DownshoreDrift

Most do not believe that Paul is talking about speaking in tongues in this passage, while some do (See Gordon Fee’s God’s Empowering Presence, pp. 575-586). Nevertheless, we see the role of the Spirit in the prayer life of the believer. If this is what the Spirit does for us in prayer, then it is reasonable to assume that we will see these facets occur again in Scripture. And, if you place this activity in the context of Romans 8, we see that the Spirit is at work to strengthen us by granting us victory over sin and by connecting us in intimacy with the Father, to bring us on to maturity in Christ, and to remind us of the Father’s love and our ultimate victory as we cling to our eschatological hope. Let’s see if these themes emerge in other passages regarding the Spirit’s role in our prayer lives.

                                                          

Ephesians 6:18: “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

Here, we see Paul telling the Ephesians to pray in the Spirit. This is to happen through ALL kinds of prayers. Our praying is to be empowered and led by the Holy Spirit. We are not to just pray according to our own whims and our flesh, but our prayers are to be led by the Spirit. The Holy Spirit wants to have His way with us and pray through us. This keeps us alert and spiritually sensitive. This type of prayer can also be intercessory prayer, because it involves lifting others up before the Lord. We pray in the Spirit, because we do not know how to pray for one another, but God knows. He has the power we need.

Jude 20:  “But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.”  Again, we are told to pray in the Spirit. A connection is made here with building yourselves up in your faith. We are led to believe that we are built up in our faith as we pray in the Spirit, or that the former would be a result of the latter.

So, according to these passages, praying in the Spirit is important and vital to our faith becoming strong. The Spirit helps us in our weaknesses and He enables us to intercede for others when we do not know how to pray.  As we pray in the Spirit, we better learn to walk in the Spirit. This connects us with our eschatological hope in the coming of Christ and the truth of God’s love.

1 Corinthians 12-14

After establishing the need and merits of engaging in Spirit led and Spirit empowered prayer, I want to look at the references to speaking in tongues in 1 Corinthians 12-14. Let me first of all say that I believe that you can “pray in the Spirit” without speaking in tongues. The Holy Spirit can guide you and give you unction in prayer that does not come from you. You can pray the heart of God as you pray His Word and pray according to His will. As I will attempt to show, however, speaking in tongues is ONE of the ways that you can “pray in the Spirit.”

1 Corinthians 12:10:  “to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.”  The Corinthians have been found valuing certain gifts over others, and it should not be so. Paul gives an incomplete list of certain lists and he introduces the concept of speaking in DIFFERENT kinds of tongues. There are multiple types of tongues that are from the Lord and are a gift of His Spirit. This gift is given to certain individuals, but not to all. But, they come from the Holy Spirit and are given “just as He determines.” In other words, God is in charge of who gets which gifts, not us, even though we are told to seek after the gifts (1 Cor. 12:30; 14:1).

In 1 Corinthians 12:12-26, Paul engages in a discussion on the value of each member of the body and of each gift that God gives to the body. We cannot do without one another. We should not say to others who are gifted differently than us that we don’t need them. Those that are seen as weaker are actually indispensable, and those who have less honor should actually be honored. In other words, we cannot say to those who are different from us that they have no place in the body because of their gifting. If it is from the Lord, then He has a purpose for it and it is not up to us to determine what His body will look like. It is up to Him.

1 Corinthians 12:28:  “and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.”  Again, DIFFERENT kinds of tongues are mentioned in the list of spiritual gifts.

1 Corinthians 12:30:  “Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?”  Along with the other gifts mentioned, the implied answer to this line of questioning is “No.” Not all speak in tongues. Not all interpret. Only some have this gift, and it is given out according to the sovereign will of God.

1 Corinthians 13:1:  “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” While tongues are a gift from God, they are not the mark of spirituality. No spiritual gift is. The mark of spirituality is how we love God and love people. This is what Jesus taught us and it is reiterated by Paul. Never in any discussion on spiritual gifts or tongues should we develop classes of Christians based on the “haves” and the “have nots.” These are not things we can control. But, we can love one another. Loving one another and loving God brings glory to Him and shows us to be His disciples (John 13:34,35).

In addition, we see that there are tongues of men and tongues of angels. There are human languages (some perhaps given miraculously), and heavenly languages.  It seems to be possible for us to have the ability to engage in both forms of speech. This would fit with the idea of there being “different kinds of tongues.”  Some, however, have said that when angels spoke to humans in the Bible, they spoke in human languages showing that they did not have a separate angelic tongue. That is ridiculous. They were messengers from God to man. Why would they speak in an unintelligible language? But, just because they spoke a human language does not mean that they did not have a language of their own. Just because I might speak Spanish does not mean that I do not speak English with my family.

1 Corinthians 13:8-13:  “where there are tongues, they will be stilled;”  At some point in the future, tongues will cease. So will prophecy.  Cessationists have pointed to this verse as proof that tongues have passed away. They have also lumped the miraculous gifts in with this passing as well. They believe that it happened at the end of the first century when the canon of Scripture was completed, because they claim the Bible is the “perfection” of verse 10.  While the Bible is inerrant, it is clear that “perfection” is pointing to the coming of Christ in the parousia. “Then we shall see face to face.”  “Then I shall know fully, even as I am known.” When will these things happen? Only when we are in eternity with the Lord! These things did not take place when the Bible was completed. If they had, we would not be having this discussion now, because we would all agree and all of this would be perfectly clear to us!

So, how long will we have the gifts? Until Jesus comes back!  1 Corinthians 1:7, 8 says, “Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  We will have ALL the spiritual gifts until Jesus comes back. There is no cessation here. Their purpose is to keep us strong and holy in the Lord. They help build us up. This goes along well with the role of the Spirit in prayer in Romans 8:26, 27 and Jude 20, 21.

1 Corinthians 14:1-5:  vs. 2 - “For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his spirit.” Here, we begin to see the nature of speaking in tongues. They were not speaking in intelligible human languages to one another. They were speaking mysteries with their spirit to God. They were talking to God! This is commonly known as "prayer."  While this is fine, we then see an encouragement to engage in prophesy for the building up of the body. When we prophesy, we are strengthening one another, thus prophecy is the best gift to be used in the church. In the church, we should seek to build one another up.

“He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself.”  It is not wrong to edify yourself, as some have said. We edify, or build ourselves up all the time. We read our Bibles, we pray, we obey God, we attend church and engage in ministry. We do all sorts of things to make ourselves stronger in the Lord. Jude 20 commands us to build ourselves up in our faith by praying in the Spirit.  We are told to be strong in the Lord in Ephesians 6:10 by putting on the armor of God. So, putting on God’s armor is a way of building ourselves up. As a matter of fact, one of the roles of the Spirit in prayer in Romans 8:26, 27 is to help us in our weaknesses. Speaking in a tongue to edify yourself cannot be seen as derogatory, especially in light of what Paul is saying about prophecy.  We also see a consistency here with the role of the Spirit in prayer in Romans 8:26, 27 as He helps us in our weaknesses.

Also, Paul would like every one of them to speak in tongues! How can this be wrong if Paul wants them to do it? We have already seen that this must be some type of spiritual language, because those who speak in a tongue do not speak to men but to God as they utter mysteries with their spirit (14:2). This is a good thing! I do not see how it can be more plain, but some people still find ways to explain this away.

Those who prophesy are greater in the church because they are able to edify the church. However, if one interprets tongues in the church, that is acceptable and is equal with prophecy.  This tells me that there is a type of tongue that is just for the speaker as they pray in their spirit to God, and there is a type of tongue that is meant prophetically as a message to the church. If this tongue is interpreted it plays the same role as prophecy. So, we are now beginning to see DIFFERENT kinds of tongues emerge from our discussion.

Let me say a quick word about prophecy and/or the interpretation of tongues. These words are NEVER to be considered new revelation on par with Scripture. They are only to me messages of edification, correction, instruction, or warning/heralding of things to come.  They serve the same function as the preaching of the Word and they are always to be judged by the Word of God. They never supersede the Word or add or take away from it. I know no one who teaches this, and if they do, they are in error. Prophecy and the interpretation of tongues is only meant to make the body stronger (see 1 Cor. 14:26).

1 Corinthians 14:6-25.  Paul next engages in a lengthy discussion on a major problem in Corinth. People were so enamored with their gift of tongues that they were walking up to one another and speaking in tongues. This had no use in the body since the other person had no idea what they were saying. They could not give assent or disagreement. It was especially detrimental when they were doing it in the presence of unbelievers. This would be a sign to the unbelievers that they were lost, but not in way that would bring conviction. It would cause them to say that the believers were mad! It would be a sign against them because it would show that they were not of God’s people, but there would be no redemptive purpose in it. They would just be confused and turned off. Prophecy, however, would be effective, because they could understand the message and they would be convicted and turn to the Lord. Paul would rather speak five words that were understandable in the church, than ten thousand in an unknown tongue.

This perspective speaks against the evangelistic use of tongues that cessationists often use. If tongues had an evangelistic purpose, then Paul would have encouraged them to speak the local languages of the unbelievers using tongues so they could hear the gospel clearly. But we do not see an evangelistic purpose in tongues where a clear message is given anywhere in Scripture (for my perspective on Acts 2, see my last post - this possibly occured in Acts 2, but the miracle could have also been in the hearing).

At the same time, even though Paul had every chance to, he does not discourage the practice of speaking in tongues.  In verse 18, he even thanks God that he speaks in tongues more than all of them.  He affirms the practice and tells them to keep doing it! Let’s look at 1 Corinthians 14:13-17:

13For this reason anyone who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret what he says. 14For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. 16If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? 17You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified.

If we speak in a tongue we should pray that we interpret so that we can be of benefit to the body.  This is for public worship. But, in verse 14, Paul says that when he prays in tongues, his spirit is praying.  His mind is unfruitful and not active. Should he then stop praying in tongues (with his spirit)?  No! What will he do? He will pray with BOTH his spirit and his mind. He will pray in tongues and pray with understanding. He will sing with his spirit (from the context established, we can assume that this means you can sing in tongues – perhaps the spiritual songs of Eph. 5:19?), and he will also sing with his mind. He is even able to praise God with his spirit!  This means that you can praise God by speaking in tongues!

In the tongues experiences in Acts 2, 10, and 19, those who received spoke in tongues and they praised God and/or prophesied. They were able to give praise to God through their spirit while speaking in tongues, and they also were able to prophesy of what God had done. Possibly, this involved a prophetic tongue, an interpretation, or maybe just the gift of prophecy. Either way, the tongues experiences in Acts are illuminated quite well by what is being described here in 1 Corinthians 14.

My point here is to equate speaking in tongues with praying in/with the Spirit. Does this mean that the only way to pray in the Spirit is by speaking in tongues? No, I don’t believe so. But, I do believe that it is ONE way that Paul seems to affirm. To read this any other way, in my opinion, is to ignore the context of the passage and the definitions that Paul himself gives.

1 Corinthians 14:26-28:  Here, we see that tongues with interpretation must happen for the strengthening of the church. Guidelines are given for how it is to take place so that there is order and so the church will be edified. An interpreter must be present to interpret any prophetic tongues that are for the body. But, if no interpreter is present, then the speaker must keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God, engaging in his spiritual LANGUAGE PRIVATELY in PRAYER. From this (1 Cor. 14:28), and 1 Cor. 14:2, 14, 15, 16, we get the concept of a Private Prayer Language (PPL). This term was adopted because of the negative connotations and abuses associate with “speaking in tongues,” but it is the same thing.

1 Corinthians 14:39, 40: “Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.” This becomes so clear that it is almost silly to spend time explaining it. Paul, when given every opportunity, does not forbid speaking in tongues, eliminate them, or say that they will cease. As a matter of fact, he gives a command to NOT forbid speaking in tongues. The tongues that he is talking about are the same tongues that are spoken to God not to men, are mysteries uttered in our spirit, and are prayers with our spirit. These are the tongues of angels, or at least, a spiritual language that is given to us to praise God, build ourselves up, and intercede for others.

In Conclusion

Why does God give the gift of speaking in tongues to some? I believe that it is a gift of being able to pray in and with the Holy Spirit in a way that you are manifesting the prayers of the Spirit. It is something that you are led along in, and when you do it, you are praying in the Spirit. You receive spiritual power (edification), and you pray for things and people (intercession) that you would not know how to pray for otherwise. You are able to express praise to God with your spirit and find intimacy with the Lord through this. It, I believe, is meant to build up the believer in a way that causes him to be stronger in the Lord and have a greater anticipation for His return.

However, this does not mean that these experiences are unavailable to those who do not speak in tongues. If that were the case, then God would give them to everyone. Those who do not speak in tongues are also able to have extreme intimacy with the Lord, to pray in the Spirit (being led along and empowered by the Spirit), to intercede for others in ways they know not, and to experience the power of God. God chooses to give the gift of speaking in tongues for reasons unknown to us, but He is the giver. He gave them to Paul. He seemed to give them to the church in Ephesus as well (Eph. 6:18), which would fit with John the Baptist’s disciples speaking in tongues in Acts 19 on the way into Ephesus. He gave them to the church in Corinth. He has given this gift out historically through the church age. We do not know exactly why, but it seems to be a good thing that brings glory to God. Who are we to stop it?

The real issue here, however, is whether or not we will divide over this. Paul told us not to forbid it. Yet, Southern Baptists are forbidding the practice. Instead of making sure that it happens within the proper guidelines as Paul did, we are caving into cessationist doctrine and setting aside the Word of God. We are reinterpreting Scripture to fit our experience, or our lack thereof, and in that, we become the anti-Pentecostals, who are always accused of interpreting Scripture by their experience. We are moving away from the sufficiency of Scripture and are giving in to the fears and the traditions of men and are dividing over non-essential doctrines. This is not honoring to God.

My purpose in this series of posts was truly not to change anyone’s mind. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. Rather, I attempted to give a reasonable defense for a much maligned spiritual gift that I believe to be biblical. People are being turned away from the mission field because they engage in a practice that the Apostle Paul encouraged. We are giving into our fears of charismatic excesses and we do not have enough confidence in God’s Word to let it be the guide. We have forgotten how to apply it rightly, so we build parapets that keep us from getting close to the edge of error. In that, we squeeze out the Holy Spirit and end up disobeying the Lord. This must stop now. It is wrong and it cannot stand in a convention that claims to be biblical.

Because I see this as a secondary doctrine, I can work with the cessationist who completely disagrees with me. I cannot change their minds. But, the question remains, can they work with me? If not, they are the ones causing dissension and unnecessary division based on their own biases instead of a clear reading of the Bible. Even if they are rock solid in their convictions, why can't they leave room for another interpretation of these passages?

One other thing: I find it interesting that they take a clear reading of the text to 1 Corinthians 14:33-38, which limits women in ministry roles so that they cannot be in leadership over men. If they applied the same hermeneutic to the rest of 1 Corinthians 14 that they apply to the teaching on women in ministry, we would not have any conflict. Should Acts (the narrative) interpret Paul's clear teachings or should it be the other way around? We settled that on women in ministry, but on the issue of tongues, some reverse the hermeneutical principle. Shouldn't we be consistent? 

This is, of course, an incomplete treatment of the subject. I am sure that I have missed some things and I have probably raised many questions. Through welcomed interaction I look forward to bringing clarity to fuzzy places and I also look forward to being sharpened myself. That is, if anyone was able to read this far!