Before I was a Christian, I was once tricked into going to a church service. I was under the impression that I was auditioning for a rock band, but when I arrived at the audition, it was an Apostolic Church worship service. Turned out the musicians I was auditioning to play with were the church band that also had a side gig. I was told to hang tight until after church, and then everyone would go home, except for the band, which is when the audition would take place.
This Apostolic Church service was my first time witnessing what some people call “speaking in tongues.” You’ve likely heard it described before, or maybe you’ve even seen it: people on stage and in the audience saying words that no one in the room can understand. Often many people are speaking at the same time, usually without any interpretation. You can probably imagine what it’s like for an onlooker like me. In fact, the Bible describes exactly what I was thinking.
Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind?
1 Corinthians 14:23
Yeah, I thought everyone was crazy, and I was second-guessing that band audition. Long story short, I did get the chance to ask my friends what in the world I had witnessed, and they described their church service as a “Holy Ghost meeting.” People who attended and opened themselves up to God would apparently receive Holy Ghost baptism and the gift of tongues. In this study, we will focus on that second part. What is the truth about speaking in tongues?
I ended up auditioning for that rock band, and even though I wasn’t religious like them, I got the part. I played bass. The rest of the guys in the band were members of that Apostolic Church, and the church graciously allowed us to use their building as a practice pad for a while. Over the next few weeks, I grew closer to the guys in the band, which gave me lots of opportunities to ask questions. Based on how they spoke, I was given the impression that you’re not a genuine Christian if “speaking in tongues” isn’t, like, number two in your life. Jesus first. Tongues second. They even told me that you can’t be sure you’re saved if you don’t speak in tongues. What was the gift of tongues to them?
They explained it like this. (Once we go through this, we will see how much of it truly is from the Bible.) They said tongues is a heavenly language—an angelic one. When you speak in tongues, it’s completely out of your control. In fact, you likely won’t even know what you’re saying. According to them, that’s why God also gave some people in the church the interpretation of tongues. They said God proves to you that He has saved you by giving you the gift of tongues. Since God wants everyone to be saved, God wants everyone to speak in tongues, but not everyone does. Anyone who has never spoken in tongues, therefore, no matter how much they believe in Jesus, must always wonder if they’re even saved. Then they said you can’t speak in tongues without being baptized in the Holy Ghost, and you can’t be baptized in the Holy Ghost until you’re baptized in water. That’s a lot of information.
By the way, I did eventually allow them to baptize me in water, and it was finally my turn to speak in tongues. What happened? Well, I’ll let you know towards the end of the lesson.
After they explained all of that to me, I unloaded it on a friend who was not part of that Apostolic Church friend group. His response was simple, kind, and brilliant. He said, “That’s all very interesting. What Scriptures did they use to teach you all of that?” How many people would be better equipped if they simply asked that question every time someone taught them? God, in His infinite wisdom, gave the church the gift of tongues. When people twist the Scriptures to try to turn the gift into something it’s not, I believe God is thoroughly heartbroken. So let’s get to the bottom of it. What do the Scriptures say? We’ve got four questions to answer with the Bible today.
1. Where does the Bible mention tongues?
Perhaps, like I was, you’re under the impression that the gift of tongues is everywhere in the Bible, or at least everywhere in the New Testament. But when I sought to answer, “What do the Scriptures say?” I was surprised to learn that the gift of tongues is explicitly mentioned in only three books of the New Testament: Mark, Acts, and 1 Corinthians. In Mark, it’s mentioned only once; in Acts, it’s mentioned three times; and in 1 Corinthians, it’s in only one passage. If you want to know the truth about speaking in tongues, pause for a moment and read the exhaustive list of Scriptures that speak of this gift, and then you’ll learn all you need to know about the gift of tongues:
- Mark 16:15–20
- Acts 2:1–12; 10:44–48; 19:1–7
- 1 Corinthians 12–14
2. What is the gift of tongues?
Before His death and during His earthly ministry, Jesus sent His apostles to their own kinsmen—people Jesus called “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:6). He sent them with one message: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” On this mission, Jesus provided them with various miracles to confirm their message, including raising the dead, cleansing lepers, and casting out demons. One miracle that was notably missing on this occasion was speaking with tongues. Why?
The first time the gift of tongues is explicitly mentioned in the Bible is Mark 16:17, where Jesus commissioned these same men to preach the gospel to all creation. Matthew’s account says “all nations” (Matthew 28:19), so not just their kinsmen. What accompanied their preaching of the gospel to all nations were various miraculous gifts, just like the previous mission. This one, however, also included speaking “with new tongues.” The end of Mark 16 overlaps the beginning of Acts 1. Here’s how Luke describes this final exchange between Jesus and His apostles before His ascension:
And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 1:4–8
This time they were sent to preach more than the fact that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. They were to preach all things that Jesus had commanded them over the past three or so years, plus everything He was about to teach them through the Holy Spirit. Imagine being an uneducated person whose task it is to preach the most important message in the world delivered by the wisest Rabbi of all time to people of all nations. If that were me, my first thought would have been, “I should have been taking notes!” My second thought would have been, “How will I communicate to people from every nation?” These disciples likely knew, at most, only two or three languages each. The Holy Spirit was going to take care of both concerns. Jesus had told the apostles:
These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
John 14:25–26
The apostles, then, were not going to depend on their notes or fallible memories to preach the gospel. That’s good news by itself! How would the Holy Spirit take care of the language barriers?
When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.
Acts 2:1–5
In verse 1, the text says, “They were all with one accord in one place.” Who were they? You may be aware that about 120 disciples had gathered in an upper room in chapter 1. While those 120 disciples were together, the Lord chose Matthias to take Judas’ place as an apostle. When chapter 2 begins, it’s a new day and a new gathering. The they in verse 1 has its antecedent in the previous verse, which was the apostles. The only ones on record who spoke with tongues in Acts 2 were the apostles, who were filled with the Holy Spirit. Who was present to witness this miraculous event? Devout people from every nation under heaven. Keep reading.
And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.” So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?”
Verses 6–12
What happened next was that Peter and the rest of the apostles continued to preach the wonderful works of God, including the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. According to verse 36, the people in the audience were not believers and were guilty of the crucifixion of Jesus. Yet, what did God allow them to witness to convince them of the truth of the gospel? The preaching of the gospel in tongues.
When the apostles were meant to stay in their own region and preach the kingdom, they neither needed nor were given the gift of tongues. Now that they were preaching to every nation, they both needed and were given the gift of tongues.
According to the Bible, what was the gift of tongues? Obviously, it was when God gave someone the immediate and miraculous ability to speak the mighty deeds of God in a language they had never studied before. Jesus called it “new tongues” in Mark 16, indicating that these languages would be completely new to the speaker—no schooling needed. This ragtag group of Jews from Israel was suddenly equipped to speak any language necessary to spread God’s word.
Even today, when we speak of tongues, we often speak of known languages. Sure, there’s the organ in the mouth called the tongue, but what does it do? Among many things, it produces language. What’s your native tongue? Mine is English. But even within English, there are different dialects. I lived in New Zealand for nearly a decade. Although I knew English when I moved there, I quickly realized that I needed to understand a new dialect of English. That went beyond accent; it included slang, vernacular, and even different definitions of the same word.1
Notice this: The word for language is used in Acts 2:4. The apostles spoke in languages as the Spirit gave them utterance. The audience marveled and asked, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?” The second use of the word language is a different word, διάλεκτος (dialektos). You guessed it; that’s where we get our English word dialect. When the Holy Spirit provides a miracle, it’s complete. He didn’t just meet the people in their language. He met them in their dialects.
You may recall what happened when people in the book of Genesis attempted to build a tower to heaven. God came down and confused their language. The people of Babel had corrupted hearts. Here, on the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection, we have God coming down among Jesus’ own killers and practically undoing what happened at Babel. These people needed to hear the gospel. The Holy Spirit miraculously provided.
What exactly, then, was the gift of tongues? It was when the Holy Spirit provided someone the miraculous ability to speak the mighty deeds of God in a language they had never studied before. It happened only three times in the book of Acts:
- To the apostles in Acts 2, in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost for Jews from every nation under heaven. This miracle convinced the unbelieving Jews of who Jesus was. It also included baptism with the Holy Spirit, which thrust the apostles into their ministry beginning in Jerusalem.
- To Cornelius’ home in Acts 10. Also an occurrence of baptism with the Holy Spirit, this miracle convinced Peter and the apostles that it was time to welcome Gentiles into the kingdom of God.
- To disciples in Ephesus in Acts 19. In this case, the Holy Spirit provided the recently baptized Christians with miraculous gifts that are further explained in 1 Corinthians 12–14.
In 1 Corinthians, the apostle Paul linked miraculous tongue speaking with miraculous knowledge and prophecy. All three of these gifts were given for the purpose of communication, specifically, communication of the will of God. Remember that, in the first century, Christians didn’t have access to the New Testament the way we do. Paul had preached the gospel in Corinth, spent about 18 months with the newborn Christians, and then moved on in his ministry. What were the Christians to do in the absence of an apostle? The Lord gifted certain Christians with knowledge, prophecy, and tongues. But what if someone didn’t understand the language currently being spoken by the tongue speaker? The Lord also provided certain Christians with the gift of interpretation.
These Christians were always to use their gifts with the intent of being understood—not by God alone, but by everyone who could hear their message. If they could not be understood while speaking with tongues, they had two options: rely on an interpreter to convey the message—or stay silent. Here’s the Holy Spirit’s reasoning (this is a longer reading, but stick with it; it’s vital to understanding the gift of tongues as it was used in the first-century church):
But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching? Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle? So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without significance. Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me. Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel. Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.
1 Corinthians 14:6–17
What was the gift of tongues? It was when the Holy Spirit provided someone the immediate and miraculous ability to speak the mighty deeds of God in a language they had never studied before. Now that we know what the gift of tongues was, let’s get into:
3. What isn’t the gift of tongues?
With the simple biblical definition of tongues, then I suppose what the gift of tongues is not is everything else. The gift of tongues is not the moon. It’s not a dog. It’s not headache medicine. But, more importantly, we need to address the events and so-called “gifts” that people claim the gift of tongues is but, in fact, is not. There are three main facts we will briefly mention.
1. The gift of tongues is not unintelligible speech
What I heard in the Apostolic Church “Holy Ghost meetings” was completely unintelligible. That’s not meant as an insult or a roast. It was simply the case that there was no human intelligence associated with or aroused by the sounds people were making with their mouths. Remember, I honestly thought these people had lost their minds. Yet I personally knew some of them to be very intelligent folks outside this context, so I was more curious than put off. For lack of a better term, what I saw was ecstatic utterances that were—according to the participants—fully out of their control. In addition to their ecstatic utterances, they often jumped, ran, rolled on the floor, convulsed, or a combination of all of these behaviors.
How much of this is in Scripture? None. At least none of it with approval from God. No pun intended, but I was utterly confused. In the same chapter where Paul teaches on the gift of tongues, he says:
For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.
1 Corinthians 14:33
Read the Scriptures yourself and see that not a single person lost control of the body when he or she used miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures do address a tongue-speaker who could not be understood by the audience…in the form of a rebuke (see 1 Corinthians 14:2–17). We cover this much more in our other lesson on the eleven lies I was told about the gift of tongues.
2. The gift of tongues is not the ability to speak in angelic languages
Using hyperbolic speech, Paul paints a hypothetical situation in which he could speak in angelic tongues.
If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
1 Corinthians 13:1 NASB
What is this verse about? Clearly, it’s about the importance of love. Read the entire chapter, and that point is made even clearer. The hyperbolic nature of this verse is obvious when, two verses later, Paul says, “If I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing” (NASB).
Some people, however, have used this singular hyperbolic hypothetical statement to provide an unbiblical definition of tongues. They say that tongues is some angelic language. Is there any real evidence for this claim? Certainly not. Again, we cover this much deeper in the other lesson.
3. The gift of tongues is not two different gifts
When the Bible speaks of tongues, it speaks of the gift (singular) which was the miraculous ability to speak earthly languages for the sake of the gospel. Today, many people have invented a new gift completely foreign to Scripture. They still speak of the gift of tongues, but they also speak of praying in tongues. They often call it a “private prayer language.” Is this biblical? No. The gift of tongues was a singular gift, which was used in both preaching and praying.
The gift of tongues is not unintelligible speech, angelic languages, or two different gifts. But we already knew that since we’ve already studied what the gift of tongues is. However, if you have further questions, please plan to read about the eleven lies I was taught about the gift of tongues.
4. Is the gift of tongues for today?
After spending much time with my friends in the Apostolic Church, I wanted the gift of tongues so badly. I tried everything. I mustered as much faith as I could. They told me it wasn’t enough faith. Then they insisted for me to let them baptize me in water because I wouldn’t even be given the gift of tongues until I did. My attitude was, Lord, let your will be done. If this is what you need me to do, I’m ready. They dunked me in water. What happened next? I’ve written my story down in detail. Here’s an excerpt.
July 19, 2003
We gathered our bags and made our way into the church for the first time since the Tuesday night’s “huddles.” Pastor John met us at the door and then led us through the back halls into a big room with a livestock trough on the floor. They were filling it with a hose.
“These are the two that are going to be baptized today,” Pastor John announced to the ten or so people who had come to witness the occasion. Unfortunately, Bob, Kemp, and Mick could not be there.
“Praise the Lord.” “Hallelujah.” “Thank you, Jesus,” came the replies.
Katie and I had worn our soon-to-be-wet clothes to the church, so we were ready to get baptized as soon as we shook some hands. Katie was first. When the makeshift baptistery was filled, she sat down in it. The pastor told Katie what he was going to do, and he instructed her on posture and plugging her nose.
“Katie,” the pastor started, much louder than he had previously been talking, “I baptize you in the name of Jesus Christ.” Then he dunked her.
I didn’t know what to expect next. The guys said that this was how to get the Holy Spirit. What did that mean? How would we know? Would Katie speak in tongues right then and there? The pastor lifted Katie’s torso out of the water, and she took a breath, wiping the water from her eyes. There was silence as we all waited for Katie’s reaction. Standing up, she gave us a big smile.
“That feels great!” she said genuinely.
What was everyone waiting for? Something bigger?
“That’s the Holy Spirit! Congratulations, Katie,” Pastor John said, putting a hand on her shoulder.
“Praise the Lord.” “Hallelujah.” “Thank you, Jesus.”
“Your turn, son,” the pastor said, looking at me.
I got in the trough just as Katie did.
“You know what to do, and you know what I’m going to do?” Pastor John asked.
“Yes, sir,” I said.
“Lance, I baptize you in the name of Jesus Christ,” the pastor said with the same exuberance as he did with Katie. I held my breath and nose, and then he dunked me.
As my head came out of the water, I opened myself up to the Spirit. God, do what you’ve gotta do, I silently prayed. Send me your Holy Spirit. I sat up in the water, wiped away the water from my eyes, and held my eyes closed for a few more seconds. I breathed out heavily. Was it possible to flex your faith? Was it possible to transfer your body’s energy to a spiritual quality? I didn’t know, but I tried anyway.
Silence.
Just like with Katie, people were looking and waiting. I opened my eyes and smiled.
“Praise the Lord.” “Hallelujah.” “Thank you, Jesus.”
I felt great. But I was disappointed. I wasn’t disappointed in God. That wouldn’t be right, so I started searching myself for the source of my disappointment. Did I still lack the required faith? I felt that if I supplied more faith to God, it would start to hurt. Was I less sincere than the people around me, people who had spoken in tongues before my very eyes just a few nights earlier? I had a lot of questions. It felt good to show God and my friends that I had faith.
But was it enough faith for the Spirit to truly move?2
This was part of the beginning of my faith journey. I was still searching for answers. Unfortunately, I didn’t always look to the Bible for those answers. I depended on preachers, friends, and experiences more than the word of God. Finally, I approached the Scriptures with the question, “Is the gift of tongues for today?” To fully answer this question, we need to look deeper into miracles and other gifts of the Holy Spirit. We also need to understand baptism with the Holy Spirit and apostolic succession. We’ve dealt with some of that on this website already. Lord willing, we cover the rest in future lessons.
I recently heard a YouTuber say, “It’s interesting that those who don’t speak in tongues are trying to teach people about tongues.” What that gentleman was teaching, however, was not actually speaking with tongues. Let us remember the biblical definition of the gift when we ask if the gift of tongues is for today. If someone truly has the gift of tongues today, it would be performed in agreement with the scriptural definition. It would not be an ecstatic utterance of confusing, unintelligible speech. It would be miraculously speaking the gospel in a known, earthly language that even unbelievers can understand. Is that happening today?
In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul made it clear that the gift of tongues was never meant to be a permanent gift. Along with the miraculous gifts of prophecy and knowledge, tongues would cease and be done away with (see vv. 8–10). But don’t despair! The more important qualities like faith, hope, and love would continue even beyond the miraculous gifts of the Spirit. What’s most important is that love will never cease or be done away with. Love never fails.
I have a friend named John who moved to Taiwan to teach the gospel. He spent his first year in Taiwan in language school, mastering Mandarin Chinese. Would it have been convenient for John to have the gift of tongues? Sure! Did the Lord grant it to him? No. Not miraculously, at least. Additionally, John was not given the other signs Jesus gave the apostles in Mark 16—casting out demons, being immune to snake bites and deadly poisons, and healing the sick. Did John still preach the gospel? With all his heart, the Lord working with him to reach many.
God’s ability to provide the gift of tongues is not in question. Of course He can! But does the Bible tell us to expect Him to? When Jesus provided the gift of tongues to the apostles, He called it a “sign” (Mark 16:17). A sign for what? It was a sign for “confirming the word” they preached (v. 20). The purpose of the gift was to spread the word that had not yet been written down and circulated. Today, we all have access to the word of God, translated in practically every language under heaven. The gift of tongues isn’t necessary. Praise God! My friend John effectively preached the confirmed message without the need to perform miracles as proof.
While the gift of tongues played a vital role in the early church, its purpose has been fulfilled. The word it helped confirm has now been revealed, written, and preserved for all generations. Rather than longing for miraculous signs, we should rejoice in the completed and confirmed message of salvation that God has given us. Instead of pursuing spiritual experiences, then, let’s devote ourselves to understanding, obeying, and sharing the truth. Let His will be done.
To fully understand this, however, we need to unpack other miraculous gifts and baptism with the Holy Spirit, which we plan to do in the future. If you’d rather not wait, feel free to check out my book, Clouded by Emotion: Studies on the Holy Spirit. In it, we study all kinds of subjects, including Holy Spirit baptism, the laying on of hands, the purposes of miracles, and whether or not we should expect them today. Also, don’t forget to check out the eleven lies I was told about tongues.
- For example, a pacifier is a dummy, a sidewalk is a footpath, flip-flops are Jandals, a Band-Aid is a sticky plaster, and a diaper is a nappy. ↩︎
- This is an excerpt from my book, Transformed: A Spiritual Journey. ↩︎