Slain in the Spirit - INTRO ----------------------------------------------------------------- slain: past tense of the verb slay. Slay, the act to kill in a violent way, to murder. A person who is said to be " slain in the Spirit " is someone whom upon being prayed over by another person is overpowered by the presence and anointing power of the Holy Spirit. Thus causing the overwhelmed person to fall down backward to the ground. ( Usually the person falls backwards, it is uncommon for the person to fall forwards, though this can occur. ) This so called spiritual activity is an experience that has been embraced by many Christians as a move of God in this present day and also in years past. Slain in the Spirit is simply a term for the phenomenon. No person actually dies physically when the phenomenon occurs. The term " slain in the Spirit " is simply a phrase to help describe the activity which means a person is slain in the Holy Spirit or sometimes known as falling under the power. That is to say, falling under the powerful anointing of the Holy Ghost, ( i.e. Holy Spirit ). But none of these definitions or incidences have any scriptural basis or example. Slain in the Spirit is not a blessing from the Lord or the Holy Spirit. Scripture clearly shows that God can and will slay a person physically, should Gods' judgement require such action. There are Biblical situations in which a judgement of God slays a person with physical death. Such are the cases of Er, Onan, Nadab and Abihu, Ananias and Sapphria and King Herod. This Biblical distinction regarding the truth that God slays people physically and not spiritually is one reason why slain in the Spirit is not of God. Moreover, there is not one single instance nor example in all of holy scripture to prove that the Holy Spirit of God slays and kills a person. Killing and slaying people is never shown and described in holy scripture as being an operation of the Holy Ghost. Not even the New Testament examples concerning Ananias and Sapphira prove these things about the Holy Ghost. It, ( the slain in the Spirit activity ), is a deceptive practice that the Christian should reject. At this point let me state that not all Christians, ( I am one ), embrace or have embraced the mentality that the slain in the Spirit activity is founded in holy scripture or an activity which is of God. God certainly disapproves of such activity simply because it is deception. Therefore, the activity known as "slain in the Spirit" is not presently nor has in years past been embraced in an all inclusive manner among Christians. Due to the lack of any scriptural mention or evidence of the slain in the Spirit issue, it is therefore necessary that the child of God examine, in the light of scripture, the physical reaction which characterizes being "slain in the Spirit". The physical activity which commonly characterizes the slain in the Spirit activity is that of the person falling backward under a presumed overpowering of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, in order for the child of God to obtain proper discernment and conclusion as to whether or not being "slain in the Spirit" is of God and consequently an activity which Christians should receive and embrace, it is therefore fair and necessary to scripturally examine such activity. Let us first learn from the holy scriptures that God does slay people physically ( rather than spiritually ) when such judgement is necessary. ------------------------------------------------------------------- INTRO A - Slain in Body B - Gods' Presence C - Backwards D - Forwards E - Eli and Sons F - Jesus and Eli G - In Conclusion |