Some will say that the gift is an essential
sign of salvation. In the Bible, we see examples
of new Christians who began speaking in tongues
after receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit
(see Acts
10: 44-46 and Acts
19:6).
Others will grudgingly admit the existence
of the gift of tongues, but discourage the
practice of it in worship services. Some support
for this could be found in the counsel of
Paul, who outlined some restrictions on the
public use of tongues in certain early Christian
gatherings (primarily taking turns and interpreting).
This was because the gift had come to be abused
and overused in some settings (1
Corinthians 14).
Still others will cast tongues under the category
of psychological delusions occurring under
ecstatic conditions, where emotions overtake
the rational thought process. In this case
“tongues” are considered to be
meaningless utterances, either made up for
the purpose of appearing spiritual, or a response
to rampant emotionalism.
These are just three positions on speaking
in tongues. There are many more besides. So
what are we to think? Are tongues a legitimate
spiritual gift? A heresy? Or an emotional
delusion?
One thing we can know for certain is that
Paul and others in the early church considered
speaking in tongues to be a genuine experience
in response to the activity of the Holy Spirit.
Paul himself spoke in tongues, and wished
that all other Christians would be able to
share that experience of prayer. He did not,
however, seem to expect that all Christians
would have the gift, nor did he by any means
consider tongues the most important of the
gifts of the Spirit (1
Corinthians: 14: 5).
Christians are first recorded speaking in
tongues at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit
was poured out on the disciples (Acts
2: 1-13). They began praising God in new
languages, and visitors from around the world
were amazed to hear the disciples worshipping
with words they could understand. This suggests
that at Pentecost, at least some of the tongues
spoken were recognisable languages, though
the gift of tongues is not limited to known
human languages.
The purpose of tongues in the New Testament
was to give worshippers a special heavenly
language with which to praise God, and possibly
to give a sign to unbelievers. If tongues
were interpreted, they could fulfil the same
function as prophecy, that is, to build up
the church. If tongues were not interpreted,
the gift was designed to be used mainly as
a special, private prayer language between
the individual and God.
But the purpose of tongues is not confined
to New Testament times. The gift of tongues
has been present and in use in the Church
from the time of Pentecost until today. Richard
Foster in his book Prayer – Finding
the Heart’s True Home says: ‘There
are many reasons and uses for [speaking in
tongues], but the most basic of all is for
a release of our spirit into the Spirit of
God, whereby the Spirit prays through us...
We enter the heavenlies by means of a heavenly
language that condescends to the use of our
feeble, stammering tongues to express the
inexpressible.’
This is a powerful experience of prayer. It
is a type of prayer that does not rely on
the mind to come up with prayer topics or
ways to express difficult thoughts and requests.
Instead, it relies upon God’s Spirit
giving words to our spirits, so that we may
pray them back to him. It can bring with it
an incredible freedom in prayer as you cease
trying to impress God with words and allow
him to grant you an intimacy that goes far
beyond language.
First and foremost, it’s important to
say that if you don’t exercise this
gift, you aren’t a second-rate Christian
or somehow ‘less spiritual’ than
those who do. Tongues is just one of many
ways in which we can pray and worship God.
At the end of the day, God simply delights
in the fact that we come to him in prayer
and worship (John
4:23). After all, he knows what we need
before we even utter a word (Psalm
139:4).
Also – there is no prescribed way to
receive this gift, as demonstrated by the
following stories about how different people
have received the gift.
Richard Foster’s experience began when
a friend gently prayed over him in tongues.
Others have received the gift in response
to a trying time when their confusion and
grief left them with no words to say. One
such friend received a single strange word
from God one night while she was lying awake
in bed, trying unsuccessfully to pour out
her troubles to God. The word gave her comfort
and freedom, and it sparked a whole new language
in which she can now pray.
Another person, wanted to develop the gift,
but did not know how, so asked God for a word.
At first she thought she was perhaps making
it up (or speaking French!), but when encouraged
by a friend when they were both praying, she
started to speak sentences in a new language.
My own experience with tongues came after
months of praying for the gift. I had wanted
a deeper intimacy in my prayer language, and
one night was blessed to receive it. I was
praying for someone who was to become a very
close friend of mine, when I quite suddenly
ran out of words to say. I was aware, however,
that God wanted me to continue praying for
him. So I continued praying, but now in a
new language which I had never heard before.
It was wonderfully liberating, as I knew I
could now pray God’s gifted words back
to him over my friend.
At the end of the day, the gift is not something
to meant to be frightening or scary. Just
as a baby doesn’t always know words
to speak, but still expresses itself through
it’s own gurgles and sounds, tongues
enables us to express the things on our heart
that we can’t always find words to say
to God. Pray and ask God for any words he
wants to give you, and allow his Spirit to
draw your spirit into a deeper intimacy in
his own time and his own way.
