Confusion over Spiritual Gifts

[Starpuppy]

Dear all,

I belong to a Charismatic Pentecostal church however I am at confusion with regards of the day of Pentecost as everyone in the congregation speaks in tongues

Acts 2:1-4
New International Version (NIV)
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them.

compared to

1 Corinthians 12:4-11
New International Version (NIV)
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

Please kindly explain

 

[dragongunner]

What you have highlighted is different than the baptism of the Holy Ghost where one speaks in tongues. This gift enables one to speak in a tongue that is a message from God to the church. Then one who has the gift to interpret will speak what the message was. This is why if the church has no one with the gift of interpretation, then the one with the gift of tongues to remain silent. In my old church this happened many times, someone would begin to speak in a tongue and the church would go silent until the person was done. Then someone, there was 2 or 3 that could interpret, would stand and translate in english the message God had for us.

 

[ltwin]

Dear all,

I belong to a Charismatic Pentecostal church however I am at confusion with regards of the day of Pentecost as everyone in the congregation speaks in tongues

[Snipped to save space]

Please kindly explain

What dragongunner said is correct. You have to distinguish between tongues as a prayer language (which all Spirit-filled Christians are capable of operating) and tongues as a spiritual gift with the purpose of edifying the church (which only some are capable of operating).

The first type of tongues is for private, individual use. The second type is for public use.

 

[Starpuppy]

How does one know that its a spirit filled gift then speaking in gibberlish?

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

All good things are from ABBA.

If it's of men or wickedness, it will pass, and may cause confusion in the meantime, or distraction from God and Truth.

From Yhwh, in Yeshua, is Peace and Whole Healing and "right ruling".
this is seldom seen in any meeting with or without 'gifts'. (deceptions are far far more common)

 

[Knockout]

deceptions are common enough but seeing the gifts in action whether a deception or the genuine is scarcer than anything else these days

people are so afraid of a deceptive spiritual gift they shut them all down and the devil has been very successful doing that in almost all churches

 

[tturt]

agree.

What has been posted about the different purposes of tongues falls under "the diversities of tongues" such as in I Cor 12:28.

 

[Alithis]

How does one know that its a spirit filled gift then speaking in gibberlish?

whenever someone starts using the term gibberish.in reference to tongues i feel to post this -

Rabbigu waa weyn yahay, waana in aad loogu ammaanaa
Ilaaheenna magaaladiisa, iyo buurtiisa quduuska ah.

its gibberish ..

Isnt it ? because you do not have any comprehension of this string of jumbly letters .. is it meaningless jabber ?

does our comprehension define what is jabber and what is language ? no God does ..
Be very careful the judgments you (anyone)make of things ,if we base those judgments simply on the lack of our comprehension .

------------



to save you the search .. the gibberish looking txt above is the first verse of psalm 48 ..

in Somali.

 

[Bob Carabbio]

The answer, of course is in the LAST sentence of your post.

"All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines."

EVERY CHRISTIAN - potentially can "Speak in a Tongue" if the "Spirit DETERMINES" that He wants 'em to. EVERY CHRISTIAN (and animals, according to Scripture - remember the fish with the coin, or the Ravens, or the quails) potentially can be empowered by the Holy Spirit to do anything the Holy Spirit CHOOSES for them to do.

Simple as that.

The Holy Spirit HAS "chosen" occasionally to temporarily empower me to "Interpret" tongues, and to Speak "Prophesy". The Gifts of the Spirit are TEMPORARY empowerments, ministered to the Christian at the time, and in the manner that they're needed. If you held a GUN to my head today, and ORDERED ME to "prophesy" - I couldn't. the "Gifts" (Charisma/Spirituals) aren't OURS - they're HIS.

He HAS NOT, however, empowered me to "Speak in tongues" to a congregation as a message.

Simple as that.

Empirically, however it appears that since 1900, a person who receives the "Baptism in the Holy SPirit" (to use Pentecostal terminology) typically does also receive the ability to "speak in a tongue" in the 1 Cor 14:4 context.

Mine has just "Been there" for 40 years now, and I can (and do) speak it whenever I please, But it IS NOT the ability to deliver a MESSAGE in a tongue to a congregation, any more that the fact that I speak English whenever I want to, means I can "Prophesy" any time I want.