Introduction
This subject will be split up in 4 different posts covering the 4 common objections to speaking in tongues. This is being adapted from Kenneth Hagins book Tongues Beyond the Upper Room. I will be going into this subject with a lot of depth over the coming months and hope to show beyond any doubt that tongues are for today and this gift is for all Christians. It will be very practical as well. I realise that much has been written about this subject and the controversy around this subject. I would submit to you that Satan knows the great benefit of this gift and does not want any Christian to speak in tongues. Isn’t this what an enemy would do? I have spoken in tongues for over 30 years and have a lot of experience which I would like to share.
I have seen that during this tumultuous times we live Christians are losing faith, have become fearful and confused. This is not surprising with the current war in Ukraine and having been through 2.5 years of the covid-19 pandemic. As we head towards the the Great tribulation period we will need all the help we can get to keep our eyes on Jesus and our Father God.
Background
Oftentimes our denominational friends who do not speak with tongues ask us, “Why do you folks give such prominence to speaking with other tongues?”
Well, the answer is that we don’t! However, there are several reasons that make it seem like we do. One reason is the fact that those outside of Full Gospel circles are always asking us about the subject and compelling us to discuss it! Here are a few other reasons it seems like we give prominence to speaking in tongues:
- Speaking with other tongues is always manifested when one is baptized with the Holy Spirit. It is the supernatural evidence of the Holy Spirit’s infilling in a person’s life. (We’ll talk further about this later.)
- The spiritual gifts of tongues and interpretation of tongues are distinctive of this dispensation in which we live (1 Cor. 12:1-11).
- The Apostle Paul gave prominence to the subject of tongues. In fact, in his first letter to the Corinthian church, he wrote quite a bit about it. (See First Corinthians 14.) Why did Paul give so much prominence to tongues? Because then, as now, the subject was much misunderstood.
We’re going to cover a lot of ground as we explore what God’s Word says about the infilling of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. But first, I want to address some of the common objections people have against this subject of tongues.
Objection #1: ‘Jesus didn’t speak in tongues, so I don’t have to either.’
It’s true that although you will find all the other seven gifts of the Spirit manifested in the earthly ministry of Jesus, you won’t find tongues and interpretation operating in His ministry. You also won’t find speaking with other tongues or interpretation of tongues in demonstration in the Old Testament (although you will find this gift prophesied about in Isaiah 28:11-12). These two gifts of the Spirit are distinctive of this Holy Spirit Dispensation, or age, which began with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2.
Jesus mentioned this new gift that God would give to His people under the New Covenant. In Mark 16:17-18, Jesus declared that five supernatural signs are to follow believers, and one of them is that “… they shall speak with new tongues” (v. 17).
Some folks endeavor to explain that verse away by saying, “Well, that just means you used to curse and tell vulgar jokes before you were saved, but now you don’t do that anymore. Or you used to lie, but now you don’t lie anymore.” It’s true that you shouldn’t be doing those things, especially once you’re a child of God, but that is not what this scripture is talking about.
All five of these signs listed in Mark 16:17-18 are supernatural. Believers shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover— supernaturally. They will cast out devils—by the supernatural power of God. If they drink any deadly thing or take up a serpent, it will not harm them—because of God’s supernatural protection.
Now, of course, that doesn’t mean you can handle deadly serpents just to prove something. But you can be supernaturally protected like Paul was when he accidentally picked up a deadly viper along with an armful of wood on the island of Melita (Acts 28:3-5). The serpent bit Paul on the hand, but he just shook it off into the fire, and the poison had no effect on him.
If four of these five signs mentioned in Mark 16 are supernatural, does it make sense that God would add one more sign and make it natural? No! Besides, Jesus did not say, “A few believers will speak with other tongues.” He clearly implied that all believers should do so.
Why is it, then, that most believers do not speak with other tongues? I’m sure we could find a number of reasons why this is true. Sometimes the reason is pertinent to the individual. In other words, some people have their own personal reasons for not speaking in tongues.
However, I’m also sure of the number-one reason: There has been very little sound, logical, and scriptural teaching as to the scope and the value of speaking with tongues. As a result, many folks are not cognizant of this gift that God has made available to them. They just don’t realize the value of speaking in tongues—because if they did, they would all want to do it!
Living as a Christian in this World 