26 Romans 8:26 NRSVue Some think these “groaning too deep for words” must mean the
person then switches to praying in tongues, but the above is saying the
opposite to that. First of all, groaning
is three times in this section. It’s
also in verse 22 and in verse 23. Looking at those other verses defines that
this “groaning” is an inward one that emits no audible sound. “Too deep for words” is translated from just one Greek word
which means “unutterable, unspeakable.”
How can it be any clearer than this?
This type of praying in the Spirit involves no sound – no tongues, no
speaking. It’s the spirit of the person directly communing with the Holy Spirit
within them. 1 Corinthians 14 1 Corinthians 14 defines a type of praying in the Spirit as
praying in tongues/languages. Paul teaches that those who have the gift of
tongues/languages (see also 1 Corinthians 12) can use tongues to pray in the
Spirit if they wish, but that they are not to do so out loud in church unless
there is someone there to interpret it.
Else, Paul says – keep it to yourself.
Don’t be disruptive to the church services – that’s the gist of 1
Corinthians 14. Ephesians 5:18 Ephesians 5:18 NRSVue This isn’t stating that we get multiple infillings of the
Holy Spirit. That makes no more sense
than filling up a cup of water repeatedly, without emptying it. The key word here is “with,” in “with the
Spirit.” This is from the Greek
preposition en, which means “in” or “on.” This verse isn’t telling us that rather than getting drunk
on wine, we should get drunk via a new infilling of the Holy Spirit, in which
some people thinks manifests via “holy laughter, falling over, acting drunk
without alcohol, flopping around on the floor, running back and forth shouting
and screaming, etc.” The way this verse is translated in the above and many other
translations makes this hard to see. We
see once again the YLT stays true to the Greek, and translated this verse as
thus: Ephesians 5:18 YLT It’s telling us to be filled in the Spirit, not filled with
the Spirit. Christians are already filled with the Spirit. It’s telling us that rather than seeking
fake, fleeting happiness in getting drunk, why not walk in the Spirit and have
true joy and peace? Ephesians 5:18 is a
sister verse to the following: Galatians 5:22-24 NRSVue Just because a person is a saved Christian with the Holy
Spirit in them, that doesn’t mean they lose their free will. They can still choose to grieve the Holy
Spirit, and follow their flesh rather than walking in the Spirit. This is what Ephesians 5:18 and the above are
referring to.
If you, then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how
much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy
Spirit.”
When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from
the bottomless pit will wage war on them and conquer them and kill them
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the
bottomless pit and a great chain. He
seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound
him for a thousand years and threw him
into the pit and locked and sealed it over him, so that he would deceive the
nations no more, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be
let out for a little while.
And when they have fully delivered their testimony, the Wild Beast which is
to rise out of the bottomless pit will make war upon them and overcome them
and kill them.
and this having said, he breathed on [them], and saith to them,
`Receive the Holy Spirit;
Luke 23:46 NRSVue
Then Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I
commend my spirit.” Having said this, he breathed his last.
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound
like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were
sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire,
appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
With John 20:22 demystified, we see that the above is not a
second filling of the Holy Spirit. The
above is the fulfillment of the prophecy Jesus gave in John 20:22.
But now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ‘Where
are you going?’ But because I have said
these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless, I tell you
the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away,
the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you.
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for
if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will
send him to you.
While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul passed through the interior regions and came
to Ephesus, where he found some disciples. He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy
Spirit when you became believers?” They replied, “No, we have not even heard
that there is a Holy Spirit.” Then he said, “Into what, then, were you
baptized?” They answered, “Into John’s baptism.” Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of
repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after
him, that is, in Jesus.”
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as
we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with groanings too deep for words.
Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the
Spirit
and be not drunk with wine, in which is dissoluteness, but be filled in
the Spirit
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no
law against such things. And those who
belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
