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Here again is the sixth and final point the Cessationists claim prove that
the gift of tongues have already ceased. The whole list is found on post 2.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
6) Current observation confirms that the miracle of tongues has ceased. If the gift were still available today, there would be no need for missionaries to attend language school. Missionaries would be able to travel to any country and speak any language fluently, just as the apostles were able to speak in Acts 2. As for the miracle gift of healing, we see in Scripture that healing was associated with the ministry of Jesus and the apostles (Luke 9:1-2). And we see that as the era of the apostles drew to a close, healing, like tongues, became less frequent. The Apostle Paul, who raised Eutychus from the dead (Acts 20:9-12), did not heal Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-27), Trophimus (2 Timothy 4:20), Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23), or even himself (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). The reasons for Paul’s “failures to heal” are 1) the gift was never intended to make every Christian well, but to authenticate apostleship; and 2) the authority of the apostles had been sufficiently proved, making further miracles unnecessary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It will require more than one post to address this mess. Let's work through it one point at a time.
Here's the next one.
"And we see that as the era of the apostles drew to a close,
healing, like tongues, became less frequent."
How would you answer the Cessationists?
What is their basis to claim that healing and tongues became less frequent?
Because they see less written about it in the latter parts of the New Testament?
That's a ridiculous assertion.
The same arguments from the last post are still valid here.
James assigned the elders to pray for the sick. Is that no longer valid?
This is found "late" in the NT.
Jesus says we will be doing the works he did and
even greater things. Is that no longer valid?
It applies to all believers, not only the Apostles.
A few posts back I had added this link at the bottom for an article about
Manifestations of the spirit in Church History.
These references are to more recent revivals. The 1700s-1900s.
Consider this statement by the Apostle Paul.
1 Corinthians 2:4-5
My message and my preaching were not
with wise and persuasive words, but with
a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,
5 so that your faith might not rest
on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
What was the reason for the Apostle's demonstration of the Spirit’s power?
It was so that their faith would not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
Consider the words of the Apostle at the end of the same chapter.
1 Corinthians 2:13-16
This is what we speak,
not in words taught us by human wisdom
but in words taught by the Spirit,
explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.
14 The person without the Spirit does
not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God
but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them
because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things,
but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,
16 for,
“Who has known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?”
But we have the mind of Christ.
Therefore, the manifestations of the Holy Spirit are not merely sign gifts for a bygone era.
It is our message, in words taught by the Spirit, which are discerned only through the Spirit. Like Jesus said:
John 6:63
The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.
The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.
the gift of tongues have already ceased. The whole list is found on post 2.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
6) Current observation confirms that the miracle of tongues has ceased. If the gift were still available today, there would be no need for missionaries to attend language school. Missionaries would be able to travel to any country and speak any language fluently, just as the apostles were able to speak in Acts 2. As for the miracle gift of healing, we see in Scripture that healing was associated with the ministry of Jesus and the apostles (Luke 9:1-2). And we see that as the era of the apostles drew to a close, healing, like tongues, became less frequent. The Apostle Paul, who raised Eutychus from the dead (Acts 20:9-12), did not heal Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-27), Trophimus (2 Timothy 4:20), Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23), or even himself (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). The reasons for Paul’s “failures to heal” are 1) the gift was never intended to make every Christian well, but to authenticate apostleship; and 2) the authority of the apostles had been sufficiently proved, making further miracles unnecessary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It will require more than one post to address this mess. Let's work through it one point at a time.
Here's the next one.
"And we see that as the era of the apostles drew to a close,
healing, like tongues, became less frequent."
How would you answer the Cessationists?
What is their basis to claim that healing and tongues became less frequent?
Because they see less written about it in the latter parts of the New Testament?
That's a ridiculous assertion.
The same arguments from the last post are still valid here.
James assigned the elders to pray for the sick. Is that no longer valid?
This is found "late" in the NT.
Jesus says we will be doing the works he did and
even greater things. Is that no longer valid?
It applies to all believers, not only the Apostles.
A few posts back I had added this link at the bottom for an article about
Manifestations of the spirit in Church History.
These references are to more recent revivals. The 1700s-1900s.
Consider this statement by the Apostle Paul.
1 Corinthians 2:4-5
My message and my preaching were not
with wise and persuasive words, but with
a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,
5 so that your faith might not rest
on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
What was the reason for the Apostle's demonstration of the Spirit’s power?
It was so that their faith would not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
Consider the words of the Apostle at the end of the same chapter.
1 Corinthians 2:13-16
This is what we speak,
not in words taught us by human wisdom
but in words taught by the Spirit,
explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.
14 The person without the Spirit does
not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God
but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them
because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things,
but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,
16 for,
“Who has known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?”
But we have the mind of Christ.
Therefore, the manifestations of the Holy Spirit are not merely sign gifts for a bygone era.
It is our message, in words taught by the Spirit, which are discerned only through the Spirit. Like Jesus said:
John 6:63
The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.
The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.
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