The Doctrine of Tongues Explained
By: Evangelist Johnny Stallings
By: Evangelist Johnny Stallings
Before one can adequately understand the operation of tongues, in the Church, and for the individual believer, you must first understand that there are three entirely diverse types of tongues that are operational by the believer through the anointing of the Holy Ghost. Two of which are for the edification of the Church, and one for the edification of the believer unto God. All of which are supernatural in essence and artless. They cannot be taught or learned, they are divine and direct from God the Holy Ghost.
The bible does not exactly give unambiguous names to the three completely different types of tongues it simply calls them tongues, so I have given them names for the purpose of in-depth study to conquer any confusion. While the scripture does not exactly name the three, I will show you through Holy Scripture that I am correct in the fact that there are three definite distinguished diverse types, for very diverse purposes. The first I will call the unknown language, or unknown tongue many call it the prayer language. The unknown language is for the edification of the believer unto God. The second is tongues of a foreign language tongue, this is for the edification of other’s. The third I will call the prophetic tongue, this is for the edification of the church. The prophetic tongue is a tongue that is spoken aloud in the unknown language but is always followed by a divine interpretation.
The first appearance in the New Testament that tongues is a gift, sign, or wonder to the believer is Mark in the sixteenth chapter and the seventeenth verse. It is told by Jesus Himself in a list of signs and wonders that He say’s shall follow every believer. Mark 16:15-20 And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be ****ed. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. 19 ¶ So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
Now while all of the five signs are very important we are just at this time focusing on the sign or gift of speaking in tongues. I just wanted to give you the whole of the scripture in its proper context. So we see here that Jesus is telling his disciples that after he ascends into Heaven He charges them to preach the gospel and that tongues one of the five signs shall follow them, meaning that if they are in His perfect will they shall speak in other tongues. Now this concept most certainly was not new to the disciples, as they themselves had heard Jesus speaking in an unknown tongue in two occasions that we know for sure of in the scripture and probably more that just simply was not recorded in the text. Remember the scripture does say that there would not be enough books in the world to contain all of Jesus’ works. John 21:25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.
The first time that we read of Jesus speaking in tongues in the bible is in the book of Mark when he is in the death room of Jairus daughter. Jesus spoke these words “Talitha cumi,” and scripture said this to be interrupted is “Damsel, I say unto thee, arise” It had to be interrupted for the scripture to give us an understanding of what Jesus had said. If it were not tongues it would not have said “this to be interrupted,” Jesus would have spoken in the language of the land He was in. You see there wouldn’t have been reason for Jesus to have spoken in a foreign language for as understanding the scripture you can see the power of one earthly language is no more powerful than another. Therefore, Jesus would not have spoken in a foreign earthy language. Scalars and theologians have searched and studied ever known language past, and present to justify those words of Jesus’, to identify what language He was speaking in this passage and in another that we will discuss in a moment. There efforts were fruitless Jesus was speaking no known language. Some have said that it was possibly Syriac or Aramaic expression, but this is unfounded.One theologian actually said that Jesus was speaking gibberish words with no meaning just “jibber jabber”, we know that this is not the case every sound that ever left the tongue of our Lord had a deep meaning and relevance to them, to believe anything else is simply blasphemous. How we know what Jesus said had meaning is the scripture said this to be interpreted. Jesus was speaking in tongues, are you could say the unknown language. The language that He told His disciples in the sixteenth chapter of Mark that they would now speak this Heavenly language themselves. This is a precious gift from Jesus through the Holy Ghost to those who truly believe. You see Jesus knew that there were things that we were going to need to pray that needed the power of this Heavenly language. The actual text we are discussing reads as follows; Mark 5:41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.
The next time Jesus spoke in tongues that was recorded in Holy Scripture was when He was on the Cross dying for our sins he said “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani” interrupted means, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” This is also found in the book of Mark in the fifteenth chapter and the thirty-fourth verse, “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? Which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Jesus was speaking directly to His Father Jehovah. This is one of the reasons for my personal belief or Johnnyology as I call it, instead of theology, and this is that in Heaven the language we will speak will be the language as we call it here the unknown language, or tongues the prayer language. You see this is the only language that has not been defiled by a curse word or sin. On top of that it being the language that Jesus sometimes used when praying or speaking to His Father.
In these two examples of tongues that the scripture gives us of Jesus speaking in them, are I believe as I have said in the previous paragraph was the unknown language or prayer tongue, it also is a form of the prophetic tongue, because it was interrupted. You see from the way I have come to understand it, and this is by the teaching power of the Holy Ghost, not just an idea that I have come up with myself, and this is that the prayer language, and the prophetic tongue are in the same language. The only difference in the two as I have stated is that the prayer language is for the edification of yourself (“1st Corinthians 14:4 He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.”), while used as a prophetic tongue it is for the edification of the church. I will give a more expounded explanation of this when we begin discussion of the prophetic tongue, but for now lets stick to the prayer language.
The first time that the believer or you could say the church speaks in tongues of any kind is on the day of Pentecost. You see Jesus told His people to go and wait in Jerusalem for the promise He made of the Holy Ghost is fulfilled. “Acts 1:1-5 The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: 3 To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: 4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”
The faithful waited in the “upper room” as the scripture calls it in Jerusalem on the promise which was the baptism of the Holy Ghost to be fulfilled. “Acts 2:1-4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” The promise had arrived, that’s what the scripture meant when it said the Day of Pentecost had fully come, Pentecost meaning the Holy Ghost, the promise of God made manifest. There was about one-handed and twenty people in that upper room of whom waited on their soon coming promise, and on the day of Pentecost it was fulfilled, the promise made manifest inside the hearts and minds of every believer gather together there, note every believer. I want you too also notice that the first outward appearance of the baptism of the holy Ghost to others was that they spoke in tongues. Tongues is the evidence that one is filled with the Holy Ghost, that is to say if a believer does not speak in tongues then they have not been baptized with the Holy Ghost, and I will further prove this point with the scriptures in a moment.
The first type of tongues that they spoke was the prayer language tongue. The second was the tongues of another foreign language. “Acts 2:5-8 And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. 6 Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. 7 And they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? 8 And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?”
Let me give you another example why I hold fast to the doctrine that tongues (the prayer language) is the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Paul was traveling among the churches when he passed through Ephesus he found some believers there, or disciples as the bible says. Paul asks them have they been filled with the Holy Ghost, and the disciples reply in so many words, We do not know anything about the Holy Ghost, but we have been saved. Then the bible says that Paul laid his hands upon them and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak in tongues and prophesied. “Acts 19:1-7 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples,2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 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. 7 And all the men were about twelve.” So here we see the second proof that the first evident of the filling of the Holy Ghost is the speaking in tongues. You see when we receive the Holy Ghost and this most wonderful gift of tongues that we shall call the prayer language we can now speak directly to God, just as we do in prayer but now the soul can pray to God without any interference from the devil or satan. “1st Corinthians 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.”
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