I want to pause a moment from my other series and discuss on something major. Please feel free to offer insight as this subject is something I ponder and study quite often. The subject of tongues.
As I mentioned in my previous writings of “I Just Couldn’t Stay” this is kind of vulnerable for me to write about. My main questions are do tongues have to be an actual language for it to be real, or validated? How about where did the doctrine of the tongues in Acts are different from the tongues in Corinthians? I need some scriptures that say just that to see to difference.
Why is ok to add to the scripture the phrase “with the evidence of speaking in tongues” when it is not there at all? Yes, they spoke in tongues, but it doesn’t say “You shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues.” How come no other apostle in the New Testament spoke about tongues other than Paul? Why didn’t the others speak on it, especially the ones that where there on Pentecost day? If you have reference where they did please let me know.
I can remember some of the teachings and experiences on tongues in my former churches. The church I attend now believes in the “evidence of speaking in tongues” but not as a requirement for salvation. Salvation happens at repentance and placing ones’ faith in Jesus.
I ask these questions because I struggled in my early walk with Jesus. Most of the time what I heard come out of my mouth was not an actual language. When I asked about it was sometimes said “It’s okay mines sound different as well.” Then how is tongues languages? Does it have to be languages or what?
In Acts tongues were clear cut languages that were understood on the day of Pentecost. I go back to Pentecost because if you hold to the soteriology of Acts 2:38 then those tongues are what is important to get you saved. The tongues in Corinthians are just for a few folks who have the Holy Ghost. You can see where someone would be very concerned if they aren’t speaking something just right. If our whole salvation is based on water and Spirit doctrine, and tongues is what lets us know if we have the Spirit and you can’t get the Holy Ghost without speaking in tongues, then we better make sure it is done right, right?
I have heard ministers say some people fake tongues in their churches. I have so many things I could say about that but I’m not. During my early years, I can assure you I was not faking. I tried my best to speak in what I thought at the time was tongues. I would panic if I didn’t speak in tongues on a daily or weekly basis. When I told the pastor, who talked to me after my conversion that I got the Holy Ghost I was not faking. I truly believed I had gotten the Holy Ghost and no one was going to tell me different. I wasn’t going to spend the next few months and years fighting at the altar.
However, as time grew on I doubted that. I didn’t hear languages. I heard something I can’t explain. I prayed and prayed that God would give me a new tongue. After a while I believed he did. I was fine for awhile. Then I become enamored with tongues. It was a big deal to me. I reasoned that my whole salvation was tongues. If I didn’t speak in tongues I was not saved. When I went down to pray I would get horrible headaches from praying so hard to “stir up the gift that was inside me” ie. tongues. I hated to pray sometimes at home, for prayer meant tongues. Tongues, tongues, tongues, I had to have them. Forget faith, that was for only financial needs, healing needs, marriage needs, my husband to get saved needs, tongues were for salvation. I didn’t even know how to have faith for my salvation. Who needed that when you had tongues?
I would see people be in church for months and years to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. The teachings I would hear on it was some didn’t get it because they had hidden sin. They were hiding hidden anger, porn, or whatever that kept them from getting it. One story was about a cop and God expected so much out of him because he carried a gun to work so he had to really get with it to get the Holy Ghost. I am not saying these stories are not true, I wasn’t there when the stories where taking place, only there to hear tell about them.
My questions are why does God make it so hard for one to get saved? Why do we have to get perfect for him to give us his Gift of the Spirit? I have some new beliefs on tongues and the Holy Spirit. Still sorting out some things on it though. What say you?….
I no longer believe tongues are essential to salvation. I believe the phrase ‘with the evidence of speaking in tongues’ is what we were warned about adding to or taking away from his words. I believe we are saved by believing in what God did for us through Christ. I have peace.
I concur with that
Tongues were given as a sign in the early church so that the Jews could see that God’s people now included more than just them. The word “tongues” has taken on such a mystical meaning, but in reality it’s just another word for “languages,” i.e. the English tongue, the Spanish tongue, the Korean tongue, etc. So yes, tongues “has” to be languages, and not just stutterings or random noises. Some will point to Romans 8:26 which says “the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” They say that this is “tongues as a prayer language,” but it’s actually referring to the person of the Holy Spirit interceding to the Father on our behalf. Oneness believers in particular don’t like the correct context of this verse because of their false unitarian view of the godhead, but that’s off-subject.
There are just three instances in Acts where people speak in tongues upon receipt of the Holy Spirit (chapters 2, 10, & 19). There are three other instances where people “get the Holy Ghost,” but do not speak in tongues (chapters 4, 8, & 9). So when someone tells you that “every time someone gets filled with the Spirit, they speak in tongues,” they’re incorrect. Many Pentecostals and other Charismatics claim that tongues occurred in Acts 8, but this is eisegesis, or adding their own teaching to the Scripture. And most also ignore Acts 4 and Acts 9, because it’s goes against their narrative.
In I Corinthians 12:30, Paul asks, “Do all speak with tongues?” His question is rhetorical, since we know from reading Acts (and he knew from experience) that not everyone who has the Spirit speaks with “tongues.” In I Corinthians 14, we read that tongues are not a sign for believers, but for unbelievers (that is, Jews who had not yet accepted Christ as Messiah). Never once is tongues mentioned or alluded to as “the initial evidence” of Spirit baptism. We know that we have the Spirit inside of us because of our belief in Jesus Christ, which is only possible by God changing our heart, and it happens immediately upon that belief, according to Ephesians 1:13-14 and 2:8.
On interesting note is that the last instance, chronologically speaking, of “tongues” in the Bible is Acts 19, which takes place around 54 AD. I Corinthians is written around 57, and we see that tongues at this point is already being abused and used incorrectly. I’ve personally come to the conclusion that tongues and the other “miracle gifts” ceased with the deaths of the Apostles. That doesn’t mean God Himself doesn’t still perform miracles. He does every single day. But we no longer have access to the ability to speak in (or hear) a language supernaturally, or heal at the laying on of hands, or prophesize the future. These gifts were but for a season; for a time of transition from Old Covenant to New Covenant. They were to show God’s natural people, the Jews, that His kingdom was much larger than just them.
And I know you were faking when you thought you were speaking in tongues. Neither was I. We were both sincere, but we were both also deceived. Anyway, that’s my 2 cents! =)
John wrote: “Some will point to Romans 8:26 which says “the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” They say that this is “tongues as a prayer language,” but it’s actually referring to the person of the Holy Spirit interceding to the Father on our behalf.” – I might also add here that the passage very specifically states “cannot be uttered” which takes spoken words out of the picture. As such, it does not pertain to speaking in tongues.
I should say, I know you WERE NOT faking when you thought you were speaking in tongues! I’m SOOOO sorry for leaving that out. My typing got ahead of my brain!!!
Wow!!! Thank you for that wonderful insight. I will reread all the verses you mentioned. It’seems hard to relate the peace I felt reading your comments. And no worries for the misconception. I gathered as much as what you ment.
This is a subject I could talk about for hours. I have a couple articles you might find helpful, which cover Acts 10 and 19: http://www.spiritualabuse.org/mywritings/acts10.html & http://www.spiritualabuse.org/mywritings/acts19.html
One thing that most of us from Pentecostal type churches learned to do is to read into scripture things which are not there and give words meanings not meant by the original author. This is why you can find no passage that teaches there are two types of speaking in tongues (initial evidence and the gift). That must be read into the Bible in order to make the doctrine appear to be true. You will find no place in the New Testament emphasizing speaking in tongues as we see in today’s churches.