Among my brief list of interests are
video games, namely those of the role-playing genre. What is
role-playing, you ask? It is assuming the role of an existing
character. In real-life role-playing (known as LARPing; i.e.,
Live-Action Role-Playing), the player adopts the characteristics and
behavior of an existing character.
You may have never noticed this, but
some denominations hold LARPing conventions every single week. Yes,
even some Christians can't resist role-playing games. Have you ever
heard about these LARPing conventions? They're known
by a more common name, one that allows the conventions to hide in
plain sight:
Church.
Every
Sunday, certain church-goers assume the roles of first century
Christians, in that they adopt certain behaviors
experienced by believers of that time, known as gifts
of
the Holy Spirit, or charismata.
It is my belief that these gifts no longer served a purpose after the
parousia, and therefore, ceased at that time (70 CE), or just prior.
This would mean that anyone claiming to have these gifts today is
merely adopting a role, or role-playing.
It will be our focus in this article to determine whether the gifts
of the Holy Spirit still exist today, and therefore, whether
Christians claiming the gifts today truly experience the charismata.
The Gifts
In the first century (and today, as many would argue), many believers
received gifts that were spiritual in nature (1 Corinthians 12:1;
14:1), all of which came from the same Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:11).
We can understand these gifts to have been manifestations of the
Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7), visible and audible evidence of the
Spirit's influence.
These gifts were distributed as the Holy Spirit determined (1
Corinthians 12:11). I believe it may be accurate to assume those with
greater roles received more gifts, such as the apostles (cf. 1
Corinthians 14:18), or even those at the church of Corinth (1
Corinthians 1:4-7), though more gifts did not mean greater spiritual
maturity (1 Corinthians 3:1-4). Spiritual gifts were often received
upon the laying on of the apostles' hands (Acts 8:14-19; 19:6; Romans
1:11; 2 Timothy 1:6), but perhaps not limited to the apostles, as
Paul received his sight and the Holy Spirit through the laying on of
Ananias' hands (Acts 9:17), which may imply the imparting of the
Spirit's gifts.
The list of gifts is a diverse one (1 Corinthians 12:4):
7And to each hath been given the manifestation of the Spirit for
profit; 8for to one through the Spirit hath been given a word of
wisdom, and to another a word of knowledge, according to the same
Spirit; 9and to another faith in the same Spirit, and to another
gifts of healings in the same Spirit; 10and to another in-workings of
mighty deeds; and to another prophecy; and to another discernings of
spirits; and to another [divers] kinds of tongues; and to another
interpretation of tongues: (1 Corinthians 12:7-10)
These gifts weren't merely for show, rather for aiding in the growth
of the infant church, revealing (e.g., prophecy) and confirming
(e.g., miracles) the will of God (Mark 16:17-20; Hebrews 2:3-4) for
the profit of all (1 Corinthians 12:7).
What's left to question is the duration of these gifts. They clearly
had a purpose, but would that purpose never find completion?
The Duration of
the Charismata
I
believe scripture is clear regarding the cessation of these gifts:
8Love
never ends. There are gifts of prophecy, but they will be ended.
There are gifts of speaking in different languages, but those gifts
will stop. There is the gift of knowledge, but it will come to an
end. 9The reason is that our knowledge and our ability to prophesy
are not perfect. 10But when the perfection comes, the things that are
not perfect will end. (1 Corinthians 13:8-10)
When
discussing this with Pentecostal Preterists it isn't too rare for one
to claim Paul to have been saying that imperfect gifts would be made
perfect. However, this isn't what the text says at all. Notice that
at the time of “the perfection” the things that are imperfect
will end,
not be made perfect.
Prophecy would end,
speaking in tongues would end.
Thus, there is a certain level of inconsistency among Preterists who
claim the existence of these gifts today, while claiming the
fulfillment of “the perfection.”
The Perfect
Interpretations
of “the perfection,” or “that which is perfect,” do vary
among Christians. And depending on the interpretation of this
perfection, one may come to a different conclusion regarding the
duration of the gifts than another. One interpretation maintains that
“the perfection” is the time at which Christ returns. Among
Futurists, this would allow for a consistent belief in present-day
charismata. Preterists do not have this luxury, for the parousia—that
is, Christ's second coming—has already occurred, and therefore,
“that which is perfect” has come, causing the gifts to cease.
When
we observe the overall context, I believe we find that the text
suggests something different, though perhaps related (at least from
the Preterist viewpoint). There is a contrast between partial
knowledge and “that which is perfect,” and given that the gifts
were for the purpose of revealing and confirming God's will, we can
deduce the completion of the gifts' purpose would come at a time in
which God's complete revelation for us had been made: the penning of
the book of Revelation.
The
last book of the canon to be penned, John relayed the revelation of
Jesus Christ to the seven churches of Asia Minor. Through the work of
the apostles, the gospel had been spread to all the nations
(Colossians 1:23; cf. Matthew 28:19-20) by the time of the parousia.
With John's completion of the book of Revelation, the apostles'
epistles prior to this, and the spreading of the gospel to the
nations, God had revealed all that he intended to reveal to the
world, confirming these revelations along the way. Therefore, with
the full revelation and confirmation of God's will by 70 CE at the
latest, we can accurately deduce a date of no later than 70 CE for
the cessation of the gifts.
I
find that Paul affirms this conclusion through some of the contrasts
he makes:
11When
I was a babe, as a babe I was speaking, as a babe I was thinking, as
a babe I was reasoning, and when I have become a man, I have made
useless the things of the babe; 12for we see now through a mirror
obscurely, and then face to face; now I know in part, and then I
shall fully know, as also I was known; (1 Corinthians 13:11-12)
The
spiritual gifts served to aid the infancy of the church. Once their
purpose (revelation and confirmation) was complete, they lost their
necessity and were done away with, just as Paul's adolescent
knowledge became useless upon maturity; the church, upon entering
maturity, had no need for imperfect/infantile knowledge. In Paul's
second example, he contrasts looking through a mirror obscurely and
then face to face (clearly). During the period in which God's will
was incomplete, it was as though looking at a vague image. And when
God's will was fully revealed, the image was also made clear.
This
is, again, not to say that the gifts themselves would be made perfect
and abundant at that time, for Paul makes it clear their cessation (1
Corinthians 13:8-10); rather, this is to state that, despite the
gifts' cessation, believers would rest in the fulness of knowledge at
the time in which God's will has been fully revealed and confirmed.
This
writer concludes, then, as of 70 CE at the latest, “the perfection”
had come and the gifts of the Spirit had ceased, for their purpose,
to reveal and confirm God's will (his word), had been completed.
So,
if not the true manifestations of the Holy Spirit, what is it that
Christians today claim to experience? Am I arrogant to believe my own
understanding over what is claimed by millions around the world?
Modern-day
Charismatics
According
to this article's conclusion regarding these gifts, neither Futurists
nor Preterists can maintain consistency in believing in present-day
charismata. So, why is it that so many Christians, Futurist and
Preterist alike, claim to experience these gifts? How many people do
you know have claimed to speak in tongues, or to have been healed
instantly by the laying on of another Christian's hands?
In
society, everything revolves around labels, crowds, and identity. In
high school there was always the goth crowd, the preps, the jocks,
etc. Each person clung to these labels for a sense of identity. I
believe Christians, being humans, of course, act no differently in
church scenarios. For many, upbringing likely has much to do with it.
For example, those brought up in a Pentecostal church, with
generations of Pentecostal family members before them, are going to
be conditioned to Pentecostal ways: outward expression of claimed
gifts, adoption of behaviors (e.g., running up and down aisles,
spiritual drunkenness, etc.), and so on. This is true of anyone
brought up similarly in any denomination.
Christians
new to the church experience may be seeking acceptance. Likely, they
are new to the faith and feel uncomfortable about some things still.
As such, attending church may be a means of finding that comfort, and
the last thing an uncomfortable person wants to feel is more
discomfort by not fitting in. Therefore, it isn't unlikely for them
to adopt certain behaviors of their congregation, what ever they
might be.
As
with all things, repetition creates habit. If a church contains
members stumbling around in “drunkenness” and babbling
incoherent...babble...all one needs to do is mimic these
“experiences” enough times to feel comfortable with them, and
that's when they become habitual. For those brought up in a
particular denomination, these behaviors may simply be conditioned
behaviors, but are habitual nonetheless.
This
isn't to rule out the likelihood that some simply adopt these
behaviors with the realization that what they are doing is deceitful
from the start.
One
explanation for why many are convinced of certain perceived
manifestations of the Spirit may simply be that people see what they
choose to see.
If one believes there's a devil named Lucifer invoking evil in the
world, this person will see the devil's hand in all acts of evil.
Likewise, if someone believes a person can prophesy (even
themselves), they'll look for confirmation of this belief. Once they
have confirmation, it becomes proof
of their belief, and no amount of scripture will take that away from
them.
However,
no amount of denial can take away the fact that scripture alone
brings an end to the gifts nearly 2,000 years ago. I'll leave the
various implications for you to determine.
*If someone wants to prove me wrong, please bring a friend with a video camera to the nearest hospital and clear it of its sick people. That would be great, thanks!*
