Baptists and tongues

Those believing they can speak in tongues, and those wishing to gain the Power of the Holy Spirit, to also believe they can, or those believing others can, should have a little talk with Jesus. He may suggest all go into their closets and pray over this matter.

Christian faith, ituttut

 

Is the word "known" in the Greek?

 

To John in Japan: I was called away from our little discussion to a somewhat emergency situation. And while I was called away I am certain a miracle of healing took place, in answer to prayer. (That is another story for another thread.) So now back to the discussion about Baptist and tongues. Here is what I believe, am certain of in my own mind. I believe R.A.Torrey, D.L.Moody, John R. Rice Brother Bob and you John of Japan, and many others too numerous for me to know or name are filled with the Holy Ghost!!!! I also know from your own words and the writings of the others that you do not have the gift of tongues. Nor do I see the absence of this gift is a great handicap. What I do see in the absence of this gift is your inability to believe and understand that others have this gift. I and others I know of are as amazed about this as you would be. As I have alluded to, perhaps you do not need this gift, you already have the power to witness. In my particular case the numbers of salvation's skyrocketed after I received the gift of speaking in tongues.(A private prayer language)

 

mima, I appreciate your humility here. However, you seem to be attributing your increased power in personal evangelism to the gift of tongues. Please, please, give the glory to the Holy Spirit, not to any gift He gives.

Notice Acts 4:31, in which tongues is not mentioned at all--"And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness." The filling of the Holy Spirit (which I believe to be the same as the baptism of the Holy Spirit) in answer to prayer brought boldness to witness for Christ.

As for the gift of tongues, I do believe that I have a gift of tongues, but not what you are talking about. Since I believe that the Bible word "tongue" (Greek glossa) should always be translated "language," I believe that the gift of tongues in the Bible is a gift of ability in languages. It may be a miraculous gift, as in Acts 2, where the tongues are clearly foreign language ability, miraculously given. Or it may be simple linguistic ability.

In my case, God gave me a very definite gift of language ability, though not miraculous. Two of the best years of my life were the years I was privileged to study Japanese full time! I was able to preach and witness in Japanese far sooner than most new missionaries. I preached my first message in the street, and some children professed faith in Christ. I preached my first "offical" message after just 1 year and 3 days (very quick in Japan), and two jr. high boys trusted Christ. Again, when I taught weekly in a Bible institute in Tokyo, the class I most enjoyed teaching was NT Greek. All glory to God for the gift of language ability He gave me!!

If you interpret your private prayer language as being the same as the tongues in Acts 2, what language is it and why are you not witnessing with it to the people group that uses that language? When you were in China, did you have a gift of a Chinese dialect to witness to the Chinese people? I think not--you used an interpreter, right? If God was going to give you the Acts 2 gift of tongues, surely He would have given it to you when you were in a foreign land!!