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2. But can a Christian actually commit the unforgivable sin?
Cessationists often say that a true Christian who has a whole-hearted belief in Jesus cannot commit this sin because it requires a mindset that is opposed to God. This, unfortunately, is untrue. God, the Son and the Spirit are three but one – the Trinity. "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (KJV, 1 John 4:8). How can a person who unlovingly calls a work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a fellow Christian an act of the devil legitimately claim to have a whole-hearted belief in Jesus, who is love? The fruit of that tree is evil, not good (KJV, Matt. 12:33-37). The Apostle Paul wrote in the Book of Romans, "Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way." (KJV, Rom 14:13). Calling the intervention of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer the work of the devil is definitely the throwing down of a stumbling block. It was for me.
Jesus explains the basis for the unforgiveable sin in Matthew: "Anyone who isn't with me opposes me; and anyone who isn't working with me is actually working against me." (NLT, Matt. 12:30). A person who calls a blessing of the Holy Spirit a work of the devil is definitely not working with Jesus. Instead, that person has a mindset opposed to Him: one of fear, pride, faithlessness, ignorance and jealousy.
3. Why would someone teach this if it leads believers into or dangerously close to fatal error?
Cessationism holds that the Holy Spirit now works on the believer only through the pages of the Bible. When we need God, we open our Bibles. In other words, our interaction with the Spirit is limited to an access point that we control down to the chapters, verses, periods and commas we choose to read. This fencing in of the Holy Spirit, while it satisfies the human need for control, has brought us to another situation "Wherefore the Lord said, 'Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder, for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. Woe unto them that seek to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding?'" (KJV, Isaiah 29:13-16). Although reading Scripture is an excellent way to seek God, the doctrine of cessationism goes too far and turns its followers upside down. As it says in Isaiah, once again we have a situation of the clay trying to boss the potter, and believers who have no passion, love, awe or reverence. Once again we have put God in the position of having to do a marvelous work and a wonder just to recapture our attention.
Cessationism is also strongly committed to the companion doctrine of predestinationism. I was shocked to learn that this elitist doctrine, which is hidden in plain sight, holds that by His sovereign will God elects those who are predestined for Heaven regardless of their personal merits, even their faith or lack thereof. The church consists of the invisible members (those who are elected) and the visible members (the rest of us). So what you hear your cessationist pastor preach on Sunday is very likely not what he actually believes.
In fact, what he probably believes is that it does not matter what he preaches because the elect are chosen by God before the Creation, and nothing he preaches can change the election. Similarly, nothing the "invisible" or the "visible" churches might do will change their respective statuses.
This is why hardcore cessationist preachers prefer to ignore the unforgiveable sin, which punches a huge hole through predestinationism. If it is possible for a member of the elect to lose his salvation by something he chooses to do, then predestinationism (and the accompanying saying "once saved always saved") is error.
Once you are aware of this "secret" belief, you will notice it in the sermons. When preaching on or commenting on First John, hardcore cessationists will skip the acknowledgement by Paul in Chapter 5, verse 16 that "There is a sin unto death," which refers to the unforgivable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. The reason is obvious -- if they were to talk about Paul's acknowledgement of the unforgiveable sin, they would have to discuss the hole it punches in their secret beliefs, all of which they would rather avoid. The other passage in First John a hardcore cessationist preacher will skip is chapter 4, verse 8: "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (KJV, 1 John 4:8). This is because the doctrines of cessationism and predestination are wholly inconsistent with the love that God is ("agape" love, meaning, from Strong's, affection, benevolence, a love feast). If a person or a people needs a sign of confirmation to bolster their faith in a time of darkness or a revelation of His presence as a correction because they have strayed from the difficult path that leads to the narrow gate, who would dare to be so arrogant and self-idolatrous as to say that God, who is love, will not provide it? How is arrogantly and self-idolatrously criticizing other Christians, even accusing them of being demonic, consistent with God, who is love? And what arrogant, self-idolatrous man who conceals his secret doctrine from those he teaches would secretly say to himself that he is elect while the man who has surrendered to the Holy Spirit and sees and hears God's voice everywhere and in everything is not even a Christian?
Cessationism and predestinationism are thus doctrines intended to facilitate the building and control of churches, not doctrines of love. Cessationism fears new revelations jostling the canon and the prospect of their self-categorized invisible church, who have been trained never to hear the voice or to see or feel the hand of God in their lives, being "converted" by natural Christians who live for such moments. Predestinationism wants to jump the gun and see from God's vantage point ("Known to God from eternity are all His works." [NKJV, Acts 15:18]). From my experience with the Holy Spirit, I am certain that God has foreseen the events of my life for at least fifty years. By faith, I have no doubt that God has foreseen every millisecond of my life and every choice I would ever make, and yet, from my human vantage point, I have free will to choose to sin and therefore I dare not consider myself saved. All of us, including me, have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. There is no place in human faith for the cushy smugness of predestinationism.
Cessationists will say that God has given all the necessary confirming and revelatory signs and information necessary for Christian life, which are recorded in the Bible. Who would argue against that? But it doesn't mean God can't do more if He chooses. Who would argue against that, except a person willing to risk the unpardonable sin for himself and those he teaches?
4. What is the Scriptural justification for running these risks?
When I started looking into this I expected to find a ton of Scriptural support for cessationism. Why would a reasonable, responsible Christian preach a doctrine that deprives believers of the security and power through the Spirit promised by Scripture; divides God's church; leads His children into potentially fatal error; and causes in-fighting, without a rock-solid Scriptural basis?
I was shocked to discover not only is there no Scriptural support for the doctrine, it appears that Scripture rules it out. In First Corinthians, Paul writes:
"But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." (NKJV, 1 Cor. 13:8-10).
Here Paul clearly states the spiritual gifts bestowed by the Holy Spirit will last until Jesus returns, when those gifts, imperfect as they are, will no longer be necessary and will be replaced by the "perfect." I can hardly wait. Paul's inspired teaching in First Corinthians should be appreciated in conjunction with another of his teachings contained in his letter to the Ephesians, which likewise appears to prohibit cessationism:
"But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ; Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men; . . . And He gave some, Apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ; Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ." (KJV, Eph. 4:7 – 15).
Here, just as in the previously quoted Scripture from First Corinthians, Paul is clearly looking ahead to a future time. He says the spiritual gifts of God will endure until all believers conform to Christ, until they "grow up into him in all things." Suffice it to say, we are not yet there. Followers of cessationism argue that the phrase "come in the unity of faith" means "when the Christian Bible was completed." But this is plainly against Paul's clear meaning in First Corinthians and Ephesians in which he's talking about the Second Coming of Jesus, the perfection of Him replacing our imperfect knowledge and imperfect prophecy and imperfect worship.
If the Scripture alone is not enough evidence, as a matter of factual reality it is obvious that the completion of the Christian Bible has not resulted in a unity of faith and the conformity of all believers to Jesus. Even if we rebel against reality and will ourselves to say that it has, and we declare that the spiritual gifts of God have stopped because they are no longer necessary, then evangelists and pastors and teachers must all quit their jobs (assuming they subject themselves to Scripture), because those gifts are included in the list of spiritual gifts in Ephesians 4:11 which will end when all believers conform to Christ. No reasonable Christian can credibly argue that time has come and the time is now right for all of those good people to stop their work, which is more necessary today than ever.
When pressed for the Scripture that supports their doctrine, cessationists confuse the issue by turning the discussion to the sanctity of the Bible, strategically positioning themselves as defenders of Scripture. But no one questions the nature and essentialness of Scripture. And a thing is either true in Christ, to His nature, or it is not. There should be no strategy, no angle, no game play. The issue, properly stated, is that in opposition to Scripture cessationism leads its followers into or dangerously close to blaspheming the Holy Spirit. If God's will is for a man to wield the spiritual gift of prophecy, or tongues, or for him to receive rebuke, inspiration, clarification, instruction or direction in a vision or dream or directly from His voice, is it not blasphemous for a man-made doctrine to purport to stand in His way? Didn't Jesus answer this precise question when He rebuked the Pharisees: "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the Power of God." (NKJV, Matt. 22:29). The power of our triune God, including the Holy Spirit, is not imprisoned by Scripture.
(continued in part 3)
Cessationists often say that a true Christian who has a whole-hearted belief in Jesus cannot commit this sin because it requires a mindset that is opposed to God. This, unfortunately, is untrue. God, the Son and the Spirit are three but one – the Trinity. "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (KJV, 1 John 4:8). How can a person who unlovingly calls a work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a fellow Christian an act of the devil legitimately claim to have a whole-hearted belief in Jesus, who is love? The fruit of that tree is evil, not good (KJV, Matt. 12:33-37). The Apostle Paul wrote in the Book of Romans, "Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way." (KJV, Rom 14:13). Calling the intervention of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer the work of the devil is definitely the throwing down of a stumbling block. It was for me.
Jesus explains the basis for the unforgiveable sin in Matthew: "Anyone who isn't with me opposes me; and anyone who isn't working with me is actually working against me." (NLT, Matt. 12:30). A person who calls a blessing of the Holy Spirit a work of the devil is definitely not working with Jesus. Instead, that person has a mindset opposed to Him: one of fear, pride, faithlessness, ignorance and jealousy.
3. Why would someone teach this if it leads believers into or dangerously close to fatal error?
Cessationism holds that the Holy Spirit now works on the believer only through the pages of the Bible. When we need God, we open our Bibles. In other words, our interaction with the Spirit is limited to an access point that we control down to the chapters, verses, periods and commas we choose to read. This fencing in of the Holy Spirit, while it satisfies the human need for control, has brought us to another situation "Wherefore the Lord said, 'Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder, for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. Woe unto them that seek to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding?'" (KJV, Isaiah 29:13-16). Although reading Scripture is an excellent way to seek God, the doctrine of cessationism goes too far and turns its followers upside down. As it says in Isaiah, once again we have a situation of the clay trying to boss the potter, and believers who have no passion, love, awe or reverence. Once again we have put God in the position of having to do a marvelous work and a wonder just to recapture our attention.
Cessationism is also strongly committed to the companion doctrine of predestinationism. I was shocked to learn that this elitist doctrine, which is hidden in plain sight, holds that by His sovereign will God elects those who are predestined for Heaven regardless of their personal merits, even their faith or lack thereof. The church consists of the invisible members (those who are elected) and the visible members (the rest of us). So what you hear your cessationist pastor preach on Sunday is very likely not what he actually believes.
In fact, what he probably believes is that it does not matter what he preaches because the elect are chosen by God before the Creation, and nothing he preaches can change the election. Similarly, nothing the "invisible" or the "visible" churches might do will change their respective statuses.
This is why hardcore cessationist preachers prefer to ignore the unforgiveable sin, which punches a huge hole through predestinationism. If it is possible for a member of the elect to lose his salvation by something he chooses to do, then predestinationism (and the accompanying saying "once saved always saved") is error.
Once you are aware of this "secret" belief, you will notice it in the sermons. When preaching on or commenting on First John, hardcore cessationists will skip the acknowledgement by Paul in Chapter 5, verse 16 that "There is a sin unto death," which refers to the unforgivable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. The reason is obvious -- if they were to talk about Paul's acknowledgement of the unforgiveable sin, they would have to discuss the hole it punches in their secret beliefs, all of which they would rather avoid. The other passage in First John a hardcore cessationist preacher will skip is chapter 4, verse 8: "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (KJV, 1 John 4:8). This is because the doctrines of cessationism and predestination are wholly inconsistent with the love that God is ("agape" love, meaning, from Strong's, affection, benevolence, a love feast). If a person or a people needs a sign of confirmation to bolster their faith in a time of darkness or a revelation of His presence as a correction because they have strayed from the difficult path that leads to the narrow gate, who would dare to be so arrogant and self-idolatrous as to say that God, who is love, will not provide it? How is arrogantly and self-idolatrously criticizing other Christians, even accusing them of being demonic, consistent with God, who is love? And what arrogant, self-idolatrous man who conceals his secret doctrine from those he teaches would secretly say to himself that he is elect while the man who has surrendered to the Holy Spirit and sees and hears God's voice everywhere and in everything is not even a Christian?
Cessationism and predestinationism are thus doctrines intended to facilitate the building and control of churches, not doctrines of love. Cessationism fears new revelations jostling the canon and the prospect of their self-categorized invisible church, who have been trained never to hear the voice or to see or feel the hand of God in their lives, being "converted" by natural Christians who live for such moments. Predestinationism wants to jump the gun and see from God's vantage point ("Known to God from eternity are all His works." [NKJV, Acts 15:18]). From my experience with the Holy Spirit, I am certain that God has foreseen the events of my life for at least fifty years. By faith, I have no doubt that God has foreseen every millisecond of my life and every choice I would ever make, and yet, from my human vantage point, I have free will to choose to sin and therefore I dare not consider myself saved. All of us, including me, have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. There is no place in human faith for the cushy smugness of predestinationism.
Cessationists will say that God has given all the necessary confirming and revelatory signs and information necessary for Christian life, which are recorded in the Bible. Who would argue against that? But it doesn't mean God can't do more if He chooses. Who would argue against that, except a person willing to risk the unpardonable sin for himself and those he teaches?
4. What is the Scriptural justification for running these risks?
When I started looking into this I expected to find a ton of Scriptural support for cessationism. Why would a reasonable, responsible Christian preach a doctrine that deprives believers of the security and power through the Spirit promised by Scripture; divides God's church; leads His children into potentially fatal error; and causes in-fighting, without a rock-solid Scriptural basis?
I was shocked to discover not only is there no Scriptural support for the doctrine, it appears that Scripture rules it out. In First Corinthians, Paul writes:
"But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." (NKJV, 1 Cor. 13:8-10).
Here Paul clearly states the spiritual gifts bestowed by the Holy Spirit will last until Jesus returns, when those gifts, imperfect as they are, will no longer be necessary and will be replaced by the "perfect." I can hardly wait. Paul's inspired teaching in First Corinthians should be appreciated in conjunction with another of his teachings contained in his letter to the Ephesians, which likewise appears to prohibit cessationism:
"But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ; Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men; . . . And He gave some, Apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ; Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ." (KJV, Eph. 4:7 – 15).
Here, just as in the previously quoted Scripture from First Corinthians, Paul is clearly looking ahead to a future time. He says the spiritual gifts of God will endure until all believers conform to Christ, until they "grow up into him in all things." Suffice it to say, we are not yet there. Followers of cessationism argue that the phrase "come in the unity of faith" means "when the Christian Bible was completed." But this is plainly against Paul's clear meaning in First Corinthians and Ephesians in which he's talking about the Second Coming of Jesus, the perfection of Him replacing our imperfect knowledge and imperfect prophecy and imperfect worship.
If the Scripture alone is not enough evidence, as a matter of factual reality it is obvious that the completion of the Christian Bible has not resulted in a unity of faith and the conformity of all believers to Jesus. Even if we rebel against reality and will ourselves to say that it has, and we declare that the spiritual gifts of God have stopped because they are no longer necessary, then evangelists and pastors and teachers must all quit their jobs (assuming they subject themselves to Scripture), because those gifts are included in the list of spiritual gifts in Ephesians 4:11 which will end when all believers conform to Christ. No reasonable Christian can credibly argue that time has come and the time is now right for all of those good people to stop their work, which is more necessary today than ever.
When pressed for the Scripture that supports their doctrine, cessationists confuse the issue by turning the discussion to the sanctity of the Bible, strategically positioning themselves as defenders of Scripture. But no one questions the nature and essentialness of Scripture. And a thing is either true in Christ, to His nature, or it is not. There should be no strategy, no angle, no game play. The issue, properly stated, is that in opposition to Scripture cessationism leads its followers into or dangerously close to blaspheming the Holy Spirit. If God's will is for a man to wield the spiritual gift of prophecy, or tongues, or for him to receive rebuke, inspiration, clarification, instruction or direction in a vision or dream or directly from His voice, is it not blasphemous for a man-made doctrine to purport to stand in His way? Didn't Jesus answer this precise question when He rebuked the Pharisees: "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the Power of God." (NKJV, Matt. 22:29). The power of our triune God, including the Holy Spirit, is not imprisoned by Scripture.
(continued in part 3)
