Cessationism: The Shepherd’s Church Distinctives (Part 9)
In this series, Pastor Kendall Lankford and Deacon Dan Hult elaborate on the distinctives of The Shepherd’s Church, so everyone who worships with us, visits us, or lands on our webpage will know who we are, how we are, what we are, why we are, and what they can expect.
“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.…For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.” - Hebrews 1:1-2,2:1-4
How do we know that we truly have salvation? The Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, Luke 8:4-15) and warnings in the epistles (Hebrews 6:4-8, 1 John 2:19) make it clear that not everyone who appears to be saved actually is, so we want some sure evidence of salvation. A common view in the modern church is that spiritual gifts are that evidence. If spiritual gifts mark the Spirit’s presence, and if His presence is the sure sign of salvation, then spiritual gifts—especially the miraculous gifts—would be evidence of salvation. But as we will see, this view misunderstands the nature and purpose of spiritual gifts. Therefore, a distinctive of The Shepherd’s Church is being cessationist, believing that the Holy Spirit ceased dispensing the miraculous gifts once the canon of Scripture was complete.
The Giver of Spiritual Gifts
Put simply, a spiritual gift is “any ability that is empowered by the Holy Spirit and used in any ministry of the church”.[1] To understand their nature and purpose, we must first understand the nature of their Giver. The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force—as so many Americans erroneously believe—but the Third Person of the Trinity:
“For there is one Person of the Father: another of the Son: and another of the Holy Spirit. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, is all one: the Glory equal, the Majesty coeternal….The Father is made of none: neither created, nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone: not made, nor created: but begotten. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son: neither made, nor created, nor begotten: but proceeding.” - Athanasian Creed
The Nicene Creed also touches on the Spirit’s work: “I believe…in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified; who spake by the Prophets”. He accomplishes our regeneration (John 3:3-8, Titus 3:5) and our sanctification (2 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 Peter 1:2), causing us to produce His fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). As our Helper, He indwells us and empowers us to understand, respond to, and obey the Gospel (John 14:16-17)—so His presence is the evidence that we are in Christ (Romans 8:16, 1 John 3:24, 4:13). He teaches us all things necessary for life and godliness by causing us to recall all that Jesus taught (John 14:25-26). The Holy Spirit inspired Scripture (Acts 1:16) and is the only one who can enable us to understand it (1 Corinthians 2:12-15, Ephesians 1:17). And He convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-9) with the ultimate objective of glorifying Jesus Christ (John 16:14). This work is not primarily individual but corporate, so He unifies God’s people and builds up the Church (1 Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 2:18-22). This is the work of the Holy Spirit and the reason for spiritual gifts.
The Purpose of Spiritual Gifts
With that foundation, we can examine the purpose of spiritual gifts: “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord….But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:5,7). More specifically, they are “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13). Peter makes this even clearer:
“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” - 1 Peter 4:10-11
This brings up the obvious question: what are the spiritual gifts? Peter’s list is the last and shortest of four: speaking and serving. Before that comes Paul’s list to the Ephesians: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (Ephesians 4:11), which itself came after his list to the Romans: prophecy, service, teaching, exhortation; generosity, leadership, and acts of mercy (Romans 12:6-8). The first list was to the Corinthians: utterance of wisdom and knowledge, faith, healing, performing miracles, prophecy, distinguishing spirits, speaking in tongues, and interpreting tongues (1 Corinthians 12:8-10). An explanation of these passages can be found here.
It is immediately obvious that these lists are quite different, so we cannot create a definitive list of spiritual gifts. It is also clear that talents and spiritual gifts are not mutually exclusive since teaching, exhortation, serving, generosity, leadership, and acts of mercy are both. Some of the gifts are clearly miraculous and have an additional purpose—to bear witness to the Gospel: “After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will” (Hebrews 2:3b-4). Miraculous signs, whether performed by God or though His people, accompanied the preaching of the Gospel to testify to its authenticity just as Jesus’s miracles supported His teaching, so they do not prove salvation, as Jesus made clear: “On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:22-23). But what of speaking in tongues? That was the sign the Holy Spirit had indwelt the apostles (Acts 2:1-12), the family of Cornelius (Acts 10:44-48), and twelve men in Ephesus (Acts 19:1-7). This has led some to claim that speaking in tongues is definitive evidence of salvation, but the rest of the Acts narrative does not support that view. It is notably absent from the account of those who responded to Peter’s preaching on Pentecost (Acts 2:38) and the Samaritans (Acts 8:17). So even in the early days of the Church, speaking in tongues was not the telltale sign of genuine conversion. Like the other miraculous gifts, it was relatively rare and was given by the Holy Spirit to establish the validity of the Gospel.
Miraculous Gifts Now?
Are the miraculous gifts still active today? As we have already seen, the they appear to have waned steadily in the period between Pentecost and the completion of Scripture. We see hints of this throughout the New Testament. Nestled between the first spiritual gift list and a detailed discussion of prophecy and tongues is the famous “love chapter”. Paul begins by stating that any spiritual gift is useless apart from love and then describes love before ending with this:
Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. - 1 Corinthians 13:8-12
While we can certainly apply this to eternity, we must not forget that 1 Corinthians 12-14 is about spiritual gifts and their proper use. The miraculous gifts of prophecy, tongues, and knowledge are attributes of the partial that will pass away when replaced by the perfect. We will not be perfected until glory, but something that was incomplete during Bible times is now complete: Scripture. We now have every word of God that is profitable to equip us for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17), giving us absolutely everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). But prior to that, the Holy Spirit gave the miraculous gifts to fill the gaps: “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world” (Hebrews 1:1-2). Some of the last words of Scripture also hint at this completion: “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book” (Revelation 22:18). This obviously refers to Revelation, but its inclusion—and absence elsewhere except for similar warnings about the Law (Deuteronomy 4:2, 12:34)—strongly suggests John was signaling that God’s Word was complete. Thus we should expect the miraculous gifts to cease at that point just as they had at similar points in the Old Testament:
“Outbreaks of the miraculous sign-gifts in the Old Testament were, generally speaking, limited to those periods of redemptive history in which a new stage of covenantal revelation was reached and during which the kingdom of God required special defence against the danger of annihilation by the powers of darkness: the days of the Exodus, the entry into the promised land, and the establishment of the people there; the time of Elijah and Elisha and the establishing of the prophetic ministry; and the days of the Exile. Of course God continued to work powerfully at other times, sometimes in remarkable ways. But these sign-deeds were never normative. Nor does the Old Testament suggest they should have continued unabated even throughout the redemptive-historical epoch they inaugurated…In Scripture itself, it is clear that in the nature of the case these special signs functioned temporarily in a confirmatory way, defending and establishing the kingdom, within the context of a new epoch of God’s revealed purposes. Consistent with this pattern, the work of Christ and the apostles was confirmed by ‘signs and wonders’”. - Sinclair B. Ferguson, The Holy Spirit, ed. Gerald Bray, Contours of Christian Theology, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 1996: 224–225.
The miraculous gifts therefore followed the pattern seen throughout redemptive history: God marks relatively short but particularly formative covenantal periods with bursts of miracles that were required at those times but not at other times. These periods included Creation (which we will address in a future distinctive), the exodus and Canaan conquest, the exile, Jesus’s ministry, and the initial establishment of the Church. So we can conclude that the miraculous gifts have ceased.
Prophecy and the Sufficiency of Scripture
Why is this important enough to be a distinctive? Since the Holy Spirit no longer dispenses the miraculous gifts, any current attempts to exercise them—especially prophecy—are actually attacks on Scripture.[2] We are Reformed and confessional, so Scripture is our highest authority and our chosen confession is quite clear:
“Although the light of nature, and the works of creation and providence, do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men inexcusable; yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God, and of his will, which is necessary unto salvation; therefore it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal himself, and to declare that his will unto his Church; and afterwards, for the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing; which maketh the holy Scripture to be most necessary; those former ways of God’s revealing his will unto his people being now ceased.” - Westminster Confession of Faith I.1 (emphasis added)
We are also expositional and exegetical, so we teach the whole of Scripture and draw the meaning out of the text rather than finding our own meaning. Any who claim to be speaking for God as prophets are putting themselves on the same level or even above Scripture. Even if they claim that their statements are subordinate to Scripture, they are still challenging the sufficiency of Scripture—the doctrine that Scripture contains everything we need for salvation, trusting God, and obeying Him.[3] Modern prophecy would be an attempt to add to God’s Word, claiming that Scripture is insufficient—and that is very dangerous:
“All over the world there are self-styled ‘prophets’ claiming God has given messages to them. It is irrelevant whether they call it tongues, or ‘words of knowledge’, or the leading of the Spirit, or any other name. The bottom line is the same. They claim God is still telling them his will. They claim to have supplementary information on God’s will beyond the ‘hard copy’ (the Bible). This is the first and foremost characteristic of every cult, with no exceptions. All sects and cults have their own sources of extra-biblical revelation. The Adventists have Ellen G. White, the Watchtower Society has Charles Taze Russell, and the Mormons have Brigham Young. The cult known as the ‘People’s Temple’ was so fanatically convinced by their guru Jim Jones that 911 of them drank cyanide in a mass suicide in Guyana on 20 November 1978. Whether it is David Koresh (Branch Davidian cult), David Berg (Children of God cult), Marshall Applewhite (Heaven’s Gate cult), or Sun Myung Moon (Unification cult), they all start with claims of new revelation from God outside the Bible. This same error…drives the modern charismatic movement. Whatever form it takes in history it is a dangerous error. It is not orthodox Christianity. Our guidance is the unique, finished, hard copy known as Holy Scripture….It needs no supplementation. It has no gaps to be filled with extras from heaven. These are the facts of historic Christianity.” - Peter Bloomfield, What the Bible Teaches about Guidance, Darlington, England: EP Books: 2006: 92-93.
Even if some so-called prophets are not claiming to challenge Scripture, there is still great danger. If their predictions do not come to pass, it can cause people to doubt the trustworthiness of God. In short, there is no room for prophecy now that we have the whole of Scripture. As John Calvin stated, “Christ has so spoken as to leave nothing else for others to say”.[4]
Some continuationists recognize this danger and try to define prophecy in such a way that it does not challenge the sufficiency of Scripture. For example, Wayne Grudem defines modern prophecy as “telling something that God has spontaneously brought to mind”.[5] The issue with this is that such terminology creates confusion with people who do not understand this nuance but assume prophesy to be no different from the authoritative declaration of God’s Word seen in Old Testament prophets. Therefore, it is best to refer to this as teaching or exhortation rather than prophecy.
Two Misconceptions and a Practical Note
Before ending, there are two common misconceptions that need to be addressed. The first is that because we believe the miraculous gifts have ceased, we also believe that miracles no longer occur. A miracle is simply an abnormal event that cannot be explained by the normal operation of nature.[6] There are credible stories of miracles from all around the world and throughout church history, so it would be illogical to claim that God no longer performs miracles. Furthermore, we believe that salvation itself is a miracle as an act of God, so we do believe in miracles but deny that the Spirit gives certain people the ability to perform them. The second misconception is that in rejecting continuing revelation, we deny the Holy Spirit’s work if illumination—revealing the meaning of Scripture to us. The sufficiency of Scripture dictates that no new revelation is needed, but illumination is absolutely needed and is a significant work of the Holy Spirit: we cannot understand Scripture without the Holy Spirit’s illumination.[7] So while the miraculous gifts have ceased, the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit is absolutely vital to the Christian life. We so easily forget that our salvation, sanctification, and perseverance in faith are the greatest miracles of all.
Finally, spiritual gifts are vitally important, and Scripture is clear that we must use ours to build up the Church. How do we determine our spiritual gifts? It is actually quite simple: serve the church in a variety of ways. In the process, you will discover that certain things you do feel natural and almost effortless, yet you receive feedback that they are a great blessing to many other saints. Those are your spiritual gifts. So dive into serving the church, and when your fellows saints do something that blesses you, tell them so that we can all discover our gifts and use them to build the Kingdom.
In conclusion, while we continue to love our Christian brothers and sisters who maintain that the Holy Spirit still dispenses the miraculous gifts, we believe that these gifts have ceased. They are no longer required for the Church now that we have the complete canon of Scripture, which means that if these gifts remained today, they would challenge the ultimate authority and sufficiency of Scripture. That would put the Holy Spirit who both wrote Scripture and dispenses spiritual gifts at odds with Himself. We must live our lives in complete dependence on the work of the Holy Spirit, not in flashy miracles and special revelations apart from Scripture but in the mundane but no less wondrous miracle of working out all facets of salvation in our lives. All glory be not to the gifts, but to the Giver!
“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” -John 14:25-27
NOTES
[1] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan: 1994: 1016.
[2] Sinclair B. Ferguson, The Holy Spirit, ed. Gerald Bray, Contours of Christian Theology, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 1996: 230–231.
[3] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan: 1994: 127.
[4] John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion: Translated from the First French Edition of 1541 by Robert White, Edinburgh, UK: Banner of Truth Trust: 2014: 725-726.
[5] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan: 1994: 1050.
[6] Eugene E. Carpenter and Philip W. Comfort, Holman Treasury of Key Bible Words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew Words Defined and Explained, Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers: 2000: 336; Martin H. Manser, Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies, London: Martin Manser, 2009.
[7] Sinclair B. Ferguson, The Holy Spirit, ed. Gerald Bray, Contours of Christian Theology, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 1996: 231–232.
