What is cessationism? What do cessationists believe? Is cessationism biblical??

from the old testament

• Miraculous signs in the Old Testament were relatively rare and often clustered around major redemptive events. For example, Moses performed signs before Pharaoh to validate God’s deliverance (Exodus 4:1–9), but the miracles were not ongoing. Once the people were delivered and the covenant given, those particular signs ceased. However, God continued to work through Moses, giving different miracles as needed, for example, crossing the Red Sea (Exodus 14:21–22), water (Exodus 17:5–6), food (Exodus 16:11–15), and even salvation from poisonous snakes (Numbers 21:6–9).
• The ministry of Elijah and Elisha formed another cluster of miracles, meant to confront Israel’s idolatry and authenticate their prophetic message. These signs were dramatic, but not normative for every prophet or generation. Some examples include the calling down of fire from heaven (1 Kings 18:36–38), the raising of the widow’s son (1 Kings 17:21–22), and the healing of Naaman the Syrian (2 Kings 5:14).
• While signs were given to authenticate the messenger and show God’s greatness, Deuteronomy 13:1–3 warns that signs alone are not proof of divine truth; even false prophets might perform them. So, while miraculous signs were used to authenticate messengers, a sign from a man was not enough to confirm his truthfulness—his teaching had to conform to what the Lord taught.
• While the Old Testament does not directly support or contradict cessationist claims, it does show evidence of the limited use of signs. While the Old Testament is filled with the miraculous, given the span of time over which it was written and that most signs were performed by a relatively few individuals, this at least hints at the New Testament sign gifts being of a limited duration.

from the new testament

• As with the Old Testament, signs in the New Testament were largely used for authentication. For example, Jesus’ miracles were done to show that He was who He claimed to be. Addressing unbelievers who could not see what should have been plain to the Jews, He said, “The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep” (John 10:25–26). He was saying that the miracles He did authenticated who He was, but the unbelievers (those not His sheep) were unable to understand what was right in front of them.
• Jesus warned against believing signs alone (Matthew 7:22–23). It is not enough for someone to claim to do the miraculous if their teaching contradicts Jesus’ teaching.
• After Jesus ascended, His apostles performed many signs and wonders. However, these were tied to their unique role in laying the church’s foundation. Acts 2:43, 5:12, and 19:11 all describe miracles “by the hands of the apostles,” reinforcing that these signs were not distributed equally among all believers. Paul said of those signs, “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works” (2 Corinthians 12:12). There was a unique, authenticating purpose to the signs the apostles did. While both cessationists and continuationists agree to this point, where they diverge is whether those gifts were limited to the first century and only the apostles. Cessationists argue that they ceased.
• Cessationists point to 1 Corinthians as partial support for this view. There, Paul said, “As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away” (1 Corinthians 13:8–10). Cessationists understand “the perfect” as meaning either the completion of Scripture or the death of the apostles. Continuationists, of course, disagree with this interpretation, preferring, instead, to see “the perfect” as the time Jesus returns.
• Unfortunately for both cessationists and continuationists, Paul was not specifically teaching about when the miraculous signs would end. Instead, Paul was emphasizing that love trumps all signs. That is, to clamor for the “better” gifts while not loving the other brothers is like being an annoying, clanging gong (1 Corinthians 13:1).
• Because that is the only supporting verse, cessationists also appeal to verses that imply the signs were already slowing down in the apostles’ days. For example, Paul gives Timothy practical advice for his ailments, rather than healing him (1 Timothy 5:23), and Epaphroditus was apparently ill for some time, with his healing being natural (Philippians 2:26–27). These examples later in the early church life seem to suggest a shift away from reliance on miraculous gifts.
• Because the 1 Corinthians 13:8–10 passage can be interpreted in various ways, and because nowhere else is a clear statement made, this question remains a hot topic of conversation between genuine believers.

implications for today

Cessationism does not deny God’s power or His ability to intervene, but it does recognize that certain gifts served foundational purposes, purposes which are no longer needed today because the Bible is complete. The logical conclusion, they argue, is that sign gifts as a regular, ongoing act within the church are unneeded, and avoiding them guards the sufficiency of Scripture. Indeed, even biblically grounded continuationists are very careful to never add words to Scripture. This is important because we have the completed word of God. Any addition or subtraction comes with grave consequences (Deuteronomy 4:2; Revelation 22:18–19). In short: God has spoken fully through His Son and preserved His Word in Scripture (Hebrews 1:1–2); therefore, we have everything we need to obey Him.

While there are genuine believers who disagree with cessationists, cessationists are most concerned with those continuationists who cross the line and either informally add to Scripture or otherwise operate in ways that contradict biblical patterns. Some examples include modern tongues that lacks interpretation (1 Corinthians 14:27–28), prophetic words that fail to come true (Deuteronomy 18:20–22), and so-called healers unable to demonstrate the kind of supernatural power seen in Scripture (Luke 5:26; Acts 3:6). It is rare to find a modern expression of those signs that doesn’t stand in stark contradiction to what occurred in the New Testament.

Regardless of your position on this issue, know that faith grows through meditating on the revealed truth of Scripture and living in obedience to it. Praise the Lord if you are privileged to witness a genuine, verifiable miracle, but don’t make that your focus and don’t accept a sign uncritically! Act like the New Testament believers who tested everything with Scripture (Acts 17:11).