Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy - Prophetic Gifts Today In The New Testament Church

Christ's Continuing Voice in the Church

guise. The adherents of this view reject any possibility that miraculous Bible stories or teachings might find literal application or expression in our day. Thus they deftly eliminate the possibility of prophecy in today's Church. We have already mentioned cessationism, the belief that prophecy and other spiritual gifts no longer exist and are no longer needed. This view pur ports that prophecy and other miraculous gifts ceased functioning once the New Testament was written. 1 The demise of prophecy was simply part of the disappearance of all spiritual gifts from the Church in the post-apos tolic age. This position is stated by Charles C. Ryrie, a leading cessationist: The gift of prophecy included receiving a message directly from God through special revelation, being guided in declaring it to the people, and having it authenticated in some way by God Himself. The content of that message may have included telling the future (which is what we normally think of as prophesying), but it also included revelation from God con cerning the present. This too was a gift limited in its need and use, for it was needed during the writing ofthe New Testament and its usefulness ceased when the books were completed. God's message then was contained in written form, and no new revelation was given in addition to the written record. 2 (emphasis added) The cessationist faces a most difficult task: to prove from the Bible that prophecy and spiritual gifts ceased. The following four arguments are the ones most commonly used to substantiate cessationism: 1. The Bible teaches that the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit ceased when the original apostles died. 2. Such so-called prophecy becomes a substitute for or addition to apostolic teaching and Scripture. 3. Church history does not confirm the continuance of miraculous gifts. 4. Prophecy and spiritual manifestations are dangerous and to be avoided because they are easily exploited and misused. Before answering these four arguments, let me pose an illustration. If a person was marooned on a desert island and the only book he had was a Bible, the contents of which were unknown to him, what conclu sions would he draw about Christ and the Church as he began to read? He would understand the great purpose of the coming of Jesus Christ and His death, burial and resurrection. From the gospels, Acts and the epis tles he would gain a picture of the miracle-working power of God. He ■ 232