The gift of tongues is a way to bring glory to God and bring believers closer together. Rather than being primarily evangelistic in nature, the gift of speaking in tongues is a way to give God the glory while bringing believers closer together (Acts 2:11, Acts 10:46).
Speaking in tongues is the initial evidence of the infilling of the Holy Spirit. God has given us this wonderful spiritual gift to bless us, edify us, and refresh us throughout our lives on this earth.
The Bible specifically teaches that not everyone is given the gift of tongues (I Corinthians 12:29-30). That is why it's dangerous to teach that tongues are the only signifying proof of the work of God's Spirit in a person's life.
Tongues are also indicative of the voice of the gods; In medieval Christianity and Oriental art, large,protuding tongues are often the sign of demons or the devil.
He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. I would like every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy. He who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets, so that the church may be edified.
If you desire to speak in tongues, pray this: Lord Jesus, Fill me with your Spirit. Lord Jesus, baptize me into your Holy Spirit. Begin to release the sounds that come not from your mind, but from your spirit, and continue in prayer.
If God requires every believer to speak in tongues and if this experience is an evidence of having the ministry of the Holy Spirit at work in your life, then speaking in tongues becomes necessary for every professing believer, regardless of whether he or she has been baptized by immersion in water (Matt 28:18-20).
You're just flowing. You're in a realm of peace and comfort, and it's a fantastic feeling.” Contrary to what may be a common perception, studies suggest that people who speak in tongues rarely suffer from mental problems.
First, Southern Baptists cannot permit its missionaries to pray in tongues because what the latter claim is the biblical gift is not. The biblical gift of tongues was always “a legitimate language of some people group,” so the policy declares.
Speaking in tongues do play an important role in the Pentecostal Movement in order to sensitise the believer to the promptings of the Spirit, to give confidence to witness, and provide power to live a holy life (in the language of pioneers like Taylor [1907:128] and Haywood [1908:3]).
Some have said that may be the “tongues of angels” Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13:1. Others suggest our Heavenly language will be music, which is understood in any language; or perhaps it will be the language of love – God's love returned to him and others.
Speaking in tongues, also referred to as gift of tongues or glossolalia, is a phenomenon that occurs when a person experiencing religious ecstasy or a trance utters incomprehensible sounds that they believe are a language spoken through them by a god or deity.
The main findings were that when participants were speaking in tongues compared to when they were singing, there was a decrease in activity in the prefrontal cortex, the tip of the left temporal lobe and a deep brain structure called the caudate nucleus (see image on right).
1 Corinthians 14:2
2 For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit.
glossolalia, also called speaking in tongues, (from Greek glōssa, “tongue,” and lalia, “talking”), utterances approximating words and speech, usually produced during states of intense religious experience.
In Christian theology, the interpretation of tongues is one of the spiritual gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12. This gift is used in conjunction with that of the gift of tongues – the supernatural ability to speak in a language (tongue) unknown to the speaker.
What is the gift of tongues? Tongues is a language given by the Holy Spirit, unknown to the speaker, by which the believer prays to God. Paul describes this in 1 Corinthians 14.
It's a practice they use at Shekijah Preparation Assembly in Lynchburg called speaking in tongues. They describe it as a spiritual language gifted from God. Some Christians believe it is the Holy Spirit speaking directly through them.
I think there are at least five ways of praying in the Spirit: 1) praying God's Word; 2) listening to God and praying; 3) partnering in prayer with Christ your Intercessor; 4) praying the God-given desires of your heart; 5) praying with divine love. Our prayer lives come to life when we are empowered by the Spirit.
Nancy Wintering, a clinical social worker in Penn's Department of Nuclear Medicine, said the movements and utterances of people speaking in tongues are not completely voluntary. However, they are not entirely beyond the control of the practitioner, either.