A Brief Response To Sam Storms

April 3, 2008 Posted by David N

In Convergence: Spiritual Journeys Of A Charismatic Calvinist, Sam Storms lays out a solid case for the continuation of spiritual gifts in the church today, and argues that “charismatics” need not be anti-intellectual or anti-doctrine. He believes that cessationists have historically done a wonderful job developing doctrine and what we might call the “life of the mind” in the church, and he admits that charismatics have often ignored the life of the mind in favor of spiritual experiences. But he does not believe that this divide is a necessary one, and takes his own story to be evidence that one can be both charismatic and a “Word-centered” Calvinist.

I found the majority of the book to be both helpful and informative. I was a cessationist not too long ago, but now I would consider myself in the broad middle category of “open but cautious” (in part due to Storms' arguments against cessationism). But I found several of Storms' arguments to be inadequate, and at times even ad hoc. I wish to address these concerns in a series of posts. This first post will deal with just one of the arguments.

Storms argues that Charismatics don't put immediate Spiritual guidance ahead of guidance found in the Word. Why not? Because, says Storms, every prophetic word or dream or vision that is received is immediately and meticulously weighed against Scripture. Scripture, then, is the final authority.

That answer sounds good, but it actually dodges the question. Notice that, while the Bible may act as a rubber stamp that will allow a certain bit of direct Spiritual guidance to pass, it is still the direct guidance itself that remains central. It is not Scripture that is actively guiding a person, Scripture merely allows (most often by its silence) someone to be guided by other means.

This is no knock-down, drag-out rebuttle, but it does seem that Storms' attempt to show that the Bible remains just as central to daily guidance for the charismatic as for the cessationist mostly fails. The difference between “active guidance” and “passive allowance” is a big one, and one that Storms cannot ignore.