This question often divides charismatic and non-charismatic Christians. Both have something to give the other.
What the New Testament teaches
1 Corinthians 12–14 lists multiple Spirit-given gifts — wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, tongues, interpretation — given "for the common good" of the Church. Paul does not announce an expiration date.
James 5:14–16 directs sick Christians to call the elders for prayer and anointing with oil. That practice has continued unbroken in the Orthodox and Catholic churches for two thousand years (the sacrament of Holy Unction).
The "cessationist" view
Some Reformed Protestants argue the miraculous gifts ceased once the New Testament canon was complete, citing 1 Cor. 13:10 ("when the perfect comes"). But this reading is contested even within Reformed scholarship, and the historical record is hard to reconcile with it — the gifts simply did not stop.
What history actually shows
St. Augustine, who initially thought miracles had ceased, changed his mind after personally witnessing healings; he documents them at length in City of God XXII.8. The desert fathers, the lives of countless saints (St. Seraphim of Sarov, St. John of Kronstadt, St. Nektarios), and Orthodox tradition all report ongoing miracles — healings, prophecies, discernment, even raising the dead.
The gifts never stopped. They have always been signs of God's presence in his Church.
The Pentecostal-charismatic renewal
Since the Azusa Street revival (1906), much of global Protestantism has recovered explicit attention to tongues, prophecy, and healing. There is genuine fruit — explosive missionary growth, conversions, real healings. There is also chaos, manipulation, and false prophecy. Paul addressed both even in Corinth (1 Cor. 14).
Discernment matters
The same gift that builds the Church can be counterfeited or self-generated. "Test the spirits" (1 John 4:1). Genuine charismata:
- Serve love (1 Cor. 13). If a gift puffs up the gifted, something is wrong.
- Bear scrutiny (1 Cor. 14:29). True prophecy is weighed by the Church.
- Point to Christ, not to the one exercising the gift.
- Produce holiness, not spectacle.
Tongues specifically
In Acts 2, the tongues at Pentecost were identifiable foreign languages — a sign for outsiders. In 1 Cor. 14, Paul refers to what appears to be a private prayer language, useful for personal devotion but to be used carefully in public worship. Both phenomena exist in Christian experience.
Healing specifically
Craig Keener's two-volume Miracles documents thousands of contemporary, medically attested cases. The evidence is far stronger than the skeptical mainstream usually admits. At the same time, not every prayer for healing is answered with healing — and sometimes the deeper healing is of the soul, not the body. Paul's "thorn in the flesh" was not removed.
The Orthodox lens
The Fathers do not deny the gifts; they emphasize the deeper gift behind them — communion with the Holy Spirit. St. Seraphim of Sarov said the true goal of the Christian life is "the acquisition of the Holy Spirit." The gifts flow from union with Christ. Pursue him, and the gifts come as he wills (1 Cor. 12:11).
Holy Unction is offered in every Orthodox parish to this day. People are healed. The Church does not advertise it; the Spirit just does what he does.
A pastoral word
Don't let theological argument keep you from asking God for the gifts you need. Don't let enthusiasm carry you away from sound doctrine. Stay close to the Church, the sacraments, and Scripture, and let the Spirit give what he gives — when, where, and how he wills. He has never stopped working in his Church.