cessationism vs continuationism

[Chris]

All,

Please have patience with me for not having understanding. 

The last time I attended a service at a church building, the pastor made a statement against miraculous healing.  I did not understand that there is a belief of cessationism.  Which in a nutshell claims that certain gifts of the Spirit are no longer given after the age of the apostles.  This may be too broad of a generalization.  I do not understand the arguments made.  I would enjoy some edification and instruction from believers on this topic.

1 Corinthians 12 starts by Paul telling brethren that he would not have them ignorant concerning spiritual gifts.  His message is to Gentiles after the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. 
 
Verses 8-11 are listed below:

8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;

9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:

11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

What I have learned from this chapter is that the Spirit gives gifts to those in the body of Christ, and that the gifts are according to your role/responsibility in the body. 

In the 14th chapter, Paul instructs the believers on how to speak in tongues in the church.  From my brief search into what cessationists believe, they do not believe that speaking in tongues is given by the Spirit any longer.  If some gifts are no longer given, how do I know which ones are?  Is there a biblical justification for this stance?  If all gifts are given today, why are there not multiple reports of healings being performed?

Any help/guidance is appreciated.

[Jeanne]

Okay, this is just my opinion and I don't have any Scriptural justification for it, so don't take this as absolute truth. I don't know if the gifts described in the New Testament are still active or not, but what I THINK may be the case is that since there are so few truly born again Christians, we don't hear of too many true miracles and healings.

There are many who CLAIM to have these gifts, but they are all charlatans and deceivers who seek to bring glory to themselves instead of God. (Think Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Todd Bentley and that crowd.)

There are millions of people who claim to be of Christ but are all part of the New Age ecumenical movement and have no clue about what the Bible truly says or what true doctrine is.

I can't say one way or the other whether the gifts of the spirit are still in effect or not. I would guess, though, that if they are, and the people performing them have truly come to repentance in Christ, they wouldn't go around bragging about it.

[creationliberty]

See this teaching: http://www.creationliberty.com/articles/tongues.php

[Chris]

Thanks for sharing that.  I have listened to your teaching on this before, but it was good to go back and review the material.

I know that it seems that I was aiming my question towards the gift of tongues, but my question is more general.  I am not advocating for Pentecostal practices. 

I am asking whether gifts of healing and working of miracles are given to modern day Christians.  Are people today possessed?  If so, should Christians cast out the unclean spirits/ devils?  Does this require the Christian to have the gift of discerning spirits first?

I understand that the gift of prophesy should be the gift that Christians should seek first to edify the church, but it seems that chapter 12 lays out that certain gifts are given to certain parts of the body of Christ.  We fully believe that those in the church today have the gift of teaching.  That it is not the man that teaches, but it is the Holy Spirit in the believer that teaches.  Do we have the same certainty for gifts of healing?  Should we?

I don't mean to minister questions.  I have little understanding concerning these things.

[Jeanne]

That's a hard question to answer, and that's what I meant in my original reply to you. I know the 'ministries' that are based on faith healings are false, but that's not to say that God will never use another person to heal somebody else in a miraculous fashion. I would say that it would be more likely to happen (if it happens at all) in a society that is not so inundated with 'churchianity' and false converts as America and many other Western nations are.

I do believe that people can still be demon possessed, especially if they are into the occult and witchcraft as so many people are these days. As for how to discern whether a person is possessed as opposed to say, being under the influence of some kind of drug is hard to say. I wouldn't know under what circumstances we should try to do something about it, either. Maybe Chris can shed a bit more light on the topic.

Many people define 'prophecy' as foretelling the future, but that's not the case. Prophesying is simply giving God's  word to another person. So basically, any time you quote Scripture, you're actually prophesying.

[Ruth]

I have heard of the position that signs and wonders were given to confirm the Word being preached, but now we have the bible and the church has been set up, this no longer happens.

There is scripture pertaining to the first part, but I'm not sure about whether signs and wonders have stopped completely or not.

Mark 16:19-20

19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs followng. Amen.

Hebrews 2:3-4

3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Acts 8:5-7
Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. 6 And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7 For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.

And as Jeanne said, there are also the false faith healing type ministries. A lot of these are teaching a false gospel and false doctrine, so I'd be skeptical about any 'signs and wonders' there.