Pentecostals

Shepherd of Hermas:

He pointed out to me some men sitting on a seat, and one man sitting on a chair. And he says to me, “Do you see the persons sitting on the seat?” “I do, sir,” said I. “These,” says he, “are the faithful, and he who sits on the chair is a false prophet, ruining the minds of the servants of God. It is the doubters, not the faithful, that he ruins. These doubters then go to him as to a soothsayer, and inquire of him what will happen to them; and he, the false prophet, not having the power of a Divine Spirit in him, answers them according to their inquiries, and according to their wicked desires, and fills their souls with expectations, according to their own wishes. For being himself empty, he gives empty answers to empty inquirers; for every answer is made to the emptiness of man. Some true words he does occasionally utter; for the devil fills him with his own spirit, in the hope that he may be able to overcome some of the righteous. As many, then, as are strong in the faith of the Lord, and are clothed with truth, have no connection with such spirits, but keep away from them; but as many as are of doubtful minds and frequently repent, betake themselves to soothsaying, even as the heathen, and bring greater sin upon themselves by their idolatry. For he who inquires of a false prophet in regard to any action is an idolater, and devoid of the truth, and foolish. For no spirit given by God requires to be asked; but such a spirit having the power of Divinity speaks all things of itself, for it proceeds from above from the power of the Divine Spirit. But the spirit which is asked and speaks according to the desires of men is earthly, light, and powerless, and it is altogether silent if it is not questioned.”

“How then, sir,” say I, “will a man know which of them is the prophet, and which the false prophet?” “I will tell you,” says he, “about both the prophets, and then you can try the true and the false prophet according to my directions. Try the man who has the Divine Spirit by his life. First, he who has the Divine Spirit proceeding from above is meek, and peaceable, and humble, and refrains from all iniquity and the vain desire of this world, and contents himself with fewer wants than those of other men, and when asked he makes no reply; nor does he speak privately, nor when man wishes the spirit to speak does the Holy Spirit speak, but it speaks only when God wishes it to speak. When, then, a man having the Divine Spirit comes into an assembly of righteous men who have faith in the Divine Spirit, and this assembly of men offers up prayer to God, then the angel of the prophetic Spirit, who is destined for him, fills the man; and the man being filled with the Holy Spirit, speaks to the multitude as the Lord wishes. Thus, then, will the Spirit of Divinity become manifest. Whatever power therefore comes from the Spirit of Divinity belongs to the Lord. – Shepherd of Hermas, Commandment 11

“Hear, then,” says he, “in regard to the spirit which is earthly, and empty, and powerless, and foolish. First, the man who seems to have the Spirit exalts himself, and wishes to have the first seat, and is bold, and impudent, and talkative, and lives in the midst of many luxuries and many other delusions, and takes rewards for his prophecy; and if he does not receive rewards, he does not prophesy. Can, then, the Divine Spirit take rewards and prophesy? It is not possible that the prophet of God should do this, but prophets of this character are possessed by an earthly spirit. Then it never approaches an assembly of righteous men, but shuns them. And it associates with doubters and the vain, and prophesies to them in a corner, and deceives them, speaking to them, according to their desires, mere empty words: for they are empty to whom it gives its answers. For the empty vessel, when placed along with the empty, is not crushed, but they correspond to each other. When, therefore, it comes into an assembly of righteous men who have a Spirit of Divinity, and they offer up prayer, that man is made empty, and the earthly spirit flees from him through fear, and that man is made dumb, and is entirely crushed, being unable to speak. For if you pack closely a storehouse with wine or oil, and put an empty jar in the midst of the vessels of wine or oil, you will find that jar empty as when you placed it, if you should wish to clear the storehouse. So also the empty prophets, when they come to the spirits of the righteous, are found [on leaving] to be such as they were when they came. This, then, is the mode of life of both prophets. Try by his deeds and his life the man who says that he is inspired.

Irenaeus:

Eusebius:

There is said to be a certain village called Ardabau in that part of Mysia, which borders upon Phrygia. There first, they say, when Gratus was proconsul of Asia, a recent convert, Montanus by name, through his unquenchable desire for leadership, gave the adversary opportunity against him. And he became beside himself, and being suddenly in a sort of frenzy and ecstasy, he raved, and began to babble and utter strange things, prophesying in a manner contrary to the constant custom of the Church handed down by tradition from the beginning.

Some of those who heard his spurious utterances at that time were indignant, and they rebuked him as one that was possessed, and that was under the control of a demon, and was led by a deceitful spirit, and was distracting the multitude; and they forbade him to talk, remembering the distinction drawn by the Lord and his warning to guard watchfully against the coming of false prophets. Matthew 7:15 But others imagining themselves possessed of the Holy Spirit and of a prophetic gift, were elated and not a little puffed up; and forgetting the distinction of the Lord, they challenged the mad and insidious and seducing spirit, and were cheated and deceived by him. In consequence of this, he could no longer be held in check, so as to keep silence.

Thus by artifice, or rather by such a system of wicked craft, the devil, devising destruction for the disobedient, and being unworthily honored by them, secretly excited and inflamed their understandings which had already become estranged from the true faith. And he stirred up besides two women, and filled them with the false spirit, so that they talked wildly and unreasonably and strangely, like the person already mentioned. And the spirit pronounced them blessed as they rejoiced and gloried in him, and puffed them up by the magnitude of his promises. But sometimes he rebuked them openly in a wise and faithful manner, that he might seem to be a reprover. But those of the Phrygians that were deceived were few in number.

And the arrogant spirit taught them to revile the entire universal Church under heaven, because the spirit of false prophecy received neither honor from it nor entrance into it.

For the faithful in Asia met often in many places throughout Asia to consider this matter, and examined the novel utterances and pronounced them profane, and rejected the heresy, and thus these persons were expelled from the Church and debarred from communion.

Having related these things at the outset, and continued the refutation of their delusion through his entire work, in the second book he speaks as follows of their end:

Since, therefore, they called us slayers of the prophets because we did not receive their loquacious prophets, who, they say, are those that the Lord promised to send to the people, Matthew 23:34 let them answer as in God’s presence: Who is there, O friends, of these who began to talk, from Montanus and the women down, that was persecuted by the Jews, or slain by lawless men? None. Or has any of them been seized and crucified for the Name? Truly not. Or has one of these women ever been scourged in the synagogues of the Jews, or stoned? No; never anywhere.

But by another kind of death Montanus and Maximilla are said to have died. For the report is that, incited by the spirit of frenzy, they both hung themselves; not at the same time, but at the time which common report gives for the death of each. And thus they died, and ended their lives like the traitor Judas. – Church History, book 5, chapter 16

AGAINST the above-mentioned heresy of the Phrygians, that power which is the defender of the truth, raised up a powerful weapon and antagonist in Apollinaris of Hierapolis, whom we mentioned before, and in many other eloquent men with him; of whom, also, most abundant matter has been left us for our history. One of them, in the very beginning of his work against them, first intimates that he would meet and refute them by open argument. For thus he commences his work: “As for a long and very considerable time, O beloved Avircius Marcellus, I have been urged by thee to write a discourse against the heresy which is called after Miltiades, I have been somewhat in doubt until now, not indeed for want of argument to refute the false doctrine, or to bear witness to the truth, but because fearful and apprehensive, lest I should appear to give any new injunctions, or to add any thing to the doctrine of the New Testament, which it is impossible that any resolved to live according to the gospel, should add to or diminish. Lately, however, having been at Ancyra, a city of Galatia, and having understood that the church in Pontus was very much agitated by this new prophecy, as they call it, but which, as shall be shown, with divine assistance, deserves rather the name of false prophecy, I discoursed many days in the church, both respecting these matters and others that were proposed; so that the church, indeed, rejoiced and was strengthened in the truth; but the adversaries were put to flight, and the opponents were cast down. But as the presbyters of the place requested that we should leave some account of those things that we said, in opposition to the enemies of the truth, Zoticus Otrenus also being present, who was our fellow-presbyter; this, indeed, I did not perform, but I promised writing thither, and to send it as soon as possible, if the Lord permitted.” This, and other matters, he states in the beginning of his work, premising the cause of the mentioned heresy, as follows: “Their combination, therefore, and recent heretical severance from the church, had for its origin the following cause:—There is said to be a certain village of Mysia in Phrygia, called Ardaba. There, they say, during the proconsulship of Cratus in Asia, one of those who was but a recent convert, Montanus by name, in the excessive desire of his soul to take the lead, gave the adversary occasion against himself, so that he was carried away in spirit, and wrought up into a certain kind of frenzy and irregular ecstasy, raving, and speaking, and uttering strange things, and proclaiming what was contrary to the institutions that had prevailed in the church, as handed down and preserved in succession from the earliest times. But of those that happened then to be present, and to hear these spurious oracles, some being indignant, rebuked him as one under the influence of demons and the spirit of delusion, and only exciting disturbances among the multitude. These bore in mind the distinction and the warning given by our Lord, when he cautioned them to be vigilantly on their guard against false prophets. Others again, elated as if by the Holy Spirit, and the prophetic gift, and not a little puffed up; and forgetting the caution given by our Lord; challenged this insidious, flattering, and seducing spirit, and were themselves captivated and seduced by his influence, so that they were no longer able to silence him. Thus, by an artifice, or rather by a certain crafty process, the devil having devised destruction against those that disobeyed the truth, and thus excessively honoured by them, secretly stimulated and fired their understandings, already wrapt in insensibility, and wandering away from the truth. He also excited two others, females, and filled them with the spirit of delusion, so that they spake like the former, in a kind of frenzy, out of all propriety, and in a manner strange and novel. They rejoiced and gloried in the spirit who thus pronounced them happy and puffed them up by the greatness of his promises. Sometimes also he pointedly and deservedly condemned them, so that he might seem a chastising spirit. Those few that were deceived were Phrygians; and the same arrogant spirit taught them to revile the whole church under heaven, because it gave neither access nor honour to this false spirit of prophecy. The faithful, therefore, held frequent conferences in many places throughout Asia on this account, and having examined these novel doctrines, pronounced them vain, rejected them as heresy, and expelled and prohibited from communion with the church those who held them.” After relating these facts in the beginning of his work, and introducing the refutation of it throughout, he adds the following remarks in the second book, respecting the end of those just described. “Therefore,” says he, “since they call us slayers of the prophets, because we did not promptly receive these talkative teachers, pretending that they were those whom the Lord promised to send to his people, let them tell us in the name of God, O friends, which of these who began prating from Montanus and his women, is there that suffered persecution, or was slain by the impious? None. Not even one of them has been seized and crucified for the name (of Christ). None at all. Not one of their women was ever scourged in the synagogues of the Jews, or stoned. No, never.

“Montanus and Maximilla, indeed, are said to have died another death than this, for at the instigation of that mischievous spirit, the report is, that both of them hung themselves, not, indeed, at the same time, but at the particular time of each one’s death, as the general report is; and thus they died and terminated their life like the traitor Judas. Thus, also, the general opinion is, that Theodotus, one of the first that was carried away by their prophecy, as it was called, and who became a kind of patron of the delusion, as if he should at some time be taken up and received into the heavens, and who falling into trances, gave himself up to the spirit of deception, was finally tossed by him like a quoit in the air, and thus miserably perished. They say this happened as we have stated. But, my friend, we do not presume to know anything certain of these matters, unless we had seen them. For perhaps both Montanus and Theodotus, and the above-mentioned woman, may have died in this way, or they may not.” He mentions also in the same book, that the holy bishops of that time attempted to refute the spirit in Maximilla, but were prevented by others who manifestly co-operated with the spirit. His statement is as follows: “And let not, as is said in the same work of Asterius Urbanus, let not the spirit of Maximilla say, ‘I am chased like a wolf from the flock; I am no wolf. I am utterance, spirit, and power.’ But let him show the power in the spirit effectually, and prove it. And let him by the spirit face those that were present at the time, to examine and argue with the babbling spirit, men who were eminent, and bishops of the church, Zoticus of Comana, Julian of Apamea, whose tongues the followers of Themison bridled, and prevented them from refuting the false and seducing spirit.”

In the same work, after stating other matters in refutation of the false predictions of Maximilla, he likewise indicates the time that he wrote this, and mentions also, her declarations in which she foretold that there would be wars and political convulsions. The falsity of which is evinced by him as follows: “And has not,” says he, “the falsehood of this been made obvious? For it is now more than thirteen years since the woman died, and neither has there been a partial nor a general war, but rather, by the mercy of God, continued peace to the Christians.” This he writes in the second book. I shall also subjoin some extracts from the third book, in which he speaks as follows, against those who boasted that there were many of their number that had suffered martyrdom: “But,” says he, “since they are at a loss what to reply to the refutation of their errors, they fly for refuge to their martyrs, saying they have many martyrs, and that this is one sure evidence of the power of that spirit which they call prophetical. But this, as it appears, is not the more true on that account. For some of the other heresies also have a vast number of martyrs, but neither do we the more on that account agree with them, nor acknowledge that they have truth on their side. Indeed, they who are called Marcionites, say that they had vast numbers that were martyrs for Christ. But they do not confess Christ in truth.” And a little after he adds: “Hence, whenever those that are called martyrs by the church, on account of enduring martyrdom for the true faith, happen to fall in with those called martyrs of the Phrygian heresy, they always separate from them and undergo death, having no communion with them, because they do not assent to the spirit of Montanus and the women; and that all this is true, and happened in our own times at Apamea on the Menander, is manifest from those who suffered martyrdom with Caius and Alexander of Eumenia.” – Church History, book 5, chapter XVI