Final Word [Paperback]

O. Palmer Robertson (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Banner of Truth (December 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0851516599
• ISBN-13: 978-0851516592
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,061,742 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Cessationist Text in Print, March 30, 2001

By 

Howard Eames (Mesa, Arizona United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Word (Paperback)

O. Palmer Robertson has written a very succint book on the doctrine of the cessation of revelatory gifts. He deftly traces the prophetic office from the Old Covenant into the New and finds its completion in the "prophet like unto Moses," the Lord Jesus Christ. He also correctly identifies biblical "tongues" as a subset of prophecy from the Book of Acts and demonstrates biblically how the gift of tongues and prophecy were anticipated to cease even in New Testament times with the completed canon of Scripture. Biblical theology at its best - highly recommended.

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling, July 11, 2007

By 

The Actor (Chicago) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Final Word (Paperback)

If you are interested in the controversy over the role of the charismatic gifts in the church today, you owe it to yourself to read this book. The writing was excellent, and the author managed both clarity and concision. He managed to explain quite a few key concepts without using too much jargon, too long of a length, or many of the other issues that often turn laymen off to theology-related books.

The arguments were, for the most part, quite compelling; although there are a few arguments I'm not sure I find that convincing (such as his argument that the gifts played a less prominent role in the Apostles' ministries and in the early church), he brought up many good points as well.

His arguments against the Third Wave view of prophecy (which teaches, among other things, that ordinary congregational prophecy can legitimately be a mix of truth and error) and for the continuity between Old and New Testament prophecy (some claim that New Testament prophecy is fundamentally different from Old Testament prophecy and thus must be held to a different standard) are especially compelling. These arguments alone make the book worth the price. I honestly don't see how anyone who has read his critique could maintain that the Third Wave view of prophecy is Biblical.

As I said, although I found this section of the book to be the strongest, this isn't to say that the other sections aren't strong too, or that he doesn't bring up good points there too. He does. In fact, most of his arguments for cessationism are quite strong and clearly presented. For you non-cessationists, no, his case does NOT depend on 1 Corinthians 13:8-10; he presents arguments from many different angles, none of which are dependent on this text. In particular he looks at why we would even need the gifts anymore.

I'd recommend reading this book with "Perspectives on Pentecost" by Richard B. Gaffin. They compliment each other very well, and these books could easily revolutionize your understanding of the Bible's teaching on the spiritual gifts. These books are perfect if:
- You're not sure what the Bible teaches on the topic
- You're convinced that the Bible doesn't teach cessationism (these books will show you that it does)
- You want to learn more about the controversy over the charismatic movement
- You want to understand how to answer the arguments for the charismatic movement and defend cessationism. Robertson's book is very good for this and ably answers many of the common arguments and misunderstandings found in the charismatic doctrines of the spiritual gifts. I fall into this category, as by the time I read this book I was already convinced that the Bible teaches cessationism (which I wasn't always convinced of, as I was charismatic for a number of years).

In short, this is a compelling book that I highly recommend to both charismatics (at least those who are prepared to test their beliefs in light of Scripture) and to non-charismatics (especially if you want to know how to defend your beliefs). Unfortunately, the charismatic movement and in particular the Third Wave has made massive inroads into evangelicalism lately, largely due to a lack of understanding of the issues involved in the pews and in the pulpit, and this book is a welcome antidote.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Authoritative Word, July 3, 2008

By 

Jacques Schoeman (SA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Final Word (Paperback)

'Christianity emphatically is not a mystery religion.' p 26

Professor O Palmer Robertson takes issue with the continued presence of false teachers of doctrine. The office of prophet is qualitatively that of mediator, Robertson maintains, and since its inception with Moses, revelational content from God served a redemptive function. In the NT 'the mediator of the covenant is God Himself, now standing among men as their servant.' p 11 Special revelation found its consummation in Christ. Robertson clarifies the position that it is special revelation alone that is under fire. Claims to further communications from God, dubbed 'ordinary congregational prophecy', are due cause for concern as the facade is pock-marked with hypocrisy.

'It was not part of the Word that Christ brought, but the last closing Word.' John Calvin, Hebrews and 1 & 2 Peter 12:6

'A great danger also lies in another direction if we accept this concept of a prophetic utterance that is indeed God's word, and yet is something less than the perfection of His word associated with biblical prophecy. It destroys the necessary distinction between the true and the false prophet, and makes God's people the helpless victims of error mixed with truth.' p 19

Professor Robertson sees those who hold that biblical prophecy continues today in its form as foretelling (not preaching as 'forth-telling') clearly to believe that revelation continues today. Yet the difficulties of that position seem never-ending. Unjustifiable evasion of the biblical standard has introduced the difficulties.

'Women', says Grudem, 'were able to prophesy in both the Old Testament and the New. They could deliver messages from God to His people. But women could not assume the role of teacher over God's people in either the Old or the New Testament (see 1 Tim 2:12; 3:2; Titus 1:6 on New Testament teachers being only men, including the elders who did most of the teaching).' p 86, Countering The Claims of Evangelical Feminism. Grudem subordinates and ranks as less important the NT office of prophet to that of teacher, which is antithetical to Scripture: (Eph 2:20; Eph 3:5; Eph 4:11) - a flaw with immense implications for church structures. A better view would be that the gift of prophecy has, in fact, ceased, whilst the office of teacher is still in effect.

Giftings, such as speaking in tongues, are more often than not practiced in the wrong context, e.g., where Paul states almost inadmissible usage 'in the church', as specified in 1 Cor 14:19, 'Yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.' Charismatic pastors with little or no formal education in theology would do well to study this book, for they appear to be least informed of God's intended design with the offices of prophet and apostle.

'Tongues illustrated dramatically the universalistic nature of Christianity. God was not limiting Himself to one people. His wondrous works could be heard in all the languages of the world. Christianity was not exclusively a Jewish religion, despite its clearly Jewish origins. The need for a sign of transition exists no longer. Tongues, as in the case of all other workings of God in the world, find their significance when located properly in the history of redemption. When seen in its unique historical setting as a sign of transition to a world-wide gospel, tongues give the greatest glory to the universal gospel.' pp. 48-50

Of further value is the fact that though revelation has ceased (and therefore the revelatory gifts), God continues to reveal Himself through nature and through providence. And though God has stopped speaking in signs, wonders and prophecies, He still communicates and reveals through Holy Scripture.

'It is rather interesting that Paul does not speak about a prediction of the future when he refers to the 'mystery' that has been revealed. Instead, he describes insight about a theology of the church. The basic truth they taught about the role of gentiles in the church was not a prediction about the future, but a divine declaration about the present. Yet it clearly was regarded as 'prophetic' in nature.' p 16

The apostle Paul lauded the gift of love as eternal in his letter to the Corinthians, but attached no such expectation to the charismata: 'But where there are prophecies, they will fail; where there are tongues, they will cease; where there is knowledge, it will vanish away.' 1 Cor 13:8 The Greek word for 'fail' or 'vanish away', katargeo, expository dictionaries understand to mean depriving a person or thing of influence, force, or existence, thereby stressing the reversal of prevailing circumstances. Thus prophecy and tongues were necessary to a pre-Bible setting:

'The first letter to the Corinthians was composed at a time when very little of the NT had been written. The church at that stage needed an authoritative word from the Lord to direct the pattern of their life under the new covenant. Very likely, none of the inspired manuscripts of the NT were available to the Corinthians at this point in time.' p 18

The distinctions Robertson raises would seem unnecessary, but continued common practice in pentecostal and charismatic leadership would suggest it most necessary, and especially in the light of their distortions of NT teaching, a humbling of their wayward hearts seems totally in order. The biblical prophets and holy apostles had the ability to perform what was commanded, and did not issue vain claims to 'power' - a claim that Wayne Grudem has not been able to counter.