Near the end of completing Beyond Pentecost I came upon some computer fractals on the internet. Wikipedia describes fractals as “…generally ‘a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be subdivided in parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size copy of the whole,’ a property called self-similarity. Because they appear similar at all levels of magnification, fractals are often considered to be infinitely complex.” The picture on the cover depicts some of the points in the paper and I will attempt to identify them as a preface.

A computer generated fractal picture was chosen to represent the postmodern culture. Within the picture two colors predominate; blue representing the Heavenly Realm and a Rusty Red representing the Earthly Realm, which is undergoing deterioration and death. The two realms merge or overlap representing the “already, not-yet” Kingdom World View. Crosses dominate the scene representing the crucified life of Christ’s disciples which are born again from above. He is the firstborn of the Second Adam’s race[1], which is represented by the forming crosses in the heavenlies. The central point where the two “horizons” meet stands out as an event in time. It is Christ within the Church at Pentecost, the time transition from before, - from the darkness on the left, to the promise in resurrection and light toward the right of the picture.

The central point represents the experience of Pentecost, after which nothing in the universe was ever the same again. The Church, which is the fullness of Him that fills everything—was born[2]! Pentecost is the second of the two sides of Jesus’ cross, where he was planted as a seed.[3]

Prior to Jesus’ death, the only place where life flowed into our universe was from The Garden[5]. When Adam sinned and was cast outside,

the gate was closed, and with no longer a life source, entropy set in—decay and rot—the essence of Evil; everything was losing life energy and the 3^rd Law of Thermodynamics became the curse in all creation. All was winding down; all stars and suns would turn to novas and burn out. Even though new suns were occasionally being born, they were only “bubbles” of energy, but the totality of the cosmos was expanding—dissipating into nothingness. In order for life to struggle on, even for a brief season, pockets of still un-scattered energy had to be consumed. For life to continue it had to consume other higher orders of remnant life. Humans had to eat plants. Or better, other flesh-the higher the better. The fallen angels-demons sought to live parasitically in humans or even pigs[6]—anything living, even trees. The expression, “Dog eat dog” literally became the means of temporary survival. However Jesus, the Son of God appeared and transacted events on the cross, the fulfillment of The Tree of Life in that Garden. (Jesus is at the “bottom of the spiritual food-chain”)[7]. He was the express image of God, and from him flowed all the auras of life giving energy—lighting creation anew[8]. God invaded Humanity and became a part of it, permanently becoming the new eternal source of Life—the portal that now opened to the heavenly realm[9]. The fullness, the promise of the Father, began the revealing of His progeny, who being participants of His divine nature, also became portals from whom rivers of living water would flow[10]. Life would again flow into the earth and all creation would now begin to be restored[11]

As Jesus embraced the cross to emerge as a life giving spirit, so were his disciples to follow, not removed from his presence, but yoked and united with the Holy Spirit, filling each individual with sacrificial incarnational life and power as each took up his own cross.[12] The things Jesus had done before were now multiplied as he now had the children of inheritance to permeate all of creation. Myriads of crosses, stars as revealed to Father Abraham[13], would be joined and linked together as a vast matrix filling the universe with new life. Even the grave below would turn from darkness to the green promise of spring. We would never be the same again. Everything would never be the same again from that point on.

Biblical Hermeneutics is about how we are to do the reading of this story. We must be restored relationally with the God the First Adam had fellowship with. The Way, the Life, and the Truth requires koinonia—intimate fellowship with the Godhead and His story about the journey back to the Garden of Life. We should neither look for nor be tempted to find other paths, or cisterns to carry that living water with things made from our own hands. Neither science nor philosophy should become the compass for our journey to that sacred place[14]

Hermeneutists must be aware of malevolent spiritual predators, seeking and sucking the zeal from those on the journey. Academia is no safer place than other worldly authorities and governments. We cannot willfully extract the necessary truth and knowledge of home even from the Holy Scripture; it must be a gift of grace. Although we are never in a place to deserve such grace, we must be in a proper place to receive it. Even though we might be a potential portal to bring understanding and Truth, it is always the prerogative of the treasure within us, Christ our hope of glory. Any life that will flow into us comes in order to sacrificially flow out incarnationally into a dying world. We must read in order to edify others, not build ourselves edifices. We must be dispensers of the oil for the lamps that light the Scriptures which reveal the road back. Scriptures are God’s revelation of Himself in order that we might return to Him.

As the picture shows the linked crosses throughout the expanse, we need to remember that we are the Body of Christ, and individually parts of it[15]. We are given gifts and skills that need to be orchestrated by the Spirit, not institutionally structured worldly systems[16]. Each fractal like individual has the pattern of the whole within, like a holy DNA of our Father’s divine nature. We are told that we each have an anointing that we need no one to teach us[17], yet we have teachers and others that we need, because we are incomplete without one another. There is coming a day when all the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord[18], and those who labor with hermeneutics are some of His servants that are paving that road.

Beyond Pentecost: A Pentecostal-Charismatic Hermeneutic Model in a Postmodern Context

Present hermeneutic problems within Christian scholarship involve the subjective and objective divide which is culturally seen as separate world views, one of science and one of metaphysics. Modernity’s traditional conservative world view has taken the reading of the scriptures in such a way that the authority of the Bible as God’s Word has been seen as compilations of inspired writings from within which doctrinal and normative truths are contained as God’s self-revelation. Others contend that as they are written by fallible authors containing the complexities and contextualities implicit in the writing process. Traditional hermeneutic methods do not resolve many of the inherent problems accessing and extracting what those truths might be.

Charismatics and Pentecostals hold to a more experiential and holistic view of the unity of the supernatural with the observable realms, which includes a hostile and evil environment in conflict. This thesis proposes that the “Spirit-filled” believer has already been significantly changed in his nature to engage in personal communication with the Holy Spirit enabling many hermeneutic questions to be accurately resolved. A more relational theology of the Holy Spirit is presented, with emphasis on our participation with the Holy Spirit to implement the scripture sacrificially with both intelligence and supernatural power. All Spirit filled Christians should have emerging self-organizing abilities, which when coupled with the spiritual authority of the scriptural text are able to operate within the paradigm of the corporate postmodern tool of an Organizational Matrix. This is a community activity which involves distributed spiritual giftings as well as responsible scholarship.

Included is an incarnational perspective where the interpretative process is inter-related with the movement from the objective text, through subjective communion with the Lord, and implemented into the objective realm. This is a holistic view of scriptural interpretation and application merging through the Object-to-Subject-to-Object process, but also filtered through an active revelational understanding from the Holy Spirit to the reader.

A modified Apostolic pesher hermeneutic is also considered as occasionally relevant, which involves applying the empowerment of Pentecost with a realized Kingdom eschatology. This is seen as significant as it was the popular hermeneutic during Jesus’ earthly ministry among the Jews and one employed by the disciples as they interpreted the Older Testament. In a manner different from the initial inscripturation, although equally active, the Holy Spirit imparts revelation necessary for understanding, at his discretion to the reader.

This thesis is presented in a manner more consistent with postmodern sensitivities using an inductive approach as well as deconstructing some traditional expectations of Academia, especially regarding personal and subjective observations. Also included are occasional clichés, such as “the medium is the message”, which should here be self explanatory. It is this author’s belief that rational criticism alone is inappropriate for the reading of scriptures and presenting a thesis dealing with realms that transcend scientific naturalism.