Tongues
As understood from the BIBLE
1st Corinthians Chapter 14
Some say that speaking in tongues shows you are spirit filled
Acts 4:8, 31; 7:55; 8:17; 9:17; 13:9 all are instances where people are spirit filled and none spoke in tongues, also Jesus Christ NEVER spoke in tongues.
Day of Pentecost Acts chapter 2, please note the disciples were all of ONE accord when the original gift was given yet how often do those claiming to speak in tongues today differ with each other in life, beliefs, gospel, etc?
The disciples were understood by men of many different languages (tongues) even though they were not learned in those languages.
Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
This verse is often misused to justify Tongues, but that makes no sense because it states "which cannot be uttered" (impossible for humans to speak, let alone to understand).
Also this verse is telling of how the Holy Spirit is the median through which a Christian speaks to God the Father, not how it speaks through us to other people.
1st Corinthians 14:22 tells us it is a sign to unbelievers (not a prayer language), it is used as a miracle for those who had never heard the gospel as proof that the speaker was from God.
Look closely at the passage where Christ gives the gifts to His apostles and why Hi gives them.
Mark 16:15-20 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. 19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
(think about it, they had no Bible, nothing but the old testament and they were going to heathens who had no truth about God at all)
Now read this account of the apostle Paul after being shipwrecked.
Act 28:3-6 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. 4 And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. 5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. 6 Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god.
Why don't those who speak in tongues in America also drink poison, cast out devils, heal the sick, and handle snakes?
Because you can't fake a healing (just ask Benny Hinn), attempting to cast out devils is just plain dangerous as we find in:
Acts 19:13-16 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. 14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
And handling snakes and drinking poison is potentially fatal!
The only reason tongues has reached this level of popularity while the other gifts have faded is because its the safest bet! All you have to do is claim to be speaking some angelic language (which is actually Hebrew) and most Americans won't call you a fraud and also, tongues won't hurt or kill you!
Once a church is established for a culture/language/people group there are no subsequent signs (healings, tongues, etc) recorded in the Bible, wrought by the disciples, the focus turns to sound doctrine and teachings after the church is established.
"Losing control?"
Many advocates of speaking tongues claim to lose control when being "overcome with the spirit" In all of the instances we looked at earlier which show men being filled with the spirit, NONE lost control of themselves.
Gods Spirit does not cause loss of control, so BIBLICALLY what does?
Mark 9:17-27, Mark 5:1-13, and many other places speak of people and even animals losing control of their bodies and speaking, ALL these cases involved a devil dwelling within the person.
James 1:26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
I do not believe that everyone who practices speaking in tongues has a devil, but they do have emotions and their own spirits. Why is it that Benny Hinn could hypnotize thousands at a time to flop on the ground? He manipulated their emotions.
All throughout Gods word whenever someone has Gods spirit upon them (mostly Old Testament) or within them (after the ascension of Christ) the spirit makes them stronger, or wiser.
Matthew 7:16 tells us we know people by their fruits, so if modern tongues were a sign of being spirit filled then that "spirit filled" persons life would directly manifest the fruits of the spirit, but not those of the flesh, Galatians 5:19-26
There are only three biblical accounts of people receiving the gift of foreign languages. Advocates of the modern “gift” have stamped this as a sign for having the Spirit, yet they have not understood the significance of the true gift being given in these incidences . . .
Pentecost marked the inauguration of the age of the coming of the Holy Spirit. Special signs were given in proof of it. The gift of languages given emphasized the universality of the plan of salvation, as the work of the disciples was to go “into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature,” Jew and Gentile.
(2) At Caesarea (Acts 10:46) God gave the same gift as the inaugural event at Pentecost as a witness to the Jews that all the privileges of the gospel were now extended to the Gentiles. They also understood what they were saying (Vs 46), just as did the hearers at Pentecost.
(3) At Ephesus (Acts 19:1-6) those who had only known the baptism of John came into the full knowledge of God’s plan through Christ, to whom the Holy Spirit bears witness (Jn. 15:26). Here again, they spoke in an understandable language (Vs. 6), because to prophesy is described in 1st Corinthians 14:3 as to speak “unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort”.
Men cannot be edified by what they cannot understand.
The two main epistles where we find Paul's teachings on gifts are to the church of Corinth (a young still being established church) in 1st Corinthians 12:28-31 (tongues) (note the gift of tongues isn't even mentioned in Paul's second letter to Corinth) and to the church at Ephesis in Ephesians 4:8-12 (no tongues)
What does Paul say about the church at Corinth? 1st Cor 1:10-11, 5:1-2
What does Paul say about the church at Ephesis? Ephesians 1:15-16
This is not all the BIBLICAL PROOFS AGAINST tongues but it should be enough for the tradition entrenched man or woman to see that it is NOT OF GOD where God is known.
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