Is Speaking In Tongues Biblical Today?

Major1

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There are two common misconceptions people have about speaking in tongues:

1) Speaking in tongues in the Bible is speaking in the language of angels or some other language that no people on earth normally know, and .....
2) The same gift of speaking in tongues we read of in the Bible continues today.

The Bible reveals that both of these ideas are in false.

The Bible actually says that "speaking in tongues" has ceased.

In 1 Corinthians 13:8-10, Paul, in emphasizing the eternality of love points out that the gift of receiving prophecy from God, the gift of speaking in tongues, and the gift of receiving knowledge from God will end.

He says this will happen when that which is perfect is come. The Greek word translated "perfect" here is teleios. It means "complete." Something has reached its perfection when it is complete.

IMO the only thing that meets that explination is the Word of God and what Paul is referring to is the canonization of Scripture. Once God put all of the knowledge He wanted the church to have into the church through the gifts of knowledge, tongues, and prophecy—and all of this was recorded in Scripture—then He stopped giving those gifts. Tongues were only for the period of transition from the Old to the New Covenant, they were a witness against unbelievers, and were the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies foretelling the divine judgment against the Jews as He turned from them to the Gentiles.

Tongues, as well as the gifts of knowledge and prophecy, and physical healing have ceased.
 
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Hello fellow brother in Christ!

I'm glad that you brought this topic up as it is, in my opinion, an exciting topic to discuss.

I will say that I respectfully disagree with your point one and two. If I may present the biblical evidence against you're statements.

Firstly,
Speaking in tongues in the Bible is speaking in the language of angels or some other language that no people on earth normally know, and

Paul and Simon Peter imply is that there is a distinction in the types of speaking in tongues, such as the miraculous speaking in existing languages and speaking in a completely unknown language. (Acts 2:6 and 1 Chorinthians 14:2)

And to you're second point, the way we interpret 1st Corinthians 13:8-10 comed into play. Whenever I read "But when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away" (1st Corinthians 13:10) I read it as when the Christ comes back once more as this book is written after Jesus had passed. The time in which the book was written strongly suggests Paul is referring to when Christ comes back which also means that prophecy nor tongues more miracle will cease until the fulfilment of the final prophecy!

I hope that this challenges you're point of view, but most importantly I hope that I have shed some light upon the othe view of thinking on this topic!

I can't wait for you're response
 
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Tsquared

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Jesus Said:
Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
Mark 16:18 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.
Mark 16:19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
Mark 16:20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

To me, personally, that doesn't sound like these things have ceased, but that they are to be active in the church :) But I don't wish to argue, only to leave my point of view. God bless.
 
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Halbhh

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There are two common misconceptions people have about speaking in tongues:

1) Speaking in tongues in the Bible is speaking in the language of angels or some other language that no people on earth normally know, and .....
2) The same gift of speaking in tongues we read of in the Bible continues today.

The Bible reveals that both of these ideas are in false.

The Bible actually says that "speaking in tongues" has ceased.

In 1 Corinthians 13:8-10, Paul, in emphasizing the eternality of love points out that the gift of receiving prophecy from God, the gift of speaking in tongues, and the gift of receiving knowledge from God will end.

He says this will happen when that which is perfect is come. The Greek word translated "perfect" here is teleios. It means "complete." Something has reached its perfection when it is complete.

IMO the only thing that meets that explination is the Word of God and what Paul is referring to is the canonization of Scripture. Once God put all of the knowledge He wanted the church to have into the church through the gifts of knowledge, tongues, and prophecy—and all of this was recorded in Scripture—then He stopped giving those gifts. Tongues were only for the period of transition from the Old to the New Covenant, they were a witness against unbelievers, and were the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies foretelling the divine judgment against the Jews as He turned from them to the Gentiles.

Tongues, as well as the gifts of knowledge and prophecy, and physical healing have ceased.

Interesting to see 1 Cor 13 applied about the incomplete, and the interesting idea that the cannon (which is only a selecting process, and more than one at one time....) constitutes completeness....but leave that and instead read and see what Paul directly says as he spends chapter 14 on tongues!

Your first point though is very key -- the tongues that came on pentecost were understood by people listening!

Paul will add to that in chapter 14.

It is not up to us to decide when the Spirit is done with whatever, and what the Spirit may or may not do.
 
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There are two common misconceptions people have about speaking in tongues:

1) Speaking in tongues in the Bible is speaking in the language of angels or some other language that no people on earth normally know, and .....
2) The same gift of speaking in tongues we read of in the Bible continues today.

The Bible reveals that both of these ideas are in false.

The Bible actually says that "speaking in tongues" has ceased.

In 1 Corinthians 13:8-10, Paul, in emphasizing the eternality of love points out that the gift of receiving prophecy from God, the gift of speaking in tongues, and the gift of receiving knowledge from God will end.

He says this will happen when that which is perfect is come. The Greek word translated "perfect" here is teleios. It means "complete." Something has reached its perfection when it is complete.

IMO the only thing that meets that explination is the Word of God and what Paul is referring to is the canonization of Scripture. Once God put all of the knowledge He wanted the church to have into the church through the gifts of knowledge, tongues, and prophecy—and all of this was recorded in Scripture—then He stopped giving those gifts. Tongues were only for the period of transition from the Old to the New Covenant, they were a witness against unbelievers, and were the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies foretelling the divine judgment against the Jews as He turned from them to the Gentiles.

Tongues, as well as the gifts of knowledge and prophecy, and physical healing have ceased.

I was healed twice by the Lord Jesus Christ and speak in tongues a lot. Your intellectual argument cannot disprove what some of us know to be fact.
 
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Hidden In Him

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In 1 Corinthians 13:8-10, Paul, in emphasizing the eternality of love points out that the gift of receiving prophecy from God, the gift of speaking in tongues, and the gift of receiving knowledge from God will end.

This is a very interesting passage, Major. But I hold to the interpretation that the entire context is about knowing one another intimately, so as to minister to one another "perfectly" rather than simply by knowing one another in part, which is what the exercise of spiritual gifts is for (i.e. such as receiving a word about them having a problem with this sin or that, or a prophecy that this or that may happen to them in the future, given the person they are and the direction they are taking in life).

This is why he brings up infants, who cannot see very well because their eyesight has not fully developed yet, and then uses the Greek word βλέπομεν (to see) in v.12, and then ἐπιγνώσομαι (to recognize) twice in the same verse. In Heaven, the Spirit gives you instant mental recognition of things, including a person's spiritual and emotional state. And therefore gifts will no longer be needed. All that will remain is love, so love is the most important thing to walk in, far more than operating in prophecy or tongues and interpretation. This is because there we will fully recognize one another as we are, making the need for personal prophesies and words from the Lord about people obsolete. Like adults, we will have the eyes to see each other completely and perfectly.

Under this interpretation, the time for its fulfillment has not yet come, so there is still a need to operate in spiritual gifts in order to help one another in ways only the Spirit of God can see and knows we need.
 
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Major1

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This is a very interesting passage, Major. But I hold to the interpretation that the entire context is about knowing one another intimately, so as to minister to one another "perfectly" rather than simply by knowing one another in part, which is what the exercise of spiritual gifts is for (i.e. such as receiving a word about them having a problem with this sin or that, or a prophecy that this or that may happen to them in the future, given the person they are and the direction they are taking in life).

This is why he brings up infants, who cannot see very well because their eyesight has not fully developed yet, and then uses the Greek word βλέπομεν (to see) in v.12, and then ἐπιγνώσομαι (to recognize) twice in the same verse. In Heaven, the Spirit gives you instant mental recognition of things, including a person's spiritual and emotional state. And therefore gifts will no longer be needed. All that will remain is love, so love is the most important thing to walk in, far more than operating in prophecy or tongues and interpretation. This is because there we will fully recognize one another as we are, making the need for personal prophesies and words from the Lord about people obsolete. Like adults, we will have the eyes to see each other completely and perfectly.

Under this interpretation, the time for its fulfillment has not yet come, so there is still a need to operate in spiritual gifts in order to help one another in ways only the Spirit of God can see and knows we need.

Good thoughts. No argument from me.

I would only say to you that the phrase....."The perfect one" in 1 Corth. 13 is in the "Neuter" in the original Greek. That means the "Perfect one" is a THING and is not a person or a thought or a feeling.
 
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Hidden In Him

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Good thoughts. No argument from me.

I would only say to you that the phrase....."The perfect one" in 1 Corth. 13 is in the "Neuter" in the original Greek. That means the "Perfect one" is a THING and is not a person or a thought or a feeling.

I understand. Proper translation there for me would be "But whenever the complete [knowledge] may come, that which is in part shall be disposed of," the word "that" referring specifically to partial knowledge of other people's lives and characters.
 
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Major1

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I understand. Proper translation there for me would be "But whenever the complete [knowledge] may come, that which is in part shall be disposed of," the word "that" referring specifically to partial knowledge of other people's lives and characters.

I agree and the Bible would then in fact be the completed and perfect Word of God.

When it was completed there was then no need for tongues or knowledge or prophecies IMO.
 
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pescador

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I agree and the Bible would then in fact be the completed and perfect Word of God.

When it was completed there was then no need for tongues or knowledge or prophecies IMO.

Then how do you account for people like me and many others who exercise the spiritual gifts, including speaking in tongues, in 2017?
 
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Major1

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I was healed twice by the Lord Jesus Christ and speak in tongues a lot. Your intellectual argument cannot disprove what some of us know to be fact.

I was not making an intellectual argument. I was making a Biblical explanation.

If you care to, could you direct your thoughts to the Bible and not an experience.
 
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Major1

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Then how do you account for people like me and many others who exercise the spiritual gifts, including speaking in tongues, in 2017?

IMO it is because you have grown up being taught to do it, or better yet because you simply want to.
 
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Major1

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Also how can the word of God be completed without all prophecies inside of its chapters being complete?

Now just sit and think about your question for a moment. Does it really make sense to you?

"Completed" my friend means that God gave His word to men and men wrote it down in a Bible.

Completed means "Finished". The Book, the Bible was finished and canonized in 330 ad.

The prophecies found in the Bible which have not come to pass have no bearing on the "Finished" Bible that we have in our hands.
 
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Major1

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I was healed twice by the Lord Jesus Christ and speak in tongues a lot. Your intellectual argument cannot disprove what some of us know to be fact.

And I have been healed as well. I have survived wounds in combat, and cancer but they were not at the hands of a faith healer.

The Bible says in James 5:13-16............
" Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much."
 
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Hidden In Him

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they were not at the hands of a faith healer.

These words may explain some things. If you can, Major, please explain why you are so adamant that the gifts have ceased. Is it primarily a defense of a particular denominational position, or is it more an apologetic against what you see as abuses going on in the modern church?
 
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Major1

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Interesting to see 1 Cor 13 applied about the incomplete, and the interesting idea that the cannon (which is only a selecting process, and more than one at one time....) constitutes completeness....but leave that and instead read and see what Paul directly says as he spends chapter 14 on tongues!

Your first point though is very key -- the tongues that came on pentecost were understood by people listening!

Paul will add to that in chapter 14.

It is not up to us to decide when the Spirit is done with whatever, and what the Spirit may or may not do.

Agreed.

And when we read 1 Corth 14 and we get to verse #34, what do we see?????
"Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says."

Paul IS not saying that women can not speak in the church as we know in other places he has encouraged women to speak and pray. So what is he saying and WHY???????

Now the context of chapter 14 is all about "Speaking in Tongues". Who can do it, when to do it, and how to do it and in the end, Paul says that women are "NOT TO SPEAK IN TONGUES AT ALL".

Now ladies, do not get mad at me, I did not write 1 Corinthians. However, if the women were stopped from speaking in tongues today as Paul has said, there actually would not be any tongues spoken in church at all today.
 
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I was not making an intellectual argument. I was making a Biblical explanation.

If you care to, could you direct your thoughts to the Bible and not an experience.

No, because Jesus is living and active today in the lives of many, many people including me. Throughout the New Testament there are many situations when Jesus healed people of all kinds of physical illnesses, deformities, cast out demons, etc. Also, there are the gifts of the Spirit which are operating today just as they were when the Bible was written.

My faith is in my living Lord and Savior. The Bible is God's word -- only. It is just a book, not a living person. The Bible points to the Trinity, but it's not God.
 
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Major1

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These words may explain some things. If you can, Major, please explain why you are so adamant that the gifts have ceased. Is it primarily a defense of a particular denominational position, or is it more an apologetic against what you see as abuses going on in the modern church?

Yes. I have been around and in the church for 50 years. The abuses I see now are very disturbing to me.

We see today as an example the process done which is referred to as "Slain in the Spirit".
A preacher will touch someone or blow on some one and they fall down backwards as if they have been over come by some magical force. It is called by those who do it as the Holy Ghost.

Now the problem is that there are NO examples of "Slain in the Spirit" any where in the Bible.

The only suggestion of such an event is the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus was arrested. Now notice, ALL the people there were lost and were the enemies of God and when they fell down, they fell backwards.

Every single Bible verse I know of when someone came into the presence of an angle or Christ they fell FORWARD in worship.
 
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