How Important is Tongues?

Next Part Our First Glimpse of the Church

Another question arises: What is the most important gift that a Christian can receive? Is it performing miracles, healing, faith, prophecy, teaching or speaking in tongues? Does the Bible answer?

Immediately after Paul listed the above questions, he concluded with this admonition: “But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet show I unto you a more excellent way” (I Cor. 12:31). What are the best gifts?

Here is Paul’s answer: “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity [LOVE], I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal [noise]. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity [LOVE], I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity [LOVE], it profits me nothing” (I Cor 13:1-3).

What follows throughout the rest of the chapter is a detailed description of how the love of God is reflected in a converted mind. Love is the single greatest gift one can have, followed by faith and hope. So says your Bible (I Cor 13:13)!

Since so many professing Christians speak about the importance of “having love,” why do Pentecostals seemingly never reference the verses we have just read about the “best gifts”? Why do they “covet” tongues instead (I Cor 13:1)?

Try the Spirits

One gift of the Spirit is “discerning of spirits.” Of course, not every spirit is of God. Some are dangerous—very dangerous—to you and the Church! It is critical to understand who and what these spirits are—to “discern” and recognize them.

In fact, the apostle John warns, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (I John 4:1).

The world’s churches have ministers. They all claim to serve God. They all claim to represent Christ. Yet they compete with one another and cannot agree on even the most basic teachings of the Bible.

Why?

Paul answers in II Corinthians 11:13-15: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”

Never assume that what a minister teaches you is the truth—or even that he is of God. Always “try the spirits, whether they are of God.”

Many profess to teach the truth about speaking in tongues. Have you sought to prove whether or not they are ministers of truth? Do you care to know whether they could be one of “his [Satan’s]…ministers”? While some men may appear to be “angels of light,” they are not. You must learn to “try” them.

The devil has substituted the true biblical gift of tongues with a counterfeit. The allure of receiving special power has deluded many into blindly accepting this counterfeit—this SUBSTITUTE—as evidence of God’s Spirit.

Millions of sermons have been preached about the need for “the baptism of the Holy Spirit.” Invariably, these sermons speak of “signs following”—“manifestations”—“tongues”—“miracles,” with little or nothing said about HOW the Bible states one actually receives the Holy Spirit. In their excitement over the “manifestations” of the Acts 2:1-47 account, preachers ignore what Peter TAUGHT in his sermon on that very day about how God’s Spirit comes!

Jesus taught, “the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). This includes how to receive God’s Spirit and freedom from false “Pentecostal” ideas.

Revelation 12:9 declares that Satan “deceives the whole world.” This is an incredible but true statement. In fact, the devil has been so successful in this deception that Paul calls him “the god of this world” (II Cor. 4:4). Since Satan is a spirit (Eph. 2:2), of course, he seeks to deceive people about how they receive God’s Spirit.

The most dangerous assumption that you could ever make is that Satan cannot deceive you—on tongues or any other matter. Be careful that you are not tempted to seek the kind of “deeper spiritual insight” or “experience” that is superficially attractive. It is only appearance. Read Jeremiah 17:9 to gain a healthy respect for your mind’s ability to deceive you on matters where you may think yourself immune!

Beware of “leaning to your own understanding” (Prov. 3:5). Recognize that “He that trusts in his own heart is a fool” (Prov 28:26), because “There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Prov 14:12; 16:25).

Trusting feelings can lead to death!

Satan’s ministers are “transformed as the ministers of righteousness.” Believing the devil’s deceit, they mislead and deceive millions through “visions” and “dreams.” I have heard them shout about “leadings of the spirit” and that “the Lord has told me” to do this, or that, or the other.

Understand. The devil does not come wearing a red suit, with horns and a pitchfork. He comes as an “angel of light,” and the whole world, as a result, unwittingly worships him in place of the true God. Only through wearing the armour of God (Eph. 6:10-18) will you be able to “resist” (James. 4:7) the “wiles” (Eph. 6:11) of Satan, who is described as a “roaring lion” (I Pet. 5:8-9) and a “wicked spirit” (Eph. 6:12).

Even most Pentecostals, and those who seek “baptism with the Holy Spirit,” admit that tongues can be counterfeited by the devil. Yet they fall right into the trap of seeking what God nowhere in His Word tells people to seek.

As the master counterfeiter, Satan can counterfeit the true biblical gift of tongues with the gibberish so familiar to Pentecostal services and “tarry meetings.” Unknown (unintelligible to humans) tongues are, in fact, languages spoken by demons—fallen angels.

That is serious! When God gives the gift of tongues, it is a known foreign language, explained by an interpreter, not an unknown (unintelligible) language (gibberish). Notice that the word “unknown” is found in italics throughout I Corinthians 14:1-39. This is because translators added it—incorrectly. It is not in the original Greek text.

The prophet Isaiah warned ancient Israel of slipping into the dangerous practice of following wrong spirit sources, while thinking that what they did was innocent—a search for “deeper spiritual understanding”: “And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? For the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to THIS WORD, it is because there is no light in them” (Isa 8:19-20). Israel continually ignored the instructions of God’s Word of truth (John 17:17).

It will become clear that the way “Pentecostals” believe the Holy Spirit is given ignores the Bible completely. They follow a dangerous delusion born of sensual thrill-seeking. This practice is nothing of God!