Why is it translated “speaking in tongues” when we don’t do that now?

It is of first importance to study the words behind our English translations, within the biblical texts and to understand their historical meaning and usage. Within the New Testament we see two words employed for which our English translations translate as speaking in tongues. The first being xenoglossia, which can be defined as a miraculous ability to spontaneously speak a foreign language without previous fluency, we see this word employed by Luke in his book the Acts of the Apostles in his account of Pentecost (Acts 2:4). The second being which can be defined as indistinguishable verbal utterances produced under a special movement of the Holy Spirit and classified as a prayer language (Romans 8:6), we see this gift and its proper practice discussed by the Apostle Paul in his First Letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 14:5-29).

Of second importance no where in Scripture do we see any Apostolic authority establishing that the provocation of any of the above movements of the Holy Spirit would cease after an established period of time (although we know that they will not last forever, 1 Corinthians 13:8) or be isolated to any particular geographic location (Jerusalem, Ephesus, Corinth, etc.) this biblical fact does not lend itself to support a secession of the gifts (including and not limited to speaking in tongues) at the conclusion of the Apostolic age nor does a simple absence of biblical proof against their continuation prove that these gifts are still being expressed through the faithful today.

The Bottom line is that we should never read the Scripture based on any preconceived notions lest we impose on the text and therefore dishonor it. What is of true importance when trying to understand the gift of speaking in tongues or any Spiritual gift is that every gift is dispensed by God’s grace (1 Corinthians 12:27-31) and not by man’s will (Hebrews 2:4), that they are dispensed by God for the personal and communal edification of believers, and that any gift bestowed upon a believer needs to be handled with propriety and practiced biblically under the instruction of the Scriptures.

For a detailed understanding of the use and practice of speaking in tongues please read 1 Corinthians 14:5-29.

This entry was posted on June 29, 2011 at June 29, 2011 and is filed under Christian Living, The Bible, The Church. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.