As per the word of God..
Ro 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
120 in the upper room..
Acts 2v4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
people confuse this with natural languages..
1Co 14:2 For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.
and so they heard babble and thought they were drunk...then converted Peter now stands and boldly explains what this is and how to be saved...acts 2v38 etc
Acts 8..Simon the sorcerer..12 But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.
Spirit NOT AUTOMATIC...
15 Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
16 (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
17 Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.
Simon a con artist is willing to PAY for something..more than just a feeling or signing a card or some other religious stuff which he could readily duplicate..but not this..you cant get the signs following without Jesus ..mark 16v16+
The 1st recorded Gentile...Cornelius..
Acts 10v 45 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.
how did they Know....
46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
acts 19..2 .. Have you recieved the Holy Ghost since you believed ?....5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
repentance and baptism is your part..receiving the Holy Ghost is Gods response to obedience..
I have not shunned to declare unto you ALL the counsel of God..not just bits and pieces that suit religious people..
so you speak in tongues etc ..remember the 10 virgins (unbelievers are not included) 5 wise and 5 foolish !! your Born again a babe in Christ you need the sincere milk of the word ! you wont get that from a non spirit filled church !! even if they say Jesus or Christ,Jehovah, Yahweh the Lord of Hosts is his name whatever..
its like a gift ..car for example its new and nice in your driveway ! but no one told you about keys !?,Fuel, or even how to drive it...so it just sits as an added extra and rusts seizes up..does nothing..dont hide this talent in yourself you are the earthen vessel use it , build yourself up praying in the Spirit God has given ( JUDE ) when you are built up you will be able to more readily access ALL of Gods promises that Jesus through his sacrifice has made available to you..so
2Co 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
Find a church run as per instructions..Corinthians...asap..others may call themselves christian, they can call themselves Napoleon for that matter.. no signs.. not following Jesus His way..
ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth..they have eyes but see not ,ears but hear not..because they have hardened there heart...
Great post though slightly misleading title. Then I read through the responses and my heart sank.
There is one thing I will add to what you say, which is that there is a time factor between being saved and receiving the gift of tongues, as testimonies prove. It may be a short time, as in immediately after, or it may be a longer time, sometimes years, but it can never be BEFORE.
I was born again while working in a hospital many years ago. I had never attended church apart from Christmas and marriages and I had never read the Bible. I just simply asked the Lord Jesus to change me and handed my life over to Him, according to how I heard the Gospel delivered to me by a temporary workmate.
I was different immediately, but still ignorant, though hungry to learn. Pretty quickly the Lord showed me the difference between the religious ones who have the FORM of godliness but deny the power, and the real ones who have the real thing. I began to read and read and read my Bible. And I asked a lot of questions which only a few seemed able to answer.
One day I knew that I had received the Holy Spirit because Jesus showed me. He spoke to me powerfully and personally in His word to comfort me about a specific situation. I did not have to check it out with anyone: I knew it was Him. This communication continued in this way and it still does 29 years or so later...only it gets deeper, the deeper you want to go.
By and by I found some believers who also heard His voice in a similar way. I found out about the baptism with the Holy Spirit and begun to desire for myself this life-changing experience. When it happened to me I was at home in my room and wonderfully swimming and super-alive in the Spirit of God. I did not speak in tongues. I didn't even desire to: maybe that is why. The experience was enormous and sufficient to propel me forward into ministry, operating in a much greater level of faith.
A few years later I started to worry that I was somehow deficient without the gift of tongues, so I asked the Lord for it. I walked into an unfamiliar church Bible study, said honestly what I needed, someone laid hands on me and spoke "the Lord says you already have the gift of tongues, you need to just open your mouth and use it" or words to that effect.
So I went home and got on with it. Practising (as in using, not perfecting) the tongue gift I had received opened up a new world of spirituality through prayer that I could not have imagined existed. I understand that there are divers tongues as Paul says, and so I know I have one of them...I also know that so far it is not the kind of prophetic tongue gift that has to be spoken in the congregation, but that may change.
This is all a long time ago now but I feel I should say that if you are prejudiced against ANY of the good things God has for you, to the point that you malign others who operate in them, and pour scorn on the using of the gifts themselves, it is just an excuse for your unbelief, and with that, you will never progress spiritually.
Without faith it is impossible to please God, so search yourselves and see where you left that mustard seed. As long as it remains dry, gathering fluff in your pocket, it will not germinate and flourish. But add your faith to the water of the Word and you will see it explode into life.
Do not settle for death!
James 1 shows the heart of God towards the believing and the faithless: let us make sure we are of the former, and not the latter, as follows.
5
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
6
But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7
For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.