I'm a charismatic.  At least I think I am.  When I first came into the Faith (at 14) I attended a charismatic church (it was an Evangelical Free Church with a charismatic Mennonite pastor…it shouldn't have been a surprise that a church split would happen a few years later).

I loved my church experience.  But late in my teens, things went sour.  The church began to split, my family life sucked (I was the youngest of 6, but the primary care-giver to my dying mother), and I was beging to have theological differences with my church (they didn't appreciate my bookish-ness).

Through the years, I've tenaciously maintained a charismatic identity.  I may, one day, give up on calling myself an "evangelical," but I would never reject my "charismatic" label.  Why not?  Because I fundamentally agree with charismatics: all of the supernatural gifts seen in the first century are still available to us today and should be practiced.  I am perhaps charismatic-lite in that I don't believe that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a seperate even from salvation, though it can be a seperate experience.

Although I claim to be a charismatic…I am painfully aware that many charismatics won't claim me in return.  Mostly, I think, this is because I am too intellectual, no longer talk like a cultural charismatic, and I do indeed challenge some conventual charismatic understandings. 

I'll give you an example: spiritual gifts (charismata).  I'm troubled by the ways in which charismatics tend to depersonalize the Holy Spirit as a sort of force that one can "plug into." And I'm concerned by the ways that many charismatics tend to treat charismata as special mystical abilities that have been granted to them by the Holy Spirit.  This is how you can take something that was supposed to foster unity and inter-dependence into a tool for one-upsmanship, power over others, and spiritual abuse.

And so, here are seven statements on charismata…if you are a charimstic or have charismatic leanings, I'd love to hear where you agree or disagree:

1. "Charismata" are spirit-given ministries—expressions of the presence of the Spirit—rather than spiritual "gifts" or "talents." Charismata aren’t “hidden talents”, they are ways the Spirit manifests among us. Charismata aren't not latent special abilities (in Romans 12, the charismata mentioned are the result of fruits of the Spirit, and are evidence of the empowering presence of the Spirit).  In other words, you don't "have" a "spiritual gift," you "manifesto" or "make known" the Spirit's presence, which is itself a gift to the community by God the Father. 
2. Charismata are congregational, not personal. They are given primarily to serve the Body, not primarily for self-fulfillment. Through these manifestations of the Spirit, the Church-at-large and the local congregation are equipped to function as worshiping, discipling, community-building, witnessing, serving, and ministering family of faith.
3. None of the “gifts lists” are complete. These "lists" are representative to show the diversity of the possible ways the Spirit manifests through the congregation.  This means that we can't simply scan the lists and figure out which ones we "have." Instead, these "lists" are contextual.  We shouldn't let these passages of Scripture constrain us.  Instead, they should help us learn about the nature and diversity of the different manifestations of the Spirit-in-our-midst.
4. We need to be careful with gifts-tests. How then, do we answer the question: “what is my spiritual ministry?” Not by tests.  The question shouldn't be "what is my gift" it should be "how can the Spirit minister through me?" The Spirit is ministering through you whenever you are walking in obedience to the calling and passion the Spirit has been leading you into. The Spirit is ministering through you whenever you minister out of the maturity that the Spirit has cultivated. Because of this, I downplay “spiritual gifts” inventories. They are only helpful if they help us realize inner passions and things that the Spirit has been urging us towards. Being obedient to the Spirit’s leading is way more important than having the right label for your “gift.”
5. A central point of 1 Cor 12 is that we shouldn't emphasize some spiritual gifts and devalue others.  We need to value all the ways the Spirit manifests through one another, for it is the Spirit’s way of bringing unity and directing the church. This makes the need for communal discernment very important.
6. The Spirit leads and empowers through the many, not the few. In other words, the Spirit can speak to the Body through anyone at any time.  The Spirit doesn't just speak through "clergy." Some folks aren't "more anointed" than other–at least not in the way we think.  Charismatics, because of their theology, should be MORE egalitarian, not less.  Nevetheless, they often betray Scriptures by elevating the "anointed" over the laity.  The charismata passages point to shared decision making and shared ownership of ministry.  This is even true of the "five-fold" ministry passage in Ephesians 4.  Why do we assume that these are "offices" of leadership?
7. Every time we gather together, charismata should be (and probably are) expressed.  Christ is present by his Spirit.  Christ leads his church through his Spirit.  And the Spirit makes the will and presence known in our midst through one another.  Therefore, every time we are gathered, the Spirit is with us, moving in, around, and thorugh us to shape us into the image of the Son. 

Thoughts?

About Mark Van Steenwyk

Mark Van Steenwyk is a member of Missio Dei. He is a speaker, writer, educator, and grassroots organizer. With the support of the Central Plains Mennonite Conference, he travels to radical and intentional communities around the country to help network and offer support.