question about speaking in tongues?

Question

In church yesterday the sermon talked about speaking in tongues and that it was a sign of the holy spirit. Im new in Christ and am still learning about many things. I talked to the brothers and sisters afterwards about tongues and am confused is tongues a gift of the spirit? I was also told that if i prayed for the holy spirit I would get the gift of tongues. I feel dumb not knowing but are tongues everyones experience or a gift for a few like prophecy?

Answer 1

There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one is the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits. TO ANOTHER SPEAKING IN DIFFERENT KINDS OF TONGUES, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines. 1 Corinthians 12:6-11

Answer 2

Tongues is a prayer language. Evangelical/Pentecostal denominations believe that one can ask of the Holy Spirit and receive their prayer language (I happen to believe this, as well). It is a way for the Holy Spirit within you to communicate with God.

Sometimes, you hear it in church, but there is a proper order. If someone speaks in tongues in church there should be an interpretation, someone who can hear it, understand it, and relate it in English. It's not meant for show.

In your prayer time, sometimes your human mind doesn't always know what to pray in a situation, or in the normal course of that prayer time. With the gift of Tongues, that portion of the Holy Spirit within you can give utterance to what is the object of communication with God at that time.

Sometimes, in a particularly intense time of prayer (maybe for a specific need), this will also occur.

Don't feel dumb about this. People may experience a prophetic moment in a particular moment without receiving the gift of prophecy. God says in His word that not all will receive the same gift. Some may receive more than one gift. These gifts are for the edification of God through Jesus Christ.

Pat Boone, the singer, tells the story of when he prayed for tongues. All he could do was make clicking noises. It concerned him enough that he went to his pastor to discuss it. The pastor asked him to show him what he meant. When Boone did, he was approached by a visitor from Africa. The visitor told him that he was speaking in his native language, which often consisted of a series of click-like sounds.

Answer 3

Many people have mistaken the real meaning of 'tongues'. Now imagine if someone were to ask you 'What is your mother tongue?' How would you answer? It would be English or Mandarin or Japanese, wouldn't it? Therefore, 'tongue' simply means 'language'. When God gave His worshipers the gift of the tongue, it enabled them to talk in different languages so that they could go spread the Good News to people who were non-Jews.
As Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 14:9: ...unless you through the tongue utter speech easily understood, how will it be known what is being spoken? And then in verse 10 it says: There are many different languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning.
So now you know that speaking in tongues actually and simply mean speaking different languages. On the other hand, if speaking in tongues really meant some mumbling just to show that you have the holy spirit, then what is the use of it if nobody in the world knows what your message you're trying to convey? Make sense, right?

Answer 4

The gift of tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit and as such the Holy Spirit bestows the gift as He sees fit. You can ask for the gift but you won't necessarily receive it. I have been at several prayer meetings where tongues were spoken and then someone interpreted what was said. Don't get to worked up about speaking in tongues, the Holy Spirit will bestow a gift on you that will probably be more important to the body of Christ.

Answer 5

Tongues are one of the gifts of the spirit. You need to sit down w/ your pastor or someone who speaks in tongues and ask them to explain it to you. A lot of people say it is wrong in this day and age, however, if it is from God it is good and right and some people practice it today. It is an unusual phenominen and can be very confusing. You need some counsel on this as there is more to it than meets the eye. You are not dumb........... you just don't understand. I believe if you want the gift of tongues you will receive the gift. Just make sure you talk to someone and get your questions answered. If a person speaks in tongues in the congregation it needs to be interrpreted by someone else. When you speak in tongues in private it is the holy spirit speaking for you directly to God. Tongues doesn't always need interrpretation = only in public places.

Answer 6

There are three occasions in the book of Acts where speaking in tongues accompanied the receiving of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4; 10:44-46; 19:6). However, these three occasions are the only places in the Bible where speaking in tongues is an evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit. Throughout the book of Acts thousands of people believe in Jesus and nothing is said about them speaking in tongues (Acts 2:41; 8:5-25; 16:31-34; 21:20). Nowhere in the New Testament is it taught that speaking in tongues is the only evidence a person has received the Holy Spirit. In fact, the New Testament teaches the opposite. We are told that every believer in Christ has the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:13-14), but not every believer speaks in tongues (1 Corinthians 12:29-31).

So, why was speaking in tongues the evidence of the Holy Spirit in those three passages in Acts? Acts chapter 2 records the apostles being baptized in the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him to proclaim the Gospel. The Apostles were enabled to speak in other languages (tongues) so they could share the truth with people in their own languages. Acts chapter 10 records the Apostle Peter being sent to share the Gospel with non-Jewish people. Peter and the other early Christians, being Jews, would have a hard time accepting Gentiles (non-Jewish people) into the church. God enabled the Gentiles to speak in tongues to demonstrate that they had received the same Holy Spirit that the apostles had received (Acts 10:47; 11:17).

Acts 10:44-47 describes this, “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter said, 'Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.'” Peter later points back to this occasion as proof that God was indeed saving the Gentiles (Acts 15:7-11).

Speaking in tongues in nowhere presented as something all Christians should expect when they receive Jesus Christ as their Savior and are therefore baptized in the Holy Spirit. In fact, out of all the conversion accounts in the New Testament, only two record speaking in tongues in that context. Tongues was a miraculous gift that had a specific purpose for a specific time. It was not, and never has been, the evidence of the reception of the Holy Spirit.

Recommended Resource: New Testament Teaching on Tongues by Merrill Unger.

Answer 7

Speaking in tongues is a spiritual gift with a little controversy. Some think you have to have it in order to be a disciple. There are 28 different gifts that I know of, including Giving, Encouragement, Music, Interpreting Tongues, and Speaking in Tongues. Speaking in tongues only means that the Holy Spirit enables you to speak in a language you don't understand or haven't learned.

Just search online for "spiritual gifts test" and click on one and follow the directions to see what your prominent gifts you have.

Answer 8

It is a gift of the Spirit. It is not "jibberish:" as someonme here so "elegantly" put it, but rather like a language of love. Sometimes, in prayer, you can go beyond what articulate language can express. And then the Spirit helps you to pray further by those "tongues". It's not given to everyone and cannot be regarded as a sign of the presence/absence of the Holy Spirit. There are many charisms and the Spirit distributes them to whomever He choses.
Please also read 1 Corinthians chapters 12 and 13. Paul tells us that something is preeminent over all charisms: and that is love. Love will never perish...

Answer 9

The speaking of tongues is a gift of the Spirit that is used in different ways. It is a sign of receiving the Holy Ghost; it's used to deliver a message to a specific body of people; it's used to edify a person desperately seeking God for a specific need in their lives and etc. These are among the things you'll read about if you start from the day of Pentecost in the Upper Room.

Answer 10

Speaking in tongues invoves the spirit of man and the spirit of God intermingling so that the believer communicates directly to God, giving expression of one's spirit rather than the mind. Some have the gift of tongues but it is to be used "appropriately" in God's house and is always followed by an interpretation that communicates the content and the meaning of it for edification of the body of Christ. Most, with the gift of tongues, use their gift in personal prayer and praise. The Lord will not withhold this from anyone.

Answer 11

Tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit experienced by people whom God chooses to give It to. Not everyone who has the Holy Spirit experiences tongues.