A line was forming at the checkout of a grocery store.
A couple of men were waiting behind another gentleman who
had an obvious glow behind him.
The couple of men found out just like them he was Christian
and started to talk about faith.
Soon this man asked the couple of guys, “So have you guys
been able to speak in tongues yet?”
“No,” they replied.
He explains to them in more or less words, you haven’t lived
till you have been able to speak in tongues.
As the man left and wished them well, they had a little
laugh, one of them was a bible college president. (this is a true story I heard, but I can’t
come up with the exact details as it happened several years ago, so I am not
giving any credits to it).
I have heard many thoughts, scripture and desires when it
comes to speaking in tongues.
As I read through Acts chapter 2 verses 1-13, this is the
main verse I am focusing on Acts 2:4-8…
“All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to
speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were staying in Jerusalem
God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came
together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own
language. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are
not all these men who are speaking Galileans?
Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language?”
Speaking in tongues is one of the ways the Church gets
separated, I will explain what happened above and give conclusions and then my
take on this.
In this scripture it mentions being filled with the Holy
Spirit and then beginning to speak in tongues.
This is different from Acts 2:38, repent and be baptized
each and every one of you and you will receive
the gift of the Holy Spirit.
This is not meant just to be able to speak in tongues.
This different scripture comes up in Acts 4:8, 31; 6:3, 5; 7:55;
9:17 and 13:9, 52.
This is where the Holy Spirit can come up to you not only at
the moment of baptism but in other ways.
The way it’s described in Acts 2:38 comes up again in
11:15-16; Romans 6:3; 1 Corinthians 12:13 and Colossians 2:12.
When looking at Acts 2:4-8, most bibles will have a footnote
next to tongues and in the footnote it will say…or languages.
So where it says “they were filled with the Holy Spirit and
began to speak in other tongues,” it
could be read like this, “they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to
speak in other languages.”
The original bible uses the word dialekto, this word
translates to the word language. This
what gives way in 1 Corinthians 2, 10, 19 and 12-14.
This is where I struggle with speaking in tongues today.
In the bible they used moments like Acts 2:4-8 to speak to a
huge crowd of people.
This would be like going to the crowd at the Olympics you
start talking in English and people who are Russian, German, Spanish,
Ethiopian, Swedish and Canadian can hear what you are saying in English and understanding
every single word in their own language.
They asked each other how can we understand them we don’t
speak their language yet we can understand them?
Speaking in tongues is used differently today.
Through my lifetime and before coming to my own faith, I
attended several different churches (Catholic, Lutheran, Non-denominational, southern
gospel, Baptist, Community Church amd Christian Church).
I have been to Churches that have believed in speaking in
tongues and I have been in Churches that have believed in speaking in tongues
and needing a translator.
I talked to a friend who believes in speaking in tongues but
believes you need a translator.
He once walked into a service and found out they spoke in
tongues, they didn’t have a translator
so he walked out.
In bible times they used this so crowds of people could
understand what they were saying and the message they wanted to share about
Jesus.
This is completely different then the speaking in tongues
today.
Today speaking in tongues is done mostly in Sunday morning
worship settings, sometimes with translators and sometimes without.
I struggle with this.
If speaking in tongues was done in public setting where
anyone could hear the message, why do we subjugate it to a certain denomination
of Church and just in a Church building?
I believe that the speaking in tongues in the bible is not
the same speaking in tongues that we used today.
I have heard of one story with an exchange student that didn’t
speak any English and she was able to recite perfect English through speaking
in tongues.
That happened once and I have never heard of anything like
that ever again.
This brings me to why people speak in tongues today….
1.
They get caught up in the worship and don’t know
how to express themselves (In the 1800’s people would get so caught up in
emotions in revivals people would scream nonsense and bark up trees).2. When they are caught up in worship this is what happens.
3. They see someone else do it and feel like doing it themselves.
4. They think it’s an act of prayer.
5. Feel called to do it.
6. I don’t know.
There is a lot I am not sure of, but I don’t believe the
speaking in tongues in Churches today represents the biblical reasoning for
speaking in tongues.
If we felt like God was giving us the ability to speak in
tongues, why is it only done inside a Church?
Why isn’t in done in a public area instead of in a Church
building?
Why don’t I see this happen in a restaurant or a major
sports event?
I have yet to go to a public place where multiple different
languages were spoke and someone spoke in tongues on behalf of Jesus.
So when I look at how people speak in tongues today, I look
at it as an expression done in a worship setting where you let yourself go,
voice, mind and spirit.
The translating part I believe is garbage because the
miracle of speaking in tongues was everyone could understand in their own
language and did not need to be translated.
The miracle was in the ability to listen not to speak.
If you are thinking will I not associate with these people
because they believe this, you are wrong.
Jesus said this is Mark 9:40…
“for whoever is not against us is for us.”
Speaking in tongues is not a deal breaker for me.
I have plenty of friends that believe in speaking in tongues
and are minister’s at churches that do or go to church there.
That’s cool, the main thing is worshiping God with our
lives.
I will not attend a church that believes in speaking in
tongues personally but the gospel message is way more important than a churches
view on speaking in tongues.
Our main goal is to reach people with the gospel message and
that is why I work hand and hand with people of multiple denominations and we
have been able to do some amazing things we would not have done without each
other’s help.
There is much love I have for those that carry to name
Christian and speaking in tongues is not a reason to disassociate with someone.
It’s the same way with Churches that don’t believe in instruments
in the Church, that’s their thing, they like it that way.
I wouldn’t attend that Church but I am not going to hate
those people for that reason.
Summing this entire thing up…
I don’t believe in speaking in tongues today represents the
biblical way it was meant for.
I will still associate with people that believe in speaking
in tongues (Mark 9:40).
Jesus loves all of us and the most important message is for
us to share this and not argue about smaller things like instruments in church
or speaking in tongues.
If you read to this point I appreciate that.
Have a great day.
