Paul does not forbid speaking in tongues,
nor does he prohibit prophesying. He does insist, however, that if there
are those who speak in a language, then let them do it one at a time and
only then if an interpreter is present. If this is not the case, then let
them speak only to God, that is, without involving the congregation. He
laid down basically the same rules for the prophets. Prophesying was to be
done one by one to teach and to comfort. This sounds reasonable, doesn’t
it? Speak in tongues one by one only if there is someone who can
translate; prophesy one by one and let the others judge, using it to teach
and comfort the church. Nowhere does Paul advocate that tongues are to be
spoken within the church nor that prophesying was to be proclaimed outside
of the church, neither does he give any indication that the tongues he was
describing had undergone a change in linguistic structure since Pentecost.
In his entire letter, Paul spoke as the
voice of God to an erring church. To those who still questioned his
authority he warned: "If any man think himself to be a prophet, or
spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are
the commandments of the Lord. But if any man be ignorant, let him be
ignorant. Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak
with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order." Verses
37-40.
And with those final two adverbial
qualifications Paul gave his closing exhortation to the members whose
indecent behavior had brought discredit upon the church and whose
disorderly conduct had greatly impeded its growth.
During the centuries following the death
of Christ, the Pentecostal experience of the apostles as recorded in the
book of Acts became less and less needful. In the beginning the apostles
needed the gift of tongues to reach people of other languages. Next, their
converts continued to carry the gospel to far-distant lands. In later
years whole countries learned of the revolutionary message of love, either
by missionaries or by believers who relayed the story of Christ to their
home countries. As a result, the need for glossolalia greatly diminished,
for the language barrier was slowly coming down. An obstacle to the
spreading of the gospel had been surmounted. The gift of tongues had been
given to humanity to do a specific job, and this was accomplished. Now it
was up to mankind to act and to improvise.
In the earlier writings of the church
fathers, tongues speaking is mentioned. Irenaeus (A.D. 120-202), a scholar
of stature, studied under Polycarp of Smyrna, who is reported to have been
a personal protégé of the apostle John. Irenaeus, in "Against
Heresies" (chapter VI, sec. 1), wrote this commentary on 1
Corinthians 2:6: "Terming those persons ‘perfect’ who have
received the Spirit of God, and who through the Spirit of God do speak in
all languages, as he used Himself also to speak. In like manner we do also
hear many brethren in the Church who possess prophetic gifts, and who
through the Spirit speak all kinds of languages and bring to light for the
general benefit the hidden things of men, and declare the mysteries of
God." 1
The Christian apologist, Justin Martyr
(A.D. 110-165) supports this in Dialogue With Trypho, chapter
LXXXVIII, where he states: "Now it is possible to see amongst us
women and men who possess gifts of the Spirit of God." 2
Even Tertullian (A.D. 160-220), in his
"Against Marcion," Book V, chapter VIII, writes
concerning his acquaintanceship with the gift. In his argument with
Marcion, he penned the following statement: "Let Marcion then
exhibit, as gifts of his god, some prophets, such as have not spoken by
human sense, but with the Spirit of God, such as have both predicted
things to come, and have made manifest the secrets of the heart; let him
produce a psalm, a vision, a prayer—only let it be by the Spirit, in an
ecstasy that is, in a rapture, whenever an interpretation of tongues has
occurred to him…. Now all these signs (of spiritual gifts) are
forthcoming from my side without any difficulty, and they agree, too, with
the rules, and the dispensations, and the instructions of the Creator;
therefore without doubt the Christ, and the Spirit, and the apostle,
belong severally to my God." 3
There was every reason in heaven—and on
earth—to keep glossolalia active so long as the gospel had not reached
the strategic locations of the known world. Once this was accomplished and
considerable inroads had been made, the gift of tongues quickly
diminished.
Not until the third century after Christ
did scholars and historians begin to question the whereabouts of the
preaching tongues.
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