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Question 10

Bercot argues that if the Montanist revelations were truly binding from God, it would be “absurd” for God to let them disappear, and he connects their “new revelation” logic to later Roman Catholic development; how should this lesson shape the way you evaluate modern claims of fresh, authoritative guidance from the Spirit—especially when those claims add obligations beyond Scripture or reframe clear teachings as “only for that time”?

Another way to ask: If a “new revelation” is truly from God, Bercot says it wouldn’t just vanish from the church. How should that affect the way you judge modern claims of new, authoritative guidance from the Spirit—especially when they add new rules beyond Scripture or say clear commands were only for the past?

Direct Answer Based on Bercot’s approach, modern “fresh revelation” claims should be treated with caution, especially when they add binding rules, because the Montanist pattern shows how appealing “the Paraclete says” language can create new obligations that believers later ignore. His lesson pushes us to test whether we’re willing to treat such revelations as truly authoritative—and to be wary of claims that the faith must keep “advancing” through new disclosures.

Support from Transcript:

He notes Montanists said discipline can progress: God’s work should not have “ceased… from advancing,” and the Paraclete brings “direction of discipline” and “revelation.”
He gives examples where revelation adds obligations: veiling rules revealed by an angel; Paraclete-backed teachings about Hades discipline; and broader Montanist emphasis on prophecy.
He argues we can judge their prophecies now: we have “one advantage point… 1,800 years later,” and should decide if this was from God.
He challenges inconsistency: if it’s truly from God, “then we should follow” it; if we’re “not willing,” we shouldn’t praise them as genuine prophets.
He suggests Montanist “new revelation” logic influenced later Roman Catholic development, especially because Tertullian’s Latin works were widely read in the West.

Discussion Follow-ups When someone today says “the Spirit is doing a new thing,” what criteria would keep that from becoming a new law that quietly replaces the plain teachings of Christ?

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