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Are you saying then that the spiritual situation has, over the last twenty-five or thirty years, deteriorated?

I couldn't say that, because I don't know. I don't see the situation as deteriorating. I see evil as being more out in the open. On the other side, there is a greater receptivity to the gospel than there was twenty years ago.

How can you say that when communist influence and domination has been extended so much in recent years?

Well, I actually think that the evangelism of the future might come out of the Soviet Union. We're hearing so many stories of young people being converted there and in all of Eastern Europe. This shows the spiritual hunger and the response to the gospel.

What's your appraisal of the charismatic movement?

I think the charismatic movement has been used of God in many areas of the world—for example, Sweden. It has awakened some people. It has made an impact. Look at the Episcopal Church and the Roman Catholic Church, where people are longing for an experience and a personal relationship with Christ. I think in other areas of the world and in the church it has been divisive.

What do you mean by divisive?

The charismatic movement itself has been very divided. The charismatic conference this past summer in Kansas City indicated that. There was a great sense of unity there, but at the same time there was a recognition of the diversity in interpreting various important passages of Scripture. By and large, however, it has been a movement that has opened many doors for the gospel. Of course, every time something genuine comes along the devil has his counterfeits. We have a great deal of counterfeit evangelism. We have Elmer Gantrys beginning to rise in a way we have not seen in the last few years.

You are writing a book about the Holy Spirit. What has the work of this book done for you in your personal life?

You'd have to ask my wife, Ruth.

Seriously, it has caused me to be aware of the person and work of the Holy Spirit in a way I never was before. Also, it has caused me to be less sure of some of the positions I have held. I have read different sides of different questions that have led me to rethink some of my ideas. I was extremely interested in a recent issue of Christian Life, which listed the charismatic beliefs. I checked off those I agreed with, and found only one that I had some difficulty with.

Which one was it?

The alleged lack of interest among charismatics in the authority of the Bible and in theology generally. Now if this list was an accurate summary of charismatic views, then I would say they certainly are part of the evangelical mainstream.

What are you going to say in your book about the baptism or the filling of the Spirit, with speaking in tongues as its sign?

I think if I were to say now what I am going to say in the book it would take some interest away from the book. Many people may want to read the book just to see what I say about speaking in tongues and the baptism in the Spirit.

There is now a difference of opinion in the evangelical camp as to whether the Bible is totally without error or whether its inerrancy is limited to matters of faith and practice. What do you think?

My view is that the Bible is without error in its totality. I can't prove it. I base it on faith. I know some people will object to that. I would also like to say that this does not affect my Christian fellowship with people who hold differing views, providing they hold to the deity of Christ, the Virgin Birth, the Atonement, and the Resurrection—the cardinal doctrines of Christianity.

As a matter of fact, some of my closest friends do not hold this high a view of Scripture. But in my judgment, the issue of biblical authority is a growing concern throughout the worldwide Church. It's a very important issue. I have always believed and preached—since 1949—the infallibility of Scripture, including the first eleven chapters of Genesis, which are very crucial. I took this position by faith in the summer of 1949 when I was having some doubts. But it changed my ministry. I had a cutting edge to my ministry that I never had before, because I felt that when I was quoting Scripture I was quoting the very Word of God.

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October (Web-only) 2008, Vol. 52