The Highway Forums General Discussion ExCharisma The LAW of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus

I have the full 3 Volume Eerdmans edition (1976 reprint). It is not a commentary I use often due to theological differences between the authors and my own which are grounded in the doctrines held by the Reformers and Puritans.

Well, your mention of Rees Howells is actually ironically apropos for the main theme of this forum: "ExCharisma". Mr. Howells is a man of some questionable verity but who is lauded as a true "divine" by those in the Pietist and Charismatic movements among others. Dr. J.I. Packer, coincidently, uses Rees Howell as a negative example, i.e., one who is not to be esteemed as an example to follow in part III of his multi-part article, "True Guidance". Here is one of two quotes where Packer mentions Rees Howell:

1. If anyone today receives a direct disclosure from God on any matter at all, it will have no canonical significance: that is, it will not be meant to become part of the church's rule of faith and life, nor will the church as such be under any obligation to acknowledge the disclosure as revelation: nor will anyone merit blame for suspecting that the disclosure was not from God at all. If the alleged disclosure is a prediction (as when, for instance, Rees Howells, founder of the Bible College of South Wales, Predicted in the 30s. in his book God Challenges the Dictators, that there would be no second World War), Moses assures us that there is not even a prima facie case for treating it as genuinely from God until it is seen to have come true (Deut. 18:21 f.). If the alleged disclosure is a directive (as when, for instance, a leader claims that God told him to found a hospital or university or mission or crusade of some kind), any who associate themselves with his project should do so because wisdom tells them, that it is needed, realistic, and God honoring, not because the leader tells them that God directly commanded him (and by implication them) to attempt it.

You can access all of part III here: True Guidance (Part III)

Those who have lived after the close of the Canon and claim to have direct revelation from God, produce miracles, prophecy, etc., are to be avoided. God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Scriptures and does not engage in tête-à-tête conversations with individuals. See here: Does God Speak to us Today Apart from the Bible?, by Dr. R. Fowler White.