The Holy Spirit (Part 2)

THE DAILY WORD
By Jim Seekamp

Wednesday February 6, 2008

There are many good reasons to speak in tongues once a person is baptized with the Holy Spirit and has the Spirit UPON him, but it should also be remembered that speaking in tongues is not as important as walking in love:

1 Corinthians 13:1 (NIV)
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

In the above passage, Paul refers to his speaking in tongues as speaking in tongues of angels!

It is falsely thought in some circles that satan cannot understand you when you speak in tongues, but satan himself is a fallen angel, and he can understand our speaking in tongues just fine; he just doesn't WANT to! That's because when we speak in tongues we praise God:

1 Corinthians 14:14-17 (NIV)
14. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. 16. If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? 17. You may be giving thanks well (Greek: kalos: well) [enough], but the other man is not edified.

In the passage above, Paul tells us that when you speak in tongues, you are "giving thanks well!" The word "enough" is not in the original Greek, and the word "kalos" means "well!" There is no other passage in the New Testament that tells us any other way to "give thanks well!" That makes speaking in tongues an important part of praise and worship. It also makes speaking in tongues something that satan loathes and doesn't even WANT to hear!

It should also be pointed out that the Bible separates the speaking in tongues available to every believer at the baptism of the Holy Spirit from the GIFT of tongues:

1 Corinthians 12:28-30 (NIV)
28. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30. Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?

Notice that one of the gifts listed above is the gift of "speaking in different kinds of tongues," and not every believer has that gift. Although every believer can speak in tongues when they receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, not every believer has the gift of "speaking in DIFFERENT kinds of tongues!" Some of the disciples received this gift on the day of Pentecost:

Acts 2:6-8 (NIV)
6. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7. Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8. Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language?

That is an example of the gift of speaking in DIFFERENT KINDS of tongues; they were not speaking the tongues of angels, but of men. The Holy Spirit distributes that gift, along with the others, as HE wills:

1 Corinthians 12:7-11 (NIV)
7. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9. to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10. to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues. 11. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, JUST AS HE (the Holy Spirit) DETERMINES.

That is different than the speaking in tongues we do when baptized with the Holy Spirit. When they first started speaking in tongues, the disciples spoke as the Spirit enabled them:

Acts 2:4 (NIV)
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

We can speak in tongues any time we want once baptized in the Holy Spirit, because the Spirit enables us; it is an act of our own will. Otherwise the Bible wouldn't tell us to do it! (Jude 1:20) But the gift of speaking in DIFFERENT kinds of tongues is as the Holy Spirit wills.

PRAYER
Thank You Father for the Holy Spirit within and the Holy Spirit upon us. Thank You for our wonderful salvation that gives us access to so many wonderful gifts and promises. Help me to remember the great blessings I have received and not take them for granted.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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