"Modern tongues is a new phenomena and that it was what God used to reveal the Gospel and authenticate the Apostles message of Jesus Christ. Just like manna and quails were no longer needed in the Promised land and that all miracles of the OT were signs authenticating their ministry and the message/prophecies of God but were not needed by those preaching those texts later in time, so too tongues is no longer needed to authenticate the Gospel Message."
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Speaking with Tongues Speakers Part 2
Speaking with tongues speakers, pt. 2
4. Tongues are only to be exercised in the church if they edify others. “Let all things be done for building up” (1 Cor. 14:26). Everyone agrees. However, how are we edified? Paul is very clear: edification only occurs through understanding (1 Cor. 14:5-12, 19, cf. Rom. 12:1-2). This, of course, is why translation was not optional. If we do not understand, we cannot be edified. If something does not edify, it has no business in Christ’s church.
5. All tongues’ spoken messages must be obeyed. If the Holy Spirit speaks, we must obey (Isa. 66:2; Heb. 12:25), thus the need for discernment (1 Cor. 14:32). The implication of this truth is immense, because not only are tongues a gift of the Spirit, but their translation as well (1 Cor. 12:10). This is where things get tricky for the requisite tongues’ translator (Which could be the tongues’ speaker or another, 1 Cor. 14:13). If the translation contains any error whatsoever, or is a prophecy that fails to come true, or in any way contradicts the Scriptures, then the Holy Spirit cannot be the one speaking. This is why Biblical tongues cannot be fabricated in a way that obeys 1 Corinthians 14. I can’t speak for 10 seconds without making some sort of error with my tongue (Cf. Jas. 3:6), and if my tongue makes an error, I cannot truthfully claim the Holy Spirit was in complete control of it. Could you? And what would you call someone who attributed an erroneous quote to you that you did not actually say?
6. The tongues’ speaker must pray while speaking in tongues. If Paul didn’t understand what the Spirit was saying through tongues, then his mind was unfruitful and he could not be edified, therefore, he prayed (1 Cor. 14:14-15). This explains the somewhat enigmatic opening verses of chapter 14 where Paul explains why prophesy is superior to tongues: Everyone is edified through prophesy because everyone understands it. However, if an unknown ‘tongue’ was spoken, the only person that could possibly be edified by that utterance was the person speaking, and that if he was praying. Paul is almost sarcastically asking the tongues’ speaker: Do you go to Church to edify yourself? If so, please return to point 4 above. This also illustrates the explicit purpose of the gifts: the mutual building up of others, not of oneself (1 Cor. 12:7; 14:12; cf. 1 Pet. 4:10).
Now if someone has listened up to this point, they might be beginning to doubt whether all the tongues they have experienced are biblical tongues. So, it might be helpful at this point to offer a quick definition of tongues and their purpose:
Acts 2:6-11 is very clear that tongues were human languages that people understood, serving the purpose of transitioning to the new message of salvation quickly so that all could hear of Jesus before they died (Tongues are said to be a sign for unbelievers, 1 Cor. 14:22). Peter stood up and said that the salvation message had been appended: from that day forward everyone had to believe in the name of Jesus to be saved (Acts 4:12). Of course, if I was a Jew, I would want good reason to trust Peter over mighty Moses.
This is why God bore witness with the apostles and prophets through authenticating signs (We cannot lay claim to this group since not even the author of Hebrews does, Heb. 2:4; those were signs of the apostles, not of all believers, 2 Cor. 12:12; and that foundation was laid only once,Eph. 2:20). However, while God only used a few to authenticate the message, tons of Christians spoke in tongues so that everyone could hear quickly. Lastly, tongues verified even to perplexed Peter that salvation was being brought to the uncircumcised Gentiles, since they too bore the same sign (Acts 2:4; 10:45-47).
Of course, in my opinion, all these purposes have now been fulfilled since the canon is closed and sufficient. One wonders how anyone could claim a closed canon if the Holy Spirit is still speaking and translating today. Thus, I believe it is biblically impossible for tongues to be exercised today, and therefore the strategy of simply exhorting all charismatics to obey 1 Corinthians 14.
The three normal arguments against tongues being human languages:
a. Some use 1 Corinthians 13:1 to ‘prove’ that tongues are angelic languages (I hesitate to engage those who say this is necessary so that Satan cannot thwart our prayers, since an angelic language would, in fact, be Satan’s mother tongue). Rather, I think this concept is more easily refuted exegetically, since Paul is clearly not claiming that he was omniscient (1 Cor. 13:2), and therefore, cannot be claiming that he could speak in angelic tongues. Paul’s point is clear: I don’t care what tongues you claim to speak in, if you don’t love, you’re just making noise. (And let’s be honest, many of our charismatic brethren excel in the area of loving others, and we can learn from them).
b. The claim that Paul teaches in Romans 8:26 that the Holy Spirit uses our tongues to intercede is patently false since Paul clearly states that this intercession is ‘too deep for words’ = inaudible (ἀλάλητος).
c. The notion that ‘various kinds of tongues’, 1 Corinthians 12:10, means some angelic, some inerrant, some not-so-inerrant, is also easily explained since the word ‘kinds’ (γένος) generally means families and is only used by Paul in 1 Corinthians to speak of different families of languages (1 Cor. 14:10).
Now, if at any point in your conversation (which could take minutes or months) you feel like your charismatic brother is ready, I would encourage you to jump quickly to this last point. It is an unnerving thing to have your entire Christian world flipped upside-down. We need to be reminded that whatwe do have in Christ is so far surpassingly superiorthan external miracles that there is no longer any need to desire them.
For this I generally head over to John 16:7, where Jesus makes the remarkable claim that it’s better to have the Holy Spirit transforming our insides, than Christ working from the outside. “I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away”. That’s an amazing statement. I, for one, would love to be healed, for my son to walk, to watch storms calmed, breakfast created, etc. It sounds pretty great having the Sovereign at our side. That is, until we realize that the crowds who experienced all His miracles were so wicked that even after being healed by Christ, they crucified Him… wait, that’s how wicked I am too. And external miracles are incapable of convincing someone to believe and be saved (Luk. 16:31), incapable of sanctifying us, only the Spirit’s Word has those powers (Ro. 10:17; 12:2), therefore God has given us a superior miracle, the internal transformation of the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:18)!
Finally, the Spirit’s work is observed primarily by His fruit, and not by His gifts. The Corinthians were known for having all the gifts (1 Cor. 1:7) and yet still being carnal (1 Cor. 3:1-3). My prayer is that when people enter our churches, that they be wowed, not by external signs, but by internal Christ-likeness. Instead of a fascination with the external, may we invest all our time and energy seeking His image, to be transformed into His likeness, through the study and application of His Word, for His glory.Speaking with Tongues Speakers Part 1
As someone who loves and works alongside many charismatic brothers, I am frequently asked by my cessationist brethren: What is the best way to prove to charismatics that the gift of tongues has ceased? I believe the question is ill-formed and often creates division instead of unity in truth. So here is my quick answer:
But first, a list of things NOT to do:
a. Do not be haughty, but rather humble (Eph. 4:1-3). This probably goes without saying, but it’s a good reminder nonetheless. Do not speak down to a brother, but rather love him as yourself, speaking truth with kindness and gentleness. Of course, if you are speaking to a Oneness Pentecostal who denies the Trinity, or someone else who is not a believer, they need the Gospel, not cessationism, but even that should come with gentleness (2 Tim. 2:25).
b. Do not judge someone else’s experience. Let the Bible do that. Just encourage them to submit their lives to Scripture, including their own experience. Regarding a completely different experience, I remember the moment that I decided I was tired of my sin. I sought God out at a church, went to the front and decided to give Him my life, pledging Him my love forever. I also remember the first time one of those “terribly close-minded Calvinists who slaughtered my Mennonite ancestors” gently came alongside me, wept with me in my sorrows, rejoiced with me in my victories, and patiently showed me that no one seeks God (Rom. 3:11), and that if I loved Him, it’s because He loved me first (1 Jn 4:19). I was then the one the Holy Spirit then opened my eyes to see that my experiences needed to be interpreted by Scripture and not the other way around, understanding that I needed to attack my arrogant pride in thinking that I had contributed something to my own regeneration. To God be the glory.
c. Do not try to condense a 30 hour lecture series into 10 minutes. Of course, if you are a seminary professor and teach a class on cessationism, great. However, if you only have 10 minutes to speak to a lay person, probably being interrupted by your children amongst other distractions, your attempt to explain the middle voice of a verb in 1 Corinthians 13:8 will most likely only prove in their minds that youare the one going against the Scriptures, forbidding something it clearly instructs the Church to do (1 Cor. 14:39). In fact, you’ll probably appear to be much like the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, jumping from Ephesians 2:20 to Hebrews 2:4 to 2 Corinthians 12:12 just like they speak without giving time to process the context.
Instead, I would recommend you open your Bible to 1 Corinthians 14:27 and encourage your tongues’ speaking friend to exercise his ‘tongues’ exactly, and exclusively, as Paul instructs. Three simple points:
1. A maximum of three people can speak in tongues during a church service. Pretty hard to interpret this truth differently, the verse says “If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three…” So if four people speak in tongues at a church service, at least the fourth person sinned.
2. One tongues’ speaker at a time. Verse 27 continues: “…and each in turn…” If multiple people are speaking in tongues simultaneously, they are all culpable.
3. All tongues’ speakers (Max. of three and in turn) must be translated. Again, the command is clear: “and let someone interpret.” The next verse make the point even more emphatic: “But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church…” (1 Cor. 14:28).
I usually pause at this point to make a bit of application, knowing that my time might be cut short.
What are the implications of these three points? If you walk into a church and more than three people are speaking in tongues, what does this mean? What if more than one speaks simultaneously? What if one speaks without translation? Sin is obviously implied, but what more?
First, let’s assume with the charismatics and with Paul that the biblical tongues’ speaker was not moving his own tongue, since he did not even understand what he was saying (Thus the need for translation). The Holy Spirit was the one uttering mysteries (1 Cor. 14:2, 14). Now, today¹, if four people speak in Biblical tongues at a service, or two at a time, or one without translation, then the deity of the Holy Spirit is suspect, because He has enabled a Christian to speak in tongues in direct contradiction to His own revealed Word. You see, if the Holy Spirit moves a believer to speak in tongues in direct disobedience to the Bible, He has forced His own child to sin.
This verse, then, 1 Corinthians 14:27, has ample material to cause charismatics to meditate and ask themselves some questions about what they see and do. If so, hopefully they’ll ask us those questions… that’s what we’ll prepare for tomorrow, looking at three more clear instructions from 1 Corinthians 14 and their implications for us today.
Footnote 1: In Acts 2:1-4 the Spirit moved more than three believers to speak in tongues simultaneously and without translation. We’ll deal with the why tomorrow, for today I believe it is sufficient to mention that these events occurred well before the commands of 1 Corinthians 14. Furthermore, it’s hard to argue that they were in a Spirit-filled New Testament Church service (requirement to disobey 1 Cor. 14:27) before the Spirit had filled them.
Total Depravity
TOTAL DEPRAVITY
Because of the fall, man is unable of himself to savingly believe the gospel. The sinner is dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God; his heart is deceitful and desperately corrupt. His will is not free, it is in bondage to his evil nature; therefore, he will not--indeed he cannot--choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently, it takes much more than the Spirit's assistance to bring a sinner to Christ--it takes regeneration by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature. Faith is not something man contributes to salvation but is itself a part of God's gift of salvation--it is God's gift to the sinner, not the sinner's gift to God.
(Genesis 2:15-17, Romans 5:12, Psalm 51:5, 1 Corinthians 2:14, Romans 3:10-18, Jeremiah 17:9 John 6:44, Ephesians 2:1-10) :
Genesis 2:15-17 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. (16) And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; (17) "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Psalms 51:5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Romans 3:10-18 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: (11) There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. (12) They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (13) Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: (14) Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: (15) Their feet are swift to shed blood: (16) Destruction and misery are in their ways: (17) And the way of peace have they not known: (18) There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Ephesians 2:1-10 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; (2) Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: (3) Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. (4) But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, (5) Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) (6) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: (7) That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (8) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: (9) Not of works, lest any man should boast. (10) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Because of the fall, man is unable of himself to savingly believe the gospel. The sinner is dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God; his heart is deceitful and desperately corrupt. His will is not free, it is in bondage to his evil nature; therefore, he will not--indeed he cannot--choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently, it takes much more than the Spirit's assistance to bring a sinner to Christ--it takes regeneration by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature. Faith is not something man contributes to salvation but is itself a part of God's gift of salvation--it is God's gift to the sinner, not the sinner's gift to God.
(Genesis 2:15-17, Romans 5:12, Psalm 51:5, 1 Corinthians 2:14, Romans 3:10-18, Jeremiah 17:9 John 6:44, Ephesians 2:1-10) :
Genesis 2:15-17 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. (16) And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; (17) "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Psalms 51:5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Romans 3:10-18 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: (11) There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. (12) They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (13) Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: (14) Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: (15) Their feet are swift to shed blood: (16) Destruction and misery are in their ways: (17) And the way of peace have they not known: (18) There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Ephesians 2:1-10 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; (2) Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: (3) Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. (4) But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, (5) Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) (6) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: (7) That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (8) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: (9) Not of works, lest any man should boast. (10) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Gifts have ceased
"Many of the early anabaptists were proto-charismatic and believed in private revelations, dreams, visions, prophecies, yes even tongues and interpretation. these same folks put those things mostly on par with scripture but sometimes used the same excuse pentecostals and charismatics make now "Oh it has to agree with scripture or we don't accept it..." In other words, lets just soften our position so it doesn't seem so bad and will be readily accepted. However, if the Written Word of God says that ALL we need for life and godliness is contained in the precious promises (a term used for Scripture), why would we need anything new? If Hebrews says that in the past God spoke through prophets/dreams/visions but now speaks through HIs Son, and then Revelation says if anything is added to this book (which in the greek that term means a library or collection of books, which is what all of Scripture is) then we would have to conclude that either God didn't really mean revelation would end, or that He didn't mean it was sufficient and forgot something we needed OR that these are lying signs and wonders. I'll take the latter since I know God's Word is sufficient and complete."
Links
For church history head over to ccel.org (a free site) and look up Philip Schaff then read all those volumes. I know it's a lot, but church history really does help. For early church history from the early days look up Eusubius online or at amazon or even at internet archive. Enjoy. Also, seeking4truth.come is great too.
What Means God Is Made Known Unto Us
By What Means God Is Made Known Unto UsBelgic Confession Lesson: Article 2
We know Him by two means: First, by the creation, preservation, and government of the universe; which is before our eyes as a most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters leading us to see clearly the invisible things of God, even his everlasting power and divinity, as the apostle Paul says (Romans 1:20). All which things are sufficient to convince men and leave them without excuse. Second, He makes Himself more clearly and fully known to us by His holy and divine Word, that is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this life, to His glory and our salvation.
"We do not get visions, dreams, tongues or interpretation any longer b/c they were signs to validate the ministry of the Apostles (NT Prophets) just like the Prophets of the OT had signs to authenticate and validate their teachings and Words from the Lord. We have the completed Scripture. It is Final. It is Sufficient. It is Efficient. If you're still looking to "hear God" from some inner voice, you have just rejected the Sufficiency and Finality and Efficiency of the Written Word and smacked God's Face with your ingratitude for His gracious Gift of speaking to us in Written Form. You've shown yourself to be an ingrateful child who demands more when God has said it is enough." -Nancy Almodovar
"Scriptures teach us only that which God has decided to reveal about Himself in and through the written word alone. No additional revelations. no extra dreams/visions, tongues/interpretation, no more apostles no more prophets because God's Written Revelation is sufficient and complete b/c Jesus, who is what the Written Word is all about, has come."
-Nancy Almodovar
We know Him by two means: First, by the creation, preservation, and government of the universe; which is before our eyes as a most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters leading us to see clearly the invisible things of God, even his everlasting power and divinity, as the apostle Paul says (Romans 1:20). All which things are sufficient to convince men and leave them without excuse. Second, He makes Himself more clearly and fully known to us by His holy and divine Word, that is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this life, to His glory and our salvation.
"We do not get visions, dreams, tongues or interpretation any longer b/c they were signs to validate the ministry of the Apostles (NT Prophets) just like the Prophets of the OT had signs to authenticate and validate their teachings and Words from the Lord. We have the completed Scripture. It is Final. It is Sufficient. It is Efficient. If you're still looking to "hear God" from some inner voice, you have just rejected the Sufficiency and Finality and Efficiency of the Written Word and smacked God's Face with your ingratitude for His gracious Gift of speaking to us in Written Form. You've shown yourself to be an ingrateful child who demands more when God has said it is enough." -Nancy Almodovar
"Scriptures teach us only that which God has decided to reveal about Himself in and through the written word alone. No additional revelations. no extra dreams/visions, tongues/interpretation, no more apostles no more prophets because God's Written Revelation is sufficient and complete b/c Jesus, who is what the Written Word is all about, has come."
-Nancy Almodovar
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