What EXACTLY is Cessationism?
part 1
Here's my next "installment of this study" as a subject that has come up recently at a lunch I had with people at the church I'd attended. The subject is "cessationism" verses "continuitionism".
What exactly is cessationism though?
Scripture:
Well to explain that; let's start with the purpose of the writing of Scripture. The main theme that runs through all Scripture is the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and how the redemption plan applies to humanity, as well as relates to the rest of the cosmos.
Old Testament:
The commencement of the compilation of Scripture that we call "Old Testament" began with Moses. There were secular records of Noah's flood and Job that existed before the compilation of the Old Testament. Yet the Old Testament compilation itself, commenced with Moses and was a little more than 1000 years from Moses (about 1500 BC) to 430 years to the crucifixion. (Galatians 3:17)
Scripture says of itself that "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness." (2 Timothy 3:16) And though most of us are familiar with this verse; something about it struck me recently. The phrase "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God…"
It dawned on me recently that "all Scripture" is what's inspired, not the event, prophecy, dream, vision or life experience of even those recorded in Scripture. But only what God deemed would be presented as Scripture, penned by the direction of the Holy Spirit; for "holy men of old spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost". (2 Peter 1:21)
Now not everything they said was "moved by the Holy Ghost" to be recorded "as Scripture"! This was even true of Jesus (not everything he said and did was recorded) as Scripture. Scripture itself says that if all Jesus did had been recorded; it would fill many books. (John 21:25). So there's a certain irony here, that even Jesus, who's every word and action could legitimately be recorded as Scripture; (because He/he was God incarnate without sin) wasn't.
So in essence, what God actually gives us of Scripture is like unto the "cliff notes" of the redemption plan. Now why we only have "the cliff notes" is another question. Was it a matter of "keep it simple stupid"? Or more just that what was needed to be known for basic understanding, in order to obey God was adequately revealed? (God saw no need to complicate our confusion with more details, seeing how the "cliff notes" confuse us enough as it is! God knows that humanity is easily confused.)
From "Divine revelation" though to "personal wisdom"; for all of us, what we come to understand about God is filtered through our existence on earth. We all have "dreams", "visions" and "life experiences", that by the providence of God communicate truth to us. How those things compare to the authority of Scripture though is another issue. Thus the subject of cessationism!
So the compilation of the Old Testament was addressed to a group of people called "Israel". And how God communicated to this group of people; (as to how they'd know who was truthfully speaking for God) was that miraculous events would accompany who / what was deemed to be recorded as Scripture.
Note "Biblical miracles" (occurrences that supersede the natural laws the govern the universe) are recorded to have commenced with Moses. Other records of the "presence of God" do occur between Abraham and Moses; but those events are only known to those who are on the receiving end of them. (The 3 men that came to Lot in Sodom, Melchizedek meeting Abraham, Abraham's vision / dream of God with the pot passing through his divided animals etc.)
Like wise, what we see of Job and Noah, Enoch, Abel etc. we have no record of "Biblical miracles" in their experiences. We know what was happening to Job based on what the reader has access to in the story of penned Scripture; but there's no evidence that Job sees these things. And we don't have any details as to how God spoke to Job or his friends. Was it "communication into their thoughts / heart"; was it a "voice out of the sky"? The context of the book of Job never explains this. Same with Noah. We know he was instructed to build this gigantic boat; we just don't know how.
So public "Biblical miracles" that pitted the God of the Bible against foreign gods, does not appear until Moses and the Exodus. (A witness to the nations that this nation is the one whom God is revealing His Scripture through.) Note this is a very different context than what happened with anyone else who came before Moses!
Now this Old Testament system conveyed the redemption plan to Israel in parabolic representation. (The law is a "school master that points us to Christ". Galatians 3:24-25) And as we get passed the time of kings David and Solomon, into the "major and minor prophets"; we get more "see the future" type of prophetic information about the Messiah. That prophetic information was given with the intent that the people would recognize the Messiah when he came on the scene. The understanding that these prophecies should be recorded as Scripture came through the "Biblical miracles" (signs and wonders) that accompanied these prophets' / "holy men of old" lives.
So thus the purpose of "prophecy" in the Old Testament was to convey information about the coming Messiah. It WAS NOT to be a means of "predicting the future of the nation" (or trying to alter it) in political terms; despite that political information is conveyed in the Old Testament. The intent as God was presenting, was that those who observed the passing of these political events would know: "OK, we are getting closer to the birth of the Messiah."
Interestingly, those who recognized Jesus as the Christ (even as an infant and probably through his childhood, teens and early adult life) recognized him because of the recorded prophecy in the Old Testament! And the people who knew that these prophecies should be recorded as Scripture, knew this on account of the "Biblical miracles" / (signs and wonders) that were part of these prophets' life experiences.
New Testament:
So what of the New Testament? The Old Testament points forward to the coming Messiah and the New Testament points backwards, explaining how the Messiah is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. The New Testament too though obviously gives us more information about the redemption plan and explains to us what Jesus's death, burial and resurrection actually did.
Keep in mind; the purpose of the canon of Scripture in the first place, is to declare the redemption plan!
Both of these compilations of the writing of the Scriptural canon occur within the time frame of the beginning (Moses) to the end (Revelation) of the Old Testament system. By the time the end of the New Testament is written, the Old Testament system no longer exists. That "eon" (the era of Old Testament Israel) as Scripture describes it; is over.
Now as the commencement of the writing of the Old Testament addressing this group of people called "Israel", started with "Biblical miracles"; Cessationism states that the completion of "Biblical miracles" also culminates with the completion of the canon of Scripture. Cessationism gets this conclusion out of Scripture itself. There are several passages in both Old and New Testament that indicate there will come a particular time in the course of earthly history, that the Scriptural canon will be complete.
The New Testament is more specific about "here is the time that this completion of the canon is near" than the Old Testament was. Yet the idea of the closing of the canon as related to the coming incarnation of the Messiah, was certainly witnessed of in the Old Testament.
And thus we have the "cliff notes" of God's redemption plan: the Bible.
Biblical miracles and the penning of the canon:
Now the New Testament defines this in terms of the "age of the apostles". 2 Corinthians 12:12 states the "signs of an apostle" were wrought among them; "signs and wonders and mighty deeds".
In 2 Corinthians 11; Paul gives an interesting exposition of what it means to be an apostle. In chapter 10 he talks about false apostles. He talks about "signs and wonders" following apostles. But much more importantly he talks about the character of an apostle. Yes, apostles can perform miraculous things, but apostles are also severely persecuted! Apostleship is also displayed in one's unselfishness. (None of the apostles got rich off of being apostles.) The boast of the apostles was in the redemptive work of Christ; (a truth they knew throughly enough to die for)!
Interestingly as noted in these passages too; "signs and wonders" follow false apostles. (This was also noted in Exodus with Moses, Aaron and the magicians of Pharaoh.) So just because someone performs a "sign or wonder" doesn't make them an apostle. (One could watch magicians like David Copperfeild or Harry Houdini and see the same "signs and wonders". The other qualifier of being an apostle was that one had to have seen Christ in the flesh after the resurrection! (Acts 1:21-22, 1 Corinthians 9:1)
The other unique thing about "Biblical miracles" was that those who were able to perform them (both Old and New Testament) were capable of doing so at will. Anyone they had the desire to heal, or deliver from demonic possession they held the power to do so. This included healing and delivering unbelievers.
Of what Scripture tells us, anyone who came to Jesus asking to be healed; Jesus healed them. This was also true of the apostles; at least until the point that the closing of the canon began to come to fruition. There are places in Scripture too though where apostles themselves can't heal themselves of their own afflictions and illnesses. (Paul, Timothy) So we know that even in their era; these "Biblical miracles" began to wane.
Why did "Biblical miracles" cease?
Now I've already covered how Biblical miracles were connected to the penning of Scripture. They were the evidence that these people held the truth. This system was set up starting with Moses. And the witnesses of that system were the people of Israel.
Now why specifically Israel?
Scripture says "the Jew requires a sign and the Greek seeks wisdom." (1 Corinthians 1:22) Now go back to Exodus chapter four. Moses has this conversation with God about the people not believing Moses when Moses tells them God sent him. So God tells Moses to throw his staff on the ground and it becomes a serpent. (Ol' Moses grows saucer eyes and runs away.)
Now note Exodus 4:8;
And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the FIRST sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
Note "first sign":
In the immediate context of this verse, the "first sign" and the "latter sign" is the staff that becomes a serpent and Moe's hand being healed of leprosy. The 3rd sign God tells Moses to take water from the river, pour it over the land and it becomes blood.
Now what these 3 signs represent in parabolic depictions of redemption, I'd have to do a bit more digging to solidify my hypothesis. The 2nd and 3rd sign are rather easy. (Believers are healed from the leprosy of our sin and that is accomplished by the "born of water and blood" which represents physical life and the atonement.) What the staff turning into a serpent means though, I'm not sure off the top of my head. I'd have to more research on that one.
Staffs, rods and serpents have a variety of both positive and negative connotations. The rod and staff in many other places in Scripture are instruments of correction, but also judgement. And obviously the serpent is Satan.
So thus does the rod that turns to a serpent indicate a truth about the condemning nature of the law? That a false religious system they build around the truth of God's moral requirements, comes back to bite it's own adherents? (It bites them because they refuse the Messiah that it points them too.) Thus the event in the Old Testament where the people perish for worshiping the serpent on the pole; which was a mere tool given to them to heal their wounds from the serpents that initially bit them (because of their disobedience)!
What "goes around comes around"!
Yet when we get to the New Testament; Jesus states that "a wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign". (Matthew 16:4) He also explains to them what the only sign is that they will get is the sign of Jonah; wherein he was 3 days and 3 nights in the whale's belly; Christ will be 3 days and 3 nights in the heart of the earth. Wherein the only public display they see of this "sign of Jonah" is their Redeemer hanging on a tree.
Back to the imagery of the serpent on the pole. He who they crucified in their own sin, will condemn them to the Lake of Fire at the end of time.
And the sign they got, was because they "required a sign"!
Now back to "Biblical miracles" and the completion of the canon.
So if the presentation of a sign is connected to a span of time, connected to a people who require a sign? Once that "eon" is over; so is the sign! So the cessation of the signs given to those who "require a sign" isn't actually because of the close of the canon; it's because of the close of the eon of Old Testament system.
Which let's go visit 1 Corinthians 13 a minute:
8 Charity never fails: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
Prophecy: The prophecy of the Old Testament tells of the coming Messiah. The prophecy in the New Testament explains how the Messiah is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. So thus the nature of "prophecy" in the New Testament has more to do with proclaiming the gospel than it has to do with giving any timetable of the telling of future events.
There are some examples where the Holy Spirit or prophets told individuals to do a certain thing. (Cornelius sent messengers to get Peter, Philip went to find the Ethiopian Eunuch.) Yet note the nature and outcomes of those "prophecies". They all involved the proclamation of the gospel. (The fulfillment of Jesus telling the apostles that the gospel would go into all the world.)
So, what does it mean that "prophecies will fail"? There's two applications here. The one example is that direct messages from God or prophets telling someone to "do X" no longer happen. The other application though is that the "prophecies" of the New Testament "fail" as time goes on because of proliferating apostasy of the church.
Tongues: Scripture tells us that out of the mouth of two or three witnesses, let all things be established. (Deuteronomy 19:15, 2 Corinthians 13:1) Thus why many things in Scripture are repeated more than once.
Which brings us to the question of "speaking in tongues" in the Corinthian church. Where's the "2nd witness" in Scripture to what was going on in the Corinthian church? Well if we go back over to the Book of Acts; clearly these were known foreign languages. For everyone heard the apostles in the tongue that he was born (Acts 2:8)
So we know "speaking in tongues" was not an unintelligible language. Now what does it mean that "tongues will cease"? Again, just as direct instructions from God to "do X" stop; so does miraculous speaking in foreign languages.
Yet just as the failing of prophecy has more than one application, so does the ceasing of tongues. The proclamation of the gospel into vernacular languages is still going on. Missionaries are still learning the tongues of other nations and the Bible is still being translated into those languages. So in that sense tongues haven't ceased.
But just as prophecy fails because of the apostasy of the church; the proclamation of the Scriptural truth of the gospel ceases for the same reason.
Knowledge: Now I didn't explain anything about "knowledge" or the assumption of the completeness of knowledge the apostles already possessed. Again "all Scripture" is inspired by the Holy Spirit and their knowledge was as complete as what had been revealed to them of their time and space in history and how that what they knew related to the overall redemption plan.
Personally, on one level I believe the apostles and the early church understood more of how the redemption plan related to their time in history, than most of us understand now about redemption and our time in history. Some of that on our part, is simple "culture gap". But of what is most likely the greater impact related to our own time; is the loosing of Satan to deceive the nations once again.
In the course of these studies, I have given plenty of information as to why I think we are close to Judgement Day. Granted, I'm coming from a place of simply trying to piece together what I find in Scripture. I'm not receiving any additional revelation from God. I'm simply "Bible mining" for informational "puzzle pieces" that look like they go together. And I very well may have misassembled pieces. As I've said many times though; if I'm right or wrong, we certainly seem to have an awful lot of "interesting coincidences"!
So now "knowledge vanishing away"?
Again I believe the largest chunk of this phenomena; is par a parcel to apostasy spreading through the church. Yet was there a component of knowledge that also closed off with the completion of the canon? If I'm right about the apostles continued revelation of their understanding of their place in history; the answer to that would be yes.
Clearly at the dawn of their journey; they believed that Jesus would return in their lifetimes. Particularly before the resurrection; they could not fathom a world beyond the end of the Old Testament system. There is evidence though as we get toward the latter epistles, that they came to understand it was time to "hunker down" for the "long haul", because the return of Christ was not going to be for yet many generations to come.
9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
Thus on account of the continued revelation of what would be recorded in Scripture; it is legitimate to say they "knew in part" and "prophesy in part"; as they yet fully didn't understand that the unfolding of the redemption plan would be at least another 2000 years.
10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
Now this is an interesting verse because the "perfect is come" and the "part shall be done away with" doesn't have anything to do with the penning of Scripture. I know a lot of historical cessationists say that it does; but really it doesn't.
First off "that which is perfect is come" is not actually in the future tense. ("When" isn't future tense either.) "Is perfect" is Aorist active subjective. Which Aorist tense is something that's already present. So "the perfect" is come is already present. So what is "the perfect"? The "perfect" is Christ. The fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy has already come to pass. At the point Paul is penning this, the atonement is complete.
So what is "the part that's done away with"? If we take the context of the Messiah completing the purpose of the Old Testament. The system (which was "in part") is done away with. (Luke 24:27, 2 Corinthians 1:20)
11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
This verse explains that Paul understood how his former Jewish life related to the gospel. He describes "babes" needing to be weened from the milk of the fundamentals of the gospel. I.E. How Christ relates to the Old Testament law. (Hebrews 5:12-14, Romans 2:20)
When Paul "grew up" in Christ, he counted his former life as dung. (Philippians 3:7-9)
12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
What is the glass that we see through darkly? This "mirror" is generally interpreted as Scripture. On one side of the mirror is all that God presented to communicate of redemption through the Scripture. On the other side of that mirror, our side of the glass is "dirty" because our understanding of Scripture is limited by our sin. We are trying to understand what God has revealed through the lens of our own fallen nature. And we often misinterpret, don't understand or fail to grasp what Scripture is trying to explain to us.
So "then face to face" is either at the return of Christ; (for those living in the generation that Christ returns) or it's upon the death of the individual. This passage though is current to the point in history of whom ever is reading it. It's not specifically tied to Judgement Day because "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord".
13 And now abides faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Note here, what he describes as "abiding"; compared to what "fails", "ceases" and "vanishes away".
Dispensationalism and Cessationism:
Now here is an eschatological schema where we actually run into conflicts between the schema's eschatology and cessationism. By nature, dispensationalism believes there's still some fulfillment of Scripture that currently applies to Israel. Well, as soon as one opens that door; by default, they also open the door to continuitionism.
And this is what I think has happened and how that manifests as the "loosing of Satan" at the end of the millennium.
Israel was told that they'd be judged by a nation who's tongue they did not understand. (Deuteronomy 28:49, Isaiah 33:19) Paul picks up on this actually in 1 Corinthians 14 where he admonishes the Corinthians about speaking in tongues. First he quotes the passages in Deuteronomy and Isaiah. Then he says "Tongues is a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not…"
Who "requires a sign"? (The Jew.)
How is the gospel going into all the world in foreign languages, a sign to the Jew?
Back in the Old Testament, the tongue of a foreign nation was a sign of judgment because they went abhorring after a nation who's tongue they did not understand in the worship of idols.
Keep that admonition in mind because that same phenomena resurfaces again at the end of time! And that is not merely an "uncanny coincidence"!
Who now though are those who are abhorring after a tongue they literally don't understand? (They don't understand it because it's not even a real language!) Therefore there are no interpreters for it, (nor can there ever be) because it's not a real language!
Back to 1 Corinthians 13: "though I speak with the tongues of men and angels"
Now what does that mean?
No where in Scripture when angels communicated with human beings, did they ever speak in a language the humans could not understand.
Do angels actually have an "angelic language"? Obviously we know they can communicate with each other, God and men; but is a material language in a being that doesn't have a material personhood necessary? (That's a good question!)
Though we know God communicates to humanity through human language; human language certainly isn't necessary for the members of the Godhead to communicate with each other.
As "spirit entities"; does "angelic language" run on that same principle? (Scripture doesn't give us that information; so thus in a certain sense, the question is irrelevant.)
So why would Paul "speak with the tongues of angels"? If angels can speak Paul's language (and they do) there's no reason for him to ever have to be able to speak theirs! So…. what does this verse mean?
If we go back to the word "angel" in both Greek and Hebrew (The Greek is just a transliteration of the Hebrew word "anglos".) We see this word is also translated "messenger". And the word "anglos" is used in a variety of contexts.
In some instances the "messengers" are human messengers sent by other humans. "David sent a messenger to Saul." Other times the "messenger" is a non-carbon based entity created by God, that Scripture calls an "angel".
And still there's actually one instance (in Revelation) where an "angel" tells John; "I'm one of your brethren."
Now knowing that angels are not actually part of the atonement; raises the question as to whether or not the word "anglos" (at times) is actually referring to a disembodied saint? It would be rather odd that a non-carbon based entity Scripture calls "angel", would tell John that he is one of his brethren, when Jesus did not take on the nature of angles. (Hebrews 2:16)
For an "angel" to say he is John's "brother" would technically be a lie, because a "non-carbon based angel" is not a descendant of Adam. And we know by the context of the conversation between this angel and John that obviously the angel is not a fallen one. Yet if the "angel" were to lie, he'd be in transgression; thus automatically would be condemned for his disobedience. (Because non-carbon based "angels" are not atoned for.)
In some translations of the book of Daniel, disembodied saints are called "the watchers". King Jimmy uses the word "saint".
So, considering the word "messenger"; non-carbon based "angels" (be they obedient or fallen), disembodied saints, and living humans (be they saints or the unregenerate) are all "messengers".
We also know that both "angels" and humans are called "sons of God".
So "tongues of men" obviously are human languages.
And all we know from Scripture of "tongues of angels"; is non-carbon based "angels" always communicated with humans in human language. So "tongues of messengers"; is that actually a reference to the "language" of the "messengers" of the gospel? Given the context of everything else; that makes the most sense.
Now back to "a nation who's tongue they don't understand". Did the rebellious Jews understand the "tongue" of the "nation" of those in the Kingdom of God? (The preaching of the gospel.) Apparently in the sense of being spiritually alive; the answer to that was "no" because "the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit….. nor does he understand them…. for they are spiritually discerned". (1 Corinthians 2:14)
This is also why Jesus said to the pharisees:
43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8)
A similar venue on this theme is also seen in Ezekiel 3:
5 For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;
6 Not to many people of a strange speech and of a hard language, whose words you can not understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have hearkened to you.
7 But the house of Israel will not hearken to you; for they will not hearken to Me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.
(Oh the plight to destruction of all of knuckle-headed humanity!)
Now of the next chapter; I think I will talk about the common lot of "supernatural phenomena" that actually seems to be par and parcel of the existence of all of humanity.