Here is a good conversation and a much needed conversation. Doug Wilson interviews Mark Driscoll on the subject of spiritual gifts and cessationism. If you don’t know what cessationism is, don’t worry they’ll cover that in the video. If you don’t know what spiritual gifts are, you probably won’t find this video very helpful or entertaining.
(John Calvin, Commentary On Galatians And Ephesians, Galatians 3:1-5)
“To shew how energetic his preaching was, Paul first compares it to a picture, which exhibited to them, in a lively manner, the image of Christ.
But, not satisfied with this comparison, he adds, Christ hath been crucified among you, intimating that the actual sight of Christ’s death could not have affected them more powerfully than his own preaching. The view given by some, that the Galatians had “crucified to themselves (Hebrews 6:6) the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame;” that they had withdrawn from the purity of the gospel; or, at least, had lent their ear, and given their confidence, to impostors who crucified him,— appears to me overstrained. The meaning therefore is, that Paul’s doctrine had instructed them concerning Christ in such a manner as if he had been exhibited to them in a picture, nay, “crucified among them.” Such a representation could not have been made by any eloquence, or by “enticing words of man’s wisdom,” (1 Corinthians 2:4,) had it not been accompanied by that power of the Spirit, of which Paul has treated largely in both the Epistles to the Corinthians.
Let those who would discharge aright the ministry of the gospel learn, not merely to speak and declaim, but to penetrate into the consciences of men, to make them see Christ crucified, and feel the shedding of his blood. [56 “Display the sufferings of Christ like one who was an eye-witness of those sufferings, and hold up the blood, the precious blood of atonement, as issuing warm from the cross.” — Robert Hall.] When the Church has painters such as these, she no longer needs the dead images of wood and stone, she no longer requires pictures; both of which, unquestionably, were first admitted to Christian temples when the pastors had become dumb and been converted into mere idols, or when they uttered a few words from the pulpit in such a cold and careless manner, that the power and efficacy of the ministry were utterly extinguished.”
(C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, p. 51-52)
“One part of the claim tends to slip past us unnoticed because we have heard it so often that we no longer see what it amounts to. I mean the claim to forgive sins: any sins. Now unless the speaker is God, this is really so preposterous as to be comic. We can all understand how a man forgives offences against himself. You tread on my toes and I forgive you, you steal my money and I forgive you. But what should we make of a man, himself unrobbed and untrodden on, who announced that he forgave you for treading on other men’s toes and stealing other men’s money?
Asinine fatuity is the kindest description we should give of his conduct. Yet this is what Jesus did. He told people that their sins were forgiven, and never waited to consult all the other people whom their sins had undoubtedly injured. He unhesitatingly behaved as if He was the party chiefly concerned, the person chiefly offended in all offences. This makes sense only if He really was the God whose laws are broken and whose love is wounded in every sin. In the mouth of any speaker who is not God, these words would imply what I can only regard as a silliness and conceit unrivalled by any other character in history. Yet (and this is the strange, significant thing) even His enemies, when they read the Gospels, do not usually get the impression of silliness and conceit. Still less do unprejudiced readers. Christ says that He is ‘humble and meek’ and we believe Him; not noticing that, if He were merely a man, humility and meekness are the very last characteristics we could attribute to some of His sayings.
I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
Mark 14:22-25 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
In the passover celebration there are four cups of wine that are to be taken. Jesus takes the bread after the second cup and blesses it and breaks it. He commands His disciples to take and eat because this is His body. At this point the Passover lamb would have been eaten followed by the third cup, which is the cup of blessing. But after Jesus and His disciples drink of the third cup, something strange happens. Jesus refuses the fourth cup of the Passover, the cup that consummates the Passover celebration. He instead announces that from this point until the kingdom of God comes, He’s going to be fasting—refraining from the fruit of the vine (Luke 22:18).
Now think ahead to when Pontius Pilate is questioning Jesus, he asks the Messiah, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And Jesus’ answer is unmistakable, “You have said so.” However, what Pilate failed to realize as Jesus was describing His kingdom, is that this man standing before him was not only the King of the Jews, this Son of Man was so much more. This was the King of the kings. And this King’s kingdom was closer at hand than many even began to realize.
Fast forward again, now to the cross. Of course our Messiah has been fasting the fruit of the vine for a few hours now after refusing the fourth cup that consummates the Passover meal—the meal of shadows. Hanging there on the cross, so many prophecies are being fulfilled by our Messiah at the hands of these clueless, sinful reprobates. The substance is coming into view and the shadows are slowly fading. This is the Christ—the Lamb of God. Finally, the Lamb that is worthy. Finally, the blood that will satisfy the wrath of God once and for all time.
And finally, hanging on the cross after Truth had been put on trial, after the torturous beatings and the scornful mocking; after carrying the instrument of death that would soon exhibit His broken and bleeding body, finally, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, brings His life to a fitting close. To fulfill the scripture in Psalm 69 Jesus utters, “I thirst.” Do you remember what it was they had to offer Him? A jar full of none other than sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge on a hysop branch and held it to His mouth. Jesus’ fast was over, and when He had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished,” and He bowed His head a gave up His spirit (John 19:28-30).
Just like Jesus had said (Luke 17:20), the Kingdom of God wouldn’t come with signs to be observed. This Kingdom that is like a garden or a field, or a vineyard. His Kingdom is like a mustard seed and works like leaven. It came and even most of His disciples didn’t realize what exactly was going on.
Ten years ago today, on American soil, something that was believed to be unthinkable happened. God judged this nation. Many people’s kingdom and idols came crumbling down in moments. As we Christians watched, what did we think? What did we feel? Did we resemble those disciples who were looking at their savior die, who were fearful and confused? Christians, we’re not still waiting for His kingdom to come. He is the King on the throne now, He was the King on the throne September 11, 2001. Our Kingdom and our God cannot be shaken.
It is a time as American’s second to confess and repent of our sin—for our rebellion and hard hearts. Ten years ago today nearly 3,000 people died, Christians and Non-Christians alike. Every day in the United States there are at least that many infants murdered. That means that in the ten years since 9/11 we—America herself, has perpetrated 3,650 9/11’s. Ten years ago today God’s judgement came to our soil in an unmistakable way and as a nation what has been our response? If we are painfully honest with ourselves we’ll see that America’s infanticide is making what those 19 hijackers did on 9/11 look like amateur hour. Be thankful for God’s grace and mercy. The Kingdom that Christ ushered in at the cross cannot be destroyed and we celebrate that at the Lord’s Table. It isn’t a time for Christians to lament as those who have no hope. This is the Lord’s day. It is a time for Christians to give thanks and rejoice and to compel those outside to come in!