It is impossible to read Dennis Bennett’s book Nine O’Clock in the morning and not be both inspired and challenged by it.
His book, published in 1970, recounts his story of having experienced a profound baptism with the Holy Spirit after wanting the ‘fire’ that burned in the hearts of a couple from a neighbouring Anglican church.
Although I have been familiar with Bennett’s first book, having read his thorough explanation of the role of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life, entitled ‘The Holy Spirit and You’, I only read this earlier book recently.
Once I read it online in fact, I knew I had to order a copy so that I could re-read its pages, highlighting some of the important aspects of what occurred in the early 1960s.
What was the context in the early 1950s and 60s in America? To put it plainly, the western Church was asleep, stuck in a stupor of religiosity and legalism. When Dennis Bennett, who was minister of a thriving Episcopalian (Anglican) congregation in California, USA, first heard about a strange ‘fired up’ couple, his companion, another minister named Frank, who was joining him in investigating these strange people commented “God knows the Church needs something!”
Did it ever! And everyone will agree, the Church of today certainly needs something!
So, what can we learn from Dennis Bennett’s personal account?
Is it possible that hidden in the pages of this book we can learn how to be catalyse for Spiritual renewal in our own parish, like Dennis was all those years ago?
In the opening pages we are introduced to a burned-out minister who although faithful had not experienced God’s presence for many years.
Was there a desire for more? Did Dennis go looking for this new spiritual experience?
Frankly it doesn’t seem so. It seems to take a lot of encouragement, event heckling for Dennis to agree to go and visit these ‘fired-up’ couple.
Yet reluctantly Dennis accompanied his fellow minister to meet this couple.
Are we an obvious “case of a fired up” person?
Are we ablaze? And if so, do people notice?
Let’s summarise what the characteristics of these ‘fired-up’ charismatics were?
- ‘They seemed to attend church all the time?’
- They seem to always be ‘looking happy’
- ‘they’ve got something. They seem to ‘glow like little light bulbs’
- They willingly volunteer for jobs at church
- They cheerfully give to the church
- They speak in tongues
- The happiness and assuredness was unmistakable
- They loved praying and enjoyed prayer meetings
- They spoke of Jesus and God with an enthusiasm that most people save for their hobby or closely held political positions.
- They seemed to know God and He seems especially real to them.
All these characteristics initially shocked Dennis for, as he describes “We are Episcopalians, and prided ourselves on our cool, even somewhat ironical approach to our faith.’ (p4)
However, the profound feeling Dennis experienced was “I don’t know what these people have, but I want it!” (p5)
The experience of being in the present with someone ablaze with the Holy Spirit seemed to unearth the “dry and hungry” state Dennis was feeling. Perhaps it is this spiritual thirst, which only God can see, that made him a perfect candidate for God to use.
Let’s pause before moving on and consider our first challenge:
Do people comment on our joy or assurance of God’s goodness in our life?
Do our lives radiate with a quality that people see it and want it for themselves?
Do people come away after being with us saying ‘I want what they have’?
This challenged me.
Knowing the significant role Dennis played in sparking the Charismatic Renewal to move around the world, I wonder what would have happened if this newly Spirit-baptised couple didn’t radiate God’s presence?
Or, an even more interesting is to ask, what would have happened if they had not been able to give a reason for the deeper spiritual assurance they held?
Explaining what’s ‘fired them up’
In my own life, people have commented to me … ‘You’re always so happy!’ or “Goodness you’re so passionate about things …”
Usually, I’m sad to admit, I explain it as my vivacious personality.
When I read how the ‘fired-up’ couple explained the reason for their radiating joy, they were very clear in their response.
They answered, “we’ve been baptised in the Holy Spirit’!
They didn’t discount their experience, nor did they rationalise it as just their bubbly personality.
In fact it was this phrase being ‘baptised in the Holy Spirit’ and the fact that Dennis was told it was just like it was ‘in the Bible’, that made Dennis open his Bible and research the phenomenon for himself.
Dennis research through the pages of the New Testament revealed the disciples had a very intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. “He talked to them as though He told them what to do, and where to go, and what to say.” (v13)
Also, Dennis discovered that the disciples had “a clear cup experience of receiving the power of the Holy Spirit.” He also saw that the mysterious ‘speaking in tongues’ was mentioned time and time again.
He wondered “how anything as definite and important as this could have been overlooked by the church today.”
Let’s pause here and allow Dennis realisation to challenge us.
When people ask us for the reason for the ‘glow’ or ‘passionate fire’ they see burning in our heart, do we answer that it is because we have been baptised in the Holy Spirit?
Do we give the glory to the Holy Spirit, or do we shrink back in embarrassment and rationalise our ‘ablazing’ demeanour as having taken all our vitamins?
Also, ‘Why does the Church or more specifically our Bible teachers in churches and Bible colleges’ not give attention to the phenomenon that birthed the church all those years back at Pentecost?
Being an Anglican, I was pleased to see that the Holy Spirit’s role in the believer’s life has been part of Anglican doctrine for years.
“Participation with the Holy Spirit is set forth in the New Testament as the distinctive mark of Christians, which separated them off from the surrounding world; in the Christianity of Apostolic times the experience described as that of ‘receiving the Spirit’ stands in the forefront of the Christian life, at once as the secret of its transporting joy and power and as the source of that victory of faith which could overcome the world.[1]
Doctrine of the Church of England, 1992-1937, p93.
The more Dennis researched, the more he wanted to meet with this ‘fired-up’ couple called, John and Joan. Gradually the sceptic turned into the advocate as he writes, “I was like a starving man circling the table on which a delicious-looking feast is spread, watching the people seated at the table obviously enjoying the food, while trying to make up his mind whether it is really safe.”
The more Dennis looked, the more hungry he became. For three whole months his hunger grew until he exclaimed,
“I’ve been reading my Bible, my Prayer Book, my theology books, my church history, and as far as I can see this experience your talking about is in them all. I want what you’ve got! How did you get it?” (v19)
“Its easy,” they replied, “we just asked for it.”
“Ok” Dennis answered, “I’m ready to ask. Show me how.”
And graciously Jesus responded to Dennis request and Baptised him in the Holy Spirit.
And we’ll explore that … in the next blog post.
[1] Doctrine in the Church of England, compiled by the Anglican Church, Society for Promoting Christian knowledge of the Church of England with approval of the Archbishops, 1992-1937, p. 93.