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We need to give this guy some credit for his unabashed certainty about his positions. As you read his blog you will find an enthusiasm for his own perspective coupled with an implied "there is nothing more to say" underlying everything.
We wish we could be so certain about our "perfect" doctrine. This is the intellectual legacy of the Greeks (1 Cor. 1:22), so much so that we are trapped by intellectualism and thus remain closed to the renewing of our minds.
Paul tells us in Ro. 11:33: "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!" One thing that marks the beginning of our journey into the maturity in the faith begins when we finally admit we can't systematize God. We can't figure Him out. He is so much more than we thought.
But all that is beside the point. Mr. Finnell is certain about a great many things, and being persuaded is not necessarily a bad thing. But God seems to delight in changing paradigms. Man thought one thing, God did another. Jesus said, "You have heard it said... but I say to you..." and completely overturned everything. He destroyed the Pharisees' intellectual systems, and provided a new paradigm, a Kingdom paradigm.
An important part of the new paradigm is our need to walk according to the Spirit (Gal 5:25), to abandon the thinking of the world, to stop thinking like children (1 Cor 14:20). Which means that we must be open to God bringing revelation about the truth of Scripture. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot understand the Bible, and we certainly cannot know the truth if we cling to our ways of understanding.
OK, enough of that. Let's get on to analyzing Mr. Finnell's myopic presentation:
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Signs and miracles, are they present today? No, they are not! (An emphatic response. Will his presentation be as conclusive? We shall see.)
John 20:30-31 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
The signs Jesus performed are written in Scripture. (This directly contradicts the quoted Scripture.)
We do not need new signs in order to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. (This is an unsupported assertion which is not addressed by the quoted Scripture. Further, Mr. Finnell's original question was, "...are signs and miracles present today," not, "do we need signs to believe..." Two separate topics for which answering the second does not illuminate the first.)
Mark 16:17-20 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick and they will recover........20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.
Are there signs and miracles today?
1. I would not try drinking poison or handling poisonous snakes. Your next stop would be the emergency room of your local hospital.
2. While the modern day miracle workers are at the hospital they could heal some terminally ill patience by laying hands on them, however, that in reality does not happen.
3. Signs are not available today because they are not needed. God's word has already been confirmed. God's word has been confirmed in the Bible. (None of these three conclusions are supported by the above passage. And they are irrelevant to the question he originally asked.)
The gifts of signs and miracles was conferred to others by the apostles.
Romans 1:1-11 Paul.....11 For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established;
Acts 8:13 Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
Acts 8:17-18 Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles' he offered them money, (Note that none of these passages tell us that only the apostles conferred the gifts.
A careful reading of Acts chapter 8 will show the observant reader that Simon did not ask for the ability to perform miracles, he asked for the ability to impart the Holy Spirit. Peter rebuked him: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!" The Holy Spirit is the gift, not tongues. This is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as opposed to merely receiving John's baptism, aka being baptized into the name of Jesus.)
The apostles could give the gift of signs and miracles to all they laid their hands on. The apostles are all dead and so are the gifts of signs and miracles. (He makes this assertion with no scriptural reference, pulling it out of thin air.
Notice that when they were baptized by the Holy Spirit, they spoke in tongues and prophesied [Acts 19:6], that is, this was the manifestation of the Holy Spirit.
We see this as Paul explains the operation of the Body. The Body, of which we today are a part: 1Cor. 12:1, 4 "Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant... There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit." You see, all gifts of the Spirit come from the Holy Spirit. They manifest throughout the Body: 1Cor. 12:7 "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."
It is He that determines who gets what gifts, so that the Body can work together: 1Cor. 12:11-13 "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free — and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."
All of us were baptized by one Spirit, to form one Body. If this is not true today, then there is no Body, no Holy Spirit power in us, no need to take communion, and no reason to meet together. Large portions of Scripture do not apply to us. We might as well cut up to pages and eliminate the irrelevant stuff about that which was only intended for the apostles.
It is interesting that all this stuff is recorded, even though supposedly only the apostles could do it. Why would it be in the Bible at all? Many pages, many verses about something totally irrelevant?
Ok, moving on. Paul concludes the 12th chapter of 1 Corinthians with this: 1Cor. 12:31 "But eagerly desire the greater gifts." This is a strange statement in light of Mr. Finnell's assertions that only the apostles could give miraculous gifts, and it was only to validate the apostles' ministry. It makes no sense in this context as Paul explains it. Indeed, if the Corinthian church were to obey Paul's command, there would need to be an apostle present. In fact, an apostle would be needed in every church. But there is no evidence such a thing happened.
Paul repeats his command, after explaining to us the way of love in chapter 13, as we arrive at chapter 14: 1Cor. 14:1 "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts,
especially the gift of prophecy." We are forced to ask, how can anyone desire the greater gifts, how can anyone walk in the "most excellent way," how can it be that Paul tells us he would like "...every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy," if they are only imparted by the apostles?
1Co. 14:12: "So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church." This once again begs the question: How can anyone excel in gifts, desire the greater gifts, or edify the Body which we are called to be part of, if there are no gifts? How can Paul say in 1Cor. 14:26, "What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church." How can we do what "must be done" if the apostles are the only source of the gifts?
And lastly, 1Ti. 4:14: "Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you." No apostles in sight...
But after all this, the most important question is, what specific Scriptures teach us that only the apostles could impart the gifts?)
Signs and miracles were used by Jesus and the apostles to confirm that Jesus was the Christ and the Son of God. We have the completed Bible; we no longer need signs and miracles. We know and believe Jesus for who He is, we do not need modern-day miracles and signs. (A series of unsupported assertions with no evidence or scriptural references offered.)
THERE ARE NO SIGNS AND MIRACLES TODAY, JUST AS THERE ARE NO MODERN-DAY APOSTLES.
2 Corinthians 12:12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles. (Note that this is specifically addressing the validation of the apostles, but no mention of other manifestations.)
Acts 9:36-41 Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha....37 And it happened at the time that she fell sick and died....40 But Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed, and turning to the body, he said, "Tabitha arise." And she opened her eyes, and when she opened her eyes, and saw Peter, she sat up. 41...he presented her alive. (Again, this does not offer an exclusivity to the miraculous, only that Peter moved powerfully in the miraculous.)
The so-called modern-day apostles do not demonstrate the signs of an apostle. Today's apostles do not bring people back from the dead. They do not stop by the local funeral homes and present men alive. (Now he's refuting the idea of modern day apostles based on his false suggestion that only apostles can perform miracles. Do you see how one false statement creates a whole false scenario?
And, by the way, did we really read that Mr. Finnell is absolutely certain no one has been raised from the dead in these latter days? He'd better be sure before offering a blanket generalization. It is also worth noting that even if no one has been raised from the dead, even if the miraculous is not happening, if the world is totally quiet, none of this demonstrates that this is the way it should be.)
THERE ARE NO SIGNS AND MIRACLES BEING PERFORM BY APOSTLES TODAY, BECAUSE THERE ARE NO TRUE APOSTLES. (It's this kind of certainty, absent any facts offered, that we were referring to at the beginning of this post. Mr. Finnell has tossed out several unsubstantiated assertions, a couple of Scriptures that did not address his points, all of which has brought him to these unwarranted conclusions.
So, we have arrived at the end, and need to ask, did Mr. Finnell answer the question he first asked? "Signs and miracles, are they present today?" Nope. In fact, he didn't even try to answer it. He offered no evidence at all.
This is unfortunate, but it is very common in "cessationist" circles. We are waiting for a persuasive case to be made for cessationism, and I am still waiting.)
John 20:30-31 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
The signs Jesus performed are written in Scripture. (This directly contradicts the quoted Scripture.)
We do not need new signs in order to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. (This is an unsupported assertion which is not addressed by the quoted Scripture. Further, Mr. Finnell's original question was, "...are signs and miracles present today," not, "do we need signs to believe..." Two separate topics for which answering the second does not illuminate the first.)
Mark 16:17-20 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick and they will recover........20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.
Are there signs and miracles today?
1. I would not try drinking poison or handling poisonous snakes. Your next stop would be the emergency room of your local hospital.
2. While the modern day miracle workers are at the hospital they could heal some terminally ill patience by laying hands on them, however, that in reality does not happen.
3. Signs are not available today because they are not needed. God's word has already been confirmed. God's word has been confirmed in the Bible. (None of these three conclusions are supported by the above passage. And they are irrelevant to the question he originally asked.)
The gifts of signs and miracles was conferred to others by the apostles.
Romans 1:1-11 Paul.....11 For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established;
Acts 8:13 Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
Acts 8:17-18 Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles' he offered them money, (Note that none of these passages tell us that only the apostles conferred the gifts.
A careful reading of Acts chapter 8 will show the observant reader that Simon did not ask for the ability to perform miracles, he asked for the ability to impart the Holy Spirit. Peter rebuked him: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!" The Holy Spirit is the gift, not tongues. This is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as opposed to merely receiving John's baptism, aka being baptized into the name of Jesus.)
The apostles could give the gift of signs and miracles to all they laid their hands on. The apostles are all dead and so are the gifts of signs and miracles. (He makes this assertion with no scriptural reference, pulling it out of thin air.
Notice that when they were baptized by the Holy Spirit, they spoke in tongues and prophesied [Acts 19:6], that is, this was the manifestation of the Holy Spirit.
We see this as Paul explains the operation of the Body. The Body, of which we today are a part: 1Cor. 12:1, 4 "Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant... There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit." You see, all gifts of the Spirit come from the Holy Spirit. They manifest throughout the Body: 1Cor. 12:7 "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."
It is He that determines who gets what gifts, so that the Body can work together: 1Cor. 12:11-13 "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free — and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."
All of us were baptized by one Spirit, to form one Body. If this is not true today, then there is no Body, no Holy Spirit power in us, no need to take communion, and no reason to meet together. Large portions of Scripture do not apply to us. We might as well cut up to pages and eliminate the irrelevant stuff about that which was only intended for the apostles.
It is interesting that all this stuff is recorded, even though supposedly only the apostles could do it. Why would it be in the Bible at all? Many pages, many verses about something totally irrelevant?
Ok, moving on. Paul concludes the 12th chapter of 1 Corinthians with this: 1Cor. 12:31 "But eagerly desire the greater gifts." This is a strange statement in light of Mr. Finnell's assertions that only the apostles could give miraculous gifts, and it was only to validate the apostles' ministry. It makes no sense in this context as Paul explains it. Indeed, if the Corinthian church were to obey Paul's command, there would need to be an apostle present. In fact, an apostle would be needed in every church. But there is no evidence such a thing happened.
Paul repeats his command, after explaining to us the way of love in chapter 13, as we arrive at chapter 14: 1Cor. 14:1 "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts,
especially the gift of prophecy." We are forced to ask, how can anyone desire the greater gifts, how can anyone walk in the "most excellent way," how can it be that Paul tells us he would like "...every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy," if they are only imparted by the apostles?
1Co. 14:12: "So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church." This once again begs the question: How can anyone excel in gifts, desire the greater gifts, or edify the Body which we are called to be part of, if there are no gifts? How can Paul say in 1Cor. 14:26, "What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church." How can we do what "must be done" if the apostles are the only source of the gifts?
And lastly, 1Ti. 4:14: "Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you." No apostles in sight...
But after all this, the most important question is, what specific Scriptures teach us that only the apostles could impart the gifts?)
Signs and miracles were used by Jesus and the apostles to confirm that Jesus was the Christ and the Son of God. We have the completed Bible; we no longer need signs and miracles. We know and believe Jesus for who He is, we do not need modern-day miracles and signs. (A series of unsupported assertions with no evidence or scriptural references offered.)
THERE ARE NO SIGNS AND MIRACLES TODAY, JUST AS THERE ARE NO MODERN-DAY APOSTLES.
2 Corinthians 12:12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles. (Note that this is specifically addressing the validation of the apostles, but no mention of other manifestations.)
Acts 9:36-41 Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha....37 And it happened at the time that she fell sick and died....40 But Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed, and turning to the body, he said, "Tabitha arise." And she opened her eyes, and when she opened her eyes, and saw Peter, she sat up. 41...he presented her alive. (Again, this does not offer an exclusivity to the miraculous, only that Peter moved powerfully in the miraculous.)
The so-called modern-day apostles do not demonstrate the signs of an apostle. Today's apostles do not bring people back from the dead. They do not stop by the local funeral homes and present men alive. (Now he's refuting the idea of modern day apostles based on his false suggestion that only apostles can perform miracles. Do you see how one false statement creates a whole false scenario?
And, by the way, did we really read that Mr. Finnell is absolutely certain no one has been raised from the dead in these latter days? He'd better be sure before offering a blanket generalization. It is also worth noting that even if no one has been raised from the dead, even if the miraculous is not happening, if the world is totally quiet, none of this demonstrates that this is the way it should be.)
THERE ARE NO SIGNS AND MIRACLES BEING PERFORM BY APOSTLES TODAY, BECAUSE THERE ARE NO TRUE APOSTLES. (It's this kind of certainty, absent any facts offered, that we were referring to at the beginning of this post. Mr. Finnell has tossed out several unsubstantiated assertions, a couple of Scriptures that did not address his points, all of which has brought him to these unwarranted conclusions.
So, we have arrived at the end, and need to ask, did Mr. Finnell answer the question he first asked? "Signs and miracles, are they present today?" Nope. In fact, he didn't even try to answer it. He offered no evidence at all.
This is unfortunate, but it is very common in "cessationist" circles. We are waiting for a persuasive case to be made for cessationism, and I am still waiting.)
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