THE STRANGE THEOLOGY OF JOHN MACARTHUR'S 'STRANGE FIRE' - We're probed by Jesus to consider all the moments of our days and how we will fill them. Jesus pressed the idea of being sent into this world each Monday morning - each dull and dreary February week - sent into each annoying meeting - sent to His work into every class and office. Our unspectacular lives can easily be lived off-mission. Daylight can be squandered on a blindness to anything but the greed of the moment. And all the while there are spiritually blind people out there. And remember, they have to be reached before nightfall.

JOHN: THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF - Belief warms the heart of the one doing the believing. It sets his or her sights on what is possessed by faith now and what is yet to be possessed through Jesus Christ. A believing heart may have its ups and downs, but a believing heart can’t remain more fascinated by this present world than by the greatness and grace of Jesus Christ.

THE STRANGE THEOLOGY OF JOHN MACARTHUR'S 'STRANGE FIRE' - In every New Testament list of qualifications for pastors you will find Paul emphasizing they must be teachers. He never once says they must be prophets or prophetic. That’s because in Christ’s New Testament church, He is still the Cornerstone and the foundation is still the apostles and prophets. The authority lies in the Word of God rather than any human personality. The gift of prophecy should be valued. It should always be weighed. The Person of Christ should always be honored and worshiped. And the truth of the Word of God should always direct.

JOHN: THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF - There is a kind of slavery in any denial of Christ as Savior and Lord. Jesus said so. Sin is a genetic slavery. That means no one is being original in rejecting the truth of Jesus Christ. They all partake of the same inner condition. We can’t get ourselves out of this. The Devil - and the world that dwells under his sway - hates the truth about inward sin and actual, grace-driven redemption in Jesus Christ alone. When the Holy Spirit draws your heart, yield. Life is too short to dabble with Christ. Come into the light of the truth and find freedom in Christ Jesus, God the Son.

THE STRANGE THEOLOGY OF JOHN MACARTHUR'S 'STRANGE FIRE' - Are we left to guess the meaning of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts? That the Holy Spirit was poured out in rather dramatic fashion is admitted by virtually everyone with a Bible. But what was happening? What did these events in the Book of Acts mean?

JOHN: THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF - If dying in your sins is a terrible fate, dying in the Lord is the greatest of all treasures - Revelation 14:13 - “And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

THE STRANGE THEOLOGY OF JOHN MACARTHUR'S 'STRANGE FIRE' - Regarding how God manifests the gift of tongues I think we should at least be humble enough to consider that it’s unlikely it’s all that important to God that we recognize the language spoken. If that is what the gift of tongues is all about in 1 Corinthians it is strange to me that whatever language was spoken, the only hope for the congregation getting the meaning of what was said was a supernatural miracle of the gift of interpretation. Why wouldn’t God just pick a language already known to someone in the assembly. Wouldn’t the sign impact be greater that way? Clearly, God doesn’t consult regarding His gifts. Then and now the reminder from God’s Word is the same - 1 Corinthians 12:11 - “All of these (the gifts) are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.”

JOHN: THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF - Everyone must start with Jesus Christ to find saving life and relational knowledge of Father God. Proving God exists, apart from Jesus Christ, merely acknowledges your eternal Judge. It’s like a thief proving the existence of a prison. Make no mistake. Jesus alone brings light and life. He takes eternal, encroaching darkness and blindness from your soul. Trust Him. Yield. Embrace His freely offered grace. And follow Him. There is simply no excuse left for remaining in the dark.

THE STRANGE THEOLOGY OF JOHN MACARTHUR'S 'STRANGE FIRE' - So Jesus revealed the Father. And the Spirit reveals Jesus, the Son in exactly same way. Jesus never came saying, “Don’t look at me. Don’t listen to me. I’m just the Son. I just put the spotlight on the Father. Don’t pay any attention to me.” No. He said over and over, “Look at me! Watch me! Listen to me! Look at the works I’m doing! That’s what Father God is like!” And so it is with the “manifestation of the Spirit.” Jesus isn’t upset when the Holy Spirit manifests Himself. When Scripturally practiced and ordered in humility, the gifts of the Spirit show us what the living, current, ongoing work of Jesus is in His church. And if they ever detract or distract from the gospel of Jesus Christ, it’s not the fault of the gifts of the Spirit. All the gifts should keep us close to the ministry of Jesus and the glory of the cross.

JOHN: THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF - We learn sinners need to just stay with Jesus. We learn His heart is big and healing and forgiving for those who feel the true shame of their actual guilt before God. We learn Jesus isn’t a threat to those who want a clean heart. He’s still the same today.