Let’s get straight to the heart of the matter, because dancing around defective doctrine only gives it more room to spread like a theological weed. The idea that miracles were merely signs to authenticate Jesus’ message—and that they’ve since packed up and left the building once the canon closed—is not just misguided; it’s intellectually bankrupt, biblically incoherent, and frankly, a bit embarrassing for anyone claiming to handle Scripture with care. If the gospel message is brimming with promises of physical healing, deliverance from oppression, and the unleashing of resurrected power through faith, then how on earth does it make sense to say the signs pointing to that message deliver more substance than the message itself? It’s like advertising a feast with mouthwatering samples, only to serve up empty plates at the main event. The authentication would end up wielding more power than the finished atonement or even Jesus Himself, seated in glory at the Father’s right hand. That’s not divine logic; that’s nonsense on stilts, the kind that makes you wonder if some theologians skipped the class on basic reasoning.

Consider this: the miracles Jesus performed weren’t roadside billboards meant to fade into irrelevance once the destination was reached. They were previews of the kingdom’s reality, embodying the very essence of the atonement’s victory over sin, sickness, and Satan. Isaiah 53:4-5 doesn’t mince words—Jesus bore our infirmities and carried our diseases, a truth Matthew 8:17 applies directly to physical healing during Jesus’ ministry. Peter echoes it in 1 Peter 2:24, linking those stripes to our wholeness. If these acts were just to confirm the message, but the completed work of the cross somehow provides less healing—or hitches it to some mysterious “will of God” lottery even when faith is locked in—then the signs overshadow the substance. The pointer becomes mightier than the pointed-to, the herald greater than the king. In “Sickness Is Satan’s Glory, Not God’s,” I explain: “In the substitutionary atonement, Jesus took 39 stripes in exchange for our healing. It is already done. In the Father’s mind, He decided our sicknesses were taken off us and put on Jesus as those 39 stripes. Jesus carried our sickness in our place.” If the authenticating miracles promised healing but the finished product withholds it, we’re left with a gospel that’s all sizzle and no steak—a cruel joke that dishonors the risen Christ’s authority.

And if that reversal wasn’t absurd enough, the cessationist claim commits a glaring logical fallacy, one that’s as transparent as it is sloppy. Arguing that miracles were only for authenticating the apostolic message and thus ceased once the Bible was complete is like saying, “All dinosaurs are animals. All dinosaurs have ceased to exist. Therefore, all animals have ceased to exist.” It’s the classic error of composition and division, assuming that because some miracles served a confirmatory role (like in Acts 2:22, where Peter notes Jesus was “attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs”), all miracles must be pigeonholed into that category and then vanish wholesale. But Scripture never draws such a narrow boundary. Miracles aren’t a monolithic bloc; they’re multifaceted expressions of God’s power, often untethered from authentication. In John 14:12, Jesus promises that believers will do His works and greater ones simply because they believe—not as signs for a message, but as the fruit of faith in Him. This has nothing to do with canon closure or apostolic credentials; it’s about ongoing discipleship. In “Ultimate Stupid Cessationist Arguments #1m” it says “For sake of argument, let us say sign gifts have ceased. So what? What logical relevance does that have to do with healing and miracles on demand of faith. It has no connection whatsoever. Just because a pizza does not have olives, does not mean it stops being a pizza.”

This fallacy isn’t just academic nitpicking—it’s a direct assault on the gospel’s fullness. Abraham’s blessing, as Paul unpacks in Galatians 3, shatters the notion that miracles were mere temporary props. The promise to Abraham wasn’t a fleeting endorsement; it was an eternal covenant of abundant increase, including supernatural favor, health, and victory over curses. Jesus became the curse for us (Galatians 3:13) precisely to unlock this blessing for all who believe, complete with the Spirit’s power for miracles (Galatians 3:5,14). It’s not about confirming a message but about God being God—faithful, unchanging, and extravagantly generous. In Luke 13:16, Jesus declares healing “necessary” for the bent-over woman because she was Abraham’s daughter, not because it authenticated anything. Satan bound her, but the covenant demanded her freedom. Similarly, to the Syrophoenician woman in Matthew 15:28, healing is “children’s bread”—daily sustenance for covenant heirs, not a one-off sign. As I emphasize in Systematic Theology 2025 under “The Structure or Thesis for this Systematic Theology Book,” the gospel’s logic flows from God’s self-authenticating truth: “If God has revealed a self-authenticating first principle with substantial truth for all of life… then all things are possible for the one who believes.” Miracles aren’t add-ons; they’re the natural outworking of God’s fidelity to His word.

To peddle cessationism as if miracles were disposable training wheels is to limit the Holy One of Israel, much like the Israelites did in the wilderness, confessing defeat before giants instead of claiming promised land. It’s faith-fumbling at its finest, staining hands with the blood of unbelief: “For those who taught you bad doctrine and didn’t repent or back off, may their hands stay stained with your blood—along with all who peddle unbelief—on judgment day, before the Son who sits at the right hand of Power.” If God swore by Himself to bless Abraham’s seed (Hebrews 6:13-18), and that blessing includes the Spirit’s miraculous empowerment, who are we to declare it expired? Paul curses any gospel that deviates from this (Galatians 1:8-9), and rightly so. Miracles persist because God persists—being Himself, faithful to His oath. Anything less turns the Almighty into a cosmic bait-and-switch artist, promising power but delivering powerlessness. That’s not the God I serve; that’s a caricature born of defective theology.

In wrapping this up, remember that the New Covenant amplifies, not diminishes, the old promises. We’re not limping along in a miracle drought; we’re seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), wielding His name like a sledgehammer against every stronghold. God wants to give more than you want to receive. When we are sick, we need to have a relentless focus on our healing, on the word of God about healing day and night… Sickness is from the devil, it is a curse of the law and Jesus started to demolish it in His ministry and has commanded all His disciples to continue this battle. Cessationism doesn’t just err; it robs saints of their inheritance, sidelining them with sickness Satan has no right to inflict. Embrace Abraham’s gospel in full, and watch mountains move at faith’s command. After all, if the signs were that potent, imagine what the substance unleashes.