Premier Apologist for Montanist Heresy Defends Speaking in Tongues Against John MacArthur
Dr. Michael Brown, the foremost apologist for the modern day Montanist heresy, was recently interviewed where he defended the practice of glossolalia–that is, speaking in “tongues.”
The Bible clearly teaches that the gift of tongues in the early church was the ability to speak known, intelligible languages that one had not yet learned for the purpose of evangelism and the edification of the church. However, Brown, as do most charismatics, defends the unbiblical notion that speaking in tongues is not only still for today, but that it is a non-intelligible babbling that one need not understand in order to communicate with God while not thinking about what you’re saying.
The heresy that the spiritual gifts of the early church still continue today stems from a fundamental misunderstanding of God’s covenants with man, how these gifts were used to authenticate the Word of God and the authority of the Apostles who were ultimately charged with the covenant documents to follow, the canon of Scripture.
Brown’s ultimate defense of his heretical doctrines are experiential in nature–that if you continuously see people live’s “being changed,” then it is “the Holy Spirit that did it.”
Our thing was, well the person’s life is changed. They were a crack addict for 20 years. God set free six months ago and now they’re making restitution back in their community…that’s what we look for.
However, restitution is not the gospel. Turning from drugs and sin is not the gospel. The gospel is that Christ died in our place according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again three days later, defeating sin and death, and seated at the right hand of the father forever making intercession for those who would repent and believe on Him.