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History

Holy Laughter and Other Phenomena in Evangelical and Holiness Revival Movements

sermonindex Jan 11, 2023

Paul L. King

With the phenomena associated with the "Toronto Blessing” and the ministry of Rodney Howard-Browne, people have tended to either completely accept or completely reject all such phenomena. Many of these manifestations have occurred in evangelical and holiness revival movements. When we look at the history of the Church, in particular the holiness movements which are akin to the beginnings of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, we see that such phenomena were neither accepted out of hand, nor dismissed summarily. As one of our Alliance writers, T.J. McCrossan, put it, regarding supernatural manifestations we should take "the middle of the road.”1 This study explores the experiences of evangelical and holiness revivals, including those of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, and how such manifestations were viewed.

Holy Laughter

Jonathan Edwards describes the reaction of some who were converted in the Great Awakening revival: "Their joyful surprise has caused their hearts as it were to leap, so that they have been ready to break forth into laughter, tearing often at the same time issuing like a flood, and intermingling a loud weeping.”2 E.M. Bounds records Wesley saying, "The power of God came mightily upon us, so that many cried out for exceeding joy, and many fell to the ground.”3 Charles Finney wrote that after he testified about his experience of being baptized in the Spirit, a normally serious elder of his church "fell into a most spasmodic laughter. It seemed as if it was impossible for him to keep from laughing from the very bottom of his heart.”4

Manifestations of holy laughter and being drunk in the Spirit occurred during the Australian Keswick Convention of 1891:

The Convention was marked by clean-cut surrender to God for all His will to be done at all costs, and by an overflowing joy which followed in hundreds of hearts, so that, as Mr. George Soltau wrote, "Literally `our mouths were filled with laughter and our tongues with singing.’ . . . It was impossible to restrain one’s heart, the Lord giving us such a foretaste of heaven. Talk of `fleshly excitement,’ I wish to bear my testimony that it was nothing less than the fullness of the Spirit. We were verily drunk with the joy of the Lord, and with the vistas of the possibilities of faith opening up to the fully surrendered life of the believer. But it was equally manifest to us all that this joy and blessing is only to be received and retained and increased by the death to self and ofself and the most painful crucifixion of self.”5

In 1897 A.B. Simpson wrote that one of the effects of being filled with the Spirit is "fullness of Joy so that the heart is constantly radiant. This does not depend on circumstances, but fills the spirit with holy laughter in the midst of the most trying surroundings.”6

Oswald Chambers recorded in his diary on April 19, 1907:

Last night we had a blessed time. I was called down by the teachers to pray and anoint a lady who wanted healing, and as we were doing it God came so near that upon my word we were laughing as well as praying! How utterly stilted we are in our approach to God. Oh that we lived more up to the light of all our glorious privileges.7

Again Chambers records in his journal May 6, 1907, "It is an unspeakably blessed thing to see souls come out under the blessing of the baptism of the Holy Ghost and Fire. Some simply laugh, peals of the heartiest and most blessed laughter you ever heard, just a modern edition of `Then was our mouth filled with laughter.’”8 A third time Chambers writes on May 27, "Many souls cut loose, there were tears and laughter and all the blessed signs of those revival times the Lord brings so mysteriously and suddenly upon His people. It is a great business to open up all the windows of the soul to heaven and live on the Hallelujah side.”9 Chambers evidently believed that laughter could be one of the signs of revival and, like Simpson, a result of the baptism in the Spirit.

Praying John Hyde, the great intercessor and missionary to China, also experienced holy laughter in the summer of the same year. His companion relates of a low caste Punjabi intercessor:

How often has G_____, after most awful crying seemed to break through the hosts of evil and soar up into the presence of the Father! You could see the smile of God reflected in his face. Then he would laugh aloud in the midst of his prayer. It was the joy of a son revelling in the delight of his father’s smile. God has been teaching John [Hyde] and me that his name is the God of Isaac””laughter. . . . Rejoicing, laughing, the same word as Isaac. This holy laughter seemed to relieve the tension and give Heaven’s own refreshment to wrestling spirits.10

Sometimes related to the laughing phenomenon is a spontaneous dancing for joy. Praying Hyde, a staid Presbyterian, is described after a time of intense prayer at the Sialkot Convention (similar to Keswick), "He begins to sing, `’Tis done, the great transaction’s done,’ and he is so full of joy that his whole body begins to move, he claps his hands, then his feet begin to move, and look! he begins to dance for joy, and others join him until the whole place rings with God’s praises.”11

A.W. Tozer also testified of holy laughter:

Now I say that worship is subject to degrees of perfection and intensity. There have been those who worshiped God to the place where they were in ecstasies of worship. I once saw a man kneel at an altar, taking Communion. Suddenly he broke into holy laughter. This man laughed until he wrapped his arms around himself as if he was afraid he would bust just out of sheer delight in the presence of Almighty God. . . . So worship is capable of running from the very simple to the most intense and sublime.12

Nevertheless, we must recognize that some laughter is "fleshly excitement” and some may even be demonically inspired. Catholic exorcists have discerned that the devil may cause laughter to distract and disrupt.13 In 1912, Evan Roberts and Jessie Penn-Lewis in their book War on the Saints also write of demonical inspired laughter with twisting and jerking.14 John and Charles Wesley also recognized that some manifestations were unholy laughter.15

Falling Under the Power of the Spirit

As cited above, both Wesley and E.M. Bounds recognized falling to the ground as a manifestation from God. George Whitefield criticized Wesley for allowing the phenomenon until it began happening in his own meetings.16 Jonathan Edwards indicated that a person may "fail bodily strength” due to fear of hell and the conviction of the Holy Spirit or due to a "foretaste of heaven.”17 Finney’s ministry also frequently manifested what he called "falling under the power of God.”18 R.A. Torrey testifies of people falling under the power of God due to conviction of sin.19Presbyterian Jonathan Goforth makes reference to the phenomenon in his book By My Spirit, originally published by The Christian and Missionary Alliance.20

Instances of falling under the power of the Spirit also occurred at Alliance meetings in 1907, including Simpson’s Gospel Tabernacle21 and at Fred F. Bosworth’s Christian and Missionary Alliance church in Dallas in 1912.22 Greek professor T.J. McCrossan, who wrote the book Speaking in Other Tongues: Sign or Gift, Which? published by The Christian and Missionary Alliance in 1927, three years later wrote in another book, Bodily Healing and the Atonement:

Hundreds are healed, who do not fall under this power, because they simply trust God’s promises; and it is the prayer of faith that heals. Going under this power seems, however, to bring an extra spiritual blessing. . . . This power is not hypnotism. . . . This is not devil power.23

McCrossan is cautious in his writings about accepting all supernatural manifestations, but he speaks positively about this one in particular. This is because McCrossan is speaking out of the experience of his own life, for he fell under God’s power and was enraptured with visions when he was baptized in the Spirit in 1921.24

Physical Sensations

Such manifestations were sometimes accompanied by unusual bodily sensations. Charles Finney avowed his baptism in the Spirit was "like a wave of electricity, going through and through me.”25 McCrossan wrote of a woman who received the baptism in the Spirit: "The third one was filled, and for days there seemed to be a veritable fire burning within her.”26 Early Alliance pastor Dr. E.D. Whiteside’s testimony of healing in 1888 included both physical sensations and falling under the power of the Spirit:

Like a flash of electricity, I was instantly thrilled. Every point of my body and nerves was controlled by a strange sensation that increased in volume, until I bowed lower and lower to the floor. I was filled with the ecstatic thrill. My physical frame was unable to stand the strain.27

Reminiscent of holy laughter, he reported that he felt he was on the verge of "dying from overjoy.”28

Trembling, Shaking and Convulsions

At the outset of the Welsh revival of 1904, Evan Roberts experienced the phenomenon of shaking on several occasions:

In the spring of 1904, Evan found himself, as it were, on the Mount of Transfiguration. In his own home and out on the countryside, his loving Heavenly Father revealed Himself to His child in an amazing overwhelming manner which filled his soul with divine awe. At these special seasons, every member of his body trembled until the bed was shaken.29

A more intense form of trembling or shaking is a convulsing of the body in contortions, characteristic of some under intense conviction. Jonathan Edwards described a child in this condition, "She continued crying, and writhing her body to and fro, like one in anguish of spirit.”30Speaking of the revival of 1740-1742, Edwards writes, "It was a very frequent thing to see a house full of outcries, faintings, convulsions, and such like, both with distress, and also with admiration and joy.”31 These phenomena also occurred in the ministries of Finney and Wesley.32 In some cases these were regarded as the work of the Holy Spirit, others of the flesh, and still others as demonic in origin.33

Strange Sounds and Behavior

Sometimes strange sounds accompanied some of these manifestations, such as groaning or weeping. A companion of Praying Hyde relates of Hyde and the Punjab Prayer Convention of 1906 (similar to Keswick), "We began to pray, and suddenly the great burden of that soul was cast upon us, and the room was filled with sobs and cries for one whom most of us had never seen or heard of before. Strong men lay on the ground groaning in agony for that soul.”34

On the other hand, not all strange sounds can automatically be accepted as a result of the Spirit’s workings. Many animal-like sounds and behavior have been recognized throughout Church history as demonic.35 Such exhibitions in the early Pentecostal movement were also often considered demonic. A.B. Simpson observed, "There have been many instances where [seeking for] the gift of tongues led the subjects and the audiences in to the wildest excesses and were accompanied with voices and actions more closely resembling wild animals than rational beings, impressing the unprejudiced observers that it was the work of the devil.”36 Pentecostal leader Charles Parham also described demonic manifestations of barking like a dog, braying like a donkey, crowing like a rooster and contortions and fits.37 Woodworth-Etter admonished:

"Try the spirits.” In one of our meetings there was a colored woman who had a wonderful experience spiritually; that is the kind the devil gets after. One day she commenced to go about on her knees, twisting about like a serpent. God does not tell anyone to do that. She spoke in tongues; then she said, "I don’t want to do it; I don’t want to do it.”

Everyone knew it was not of God; and I said to her: "that is not God; the enemy has got hold of you.”38

While we see from this overview that animal sounds and behavior have been viewed throughout Church history as predominately demonic in origin, that is not to say that in every instance animal-like sounds and behavior are demonic. They may be of the flesh, or they may be a response to something God is doing in a person””like the unutterable groanings of Romans 8:26-27. The phenomena may even be misinterpreted by observers. A colleague of this writer who is a researcher of the Campbellite/Christian church movement determined through his research on the 1800 Cane Ridge revival that what was reported by the media as "barking up a tree” and "treeing the devil” was, in reality, people under such conviction and emotional distress that they were heaving and groaning in such a manner that it sounded like barking and all the while feeling faint so that they were holding themselves up against a tree.

A missionary friend in South Africa reported that on two separate occasions he observed two different pastors apparently roaring. Believing the phenomena to be demonic, he attempted to cast out demons without any response. When questioned about it, in both instances each pastor responded that he was crying out in words for the nations to repent, but the listeners only heard roaring. This could be a similar phenomenon to the incident when God the Father spoke to Jesus and some thought it thundered (John 12:28-29), or when Paul heard Jesus speak but others only heard a sound (Acts 22:9).

This calls for caution in automatically branding all such phenomena as demonic. There may be occasions in which sounds are made that are from the heart and soul which cannot be articulated clearly, which may fall under the category of "groans that words cannot express” (Romans 8:26). Nonetheless, the preponderance of evidence would indicate that the vast majority of such animal-like manifestations are either demonically inspired or originate in the flesh. Those which are demonic in nature may be satanic counterfeits meant to deceive, or they may be already existing demonic influences being exposed or brought to the surface by the moving of the Holy Spirit in revival, like a bird dog flushing out a pheasant.

Impressions, Prophecies, Visions and Dreams

Contrary to the beliefs of some modern authors, such as Gary Friezen, who has claimed impressions have no part in a believer’s life,39impressions and supernatural revelation from God were experienced in holiness and evangelical revival movements. A.T. Pierson writes of George Müller, "Müller cultivated habits of life which made his whole nature more and more open to divine impression, and so his sense of God became more and more keen and constant.”40 Praying Hyde, it is recorded, "began to have visions of the glorified Christ as a Lamb on His throne””suffering such infinite pain for and with His suffering Body on earth.”41 Torrey recalled that a man praying for revival in Australia saw a prophetic vision of crowds of people coming to hear Torrey speak.42Prophecies and visions were features of the Welsh revival.43

Such manifestations occurred in the early Christian and Missionary Alliance as well. In fact, the missions emphasis of The Christian and Missionary Alliance was established on Simpson’s response to a vivid dream in which he awoke trembling.44 In 1883 early Alliance leader John Cookman had an experience in which "The Lord appeared to him in a vision, and said, `I am thy Healer, thy Sanctifier, thy Savior, and thy Lord.’45 Robert Jaffray experienced several dreams with strong impressions from the Lord.46 C.H. Gootee recounts a healing service led by A.B. Simpson and Henry Wilson in which he received a miraculous healing. When Wilson anointed him with oil, he saw a vision of the blood of Jesus sprinkled on his breast and body.47

But such experiences were not accepted automatically among holiness leaders and some Pentecostals.48 In 1898 when Carrie Judd Montgomery had been very ill, she testified at The Christian and Missionary Alliance convention of prophecies that she received from three women, two of which said she would die, one of which said she would recover: "The Lord spoke to her and told her that I would be raised up speedily and that I would be able to attend the Christian Alliance [now The Christian and Missionary Alliance] convention, which would take place in a few days. I was so very weak and ill that her prophecy seemed incredible, but praise God, it came true.” Of the two other women she said: "Two Christian women thought they had it from the Lord that I was going to die. . . . How this shows us that we must not depend on impressions that do not harmonize with the word of God. . . . Dear readers, always stand firmly upon God’s Word, and not upon the impressions of those around you.”49

Classic evangelical and holiness leaders understood that God can lead by such impressions and revelations, but they needed to be tested.50Moravian leader Count Zinzendorf, who was open to supernatural movings of the Holy Spirit, witnessed a man falling into an "inspired fit, jerking and convulsing, and prophesying. Zinzendorf did not hesitate to reject the inspiration.”51 John Wesley’s timeless counsel is:

Do not hastily ascribe things to God. Do not easily suppose dreams, voices, impressions, visions, or revelations to be from God. They may be from Him. They may be from Nature. They may be from the devil. Therefore believe not every spirit, but "try the spirits whether they be from God.”52

Evan Roberts and Jessie Penn-Lewis comment that "No one can with safety accept all the supernatural manifestations which accompany Revival, or believe all seeming `Pentecostal power’ to be of God.”53 They recognized that gifts of the Spirit such as prophecy, healing and tongues could be genuine or false, saying that counterfeit tongues were only a fraction of the counterfeit manifestations.54 Again they warn: "Counterfeit manifestations of the Divine life in various ways now follow quickly; movements in the body, pleasant thrills, touches, a glow as of fire in different parts of the body, or sensations of cold, or shakings and tremblings, all of which are accepted as from God.”55 However, they did not dismiss all such manifestations as demonic, for Roberts himself experienced some of these manifestations authentically during the Welsh revival, and was by experience able to recognize the counterfeit.56

Conclusion

These are just a sampling of the occurrences of such manifestations in evangelical and holiness movements. Hank Hanegraaff claims these phenomena are indicators of counterfeit revival.57 While some such phenomena clearly are counterfeit, in the light of these examples it would be more accurate to say that there are counterfeits in the midst of revival. In most every revival in Church history””Wesleyan, Great Awakening, Cane Ridge, Welsh Revival””there has been mixture. Where there is counterfeit, there must also be the genuine. Wesley warned of a twofold danger: 1) to regard them too much, as essential to revival, 2) to regard them too little, condemning them altogether.58 The position of the Alliance and early holiness leaders was one of a "middle ground,” as McCrossan suggests, one that neither accepts nor rejects such phenomena without further discernment. The viewpoint of Jonathan Edwards (which both critics like Hanegraaff and Toronto Blessing supporters seem to ignore) is perhaps the wisest counsel:

A work is not to be judged of by any effects on the bodies of men; such as tears, trembling, groans, loud outcries, agonies of body, or the failing of bodily strength. The influence persons are under is not to be judged of one way or other by such effects on the body; and the reason is because the Scripture no where gives us any such rule. We cannot conclude that persons are under the influence of the true Spirit because we see such effects on their bodies, because this is not given as a mark of the true Spirit; nor on the other hand, have we any reason to conclude, from any such outward appearances, that persons are not under the influence of the Spirit of God, because there is no rule of Scripture given us to judge of spirits by, that does neither expressly or indirectly exclude such effects on the body, nor does reason exclude them.59

Through studying the history of revivals, Martyn Lloyd-Jones came to much the same conclusion:

I would conclude that the phenomena are not essential to revival. . . . I believe that in their origin they are essentially of the Spirit of God, but we must always allow for the fact that because of the very frailty of human nature, and of our physical frames, you will have a tendency to an admixture, partly along the physical, partly along the psychic, and partly as the result of the Devil’s activity. But there is nothing more foolish or more ridiculous than to dismiss the whole because of a very, very small part. . . . [E]xpect this, and . . . be on guard against the false and spurious. . . . But we must not seek phenomena and strange experiences. . . . What we must seek is revival. . . . Anyone who tries to work up phenomena is a tool of the Devil, and is putting himself in the position of the psychic and the psychological.60

How then can people guard against deceiving spirits regarding such phenomena today? Two suggestions are recommended. First, A.B. Simpson’s counsel from the first decade of the century is just as timely and timeless in the last decade as well: "In these days when the forces of heaven and hell are so intensely active, let us seek from God that gift which is of such practical value, the Spirit of discernment.”61 Secondly, Neil T. Anderson recommends the following prayer which bears repeating here:

Heavenly Father, I commit myself unreservedly to Your will. If I have been deceived in any way, I pray that You will open my eyes to the deception. I command in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that all deceiving spirits depart from me, and I renounce and reject all counterfeit gifts (or any other spiritual phenomena). Lord, if it is from You, bless it and cause it to grow that Your body may be blessed and edified through it. Amen.62

If these guidelines are followed, we do not need to fear being deceived by counterfeit manifestations.

Endnotes

1 T.J. McCrossan, Speaking in Other Tongues: Sign or Gift, Which? (Harrisburg, PA: Christian Publications, 1927), 42.

2 Jonathan Edwards, "The Distinguishing Marks of the Work of the Spirit of God,” Jonathan Edwards on Revival (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1984), 91.

3 E.M. Bounds, The Possibilities of Prayer (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1979), 138.

4 Charles Finney, The Autobiography of Charles Finney (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 1977), 22.

5 Mary N. Garrard, Mrs. Penn-Lewis: A Memoir (Hants, England: The Overcomer Book Room, 1947), 36-37.

6 A.B. Simpson, Days of Heaven on Earth (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1984), June 27.

7 Oswald Chambers: His Life and Work (London: Simpkin Marshall, Ltd., 1947), 103.

8 Ibid., 104.

9 Ibid., 105.

10 Capt. E.G. Carre, ed., Praying Hyde: A Challenge to Prayer (Asheville, NC: Revival Literature, n.d.), 26.

11 Ibid., 31.

12 A.W. Tozer, Worship: The Missing Jewel (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1992), 20-21.

13 Adolf Rodewyk, Possessed by Satan, trans. Martin Ebon (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1975), 152.

14 Jessie Penn-Lewis with Evan Roberts, War on the Saints: Unabridged Edition (New York: Thomas E. Lowe, Ltd., n.d.), 320, 324.

15 B.J. Oropeza, A Time to Laugh: The Holy Laughter Phenomenon (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1995), 158.

16 John Wesley, The Journal of John Wesley (Chicago: Moody Press, n.d.), 76.

17 Edwards, 91-92. He gives as biblical examples the fainting of the queen of Sheba, the trembling and falling of the Philippian jailer, and others (pp. 91-94).

18 Finney, 100-101; also 23, 37, 46, 57-58, 63, 116, 120, 125, 131, 139, 163.

19 R.A. Torrey, The Power of Prayer (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1971), 46-47.

20 Jonathan Goforth, By My Spirit (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany Fellowship, 1942, reprint 1964), 9-10.

21 W.A. Cramer, "Pentecost at Cleveland,” Christian and Missionary Alliance Weekly 27 (April 27, 1907): 201; A.B. Simpson, "Editorial,” Christian and Missionary Alliance Weekly 27 (June 8, 1907): 205; Stanley H. Frodsham, With Signs Following, rev. ed. (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1946), 51-52.

22 Maria Woodworth-Etter, Acts of the Holy Ghost: The Life, Work, and Experience of Mrs. M.B. Woodworth-Etter (Dallas, TX: John F. Worley Printing Co., n.d.), 354-355, 357, 369.

23 T.J. McCrossan, Bodily Healing and the Atonement (Youngstown, OH: Clement Hubbard, 1930), 109-110.

24 Charles S. Price, See God (Pasadena, CA: Charles S. Price Publishing House, 1943), 80; compare T.J. McCrossan, Speaking with Other Tongues, 34.

25 Finney, 21.

26 McCrossan, Speaking with Other Tongues, 46.

27 Irene E. Lewis, Life Sketch of Rev. Mary C. Norton: Remarkable Healings on Mission Fields (Los Angeles: Pilgrim’s Mission, Inc., 1954), 27.

28 Ibid.

29 James A. Stewart, Invasion of Wales by the Spirit (Asheville, NC: Revival Literature, n.d.), 29.

30 Edwards, 64.

31 Ibid., 151.

32 Finney, 23, 163-164; Wesley, 76, 293.

33 Maria Woodworth-Etter wrote:

A woman came to me and said, "I am afraid this spirit on me is not of God; I was baptized in the Holy Ghost; I went into a mission where they did everything by tongues and they got me so mixed up I did not know where I was; then this spirit got hold of me; it shakes my head and makes my head ache.”

That is spiritualism. Some people, when they pray for anyone and lay on hands, throw their slime off. That is spiritualism. . . . Be careful who lays hands on you, for the devil is counterfeiting God’s work. (Woodworth-Etter, 508)

34 Carre, 23-24.

35 Oesterreich in his monumental work Possession writes of many examples of possession by animal spirits, such as cats, badgers, tiger, ox, dogs, monkeys, snakes, lions and foxes. T.K. Oesterreich, Possession: Demonical and Other (New Hyde Park, NY: University Books, 1966), 144-145. A person with a fox spirit, for instance, "adopts the habits of foxes” (224). A person with a tiger spirit would get on his hands and knees and growl (274-275). Another woman would glide like a snake and speak in tongues (144). He also records that a demon roared (184). In another instance, St. Francis cast out roaring demons (182). Jerome reports in his biography of St. Paula that possessed persons in Samaria "howled like wolves, barked like dogs, roared like lions, hissed like serpents, bellowed like bulls.” (162). In Algiers dancers are possessed and imitate voices of lions and camels (263). In another instance, a monkey spirit caused a child to swing to and fro and to climb supernaturally. (276).

John Wesley also spoke of roaring taking place in demonized people. Frederick S. Leahy, Satan Cast Out (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1975), 121. Nineteenth-century Presbyterian missionary John Nevius writes of demons with a voice like a bird (46) and twisting of body. John L. Nevius, Demon Possession and Allied Themes (Chicago: Fleming H. Revell, n.d.), 53. Johann Christoph Blumhardt describes a demon roaring during deliverance. McCandlish Phillips, The Bible, the Supernatural, and the Jews (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1970), 199.

36 A.B. Simpson, Christian and Missionary Alliance Weekly, Feb. 2, 1907.

37 Charles Parham, The Everlasting Gospel (Baxter Springs, n.d.), 71-72.

38 Woodworth-Etter, 507-508.

39 Garry Friesen with Robin Maxson, Decision Making and the Will of God (Portland, OR: Multnomah, 1980), 127ff.

40 A.T. Pierson, George Müller of Bristol (New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1899), 134-135.

41 Carre, 22.

42 Torrey, 48.

43 Stewart, 31-33, 36, 43, 46, 51, 61, 76.

44 A.W. Tozer, Wingspread (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1943), 62.

45 George Pardington, Twenty-five Wonderful Years (New York: Christian Alliance Publishing Co., 1914), 216.

46 Louise Green, "Robert Jaffray: Man of Spirit, Man of Power,” His Dominion, 16:1, 10-11.

47 C.H. Gootee, "The Miracle of My Healing,” Triumphs of Faith (March 1926), 62.

48 For instance, Maria Woodworth-Etter, who circulated both in holiness and early Pentecostal circles, advised, "Don’t take up with every vision that comes along.” She gave an example of one such spurious revelation: "In the midst of a vision she heard a voice say to her `You are going to die.’ But it was the devil.” Woodworth-Etter, 503, 506.

49 Carrie Judd Montgomery, The Life and Teaching of Carrie Judd Montgomery: Under His Wings (New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1985), 159-161.

50 Martin Wells Knapp, Impressions (Cincinnati: Revivalist Publishing House, 1892), 15.

51 Thomas Upham, The Life of Faith (New York: Garland Publishing, 1984 reprint Boston: Waite, Pierce, 1845), 85.

52 Knapp, 34.

53 Roberts and Penn-Lewis, 131.

54 Ibid., 297-298.

55 Ibid., 285.

56 Green, 10-11, also Stewart, 29.

57 Hank Hanegraaff, Counterfeit Revival (Dallas: Word Publishers, 1997).

58 Wesley, 239.

59 Edwards, 91.

60 D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Revival (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1987), 146-147.

61 Richard Gilbertson, The Baptism of the Holy Spirit: The Views of A.B. Simpson and His contemporaries (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1993), 321-322.

62 Neil T. Anderson, The Bondage Breaker (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publisher, 1990, 1993), 165.

from: https://awf.world/repository/holy-laughter-and-other-phenomena-in-evangelical-and-holiness-revival-movements/

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drifter Jan 12, 2023

Carter Conlon has a good message about the "Toronto Blessing" style "laughing gospel." He said what he heard from these meetings (led by Rodney Howard-Browne, Kenneth Copeland and others) was the kind of unclean laughter you hear after someone has told a dirty joke.

I think a good rule is, Can I find these phenomena in the Bible? Is there scriptural precedent for it? If not then I reject it outright. If there is scriptural precedent, then we should test the spirits and see what kind of fruit that church/pastor/person is producing.

I can remember seeing a video of a pastor at one of the Toronto meetings slurring his words like a drunk and making a mockery of the gospel during his message. Other pastors, instead of preaching God's word, would just stand in the pulpit and laugh for thirty of forty minutes. One pastor said "close your Bible, it has nothing to say to you."

I could write a book on the bad fruit and ruined lives I've personally witnessed from people who have gotten involved in this kind of thing. I don't doubt there are some people who were genuinely hungry for God that went to these meetings (Toronto, Lakeland etc.) not knowing better and He met them there, but it would be in spite of these false prophets, not because of them.

One time when a church service was almost over and pastor Carter was giving an altar call, Carter mentioned a specific man who made a decision to follow Jesus. I don't know exactly why, but I was overcome with joy and I couldn't help but laugh. It seemed to flow out of me. I am often brought to tears and rejoicing when I know someone has surrendered to Jesus; nothing else makes me happier. So I do believe that as we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, He manifests Himself through us, even our emotions. I just don't believe it's a spiritual gift like tongues or prophecy.

"Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evil doers: till he fill thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing." Job 8:20,21

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wildhorse86 Jan 12, 2023

The Holy Spirit is not that erratic and disorganised to make people make animal noises and be "slain in the spirit". It's unbiblical nonsense.

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TrueWitness Jan 12, 2023

I have a couple of observations about this. First, I do not equate laughter with joy. I have experienced exquisite joy many times without once feeling like laughing. Laughing can contain a measure of cheerfulness and mirth but like I said previously, laughter and joy are not the same thing. And many in the holy laughter camp try to justify the phenomenon by claiming laughter is joy.

Secondly, my observation with what I've seen in Rodney Howard Brown type holy laughter manifestations is a bunch of people laughing their heads off for no discernible reason. This to me looks identical to certifiable insanity and madness. And I'm sure the devil is laughing because the outside world looks at this nonsense and deems the whole thing as weird, kooky, nuts and foolish and is instantly turned off from having anything to do with Christianity.

I do believe there are clean jokes that are funny where laughter is appropriate. But being in the midst of a bunch of people laughing hysterically for no discernible reason makes me want to head for the exit ASAP.

-Daniel

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AbideinHim Jan 12, 2023

Thank you Greg for posting this article.

"When we look at the history of the Church, in particular the holiness movements which are akin to the beginnings of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, we see that such phenomena were neither accepted out of hand, nor dismissed summarily. As one of our Alliance writers, T.J. McCrossan, put it, regarding supernatural manifestations we should take "the middle of the road.”1 This study explores the experiences of evangelical and holiness revivals, including those of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, and how such manifestations were viewed."

I am inclined to agree T. J. McCrossan in taking the "middle of the road" view on supernatural manifestations of the Holy Spirit that took place in the early Church and continue right up to the present day.

All that it takes is a study of the history of revivals and the manifestations that took place in many of these revivals to know and understand that there were true manifestations of the Spirit, as well as the counterfeit. In other words, most of the revivals contained mixture.

I have personally experienced holy laughter and I have no doubt that it was the Holy Spirit that was moving in me and upon me. I have also been in meetings where people were laughing at something that was funny, which is not coming from the Spirit of God. It would be like watching the Three Stooges and laughing hysterically, and calling it a manifestation of the Spirit.

It is always dangerous to seek after some manifestation, but if we are seeking the Lord, with our eyes on Jesus, and the Holy Spirit moves on us, then we certainly should not reject it.

I believe that we need to give heed to scriptures which tells us to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good." (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

T
TMK Jan 12, 2023

This is the perfect example of unholy laughter. So sickening.

https://youtu.be/X2V7KbbfRHA

M
murrcolr Jan 12, 2023

I didn't personaly have anything to do with the Toronto Blessing and the "laughing revival"

However a few years prior to it appearing; I had been praying and realy holding on for God to answer a prayer. It was tough holding out a believing against the lies of the enemy but I held fast.

When that prayer was answered along with came a great joy and excitment, I ran on the spot a fast as my legs could go and then I stopped and just laughed and laughed and then laughed some more.

It was like the devil was there and I was just laughing at him in the joy of what my God had done.

M
murrcolr Jan 12, 2023

double post

N
narrowpath Jan 12, 2023

There is the true and the false phenomenon. Satan mocks and counterfeits everything to do with God's work.
If you have been filled with the Holy Spirit, bursts of joy, spontaneious praise, speaking in tongues will not be a strange thing to you. If you are an armchair theologian, you will be irritated by these things and you will say "They are filled with sweet wine". As it was then, so they say today.

I recently was in a meeting where people suddenly started to scream. It was demons manifesting while they where challenged by God's presence and they were set free, praise God!
Imagine if Mr. Armchair was around. He would not know how to handle this nor would he have the power of the indwelled Holy Spirit to cast out any demon. He would be greatly irritated and would try to silence the man, and blame the pastor for allowing such manifestations.
Read for yourselves, how many times in the bible did those who casted our demons get themselves in trouble?

We should not seek for manifestations, not press them to happen, but neither suppress them. Let God have his way. We are children of God, and real children laugh and weep much more than adults or those who never tasted heavenly joys. The Holy Spirit witnesses to our spirit that we are children of God and that we belong to Him. If that does not fill us with joy, the stones will cry out.


S
Solomon101 Jan 18, 2023

Greg,

Much appreciate the opening post you shared. It is evenly balanced and well documented. It is spot on and many of the great revivalists echo its contents. Jonathon Edwards had it exactly right.

Little wonder that they were wildly persecuted in their day. However, the long term fruit of what happened is undeniable.

The exact same persecutions happen today. There is proof of that contained in posts within this thread.

There truly is nothing new under the sun.

Regardless, press on toward the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. The rewards far exceed the detractors.

Again, excellently balanced and researched post. Appreciate the documentation very much.

As Grandma used to say ... the dogs will bark but the parade still carries on.

R
rufnrust Jan 20, 2023

In Psalm chapter 2 God laughs to mock and scorn His foes. The word for laugh is sachaq. From the same root as Issac

In 2 Samuel 6 David laughs in celebration with all Israel before the LORD. The word (play or played) is sachaq. KJV should get it right on this.

Michal despised David for this and remained barren for the rest of her life.

Rusty

T
TMK Jan 20, 2023

Laughing is one thing. Laughing like in the video I posted is quite another. Nothing holy about it.

S
Solomon101 Jan 20, 2023

TMK

Interestingly Jonathon Edwards strongly argues that you simply do not have anywhere near enough evidence to make the statements you have. Not near enough at all!

In a somewhat similar instance John Wesley also maintained that you can not make the statements you have with any assurance of accuracy.

Notice neither I (nor Edwards, nor Wesley) are necessarily saying that you are in error. We are all three in agreement though that you are making judgments on things for which you have no where near the evidence to do so.

Hold your tongue and put it on the back burner is a modern vernacular of their advice in this and similar instances. You do not know the fruit produced in the lives of people in that room over time. You do not know. Period. Unless you have actually spoken to them you have no earthly idea how they were affected over time. None. Zero.

Nothing in your video link is "sinful" or promoting immorality. They are laughing ... nothing more... nothing less... nothing else. It may not strike you as an "appropriate" behavior but that is irrelevant in God's economy. Don't make judgments based upon ignorance of the facts and effects upon people who were actually there.

Wesley and Edwards both advise not make judgments in this and similar cases until those facts are known. May I suggest you might read some of their words listed in the bibliography of the article. You may find them a great help in gaining maturity in this area unless you feel you are have already surpassed their expertise and understanding.

D
drifter Jan 21, 2023

Carter Conlon and David Wilkerson specifically preached against the "laughing gospel" and they both referenced the specific clip Todd mentioned.

A Gospel Of Slaughter by Carter Conlon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOZZk0fuJoA&ab_channel=ShareTheSermon

Weird Manifestations by David Wilkerson:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvoAGEZf-nI&ab_channel=DefenseoftheGospel

T
TMK Jan 21, 2023

https://youtu.be/EXolizIy6_g

Sorry Sol, all I have to go on is my discernment. I am certainly open to moves of the *Holy* Spirit. I attended a Bethel type church for a period of time until I could take no more of the head-jerking (usually accompanied by the person saying "whoa!”) and other weird things like women laying in the aisles acting like they were giving birth etc.

I certainly agree there are legitimate manifestations of the HS.

I cannot judge what Edwards and Wesley are talking about because I cannot see for my own eyes what they are describing.

They may very well be equally appalled if they saw the manifestations in the videos I have posted. I suspect they would be.

W
wildhorse86 Jan 21, 2023

TMK, I'm in agreement with you. Both my wife and I feel in our discernment that what is in the videos is not of God.

Laughing and expressing cheer is one thing, but this isn't it. The Holy Spirit is not erratic. Even the gift of tongues was organised in the book of Acts. Some of the people thought they were drunks, but they were talking in real languages, they weren't rolling around or barking like dogs.

Test it with scripture. Manifestations or the Holy Spirit are glorifying to God. Where in scripture does it say that God manifests in such chaos? Back it up with scripture, not theologians that have been dead for 200 years and who may have never seen this.

God can use situations like this to grow people, that's not beyond his power, but if it was such a legitimate manifestation, why is it only within certain churches?

A
AbideinHim Jan 21, 2023

Physical Manifestations of the Holy Spirit:

Derek Prince

https://youtu.be/4GbsGrPsu-E

D
deogloria Jan 21, 2023

"With the phenomena associated with the "Toronto Blessing” and the ministry of Rodney Howard-Browne, people have tended to either completely accept or completely reject all such phenomena. Many of these manifestations have occurred in evangelical and holiness revival movements..."

We can't just look at the "phenomena" alone, we need to see the bigger picture.
In the first video that TMK posted there was no true Gospel preaching.
Without true Gospel preaching and repentance people are not covicted by the Holy Spirit.
The result we see in the video is therefore not of the Holy Spirit.
When true Gospel preaching is missing we are dealing with false prophets.
When we have false prophets we have a false spirit.
The whole thing was demonic.

D
deltadom Jan 21, 2023

When the Toronto blessing hit I had to leave my school and church.
How do you tell your friends in school and unbelievers that Christians have completely disregarded the bible and are laughing uncontrollably and barking like dogs and roaring like lions and fake giving birth

I had to leave my school and my church as we had teachers that were laughing uncontrollably and doing strange things.
As the pastor of the church completely forsook the bible

As a 14-year-old I had to defend why laughing like crazy and other circus acts was not biblical.

When I moved school I had to explain and literally say why i left school and to say why people in church were doing crazy things like this. Unbelievers thought it was a circus, a madhouse.

When I was in the school I had to explain the difference between what a true revival and a false revival as I read things like john wesleys journals or johnathan edwards.

As when you have seen the false the true looks better.

T
TMK Jan 21, 2023

When my wife and I sat down with the Pastor of the church to explain why we felt compelled to leave (due to the strange manifestations) he looked at us like we had lobsters coming out of our ears. No concerns whatsoever.

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