Speaking in Tongues
As a group of us entered a Christian conference centre we saw a man, with his eyes closed, standing in the main corridor, speaking unintelligibly out loud. He didn’t stop as we passed. I went back and asked him what he was doing and he replied,
“I am practising speaking in tongues.”
“Oh!” was all I could think of replying, and moved on.
He had obviously been taught that ‘speaking in tongues’ was the effect the Holy Spirit had on the first Christians at Pentecost and he longed to be adept at its use.
There are major problems in his understanding. He seemed not to have understood Acts chapter 2, which is the only place in Scripture that ‘tongues’ are clearly defined, and what this gift of tongues was and its pupose.
1. ‘Tongues’ meant real languages.
The usual meaning of the Greek word is ‘langauges’. The text of the New international Version reads:
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit andbegan to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” Acts 2:1-4
There is no doubt what this meant as Luke explains it:
“And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” Acts 2:6-11
2. What mattered was what they communicated
The context was very important. Jesus had just said to his disciples:
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 2:8
The Holy Spirt was given so that the Christians could tell others throughout the world the good news about Jesus. It is therefore important to notice what these Christians were talking about in a wide variety of languages.
“. . . we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” Acts 2:11
This is so important. Biblical ‘tongues’ was a supernatural ability to speak real languages to tell people about Jesus and all that he had done.
The major characteristic of the Christians in the book of Acts was the urgent drive to tell and convince people about Jesus. Peter longed that everyone congregated in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost should hear this message. He said to them:
“‘Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.” Acts 2:14
Shortly after this, Peter healed a beggar who had been crippled from birth – perhaps he had spina bifida. Again Peter took the opportunity to speak to the gathered crowd about Jesus and his resurrection. However this time Peter and John were arrested and put on trial before the Sanhedrin, the same court that had condemned Jesus to death. They boldly spoke out:
“Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12
The Sanhedrin were unsure how to react:
“Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.” Acts 4:18
This demand was the exact opposite of the command of God so Peter and John replied,
“Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:19-20
3. ‘Prophesy’ would be the mark of the Holy Spirit’s presence
When Peter was explaining the significance of the outpouring of God’s Spirit, to the crowd at Pentecost when they all heard about Jesus in their own langauges, he reminded them that passing on of the Word of God, prophecy, would be the mark of all Christians from then on. He quoted from the Old Testament prophecy of Joel:
“In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. . . And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Acts 2:17-21
The evidence of the Holy Spirit’s presence is that all Christians will long to pass on the message about Jesus to others. ‘Prophecy’ simply means ‘speaking out’ God’s mesage to ohers.
There are some today who think of ‘tongues’ in a very different way. They like to pray using meaningless noises as they think this is evidence that they have the Holy Spirit. I had a patient who came from a very troubled background. When she was about 20 years old she had been invited to a lively church where ‘tongues’ was a regular feature of their services. After a short while she asked an elder of the church how she could know if she was a Christian.
“Let me hear you speak in tongues.”
She had learned to do this from listening to others and was able to oblige the elder.
“Oh, you must be a Christian if you can speak in tongues as that is the gift of the Spirit.”
She left that church a few weeks later and had nothing more to do with Christians until nearly twenty years later. It was then that she learned about Jesus and the salvation he offered and willingly turned to him in repentance. Over 500 years befor Jesus, Daniel, an exile in Babylon, understood how real godliness is identified, such people take on the radiant character of God, as seen in Christ, and they long for others to know of the salvation he offers:
“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel 12:3
4. Tongues are for people
At a recent conference attended by some enthusiastic Afro-Caribbeans Christians I was interested to be told that tongues was a form of prayer to God. We discussed the only place in the Bible that ‘tongues’ are explained and I asked who the tongues were addressed to there. In spite of the clear teaching that tongues were real languages used to inform foreigners about the gospel they refused to accept this. ‘No, tongues is a way of praying to God’. We then discussed the follwing passage in I Corinthians but they still thought that ‘tongues’ was the spiritual way of praying to God. They added that although they do not understand what they are saying God is pleased with such worship. It is very worrying how people can accept doctrines that are not Biblical because they have been taught this by gifted influencers.
5. Tongues is speaking in words others can understand
Speaking to others about Jesus is the true mark of the Spirit’s presence. In Corinth some Christians wanted to use their gifts to promote themselves. They used this as a sign to others to demonstrate that they were spiritual. Have you noticed in prayer meetings where tongues are used they are nearly always expressed loud enough so others can hear! Paul would have none of this. The gift of tongues was given to communicate the message about Jesus:
“ Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. . . But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort. Anyone who speaks in a tongue edifies themselves, but the one who prophesies edifies the church. 1 Corinthians 14:1-4
“Now, brothers and sisters, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to you, unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of instruction?” 1 Corinthians 14:6
Again here tongues are primarily addressed to others, not to God. The use of meaningless language was a feature of ancient Greek mystical worship of their gods, just as today it is practised by some Hindus and Moslems and other mystical religions. Paul had this to say about such a practice:
“For this reason the one who speaks in a tongue should pray that they may interpret what they say. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. Otherwise when you are praising God in the Spirit, how can someone else, who is now put in the position of an enquirer, say ‘Amen’ to your thanksgiving, since they do not know what you are saying? You are giving thanks well enough, but no one else is edified.” 1 Corinthians 14:13-17
Jesus did not use meaningless words to worship God. He certainly did not advocate that this was the way to pray, instead he said “This then is how you should pray: ‘Our Father . . .’”. It was meaningful sharing of the news about Jesus and meaningful prayer that were also encourgaed by the apostless.
5. Tongues in the Early church
‘Tongues’ as a ‘spiritual language’ are not mentioned in any writings of the early church fathers as being a feature within mainline Christian churches. Augustine did refer to the miraculous use of foreign langauges in the very early church. Clearly there were some people suggesting that the gift of speaking real foreign languages was still necessary evidence for the presence of the Holy Spirit. He strongly refuted this,
“How then, brethren, because he that is baptised in Christ, and believes on Him, does not now speak in the tongues of all nations, are we not to believe that he has received the Holy Ghost? God forbid that our heart should be tempted by this faithlessness . . . . Why is it that no man speaks in the tongues of all nations? Because the Church itself speaks in the tongues of all nations. Before, the church was in one nation, where it spoke in the tongues of all. By speaking then in the tongues of all, it signified what was to come to pass; that by growing among the nations, it would speak in the tongues of all.”
Augustine was clear that the early gift of real languages was given to facilitate the spread of the gospel to other nations.
Montanus was a heretical second century church leader who said that the Spirit had sent him to reform Christianity. He advocated asceticism, the use of tongues and continued prophetic revelation. His ideas were promoted by two ‘priestesses’ who ‘had the Spirit’ and who were regarded by the sect’s followers as being more important than the apostles and in some regards than Christ. The church father, Eusebius, when describing these two women, said that when they were ‘spirit filled’ they ‘uttered demented, absurd and irresponsible sayings’ and suggested that they practised a form of glossolalia, the making of meaningless noises. Tertullian in later years joined the Montanists and he described one of their services,
“We have among us now a sister who has been granted gifts of revelations, which she experiences in church during the Sunday services through ecstatic vision in the Spirit . . . And after the people have been dismissed at the end of the service it is her custom to relate to us what she has seen. . . .” Among other things,” says she, “there was shown to me a soul in bodily form, and it appeared like a spirit, but it was no mere something, void of qualities, but rather a thing that could be grasped, soft and translucent and of ethereal colour, in a form at all points human.”
Although much of their teaching seemed orthodox, this was a schismatic movement. The Montanists were widely criticised and were condemned as being heretical by the Council of Constantinople. Yet one leader of the modern tongues movement has described themselves as being ‘neo-Montanists’!
An urgent plea
How the church needs to rediscover the urgency of talking about Jesus to others in terms they will understand. A major part of the job of church leaders is to train every church member to share the gospel with those they meet:
“ . . . to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” Ephesians 4:11
Solomon understood this necessity that Jesus and his apostles clarified:
“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.” Proverbs 11:30:
Why then do so few Christians speak to others about Jesus – don’t we have his Spirit in us? Not all Christains will feel adequately equipped yet for this role but all can give invitations to events where the gospel is explained or give out literature that their church leaders have supplied them with.
BVP
September 2023
