In my previous post, I addressed theological reasons why I changed my mind regarding Cessationism. Now, I will give you my practical reasons.
First, I have never been attended a church that did not practice tongues and healing. The Spirit gives to every believer a gift to be used in service to the church. You would think tongues and healing would be used like teaching, mercy, and encouragement, but it did not. With so many in the hospital, surely someone would visit them and heal them. As one who went through cancer, no one in the church offered to heal me. People prayed for to be healed, and God used conventional means to bring about that healing.
In regard to tongues, I did attend an Assembly of God church because the girl I was dating at the time was a member of one, this was a couple of years before I met my wife. Towards the end of the service, I heard one man speak in tongues, but it was not a known language. It was gibberish and there was no interpreter which goes against scripture. The Bible says:
If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must translate; but if there is no translator, he must keep silent in the church, and let him speak to himself and to God (1 Corinthians 14:27-28).
Second, I can think Matt Chandler for this one. Remember when he saw pirate ship? Yep. When I first heard that, I was thinking what in the world is Matt talking about. Having a vision of a pirate ship and a shark. What did he eat before bed that night before? Matt really needs to lay off the sauce. I could not take this vision seriously nor Matt Chandler which I am glad because of Chandler embracing woke ideology.
Third, what really was the start of my progression towards Cessationism was the time I did Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God. This study has been around for 30 plus years and for many it is the go-to place to understand hearing God speak even though I do not recall any instruction on that, yet Blackaby said if you do not hear the voice of God, you are in trouble at the heart of the Christian experience. There are many who claim they cannot hear the voice of God, yet Blackaby said that is a problem. Did Jesus give any instruction on hearing the voice of God? No. John 10:27, which says, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." This is about effectual call of God on one to come to Christ for salvation, not God telling to wear a certain kind of shirt or where to buy a Thanksgiving Turkey as Charles Stanley once claimed he did.
My final practical reason, sticking with Blackaby's study, there one part of his teaching that caused to me rethink this doctrine, was when Blackaby stated that God will explain to you the reason for your trial. In other words, he is going to give the info to your suffering. As I stated earlier, I went through cancer. For those who do not know, I was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkins Lymphoma. I was on chemotherapy for six months and by God's kindness was healed of cancer. I was youth pastor at a local church at the time when my pastor asked why I was given, and I could not give him a direct answer.
Blackaby teaching says that God should give me a reason for my cancer, He has not, and I am not expecting one either. Job was never told why he went through his trial. We who have read the Bible knows that Satan was the one who afflicted him, but we are not sure why God allowed all that happened to Job. One point Jerry Bridges pointed out is neither did the inspired writer tell the reader why Job went through his suffering. I have been healed of cancer since 2008 and still am grateful to God for healing me. I will never call it a miracle because I was not dying, but he did take a dark time and used it for His glory and my good to conform me to the likeness of Christ (see Romans 8:28-30).
Cessationism was something I did not take lightly. I looked into it carefully biblically and even through my time in various churches. You may not all agree with my conclusions and that's fine. I do hope you understand why I changed my mind about Cessationism and it wasn't because I support Grace to You, G3 and other minstries that believe in it as well.
God Bless.
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