Charismatic and Pentecostal

IS SPEAKING IN TONGUES
AND
THE SIGN GIFTS VALID TODAY?
By Cooper Abrams

Table of Contents
Introduction
What Does the Bible Says About Tongues?
How Does the Modern Gift of Tongues Compare to the Examples in the Book of Acts?
The Definition of the Word "Tongues."
The New Testament Teaches that Gift of Tongues Would Cease (1 Cor. 13:8-10)
Conclusion:

Introduction

  •           I will begin with a personal note. Some sincere Christians, who love the Lord, believe that speaking in tongues is a valid gift from God today. There are others who misled by false teachers, who have believed in the false "health and wealth" gospel which is the dominate theme of the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. Only the biblical Gospel, based solely in the shed blood of Jesus Christ, which is given as a free gift by God's grace and received by faith saves. It is not my intent to be condemning or rude, but with a loving and caring spirit present God's truth to people who have been ill-taught about this matter.

             The Bible plainly teaches that "tongues" was one of the first century sign gifts directed toward unbelieving Jews to Jesus Christ who was the promised Messiah and the Apostles' message of Christ was genuine. Further, less that forty years after Christ returned to heaven the sign gifts ceased because after Jerusalem and the Temple in Jerusalem were destroyed in 70 AD, Israel ceased from being a nation, the Jews were dispersed, the Kingdom postponed because Israel had rejected Jesus as their Messiah. With Israel destroyed there was no longer any need or purpose for the sign gifts and they ceased. During this transitional period between the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the destruction of Jerusalem, most of the New Testament was written which further cancelled the need of signs as the churches had God's written word.

             There is surely a need to proclaim God's truth on the matter because I think all would agree that God can only bless truth. He cannot, nor will He ever bless error no matter how well intended or sincere it may be. If a practice is not biblical it is not of God and clearly all false teaching honors the father of lies Satan. Thus it is important to know what God has said in His Word and reject all false teachings that distorts and corrupts truth and misleads people.

             There is no middle-of-the-road approach to the tongues issue. If tongues is a valid gift in the churches today then every Bible believing church should follow the God's Word and accept tongues. However, if it is not a valid gift for the body of Christ today, then we should teach the truth and reject it as being unbiblical.

              Unfortunately, many denominations take the middle-of-the-road approach by refusing to take a stand either way. They have compromised with both parties trying not to offend anyone and by not taking a stand they have in fact condoned the practice. To not take a stand against false teaching is supporting error and false teaching.

              God did not give us His Word to be confusing. Many people however take the approach that the Word of God is confusing on this matter and that we cannot really know for sure what is right. This surely expresses a poor opinion of God that His Word is too confusing to understand. However, this is not the case. God did not leave the matter in discord. The problem is not with God's Word, but with man. God spoke very clearly on the matter, yet many seem unwilling to listen, preferring rather to listen to the teaching of men and denominations.

              The modern tongues movement has spread across this nation and the world like wildfire. For many years it was confined to the Pentecostal churches, but now crosses all denomination lines in the form of what is called the Charismatic Movement. Even Roman Catholics, Protestants, cults, and some who call themselves Baptists practice tongues and have joined the movement.

              Some think that tongues is only practiced by Christian denominations, but it is a phenomena found also in pagan religions. The Oracle at Delphi, for instance, which started in the 400s BC, when Greece was at its strongest records the pagan practice of using ecstatic speech in the worship of their false gods. It continued into the Roman era which would indicate the members of the churches of Greece and Asia Minor would have been familiar with how Delphi worked. It was a shrine of the Greek god Apollo. In response to someone's questions, a priestess would go into a frenzy and start a babbling speech. An attendant priest would then 'translate' the babble into some glittering generalities that could in some way be understood as an answer. Some of the best-known features of Greek philosophy streamed out from the Oracle's early years (for instance, it bred the saying "Know Yourself"); the great Greek philosophers were very good at finding jewels in waste water. The cult of Dionysis used rhythmic music, whirling dances, alcohol or herbal drugs, and magic spells to send peoples' souls out of their body (Gk ek stasis ) and into the presence of whatever deity or subdeity was involved; this too occasionally induced some strange sounds. African animists, too, have long practiced ecstatic speech as part of their religions. But, just as glossolalia among Jews marked one as a prophet, glossolalia caused most African animists to project the tongues speaker into the role of religious leader or priest.

              "In the gnostic "gospels" found at Nag Hammadi, archaeologists discovered what may be the earliest, and perhaps one of the strangest, written instances of glossolalia. (Gnosticism arose at the same time as Christianity, and Gnostics were skilled at perverting biblical teachins to the unChristian Gnostic heresies. They tried to high jack biblical Christianity. While the contents of the Nag Hammadi documents are heretical, they give insite into the false practices of their day. There is a prayer in the introduction the false "The Gospel Of the Egyptians. " It reads something like this:

    • Ié ieus éó ou éó óua! O Jesus, bond of Yah's righteousness, O Living Water, O Child of Child, O glorious Name! Really truly, O Eon that is, iiii éééé eeee oo uuuu óóóó aaaaa, really truly éi aaaa óó óó! O One That Is, Seer Of the Ages! Really truly, aee ééé iiii uuuuuu óóóóóóóó, You who are eternally eternal, really truly iéa aió, in the heart, You who Are, You are what You are, ei o ei eios ei!

             Even the translatable words of this so called prayer are very confusing and like modern tongues, full of vowels and mixed languages. Like modern glossolalia, it's got a lot of almost-words, divine titles, and 'really truly'. It's almost like a parody, it's so garbled, but it was serious in its intent. The ecstatic speech did not make the book's bizarre beliefs the slightest bit more true.("Tongues as a Gift, a Sign, a Practice," Robert H. Longman, Jr.)

              The evidence is clear that what was done in worshiping pagan deities was ecstatic speech not unlike what the modern tongues movement is doing. Surely, the Holy Spirit is not in the religious actions of unbelievers who worship idols and practice false doctrine.

             Many in defense of the tongues movement refer to its great success as proof that it is of God. Jesus in Matthew 24:24, speaking of the rise of false prophets who would come with great wonders and signs "if were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." Although this is a reference to the beginning of the coming seven year Tribulation, it teaches clearly that God's elect, can be deceived by the powerful and charismatic leaders. (I use the word in its sense as men with great "charisma" or personal appeal) The deceivers and false teachers, of the spirit of the antichrist are in the world today as stated by John in 1 John 2:18. The truth of the matter does not rest with its popularity or outward success, but on "what saith the Lord!" The Bible, which is God's very word, is the only authority by which we can know what is God's truth and what is error.

             The majority of the world is in error today rejecting the Lord Jesus as their Savior. Jesus warned that, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." (Matt. 7:13-14) The popular trend is to choose the wide road that leads to destruction. The matter can only be settled by God's Word!

              Many seeing the great numbers, spectacles and seeming success of the Charismatic movement are greatly impressed by it. Jesus in Matthew 7:13-29, warned of false prophets who would come in sheep's clothing, but would inwardly be raving wolves. Christ went on to say that at the judgment of the lost, many would stand before Him and plead that they had done many wonderful things in Christ's name and yet Jesus would say to them, they "were workers of iniquity! (Matt. 7:21-23) This should make each of us address the matter in a sober and honest way.
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              One reason the matter is so important is that many dear souls who are seeking the Lord are hearing the Gospel mixed with error! Further, sincere Christians are robbed of their maturity in Christ and the true blessings of salvation by being channeled into the emotion based tongues movement. They are taught to seek emotional experiences instead of true spiritual growth. They are taught that worship and communications with God, to be meaningful it must be accompanied by physical emotional experiences such as raising hands in the air, speaking in tongues, and "falling out in the spirit." Their "worship" or "praise" is plainly designed towards the participant experiencing a type of spiritual "high." The most recent phenomenon is the so called "laughing revival" where the participants in the meetings break out in uncontrollable laughter "under the spirit." This modern so called worship is basically the same as practiced in pagan oriental mysticism in which person's consciousness is elevated towards some deep spiritual experience. The New Testament gives no example these any such activities such as the modern tongues practices. The opposite is true in that biblical worship is directed towards God, not the worshiper. The Bible show that worship is always respectful and orderly.

              For the many Charismatics, their prayer life is one of praying in ecstatic speech without their understanding. Prayer is thus reduced to an emotional experience instead of pouring out their hearts in thanksgiving and presenting their petitions and supplications to the Lord. Those "praying in tongues" do not even know what they are praying. The services of the tongues movement is completely opposite of what the Bible teaches concerning worshiping God. They come to "receive" a blessing from the service, instead of coming to lift up other believers and worship the Lord as the Bible teaches. The "worship" of these churches is little more than a form of entertainment with an emotional experience, not unlike what happens in a musical rock concert.

              One example of this came from a Pentecostal pastor, who was a friend, who often expressed his frustration over the poor attendance at his tongues speaking church. His church was small with limited finances and could not "compete" with the larger churches in their music programs and special big name speakers. Even though he had been misled about what was biblical tongues, I believed he truly loved the Lord and he did not emphasize the matter of tongues and miracle healings. His church in time failed and he becoming disillusioned and fell by the way side out of the ministry. The road of the Charismatic movement is littered with thousands of lives it has wrecked. When the emotion created by the Charismatic services runs out they were left empty inside and castaways on the great sea of Charismatic confusion. For a while it is great, but like any emotional experience...it does not last. As John 4:24 clearly states, those that worship the Lord must do so in "spirit and truth." Only living and worshiping in God truth brings true lasting spiritual peace and joy, because God only blesses the truth.

             Because of the popularity and seeming success of the tongues movement, many pastors of a Bible believing churches are being pressured to take the ecumenical philosophy. The compromise is expressed as, "Its OK, we are both Christians and although we disagree on some things we can still have spiritual fellowship and it is not really all that important." This act of human rationalization is that God's word condones false teaching and supports error. How can a man be lead to God's truth by someone who does not think that truth is important? Truth that is compromised and mixed with error is not truth? The true man of God loves the truth and it is important to him that no one ever hear anything from him, but the truth. His calling demands that he only preach God's truth. He does not want to be guilty of aiding Satan in supporting a false teaching which is a lie that honors Satan, the father of lies. Though the whole world reject the truth, the man of God is to present only the truth and reject all false teaching that is contrary to God's word. Many have been cruelly martyred in past eras for taking just such an uncompromising stand on God's Word.

              When the biblical errors in the tongues movement are condemned, many respond to this call for purity in doctrine with the adage, "Well, at least some are getting saved." A false gospel is a lie and does not and cannot save. A church whose foundational doctrine is based in error does not have the blessing of God. Almost very tongues speaking church denies the biblical doctrine of the eternal security of the believer (Once saved always saved). Denying the eternal security of the believer denies the very heart of the Gospel that a man is saved totally by God's grace through faith and not of his good works. The Bible teaches that man cannot save himself nor keep himself saved by good works (Eph. 2:8-9). It is a false Gospel that teaches once saved a child of God can lose their salvation and that God will reject His own child.

              Another mark of the Charismatic movement is its ecumenical agenda of seeking to bring all "Christians" together on equal ground without regard to doctrinal purity. Doctrine and biblical truth take a back seat to the Charismatics and Pentecostals behind emotion, experience and coming together. Unbiblical churches such as the Roman Catholic church who a practice heresy and a works system of salvation are treated as equals with Bible believing New Testament churches who preach salvation by grace alone through faith.

             It is God Himself, through the Holy Spirit that convicts men and draws them to salvation. God will not use error or false teachers to accomplish His work. God will only use His truth and it is against His very nature to do otherwise.

              A dominate theme of the tongues speakers is promoting what is termed the "health and wealth gospel." This unbiblical teacher promises health and wealth to those who receive Christ. However, it is conditional of giving financially to support a church or ministry. It distorts biblical teaching of giving to a "give to get" scheme in which a person supposedly invests "seed money" with God who then gives materially to the giver. This false gospel has made multi-millionaires of many Charismatic and Pentecostal preachers. It is used by most radio and TV "ministers" who cunningly deceive their audiences with the "get rich" or "healing" scheme

              A church which takes the middle road or does not rebuke and reprove these false teadchings is a compromising church and is not a church that speaks for God. Even it does not practice tongues it condones it with its silence. When a church takes any position contrary to true doctrine it separates itself from God and begins down a road that will eventually lead to apostasy. In over a quarter of a century of ministry I have not know even one church that took the middle road of compromise that was doctrinally sound. Accepting error and false doctrine is sin and sin grows where it is not quickly addressed, corrected and confessed. (See the Lord's warnings to the churches in Asia in Revelation 2-3) A compromising church loses any clear message of what is right and what is wrong. It will cease to have any power to do the work of God, because God cannot bless error.

              Compromising pastors and churches lose biblical discernment. They become unable to determine truth from error. The tremendous growth of the Promise Keepers movement which seeks to do away with all doctrinal differences and bring "Christianity" together with no biblical distinctions is the direct result of this heretical unscriptural philosophy. The very core of the ideology of the Promises Keepers is anti-doctrine and thus it is Anti-christ. It does not matter that they appear to be serving Christ, their doctrinal error brands them as Anti-christs, as clearly as Cain's rebellious offerings branded him as being against God. Cain was acting were religiously, but was in fact disobeying God.

              Why are so many deceived and unable to discern the error of the movement? The answer is a simple one...they have been in training to accept it for many years by pastors, churches and denominations who have compromised the Word of God and refused to speak out against error. Can God bless error? Will He work where His Word is misused to support false teachings? Is God a party to confusion. The answer to these questions is clearly a resounding and emphatic "No!"

              There is a correct translation or meaning of all Scripture! It is the Devil's device to misuse even the sacred Word of God to perpetrate his false doctrines. (Read Matt. 4:1-11) He seeks to mislead and side track believers. Satan at Christ's temptation used Scripture to tempt the Lord. He used it falsely and was corrected by Christ. The Devil has not changed his ways or methods through the centuries. This is why the New Testament preacher, if he is true to his calling, must absolutely address error often and warn against it by teaching the truth. By God's grace that is what this article is attempting to do.

    What Does the Bible Says About Tongues?

             The question that needs answering is this - what does the Bible say? The problem is not to try to explain experiences that people have had, but to determine, "what does God say on the matter." If God's Word says that tongues is a valid gift for today then the matter is settled. If it teaches that tongues ceased after the establishment of the early church and after the fall of Judaism then the course is equally clear, modern tongues is not of God.

             Following is a series of questions answered biblically which will explain the truth.

    I. Is the practice of the gift of tongues the same as it was in the New Testament?

    • A. The answer is no. What is practiced as modern tongues is not what happened on the Day of Pentecost as described by the New Testament. Absent today from the modern practice of tongues is ". . .sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them." (Acts 2:3-4) Further, each of those present at Pentecost were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the Gospel in a language that the person had not learned. "Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. (Acts 2:6) Verses 9-11 lists the sixteen languages which were spoken. It was not ecstatic speech or used in prayer nor was it something they were coached to perform. Further it was not sought or prayed for but came instantly being given by the Holy Spirit to all present. Further as the passage states it was given by the Holy Spirit for the benefit of those Jews who were in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Pentecost and convey to them the Good News that Jesus Christ was the Messiah.

               These Jewish pilgrims had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, as they had been done for centuries. Pentecost, was the Jewish Feast of the Harvest and fell fifty days after the Passover, which was the day God delivered Israel from Egypt. Israel fifty days after leaving Egypt was at Mt. Sinai and there God gave them the Ten Commandments and the Law, and thereby constituted them as a nation. On the day of Pentecost, as Acts 2 records, fifty days after the Christ was crucified God began the institution of the local church and the Church Age began. God wanted these Jewish Pilgrims to hear the "wonderful works of God." (Acts 2:11) The Jewish leaders in Jerusalem had rejected Jesus as the promised Messiah and had cried for His death before the Roman governor. Many of these pilgrims, being only recent visitors to Jerusalem, did not know about Jesus Christ and what He had done.

               These Jewish pilgrims were bilingual and surely could understand Greek and Aramaic. However, God thought it was necessary for them to hear the news of Christ's coming through the miracle of hearing in their native language by men who were unlearned in their tongue. The disciples, gathered in the upper room who were indwelled by the Holy Spirit could have spoken Greek or Aramaic and communicated with these pilgrim Jews. The reason for the miracle (sign) was God bringing attention to the prophecy of Joel 2:28f. Tongues was a miracle, a special sign gift, given to the Galilean disciples to show the unbelieving Jews that Jesus whom they had crucified was indeed the Messiah. Note in Peter's sermons that is exactly what he preached. The Jews fully understood that Joel prophesied of the great destruction of the judgment of God in Daniel's 70th Week or the Seven Year Tribulation. In Joel 2:28, deliverance in the "last days" is promised and associated with a great out pouring of the Spirit of God. Peter made the connection that they were indeed in the "last days" and that God had sent Jesus Christ as their Deliverer and they rejected Him.          God told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem "for the promise of the Father, which saith He, ye have heard of me." (Acts 2:4)Jesus was referring to what He had earlier told His disciples about the coming of the Comforter and that they would receive the indwelling Holy Spirit. "If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you" (John 14:15-17). Note the wording of verse 17. Jesus said that at the time He spoke to them, which was before He was crucified, that the Holy Spirit "dwelleth with you" He further stated the Comforter, "Shall (future tense) be in you." Therefore Jesus was telling them they would be indwelled in the future by the Holy Spirit and that is what happened on the Day of Pentecost.

               The result of their receiving the indwelling (baptism of the Holy Spirit) was that they would ". . . receive power, after the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 2:5,8).

                They waited ten days in the upper room and as promised on the day of Pentecost (Feast of the First Fruits) God sent the Holy Spirit who indwelled them and gave them power to be witnesses that Jesus was truly the Messiah. (See Acts 1:8)The message was heard by these visiting Jewish pilgrims and about three thousand of them believed and were saved. They were not under the influence and domination of the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem and they heard the Gospel unhindered by the lies of the priests, Scribes and Pharisees. Note also that the Bible says these were "devout men, out of every nation under heaven." These were saved, God fearing Jews who came to Jerusalem to worship God. They believed in God and when they heard the Messiah being proclaimed in their nature tongues by unlearned men, they knew that this was of God and they accepted Him. Thus the sign of the gift of speaking the Gospel in a unlearned language was used by God to give this wonderful news to Jews who were looking for the coming Messiah. Acts 2:41 records that three thousands of these Jews believed and received Christ as their Messiah. It was absolutely not a sign of receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but a sign to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. It is appalling that some churches have so distorted this plain truth of God's word to support the false modern tongues movement.

                Jesus in John 8:19 said to the Pharisees in the temple in Jerusalem, ". . . Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also." (John 8:19) What a contrast between these two groups. One group had witnessed first hand the miracles and message of Jesus Christ, but had rebelliously rejected Him as their Messiah. This other group of Jews, who came from out of town, already loved God, and when they heard of Christ believed and they received the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God and became part of the bride of Christ. They then took the message back to their native lands. Clearly, God used the miracle sign gift of languages (tongues) so that each one of them heard the Gospel, the death, burial and resurrection of Christ in their own language and understood that Jesus was the promised Messiah. (See 1 Cor. 15:1-4)

                Why did God present the Gospel to them in this way? We can better understand this if we consider what Paul said about the Jews in 1 Corinthians 1:22, "For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom." God has throughout the history of Israel always used signs to speak His Word to them. All those who heard the Gospel on the Day of Pentecost were Jews or Jewish proselytes. (Gentiles who converted to Judaism) They believed because they witnessed the unmistaken sign miracle of hearing men who had not learned their language speaking to them in their native tongue. They knew the Scriptures and Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah's coming. This was the reason that God used this method to tell them of the Messiah and the reason for using the sign gift of tongues. The mirage of tongues authenticated the Gospel message that Peter preached. They knew unmistakenly that it was from God and three thousand Jews believed and were saved.

                The Bible says that tongues was accompanied by three supernatural acts:

      • (1) The sound of the mighty rushing wind.
        (2) The appearance of cloven tongues of fire.
        (3) The miracle of speaking the Gospel by Jews in Jerusalem to foreign Jews their native language, which the Jerusalem Jews had not learned.

                The first two are conspicuously absent from what is practiced as tongues today. The supernatural act of speaking in an unlearned language can be faked, however the accompanying sound as of a mighty rushing wind and the visual appearance of cloven tongues of fire cannot be easily counterfeited and are never seen when modern tongues are practiced. Although it is claimed that modern languages are being spoken by those who practice tongues, it is difficult to verify and the other two supernatural acts being absent shows it is not valid. There is no sign of a mighty rushing wind or cloven tongues of fire. Clearly, tongues as described in the Word of God is not what is happening today. There are only three examples in Scripture that describes tongues and they each are identical with the first occurrence. There is no example in the Bible of tongues being used as a prayer language or anything different than what happen on the Day of Pentecost and the two other recorded occurrences.

               The second times tongues is mentioned in Scripture is three years later in Acts 10:44-48. Cornelius, a Roman Centurion, after hearing and believing the Gospel as Peter preached, experienced the same exact circumstances as did those on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. Peter reported back to the Jewish believers and said, "Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?" (Acts 11:17) Peter says God gave them the "like (literally the "same") gift as he did unto us." What happened at Cornelius' house was the same as on the Day of Pentecost.

               Cornelius was a Gentile who had been proselytized to Judaism. He was "A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway." (Acts 10:2) God sent an angel to him and told him to, ". . . send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:" (Acts 10:5) The next day God prepared Peter to preach the Gospel to a Gentile. The Jews thought of the Gentiles as being unclean and a very low class of people. Peter saw in a vision, God lowering down unclean animals in a great sheet and God told him to, "Rise, Peter; kill, and eat." But Peter said, "Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean." (Acts 10:13-14) God replied, "What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common." (Acts 10:15) God thus prepared Peter to preach Christ to Cornelius. As Peter wondered about his vision, Cornelius's servants arrived at his house in Joppa. Peter then returned the next day with the men to Cornelius' home to the north in Caesarea. Peter as recorded in Acts 10:25-43, told him of the Lord Jesus and Cornelius received Christ. Acts 10:44, says that all who heard the word received the Holy Spirit. Note that "they of the circumcision" meaning the Jews, were astonished that these Gentiles had received the gift of out pouring of the Holy Spirit and they too did speak in tongues and magnified God. (Acts 10:45-48) When Peter returned to Jerusalem he reported to the Jewish believers there, "Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God? When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life." (Acts 11:17-18)

                What happened to the Gentile Cornelius and his household, was the exact same thing that happened on the day of Pentecost. "And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning." (Acts 11:15) Here again the gift of tongues was a sign to the Jews back in Jerusalem that the Gentiles had received Christ the same as had the Jews in Jerusalem.

                One thing is clear, those that received the gift began to speak the Gospel to those around them. Acts 10:45, says, "And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost." It greatly impressed the Jews (they of the circumcision) that God had poured out on these Gentiles the Spirit in the same way as He had the Jewish believers. Clearly the gift of tongues was used of God to present and authenticate the Gospel message that Jesus was the Messiah.

                The reason for God giving the gift of tongues is obvious. God wanted the Christian Jews to know that Jesus was the Messiah, and the Gospel was for Jew and Gentile alike.

      The third time tongues is mentioned in Scripture is twenty-two years later in Acts 19:1-8. These were the disciples of John the Baptist. They were not Christians, but saved Old Testament saints who lived in Ephesus, who had repented anticipating the coming of the Messiah and the followed the message of John the Baptist. Probably they had heard John preach on a pilgrimage they had made to Jerusalem. They, however, had not heard about Jesus Christ, his life, death and resurrection. They were unaware of Jesus' coming and were still looking for the Messiah to come. Although the sound as a mighty rushing wind and the cloven tongues of fire are not mentioned there is no reason to not believe that they were present. Often in Scripture you will find a subsequent event earlier mentioned referred to without relating to all the details. Because it relates to a known phenomena that was commonly understood, all the details are not given in Acts 19. It is totally conceivable that since Luke had already fully described the matter earlier he only mentions the important facts. The details he does mention is the fact they spoke in other languages (tongues) and prophesied. This testifies as to the effect of the experience on the men and those who witnessed it.

                Why did these men at Ephesus receive the gift of tongues? It was a sign to prove to these Jews in the synagogue, who did not believe in Christ and who were ignorant of His death, burial and resurrection, that Jesus Christ was in truth the Messiah. This gift of tongues was received by those who believed and was a sign to those who witnessed the event that Messiah had surely come. Note also that only about twelve men spoke in tongues and prophesied. Prophesied, simply means they spoke or gave witness to the Word of God. It does not mean they foretold future events.

                In this account, some Jews at Ephesus believed in the Messiah. However, even after Paul had taught there for three months in the Jewish synagogue, some Jews hardened their hearts and spoke evil of the Gospel. Paul then left the Jewish synagogue where he had been preaching and separated the believing disciples from these unbelieving Jews. They then began to meet daily at the school of Tyrannus which was a lecture hall. Paul for two years discipled these Jews who accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. The result was that ". . . all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." (Acts 19:10) They too fulfilled Christ's prediction that, "Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem , and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.: (Acts 1:8) Again the purpose of tongues was a sign to unbelievers and those that received the gift of tongues used it to witness of Christ. That is not the modern day use of tongues as will be discussed later.

                In Acts 19, when John the Baptist's disciples received the gift of tongues they clearly became Christians. They were saved Old Testament saints who after hearing the Gospel, which is the Good News of the coming of the Messiah Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:1-4), they believed and were immediately indwelled by the Holy Spirit and became a part of the body of Christ. The effect of their receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit was that, as in the other two accounts (Acts 2, 10), they became witnesses of the Gospel to Jews. (Acts 1:8)

                These are the only three times an account of the receiving the gift of tongues is recorded. There is no reason from Scripture to believe that the three events were different. Modern churches which practice tongues make note that in Acts 19, the account does not mention the sound as a mighty rushing wind or the cloven tongues of fire. They point to this as support for the absence of these supernatural acts in the modern practice of tongues. However, they are forcing a point that is not stated. They are in fact admitting the supernatural acts are absent in modern tongues and are trying to use this account as an example when these supernatural acts were not present. As stated, that is forcing the point. There is no valid reason, apart from trying to justify the modern experience, for believing that in each occasion all events the happened exactly as in Acts 2.

How Does the Modern Gift of Tongues Compare to the Examples in the Book of Acts?

The Definition of the Word "Tongues."