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The Cessationists bring their main attack on tongues.
Let's examine their points of argument below.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Apostle Paul predicted that the gift of tongues would cease (1 Cor.13:8).
Here are six proofs that it has already ceased:
1) The apostles, through whom tongues came, were unique in the history of the church.
Once their ministry was accomplished, the need for authenticating signs ceased to exist.
2) The miracle (or sign) gifts are only mentioned in the earliest epistles, such as 1 Corinthians.
Later books, such as Ephesians and Romans, contain detailed passages on the gifts of the Spirit,
but the miracle gifts are not mentioned, although Romans does mention the gift of prophecy.
The Greek word translated “prophecy” means “speaking forth” and
does not necessarily include prediction of the future.
3) The gift of tongues was a sign to unbelieving Israel that God’s salvation was
now available to other nations. See 1 Cor.14:21-22 and Isaiah 28:11-12.
4) Tongues was an inferior gift to prophecy (preaching). Preaching the Word of God edifies believers,
whereas tongues does not. Believers are told to seek prophesying over speaking in tongues (1 Cor.14:1-3).
5) History indicates that tongues did cease. Tongues are not mentioned at all by the Post-Apostolic Fathers.
Other writers such as Justin Martyr, Origen, Chrysostom, and Augustine considered tongues something
that happened only in the earliest days of the Church.
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How would you answer the Cessationists?
What is the biblical rebuttal to each of these points?
Here below is a key "proof-text" for Cessationism.
Note: a "proof-text" is a scripture that is misused to support a religious viewpoint
that it not supported by the Bible as a whole.
1 Corinthians 13:8
Love never fails.
But where there are prophecies, they will cease;
where there are tongues, they will be stilled;
where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
However...
If tongues have ceased, then so has prophecy and knowledge.
Is that true?
Note:
The Cessationists claim that "prophecy" is preaching.
How do you suppose they define "knowledge"?
Not as a miracle gift, that's for sure.
Let's examine their points of argument below.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Apostle Paul predicted that the gift of tongues would cease (1 Cor.13:8).
Here are six proofs that it has already ceased:
1) The apostles, through whom tongues came, were unique in the history of the church.
Once their ministry was accomplished, the need for authenticating signs ceased to exist.
2) The miracle (or sign) gifts are only mentioned in the earliest epistles, such as 1 Corinthians.
Later books, such as Ephesians and Romans, contain detailed passages on the gifts of the Spirit,
but the miracle gifts are not mentioned, although Romans does mention the gift of prophecy.
The Greek word translated “prophecy” means “speaking forth” and
does not necessarily include prediction of the future.
3) The gift of tongues was a sign to unbelieving Israel that God’s salvation was
now available to other nations. See 1 Cor.14:21-22 and Isaiah 28:11-12.
4) Tongues was an inferior gift to prophecy (preaching). Preaching the Word of God edifies believers,
whereas tongues does not. Believers are told to seek prophesying over speaking in tongues (1 Cor.14:1-3).
5) History indicates that tongues did cease. Tongues are not mentioned at all by the Post-Apostolic Fathers.
Other writers such as Justin Martyr, Origen, Chrysostom, and Augustine considered tongues something
that happened only in the earliest days of the Church.
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How would you answer the Cessationists?
What is the biblical rebuttal to each of these points?
Here below is a key "proof-text" for Cessationism.
Note: a "proof-text" is a scripture that is misused to support a religious viewpoint
that it not supported by the Bible as a whole.
1 Corinthians 13:8
Love never fails.
But where there are prophecies, they will cease;
where there are tongues, they will be stilled;
where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
However...
If tongues have ceased, then so has prophecy and knowledge.
Is that true?
Note:
The Cessationists claim that "prophecy" is preaching.
How do you suppose they define "knowledge"?
Not as a miracle gift, that's for sure.
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