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| Charismatic Chaos | 
 enlarge | Author: John Macarthur
Publisher: Zondervan
Category: Book
List Price: $5.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  136 reviews
Sales Rank: 22047
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 0310575729
Dewey Decimal Number: 234.13
UPC: 025986575724
EAN: 9780310575726
ASIN: 0310575729
Publication Date: July 22, 1993
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Product Description
Recognizing the importance of the charismatic movement and the need for a biblical evaluation of it, MacArthur analyzes the doctrinal differences between charismatics and non-charismatics in the light of Scripture.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 131 more reviews...
 Tackling False Spirituality October 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have attended a Charismatic Church for the past year. However, I was saved before I attended the Church. The realities of sin became very obvious to me. Moreover, the realities of suffering from sin slowly but surely became very apparent to me from the environment that I am exposed to.
The One who delivered me from these burdens was Jesus Christ. Knowing this and attending this Charismatic Church where they preach supernatural things in order for you to be a good and developed Christian did not at all settle well in my heart. I wanted Christ! not "spirituality(I say this loosely in this case)". There was a fallacy in that practice and John MacArthur does an extraordinary job in pointing out these fallacies in great detail and with great resolve. I now attend a Church called Faith Bible Church in Sharpsburg, GA. It's Shepherded by John Crotts who graduated from MacArthur's Master's Seminary. They strictly teach the Word and the Witness in that Church is amazing. Everybody is so humble, self-controlled, and best of all genuinely loving. None of this fake spiritual love stuff.
"Apart from the Bible, we're like a ship without direction in the ocean."
Now, of course somebody could say, "I believe God is telling me to sail WEST!!"
Biblically, I say we read and study the map and have the Holy Spirit direct us like a compass according to the map.
Good Read March 21, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a good read. Has a good common sense approach seen in the book. It is a rather lengthy book for the topic, atleast for me, but all the better because of it. Great job on addressing the prophesying and tongues issues (it is a sad state that some Christian brothers and sisters are in). I have had my experiences with the results of Pentecostal/Charismatic movements and was a long and painful experience for me to try my best to lovingly rebuke their false beliefs in Gifts, which have ceased and were never to be used in the manner in which they are used today (run-on sentence prob- Sorry). Plain reason, and indepth contextual readings of scripture (As well with a Koine Greek knownledge) seems to prevail against these false (and maybe even demonic) experiences. Many people of these movements will get uptight and upset about it but it is important to remember 2 Timothy 4:1-5
 Not fair, not balanced, and not to be ignored. March 19, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Nobody even remotely familiar with John MacArthur will ever accuse him of being wishy-washy, indecisive, or politically correct. MacArthur tells it exactly how he sees it - nothing more, nothing less - and for this reason he is often cast as a theological version of the Oakland Raiders or NY Yankees. People either love him or they despise him, with very few undecideds.
In "Charismatic Chaos," MacArthur explores the roots, beliefs and practices of the 20th-21st century Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. Starting with the Holiness movement and Azusa Street revivals, he takes us into the modern era with the Word of Faith movement, Vineyard, TBN, etc. This book was published before the national prominence of Joel Osteen and his contemporaries, so we only get as far as Benny Hinn, the Crouch's and Ken Copeland.
MacArthur's main thesis is that while there are many true, dedicated disciples of Jesus Christ in the modern Charismatic movement, at its foundation the movement is not based on sound Biblical teaching, and therefore is wide open to infiltration by any crazy (or downright evil) teacher who wishes to say whatever he/she wishes. He never specifically calls the movement (as a whole) cultic or apostate, but he pulls no punches when challenging the excesses, immorality and outright perversions of Scripture that are rampant in the movement.
Some of his most vocal complaints concern new revelation (the canon is closed, so how can anyone claim to have new direct revelation from God?), miraculous healing (show me a healing that can't be faked, or one that cures cancer or grows back limbs), tongues (ceased when the apostles died), prophecy (modern "prophets" prophesy falsely and therefore are not from God), and especially the excesses within the televangelist circles, particularly those who teach Word of Faith doctrine.
In his favor, MacArthur does his homework and expects (read that "demands") that his readers do the same. Why does he have such a problem with those who claim the power to heal miraculously? Because we know from the gospels that Jesus healed blindness, restored withered limbs, healed paralysis, and many other things that no modern healer can touch. He is skeptical about tongues because 1 Cor 13 clearly says that tongues will cease, and the Greek word for this means a permanent ceasing. History not only shows that tongues were gone from view by the second century, but between then and now, no movement that claimed the gift of tongues was not eventually proven as heresy. So he concludes that tongues have ceased.
My biggest complaint with this book is that as in some of his other books, MacArthur often fails to use the most convincing arguments to make his most important points. For example, in arguing for cessation (i.e., tongues ceased when the apostles died out), MacArthur does not explore the possibility that maybe tongues have continued to exist in a very limited and non-visible way (like with a missionary in New Guinea, etc.). Just because something is not being used in a very public manner does not overrule the right of God to give gifts to whomever He chooses.
Ultimately, this book will not win over anyone from Charismatic circles, which is kind of the point of the whole thing. Non-charismatics are well aware of the problems with this movement and the heresies it is responsible for letting in, but where are the charismatics who are willing to stand up and call out the teachers guilty of these lies and distortions? Other than D.L. McConnell's "A Different Gospel" (which MacArthur heartily endorses in the notes), there are amazingly few charismatics willing to do so.
 Very Interesting But One Sided October 20, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a very interesting polemic against the charismatic movement. MacArthur makes good points about the extremes of the movement that claim new prophecies and merely use "proof texts" if they reference the Bible at all. However, MacArthur does not acknowledge the possibility of Christians having direct experience of God except through the study of the Bible. He is denying the authenticity of the experience of the closeness of God of so many faithful Christians. He makes many misstatements denying the history of charismatic expression in the Christian tradition. I would love to see him write another book that incorporated more knowledge of the history of Christian Spirituality and directed his great knowledge of the Bible to develop guidelines to assist charismatics to discern their experiences.
 Please research both sides of this issue! May 22, 2007
5 out of 10 found this review helpful
Before deciding whether to believe what you have been taught, I strongly urge everyone to research BOTH sides of this issue. Read this book, and also read another book such as 'Healing The Sick' by T.L. Osborn, before making any decision of how you want to believe. It's the best book I've found on the subject and I doubt very much if Mr. MacArthur has read it.
John MacArthur is very correct on many things. I appreciate the work he has done on this subject. However, he is also very much incorrect on several issues in the Charismatic movement. For example, he says there is nothing in Scripture supporting how some people 'fall down' under the power of God. In my own research I have found 21 scriptures so far supporting that.
Some Charismatics are indeed way out there! Mr. MacArthur admits that he does mention mostly about the extremists in the movement. I agree with him about these types.
Mr. MacArthur teaches that miracles were a "temporary sign gift for the authenticating of the Scriptures as the Word of God", but never do I find anything in the Scriptures that support that belief.
I'm also wondering how Mr. MacArthur can teach that such scriptures like Eph 6:11-18, 1Pet 5:7-9, and James 4:7 show US how to deal with the devil, but says that other scriptures that commission us to preach the gospel, heal the sick, and cast out demons like Mark 16:15-20 are not for us, but were only for the disciples. To me this passage in Mark is a perfect example of what WE are supposed to do. And if you preach the gospel, you must also heal the sick and cast out demons because it is all there in one breath in the Great Commission! They all go together! Mr. MacArthur wants to pick and choose which scriptures he thinks are for us today and which are not. (2 Tim. 3:16 "ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction....")
Many Charismatics do indeed test doctrine by experience instead of the reverse, but he may not label all Charismatics as doing such. I am a Christian who believes as Mr. MacArthur does PLUS I believe that miracles are still for us today as the book 'Healing The Sick' by T.L. Osborn will thoroughly prove from Scripture. There are literally hundreds of scriptures that support this that John MacArthur DID NOT QUOTE AT ALL, such as 1 Peter 2:24 and Psalm 103:3 which when checked in the original Greek mean physical healing, to be made whole.
I would like to say a word about a little girl's faith. Mr. MacArthur mocked the fact that God answered the prayers of two little twelve-year-old girls to raise their pet Chicken from the dead! Now who is he to judge the faith of a little child! With God anything is possible, and nothing is too hard for Him. (Mat. 19:26; Jer. 32:17) And I bet he doesn't even know that 'There Is Eternal Life For Animals'! This, and 'The Immortality Of Animals" are the names of Scripturally based books and are very important books that every Christian should have!
Too many people do not take God's Word seriously. When you do this you can experience, yes experience, God's love like nothing on this earth. So please research BOTH sides before making any decision for yourself.
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