Living the Cessationist Life - by JOHN DIVITO

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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We have commented on many false teachings from supposed Bible teachers in our blog, and previously thought that it couldn't get any worse. Well, it has. 

This is a new low. The author engages all of the bad teaching techniques we have observed elsewhere, and takes them to the nth degree;

• No Bible quotes
• No Bible references
• Undocumented claims
• Misrepresenting the Bible 
• Misrepresenting the beliefs of opponents
• Obtuse prose
• Bad doctrine

There are some thoughtful cessationists out there, but this author isn't one of them.)

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Will the debate over the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit ever cease? (Not an auspicious beginning. All gifts of the Spirit are charismatic. All spiritual gifts are Holy Spirit empowerments. "Charismatic gifts" is a redundancy.

And, if the author wants the debate to cease, he will need to provide a definitive scriptural case in support of cessationism. He won't.)

Maybe not, with many books coming out, debates being held, and conferences taking place on this controversial subject. One of the primary reasons for the intensity of this issue is that it directly relates to how we should live the Christian life. For those who hold that the charismatic gifts continue, we should seek these gifts in our lives so that we will live our lives in the fullness of God’s blessing. (This is an obligation for all Christians.)

But what about those of us who believe these gifts (Which gifts? The author has yet to mention any gifts.)

were given during the apostolic age and have ceased with the completion of apostolic doctrine recorded in Scripture? (The author presumes cessation without discussing it.)

How do we live our lives? What does the life of a cessationist look like? Here are three aspects of our life in Christ.

We are Filled with the Spirit

This may sound strange to some ears, but cessationists live the Spirit-filled life. I remember once visiting a charismatic church where a man came up to me after the service and introduced himself to me. He asked me where I was from and where I went to church, and when I told him that I was a Baptist, he replied: “I used to be Baptist, but then I came to believe in the Holy Ghost.” I’ve sometimes heard charismatics say that the cessationist Trinity is “God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Bible.” But these are gross and even dangerous misunderstandings of what cessationists believe. (Does the author speak for all cessationists? We ask because we have had discussions with cessationists who reject any sort of talk about the Holy Spirit. 

If the author is attempting to carve out some sort of middle ground, then he is welcome to make his case. But we do not assent to the idea that every cessationist believes what the author believes, nor do we agree that negative characterizations of cessationist doctrine are "gross and even dangerous misunderstandings.")

Of course we believe in the Holy Spirit! He is the third person of the divine Trinity whom we worship. The Holy Spirit regenerates our hearts, removing the heart of stone and replacing it with a heart of flesh. The Holy Spirit dwells in us, giving us spiritual life. The Holy Spirit bears fruit through us, equipping us with lives of righteousness and devotion to God. The Holy Spirit empowers us, providing us the strength we need to obey God’s law and to serve His kingdom. The Holy Spirit seals us, guaranteeing the inherited blessings God has promised us. The Holy Spirit leads us to eagerly wait for Christ’s return when we will finally receive all of God’s blessings as we enjoy life in His presence. And until then, the Holy Spirit blesses us with spiritual gifts for the good of Christ’s body, the church. We are filled with the Holy Spirit through our faith in Christ so that we will live for His glory. What a glorious gift! (Charismatics would agree with all this.)

How frustrating it is then to hear the role of the Holy Spirit reduced to providing the charismatic gifts of prophecy, tongues, and miraculous healings in the minds of many. (Whoa. The author dishonestly turns the issue on its head. He wants us to believe that charismatics are reducing the role of the Holy Spirit when charismatics are increasing it!

Further, here we find the author's first mention of specific spiritual gifts. He never discusses any of them, he just dismisses them.)

The Holy Spirit fills us without the extravagance of outward wonders. (Undocumented claim.)

After all, His goal is not to get our attention and become our focus, but to direct us to Jesus Christ in whom we find our salvation and our souls’ rest. (Undocumented claim.)

We Hear God’s Voice

We also recognize that as God’s people, we need to hear from God. So how does God reveal Himself and His will to us? He speaks to us in and through His Word.  (Charismatics would agree.)

The Bible is not simply a collection of ancient inspired writings that we are supposed to read. God speaks to me today in Scripture. I hear His voice, not through my ears, but through the Spirit’s illumination of my mind and heart as I read God’s Word. (Undocumented claim. The author's supernatural experience is not evidence.)

As a result, Scripture reading is more than a daily discipline for me. It is a blessed opportunity to hear from God and commune with Him.

At the same time, I also hear God’s voice with my ears when His people gather together in worship to listen to the preaching of His Word. God calls and sets apart men to become His mouthpiece as they stand behind the pulpit on the Lord’s Day and open His divinely revealed Scripture to us. (What???? This is an astonishing claim. Preachers speak for God? Their pronouncements are God speaking? They are the only ones that hear from God? Would this be supernatural revelation?

There is no Bible verse that teaches any of this. The author is lying about God, lying about God's word, and lying about the role of pastors.)

Pastors have been appointed by God to speak to His people, (No, no, no. This is grossly false. There is nothing at all in the Bible about pastors preaching.)

and through them, when they correctly explain and apply the Word of God, it is our privilege to hear God’s voice weekly (NO! This is so wrong, so unbiblical, that we can barely read it. The author lies to us again. 

He doesn't quote Scripture because there are no Scriptures that teach these things. This is so egregiously wrong that we are surprised it was published.)

so that our covenant with Christ is reaffirmed by the gospel and our lives will be transformed through the renewal of our minds. (This impenetrable sentence is basically nonsense. He's just stringing words together. Let's outline it:

• Pastor's accurate sermons are God's voice
• When we hear a sermon it restates what we agreed to with Jesus
• This reaffirmation comes via the gospel
• The sermon transforms our lives by renewing our minds

If it still doesn't make sense, don't worry. None of it is biblical, none of it is useful, none of it is relevant. 

Even worse, the author lifts an unquoted Scripture snippet from its context and misapplies it: 

Ro. 12:1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will. 

Now, we don't want to take too deep of a dive into this, but for clarity's sake we wish to make a few comments.

In the previous chapter, Paul had just completed his explanation of how branches have been broken off so that the gentile believers could be grafted in [Ro. 11:17]. We who have been grafted in by faith should not become arrogant [Ro. 11:20], because we could be cut off [Ro. 11:22]. But we have received mercy [Ro. 11:30].

Then comes a "therefore." "Therefore" is a word that connects to what was previously written, conveying a conclusion derived. Paul's premise leads to an application. Because of His mercy,

• we are to offer ourselves to God. 
• we are not to conform to the patterns of this world
• we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds

Notice how egregiously the author misrepresents this. None of it speaks to pastors. None of it has to do with hearing God's voice through preaching. And there is no "covenant" reaffirming the gospel in this.

This man is supposed to be a teacher. A teacher imparts accurate information with clarity. This man imparts inaccurate information with obscurity. That makes him a false teacher.)

When the church meets for worship, it is not to see supposed signs and wonders of the Holy Spirit, but it is to experience the Holy Spirit’s ministry as He applies God’s Word in my heart and works His Word out in my life. (Undocumented claim and a false choice.)

Furthermore, my daily communion with God does not depend on tongues from the Holy Spirit or a private prayer language, (This is not what charismatics believe.)

but on the Holy Spirit’s enlightening of my mind and enflaming of my heart as I read and study His Word. (Another false choice.)

We Rely on God’s Word

Finally, the life of a cessationist is one that is thoroughly committed to the sufficiency of Scripture, (The author will never define the sufficiency of Scripture.)

which gives us all that is needed for a life of godliness. (Wow. Oh, my. Another breathtaking falsity. Again the author misrepresents an unattributed Scripture snippet:

2Pe. 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

This verse is about His divine power, not Scripture. Wow. Just wow.)

We please God by our obedience to His Word. Our relationship with God does not depend on our subjective feelings, but it is nourished and flourishes by our devotion to obeying God’s objective revelation to us in Scripture. (False choice.)

If someone believes that he must have additional experiences from the Holy Spirit (Waaait. Previously "the role of the Holy Spirit" was being "reduced" by charismatics. Now charismatics want "additional experiences?")

for his spiritual vitality (whether prophecy, tongues, or miraculous healings), then at some level he believes that Scripture is not enough. (This is twisted. The Bible teaches about spiritual gifts, and supposedly believing in and practicing the spiritual gifts as taught by the Bible means the Bible is not enough. What??)

We need more to live the Christian life. The Holy Spirit must provide us with some kind of supplemental revelation to grow in the gospel and draw close to God. ("Supplemental revelation?" There is no such phrase in the Bible.)

This will subtly undermine our commitment to God’s Word. (We are weary of these undocumented pronouncements. We will now simply respond, "no, it won't."

And by the way, the author has yet to demonstrate any commitment at all to God's Word.)

When we rely on the treasure of God’s Word, then we don’t need anything more. (Does the author not remember what he previously wrote? We apparently need pastor's sermons. We need to go to church. And ironically, we supposedly need the author's own article to instruct us.)

We are kept focused on the glories of Christ by the Holy Spirit’s work in us and desire to love God and love our neighbor because our Savior first loved us. (This is not unique to cessationism.)

Cessationism doesn’t forbid us from fully living the Christian life; it frees us to fully live the Christian life through the means of grace that God has given us. (Sigh. So the author wants us to live the Christian life fully. Remember, previously the author criticized charismatics by accusing them of thinking: We need more to live the Christian life. But apparently there is indeed a higher level of Christian life, deemed "fully living" by the author. 

This is a confused mess. The author should be ashamed.)