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The unnamed "Publisher" provides a superficial, unnuanced examination of a practice found in some charismatic churches and pronounces the issue refuted. But he doesn't explain anything. He doesn't tell us what the proper understanding ought to be or bother to quote more than a snippet of Scripture.
The unnamed "Publisher" provides a superficial, unnuanced examination of a practice found in some charismatic churches and pronounces the issue refuted. But he doesn't explain anything. He doesn't tell us what the proper understanding ought to be or bother to quote more than a snippet of Scripture.
How can one "untwist" an unquoted Bible? This continually astonishes us.
We would not claim that every (or even any) experience is from or because of God, whether it be prophecy, Tongues, healing, trembling/shaking, impressions, or being "slain in the Spirit." We would suggest that this uncertainty is part of the reason cessationists reject these things. Cessationists seem to have a pronounced desire to know every detail for certain. In addition, the excesses of some charismatics justifiably leads cessationists to question these manifestations.
Therefore, we are going to discuss "slain in the Spirit" not to affirm that every, or even any, instance claimed as being from God is true. Rather, our intent is to establish the idea that such occurrences are not outside the bounds of Scripture.
The first thing we should note is that many things in the NT were unprecedented. For example, Pentecost. While this does not give us license to deem any and every unusual occurrence as being of God, it does suggest that we ought to be a bit more circumspect about rejecting something out of hand simply because we haven't seen it before, or because such an occurrence might not have precise Scriptural precedent.
Trembling or falling down in the presence of the Glory of the LORD is scriptural. And there are a lot more instances of this manifestation than the ones provided by "Publisher."
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Therefore, we are going to discuss "slain in the Spirit" not to affirm that every, or even any, instance claimed as being from God is true. Rather, our intent is to establish the idea that such occurrences are not outside the bounds of Scripture.
The first thing we should note is that many things in the NT were unprecedented. For example, Pentecost. While this does not give us license to deem any and every unusual occurrence as being of God, it does suggest that we ought to be a bit more circumspect about rejecting something out of hand simply because we haven't seen it before, or because such an occurrence might not have precise Scriptural precedent.
Trembling or falling down in the presence of the Glory of the LORD is scriptural. And there are a lot more instances of this manifestation than the ones provided by "Publisher."
- Old Testament examples
Ge. 15:12 As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.
Ez. 1:26-28 ...and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. 27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell face down, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
Ez. 3:23 So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell face down.
Ez. 43:3-4 The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when he came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell face down. 4 The glory of the LORD entered the temple through the gate facing east.
Ez. 44:4 Then the man brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked and saw the glory of the LORD filling the temple of the LORD, and I fell face down.
Da. 8:17-18 As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.” 18 While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet.
Da. 10:8-9 So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. 9 Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.
Ex. 3:4-6 When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
Jo. 5:13-14 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” 14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua fell face down to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
Is. 41:4-5 Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD — with the first of them and with the last — I am he.” 5 The islands have seen it and fear; the ends of the earth tremble.
Ge. 17:1-3 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. 2 I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” 3 Abram fell face down...
Habk. 3:16 I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled.
Is. 66:2 Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?” declares the LORD. “This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.
Je. 5:22 Should you not fear me?” declares the LORD. “Should you not tremble in my presence?"
- New Testament Examples
Re. 1:17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last.
Mt. 17:5-6 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground, terrified.
Mk. 5:33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth.
Lk. 5:8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”
Ac. 10:10 He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.
Ac. 16:29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.
Ac. 22:17-18 When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw the Lord speaking.Again, we do not advocate for these or any other manifestations, we simply acknowledge their possibility because there is a scriptural basis for them.
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Picture this: a coliseum filled with crazy people whipped into a frenzy, arms flailing like windmills in a gale, eyes rolled back as if caught in a trance. The preacher, slick and telegenic, lays a hand on someone’s forehead, mutters a few words, and then—bam! Down they go, “slain in the Spirit,” they’ll tell you. It’s a spectacle, a theater of spiritual euphoria. And it’s bolstered by a handful of cherry-picked Bible verses that seem to suggest that falling flat on your back is a surefire sign of divine encounter. Oof! The alluring aroma of Scripture twisting!
The charismatics among us might trot out a line-up of verses to defend this bizarre practice, from Balaam bowing before an angel to Saul falling off his high horse on the road to Damascus. But let’s not be bamboozled. These verses, when ripped out of their rich biblical context, are like isolated stars in the cosmic canvas—beautiful perhaps, but void of the story they’re meant to tell.
First up, 2 Chronicles 5:14, where the glory of the Lord fills the temple, and the priests couldn’t even stand. Charismatics leap at this as if it’s the Golden Ticket for being “slain in the Spirit.” But let’s not gloss over the detail here—it was the glory of the Lord that filled the house, not some transferable, human-induced experience. The glory was so immense that the priests couldn’t perform their duties. It was an event that marked a unique historical moment—the completion of the temple—and it is absurd to think that such a monumental event is replicable every Sunday morning in church basements around the world. (Why would such a thing be required to be "replicable every Sunday morning?" And where in the Bible does it say that this occurrence or any other will never happen again?)
Then there’s John 18:6. When Jesus identifies Himself, the soldiers draw back and fall. There’s a crucial point here that’s routinely ignored. They fell backward in dread and terror, not in divine ecstasy. This was not a beautiful spiritual moment—it was a fearful confrontation. The power Jesus exhibited in this moment exposed the frailty of human schemes. Twisting this event into a justification for being “slain in the Spirit” is not just a stretch—it’s a leap off a theological cliff. ("Publisher" insists without basis that every detail must be duplicated in order for a contemporary occurrence to be genuine. There is no such Bible standard, however.)
Or consider Revelation 1:17, where John falls at the feet of the resurrected Christ “as dead.” The common misinterpretation conveniently forgets that John wasn’t in a collective, frenzied worship experience. Rather, he was receiving a revelation that bore the weight and terror of ultimate realities. In his encounter with the living God, there wasn’t a charismatic preacher pushing him down or smacking him across the forehead. There was the voice of God lifting him up, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.” (Again "Publisher" insists without basis that every detail must be duplicated in order for a contemporary occurrence to be genuine.
Did "Publisher" tacitly admit that being slain in the Spirit in private might acceptable?)
Let’s talk about Matthew 17:6 and Acts 9:3-4, where the disciples and Saul are genuinely terrified. These are not instances of willing, ecstatic worship but moments of unspeakable awe or blinding revelation. And then there’s Ezekiel, who repeatedly falls on his face when he encounters divine visions (Ezekiel 3:23, 43:2-3, 44:4). Notice how Ezekiel wasn’t in a collective frenzy. He was encountering the majesty of God—a majesty so overwhelming that it naturally forced him to his knees, then to his face. It was a reaction to the weight of God’s glory, not an artificially-induced spiritual high. (Apparently there's some sort of importance about being in a "collective frenzy" that disqualifies contemporary experiences. Of course the word "frenzy" is specifically chosen to impugn those gathered by characterizing their behavior as being unseemly.
Let’s talk about Matthew 17:6 and Acts 9:3-4, where the disciples and Saul are genuinely terrified. These are not instances of willing, ecstatic worship but moments of unspeakable awe or blinding revelation. And then there’s Ezekiel, who repeatedly falls on his face when he encounters divine visions (Ezekiel 3:23, 43:2-3, 44:4). Notice how Ezekiel wasn’t in a collective frenzy. He was encountering the majesty of God—a majesty so overwhelming that it naturally forced him to his knees, then to his face. It was a reaction to the weight of God’s glory, not an artificially-induced spiritual high. (Apparently there's some sort of importance about being in a "collective frenzy" that disqualifies contemporary experiences. Of course the word "frenzy" is specifically chosen to impugn those gathered by characterizing their behavior as being unseemly.
So in Matthew 17:5-6 more than one person was present at the transfiguration. Was that a "collective frenzy" as well?)
All these accounts describe people falling to the ground in contexts of divine revelation, transformative change, or profound conviction. None of these are flimsy, momentary experiences induced by the laying on of hands in a highly charged environment. They are the polar opposite of what happens in a charismatic service where being “slain in the Spirit” is touted as the ultimate spiritual experience. (Is this true? Do charismatics really claim that "slain in the Spirit" is always pleasant and desirable? Well, no. We have personal experience with this [which is anecdotal, of course], where people we know well were slain in the Spirit and experienced deep conviction and correction, and were terrified at their sin.)
So, let’s not be duped by the smoke and mirrors. “Being slain in the Spirit” as practiced in the charismatic movement (What might be the proper practice?)
All these accounts describe people falling to the ground in contexts of divine revelation, transformative change, or profound conviction. None of these are flimsy, momentary experiences induced by the laying on of hands in a highly charged environment. They are the polar opposite of what happens in a charismatic service where being “slain in the Spirit” is touted as the ultimate spiritual experience. (Is this true? Do charismatics really claim that "slain in the Spirit" is always pleasant and desirable? Well, no. We have personal experience with this [which is anecdotal, of course], where people we know well were slain in the Spirit and experienced deep conviction and correction, and were terrified at their sin.)
So, let’s not be duped by the smoke and mirrors. “Being slain in the Spirit” as practiced in the charismatic movement (What might be the proper practice?)
has as much in common with genuine biblical experiences as astrology has with astronomy. In Scripture, falling down before God as you’re moved and convicted by His word is an awe-filled, life-changing experience. But when it’s packaged as a weekly, replicable event, it becomes nothing more than spiritual theatrics, a pantomime that mocks the true gravity of encountering Christ. If we’re serious about biblical integrity, let’s not lend credence to a practice that’s so blatantly at odds with Scriptural truth. Instead, let’s fall to our knees in true reverence, discerning the weight and wonder of who God really is. Anything less is spiritual fool’s gold. (We would agree.)
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