This question is inspired by an
insightful post by Bible Highlighter on a thread initiated by Oscarr, in the Controversial Christian Theology section. He said:
Many believers today seem to blur the line between God doing a miracle in His timing vs. the sign gifts given to the apostles for the early church (Which have ceased). There is a difference between the two.
An example of a sign gift would be an apostle of Jesus who has the early church gift of healing and who is able to heal others 100% of the time. There is no apostle alive today who is able to do what the early apostles did. The Bible talks about how Peter healed those who were sick by his shadow. We do not know of any claims of this happening whereby a man of God can heal 100% of the time every time.
The best we got is prayer and sometimes God will heal a person but this would not be a guaranteed healing, and this would not involve the healing of amputees.
At first I thought of posting a reply citing many modern miracle accounts, but then I realized that he has a good point. Bible Highlighter is the sort of Cessationist who believes in modern miracles but rejects the idea of modern apostles who can perform mighty deeds with extremely high frequency and success (as the first century Apostles did).
Question for those more knowledgeable in these matters:
Have massive, apostolic-level healings continued? Does anyone know about men or women of God who God has used mightily in more recent times, with signs and wonders and miracles to a degree comparable to the first century Church?
To get us started, the closest modern example to a 1st century apostle used mightily by God that I'm aware of would be Carlos Annacondia, a revivalist Hispanic preacher, from Argentina. He authored the book "¡Oíme bien Satanás!" (
Listen to me, Satan!), available
here. The book's preface is self-explanatory:
This is the true story of Carlos Annacondia, whose faithfulness, devotion, and faith in signs and miracles brought about an awakening in Argentina that has spread throughout the world and continues to this day. Annacondia's ministry is marked by the same signs and wonders of the early church—sick bodies are healed, bondages are broken, the demonized are set free, oppression is lifted—and he knows these subjects as very few people do.
Listen to Me, Satan! is full of amazing testimonies that will renew, inspire, and charge your faith. It's the story of how one man confronted the devil, in the authority of the name of Jesus, and experienced extraordinary results. Join him on his journey from the poor villages of Buenos Aires to a global ministry, and find victory and freedom in your own life as well.
Here is a documentary on Carlos Annacondia:
A Christian magazine published an
interview with Carlos Annacondia titled
Carlos Annacondia: The evangelist at the forefront of revival. Some highlights below:
The evangelist says that he received a message from God in 1981 saying: “Soon, soon, soon. There will be a great revival in Argentina. Argentina will be mine, says the Lord.” Since then, his large-scale rallies, held in cooperation with local churches in towns and cities across the country, have drawn millions of people and seen thousands of new churches planted.
In spiritual terms, the evangelistic events themselves are highly charged. Much fervent prayer precedes each rally, and Annacondia frequently begins on stage by challenging any unclean spirits to make themselves known. Many demonic manifestations invariably occur in the crowd, with intercessors on hand to provide deliverance ministry in a nearby tent. After this, says Annacondia, the atmosphere is cleared for the Holy Spirit to work. Testimonies abound of healing, miracles and conversions, often including gang members and drug addicts.
[...]
So I entered into a hall full of worship and adoration, accompanied by my wife and my children. I started to hear a voice talking to me. “Carlos, you’re so worried about life – for your children’s future, for your businesses – you are unhappy. Give me your heart, I will give you life.” It was the voice of the Lord Jesus. And I started to cry – and it wasn’t easy for me to cry, because I believed if you cry, you are not a man, and that’s what I told my wife as well: men do not cry. But that day I just broke down in tears.
[...]
Ten days after that experience, I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I remember having my hands up to heaven and suddenly I just felt this warmth, this fire that I could not control, and my whole body started to shake and I started to speak in a language that I’d never spoken before.
Things started to happen to me: I’d just be shaking hands with somebody, and the person would say, “Let go, I feel like electricity is in your hands!” I’d just visit somebody I knew, and encounter demonic manifestations with several members of the family that I was visiting. I didn’t yet know what that was, and I had to learn. [...]
[...]
When you first began healing people in the hospital, what did the doctors think of it?
Traditionally speaking, Argentina is a Roman Catholic country, and Catholic people happen to believe in miracles. So they would see a miracle taking place and they would attribute it to God. I never had any problems.
We’ve even seen a number of doctors becoming Christians as a result of their patients receiving a miracle.
If I am ill, I have a doctor friend of mine, and I allow him to diagnose – I’m not superman. I do believe in science, because God created science. We are imperfect preachers of God, and we also suffer; we have our own needs. We do not come against science, we actually partner with this.