MANNA AND MIRACLES HAVE CEASED

The Lord God provided abundantly for His children while they were wandering in the wilderness for forty years. In Exodus chapter 16 we learn that God informed Moses of the manna that He intended to give the people. And for six days of every week while Israel journeyed in the wilderness God rained manna from heaven until they came into the promised land (Exodus 16:4, 35). After Israel crossed Jordan they encamped in Gilgal and kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month. The Holy Scriptures clearly state that “the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the produce of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year” (Joshua 5:10-12). Therefore we know definitely and beyond a shadow of a doubt that manna ceased. No need to speculate about the matter. That should be evident enough for all to understand. And yet, I can’t help but to wonder if years later while Israel dwelt in the land of Canaan that a group of young folk didn’t approach the elders of the people and make some inquiries about this miraculous matter of manna being supplied to the previous generation. You can just about hear them saying something like ‘Why, brother, the Lord is the same today as He was yesterday’. Or, ‘brother elder you are just too steeped in church traditions’. Some might have said, ‘You don’t believe in the Spirit of God strong enough.’ Or, ‘If you elders ‘felt’ the Spirit like we do you would know that manna will still come down out of heaven today.’ We read in the New Testament of the miracles of our Lord, the miraculous powers of the apostles and of the imparting of the spiritual gifts upon members of the first century church (I Corinthians 12:28-31). All Bible believing people accept the miracles, wonders and signs recorded in the New Testament. Basically speaking these miracles confirmed the divinity of Christ, the spoken word of God and guided the infant church in the absence of the complete written testament of Jesus Christ (John 10:30, 31; Hebrews 2:1-4; Ephesians 4:11-16). But in I Corinthians 13:8-10 we read that a time was coming when the miraculous would end. Paul declared that “love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish.” These three miraculous gifts stood for the whole of the nine mentioned in chapter twelve. Paul is simply saying that there was coming a time when miracles would “be done away” and would “cease”. Furthermore Paul tells us in no uncertain terms when the miracles would cease. He continued, “For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part shall be done away.” The revelation of the New Testament was fragmentary. In the beginning of the church age the Word of God was in the inspired man (II Corinthians 4:7). Later as these inspired men began to write epistles to various congregations and individuals the word of God was partly in man and partly in written form. It was during this time that miracles continued, at least to some degree. However Paul said, “But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part shall be done away.” There is no doubt but Paul speaks of the cessation of the miraculous when he wrote “when that which is perfect has come.” The “perfect” is in contrast with “that which is in part”. That which was “in part” was the incomplete written word of the Lord. Therefore we must conclude that which is “perfect” has to be the complete written Word of God, that is, the New Testament of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 9:15-17; II timothy 3:16, 17; II Peter 1:3; Jude 3). Also, the word “perfect” from the Greek word teleion means “to bring an end by completing or perfecting…of accomplishing…of bringing to completion.” Perfect “signifies having reached its end (telos) finished, complete, perfect” (Vine). The word “perfect” is an adjective that is here used as a noun. It is in the neuter gender and nothing in the context suggests that it refers to a person. And it does not in any way refer to the second coming of the Lord. Miracles ceased just as sure as manna ceased. And yet there are religionists who ‘feel’ that the miraculous still lingers today. There are brethren who have left us who have written books advocating the miraculous working of the Holy Spirit for us today. The most dangerous are those who have chosen not to leave the church but who influence the young, the unlearned and the ‘tired of the book only in religious matters’ folk that miracles still occur today and thus they are sowing seeds of unrest and discord among brethren. May God continue to bless elders, Bible teachers and preachers who labor diligently in the fight against such error and who teach sound doctrine for a healthy, spiritual growth in the church of Jesus Christ.

"A CHANCE" OR THE HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE?"

As we grow older we should always be learning, especially in regards to our understanding of the Word of God. I have for years spoken of and written about ‘The Scheme of Redemption”. A friend of mine and brother in Christ who has traveled to three different continents mentioned to me that in other cultures the word ‘scheme’ carries the meaning of trying to defraud or cheat someone. So I have begun to speak or write of the eternal purpose or plan of God to redeem mankind from sin. First of all, I would like to emphasize the reason Jesus Christ shed his precious blood and died on the cross as mentioned in the following scriptures. Matthew 26:26-28: “And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.” Ephesians 1:7: In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace…”. 1 Corinthians 15:3: “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures…” And being a child of God and a member of the body (church) of the Lord and living a life of faithfulness (not perfection as one might understand), we possess the promise that is found in 2 Peter 1:11, “For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” The word ‘chance’ carries a meaning of “a possibility of something happening; “the occurrence and development of events in the absence of any obvious design.” Thus, the word chance carries the idea that it might happen rather than the certainty of what is promised as found in the Word of God. The biblical meaning of the word ‘hope’ is “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” “The Greek word for "hope" in the Bible is "elpis," which is often used to convey the idea of confident expectation and anticipation. It is used in various passages in the New Testament to describe the hope that believers have in God's promises and in the future.” In fact, the word hope is mentioned 50 times in the New Testament. Here are just a few passages that mention the hope we have in Jesus Christ: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit"(Romans 13:15); “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5); “Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior” (Titus 1:1-3); “For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it” (Romans 8:24,25). There is no uncertainty in the hope that is found in the word of God. It is not a matter of ‘chance’ but a promise from God who cannot lie (Hebrews 6:18). Many who have a desire to be saved eternally cannot really expect it because they have not had their sins washed away by the blood of Jesus Christ (Acts 22:16; Ephesians 1:7). Believers in Jesus Christ should obey the commands given in the Word of God in order to receive remission of sins and to have the hope of eternal life when we come to the end of our days on this earth (Acts 17:30, Acts 2:37,38,41,47).