This book is sympathetic, honestly critical, but deeply appreciative of charismatic spirituality of which he had a rich personal experience, and was a founding member of The Fountain Trust. I learned a lot from him in the couple of years I was around the YPF gatherings in Lanarkshire. He moved to England, becoming a leading voice in the renewal movement, and General Superintendent of the Baptist Union in London.
This book combines personal testimony, acute theological critique, insightful about the limitations of denominational institutionalism when confronted by newness and spiritual experiences that, like new wine, refuse to be contained in old wineskins. The pastoral heart of Douglas McBain is evident all the way through – the lessons are salutary for both sides engaged in controversies around charismatic pneumatology, biblical precedent and evangelical spirituality. I'm just reading it again. The final sentences demonstrate the pastoral hopefulness and theological realism of one whose own soul and ministry were enriched and enriching through his personal experience of the Holy Spirit:
"The Spirit knows nothing of narrow sectarianism. Whenever the Spirit shows us others under the imprint of Christ, there he renews our grace, our love, and our fellowship. Here he has other surprises for us. Being blessed by the Spirit, we grow in graciousness and in the God of all grace. Thus we may begin to discover what it means for the whole Church to be really renewed, fully charismatic, and truly Christian." (Page 194)
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