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Re: Slain in the Spirit?
Slain in the Spirit? (God-seeker)
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What is wrong with being "slain by the Spirit?"
The question is not whether being "slain" by the Spirit is right or wrong, but whether it is biblical; does the Spirit slay people? The Holy Spirit has a ministry of convicting people of sin, and of indwelling, filling, counseling, and praying for believers. Nowhere however do we find Him having a ministry of slaying.
It is interesting to note that in this charismatic phenomenon of being slain by the Spirit, people fall backwards. Often those who fall backwards also start rolling on the ground, and some go into uncontrollable fits or seizures. Can this be the work of the Holy Spirit?
Charismatics often cite Saul favourably as a biblical example of one being slain by the Spirit. In this incident the Spirit of God came upon Saul and he prophesied laying naked all day and night (1 Sam 19:23-24). The great Chinese pastor-Wang Ming Tao-has a good commentary on this episode: "Now, when Saul lay naked, he was not under the blessing of God but rather under His punishment to his shame. We should know that Saul at this time was long rejected for disobeying God. God had meantime anointed David king. God's Spirit had departed from Saul and an evil spirit had come upon him. For envying David, he tried to kill him. David had to run for his life to escape Saul. At last he came to Samuel. When Saul came to know about this, he sent men to take David. But it turned out that three times men were sent to take him, three times, these men prophesied by the Spirit of God when they came to Samuel. They could not lay hands on David. Finally this Saul, monster of monsters, went himself to take David, but who could imagine that before he could get his quarry, he was overturned with disgrace. Not only did the Spirit of God cause him to speak but also meet with what the three messengers did not experience-for a day and a night he lay down naked. Not only should we not seek Saul's experience but rather flee from it. . . . Who would imagine that among these seekers of charismatic gifts there should arise those who regard those fearful and shameful experiences for a pattern? To be teachers of the Bible without understanding is dangerous business" (Timothy Tow, Wang Ming Tao and Charismatism, 74-5). If Saul was slain, he was not slain by the Holy Spirit but by an evil spirit (cf, 1 Sam 16:14-15). The Bible records a couple of instances of people falling backwards. In the Old Testment, we read how Eli the high priest fell backwards upon hearing that the ark of the Lord had been captured by the Philistines due to the fault of his wicked sons. In his fall backwards, he broke his neck and died (1 Sam 4:18). God judged him for his sins as Israel's high priest. In the New Testament, we find the murderous mob looking for Jesus. When Jesus said "I am," they fell backwards (John 18:6). In light of these two incidents, it is readily seen that falling backwards is not cause for rejoicing but regret. If when confronted by the power of God, one falls backwards, then it is not a blessing but a curse-a sign of judgement. To fall backwards is thus not a good sign of one's spiritual state. All who fell backwards in Scripture were judged by God. All who fell backwards were unbelievers.
On the other hand, we have numerous accounts in the Bible of people falling forwards. Those who fall forwards, fall down to worship the Lord (Num 22:31; Matt 18:26, 29; Mark 3:11; Luke 17:16; 1 Cor 14:25). The biblical posture of obeisance is that of falling prostrate to the ground. If a person is indeed touched by the power of the Spirit, he will fall to the ground face down, kowtowing to the Lord, weeping and groaning for his sins. This was what happened in God-sent revivals during the time of John Wesley, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, and closer to home, John Sung (read Timothy Tow, John Sung my
Teacher, and The Asian Awakening; available at the FEBC Bookroom, 9A Gilstead Road, Singapore 309063).
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Indeed,pls shy away if you don't understand. by frank, 10/23/00 
Quack Also Got Mess on Opera Table! by 'Santa' Monica, 10/23/00
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