The book you now hold in your hands belongs to a developing genre which
for lack of a name I will call "prophetic scholarship" -- a mixture of
personal experience, divine revelation, and accumulated study of many other
books. The message in this book
is an up to date expression of the mind of the Lord for the Church. Like all
prophetically inclined writing it is direct and passionate, advocating a
course of action for today's saints. At the same time, however, this book is a
product of scholarship. It draws upon much research for laying a
comprehensive, balanced ground under its message. It is the fruit of long
personal spiritual exploration and exposure to the various parts of the body
of Christ, and also the result of
much study, especially in the areas of Church history.
As a work of instructional prophecy, the scholarship takes a back seat
to the prophetic and the instructional. Because of their foundational
importance to this message, chapters two through five are heavily footnoted with Scripture.
Beyond this however, the source of every thought is not footnoted as to its
origin of influence on me. Only enough documentation to support a point is
offered where deemed useful. In many cases, sources are second hand quotes
through other writers.
The case laid in this book does not ultimately appeal to its
research for its authority, but
to its burden as a message from the Lord. The purpose of the research is not
to impress the scholar but to support the appeal to the seeking heart.
Nevertheless, I must acknowledge my special indebtedness to several specific writers for the
historical background and supportive insight found in their books. I offer the
historically and theologically oriented books in particular as a useful
bibliography for further study on the themes central to this
message:
Unger's Bible Dictionary, The
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, and the Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the Bible for
their information on Bible uses of oil;
In the Last Days and The Holiness-Pentecostal Movement in the
United States (Vinson Synon); Christian Perfection and American
Methodism (John L. Peters); The
Nineteenth Century Holiness Movement (Melvin Dietrich); and Perfectionist Persuasion: The Holiness
Movement and American Methodism, 1867-1936 (Charles E. Jones) for their
historical accounts of the development of sanctification doctrine and the
Holiness Movement;
The Dictionary of Pentecostal
and Charismatic Movements for its various articles relative to the history
and development of those movements as well as the Holiness and Healing
Movements;
Aspects of
Pentecostal-Charismatic Origins (ed. Vinson Synan); Theological Roots of Pentecostalism
(Donald W. Dayton); The Baptism of the
Holy Spirit: The Views of A.B. Simpson and His Contemporaries (Richard
Gilbertson) and A. B. Simpson and the
Pentecostal Movement (Charles W. Nienkirchen) for their research on the
development of the views pertaining to the Holy Spirit and His baptism that
prevailed at the turn of the last century;
The Eternal Church (Bill Hamon) and Latter Rain (Richard Riis) for their
accounts of the development and significance of the Latter Rain
Movement;
The Incredible Coverup (Dave
MacPherson) for the source material on the origins of the Pre-Tribulation
Rapture doctrine; and Heaven on Earth?
The Social and Political Agendas of Dominion Theology (Bruce Barron) for
its research on the multifaceted Kingdom Movement.
More personally, I consider myself especially indebted to the late A.W.
Tozer whose writings proved my mainstay of encouragement during the early
years of my own transformation process, and also to Leland Earls, a
comparatively obscure but potent prophetic writer whose articles on sonship
and the end times have done more than any other ministry to center my understanding in the Lord
upon our ultimate goal in Christ. I consider both of these men to be personal
fathers of faith though I have met neither. Special recognition also belongs
to Joseph Carroll, director of
the Evangelical Institute of Greenville, S.C. whose transformation-based
teaching and discipleship emphasis greatly supported my own quest for the Lord
during my critical transitional years from Reformed Fundamentalism into
sanctification reality.
While no accounting of my indebtedness could ever be exhaustive, this list cannot be complete without
my acknowledgment of certain other ministries that were foundational to my
early spiritual life. These include all the Biblically-centered churches and
schools of my Fundamentalist and Reformed background beginning with my parents who laid in me a grasp of the
Scriptures as the Word of God and trained me in the paths of scholarship and
learning.
[ INTRODUCTORY
TESTIMONY ]
