Do you speak in tongues?

Okay, Ben, now you’ve truly lost it. We’ve listened to you clarify the first four terms, but how in the world are you going to explain away all the garbage associated with Pentecostalism? I’m about to spell it out for you.

I’m not talking about the extreme charismatic movement taking place all over the world right now. There is a big difference between being charismatic and being a charis-maniac. I identify myself theologically with the former. This is of the utmost import – theologically means that I’ve actually thought about this. Unlike some parts of the Body who think doctrine is stupid, I actually came to these conclusions through academic means. I do believe, from biblical exegesis and study of church history, that the gifts of the Spirit are for today, and all days until Christ returns.

But this is not the main focus of my use of the term “Pentecostal” in this blog. I use this biblical word to identify a theology of experience. It is not enough for Christians to know academically the truths of God. We must know experientially. There are lots of people who know all about God, but they do not actually know HIM, and thus are not born again. This is the “Orthopathy” part of the sub-title. Remember Isaiah’s prophecy, “This people draw near to me with the words, but their hearts are far from me?” I think Jesus’ command was not just to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless alone. It encompassed more than that. We are supposed to actually care about these people. If we don’t have the compassion of Christ for these people, we’ve missed out on the “heart” of Christianity.

The Old Methodists did a great job of incorporating experience into their theology. method. We should remember that we are called to bear much fruit and this brings glory to God. Thus, if we are called to glorify God, we are called to bear fruit. If we’re not, we should examine our ways. This is (though tremendously oversimplified) a correct appropriation of experience (along with Scripture, culture, and tradition) in theological method. In this manner, I am happy to typify my theology as “Pentecostal.”