WesleyGospel Ministries

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. –Romans 8:16

The Witness of the Spirit: Discourse One.

The Witness of the Spirit: Discourse Two.

How is this testimony to be distinguished from the presumption of a natural mind? It is certain, one who was never convinced of sin, is always ready to flatter himself, and to think of himself, especially in spiritual things, more highly than he ought to think. And hence, it is in no wise strange, if one who is vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, when he hears of this privilege of true Christians, among whom he undoubtedly ranks himself, should soon work himself up into a persuasion that he is already possessed thereof. Such instances now abound in the world, and have abounded in all ages. How then may the real testimony of the Spirit with our spirit, be distinguished from this damning presumption. (“The Witness of the Spirit, I” 2.2).

This is farther explained by the parallel text, (Gal. 4:6,) “Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying Abba, Father.” Is not this something immediate and direct, not the result of reflection or argumentation? Does not his Spirit cry, “Abba, Father,” in our hearts the moment it is given, antecedently to any reflection upon our sincerity; yea, to any reasoning whatsoever? And is not this the plain natural sense of the words, which strikes any one as soon as he hears them? All these texts then, in their most obvious meaning, describe a direct testimony of the Spirit.  (“The Witness of the Spirit, II” 3.4).

Taken from MrBob1’s Channel on GodTube.

There was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. –Genesis 12:10

Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.” –Acts 2:13

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.   –Acts 10:9-10

O, this being full of the Holy Ghost! How much it means. I was riding for sixty miles one summer day and as I looked up in the heavens I had an open vision of Jesus all the way. It takes the Holy Ghost to give this.     –Smith Wigglesworth

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G. B. Scaramelli, A Handbook of Mystical Theology.

Cecil Robeck, The Azusa Street Mission and Revival.

Guy Chevreau, Catch the Fire.

Adolphe Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life.

Andrew Strom, Kundalini Warning.

Smith Wigglesworth, Ever Increasing Faith, chs. 11-18.

Daniel Jennings, The Supernatural Occurrences of John Wesley.

Thomas Boys, The Suppressed Evidence.

Thomas C. Oden, John Wesley’s Scriptural Christianity, ch. 7.

Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle.

Jacobus de Voragine, The Golden Legend: Readings on the Saints, p. 559…

As many as are led by the Spirit of God,
they are the sons of God.
–Romans 8:14—

If you are led by the Spirit, 
you are not under the law.
–Galatians 5:18—

A vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the Gospel unto them.
–Acts 16:9-10—

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Stan Telchin, Messianic Judaism Is Not Christianity.

Thomas C. Oden, John Wesley’s Scriptural Christianity, pgs. 111-112.

William J. Seymour, Azusa Street Sermons.

O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called. –1 Timothy 6:20 (KJV)

Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. –Mark 5:5

“Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. ¹⁰ “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. ¹¹ But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” ¹² The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.   –Job 1:9-12

God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. –2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost. –John 14:26 (KJV)

The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:7

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Etzel Cardeña, Varieties of Anomalous Experience, ch. 3: “Hallucinatory Experiences.”

Francis MacNutt, Deliverance from Evil Spirits, ch. 3.

Gabriele Amorth, An Exorcist Tells His Story, “The Point of Departure,” p. 67ff.

John Wimber, Power Healing, ch. 6, Appendix B: “Healing Those in Hospitals.”

The prophet Elisha summoned a man from the company of the prophets and said to him, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take this flask of olive oil with you and go to Ramoth Gilead. ² When you get there, look for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Go to him, get him away from his companions and take him into an inner room. ³ Then take the flask and pour the oil on his head and declare, ‘This is what the Lord says: I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and run; don’t delay!” ⁴ So the young prophet went to Ramoth Gilead. ⁵ When he arrived, he found the army officers sitting together. “I have a message for you, commander,” he said. “For which of us?” asked Jehu. “For you, commander,” he replied. ⁶ Jehu got up and went into the house. Then the prophet poured the oil on Jehu’s head and declared, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anoint you king over the Lord’s people Israel. ⁷ You are to destroy the house of Ahab your master, and I will avenge the blood of my servants the prophets and the blood of all the Lord’s servants shed by Jezebel. ⁸ The whole house of Ahab will perish. I will cut off from Ahab every last male in Israel—slave or free. ⁹ I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah. ¹⁰ As for Jezebel, dogs will devour her on the plot of ground at Jezreel, and no one will bury her.’” Then he opened the door and ran.

¹¹ When Jehu went out to his fellow officers, one of them asked him, “Is everything all right? Why did this maniac come to you?” “You know the man and the sort of things he says,” Jehu replied. ¹² “That’s not true!” they said. “Tell us.” Jehu said, “Here is what he told me: ‘This is what the Lord says: I anoint you king over Israel.’” ¹³ They quickly took their cloaks and spread them under him on the bare steps. Then they blew the trumpet and shouted, “Jehu is king!” –2 Kings 9:1-13

Other renditions of “this maniac” in reference to the prophet in 2 Kings 9:11 are translated this way: “that madman” (NLT), “this mad fellow” (KJV), “this crazy fellow” (NASB), “this crazy person” (HCSB), and “that crazy prophet” (CEV).

A man with an unclean spirit, ³ who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, ⁴ because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. ⁵ And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. –Mark 5:1-5

The one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort. –1 Corinthians 14:3

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Etzel Cardeña, ed., Varieties of Anomalous Experience, ch. 3: “Hallucinatory Experiences.”

Steve Thompson, You May All Prophesy.

The Star Wars Trilogy. (The Jedi are a Buddhist-Catholic idea of monks and knights).

Charles Spurgeon, Spiritual Warfare in a Believer’s Life, pgs. 54-55.

Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God.   –Leviticus 19:31

All these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. –1 Corinthians 12:11 (KJV)

The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. –John 3:8

We’ll see. We never make commitments. We go and come and come and go. We’re a capricious* crowd!    –Al in Angels in the Outfield clip 1:03-1:13

*Capricious – governed or characterized by caprice: IMPULSIVE, UNPREDICTABLE. Caprice: a sudden, impulsive, and seemingly unmotivated notion or action; a sudden usually unpredictable condition, change, or series of changes; a disposition to do things impulsively.

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Walter Martin, The Kingdom of the Occult, ch. 7.

Clifford Wilson and John Weldon, Occult Shock and Psychic Forces: A Biblical View.

Stanley Krippner, ed., Debating Psychic Experience, chs. 1, 3.

James Wheatley, ed., Philosophical Dimensions of Parapsychology, ch. 30.

Etzel Cardena, ed., Varieties of Anomalous Experience (Amer. Psy. Assoc.), chs. 3, 7, 12.

Roberts Liardon, ed., John G. Lake: The Complete Collection of His Life Teachings.

David Lewis, Healing: Fiction, Fantasy, or Fact? (survey of a Wimber conference) – 32% dramatic physical healing rate.

Kathryn Kuhlman, Captain LeVrier Believes In Miracles. (doctors affidavits attesting to healings).

The Voice of Healing Magazine. (many occasions of healing affidavits).

To each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given. –1 Corinthians 12:7

Satan…afflicted Job with painful sores…to the crown of his head.   –Job 2:7

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. –Colossians 2:8 (KJV)

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William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience, ch. 3.

Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle, ch. 4.

James Goll and Julia Loren, Shifting Shadows of Supernatural Experiences, ch. 2.

Albert Farges, Mystical Phenomena Compared with Their Human and Diabolical Counterfeits, p. 350ff.

Felicitas Goodman, “Glossolalia and Hallucination in Pentecostal Congregations.”

Eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. –1 Corinthians 14:1

In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. –Acts 2:17

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. –1 John 4:1

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Exodus 20:1-17; Isaiah 8:19-20 (KJV); Numbers 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12-14; 1 John 4; Luke 22:64 (Jesus is expected to prophesy while blindfolded; closed visions implied); 1 Kings 14:4-5 (Ahijah was a blind prophet; closed visions implied); Acts 13:1-3; Deuteronomy 13:1-3; Jude 1:9; Galatians 5:22-23; Mark 16:15-20.

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G. B. Scaramelli, A Handbook of Mystical Theology.

Thomas Boys, The Suppressed Evidence.

Augustin Poulain, Revelations and Visions.

—. The Graces of Interior Prayer.

Ignatius of Loyola, The Spiritual Exercises, sections 313-336.

James Goll, The Beginner’s Guide to Hearing God.

Jack Deere, The Beginner’s Guide to the Gift of Prophecy.

Oliver Davies, Celtic Spirituality. “The Rule for Monks” by Columbanus.

John Paul Jackson, The Biblical Model of Dream Interpretation.

Ira Milligan, Understanding the Dreams You Dream.

David Wilkerson, The Vision.

Daniel Jennings, The Supernatural Occurrences of John Wesley.

Wayne Grudem, The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today.

Josh McDowell, Handbook of Today’s Religions. (Apologetics against false religions).

Walter Martin, The Kingdom of the Cults. (Apologetics against false religions).

—. The Kingdom of the Occult. (Apologetics against false religions).

The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion. (John Wesley’s confession of faith).