Happy Easter! To celebrate this Easter Monday I've translated an early Pentecostal Resurrection hymn from the original Welsh to English. D.P. Williams, one of the most important leaders in the early days of the Apostolic Church (and British Pentecostalism more widely), wrote hundreds of hymns which were sung for many years by Welsh-speaking Pentecostal churches. Unfortunately, because there aren't many (or perhaps now any??) Welsh-speaking Pentecostal assemblies today, these treasures of early Pentecostal praise have largely been forgotten. So, here's my attempt to recover one of them through a meagre English translation.

1. Christ Jesus came from Heaven,
Stooped even to the grave;
God the Son clothed in our flesh
A multitude to save.
Hosanna! Hallelujah!
Praise to the Lamb of Grace;
Who died for us on Calv’ry
And suffered in our place.

2. Christ Jesus rose triumphant
The third day from the grave.
He death, by death, defeated
From death’s cold chains to save;
Ascended into Heaven,
He ever intercedes,
At God’s right hand enthronèd,
His precious blood He pleads.

3. He will be seen returning
On Heaven’s clouds He’ll come,
And saints and angels with Him,
The multitude He won;
And peace and perfect justice,
As water of the sea,
With knowledge of Jehovah
The whole earth filled will be.

4. And then the grace of Heaven
Will fill to full the earth;
And peace will flow like rivers,
Of war there’ll be a dearth.*
And love will reign victorious,
In Heaven and earth below,
And every tongue praise Jesus,
While endless ages flow.

This morning I was struck by an expression in a sermon of one of our most renowned Apostolic preachers, Ian Macpherson. It wasn’t the point of the sermon at all, yet it expressed not only what Ps Macpherson was doing in that particular sermon (‘Jesus is the Atonement’, in None Other Name [London: Epworth Press, 1946], pp.77-84), but also a great deal more about the work of preaching and the nature of pastoral ministry. For, what Ps Macpherson was seeking to do was ‘to shepherd your thoughts’ to Christ and His atoning work. Preaching is not merely the transmission of facts. Nor is preaching the stirring up of emotions. Preaching is a shepherding of the thoughts, and so a shepherding of the heart and soul. That is why preaching is the great work of the pastor.

We live in an age where pastors are constantly tempted to shepherd actions. We might shepherd actions to conform to a vision, or to conform to a moral principle, or to conform to the needs of the team. But, as one of our greatest and most fondly remembered preachers reminds us, the pastors call is not shepherd actions, but thoughts. Our call is not to move the feet of the sheep, but to lift their eyes to the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for them. And when the thoughts are shepherded to the Good Shepherd, He will lay hold of hearts, and from changed and captivated hearts, truly new and godly actions will flow.

Preaching and pastoring aren’t about getting people to do stuff. They’re not about behavioural change. Preaching and pastoring are about shepherding the thoughts, and so shepherding the heart and soul. Preaching and pastoring are about lifting eyes to Jesus, the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep.

I am a firm believer in teaching from classical theological texts. We have an amazing array of contemporary texts at our disposal, and some wonderful textbooks, but if we limit ourselves to those, we miss out on so much. Today, I’ve been working through one of Gregory of Nazianzus’ orations with my students at the university, and it’s thrilling to see what they pick up on from a fourth century text.

Oration 14 (On Love of the Poor) is a text I’d love to work through with Pentecostal/Charismatic pastors (or future pastors). It’s an incredibly easy to read and follow piece, even though it was written over 1600 years ago. But not only is it a comparatively “easy” ancient text, it’s also one that’s full of contemporary relevance, and particularly so in the charismatic world.

While there is so much to learn from Gregory’s knowledge and use of Scripture, his connection of worship, evangelism, and social action, his understanding of the Christian life, and the implications he draws from human beings being created in the nature of God (as well as how to speak in a godly way about giving!), I think the portion of Oration 14 that would perhaps be of most significance in the Pentecostal/Charismatic world is where Gregory starts to deal with objections to his argument in 14.29-34.

The chief objection basically boils down to people who think that wealth, health, or material comfort are signs of God’s blessing, and that sickness, suffering, and poverty are signs of Gods’ judgment. ‘They dare to say, “the suffering of these people is God’s work, just as prosperity is God’s work in us. Who am I, then, to countermand the judgment of God?”’ (14.29).

The thing is, this objection to Gregory’s argument is essentially the prosperity “gospel” that has taken such a strong hold on many sections of the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements today. Prosperity teachers argue that health, material prosperity, and comfort are signs of God’s blessing, whilst sickness, suffering, and poverty are not supposed to be the portion of the people of God. Nonsense!, says Gregory. As long as we live in this post-Fall world of disorder, we simply cannot tell:

‘Who can tell if one person is being punished for his vices while another is being exalted as a gesture of praise? Could it not be just the opposite: the one is exalted because of wickedness, the other put to the test because of virtue? The one is being raised higher, in order to fall more grievously, allowing all his own viciousness to break out, that he might be all the more justly punished. The other, contrary to our expectations, is oppressed, so that, being tried like gold in a furnace, he might allow to melt away even whatever little vice remains.’ (Or. 14.30)

Gregory isn’t saying suffering is necessarily a sign of blessedness. He’s saying we simply can’t use these things as ways to tell in this fallen world. God is using everything in our lives, whether things that seem good or things that we don’t expect to be sources of blessing, ‘to achieve the purpose of his creation’ (14.31). We cannot find God’s wisdom in turning to easy answers (14.32).

Once we understand this, then we realise that we should ‘not admire every form of health or reject all illness,’ nor should we let ‘our hearts become attached to the wealth that passes away’ (14.34). Health and prosperity can easily lead to sin. Yet, it is possible for sickness and suffering to be holy. So, we should ‘admire those who are victorious through their suffering’ (14.34).

In God’s economy, health, wealth, and material prosperity do not necessarily equate to godliness or blessing. They can just as easily be forms of testing or judgment, or can be things which lead us into sin. On the other hand, sickness, poverty, and suffering do not necessarily equate to a lack of faith, or to God’s judgment. They can just as easily be occasions for blessing and growth in grace. We must not make easy (and simplistic) assumptions.

All of us, even if we are rich, should recognise that we are poor and needy (14.1; 14.37). All of us, even if we are in the best of health, must recognise that we are incurable (14.37). And in that way we must all come to Jesus, the Healer who has compassion on the poor and needy. In that way, we can never think that we are better or more blessed because of our health or material prosperity, but rather we will always see that we are in just the same condition as those who are materially or physically less fortunate than ourselves. And so, rather than supposing others are under God’s judgment or lacking in sufficient faith, we will have godly compassion and share with them in their need.

Anyway, Gregory explains all this much better than me, so, if you get a chance, read what he has to say!


NB Working through classical theological texts isn’t only for theological students or formal training. I’ve worked through Athanasius’ On the Incarnation and the Heidelberg Catechism many times very profitably in discipleship settings with young people. Some of Luther’s texts work really well in that way too (like A Simple Way to Pray, What to Look for in the Gospels, or On the Freedom of a Christian).

Phil Coleman is the teaching pastor at Sunnyhill Church (our Poole assembly), and here he interviews Tim Jack, National Leader of the Apostolic Church in the UK on the Bible. They talk about things like love for God's Word, how to start off reading the Bible as a new believer, reading the Bible out of delight rather than duty, and how Jesus is the very centre of God's Word from beginning to end. As Tim says, Jesus 'is present on every page, in every chapter, of every book' of the Bible (approximately 6 minutes and 50 seconds into the video).


Conversation with Tim Jack from Sunnyhill Media on Vimeo.

If you can't see the video above, you can watch it at the link here.

Find 43 minutes to watch this excellent talk by Michael Reeves (President of Union School of Theology) at the European Leadership Forum. Dr Reeves is not only a wise theologian, but also a fantastic communicator, and so the 43 minutes will fly in and you'll learn a lot. He traces problems for evangelicals in how we see God, what it means to be human, humanity's problem, and the nature of grace, and shows how they lead to problems in the life and mission of the church.



So if you want to know why grace isn't like a can of spiritual Red Bull (and why that's a big problem), or how getting the wrong idea about sin can lead to pastoring like a drill sergeant, or how the first question of the Shorter Catechism can help us bridge the problematic gap between evangelism and discpleship, then watch the talk.

Seriously, this will be very helpful viewing for anyone involved in church leadership, preaching, evangelism, discipleship. So find three quarters of an hour to watch it!

Every day we pray, 'lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.' We need to pray like this, because one man, Adam, stood before the Serpent, tempted in our place. Yet we can pray with confidence like this, because another man, the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, stood before the Tempter in the wilderness, tempted in our place. And, where Adam had succumbed to temptation for us, Jesus overcame temptation for us.

You see, the temptation of Christ isn't merely an example to give us a few tips to help us overcome temptation. As Martin Luther warned, 'Be sure, moreover, that you do not make Christ into a Moses, as if Christ did nothing more than teach and provide examples as the other saints do, as if the Gospel were simply a textbook of teachings or laws.'

Jesus wasn't tempted in the wilderness merely as our Example, but as our Substitute, our Saviour, and our Victorious Champion. The Lord Jesus 'was led ... by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted' (Matt. 4:1) in our place, that we might not be led into temptation. Where Adam was overcome, the Second Adam overcame for us.

Our Saviour has won the victory over the Tempter for us, and He's not waiting for us to re-fight His battle. Instead, He invites us to enter into the enjoyment of what He has won for us: into His victory in our place, over the Tempter and the power of temptation.

Through our compassionate High Priest, who 'was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin' (Heb. 4:15), we are invited to come in prayer to the Throne of Grace, where He provides 'mercy and ... grace to help in time of need.' We're to come in prayer to the Throne of Grace, clinging to the Crucified Saviour, and crying out through His merit to the Father of Mercy, day and night: 'Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil!'

When temptations come, Jesus, our Crucified and Victorious Saviour, invites us to cling to Him, in all His compassion, His mercy and grace. So we come to Him in unceasing prayer. And we come to Him, to lay hold of Him, the One who has conquered the Tempter for us, in the places He promises to meet with us, the means of grace: in His Word and at His Table.

Jesus was tempted in our place. And Jesus overcame temptation in our place. He did it for us. And only in Him and through His Victory can we overcome temptation.

(If you want this fleshed out a bit more, here's a sermon on Matthew 4:1-11, drawing on James 1, 1 Samuel 17, and Hebrews 4 from last Sunday.)

We’ve met a few figures from history in the course of this series. Donald Gee and C.S. Lewis helped us think about the need for theological study in Part 1. Augustine helped us see the intertwining of the theological and the practical in effective ministry training in Part 2. And Gregory of Nazianzus drew our attention to the connection between serious theological study and reflection and the Christian life in Part 3. But this link between academic theology and the Christian life of faith wasn’t a crazy new idea that Gregory came up with. It was the norm for theological study for most of the history of the church (and most of the history of academic theology for that matter).

Johann Gerhard, the great theologian of post-reformation Lutheranism, underscores Gregory’s point:

‘Everyone must certainly have three things throughout his whole course of theological study and not just the beginning: (1) the obligation of upright intent, (2) sincere pursuit of piety, (3) the duty of devout prayer.’

Gerhard was a great academic theologian, yet at the outset of His great multi-volume work of seriously scholarly theology, he highlights the need for this sort of academic study to take place within the context of believing prayer and the pursuit of godliness. Academic theological study is of great importance – but it isn’t to be separated from the life of faith and the community of faith.

But what does Gerhard mean by the other thing he says we need – ‘the obligation of upright intent’? He explains it telling us he’s talking about theological study which flows from true faith in Christ through active love and seeks solely the glory of God alone and the salvation of one’s neighbour. So, the great 17th century academic theologian is telling us that, not only does serious theological study need to be done in the context of believing prayer and the pursuit of godliness, but also that it should be driven at all times by faith in Christ and love for Him, and always seek to glorify Christ and draw others to Him.

So, serious academic theology should flow from faith and lead to worship and evangelism.

We’ve seen in Part 1 that biblical and theological studies are needed for the health of the church and that they’re a way of loving the Lord with all our minds. Then, in Part 2 we looked at how effective training intertwines the theological and the practical. Practical ministry training rests upon the foundation of the theology and biblical studies side of training, and so if you take away that foundation, you end up with training that isn’t really doing its job. Now let’s learn some lessons from one of history’s great theologians.

Gregory of Nazianzus (aka ‘the Theologian’) pointed out that:

‘Discussion of theology is not for everyone … It is not for all people, but only for those who have been tested and have found a sound footing in study … We need actually to “be still” in order to know God, and when we receive the opportunity, “to judge uprightly” in theology. Who should listen to discussions of theology? Those for whom it is a serious undertaking, not just another subject like any other for entertaining small-talk, after the races, the theatre, songs, food, and sex. … What aspects of theology should be investigated, and to what limit? Only aspects within our grasp, and only to the limit of the experience and capacity of our audience.’ (Or. 27.3)

Gregory tells us that the church needs people who have given time to studying theology, to being tested, to finding a sure theological footing, to being still in order to grow in the knowledge of God, to making upright theological judgements. Time and space is needed for this theological learning, reflection, and growth, so that we don’t end up trying to pontificate on things which are beyond our grasp and stepping outside of the limits of our capacity and experience. Otherwise we’re in danger of pulling our discussion of the knowledge of God down to the level of any other amusing pastime, like talk about the theatre, songs or food.

There isn’t much danger in talking at length about a meal in a restaurant even if we don’t know how to cook. Or voicing our opinions on a play, even if we’ve no idea what’s involved in actually putting one on. That type of talk doesn’t do much harm; but it can be prideful talk – placing our inexpert opinion over the hard work of those who actually know what they’re doing!

When it comes to theology, however, our careless talk and debates simply for the sake of amusement don’t rise up in pride against some expert, but against the Lord. For He has revealed Himself and His ways to us, and so we should humbly submit ourselves to His self-revelation by reading, studying, reflecting, and praying: by doing the hard work of theological studies!

Gregory is pointing us to the need of the church for time and space set aside for serious theological study and reflection. So that, rather than attempts at theological answers being given off the top of one’s head when a serious issue emerges over a cup of tea at the end of the Sunday service, those answers can come from a mind which has already reflected at length, and been formed to think in a biblical and theological manner (even when the issue isn’t one that’s come up before).

So, Gregory shows us that the Church needs to make that space for theological study, growth and reflection. The Church needs serious theological study.

But serious theological study also needs the church. I deliberately left out part of what Gregory of Nazianzus said:

‘Discussion of theology is not for everyone … It is not for all people, but only for those who have been tested and have found a sound footing in study, and, more importantly, have undergone, or at the very least are undergoing, purification of body and soul.’

When Gregory says ‘discussion of theology is not for everyone’, he’s not saying ‘this is a super intellectual subject only for eminently learned academics!’ – Not at all! Yes, he says, the church needs people who have taken the time to study and reflect on these matters. But, more importantly even, he says, theology should be discussed by people whose lives are being transformed by that theology.

In other words, this isn’t some purely academic discipline. Gregory has no time for those who turn theology into nothing more than a mere academic theory utterly divorced from life. No! Theology is a speaking of God by those who have encountered the true and living God in Christ by the Spirit, and who are now being conformed day by day to the image of the Son.

So, the academic study of theology needs to be rooted in the church and the Christian community, as one aspect of a wider Christian life. Theological study and reflection takes place in Christian community as those who ‘are undergoing, purification of body and soul’ read, discuss, reflect, and pray over these matters together.

So, hopefully we’ve established in Part 1 that biblical and theological studies are good for a healthy Pentecostalism, and a way of loving the Lord with our minds. But they aren’t just individual pursuits, for the odd member of the Pentecostal community here or there. Serious biblical and theological study isn’t just for one expert whom we can wheel in in case of emergency! Rather, this serious study is fundamental to the training of well-equipped Christian ministers.

Augustine of Hippo has left us a book for the training of pastors (De Doctrina Christiana), which he starts off by presenting to us the two necessary aspects of ministerial training:


The second thing here is essentially communication. We might think in terms of practical theology/missiology/homiletics/evangelism. (And Pentecostal training has often been really strong on this.)

But, notice that Augustine’s 2nd necessary thing isn’t independent of the 1st! It’s not just putting stuff across to others, but ‘a way to put across to others what has been understood.’ That understanding comes from his first necessary thing: ‘A way to discover what needs to be understood.’ And that way to discover what needs to be understood is the work of biblical studies and theology!

For Augustine – way back in the early years of Christian training – the academic and the practical couldn’t be separated. Theological and biblical studies go hand in hand with missiology and practical theology. And that practical side of training depends upon the theological side. The goal of training for Christian ministry intertwines both the theological and the practical, so much so that effective training can’t have one without the other.

And this mutual intertwining of theology and practice isn’t just a matter for training. It’s something which is vital in training, because it’s something which is constantly needed in the life of the church.

Theology is a serious matter. For, knowing the Triune God, and knowing ourselves in light of His self-revelation is the most (to borrow a phrase from Calvin) ‘true and sound wisdom’ (Inst. 1.1.1.). So, if it’s so serious, it needs some serious attention, and serious time devoted to its study.

‘Bible schools are unnecessary.’ So thought the early British Pentecostal leader Donald Gee. Of course, he changed his mind long before he went on to become the principle of a Bible college. But that view he had before he saw the light and recanted the error of his ways wasn’t unique to him. Many Pentecostals and Evangelicals in his day thought the same. And many still do today. So, still today, many say things like: ‘it’s the Spirit’s anointing we need, not a college course’, or ‘we need to equip leaders, not train theologians.’ Still today serious theological education can be viewed in some quarters as either a waste of time or an unnecessary luxury. Now, I’m sure there is a way to mess it up and turn it into one of those, but most things in life can be messed up to become either a waste of time or an unnecessary luxury without doing away with the goodness of the thing itself. And theological education is, in itself, not only a good thing, but a necessary, beneficial, and even life-giving thing.

Donald Gee, as I’ve mentioned, changed his mind about Bible schools. When he’d become the principal of one, he wrote:

‘Bible Schools are unnecessary. That is exactly what I used to say for many years; and I believed it too! It is a fitting revenge that in the providence of God I now find myself installed as the Principal of such an Institution. What made me talk like that? …. Looking back I now know that in my case there was an unrecognised tincture of pride in what I said. I foolishly felt that I was doing pretty well as a pastor… in my heart I was saying, “see what I have done without going to any Bible School”.’ (Redemption Tidings, 15th Feb, 1958)

Gee left school at the age of 14 and went on to become a Pentecostal pastor without any theological study. But when he became a pastor, he discovered the need for the study he hadn’t had. To make up for it, he devoted all his mornings to systematic study, culminating in writing a new essay every day. Not an essay for examination or publication (although he did publish lots years later), but an essay consigned to the bin, simply to teach himself to think, to reason, and to argue a case.

In the course of his pastorate in Leith, Gee discovered some of the dangers which could arise among Pentecostals when serious critical thought isn’t cultivated. And from his experience of Pentecostalism both in this country and around the world he concluded that:

‘There is a need for the Pentecostal churches to … add to our fervent testimony of experience … a more determined intellectual effort to define our faith. We ought not enjoy deep emotion at the expense of shallow thinking.’

Donald Gee went from being an opponent of theological education for Pentecostals, to a hearty advocate. And not just for others, but for himself as well. For his own development and benefit he continued his theological studies throughout his life. And he didn’t limit his reading to other Pentecostal and Evangelical writers; Gee engaged with the latest prominent theological thinkers. For example, he studied the Systematic Theology of Paul Tillich (at a time when it would have been virtually unheard of for Pentecostals to read scholars like that!).

As Gee recognised, healthy Pentecostal experience and emotion cannot properly thrive if rooted in shallow thinking. The intellect is not the enemy of Pentecostal faith and experience. Rather, the intellect – the life of the mind – is a vital aspect of a flourishing Christianity.

On the night of His arrest, Jesus prayed to His Father, saying, ‘This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent’ (John 17:3). So, according to Jesus here, eternal life – salvation – involves knowledge. Now, of course, this isn’t mere intellectual knowledge: to know someone is more than to know about them. Yet knowing someone does involve knowing about them.

And so Jesus tells us that our love for the Lord is not limited to our emotions or our actions, but involves our intellectual life as well. For we are to: love the Lord our God, not only with all our heart and all our soul, but also with all our mind. (Mt 22:37/Mk 12:30/Lk 10:27).

And that is precisely what we do, when we engage in the hard work of theological and biblical studies! As C.S. Lewis put it:

‘Many who find that “nothing happens” when they sit down, or kneel down, to a book of devotion, would find that the heart sings unbidden while they are working their way through a tough bit of theology with a pipe in their teeth and a pencil in their hand.’ (Introduction to Athanasius, On the Incarnation, p.8)

Perhaps Pentecostals might demur when it comes to a pipe between the teeth, but we can certainly get on board with getting out our theological books and pencils, as a way of loving the Lord with all our minds!