( Continued from Joyce Meyer's book "Filled with the Spirit" )
...As for prophecy ( the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose ), it will be fulfilled and pass away; as for tongues, they will be destroyed and cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away [ it will lose its value and be superseded by truth]. - 1 Corinthians 13:8
Some people and even some churches teach that the gift of speaking in tongues has passed away. They base this argukent on Paul's first letter to the Corinthians in which he said that one day the spiritual gifts would no longer exist.
However, we know that prophecy and knowledge have not passed away. Those gifts are accepted today by almost all believers and are practiced in some form in almost all churches. Knowledge is sought for worldwide. It certainly has not passed away. Why then should we believe that the spiritual gift of tongues has passed away?
One reason some believers and some churches are opposed to speaking in tongues is that they have seen them abused or misused. But that is nothing new. The same thing was happening in Paul's day. That is why he wrote to the believers in Cointh, instructing them in what he considered the proper operation of the gifts of the Spirit, including speaking in tongues.
In 1 Corinthians 14:40 KJV, Paul instructed the Cointhians on how the spiritual gift of tongues should be exercised in the church service - decently and in order. But nowhere did he say that this gift had passed away or that it should not be recieved and exercised by all believers. In fact, in The Amplified Bible translation of verse 39 he said,...do not forbid or hinder speaking in [ unknown] tongues.
Yes, Paul found excess in the exercise of the gift of tongues, and he dealt withit. But he did not command or even suggest that tongues should be done away with to get rid of the excess.
Some people teach against things they don't understand or have not personally experienced. This is sad and robs many people of God's fullness for them.
Each of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is important and each has a role to play in the life of the believer. These gifts are bestowed upon us for a reason and a purpose. Open your heart to the Lord in faith and trust, allowing Him not only to fill you with His Holy Spirit, but also to impart to you the particular gifts He wants you to have - including the gift of tongues.
TripleClicks
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tongues as a Wonderful Gift
( Continuation in Joyce Meyer's book " Filled with the Spirit" )
I thank God that I speak in [ strange] tongues ( languages) more than any of you or all of you put together.
- 1 Corinthians 14:18
This passage tells us that Paul was grateful for the wonderful privilege of praying in tongues, and he practiced it a great deal in his life.
So should you and I. Once we are baptized in the Holy Spirit, we can speak or pray in tongues anytime we choose. We don't have to wait for some special feeling to come over us and move us to do so. Just as we can pray in our native tongue anytime we choose, we can pray in tongues anytime we choose, but the two ways of praying are not the same.
In 1 Corinthians 14:15 Paul clearly shows that praying with the spirit ( by the Holy Spirit ) is not the same as praying with the understanding: Then what am I to do? I will pray with my spirit [ by the Holy Spirit that is within me], but I will also pray [intelligently] with my mind and understanding...The great apostle Paul said that he prayed with his mind or understanding, but he also prayed with his mind or understanding, but he also prayed with his spirit.
Of course, it is possible to pray Spirit-led prayers in your own native language, and that is a valuable and right thing to do. But that is not what Paul was talking about in this verse. When he said he prayed with his spirit, he meant that he prayed in other tongues.
Next.... "Have tongues Passed Away?"....
I thank God that I speak in [ strange] tongues ( languages) more than any of you or all of you put together.
- 1 Corinthians 14:18
This passage tells us that Paul was grateful for the wonderful privilege of praying in tongues, and he practiced it a great deal in his life.
So should you and I. Once we are baptized in the Holy Spirit, we can speak or pray in tongues anytime we choose. We don't have to wait for some special feeling to come over us and move us to do so. Just as we can pray in our native tongue anytime we choose, we can pray in tongues anytime we choose, but the two ways of praying are not the same.
In 1 Corinthians 14:15 Paul clearly shows that praying with the spirit ( by the Holy Spirit ) is not the same as praying with the understanding: Then what am I to do? I will pray with my spirit [ by the Holy Spirit that is within me], but I will also pray [intelligently] with my mind and understanding...The great apostle Paul said that he prayed with his mind or understanding, but he also prayed with his mind or understanding, but he also prayed with his spirit.
Of course, it is possible to pray Spirit-led prayers in your own native language, and that is a valuable and right thing to do. But that is not what Paul was talking about in this verse. When he said he prayed with his spirit, he meant that he prayed in other tongues.
Next.... "Have tongues Passed Away?"....
Friday, April 10, 2009
Why Speak in Tongues?
( This is continuing in "Filled with the Spirit" by Joyce Meyer. )
"Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."
John 7:38,39 NIV
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to recieve....
In this passage Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit, Who had not yet been poured out upon believers. When He spoke of the "streams of living water" that would flow from anyone who believed in Him, I believe He was referring to the spiritual language that should be flowing from each of us who have recieved the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
Some people say that speaking in tongues is for some believers but not for all. Although it is true that not all believers speak or pray in tongues, I believe all of them could, if they would. As we have seen, all of the believers present in the Upper Room spoke in tongues on the Day of Pentacost, and I believe all believers today can and should do the same.
Why don't all believers speak in tongues today as they did at Pentacost? I don't believe it is because they can't; I believe they are afraid to because they have been taught not to or they think tonngues may be nothing but emotion.
While it is true that some believers are baptized in the Holy Spirit and do not speak in tongues, I don't believe that is God's best for them. If God has poured out His Holy Spirit upon you, I encourage you to receive all the spiritual gifts and abilities He wants to impart to you. God has made them available to you, so you should want to receive them in thier fullness.
But why should all believers receive and exercise the gift of tongues?
As we saw in 1 Corinthians 14:2, when we speak in tongues, we are speaking secrets and mysteries to God. We are saying things in a spiritual language that our enemy Satan cannot understand.
We are also edifying ourselves, as we see in Jude 20: But you, beloved, build yourselves up (founded) on your most holy faith [ make progress, rise like an edifice higher and higher], praying in the Holy Spirit.
When we speak in tongues, often we are prophesying great things over our lives, things that we might not be able to accept if we understood what we were saying.
Finally, when we pray in tongues, we are assured that we are praying as we should because the Holy spirit is praying through us...in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance.
I want to encourage you not to be afraid of the Holy Spirit and His gifts just because you may not have experienced them. When you ask Him to give you one of His gifts, He will never give you a bad one. To be very honest, these things are hard to explain to anyone who has not experienced them, but once you have experienced them, there is no denying the reality of this wonderful gift of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Next -" Tongues as a Wonderful Gift".....
"Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."
John 7:38,39 NIV
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to recieve....
In this passage Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit, Who had not yet been poured out upon believers. When He spoke of the "streams of living water" that would flow from anyone who believed in Him, I believe He was referring to the spiritual language that should be flowing from each of us who have recieved the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
Some people say that speaking in tongues is for some believers but not for all. Although it is true that not all believers speak or pray in tongues, I believe all of them could, if they would. As we have seen, all of the believers present in the Upper Room spoke in tongues on the Day of Pentacost, and I believe all believers today can and should do the same.
Why don't all believers speak in tongues today as they did at Pentacost? I don't believe it is because they can't; I believe they are afraid to because they have been taught not to or they think tonngues may be nothing but emotion.
While it is true that some believers are baptized in the Holy Spirit and do not speak in tongues, I don't believe that is God's best for them. If God has poured out His Holy Spirit upon you, I encourage you to receive all the spiritual gifts and abilities He wants to impart to you. God has made them available to you, so you should want to receive them in thier fullness.
But why should all believers receive and exercise the gift of tongues?
As we saw in 1 Corinthians 14:2, when we speak in tongues, we are speaking secrets and mysteries to God. We are saying things in a spiritual language that our enemy Satan cannot understand.
We are also edifying ourselves, as we see in Jude 20: But you, beloved, build yourselves up (founded) on your most holy faith [ make progress, rise like an edifice higher and higher], praying in the Holy Spirit.
When we speak in tongues, often we are prophesying great things over our lives, things that we might not be able to accept if we understood what we were saying.
Finally, when we pray in tongues, we are assured that we are praying as we should because the Holy spirit is praying through us...in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance.
I want to encourage you not to be afraid of the Holy Spirit and His gifts just because you may not have experienced them. When you ask Him to give you one of His gifts, He will never give you a bad one. To be very honest, these things are hard to explain to anyone who has not experienced them, but once you have experienced them, there is no denying the reality of this wonderful gift of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Next -" Tongues as a Wonderful Gift".....
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