Review article
The Doctrine of Baptism in the Spirit in the Charismatic Movement
Goran Medved
; Biblijski institut, Zagreb
Abstract
The article addresses the major terms and issues regarding the doctrine of baptism in the Spirit in the Charismatic movement. It considers the historical and biblical foundations of the doctrine of baptism in the Spirit, and defines the Charismatic movement. It engages issues of Spirit-baptism such as timing (immediacy or subsequence), stages in Christian growth (second blessing or third blessing), signs accompanying Spirit-baptism (observable or
non-observable, normative or descriptive), and the relationship of experience and doctrine. The article shows that baptism in the Spirit is interpreted differently by different charismatic groups in order to accommodate their particular denominational theology – in the historic Protestant churches, in the Roman Catholic Church and in the independent churches. Different groups use different biblical texts in support of their Spirit-baptism pneumatology. Some focus on the descriptive passages of Acts, some on the didactic passages
of Paul, while some are aiming for integrative use of those texts and also the passages of John. The doctrine of Spirit-baptism appears divisive on the surface, because of its numerous nuances, but it is actually a common denominator and a strong unifying factor across the charismatic world. The effects of Spirit-baptism are numerous and seen as positive and desirable for personal and church growth.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
215565
URI
Publication date:
19.10.2015.
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