I am now convinced that I am a recovering false Christian convert, but now repentant and saved by grace alone. I have an abiding admiration for the reformers, and when I really need to be hammered by truth, loves me some John MacArthur.
Sometime in the very early 80s I had an “encounter with God”. I’m not sure it was real in the biblical sense, but I am not sure it wasn’t either. After this encounter I landed in a calm charismatic church. By calm I mean not entirely crazy. People were not rolling around on the floor (too much), barking like dogs (at all, thank God) or being too weird. By the grace of God the pastor did teach from the bible and kept a decent measure of order. I have fond memories of spending time with the people in that church, but I only remember what would years later be the most important teaching: that is, that we should always test any teaching against the text of scripture. To his credit, and God’s mercy, that pastor went out of his way to let his flock know that we should even test his own words against the texts. This would later be the passage that would cause me to question my own faith.
1 John 4
Test the Spirits
4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.