Customer Reviews

When the Spirit Comes with Power: Signs & Wonders Among God's People

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

John White, M.D. is a psychiatrist, bible teacher, and former missionary.His experiences in these roles give him the qualifications to sort out for us the claims and controversies about what God is doing--or not doing-- around the world. As a Bible teacher he examines revival experiences being reported today, and with the cautious insight of the scientifically-trained physician subjects them to rigorous scrutiny. The church--the entire church--should listen to White. A few chapter titles show his concerns: "Has It Ever Happened before?" "Should We Fear Emotions?" Are Revival Experiences Psychological?" "Are Revival Experiences Spiritual?" "Preparing for Revival" and so on for 11 more chapters. Near the end of this excellent book, White writes: "[The] earnest cry to God in prayer at a critical point in the church's history had incredible results. It is time to prove God again." (p.235) This work will certainly help to promote the human preparation for a revival which will come when God chooses to pour down his blessings.

For those who want to better understand the supernatural. It illustrates how God's ways are above our ways, and goes over many helpful and historical examples, with lessons-learned.

Many either are for or against the supernatural, but this offers a biblically-based and unbiased look, considering both sides (blessings and cautions). God is not constrained to follow our expectations of how his Spirit works in us. God can bless us and reveal his working in various ways. We don't have to let the fact that "the bad guy" can pervert "the good" cause us to attribute God's work as evil.

Leave your prejudices behind and you may appreciate a balanced perspective, rather than a cynical one.

This book is very informative. If you are interested in the different reasons people do not believe in the supernatural and how God works in the lives of these people to believe. This is a book for you. It helps you realize we cannot put God in a box he will not stay there. He is still working in the lives and details of his people.
Donna Cox

A great look at the supernatural acts of the Holy Spirit from the lens of a very skeptical psychologist. Is it possible for people to shake, speak in tongues, have visions, etc? This book is an incredible resource for understanding the phenomenon of these acts of the Holy Spirit. It provides a lot of good advice on how to be cautious, wise and biblical when you experience second hand or personally these types of things of the Holy Spirit. It also gives you information and biblical background for these types of things happening still to this day.

White doesn't push that one should have to have these experiences or that they're second rate Christians because of it, but provides a sound analysis of these acts of the Spirit.

This book has no merit or value except as a reference for those seeking to understand the occult influences in Christendom. By studying the writings of Mr. White, you can see how, in the Charismatic movement, occult views and a deceptive spirituality have led to false teachings about the Holy Spirit.

In the book True to His Ways by R Davis True To His Ways it is clearly shown how the teachings of John White on the Holy Spirit parralel the teachings of occult magicians; also it is shown how the manifestations that Mr. White thinks are signs of the presence of the Holy Spirit are identical to kundalini manifestations of serpent power in yoga and Hinduism. R. Davis also explores other pagan and mystic religions and finds the same manifestations and teachings in them. She shows how true Christianity is very different from what Mr. White espouses. There are many other interesting parallels.

Another book which touches on the link between yoga and charismatic practices is by Dave Hunt, Yoga and the Body of Christ: What Position Should Christians Hold?

In his book John White mentions, almost in passing (see pages 115-116 of the 1988 edition), one serious problem that comes to some who seek the manifestations and signs and wonders associated with charismatic practices: uncontrollable cursing of Jesus when the person apparently becomes demon possessed. It is very sobering, and very unholy, and ought to warn anyone away from Charismatic spirituality.

This is supposed to be a book about spiritual manifestations, yet not once are the words 'mesmerism' or 'hypnotism' even mentioned. This betrays a severe lack of discernment and a biased view, as in many places in the modern church (note I do not say all) these techniques are used, consciously or not, to work an audience.

This is an interesting book albeit it is far too biased towards the heretical Vineyard Churches. It is certainly not an impartical viewpoint. Demonic manifestations are not considered as particularly significant, so for instance when 'Godfrey the godley giggler' repeatedly interupts 'serious' reflective moments in church services and ruins the mood, it is because of his 'need' for self worth, not the fact that decieving spirits may have been responsible for the holy laughter - this possibility was not even considered by the author - yet does not 1 John tell us to test the spirits? Testing the spirits just does not seem to happen here!

Far more time could have been spent examining the spiritual manifestions against scripture, rather than examining them from what is effectively a more secularised and incomplete at that point of view. There are a scattering of interesting accounts though, hence the 2 stars instead of one as I do not merit the conclusions.

I highly recommend War on The Saints by Jessie Penn-Lewis which talks about TESTING for the counterfeit.