it is NOT the will of God for every Christian though to be healthy physically, rich financially
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The Close of the Canon Holy Scripture.
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Ascetic X
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It is NOT the will of God for any Christian to be ignorant about spiritual gifts.
1 Corinthians 12:1
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
Apostolic signs gifts are not being distributed today by the Holy Spirit
Ascetic X
Well-Known Member
I have never seen that phrase “apostolic sign gifts” in the Bible, so it is a man-made doctrine from people who did not have faith in supernatural powers residing in the new birth spirit of Christ within. They strip Christianity of power, so it becomes a mere philosophy.
We have Christ in us. Christ is a healing God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
2 Timothy 3:5
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
I Corinthians 12 description of spiritual gifts, including healing and working of miracles, was written to the church for all history, it is not declared to be limited to just the first century.
John 14:12
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
There are signs, but they are not limited to the original apostles. They are displayed by “them that believe”.
Mark 16
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Christianity cares about a person’s eternal destiny AND their physical and mental needs.
God would not turn off healing just because the original apostles died.
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Except that God in the bible did signs and wonders in specific salvation periods historically, not all of the time
First of all, I’d like to explain what I mean by the word, Cessationism.
1. I do not believe that all miracles have ceased today. Every time someone is saved it is a miracle of God’s power and grace, and He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. However, I do not believe that there are ‘workers of miracles’ (1 Cor. 12:10) today.
2. I believe that God sometimes heals today according to His will. I have some experience of this which I am happy to relate if anyone is interested. I think many people have testimonies of God healing in answer to prayer. However, I do not believe that there are miraculous ‘gifts of healing’ (1 Cor. 12:9) today.
3. I believe in prophetic ministry today. I believe that preaching is prophetic in that it ‘tells forth’ the words of God. What I do not believe remains today is the gift of ‘foretelling’- seeing the future. I do not believe that anyone can bind the conscience of a Christian by anything outside the Bible.
What I understand as Cessationism is the belief that certain gifts which were given to the church were never intended to be continued indefinitely but were for the infancy of the Church. A parallel to this is God’s dealings with Israel in the wilderness. They received miraculous supplies of manna, water and quail; their feet did not swell and their shoes did not wear out. The day they crossed into Canaan, the manna ceased (Joshua 5:12) and the other items are not mentioned again, so I assume they did as well. I believe that the same principle applies in the N.T. Certain gifts were supplied to the infant church which were discontinued when it reached maturity.
If we look at the list of gifts listed in Eph 4:11, we see that the first gift is Apostles. I believe that there are no Apostles today. If you agree with me then you are a Cessationist because you agree that at least one of the gifts has now ceased. The qualifications for an apostle are listed in Acts 1:22- he must have seen the risen Christ. Therefore Paul asks, “Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?” (1 Cor 9:1). Later he describes himself as the last apostle (1 Cor 15:8). Therefore we conclude that there are no apostles today- not even C. J. Mahaney.
Having established the principle of Cessationism- that not all the gifts were intended to be permanent- we can move on to the second gift, that of prophets. We need to consider Ephesians 2:20 where Paul describes Christians as, ‘having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets….’ How many foundations does a building need? Surely only one? And when is the foundation put in place? At the very beginning, of course. The foundation of God’s Church is in place, in the doctrine of the apostles and prophets found in the Holy Scriptures. We need no prophets now, for we have ‘The prophetic word confirmed’ (2 Peter 1:19) in the Bible.
We might also consider Hebrews 1:1, where prophecy is clearly placed in the past. As Calvin wrote about this text, “God will not speak again as He has before.” Or we might consider Jude 3, where we are exhorted to, ‘Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all (Gk. hapax) delivered to the saints.’ If it has been delivered once for all, then there is no more to come. And this is not something sad, disappointing or dreary; it is exciting and wonderful! When I hold a Bible in my hands, I have it all- the whole counsel of God. I need not fear that someone will impose something else upon my conscience, because if it’s not in the Bible, I’m not buying it. I’m free! Free from the tyranny of someone coming to me and saying, “Brother, I have a word from the Lord for you,” or “The Lord has told me that you should do so-and-so.” I am delivered from that kind of nonsense by the word of God. ‘That you may learn…..not to think beyond what is written’ (1 Cor. 4:6).
[Taken from my blog: Cessationism. Have the Sign Gifts Ceased?
1. I do not believe that all miracles have ceased today. Every time someone is saved it is a miracle of God’s power and grace, and He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. However, I do not believe that there are ‘workers of miracles’ (1 Cor. 12:10) today.
2. I believe that God sometimes heals today according to His will. I have some experience of this which I am happy to relate if anyone is interested. I think many people have testimonies of God healing in answer to prayer. However, I do not believe that there are miraculous ‘gifts of healing’ (1 Cor. 12:9) today.
3. I believe in prophetic ministry today. I believe that preaching is prophetic in that it ‘tells forth’ the words of God. What I do not believe remains today is the gift of ‘foretelling’- seeing the future. I do not believe that anyone can bind the conscience of a Christian by anything outside the Bible.
What I understand as Cessationism is the belief that certain gifts which were given to the church were never intended to be continued indefinitely but were for the infancy of the Church. A parallel to this is God’s dealings with Israel in the wilderness. They received miraculous supplies of manna, water and quail; their feet did not swell and their shoes did not wear out. The day they crossed into Canaan, the manna ceased (Joshua 5:12) and the other items are not mentioned again, so I assume they did as well. I believe that the same principle applies in the N.T. Certain gifts were supplied to the infant church which were discontinued when it reached maturity.
If we look at the list of gifts listed in Eph 4:11, we see that the first gift is Apostles. I believe that there are no Apostles today. If you agree with me then you are a Cessationist because you agree that at least one of the gifts has now ceased. The qualifications for an apostle are listed in Acts 1:22- he must have seen the risen Christ. Therefore Paul asks, “Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?” (1 Cor 9:1). Later he describes himself as the last apostle (1 Cor 15:8). Therefore we conclude that there are no apostles today- not even C. J. Mahaney.
Having established the principle of Cessationism- that not all the gifts were intended to be permanent- we can move on to the second gift, that of prophets. We need to consider Ephesians 2:20 where Paul describes Christians as, ‘having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets….’ How many foundations does a building need? Surely only one? And when is the foundation put in place? At the very beginning, of course. The foundation of God’s Church is in place, in the doctrine of the apostles and prophets found in the Holy Scriptures. We need no prophets now, for we have ‘The prophetic word confirmed’ (2 Peter 1:19) in the Bible.
We might also consider Hebrews 1:1, where prophecy is clearly placed in the past. As Calvin wrote about this text, “God will not speak again as He has before.” Or we might consider Jude 3, where we are exhorted to, ‘Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all (Gk. hapax) delivered to the saints.’ If it has been delivered once for all, then there is no more to come. And this is not something sad, disappointing or dreary; it is exciting and wonderful! When I hold a Bible in my hands, I have it all- the whole counsel of God. I need not fear that someone will impose something else upon my conscience, because if it’s not in the Bible, I’m not buying it. I’m free! Free from the tyranny of someone coming to me and saying, “Brother, I have a word from the Lord for you,” or “The Lord has told me that you should do so-and-so.” I am delivered from that kind of nonsense by the word of God. ‘That you may learn…..not to think beyond what is written’ (1 Cor. 4:6).
[Taken from my blog: Cessationism. Have the Sign Gifts Ceased?
Craigbythesea
Well-Known Member
Ascetic X
Well-Known Member
Cessationism is completely lacking in scriptural support. It removes the supernatural from the Christ in you and reduces Christianity to an ethical philosophy. It is a nihilistic depletion of faith in being able to set people free from demons and disease. It turns Christianity into a mere creed.
Quoting John Calvin is no good. Scriptures are the truth.
2 Timothy 3:5
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
John 14:12
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
Mark 16
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Quoting John Calvin is no good. Scriptures are the truth.
2 Timothy 3:5
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
John 14:12
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
Mark 16
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Craigbythesea
Well-Known Member
My impression of this post is that it was written by an audaciously arrogant whippersnapper who is without any warrant of any kind calling millions upon millions of Christians throughout the history of the church liars and deceivers because they gave us first hand testimonies that God is still alive and that He has not changed as evidenced by the working of the spiritual gifts on 1 Corinthians 12 in and through their lives. Perhaps if such whippersnappers would humble themselves before God and call upon Him the Holy Spirit would much more fully enter into their lives for as it is, He does not enter where He is not welcome.
This thread is closed. Feel free to start a new one.
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