Gift Giver

A Book Critique
Presented to
Dr. Daniel Thimell, ORU Graduate School of Theology
Oral Roberts University

In Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the Class
GTHE 663 Charismatic Theology, Blended A 

By
James Neal
June 2017
 Bibliographical Entry

Craig S. Keener. Gift Giver The Holy Spirit for Today. Baker Academic (May 1, 2001). 224 pages

Content Summary

The book Gift Giver is a humble authors successful attempt to diagnose and give possible

solutions for the lack of uniform agreement or understanding to the relationship of the Church

and Holy Spirit.

The author has one very simple goal in writing this book. His desires for the church to

reach a consensus that looks and functions as a forming unity within the body so that we can

tackle the heavier matters in mission of the church, leaving secondary matters by the wayside for

the sake of measurable progress. In order to do this, Keener employs quite a few different

methods in order to gain a survey of who has the ability to make the necessary change within the

church as well as learning where the schools of thought originate and thrive. The author meets

with Pentecostals, moderates and many others what the goal to clean purpose and intention from

each of these structures of belief.

In very similar fashion to that of a doctor, Keener does not hesitate to probe the church,

more specifically the Charismatic Church to take a much closer look at the consistencies and

inconsistencies of its beliefs. Instead of trying to examine the church and its beliefs in regard to

the Holy spirit in the relationship that we have with him with only statistical research and

Personal experience the author points the audience to the Holy Spirit himself. This process

involves an intimate relationship with him that cannot be fabricated are based off of anything

another than God himself. Keener writes, “I wanted to know God leading better, but to no God’s

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leading better I had to know something more important than his specific leading: I have to know

his heart, what was like.1

Out of the authors personal experience he writes to his audience that he realizes the need

for such relationship, identity and power that can only be given through the person of the Holy

Spirit. He then urges all of the various sects of Christianity to implore one another to receive the

empowerment of the Holy Spirit in their lives.2 Continuing with our lives being the talking

point, the author is careful and decisive when focusing on the fruit that the Holy Spirit brings to

our lives. Where many authors who have attempted to write Book similar to this one, have made

the mistake of staying lofty and unattainable, Keener tackles the very subject of the Holy Spirit

and how we live with him. Answering many questions that moderates and creationists contained

within their school thought.

When it comes to God and the power and love that he gives, most skeptics seem to find

themselves on the other side of understanding when it comes to practical application. The author

endeavors to build a bridge for those who have met with various misrepresentations of the God

of the Bible. For these people, seeing a miraculous healing or a deliverance from an evil spirit

while nice, is not as impressive as seeing a truly kind believer lives the very message that they

preach.

Keener, Craig S. Gift & giver: The Holy Spirit for today. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
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Academic, 2001.

2
Keener, Craig S. Gift & giver: the Holy Spirit for today. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Academic, 2001.

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 Where the cornerstones of this book is the positioning stance that it takes on tongues as a

relay so I can the believer. The author places and emphasis on the fact that looking at this topic

from a biblical perspective we must keep in mind that the spirit is the giver of all gifts, and this

obviously includes the gift of tongues. Wow many within the church have argued back and forth

whether not every believer who receives the Spirit of God should also receive a matching set of

tongues, Keener concludes that every gift that the Holy Spirit gives to the believer is granted so

that we have the opportunity to grow closer to him. This leaves room for the office make his next

point which is that in all of his wisdom god may decide to not give this gift of tongues every

believer, and that’s that of allowing it to become something that is divisive within the family of

God we should continue to cultivate our relationship with Holy Spirit thereby empowering us to

cultivate one another.

Evaluation

One of my favorite points that the author made was that if we as Christians do not listen

to one another’s reasons for holding different views we will not be able to work for consensus or

at least for unity in God’s word despite our differences. This is so important because the authors

highlighting that there is no problem with we as Christians having various views the problem

becomes when we become intolerant of the process of hearing why we hold those views. To that

point even if someone holds views that are incorrect if we never take the chance to listen to them

we can never enter the process of correcting them.

One of the points in this book that I was eager to evaluate was the conclusion that the

author came to about tongues. I think his point about humanity and the spirit giving gifts that

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draw us was a true statement, but I am not sure how that impacts God’s spirit. I mean, I

understand that Holy Spirit Will be expressed Through each of us differently, but he himself is

the same gift. And I think if we're going to examine this that we have to consider that a gift

givers intent does not change because of how their gift is received. I am not saying that people

who do not pray in tongues have less faith or anything like that, but if Holy Spirit gives us a gift

in its fullness who are we to say his gift changed. In order for me to settle on either conclusion I

feel that we must go about ensuring that we fully unwrapped the gift that is Holy Spirit. I bring

this up merely as an objection thought’s sake and this writer has not settled in either school.

Personally, I found this book to be a refreshing and kind rebuke of the divisiveness that’s

the church has allowed within its body. I think if we are to read this book we have to understand

the reasoning behind the authors writing. The author is not merely writing this because he does

not see a problem that exist within the church, in fact he is very clear that it is our duty to come

to consensus. With peer motive and clean heart however, these writings do not come across as

harsh rude or as an indictment. What I considered to be one of the major strengths of this book is

the authors decision to be frank and upfront about what he sees and about what the holy Spirit

has revealed to him. Quite often within the church we dance around the truth for the sake of

politics or for the fear of offending someone and losing them, and into I’m this we sentence

ourselves to become a weak body and is unwilling to except growing pains and the progress that

comes with them.

I believe that it would be ignorant for me as a minister to ignore the obvious need for a

book like this. There are so many different sects of Christianity that differ on their views about

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multiple aspects of the nature of the work of the Holy Spirit even though they seem to come to

an agreement when it comes to what some might call the big rocks. And while these big rocks

are important quite often in the life of a believer and in even in the life of a minister of the gospel

it is the little rocks that can seem to cause our faith to either waver or dissipate entirely. I would

most definitely recommend this book to anyone who ministers or teachers the church and I

would also recommend this book to various members of the church and anyone who is curious

about ways to dig deeper into the bullies of the church as we have come to know it in this

modern era.

The author writes this book understanding that there is a need he even states that for

those of us were on the frontline of evangelism we understand the great and need for the

empowerment of the Holy Spirit. As an evangelist, myself I fully understand that our ministry

without Holy Spirit is no Ministry at all, for in reality the ministry is his and his alone.

Ultimately this book does a great job of reminding us whose kingdom it is that we are advancing

and who are the workers for the great king

Gift Giver is a theologically amusing, biblically sound look at the subject and person of

the Holy Spirit and the gifts that He gives to His Church. As a Charismatic believer who

appreciates going deeper than what is popular in many Christian schools of thought, this book

was far from disappointing for me.

Bibliography

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Keener, Craig S. Gift & giver: the Holy Spirit for today. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Academic, 2001.