Theology of the Holy Spirit and Tongues

Today there are many people who believe they understand the Holy Spirit of the Scripture. Yet, few have truly experience and walked with the Spirit, who is a person in the Trinity of the book of first John 5:7. In this section we will take a look at four topics that are commonly used to argue against the Pentecostal Doctrine of Baptism of the Holy Spirit with the Evidence of Speaking in Tongues.

I. Baptism in the Holy Spirit

People today believe that they are filled with the Holy Spirit when they are saved. However, they make no distinction between the saving power of Christ and the endued (to give qualities or abilities to) power of the Spirit.

Acts 1:4-5 Jesus, just before he ascends, tells the disciples to wait until the Promise of the Father would come and then they would be "baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." Furthermore in Acts 1:8 Jesus says, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be witness to Me... " The point of these two verses is that while Christ was present and even for several days after He Ascended, the disciples were not filled with the Holy Spirit. Nonetheless they followed Christ, attested that He was the Son of God and believed on His name. So, there can be no argument that they were saved, yet not filled with the Holy Spirit.

The lives of the disciples demonstrate, simply, that one can be saved without the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Also, that being saved does not mean automatic infilling of the Holy Spirit.

II. Initial Evidence of Tongues

There is a recurrent theme from the mouths of people today. That theme is "you do not have to speak in tongues to be filled with the Spirit." However, this is not the question . . . this is an erroneous statement. Speaking in some tongue will not get you baptised (filled, infilled, full of) the Holy Spirit. The truth is that everywhere in scripture in which someone was baptized in the Holy Spirit they spoke in tongues. In fact the disciples recognized that others were baptized in the Holy Spirit because those baptized spoke in tongues. This situation is called the initial evidence of tongues. Meaning that when someone is baptized with the Holy Spirit, we can see an initial evidence of the baptism by the speaking (of glossolalia - greek) ecstatic tongues.

In this passage we see the first act of the Holy Spirit Baptism and the initial action of those in the upper room was speaking in tongues. Acts 2:4 "And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."

In this passage Peter and those with him knew that the gentiles were baptized with the Holy Spirit by the initial evidence of hearing them speak with tongues and glorify God. Acts 10:44-46 "While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God."

In the following passage Peter is describing the above incident to other Jewish Christians. He compares the Spirit Baptism of the gentiles to their own initial baptism spoken of in Acts 2. Acts 11:15 "And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning." Peter demonstrates that the actions of those being filled were the same as those who were in the upper room. Those who are listening to Peter believe him because of these initial actions of the gentiles. Thus, the intial evidence of tongues after baptism hold true in this passage.

The Ephesian outpouring has the same initial evidence as the prior three scriptures. Acts 19:6 "And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied." Again, the initial action after the baptism of the Holy Spirit was speaking in tongues.

Note: Tongues is not the only evidence of being baptized in the Holy Spirit. It is simply the initial action (evidence) that takes place scripturally.

So your question is are you baptized in the Holy Spirit if you have never spoken in tongues?

The answer is . . . in the three scriptures that discuss the baptism of the Holy Spirit, all who were baptized in the Holy Spirit had a first or initial action of speaking in tongues. Thus, I return your question with a quesiton.

Does your "baptism" match up with the scripture?

III. Difference in Tongues of Prayer and Tongues of Interpretation.

The common interpretation, nearly always from those who do not speak in tongues, is that tongues without an interpretation do not exist. If someone speaks in tongues there must be an interpretation. Most of this understanding is based on I Corinthians 14 without reading the context in chapters 12-13 as well as understanding the outpouring of the Spirit in the book of Acts.

In this short section I will simply illuminate the presence of prayer in tongues.

First, the initial evidence of tongues is a prayer. Second, in I Corinthians 12 tongues and interpretation are listed as one of the Spiritual gifts. However, some conclude mistakenly that the gift of tongues and the tongues of prayer are the same thing. Lets see what the scripture says.

I Corinthians 14:2 "For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries." It must be understood that speaking to God is prayer. If one speaks to God in tongues then it too is prayer. Therefore, Paul is describing the act of praying in tongues.

I Corinthians 14:4 "He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church." The context Paul begins to burn for in this chapter is the understanding of the Word of God for the church. He is concerned with the edification of those in the church. He does not condemn edifying oneself, he is explaining that praying in tongues edifies the self. In church Paul wants others edified in privacy as you speak in a tongue you edify yourself. His teaching here is one of the basis Christian tenants, "put others before yourself." Again Paul is not condemning praying in tongues, he is wanting each member to be used to edify the church as a whole.

I Corinthians 14:14 "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful." Paul plainly discusses the act of praying in tongues and the fact that is it direct communication between your spirit and God. While he expresses that the understanding is unfruitful, he does not condemn the act. In fact in I Corinthians 14:18 he says, "I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all."

I Corinthians 12:10 ". . . to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues." There is a gift of speaking in tongues which requires an interpretation.

Pauls entire teaching on tongues and interpretation is found throughout I Corinthians 14. He teaches on the differences between tongues of prayer and tongues of prophetic utterance which require interpretation. Paul teaches how to properly use the gift, how to keep things in order, and who should speak and interpret. It is a very detailed account of a spritual action which edifies the individual in prayer and the church in interpretation.

IV. Is it for today?

There is a great book titled On the Cessation of the Charimata, which describes the modern view that expresses that the Gifts of the Spirit are no longer in action today. The purpose of this section is to discuss the idea of the cessation of tongues.

The common scripture used to debate that tongues no longer exist is found in I Corinthian 13:8-10, "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 prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." This scripture is used to express that tongues is no longer needed today because the perfect Bible has now come. However, the Bible is simply the binding of the letters and prophecies of old into a book, so much of the perfect word had been around a while already. It is also said that the early gifts were used to propagate new churches. One questions remains, are we not still planting new churches today all over the world. Is not the Kingdom of God still growing even as you read this? Theirs is an invalid and weakened debate.

The common theme of cessation is that people believe that the Bible is "that which is perfect that has come." However, it is obvious in this chapter that Paul is talking about end times as you continue to read the rest of the scripture verses 11-13, and not the putting together of the letters into a bound addition with other letters and prophecies which we call the Bible today.

First of all lets put I Corinthians 13 in perspective. It is not Paul's intent to describe the cessation of prophecies, tongues, or knowledge. His intent is to let you know that you can be the best of the best Christians and without love you are nothing.

Second, the arguement is always over prophecy and tongues. But knowledge is also in this same passage and verse of scripture, yet, the debaters never include knowledge. If the other two by virtue of their understanding have ceased, then knowledge has also been done away with. We know that this is not the case and if knowledge still exists then so do prophecies and tongues.

I Corinthians 13:1 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal." Here we see the Paul speaking in both his language and a spiritual language of the angels. It had not ceased some 25 years or so after the first outpouring.

I Corinthians 14:4-5 "He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification." Why would God suddenly want to stop edifying people in the church? Which Paul says interpretation and prophecy is what God uses to edify. In fact in I Corinthians 12:7 Paul says that the manifestation of the Spirit is for the profit of all. God has not ceased edifying people and He still uses the same gifts of the Spirit he has been using for the last 2000 years.

I Corinthians 14:22 "Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophesying is not for unbelievers but for those who believe." God has not chosen at some time post first century church to stop the sign to unbelievers. To express that tongues have ceased is to say that the sign to unbelievers has ceased. Scripture says that God is the same yesterday today and forever, is is as concerned about the unbelievers of today as He was 2000 years ago. Therefore the same sign which was for the first century unbelievers is the same sign with is for 20th centurey unbelievers.

Finally, I Corinthians 14:39, is the last verse that you will read concerning tongues. There is no other scripture after this one in the New Testament which describes speaking in tongues. It simply states, "Therefore, brethren desire earestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues."

Pauls last words on the subject, "do not forbid speaking with tongues." May all read the entire scripture and desire to obey it in its entirety.