Customer Reviews

The Corinthian Catastrophe

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I was given this book while I was studying my Bible in a public library by a man who, after finding out that I attended a charismatic church, said that this book would change my life. He went so far as to warn me that I was playing with the devil by being around charismatic believers. While I don't always agree with my charismatic friends, I find that the idea that spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues are demonic in nature but this is a side point from the book.

The book claims to have been written by a former charismatic himself. I find that much of what he claims to have seen in charismatic churches tends to be the fringe and is far from the likes of men such as Dr. John Piper, C.J. Mahaney, Joshua Harris, and Dr. Wayne Grudem (all who claim to be somewhat charismatic themselves). In fact, Gardiner spends most of his time attacking what he has seen rather than dealing with charismatic literature or theologians. The book builds one straw man after another without including any charismatic theologians such as Dr. Gordon Fee or Dr. French Arrington.

Finally, the book itself is quite dated. I believe it was written nearly 30 years ago. Most of the arguments that Gardiner posts are nothing new to those attacking the charismatic movement and I found Gardiner's illustrations from what he has seen to be nothing more than arguing from personal experience and not Scripture. There are better books from a cessasionist viewpoint than this one. Dr. John MacArthur or Dr. Richard Gaffin have both written scholarly works on the modern charismatic teachings.

In conclusion I don't recommend this book if you are a cessasionist looking for arguments against charismatic doctrines. The very title shows Gardiner's misunderstanding of charismatic theology. To call 1 Corinthians a letter written to a church that was in catastrophe over spiritual gifts is not only misleading but ignores the clear point of 1 Corinthians 12-14 (see D.A. Carson's SHOWING THE SPIRIT for a better discussion of these important chapters). I would avoid this book not out of fear of what it teaches but what it does not teach.

Dr. Gardiner does a fine job explaining what Paul was talking about when he addressed spiritual gifts. Much of the confusion in the church today would be cleared up if people took the approach to Scripture that Dr. Gardiner does. THe Bible tells us it is the truth which unites and the truth can only be found in God's Word. Gardiner does a fine job bringing this truth to light. My only problem with the book is it is too brief, many topics are glossed over. Otherwise, an excellent reference tool.

This is a superb book in many respects. The author does an excellent job of making a good exegetical case and of keeping the book concise. I appreciate his perspective as a former charismatic; I myself am a former charismatic (I left the movement several years ago). I would definitly recommend this book to anyone who is considering the charismatic/cessationist debate.

My main complaint is that there were several issues I wish he had addressed more thoroughly (although, in fairness to him, this is hard to do in such a short book). Although he deals with the gift of toungues fairly thoroughly, his discussion of the gift of healing isn't quite as thorough, and he bairly discusses prophecy at all. After reading the book twice, I am still somewhat confused as to what the author considers the exact function of prophecy in the church to be. With that in mind, though, I think that the author does an excellent job in the space he has. The evidence he gives is very damaging to the charismatic perspective. In spite of a few weaknesses, I would still strongly recommend this book to everyone.

This is one of the most honest views on the subject that I have encountered. If you read this book with and open mind and put aside what you have been "told" and follow the scriptural references,you will cleary understand what the author is saying. I have done alot of research on this subject and it falls in line with what the book points out.. the fact that it negates alot of what people believe is why some would say that it is not accurate, but anyone that has a good grasp of the bible can clearly see what the author suggests is in fact true.. I would advise this book to anyone that has a question about thier "Charasmatic" church...

In "The Corinthian Catastrophe," George E. Gardiner addresses some of the errors in the modern Charismatic/Pentecostal movement. Mr. Gardiner was himself a Pentecostal preacher who later left the movement.

This book rightly confronts the emotionalism of the Charismatic movement and its lack of authority and discernment. For this part the book was valuable. Mr. Gardiner is correct in his rebuke of Charismatics who place more emphasis on the gifts than the fruit of the Spirit.

This book is wrong in its conclusions though. George Gardiner went to the opposite extreme of the Charismatic movement by becoming a Cessationist. Mr. Gardiner now claims that all the gifts of the Spirit have ceased and could not possibly function today. His attempt at proving this is the tired arguments of cessationism that have been addressed repeatedly. Hardly any exegetical scholar today of any denomination accepts the views that Gardiner presents. Mr. Gardiner, in rightly rebuking for a lack of emphasis on the fruit of the Spirit, himself goes to the opposite extreme of neglecting the gifts.

This book would be a favorite of anyone who is already convinced of cessationism and hated by those who are guilty of the excess rebuked in this book (The TBN crowd).

In the end the book provides very helpful insights into where the Charismatic movement needs correction, but ultimately fails in its conclusions.

I heard several sermons from George Gardiner on this subject in the late 1970s and read the book back then. Since then, every time the subject comes up among Christians (including last Sunday), I find myself referring back to this little book.

Gardiner puts the Corinthian Church in the setting in which the Apostle Paul saw it, as coming out of a background where ecstatic tongues were spoken in the pagan temple worship of the time. They are not to be confused with the tongues of Acts 2, which were actual foreign languages precisely spoken by people who did not previously know them!

He points out the difference in I Corinthians between the spiritual things ("pneumatika" in Greek) and the gifts from God ("charismata" in Greek). Often Bible translations can be unclear on this point, and one must understand the difference in order to fully grasp Paul's meaning. People with gifts from God are not necessarily very spiritual! He also points out the references in I Corinthians where tongues are shown to be a sign that would cease and were NOT for every believer even during Paul's time.

So read this book (or a newer one like it), but then study the Word of God yourself and see what the Lord emphasizes for Biblical sprirtuality!