Tag Archives: Peter

Speaking in Tongues – Part 1

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thUHU0FK12     There is much confusion in the religious world over the issue of tongue speaking, and there are many questions one could ask about this subject.  Just what is tongue speaking?  How is it a miracle?  What was the purpose for speaking in tongues?  Do people still speak in tongues today?  Did God specify any rules for the use of tongue speaking?  Since this topic is broad and large, let us examine the issue of speaking in tongues in three lessons.  The first lesson will deal with the purpose of tongue speaking.

     We are introduced to tongue speaking in Acts 2.  On the day of Pentecost, when Peter opened the door to the kingdom of the church, we see that the apostles spoke in tongues.  Here the purpose of tongue speaking is two fold.  First, the purpose of this miracle was to confirm that the words spoken by Peter and the other apostles were the words of God.  The purpose of all miracles was to confirm the word (Mark 16:20).  The miracle performed by the apostles was that they spoke in foreign languages, which they had never studied.  The apostles were not learned men; they were simple folk from Galilee.  Indeed their speaking in tongues amazed and astonished the crowd (Acts 2:7, 12).  We might also note here that there were approximately 17 different nationalities present in Jerusalem (Acts 2:9-11), who would have had 11 different native languages.  Therefore, there were just enough apostles to speak these 11 languages.  In this example we can see the wisdom and foresight of God.

     Secondly, the purpose of speaking in tongues was that each was able to hear the word in their own native tongue.  In this way each person present was able to understand what the apostles were saying.  They were all speaking languages that were known to man, and not just speaking gibberish that no one could understand.  We will dive into this issue a bit more in lesson three of this series regarding God’s rules for tongue speaking.  It was important for men to hear and understand the word of God during this time period, because the New Testament had yet to be written.  Paul describes 9 various spiritual gifts in his first letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 12:8-10).  These gifts were given so that the early disciples would know the will of the Lord.  One of the problems in Corinth was that they had elevated the gift of tongue speaking above the other more important spiritual gifts, such as prophecy, and they were using their gift to show off in front of others.  This caused a lack of edification of the group, which is also part of the purpose of spiritual gifts so that all can hear and understand.

     We can see that the purpose of tongues was to confirm the words of the apostles and to aid men in their hearing and understanding of God’s will for man.  In the next lesson, we will examine the duration of tongue speaking and spiritual gifts to answer the question of whether men still speak in tongues today.

Are We Focused?

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“And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’   And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’  He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased” (Matthew 14:25-32 ESV)

When we read the text above, we are usually reminded of the miraculous power of our Lord in walking on the water.  However, there is another principle in this reading that we should be sure to not miss.  Notice that Peter is allowed to walk on the water also.  While Peter maintains his focus on Jesus, all is well and he is able to do something that no other mortal man has ever done.  But when Peter takes his eyes off of Jesus, he sees the effect of the wind on the sea, and he becomes afraid.  Peter then began to sink.

Now think about our own lives.  When we keep our focus on Jesus, and make Him our top priority we can have that inner peace and confidence just as Peter did.  But when we focus our attention instead on the storms of life, the cares and concerns of this life, we too begin to sink.  We should make it our point to maintain our vigilance in keeping Jesus as our first priority.  Only then can we have that confidence and assurance of our eventual eternal home with Him.