Posts about Prophets, Apostles, and Spiritual Gifts

The topics of prophets, Apostles, and spiritual gifts are of interest to many people. For ease of reference, this post will serve as an index of sorts, pointing inquiring individuals to some of my thoughts on spiritual gifts, and more specifically, the cessation of the miraculous gifts. What follows is a listing of the various post titles with a brief description of the contents.

Are Apostles for the Church Today?

Historically it has been common to acknowledge that the office of Apostle has passed from the church. However, there are more and more individuals today who are arguing for the continuation of Apostolic authority. There are at least four reasons why there are no Apostles in the church today.

Prophets and Prophetic Revelation

Prophets are closely tied to the office of Apostle (cf. Eph 2:20; 4:11), so this is another important discussion. It is in vogue today to redefine prophecy, but this post tries to reorient our definition of prophecy using Scripture. I argue that if we define prophecy the way the Bible does, then we are faced with the looming consensus that there is no gift of prophecy operating in the church today.

The Cascade Argument against Miraculous Gifts

The Cascade argument is one of my favorite presentations for why the miraculous spiritual gifts are no longer in operation. My favorite presentation of the cascade argument comes from Sam Waldron, but there are other forms of it as well. The essence of the argument is that there is an interdependence of the spiritual gifts, and if we can acknowledge that some gifts do in fact cease, then that opens up the possibility for the cessation of others.  

The Link Between Eschatology and Spiritual Gifts

This post deals with an under appreciated aspect of the spiritual gifts, and that is their link with the kingdom. Due to many people’s ignorance of eschatological matters, this topic does not get much discussion. But, I am thankful for Mike Vlach and his influence on my thinking in these matters.

I’m sure there will be more posts about spiritual gifts to come, but I wanted to summarize these four due to some recent conversations I’ve been having with individuals who were thinking through some of the issues. I hope these posts are helpful to you.

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