Speaking In Tongues and Other Miraculous Gifts

By Leslie Abbott

A thorough investigation and application of the miraculous gifts listed in the Bible. What gifts should we expect to be in operation today? Does everyone speak in tongues? Is Tongues a prayer language? The author examines all these questions and possibly hundreds more encouraging biblical students to use God's gifts in the way God intended. Experience a new found freedom in Christ!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Leslie Abbott
• Release date: May 2, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301616794

Leslie Abbott

Leslie Abbott is an enterprising individual that writes from a religious perspective and includes eBooks on managing finances. Currently he has authored six eBooks, and three in print. Leslie lives on a small 40 acre ranch in Ontario where he gardens, herds about 80 goats, prizes two Gyspy Vanner horses, and tends to a few chickens. His favorite attire is a western hat and cowboy boots. His day is full from sunrise to way past sundown and yet he still finds time to write about current interests.

Book preview

SPEAKING IN TONGUES

AND OTHER

MIRACULOUS GIFTS

A THOUROUGH INVESTIGATION

OF THE

MIRACULOUS GIFTS

By

Leslie R Abbott

PUBLISHED BY:

Leslie R Abbott on SmashWords

Speaking In Tongues and Other Miraculous Gifts

Copyright © 2013 by Leslie R Abbott

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture is taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

Every effort has been made to ensure no copyrighted material has been used without giving proper credit in footnotes and Bibliography. The author regrets any oversights that may have occurred and would be happy to rectify them in future printings of the book.

Table of Contents

Chapter One Tapping into the Charismatic Mindset

Chapter Two My Personal Search for Truth

Chapter Three Mark Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Four The Gospel of John

Chapter Five The Book of Acts

Chapter Six Acts Chapter Eight

Chapter Seven Acts Chapter Nine

Chapter Eight Acts Chapter Ten

Chapter Nine Acts Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Ten Conclusion of the Book of Acts

Chapter Eleven First Corinthians Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve First Corinthians Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen First Corinthians Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen Conclusion of First Corinthians

Chapter Fifteen What Is the ‘Filling’ of the Holy Spirit?

Chapter Sixteen Spiritual Warfare

Chapter Seventeen Name It and Claim It Teachings

Chapter Eighteen Concluding Observations

Acknowledgements

To my wife Melody who has helped me immensely in editing this book and was bold enough to ask some very important questions, helping me to further clarify what I was trying to communicate.

To my first-born son Michael who witnessed me going through many difficult times in my life while on my own spiritual journey, one which is never finished. In addition, Michael has sacrificed valuable time with his dad while I was busy writing and editing this book over several years.

To my middle child Matthew who also sacrificed his time from fishing and hunting while I felt so committed to this project.

To my darling daughter Kathryn whose smile always cheers me up and keeps me going when things seem to be tough.

I would also like to thank Bible College teachers that taught and modeled to me the pursuit for truth. Hermeneutics and Expository teaching has given me insight into how to interpret scripture within it’s proper context. It has dramatically changed my life and helped me sort out many confusing doctrines of the past. It has also stimulated my mind and given me license to explore other subjects of interest to which I am eternally grateful.

Preface

Myriads of books are now filling our bookstore shelves and one could only wonder as to why one would want to add yet another book, especially one concerning the miraculous gifts. For many years I struggled with the idea but then I concluded that I, like Jeremiah, must speak up at least through the written page.

Some books concerning the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit have been written from the traditional conservative viewpoint, and many from the Charismatic or Pentecostal viewpoint, each of them taking a position for or against speaking tongues.

Very few books have been written from anyone who has re-examined their beliefs which eventually led to a personal abandonment of Pentecostalism and its practices.

It has been my discovery that a few Pentecostals have made some minor changes regarding their beliefs but they still maintained the basic essentials of the faith, put in a good word for Pentecostals in their books, and then strived for a balance between Conservative Evangelicals and Pentecostals. This has given way to a new rise in the Charismatic arena which is considered to be a middle-ground approach.

A brief look at our society today will reveal an unhealthy pre-occupation with the spirit realm and the supernatural. For Christians that is also true, but spelled Spirit realm and the Supernatural, attributing miraculous events and other strange phenomena to Almighty God.

Our generation is on a quest for power and experiences. While the New Age movement may be seeking power from within oneself or through mind altering drugs or even the occult, Christians are seeking power and experiences through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as tongues, laying on of hands, falling or being slain in the Spirit, healing and other miracles.

Altar calls, slaying in the Spirit, healings, speaking in tongues, and other unusual experiences are attributed to God.

With the passing of time the spiritual high becomes low, and the spiritual walk may become weakened until the next time the Spirit is moving.

Experience can be easily manipulated by flesh and Satan. Christians must safeguard themselves from seeking emotional experiences that are contrary to God’s Word. Yes, even Christians are hungering for power and experience. They may be getting tired of playing Church or simply being religious. They want something new and exciting to be happening in their lives. They want help dealing with life's problems.

Rather than turn to Christ for a deeper relationship with Him, they have been convinced that the reason they lack power is because they do not have the baptism in the Holy Spirit usually evidenced by speaking in tongues (Charismatics believe some will and some will not receive this tongues experience). To receive this promised Spirit baptism will give them the power to be an effective witness for Christ, live a holy life, and have a deeper relationship with Christ, all neatly wrapped up in one beautiful package. Then they will be on fire for God. That is, as long as the Spirit is moving.

The focus of this book is to biblically examine the basic beliefs of both the Charismatic and Pentecostal movements. Because the two are so similar, I will simply combine the two words to read Charismatic/Pentecostal except where a subject may not be applied to both.

My desire is to stimulate a healthy regard for Scripture leading to a life in Christ that reflects doers of the word and not hearers only (James 1:22-25).

Much of the deception amongst Christians today is self-induced. Many people do not read or study their Bibles. Those who have been caught up in a belief system may have not studied their Bible contextually.

Those who do study Scripture are most often seeking to confirm their cherished beliefs, rather than examining Scripture in its correct context.

The purpose of this book is to stimulate an inquiring mind in regards to the current miraculous gifts movement to emphasize what scripture really says because the truth will set you free, and ultimately bring healing.

The Bible chosen for our discussion is the 1611 Authorized King James Version. My preference is the New International Version which is much easier to understand and which requires much less research to understand the passages.

However, my reasons for using the KJV are simply:

 it is still a favorite version amongst many Christian groups,

 the 1611 Elizabethan style of English lends itself to misinterpretation because we read and speak differently in our culture today.

When we read the KJV Bible few of us take the time to look up the words and their meanings; we transfer meanings onto them which were not intended by the author; or we ignore words and phrases that we do not understand and move on. This does a great injustice to God's Holy Word.

I have taken great pains to prevent any skipping from one Bible passage to another until the full meaning of the text being discussed has first been discovered. Then other verses may be used that give clear support to this interpretation. Many times you will find the words more about that later in brackets because, while the subject may be of great importance, I do not want to cloud over the message that is being portrayed by the author of the Bible passage currently being discussed.

In later chapters I will deal with some topical issues but only after the familiar texts used in Charismatic/Pentecostal circles have been covered.

Along with the Bible, I will take into consideration my previous Pentecostal/Charismatic background and experiences; eye witness accounts; and most of all, any helpful historical, cultural, and contextual background of the text being examined that might help us understand it better.

While my aim is to be true to God's Word as it is written, I also intend to be as simple as possible because it is the babes in Christ who are the ones most easily deceived and lured into groups which claim to be practicing things based on the Word of God. Therefore, very few references will be made to the Greek unless it adds clarity.

Are you hungry for truth? If so, you can partner with me in this adventure and ask a few questions of your own. Go ahead; write those questions down as soon as you get them so you will not forget. Perhaps you will ask some of the same questions addressed in this book. If they are not covered, perhaps you will find the answers through reading some of the books noted in the Bibliography at the back of this book.

Questions are the first step to discovering truth. Go ahead and ask them. It is your God-given right to do so!

Chapter One

Tapping into the Charismatic Mindset

No matter how clearly or precisely an author tries to explain Charismatic/Pentecostal doctrine, he will no doubt be ridiculed and challenged on some point because they cannot agree even amongst themselves on some of the key issues.

There are however enough similarities within the movement for adequate comparisons. The first and probably the most important one common to them all is that a new believer must receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit subsequent to their salvation experience.

Secondly, some groups insist they must also experience speaking in tongues as a prayer language, at least initially if not continually, once this baptism experience has occurred.

Their reasoning is very simple. When the disciples in Acts were waiting in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit as instructed by Jesus, all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-8)

It is a simple belief system based on mere observation. If these men spoke in tongues when they received the Holy Spirit, and in other chapters of Acts men also spoke in tongues when they received the Holy Spirit, then we should also expect the same.

They make quite a bit of fuss over this baptism being an operation distinct and separate from the work of regeneration. They are convinced that new believers are regenerated or born-again at conversion, sealed into the body of Christ much like the disciples were accepted by Jesus, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit but not baptized in the Holy Spirit. Now they must also wait and tarry for the reception of the Holy Spirit, God’s final blessing of power upon them.

For most Pentecostals tongues is the normal sign that this gift has been given. This baptism in the Holy Spirit will bring boldness and power to preach the Gospel, live a holy life, and have a powerful prayer life.

Anyone who has not received this gift has not arrived. Well yes, they are Christians; but they are not as effective as they could be if they were baptized in the Holy Spirit.

It is common to hear or say, as I did myself on previous occasions, Well that is because they do not have the Holy Spirit. Notice the subtle change.

At first they are not as effective because they do not have the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but now it is rephrased to mean they do not even have the Holy Spirit.

We meant it. Spiritual pride reared its ugly head. Our feelings and attitudes toward these other Christians were that they would never be able to be effective in ministry until they had the anointing.

Sadly, I heard it come many times from my own lips. One time when I commented on our attitude toward other Christians the response was, that must have come from immature Christians.

No, that came from pastors, leaders, teachers, and even the moderator of the organization that I was associated with!

The baptism in the Holy Spirit and tongues is only the beginning. This use of tongues is also elevated to that of a Heavenly prayer language giving the speaker an entrance before God in a supernatural way.

This way you can pray to God even when you do not know what to say. Just engage your mouth and speak and if something new comes out, well then, praise the Lord. In fact, you can be doing something else with your mind far away from God and still be spiritual because at least you are praying in tongues which will be sure to guarantee success. If you’re depressed, pray in tongues. If you need strength, pray in tongues. If you’re at a loss for words, pray in tongues.

If you are having spiritual problems the first question that will be asked of you is, have you been praying in the Holy Spirit meaning -- have you been praying in tongues? Praying in tongues becomes the solution to all spiritual problems.

This adds a whole new dimension to their services. When a person receives Christ the next thing they ask is do you want to receive the Holy Spirit? No wonder they get many strange looks. But after a brief explanation, some candidates are willing to oblige "if that is what God has in store for me, why not? Who am I to argue?

Especially, who am I to argue when I have just accepted the Lord and know not the teaching of God's word!

Believers unconsciously avoid any Scripture texts or books that may dampen their spirits. First Corinthians 12 – 14 is interpreted as public ministry gifts, and so any injunctions against their use of tongues are to be applied only within a Church setting, and not in the use of prayer. Later, I will also share how they do not adequately apply Paul's instruction within their own Churches.

And then there is another dimension that is added: prophetic utterances or prophecy. To us that meant that we were a direct spokes person from God himself. Whatever He leads us to say in a meeting has come directly from the throne room of God itself; in short, a modern prophet or prophetess proclaiming something new and fresh from God. Or, it can be something taken from the Bible and become Rhema being God's word for today. Context has little significance.

Healing is another area of interest. Some believe that healing was granted in the atonement just like the forgiveness of sins. Total health is our God given-right. Stand up and fight for it by faith. Claim it, it’s yours. Just believe. Have faith brother.

Many who have claimed a healing in a service go home as miserable as ever, only worsened by the fact that they could not muster up enough faith to receive their miracle healing.

There is also another form of healing called being slain in the Spirit. It is sort of an emotional healing. This is where God takes total control over your body so that you lose your balance and you usually fall backward but sometimes forwards. This whole act is supposedly to allow God to minister to you.

And then there is even a newer movement that focuses on wealth. Why, God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and we are His children. You are a child of the King, so just ask and it shall be given unto you. If you want a Cadillac, just ask for it. If you want a thousand dollars, just ask for it.

Casting out of demons is also given great importance. Within the Pentecostal ranks there is almost a witch hunt by some people for demons under every bush. Usually they give themselves professional titles such as Deliverance Ministries. Names are given to demons such as demon of cancer, demon of lust, demon of AIDS" and so on. Casting out demons is linked very closely with seeking a physical healing. Some reason that if the demon would leave then they would be made well.

Praying became an art in itself. They could be praying to God in one moment, speaking in tongues in another moment, and praying or speaking to Satan in yet another moment. Or as in most cases, several people at once would