Acknowledgment is made that some of this material is from John F. MacArthur, Jr.’s book, Charismatic Chaos, Zondervan, 1992. This excellent book catalogues the charismatics open disregard for Scripture. Miracles, tongues and the work of the Spirit receive a thorough treatment with a solid emphasis upon the authority and role of Scripture.

Through the years, many have denied the proper role of Scripture. We should readily admit that we should seek to properly view the work of the Holy Spirit, apostolic authority, Jesus Christ, and the church. But how would we know how to regard each of these in proper relationship to one another except by the guidance of the Word of God?? We know what significance to place upon these ordinances of God from the information given to us in the Bible. If the Bible intended for us to wait for special, personal and private revelations, it would be so indicated in the Bible. We know what place to give to Scripture from what is said in the revelations of God to his holy apostles and prophets.

Here are some of those statements:

"But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." (Matt. 4:4.)

"Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth." (John 17:17.)

"And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book, but these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that believing ye might have life through his name." (John 20:30-31.)

"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you (the apostles to whom he was speaking) into all truth; for he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you." (John 16:13-14.) Note that the Holy Spirit would not speak about himself, but He would glorify the Son. Some say that this is the "age of the Holy Spirit"; the first century era was the "age of the Son of God." All such language fails to understand what the Spirit came to do. Since the beginning of the new covenant, it has been the "age of the Son."

"(Ye) search the scriptures for in them ye think that ye have eternal life and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me that ye might have life." (John 5:39-40.) We do not worship the Bible, but we worship the Lord whom the Bible honors.

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." (Col. 3:16.)

"So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God." (Rom. 10:17.)

"For the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Heb. 4:12.)

"Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven." (Psalm 119:89.) "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105.)

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope." (Rom. 15:4.)

In an important statement relating the Holy Spirit and the word of God, Paul wrote, "And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God." (Eph. 6:17.)

#1: By openly attacking the Bible and denouncing it. Skeptics and hardened unbelievers do not hesitate to speak harshly against the holy writings. From the beginning, Satan has denied what God has said. He said to Eve, "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? . . . And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die." (Gen. 3:1-4.) It has long been the tactic of Satan to deny God’s word, whether written or spoken.

We are familiar with their charges. They claim that there are errors, or at least inconsistencies in the writings. They charge that someone else wrote them instead of the authors named. Further, some say that they copied someone’s work. It is really not their own. Any other explanation is acceptable to them, except that the writers were moved by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21.)

Without answering all these charges, I would offer a good reply that I once read. The author said that he knew the Bible was not written by man, but by writers guided by the Holy Spirit. He said that man could not have written the Bible if he wanted to and would not if he could! That is a good summary of our reply to unbelievers.

#2: By exalting other books to the level of the Bible. There are other world religions with their books. One way pluralists seek to minimize the importance of the Bible is to say that there are other "bibles" in the world. There is The Koran for the Muslims; The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price for the Mormons; the Vedas (four books) for the Hindus; Tipitaka, meaning the three baskets, for the Buddhists; and The Zend-Avesta of the Zoroastarians.

A general cursory reading of these materials will immediately reveal their inferiority and lack of inspiration. Mohammed even encouraged his readers to "go to the people of the book (i.e., the Bible)." Likewise, the Torah of the Jews points one to the Gospel. Their so-called "bibles" are missing so much. They do not speak of the Savior; their hope is not secure; their method of salvation is often totally dependent upon the goods works of the individual. They often desire death to escape life because without the Gospel they do not understand life. Jesus said, I am come that you might have life and might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10.) "Jesus Christ abolished death and hath brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel." (2 Tim. 1:10.) Christians are taught to love life and to see good days. (1 Pet. 3:10.)

What a gospel of misery and despair is the "gospel of Buddha," which so many praise! Here is a translation of Buddha’s first sermon, which is said to contain the cream of his doctrine.

"Birth is suffering. Death is suffering. Decay, illness, presence of objects which we hate, separation of objects which we love, not to obtain what we desire, clinging to existence is suffering. Complete cessation of thirst, or of carving for existence, is cessation of suffering."

How different from the words of Jesus’ first discourse. He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the good tidings to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind; to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord." (Luke 4:18, delivered at the synagogue at Nazareth where he was raised.)

Mohammed was raised by his grandfather, a high priest of one of the local idolatrous temples. At about 25 years of age, he married a rich widow named Hadijah, who supported him in his religious quests. He claimed that he had received divine revelations. At first he spoke in rhymes, a common mode used in those days for the presentation of religious matters such as sermons and prayers. Eventually, he abandoned this method and thenceforth delivered his utterances while in a trance, wrapped in a blanket and while perspiring profusely! Since he could scarcely read or write, a follower was commissioned to write the "revelations", and so obvious was the deception and fraud in these actions that one of those thus employed abandoned the movement in disgust. (Biblical Backgrounds of the Troubled Middle East, Guy N. Woods, 55-62.)

One of my teachers at HGS, Memphis, TN, Dr. Everett Huffard, reminded us that much more is involved than just a battle over books--my book is better than your book. We should rather emphasize the Savior presented in the Bible. He is the difference. If one rejects God manifested in the flesh, Jesus of Nazareth, one has rejected God. If one does not have the Son, neither does one have the Father. (I John 2:22-23.) Our book, the Bible, is better than their book because the Bible is from God and theirs is not. But it is also better because it tells us about the One who redeems us and reconciles us to God.

It is interesting that how religious people end up rejecting the Bible is by claiming that they have received some other revelations from God. Mohammed was about 40 years of age when he first claimed that he had received some revelations. These claims produce other messages which lead one away from the Bible. It is a serious matter to falsely claim to have received something from God. False prophets were stoned to death in the Old Testament.

"But the prophet which shall presume to speak a word in my name which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously; thou shalt not be afraid of him." (Deut. 18:20-22.)

If all preachers in our day were stoned to death who falsely claimed direct revelations from God, how many would be left standing??

#3: By claiming divine revelations. Many claim special revelations from God. I want to show how this too is a rejection of the Bible. Many preachers claim to receive their messages directly from God. Others claim the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit. They say that they have a word of knowledge from the Lord and proceed to relate it to the congregation. All such is a rejection of the place of the Bible while giving lip service to it.

Personal experiences; no need for the Bible. A woman once wrote the following to John MacArthur after hearing him denounce personal revelations of the Spirit to individuals today. She wrote, "You resort to Greek translations and fancy words to explain away what the Holy Spirit is doing in the church today. Let me give you a piece of advice that might just save you from the wrath of almighty God: put away your Bible and your books and stop studying. Ask the Holy Ghost to come upon you and give you the gift of tongues. You have no right to question something you have never experienced." (Charismatic Chaos, John MacArthur, Jr, 25.) This reply shows that charismatics place their personal experiences above the revealed Word of God.

A charismatic minister once said, "I don’t need that book any more. I am beyond that." Then he threw the Bible on the floor. "I have the Holy Ghost. I am a prophet. God sends my instructions direct." (The Gift of Prophecy, Kenneth Hagin ministeries, 1969, 24.)

A charismatic wrote these words: "The greatest experience in love I have ever had was at the foot of the cross as the blood of Jesus Christ poured out over me. He filled me with His Spirit. He brought me across the veil into the city of Jerusalem into the Holy of Holies. There I beheld myself in Him, and He in me. I received the baptism as by fire and from this His love dwells in me. From this I have communion daily.

"I do not feel the need for study of the Scriptures, for I know Jesus as He has revealed himself to me within; and as He dwells in me, there is the Word.

"I go to scripture, and scripture is vital and necessary---but neither central nor crucial, for I have Him---rather He has me. Scriptures are a secondary source.

"Through the baptism of the Holy Spirit the Word in me . . . is primary. I say this as a living experience out of what he has given me to say." (Charismatic Chaos, MacArthur, 99.)

One preacher told me that he did not need to study that much because God gave him spiritual understanding of his will. That is a claim to direct guidance of the Spirit and spiritual gifts like the apostles had. The Bible says, "Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth." (2 Tim. 2:15.) Yet, that same preacher told me that one Sunday before services he went outside the building trying to come up with something to preach! He was nervous and anxious because God had not laid anything upon his heart to preach. What he should have done during the week was to study what God has once for all time delivered to the saints and preach that message! (Jude 3.)

Kinds of experiences. Some claim to have experiences in the Spirit that show them things about heaven and the world beyond. Remember that Paul was caught up to the third heaven, but was not permitted to utter what he saw. (2 Cor. 12:1-4.) Unlike Paul, modern preachers give detailed accounts about things not revealed in Scripture.

One preacher claimed to have talked to a teenager who had been killed in a car accident. He gave a physical description of her and another girl. One was a red-head and the other was a brunette. (How is that possible if her body was down below and he met her spirit in heaven??) When giving this testimony, the mother of the girl in the audience cried that it was her daughter and that she would weep no more.

Another claimed to have seen Jesus in person while being given a tour of heaven. He described him as having sandy brown hair, standing about 5’11 to 6’ tall. He was perfect in every way. He was what you would imagine a perfect person looking like. He further claimed to have seen the River of Life, a stadium full of people who were the cloud of witnesses referred to in Hebrews 12:1, a medicine cabinet with pill bottles labeled "peace" and "overdose of the Holy Ghost." (Claims of Roberts Liardon when about 8 years old; Chaos, MacArthur, Jr., 31-32.)

Most Christians would write off Liardon’s stories as fanciful and absurd if not outright blasphemous. But in the charismatic world such tales are not lightly dismissed. Multitudes listen to accounts like that and long for similar experiences. As a result, excursions to heaven and back have become almost chic---the ultimate experience for those who want something unusual---and many say that they have made the trip. Some, not wanting to be outdone, claim to have been to hell and back! An ex-alcoholic and drug addict, Aline Baxley, says she has been to hell and God brought here back to tell her story. She advertises a free tract that tells her story. (Charisma, 1990, 145.)

Two basic approaches. There are really only two basic approaches to biblical truth. One is the historical, objective approach, which emphasizes God’s action toward men and women as taught in Scripture. The other is the personal, subjective approach, which emphasizes the human experience of God. Shall we go to the Bible and to the Bible alone to understand God’s will? Or shall we go to personal experiences? The latter supplants the former. The Bible is minimized and disregarded by the emphasis upon God dealing directly with individuals. These supposed revelations are often in direct conflict with God’s Word.

Most charismatics believe that progress in the Christian life is having something more, something better, some electrifying experience. They spend their lives trying to find another experience. The Christian life becomes a pilgrimage from experience to experience, and if each is not more spectacular than its predecessor, many people begin to wonder if something is wrong. The ultimate experience is to be taken up to heaven or to talk with the Lord himself. Many claim to have spoken directly with Jesus. But listen to Peter’s words,

"Jesus Christ, whom having not seen, ye love. In whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." (1 Peter 1:8.)

One charismatic stated it clearly. "It may confidently be anticipated, as the present apostasy increases, that Christ will manifest His deity and lordship in increasing measure through miracle-signs, including healings. We are not to say, therefore, that the word is sufficient." (Miraculous Healing, Henry Frost, 109-110.) Another wrote, "God has given us no means by which the conversion of sinners or the general revival of religion can be affected, irrespective of the direct agency of the Spirit. The Gospel will not do it." (From a sermon entitled "The Baptist Pulpit" by J. W. Hayhurst.) Paul wrote that he was not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile. (Rom. 1:16.)

The claim of the continuation of spiritual gifts and direct revelations produces an attitude of disdain toward what was revealed to the holy apostles and prophets. I will take the words of Paul, Peter, James, John, Jude and Jesus over the modern claims of inspiration and revelation. The Bible is complete, final and sufficient for all we need spiritually in life. Our emotions and experiences in the faith come as a result of our acceptance of the Gospel. But those emotions and feelings should not be the objective truth that guides us religiously.

Charismatics often refer to the Bible as "a dead letter." They say that they want something that is alive and personal. Listen to Jesus’ words: "It is the spirit that quickenth; the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." (John 6:63.) The Hebrew writer described the word of God in this fashion. "For the word of God is quick (alive) and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Heb. 4:12.) No one should say that the Word of God is dead and ineffective. It declares itself to be alive and able to accomplish God’s will in our lives if we will heed it.

The Catholic rejection of the Scriptures. Like the Charismatics among the Protestants, the Catholics have also minimized the role of the Bible in determining God’s will in our lives.

Tradition is very important to Catholic theology. They classify tradition as either dogmatic or disciplinary. Dogmatic tradition is the revealed truth made known by God in Scripture before the death of the last apostle. This is commonly called primary revelation. Disciplinary tradition includes the practices and liturgical rites of the church in apostolic or post-apostolic times that are not part of divine revelation in Scripture. This is commonly called secondary revelation.

Tradition, then, said, French Roman Catholic George Tavard, was the overflow of the Word outside Sacred Scripture. It was neither separate from nor identical with Holy Writ. Its contents were the "other scriptures" through which the Word made Himself known.

The Council of Trent (1545-63) convened to solidify the Catholic’s stand against Protestant Reformation, made this summary statement of its position regarding the Bible and traditions of the church. "The Holy, . . General Synod of Trent. . . having this aim always before its eyes, that errors may be removed and the purity of the Gospel be preserved in the Church, which was before promised through the prophets in the Holy Scriptures and which our Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God first published by his own mouth and then commanded to be preached through his Apostles to every creature as a source of all saving truth and of discipline of conduct, and perceiving that this truth and this discipline are contained in written books and in unwritten traditions, which were received by the Apostles, at the dictation of the Holy Spirit, and were handed on and have come down to us; following the example of the orthodox Fathers, this Synod receives and venerates, with equal pious affection and reverence all the books of the New and the Old Testaments. . . together with the said Traditions. . . as having been given either from the lips of Christ or by the dictation of the Holy Spirit and preserved in unbroken succession in the Catholic Church." (Cited in Henry Bettenson, ed., Documents of the Christian Church, 1963, 261.)

According to this claim, God has been giving revelations through the Roman Catholic Church since the New Testament era. This includes the Old and New Covenants plus all other traditions handed down to the church through the authority of the Pope. Either God has given them these additional revelations or they are an addition to the Holy Writings of the prophets and apostles. It they are additions, severe consequences attend all such additions or subtractions. See Deuteronomy 4:2, Proverbs 30:5-6, and Revelation 22:18-19.

What are some of the traditions that Catholicism has added to Scripture? Things like penance, purgatory, papal infallibility, prayers for the dead, another priesthood that minimizes the role of the individual’s faith in God, justification by works instead of by faith, healing through relics, and an entire sacramental system. Remember that new traditions are being added all the time, supposedly with the authority of God and equally binding upon all Christians as the recorded Scriptures.

This is an important decision for all believers to make---what will be your guide and authority on religious issues? What will you do with the Bible? What is your Bible?

I have tried to say emphatically that it is a dangerous thing to reject the Bible as the Word of God. The Reformers denounced Catholic emphasis upon traditions with their appeal to Scripture alone, Sola scriptura. We must reject every effort to minimize or replace the holy writings. Our knowledge of God and all things spiritual come from the Bible.