Why Did God Gift the New Testament Church? – Fighting for Real Estate – Part #29

“Which Gifts Continue and Which Gifts Have Ceased?” (Ephesians 4:10-16)

By Richard Allen – March 30, 2026

This is going to be a difficult Blog study to set up – partially because the subject matter is hotly debated, especially the extent and purpose of ‘Apostolic Sign Gifts’ in the Church. And also, because those Christians in the ‘Full Continuationist’ camp believe that ‘Apostolic Era Sign Gifts’ were given for the ‘normal function of the Church.’  It’s hard for them to see that the Apostolic Sign Gifts were part of God’s warning to ‘natural Israel,’ to those who were Jews only because of physical lineage – not those with ‘a spiritual calling.’ Remember, Romans 9:6 states ‘They are not all Israel, who are descended from Israel.’ Let me observe that both are errors within the confessing Church of Christ: 1.) Dispensationalism and 2.) Pentecostalism. We can honestly say that ‘not all Dispensationalists are Pentecostal, but virtually all Pentecostals are Dispensationalists.’  Why is this? This is true because they are convinced that God has a future glory promised in the ‘reestablishment of Judaism again’ – with a worldwide dominion that includes: ‘A Rebuilt Temple, the Law, all the Land of Palestine’ and a human Priesthood offering daily Sacrifices. As Pentecostals believed from the start of their movement in 1906, God reviving Israel was evidence of the “latter rain of the Holy Spirit happening in their day!’ (James 5:7)

Let me observe the two major schools of interpretation concerning Spiritual Gifts: 1.) Those who believe that all Spiritual Gifts have continued from the First Century Church, unabated, are called Continuationists. And: 2.) Those who believe that all Spiritual Gifts have ceased with the end of the Apostolic Era (i.e. at the end of the first century A.D.). This group is referred to as Cessationists. Of note, if you read the critical passages in Scripture where ‘Spiritual Gifts’ given to the Church are listed: Romans 12:3-8, 1 Corinthians Chapters 12-14, and Ephesians 4:10-16, you’ll see there is actually a third position: 3.) A Partial-Continuationist or Partial-Cessationist position. As an example, Ephesians Chapter 4 gives us a list of Gifts, some of which have Continued to this day and some of which have clearly Ceased:

“He (Jesus) who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things. And He Himself gave some to be Apostles, some Prophets, some Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, until we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head – Christ –  from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:10 – 16).

As a benefit of Christ’s Resurrection to his Mediatorial Throne at the Right Hand of the Father, God the Holy Spirit has been poured out upon all groups of men. The Book of Acts is that History of the “unstoppable Gospel” in the hands of the Holy Spirit, poured out in the order – just as Acts 1:8 states: “And you shall be my witnesses in both Jerusalem and Judea, in Samaria and unto the uttermost parts of the earth!” That’s exactly the order in which the Spirit was outpoured upon each ethnic group, that is, upon “all kinds of people!” But what’s important to note in the Ephesians passage is the order and importance of the gifts poured out upon the church.  First, the Apostles of our Lord were to give ‘witness’ to all they had seen: His Life, Ministry as well as His Death and Resurrection! This ‘witness function’ was so important, that in Acts Chapter 1, Peter guided the remaining Apostles to replace Judas as one of the Twelve Disciples, giving the criteria for which a man should be chosen to be one of the twelve, is listed in Acts 1:21-22 where Peter says:

“Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He

was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection” (Acts 1:21-22).

Second, the Prophets. This is an interesting group, and would take much more time to develop, but let me add several interesting observations:  Early on, the New Testament Church ‘DID NOT HAVE COMPLETE BIBLES’ as we do today. They may have had individual Old Testament Books (scrolls), and as the years went by, the Gospels became available as well as Letters (Epistles) written by Paul, Peter and other New Testament writers. Let me note, that only four of the Apostles also had the role of Prophet, writing New Testament Scripture: Peter, Matthew, John, and Paul. The rest of the New Testament was written by men who were Prophets only: Luke, Mark, Jude, Barnabas and James. What would Evangelical Churches be like without the whole Bible? What sets authentic Christianity apart from ‘man-made religion’ is: WE ARE A PEOPLE OF THE BOOK, that is, the Bible! While some scrolls of Old Testament Books were in circulation, the New Covenant Revelation of the Gospels and Epistles were still being “God Breathed.” Without them, the ‘infant Church’ would have been without clearly written Scriptures, revealing Apostolic Truth regarding Jesus and His Ministry! 

The Apostle Paul considered Prophecy a more important gift, more important than outward Apostolic Sign Gifts like Healing, Tongues and Miracles. The purpose of Sign gifts was to authenticate the ministry and witness of the Apostles as they proclaimed the 'So Great Salvation’ (Hebrews 2:3-4). Prophetic Sign Gifts also made it clear that ‘the vineyard owner’ would take the vineyard away from the wicked husbandmen (physical Israel), giving it to others (The Church – both Jew and Gentile) who would render fruit to God” (Matthew 21:33-46). It’s obvious that Apostolic Sign Gifts, and New Testament Prophetic Gifts are no longer with us, both having fulfilled their purpose. Apostolic Sign Gifts performed exactly as God intended. Tongues were a ‘sign to learned unbelievers’ (i.e. Jews), that through Jesus, God had given His final warning to Israel. And, since they rejected His offer of peace, as Isaiah foretold: “The vineyard was to be taken from them?" (1 Corinthians 14:21). By 70 A.D., Jerusalem had fallen and the need for Apostolic Sign Gifts with it, especially Tongues, whose sole purpose was to warn Israel of judgment.  “In the Law it is written: ‘With other tongues and through the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, but even then, they will not listen to me, says the Lord.’ Tongues were a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however, is not for unbelievers but for believers” (1 Corinthians 14:21-22).

The Gift of Prophecy was that blessed gift by which the Holy Spirit guided the ‘infant Church of Jesus Christ’ – until God’s written revelation was completed. Again, I humbly ask: Could a genuine Christian today, filled with God’s Spirit, imagine what our Churches would be like without the ‘Completed Cannon of Scripture?’ We would not be a ‘People of the Book,’ but rather, we’d be subject to the fancies of fallen men, reverting to ‘pre-Christian religion’ of worshiping by: Location, Days, Gender, Race or Social Status!  Much of the confusion that surrounds the ‘drama happening in the Church of Corinth’ is easily explained if we understand how the Church struggled without having the “completed God Breathed Scriptures!” Jesus had promised ‘not to leave us as Orphans’ (John 14:18), but to send another ‘helper,’ that is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit’s function was to ‘take the things of Christ, and reveal them unto us’ (John 16:13). Far from leaving the Church without the Bible – God was ‘actively Breathing out the Scriptures through numerous New Testament writers.’ But before the Scriptures were complete, we needed the immediate intervention of the Holy Spirit to chasten and discipline sins – like those of Ananias and Sapphira – who misrepresented their giving to the Church, lying to God the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3). We also had the Spirit of God breathing immediate instruction to Paul through Agabus and others (Acts 21:11). Some might ask: “Wouldn’t it be great if we had that type of immediate guidance now?” The short answer is, not really. God has given all of us gifts to equip us for life and godliness through the completed cannon of Scripture!  Even Peter – remembering his experience on the ‘Mount of Transfiguration’ (Matthew 17:1-9), considered the written Scriptures to be a ‘more sure word of Prophecy’ than his own amazing experience with Jesus (2 Peter 1:19).

Both Apostolic Sign Gifts and Prophetic Gifts ‘ceased’ at the end of the Apostolic Age – approximately 70 A.D. Once the New Testament Cannon was complete – there has been ‘no new prophetic utterance from God!’ Virtually all Evangelical denominations (except the cults), believe that both Apostolic Sign Gifts and Prophecy have ‘not continued’ – they have ‘ceased’ to function in the Church. But the very next gifts listed by Paul to the Church in Ephesus are still with us today: Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers!  These gifts are clearly with us and still have a critical function within the Church's ministry, What is most important for us to consider is: “Why these gifts continued” in the Church’s life and ministry, and others ceased? The answer Paul gives is: “For the upbuilding of the Church so that the people of God might perform the work of ministry” (Ephesians 4:12). But Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers still need the Apostolic Testimony of God’s Completed Word in order to fulfill their ‘evangelizing, pastoral and teaching ministries.’ It was critical that New Testament Prophets complete the ‘Cannon of Scripture’ if there was to be Spiritual Maturity, the Perfect Man!’

So, let me leave you with several terms that Paul gives the Church at Ephesus:  Full Knowledge (epignosis), and Perfect Man (teleios). I bring these words up because Paul’s admonition to the Church in Ephesus has a parallel passage in 1 Corinthians Chapter 13, where he gives a very similar admonition to the Church at Corinth.  Paul explains that the combined gifts of Apostles, Prophets, Pastors and Teachers were given to build up the saints at Ephesus to ‘do the work of ministry unto the building up of the body of Christ.’ In Ephesians 4:13 he uses both terms:

“Until we all attain unto the unity of the faith, and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:  that we may be no longer children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:13-14).

In the next Blog, we’ll take a new look at 1 Corinthians Chapter 13 and Paul’s instructions to the Church about infancy and maturity!

Soli Deo Gloria!