Have the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit like prophecy, tongues, interpretation of tongues, healings and miracles ceased, or are the available for the Church today? This has been a hotly debated issue for some time. In this message, we pose the arguments of the Cessationists (those who believe these gifts ceased after the 1st century) and then try to respond with Scripture. Hopefully, our discussion here will help you as you sort through an issue which can be very confusing!

Teaching Notes:

Are Miraculous Gifts For Today? – Pt. 1

At the outset of this study, I need to acknowledge my debt to others who, through their teaching and writing have influenced my thinking on this subject. The ministries of men like John Piper, Wayne Grudem, D.A. Carson, Steve Fuller (pastor of Mercy Hill Church in San Jose) and Jack Deere have been a source of insight to me, and many of the following arguments have been suggested by their teachings.

Arguments Used By Cessationists:

1. Signs and wonders (miraculous gifts of the Spirit) were peculiar to the apostolic band, and not bestowed generally. Therefore, when the apostles died, miraculous gifts, signs and wonders ceased.

A. Miraculous gifts were distributed far wider than just the apostles:

• The 70 – Luke 10:9; (healed the sick)
• An Anonymous Man – Mark 9:38-39; (cast out demons)
• Those who believe in Jesus – Mk.16:15-18 (cast out demons, speak with new tongues, heal the sick
• Jn.14:12 says “those that believe in Me, the works that I do, shall they do also.” It doesn’t mention that only apostles will do Jesus’ works.
• The 108 disciples with the 12 apostles – Acts 2; (spoke in tongues)
• The Samaritans – Acts 8:18; (probably spoke in tongues)
• Stephen – Acts 7:8 (did great wonders and signs)
• Philip – Acts 8:6-7 (cast out demons, healed the lame and paralyzed)
• Ananias – Acts 9:10-18; (healed Saul of blindness)
• Cornelius and the Gentiles with him – Acts 10:45-46; (spoke in tongues)
• The 12 disciples at Ephesus – Acts 19:6; (spoke in tongues and prophesied)
• The prophet Agabus – Acts 11:28; 21:10-11; (prophesied)
• The individuals in Acts 13:1 (Barnabus, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen, Saul); (prophesied)
• Barnabus – Acts 14:3 (signs and wonders)
• The prophets Judas and Silas – Acts 15:32; (prophesied)
• The disciples at Tyre – Acts 21:4; (prophesied)
• Philips 4 unmarried daughters – Acts 21:9; (prophesied – kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem)
• Members of church of Corinth – 1 Cor. 12:7-10; 14:26 (were lacking in no gift)
• Members of church of Rome – Rom. 12:6 (prophesied)
• Members of church of Thessalonica – 1 Thess. 5:20 (prophesied)
• Members of church of Ephesus – Eph. 4:11 (prophets)
• Members of chuches of Galatia – Gal. 3:5 (miracles)

B. If Luke had really wanted to teach us that the signs and wonders ministry, as well as the ministry of the miraculous gifts of the Spirit, were distinctively apostolic, wouldn’t he have given more attention to miracles by the other apostles? Luke chooses 2 apostles and 2 non-apostles to illustrate the signs and wonders ministry in Acts. If the primary purpose of signs and wonders was to authenticate the apostles, why do Stephen and Philip do signs and wonders? Permitting anyone other than apostles to do signs and wonders actually weakens the value of signs and wonders as an authenticating tool of the apostles’ ministry. If signs and wonders were meant to authenticate the apostles, there is absolutely no reason for Stephen and Philip to do miracles. If that were his purpose he would have suppressed the stories about Stephen and Philip and substituted apostolic healing stories.

2. The miraculous gifts were given only by the laying on of the hands of the apostles. Therefore, when the apostles died, no more miraculous gifts were given to the church.

A. Timothy’s gift came by laying on of hands of presbytery, not the apostles – 1 Tim.4:14

B. Ananias, not an apostle, but merely a disciple is the one who lays hands on Saul so that he will be healed of blindness and filled with the Holy Spirit.

C. This is an argument from theological deduction and speculation, not biblical texts.

3. The miraculous gifts are only mentioned in the Scriptures written between A.D. 33-60, while the Scriptures dealing with the “later period” (A.D. 60-67) have no instances of tongues, healings, exorcisms, or raisings from the dead. Additionally, Paul was not able to heal Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:25-27), Timothy (1 Tim. 5;23), and Trophimus (2 Tim. 4:20). Therefore this shows that the miraculous gifts had already ceased in the later years of Paul’s life.

A. This ignores the fact that the books written later in Paul’s life were written from a prison cell (Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, 2 Timothy). Obviously, these are not going to be filled with narrative stories about his miracle-working minisry! Acts, written earlier, is narrative literature. These other epistles are didactic literature. Each has different themes. Acts is composed of stories, while the epistles deal with particular problems in the churches. One of the purposes for the book of Acts is to show the continuing works of Jesus in His miraculous power ministry. Thus, the book of Acts is going to be filled with stories of miraculous deeds, while the epistles will mention these things only when they are the source of a problem, as in Corinth. His last 3 letters were written to Timothy & Titus. They consist of advice to these young men in shepherding the flock under their charge. Why should we expect him to tell Timothy & Titus about miracles in his own life which they had witnessed numerous times?

B. This view fails to note that the most graphic visions and explicit prophetic revelations (The Book of Revelation) didn’t come in the book of Acts. They come some 30 years after Paul’s death. Revelation was probably written about 95 A.D. The revelatory gifts were still functioning in great strength 30 years after this view says they had ceased.

C. No cessationist can give a consistent reason for this supposed withdrawal of Paul’s healing gift. The cessationist believes that the healing gifts authenticated the apostles and their ministry, especially their ministry of writing Scripture. But does Paul no longer need authentication? Does this mean that the letters written at the end of his life don’t have the same miraculous authentication that the other letters had. Wouldn’t the withdrawal of Paul’s healing gift show that God was lifting His approval, since according to the cessationist theory the miraculous gifts were meant to show God’s divine approval of the apostles?

D. It is far simpler to believe that Paul prayed for these 3 men and God simply said, “No.” Neither Jesus nor the apostles could heal at will. Thus, why not simply assume that God, for His own sovereign purposes, chose not to heal these 3 men through Paul’s healing gift.

4. The purpose of New Testament miracles was to authenticate the apostles as trustworthy authors of Holy Scripture. After the apostles had written the New Testament, miracles would have fulfilled their purpose and would no longer be necessary, for now the church would possess forever the miraculously attested written Word of God.

A. Was the purpose of NT miracles to authenticate the apostles and the Scriptures they wrote?

1) There is not a single reference that says that miracles bear witness to the apostles, confirmed the apostles, or attested the apostles.

2) If it was, why do nonapostles work miracles? (Stephen, Philip, 70, etc)

3) None of the writers of Scripture ever appealed to miracles to support their claims that they were writing Scripture, although they recognized what was being written as Scripture (2Pet.3:16; 1Cor.14:37; 1Thess.4:15).

4) We have authors of Scripture who were not apostles and who never did any recorded miracles (Mark, Luke, Jude). Do these books have less authority than Paul’s letters? If the authority of Scripture rests on miracles done by its authors, these writings would have less authority. We have a large portion of Scripture (Mark, Luke, Acts, Jude, Hebrews) that can’t be explained by the theory that miracles were necessary to authenticate the Bible.

5) Many apostles never wrote Scripture at all (only Matthew, John, Paul, Peter). The other 9 weren’t used in this regard. Why then does the argument say God gave signs & wonders to the apostles to work miracles to authenticate the writings of Scripture?

B. What does the Bible say was the purpose of the miraculous?

1. Sometimes it was to authenticate Jesus Christ (Jn. 3:2; 9:32-33; *5:36; *10:37-38; 14:11; Mark 2:10-11; Mt. 12:28; Mt. 11:1-6; Mt. 14:25-33; Acts 2:22).

2. Sometimes it was to authenticate the message about Jesus ((Mk. 16:20; Acts 14:3)

3. Sometimes God gave healing out of compassion (*Matt. 14:13-14; *Mark 1:41-42; Mark 9:22; *Matt. 20:34; *Luke 7:11-17; Matt. 15:32; 20:29-34; 9:27-31; 17:14-21; Luke 17:13-14; Mark 5:19)

4. Sometimes God gave miracles to glorify Himself and His son (*John 11:4; Acts 4:21; *Matt. 15:30-31; Luke 5:24-26; Luke 7:16; 13:13,17; Luke 18:42-43; Luke 19:37; *Luke 17:17-18; *John 2:11)

5. Sometimes God gave miracles in response to faith (*Matt. 9:22 (the woman who had suffered from a hemorrhage for 12 years who touched the fringe of his cloak); *15:28 (the woman whose daughter was cruelly demon-possessed); 9:2; Acts 14:8-10; Matt. 9:28-29 (the 2 blind men Jesus healed); *James 5:14-16

6. God gave miraculous gifts to edify the church (1 Cor. 12:7; 14:26; 14:3,4)

7. God gave miracles in order to teach us (Matt. 21:18-22)

8. God gave miracles to arrest people’s attention and shatter their indifference, so that they might listen to the gospel (Luke 5:8; Mark 5:20; *John 4:29-30, 39-42; 12:9-11, 17-19; *Acts 8:6; 9:35,42)

9. God gave miracles to manifest the kingdom of God (Mark 1:27; Matt. 12:28; Matt. 4:23-24; Matt. 10:1,7-8; Luke 9;1-2)

10. God gave miracles for sovereign purposes (Mat. 12:9-13; Mark 3:1-5; Luke 14:1-4; John 5:1-9; Luke 22:50-51).

From the evidence, therefore, we cannot say that God gave miracles always to authenticate His Son and the apostles. There was a wide variety of reasons for why God gave miracles. Most of these reasons are still valid today.

5. There is no evidence in church history of the miraculous gifts between the death of the apostles and the present day.

A. If the gifts actually were lost, it would not be the first time the people of God have lost divinely given gifts. The Pentateuch was lost sometime after the death of Moses and wasn’t rediscovered again until 622 B.C. during the reign of Josiah. Justification by faith was lost until the time of the Reformation. Body life principles (open participatory meetings, plurality of eldership, Lord’s Supper as full meal, etc.) are just now being recovered, but were not recovered by the Reformers.

B. This is an argument based upon experience, not Scripture.

C. If the gifts were lost, the question should not be whether they were lost, but why they were lost. Could it be that the church has rejected these gifts, or a rise of ungifted bureaucratic leadership put out gifted people. Or perhaps, poor teaching resulted in people not seeking spiritual gifts with no provision made for their exercise within the church.

D. We only have a fraction of the literature from the period of the death of the last apostles up to the beginning of the Reformation. Is this sufficient evidence on which to base the conviction that the gifts of the Holy spirit were lost to the church?

E. D.A. Carson, after studying the historical documentation for the ministry of the miraculous gifts of the Spirit concluded, “There is enough evidence that some form of “charismatic” gifts continued sporadically across the centuries of church history that it is futile to insist on doctrinaire grounds that every report is spurious or the fruit of demonic activity or psychological aberration.” (Showing the Spirit, page 166.)

F. The truth is that there are historical accounts of miraculous gifts in the church subsequent to the apostolic age.

Justin Martyr, (died around 162-168 A.D.): “…[some] are also receiving gifts, each as he is worthy, illumined through the name of this Christ. For one receives the spirit of understanding, another of counsel, another of strength, another of healing, another of foreknowledge, another of teaching, and another of the fear of God.”

“For the prophetical gifts remain with us, even to the present time.” (From Justin’s Dialogue with Trypho, as quoted from Ronald Kydd, Charismatic Gifts in the Early Church, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 1984, pg. 26ff)

Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons (177 A.D.): “…for which cause also his [Christ’s] true disciples having received grace from him use it in his name for the benefit of the rest of men, even as each has received the gift from him. For some drive out demons with certainty and truth, so that often those who have themselves been cleansed from the evil spirits believe and are in the church, and some have foreknowledge of things to be, and visions and prophetic speech, and others cure the sick by the laying on of hands and make them whole, and even as we have said, the dead have been raised and remain with us for many years. And why should I say more? It is not possible to tell the number of the gifts which the church throughout the whole world, having received them from God in the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, uses each day for the benefit of the heathen, deceiving none and making profit from none. For as it received freely from God, it ministers also freely.” (This is Irenaeus as quoted by Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History, 5, 7:3-5, and quoted from ibid., pp. 44, 93)

“Just as also we hear many brethren in the church who have gifts of prophecy, and who speak through the Spirit with all manner of tongues, and who bring the hidden things of men into the clearness for the common good and expound the mysteries of God.” (From Irenaeus’ Against Heresies, as quoted in ibid., p. 45)

Novatian of Rome (240 A.D.): “Indeed this is he who appoints prophets in the church, instructs teachers, directs tongues, brings into being powers and conditions of health, carries on extraordinary works, furnishes discernment of spirits, incorporates administrations in the church, establishes plans, brings together and arranges all the other gifts there are of the charismata and by reason of this makes the Church of God everywhere perfect in everything and complete.” (From Novatian’s Concerning the Trinity, as quoted in ibid., p.61)

Origen of Alexandria (185-254 A.D.): “Traces of that Holy Spirit who appeared in the form of a dove are still preserved among Christians. They charm demons away and perform many cures and perceive certain things about the future according to the will of the Logos.”

“They [the Jews] no longer have any prophets or wonders, though traces of these are to be found to a considerable extent among Christians. Indeed, some works are even greater; and if our word may be trusted, we also have seen them.” (From Origen’s Against Celsus, as quoted in ibid., p.78)

Patrick Simson (17^th century minister in England): [His wife said that she had much demonic oppression. Early one Sunday morning he was awakened and, going downstairs, discovered her in a very oppressed state.] “He kneeled down and prayed, but she took no notice of the prayer; yet notwithstanding, he prophesied that those who were witnesses of that sad hour should see a gracious work of God upon this his own servant … Her distraction continued … [A few days later] he prophesied to them all, saying, “Be of good comfort, tomorrow before ten hours this brand shall be plucked out of the fire.” Which came to pass accordingly.” (John Gillies, Historical Collections of Accounts of Revival, Banner of Truth Trust, 1981, 1754, p. 163)

John Davidson (17^th century minister in England): “Mr. John Davidson, a learned man, and a worthy preacher, yea, a very prophet of God, for he foretold many things which came to pass accordingly, and that often when he was praying… as a baillie of Edinburgh having invited Mr. Robert Bruce and him to dinner, he foretold that that same baillie would incarcerate Mr. Robert Bruce, although he was now feasting him. And so it came to pass…” (John Gillies, p. 164)

John Husse (church leader in Prague in the 1400’s A.D.): [Gillies states that Husse was a powerful church leader before he was arrested by the Catholic church, charged with heresy, and imprisoned. He was burned at the stake in 1415.] “He told them, at his death, ‘that out of the ashes of the Goose (for so Husse in the Bohemian language signifies) an hundred years after, God would raise up a swan in Germany, whose singing would affright all those vultures’; which was fulfilled in Luther, just about an hundred years after.” (John Gillies, p. 27)

Robert Bruce (minister at Edinburgh, starting in 1590): “He once told me in private that in a dream he had seen a great long book with black boards flying in the air, and all the black fowls flying about it; and that as it touched any of them, they fell down dead, and that he heard a voice, which he said was as audible as I heard him speak: This is the ire of God upon the ministry of Scotland; and that he presently fell a-weeping, and crying to God that he might be kept faithful.”

“The people of the land felt his holiness so deeply, that it was usually believed he had prophetic endowments, and that miraculous occurrences took place in regard to him.” (John Gillies, pp. 176, 179)

Charles Spurgeon: “While preaching in the hall, on one occasion, I deliberately pointed to a man in the midst of the crowd, and said, ‘There is a man sitting there, who is a shoemaker; he keeps his shop open on Sundays, it was open last Sabbath morning, he took ninepence, and there was fourpence profit out of it; his soul is sold to Satan for fourpence!’ A city missionary, when going his rounds, met with this man, and seeing that he was reading one of my sermons, he asked the question, ‘Do you know Mr. Spurgeon?’ ‘Yes,’ replied the man, ‘I have every reason to know him, I have been to hear him; and, under his preaching, by God’s grace I have become a new creature in Christ Jesus. Shall I tell you how it happened? I went to the Music Hall, and took my seat in the middle of the place; Mr. Spurgeon looked at me as if he knew me, and in his sermon he pointed to me, and told the congregation that I was a shoemaker, and that I kept my shop open on Sundays; and I did, sir. I should not have minded that; but he also said that I took ninepence the Sunday before, and that there was fourpence profit out of it. I did take ninepence that day, and fourpence was just the profit; but how he should know that, I could not tell. Then it struck me that it was God who had spoken to my soul through him, so I shut up my shop the next Sunday. At first, I was afraid to go again to hear him, lest he should tell the people more about me; but afterwards I went, and the Lord met with me, and saved my soul.’”

Spurgeon then adds this comment: “I could tell as many as a dozen similar cases in which I pointed at somebody in the hall without having the slightest knowledge of the person, or any idea that what I said was right, except that I believed I was moved by the Spirit to say it; and so striking has been my description, that the persons have gone away, and said to their friends, ‘Come, see a man that told me all things that ever I did; beyond a doubt, he must have been sent of God to my soul, or else he could not have described me so exactly.’ And not only so, but I have known many instances in which the thoughts of men have been revealed from the pulpit. I have sometimes seen persons nudge their neighbours with their elbow, because they had got a smart hit, and they have been heard to say, when they were going out, ‘The preacher told us just what we said to one another when we went in at the door’” (The Autobiography of Charles H. Spurgeon, [Curts & Jennings, 1899], Vol. II, pp. 226-227).

6. We cannot use the Gospels and Acts to determine doctrine, because they are simply narratives recording the events surrounding the transition from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. Doctrine for the church must be drawn from the New Testament teaching epistles.

A. Theologians have always drawn doctrine from the Gospels and the book of Acts. Bible scholars have determined their doctrine of the Person of Christ from the Gospels. Reformed theologians have seen the doctrine of unconditional election in Acts 13:48. Professors of missions have used the book of Acts to teach missiology and evangelism. The church has also drawn upon the book of Acts to determine its understanding of church government (Acts 14:23; 20:17,28). This argument is really saying that we have decided to use an antisupernatural hermeneutic to interpret Acts, and that we have made a somewhat arbitrary decision to use Acts to determine doctrine about other things but not about the miraculous.

B. The Gospels and Acts comprise 58% of our NT, whereas the epistles comprise 36%, and the book of Revelation 6%. If this argument is correct, then it is saying that 58% of the NT is useless in deriving doctrine (at least concerning miraculous gifts).

C. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (KJV). This verse teaches us that all Scripture is profitable for doctrine. Of course, we must be careful when deriving doctrine from narrative portions of Scripture that we strive to understand the intended purpose and meaning of the author, rather than reading our own conclusions into the narrative. However, be that as it may, it is a dangerous thing to determine that we can derive doctrine on many other subjects but not regarding miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit.

7. Miracles took place for the most part during 3 relatively brief periods of Bible history: in the days of Moses and Joshua, during the ministries of Elijah and Elisha, and in the time of Christ and the apostles. The purpose of these miracles was to authenticate the ones bringing forth new revelation. Now that Scripture revelation has been fully given, we are not to expect ongoing miracles.

A. The Bible seems to contradict this theory in Jeremiah 32:20 which states, “who hast set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and even to this day both in Israel and among mankind; and Thou hast made a name for Thyself, as at this day.” This text teaches that not only did God do signs and wonders in the land of Egypt in Moses’ day, but he continued to do them even until the day of Jeremiah’s day (626 to 586 B.C.) both in Israel and other nations as well.

B. Even if we exclude Exodus through Joshua (events related to the ministries of Moses and Joshua) and 1 Kings 17 through 2 Kings 13 (events related to the ministries of Elijah and Elisha, there is still an abundance of miraculous events in Scripture. For example, in just the first 19 chapters of Genesis, we read of the creation of the universe, God speaking with Adam, the rapture of Enoch, the flood of Noah’s day, the calling of the animals into the ark, the preservation of human and animal life in spite of a worldwide flood, the confusing of human language at the Tower of Babel, the supernatural call of Abraham, the plague on Pharoah’s house, Abraham’s vision of the smoking oven and a flaming torch, the angel of the Lord appearing to Hagar, the Lord appearing to Abraham, the Lord and angels appearing to Abraham and eating a meal with him, the angels blinding the men of Sodom, the Lord destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, and Lot’s wife being turned into a pillar of salt. I don’t think it is necessary to continue. Even a cursory reading of the book of Daniel (another time period not covered in these 3 miraculous periods of history) will reveal an abundance of miracles.

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