Example research essay topic: Body Of Christ Perfect Man - 1,011 words

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Cessation of the sign gifts Whether the sign gifts has ceased is a question that has been debated for decades. There exists two groups; those who believed in the cessation of the sign gifts and those who believe that they are still for today. The sign gifts consisted of prophecy, tongues and miracles. Miracles consisted of the ability to perform special signs including physical healing through an individual. The fact that God can heal and do other miracles is not being questioned here. What is being questioned is whether the gift that gave human individuals the ability to wrought miraculous signs are for today.

Those who believe that certain gifts have ceased refer to 1 Corinthians 13: 8 - 10 as Biblical evidence for the cessation of gifts. The verse reads, 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 away. for we know in part and we prophecy in part.

But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. The argument that many holds is that this passage is saying that when the perfect comes prophecy, tongues and other sign gifts will end. These people are left with the task of defining what the perfect is. Some hold that the perfect is referring to the close of the cannon of the scriptures. The problem with this view is that it is not supported anywhere in scripture. The second view is that the perfect is referring to the return of Jesus.

This view may be more true because in Ephesians 4: 11 - 13 we find a parallel passage to 1 Cor 13: 8 - 10 which points to the perfect being the return to Christ. Ephesians 4: 11 - 13 says, And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelist, and some pastors and teacher, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. Till 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 fulness of Christ. In this verse perfect is pointing to the return of Christ since none of us can say that we are a perfect man. This must come at the return of Christ since at that point we will be glorified and by like Him. Though I believe that the perfect has not yet come I don t believe, however, that the sign gifts are in operation today.

This is based on other verses which I will explain later. For now I will continue to show why 1 Cor 13: 8 - 10 cannot be used to prove that the gifts have ceased. Knowledge is said cease when the perfect comes yet from what I can see there is still knowledge around. Regardless of how you identify the perfect it is clear that knowledge has not ended.

The same is to be said when considering Ephesians 4: 11 - 13, the gifts mentioned there are apostles, prophets, evangelist, pastors, and teachers. These gifts were said to be for the edification of the body of Christ and that this will happen until we come to the perfect man. The word till shows that these gifts will not always be around and that they will cease. The fact is that we still have the gifts of evangelist, pastors, and teachers. If we were to use 1 Cor 13: 8 - 10 and Ephesians 4: 11 - 13 as scriptural evidence for the cessation of the sign gifts then we must encompass all the gifts mentioned in the respective verses. These two verses do point to the end of certain gifts but not just the sign gifts such as tongues, prophecy and miracles but others also like evangelist and pastor.

And because we have gifts such as evangelist and pastor still around it points to the fact that these verses have not been fulfilled as yet. How then do we account for the fact that miracles and prophecy and tongues that are recorded in the New Testament do not occur today in mainstream Christianity? I believe that tongues, prophecy and miracles have ceased based on the fact that at the close of the Apostlelic age the signs gifts seem to have disappeared. John Christos tom an early Christian theologian noticed as early as the forth century that the sign gifts had ceased. I believe that the sign gifts were used to give credibility to the early church and to the apostles. Acts 2: 22 says, Men of Israel hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourself also know.

I believe that this verse gives insight to the purpose of the sign gifts. Jesus miracle served as an infallible witness to His deity, it showed the people that he was God. Peter himself tells the people that they knew what Jesus did and there was no denying it. The people knew Jesus and what He did but they did not know the church. How were the people supposed to know that the church is the body of Christ? Well they would know when they see the church do great deeds like Jesus.

All that was needed was for the apostles and the church to prove that they come in the power of Jesus and when this is proven they need not continually prove it. The apostles and the early church demonstrated amazing powers and the ground was laid. Prophecy, tongues and miracles were no longer needed because the apostles and the church had already been attested to the world by those gifts. It has already been confirmed that the Church is the body of Christ and that it is true, we no longer need to prove it through the sign gifts.

Research essay sample on Body Of Christ Perfect Man