The gift of tongues is a multipurpose tool for the different types of prayer that the Christian uses to access the throne of grace. It is an example of the Holy Spirit working in partnership with us. The role of the Holy Spirit is to build up our faith in God and His Word, and to maintain it.
The way we exercise tongues is that we make up the words, and the Holy Spirit provides the inspiration for the words that we make up. Tongues are a dynamic language in the sense that they are created as we say it. The words do not store up in our memories first. We could say that the expression of tongues bypasses our mind, rather than originating in our mind, in the sense that it does not involve our thinking processes.
So where does the expression come from? It comes from our spirit. Paul says that when he prays in tongues, his spirit prays (1 Corinthians 14:14). Where does the spirit get the inspiration from? The Holy Spirit gives the utterance (Acts 2:4).
Anyone who says that tongues forces its way out of his mouth without any cooperation from him, is not speaking with genuine tongues. This is why, when some people have spoken in tongues, it has been translated as blasphemies. My view is that because the speaker was not exercising the genuine gift of tongues in partnership with the Holy Spirit, the tongue language was inspired by an evil spirit, whose purpose was to discredit the gift of tongues and thus frighten people away from it.
People seeking the gift of tongues make a mistake when they think that the Holy Spirit takes over their mouth and speaks without allowing them to cooperate with Him. This is why so many people work themselves up into an emotional frenzy before the tongues will come. More often than not, the tongues come from an evil spirit. Note what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14:32:
“For the spirits of the prophets [the speakers in tongues] are under the speaker’s control [and subject to be silenced as may be necessary].”
When we have received the Baptism in the Spirit, we have the potential of using all the gifts of the Spirit because the Holy Spirit is abiding in us. So we don’t have to ask God to give us any of the gifts. Why do we need to ask for what we already have? This is why so many ask and ask and never seem to activate the gifts. They then, in effect, give up and say that they are content to wait “for the Spirit to give the gift as He wills.” Of course it is never going to happen, because they already have the gift, and it will only be exercised when they decide to use it. “According to your faith be it unto you” (Matthew 9:29). The gift does not come because we fail to do our part of the partnership when the Holy Spirit has done His.
So, in operating the gift of tongues, we do our part by making up words that we decide we want to use to express our hearts to God. What really happens is that the Holy Spirit is actually supplying the words that are forming within us. We are using our mind and intellect and initiative, and the Holy Spirit is working with us in tandem.
The difference between speaking in genuine tongues and making up nonsense is our faith. If we believe that we are baptized in the Holy Spirit according to God’s Word, then we can speak in tongues according to 1 Corinthians 14.
Let’s examine this further. Paul said that when he spoke in tongues, his spirit is speaking. This shows that tongues comes from his spirit (not his body, therefore it does not have an emotional base to it). To activate your spirit in tandem with the Holy Spirit, you need to use your faith. An unbeliever cannot do this because his spirit is dead. But once the spirit has come alive through conversion, which in itself is also an act of faith, anything that comes to us through our spirit is also the result of faith.
In verses 2, 4, 5, 6, 13, 18, 23, 27 & 28 of 1 Corinthians 14, we see that it is the believer who speaks in tongues. The believer does not passively open his mouth and allow some other “force” do the speaking for him. It is amazing how many seekers expect this to happen when they position themselves for the gift to come to them. The speaker does the speaking. He makes a decision to speak in the same way we make a decision to speak English to express ourselves to others. The difference is that he speaks a language he has never learned.
Notice in verse 2 that the speaking is by the Spirit. This means that it is the Spirit who is inspiring the language. Notice it does not say that the Spirit is controlling the language or the utterance. The person speaking is doing that. The Spirit is working in partnership with the believer but both have different roles: the Spirit inspires, the speaker makes up the language and speaks it. Once the language becomes fluent, the sense of “making it up” disappears and the speaker just speaks as the words and syllables come to him.
In verse 13 we read: “Therefore let one who speaks in a tongue, pray that he may interpret.” This shows that the mind is active, not passive when praying in tongues, because the speaker is actively praying if it is appropriate to give an interpretation of what he is speaking, and so preparing himself to speak it out when or if it comes.
In verse 14, Paul talks about praying in a tongue. Tongues are always directed to God. They are a prayer language. In verse 16, praying in tongues is termed “blessing with the spirit”. This is the act of offering praise and blessing to God in worship. In verse 16, Paul “sings with the spirit” as he lifts up his heart in worship to God. In verse 17, he says that the person speaking in tongues are “giving thanks well enough”. In verse 28, the tongues speaker is “speaking to himself (under his breath) and to God (at the same time)”. Although the mind is “unfruitful”, that is, not understanding what is being said, it is not passive. It is fully aware that what is being said is praise and worship directed to the Lord.
Paul is adamant that the “out loud” use of tongues should be suppressed in public meetings where there are unbelievers and uninitiated people present. They will not understand what is going on, and will be distracted away from their worship of God, or, in the case of unbelievers, their uninterrupted hearing of the Gospel will be interrupted by a phenomenon they will not understand. Many traditional churches have only public meetings on Sunday mornings and evenings, their other meetings do not usually involve prayer and worship, so it is understandable that tongues would not be spoken much in those churches, if at all.
But many other churches, especially Pentecostal and Charismatic, have prayer meetings and conferences not open to the public or unbelievers. Therefore the instruction of Paul to refrain from speaking in tongues would not apply to these meetings. This is especially true in prayer meetings where there is group intercession and “praying through” to achieve victory for needs that are presented to the group. This is where tongues can be used freely, and it provides a powerful backup for the person praying in English. Using tongues in a prayer meeting can actually enhance the expression in English where it might have been difficult to find expression before. Without tongues in a prayer meeting, only one person at a time can pray, thus making it more likely that the others drift towards being passive while waiting for their turn to contribute. There may be the odd “amen”, but there is no sense of getting behind that person in prayer and supporting him all the way. The use of the gift of tongues in prayer meetings allows that, and transforms a boring prayer meeting into a powerful encounter with God in the Spirit.
There are other gatherings that do not involve unbelievers and uninitiated people: conferences that centre on the prophetic and the use of the gifts of the Spirit are good examples. You wouldn’t expect unbelievers to attend, although they would be welcome (because you never know who might get saved there). There should be no limitation on speaking and praying in tongues in that situation because it is not a public meeting as such; it is not designed as a public meeting. It is a special purpose meeting to receive teaching on the gifts of the Spirit and to allow believers to exercise them in a learning workshop environment. I do not believe that Paul would limit the use of tongues in a conference like that.
So, because the primary use of the gift of tongues is to speak to God (v2, 28), it is mostly used in the believer’s private prayer time. When a believer uses it this way, the following things happen: he builds himself up in his faith (v4); he has direct Spirit to spirit communication with God (v14). Praying in tongues bypasses the limitations of the natural mind and clears the way for the Holy Spirit to respond with revelations, correction, and fresh insight into God’s Word.
The next use of the gift of tongues is in a church setting where an interpreter is present. The believer senses that the Holy Spirit desires to speak to the church in a special way, through comfort, encouragement or exhortation, and therefore speaks out in tongues. The interpretation can be direct, in that it is expressed as prayer and praise to God, lifting the fellowship to a new level of worship; or it can be as a prophecy, sharing revelation and new insights from the Spirit to the congregation as a whole. In this way the tongues message is an intercessory prayer to God asking for a release of His Word to the fellowship.
In 1 Corinthians 12:10 we see that one of the gifts is recorded as “various kinds of tongues”. We have already mentioned the private prayer language, and the public tongues message that is interpreted. But there are other kinds of tongues: intercessory, praise and worship, backing and supporting the prayers of others, to list a few. Paul said that he would pray “with the spirit”, and “with the understanding” (1 Corinthians 14:15). This shows that all the different types of prayer that can be prayed with the understanding can also be prayed in tongues.
Many believers’ experience of tongues is fairly limited to just punctuation between prayers with the understanding, or praise and worship, however, supplication, intercession and spiritual warfare praying in tongues is less understood. These are the areas where tongues can be harnessed to penetrate bondages, release captives, bring healing, release prophecy and revelation, activate the words of knowledge and wisdom, stir up the gift of faith, bring about miracles and make a believer more sensitive in the Spirit when using discernment of spirits.
“For the weapons of our warfare are not physical (weapons of flesh and blood), but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings, and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the (true) knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed One…” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
Tongues are one of those weapons. In Ephesians 6:18, when it deals with the armour of God, it mentions “all prayer”. This is not only English, but tongues as well. Therefore prayer in tongues is connected with our use of the armour of God, not only for defense, but also for attacking the strongholds of evil.
The devil does not want us to use the gift of tongues. He will do everything he can to hinder us, deceive us, in order that we either refrain from speaking in tongues or we use it wrongly and bring the gift into disrepute.
Jesus said that the Spirit of the Lord was upon Him . . . to set the captives free (Luke 4:18). Now, the Spirit of the Lord is within us, and we can use the gifts of the Spirit to set the captive free from sin, sickness, evil spirits, and all other types of bondages that hold them prisoner to evil.
The next section was the text of my previously published book Easy Steps To Receiving Tongues. I have included it here because it has the practical steps of actually using the Gift of Tongues. (My apologies if some points are repeats of what has already been covered in this section.)
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We have discovered that there are a lot of seekers who are asking how they can be baptized in the Holy Spirit and receive the gift of tongues. The answers that seem to come are expressed in terms of, “Wait for God to do it”, “Have faith and it will come”, etc, etc. Although these are good sentiments, for many people they are useless when it comes to knowing the practical steps to receive the baptism and gifts.
There doesn’t appear to be any problem using a set of practical steps to bring a person through to accepting Christ as Saviour, so, why not give a seeker a set of practical steps to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit? To some, there seems to be a mystique about the Holy Spirit baptism and the gift of tongues, causing numerous advisers to be reluctant to adopt a practical attitude to it. They get so heavenly minded about it that they are no earthly use when it comes to actually guiding seekers to receiving what God has already given on the Day of Pentecost! (Acts 2:1-4).
My own journey regarding this sensitive issue began one day after observing something at an altar call. There was a seeker completely surrounded by well-meaning deacons who were praying for him to receive the Holy Spirit. Half of these were saying, “Hold on brother!” while the other half were saying, “Let go brother!” The poor ‘brother’ wasn’t getting anywhere; I don’t think he really knew what to do – whether to hang on or let go! I felt sorry for the confused seeker having so much difficulty receiving the gift of tongues that I went to prayer; I sought God to show me how to help people receive the baptism in the Spirit, telling the Lord how frustrated I felt that I could not help that seeker receiving something that I knew would be such a blessing for his life. It seemed that God was agreeing with me. I asked Him to show me how to pray for people to receive the baptism and the gift of tongues in a way that would bring success without such a struggle of faith.
God answered me relatively quickly, and gave me a set of practical steps that proved to be very successful in practice. I have had the pleasure and privilege to pray for many people to receive the baptism and have had a one hundred percent success rate of people genuinely receiving it. Lives have been changed drastically as a consequence of that experience. Subsequently, I became a recognized ministry in my church in the counselling of people to receive the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues.
My audience is made up of the honest and genuine seekers who have decided that they really want the baptism in the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues. They are the ones who have decided that the gift of tongues is the evidence for them that they are baptized in the Holy Spirit.
“While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all who were listening to the message. And the believers from among the circumcised [the Jews] who came with Peter were surprised and amazed, because the free gift of the Holy Spirit had been bestowed and poured out largely even on the Gentiles. For they heard them talking in [unknown] languages and extolling and magnifying God” (Acts 10:44-46).
“While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul . . . came down to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he asked them, Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed [on Jesus as the Christ]? And they said, No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit . . . And as Paul laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spoke in foreign languages and prophesied”
(Acts 19: 1,2 & 6).
These are two examples of the way the Holy Spirit fell upon those who believed. Bear in mind that even in a court of law it only needs two witnesses to decide a case. Along with the account of Acts 2, the New Testament provides three independent accounts that witness the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and they all involve speaking in tongues. However, if you are one of those people who think that the gift of tongues is not necessary for you to receive the baptism, then you are quite free to seek His will for you in the exercise of the other gifts of the Spirit. But if you are open to the possibility that tongues might be an appropriate gift for you, then, by all means, keep reading!
The main characteristic of my ‘method’ is that there is no pressure at all. I start with a civilized discussion over a cup of coffee, maintaining a very low-key, unemotional attitude. This is because I believe that education is the most important component; people have to know what they are getting into.
Seekers sometimes see others who are baptized in the Holy Spirit behaving in strange and unusual ways, so they become afraid that, if they open themselves up to the Spirit, something similar might happen to them, bringing embarrassment. That is the reason why some seekers run out the door of the church, never to return.
Therefore there is a real need for sitting a seeker down in a relaxed environment and giving them as much knowledge about the ministry of the Spirit as they need. Most seekers will appreciate the time taken to do this, and will be greatly relieved to know that they do not have to behave in bizarre ways in order to ‘be in the Spirit’.
“For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, In returning to Me and resting in Me you shall be saved; in quietness and in (trusting) confidence shall be your strength” (Isaiah 30:15).
God is good, and He allows only good things to happen to those who honestly and sincerely seek Him for the gifts of the Spirit. This is why He can work very well in a quiet and relaxed environment just as well as in a meeting where there is a lot of activity and noise. He is not limited in how and where He works. Some people are able to receive the baptism in the Spirit in a lively meeting where many other people around them are prophesying and speaking in tongues. Others need peace and quiet with gentle counselling and guidance.
When new Christians and Christians from traditional churches come into churches that promote the baptism in the Spirit and the speaking in tongues, they are sometimes apprehensive when they see the gifts in action, and the effect that it has upon some people. What can be quite normal and acceptable to believers in a church may seem bizarre to visitors not used to seeing the gifts in action in a public meeting.
“Therefore, if the whole church assembles, and all of you speak in [unknown] tongues, and the ungifted and uninitiated or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are demented?” (1 Corinthians 14:23).
This is why it is helpful and caring for a Pentecostal or Charismatic Christian to spend some time with a prospective visitor, before they attend, to explain the nature of the service and what happens there. In this way, visitors are prepared and conditioned for what may happen around them.
It is always good if an ‘uninitiated’ believer is planning on visiting a church where the gifts of the Spirit are practiced, to arrange an appointment with one of the Pastoral team so that questions can be answered and the visitor’s mind put to rest before being exposed to worship that may be quite different to what he or she is accustomed to.
I am assuming that you have some idea of what people who are baptized in the Holy Spirit are like and have accepted that most of them are doing their best to follow the principles of the Gospels and the New Testament in the way they live and worship. If you haven’t come to this place yet, stop reading and work towards that level of acceptance.
It is not my intention to delve into the history of how the baptism in the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues came into our modern church. There are a number of good books written on the subject, and your local Pentecostal or Charismatic pastor will suggest some titles for you. I have written an exposition on 1 Corinthians 14, expounding the subject from the scriptural point of view. That can be useful to understanding what Paul the Apostle taught about the spiritual gifts and especially the gift of tongues. This article is in Appendix 1. (This is in my book, A New Look At the Baptism In The Spirit, Tongues and Prophecy.)
When a seeker approaches me to find out more about the baptism, I sit them down and explain the steps that we are going to take to bring them through to the baptism and the gift of tongues. As part of the preparation, I take whatever time is necessary to explain the operation and use of the gift of tongues so that, once we commit ourselves to prayer, the flow of ministry is preserved and not interrupted. It can be most distracting in the middle of a prayer directed to receiving the Holy Spirit if one has to stop praying to give further explanation and instruction.
From this point on, I will write as if I am explaining the steps to a seeker.
Are you ready?
Yes? Here we go . . .
1. You must believe that it is definitely God’s will for you to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and speak in other tongues.
This is probably the most important step of all of them. 1 John 5:14 & 15 says:
“And this is the confidence – the assurance, the [privilege of] boldness - which we have in Him: [we are sure] that if we ask anything (make a request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan) He listens to and hears us. And if (since) we [positively] know that He listens to us in whatever we ask, we also know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted us as our present possessions] the requests made of Him.”
There is no point in progressing any further until you are completely sure that this is what you want, and it is God’s will for you. If you are not sure, we will need to go back into the preparation stage and discuss further how and why it could be God’s will for you.
Coming to accept that it is God’s will for you does not involve anyone pressuring you into it. If that is happening, it might be that other person’s will for you rather than God’s will. It is often a matter of timing. God has His own time for doing things. An enthusiastic person may think that God’s time is right now, when God may want you to be more knowledgeable or relaxed before giving you the sense that ‘now is the time’ for it to happen.
Let’s now assume that you have reached the place where you know it is God’s will for you, and that you know that God is going to give you the gift of tongues, along with the baptism.
2. Ask God Directly For It:
This is a principle when receiving things from God. We are to ask for the things we need. James says, “You have not because you ask not” (James 4:2). This means that many people miss out on the good things of God because they do not approach God and ask Him directly for them. Going to prayer and asking God for the things you need is quite scriptural. Jesus said:
“If you live in Me – abide vitally united to Me – and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will and it shall be done for you” (John 15:7).
And:
“Whatever you ask for in prayer, having faith and [really] believing, you will receive” (Matthew 21:22).
Why do we have to ask when God already knows what we need, before we even ask Him? Simple. He wants us to express our love and confidence in Him by asking Him. Asking is an act of faith. It is the first move toward getting what you need in God. “Come boldly to the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16) is the way we approach God to ask Him for the things we need.
Here is the first part of a prayer for receiving:
“Father, I believe that it is Your will for me to receive the baptism in the Spirit. I also believe that You want to give me the gift of tongues. Your Word says, ‘Ask and you shall receive’ (John 16:24). I therefore ask for that baptism in the Name of Jesus.”
We then move on to the next step.
Asking is one thing, receiving is another. If you stop there, you might be left to wait.
Why? . . . until you are ready to accept and receive it.
Here is a scripture:
“And we receive from Him whatever we ask for, because we (watchfully) obey His orders – observe His suggestions and injunctions, follow His plan for us – and (habitually) practice what is pleasing to Him” (1 John 3:22).
There is no delay between asking and receiving; God extends the gift as soon as you have asked for it.
“For every one who asks and keeps on asking receives . . .”
(Luke 11:10a).
There is no gap between asking and receiving in the above scripture. As soon as you ask, it is immediately there for you to receive.
It is yours to take from His hands.
“. . . He breathed on [them] and said to them, Receive (admit) the Holy Spirit!” (John 20:22).
In order for the Holy Spirit to fill them, the disciples had to admit the Holy Spirit into their lives after the Lord imparted Him to them.
In the same way, you have to reach out and take Him. He is not a solid item that you can handle with your hands. Therefore you have to say the words of faith. By saying, “I accept the gift” you are taking the Holy Spirit and His gift out of God’s hands. He and it becomes yours. The Holy Spirit is now active in you, and you have the gift of tongues at your disposal to use freely as He leads you.
This process of receiving the Baptism in the Spirit and the gift of tongues is the same as accepting Christ as Saviour.
We were encouraged to believe that we were saved as soon as we accepted the gift of salvation. We said, “I accept You [Jesus] into my heart.” We believed that we were saved from that instant onward.
“But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the authority [power, privilege, right] to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in – adhere to, trust in and rely on – His name” (John 1:12).
It is the same with receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit baptism. You are baptized in the Spirit as soon as you accept Him.
Here is the prayer:
“Lord Jesus, You are the baptizer in the Holy Spirit (John 1:33). I believe that receiving the baptism in the Spirit and the gift of tongues is Your will for me. I therefore ask specifically for it, in Jesus’ Name, knowing that You will give me anything I ask for in Your will. You are handing it out to me because I asked You for it. I take it out of Your hands. I accept it in Your Name.”
At this point, you are baptized in the Holy Spirit. You accepted it (Him?) by faith. He is now a part of you. The Holy Spirit has now given you the tools for service. Believe it.
There are believers who stop at this point. They walk away without receiving anything further. There is nothing wrong with that. They are still baptized in the Spirit according to their faith. But they have not yet received the gift of tongues to be able to speak and use them whenever they want to.
There is another step to be taken to be able to use them.
4. Using The Tools Of The Spirit:
While any of the gifts of the Spirit can be used from this point onward, most of them require some level of maturity in Christian living and ministry. Usually, most who move straight into prophecy or words of knowledge and wisdom straight after being baptized in the Spirit are those who are mature Christians. They already are respected ministries in the church.
The gift of tongues is the one gift that can be used by a novice in Christ. You don’t have to be an established ministry in the church to use it.
There are two expressions of the gift of tongues:
1. The language you speak in your private time
with God, and
The first is not interpreted. It is directed to God who understands what is being said.
The second needs an interpreter. This is for the building up of the Body of Christ.
A novice in Christ can use both. You can use it in your private prayer time, and you can speak it out in church if you know that there is an interpreter present. In most churches that practice the gifts of the Spirit there are several who can interpret tongues.
Okay, so tongues are the logical choice for stepping out in faith to start using the tools [gifts] of the Spirit. It also sets you up for going to the next level in your prayer life.
Accepting the Spirit into your life has let Him come in. Stepping out in faith to speak in tongues allows Him to flow out of you to others.
“He who believes in Me – who cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me – as the Scripture has said, Out from his innermost being springs and rivers of living water shall flow (continuously)” (John 7:38).
Speaking in tongues is the first stepping-stone to a host of other gifts and ministries of the Spirit flowing out of us for the good of others. This is why we all need it.
So, what do you do to exercise the gift, because, having the baptism, you can exercise it right now!
First, try to form words that are not English. You might feel strange at first. Then again, you might not. You might be thinking some strange sounding words in your mind. The Holy Spirit sometimes does it that way. If so, speak them out. Once you start speaking, don’t pause between words. After a while, it will become a fluent language.
You might think: “I am just making this up!”
Well, you have to speak the words and phrases. The difference between speaking nonsense and speaking in a language understood and appreciated by God is your faith. If you believe that you are speaking in tongues according to 1 Corinthians 14, then that is exactly what you are doing.
While you are forming your first words in tongues, think about a need, or a situation you want to pray about. Think about something you feel deeply about. Use your new words to express your deepest feelings about those needs. You will find the expression of those words will intensify. New words will come to better express those feelings. You will not know what you are saying. But you will know that you are effectively expressing the feelings within you. You will also get a sense that God is really listening to you. You will also get a sense of release, and of accomplishment, knowing that you have prayed effectively to God. You may not have felt so confident and powerful in prayer before. That is what the gift of tongues does for you.
If you have started speaking in tongues by now, well done! I rejoice with you. You can now speak in tongues whenever you choose to. The more you practice it, the more fluent it will be. You will find that you will grow in Christ much faster. The Bible will come more alive to you. You have entered into a new place with God.
You have got this far but been unable to launch out and speak in tongues. The words haven’t come. There is no flow. You can’t bring yourself to say any words. You feel you have a mental block. Sometimes candidates want to be by themselves as they try to speak. They feel shy and embarrassed in front of me. I don’t mind that. I let them go. They come back later and tell me that they ‘made it’ and were able to speak in tongues now. We rejoice together.
Maybe you are one of those who need their ‘pump’ primed. Do you remember the old water pumps that pumped water from artesian wells? To start them, you needed to pour water through the top of the pump. Then the water started to flow. This is called priming the pump. You put a little water in the top to set up the ability of the pump to draw the water from deep in the ground. This is because the level of the water goes down in the pipe; therefore the pump has nothing to pump. Putting water in the top fills the pipe back up to pump level. Now the pump has something to pump. The water you put in comes out first. Then the fresh artesian water comes up and out of the spout.
Getting a flow of the Spirit to come forth from you might need a little priming. God showed me this when I encountered those who could not speak in tongues. I told them exactly what was going on. They understood it. They co-operated with me because they wanted to; I did not force them into it.
This is where I use my tongue as the priming ‘water’. I make it clear that it is ‘my’ tongue but not yet ‘theirs’. If they copy me, they are using my tongue language still. Even when they speak my words, they are not yet exercising the gift of tongues for themselves. I get them to say some simple words after me: “Rindy bushaato kitanda kia”. These are definite, genuine words in my tongue. You can practice them to get used to speaking in a language other than your own. When you can speak these words fairly smoothly, then . . . I tell you to put these words together and speak without stopping, in the name of Jesus.
Nine times out of ten, the candidate will launch right off in a completely different language. When they do that, I tell them that the words they are saying are not mine. They are coming out of his or her own spirit. This increases their confidence and faith and it is not long before they are speaking their own fluent language.
Smith Wigglesworth, the great Pentecostal pioneer, in his book Ever Increasing Faith, says that when we start to speak in tongues, the first couple of words could be from our own spirit, but then the Holy Spirit flows through us with His words, making the prayer in the Spirit go right to the heart of the Father. This supports the truth that the Holy Spirit is activated by our faith. We speak the first word or two in faith, and the Holy Spirit does the rest. Therefore, don’t be afraid of stepping out in faith. Start speaking and the Holy Spirit will come through.
Reader, if you are seeking the baptism in the Spirit, you can follow these principles for yourself. They will work for you, as they have worked for countless others.
Now, I want to share some examples of people receiving the baptism in the Spirit through my ministry to them. This is not to say what a great person I am; this is to say what a wonderful person Jesus is for making these things possible. You will know this in the commentaries I will write along with the anecdotes.
Gordon: After a Sunday night service, Gordon approached me and asked if I would go downstairs with him. We went down to a counselling room where he shared that he wanted me to pray for him to receive the baptism in the Spirit. He also wanted the gift of tongues. I took him through the principles that I wrote about [above] and asked him whether he was ready to go through the steps. He said that he was. I asked him if he believed that it was God’s will for him. He affirmed it. We went to prayer and I asked him to repeat the following prayer:
“Thank You Jesus for being the baptizer in the Holy Spirit. I believe that it is Your will for me. I now ask You for the baptism, knowing that You will give me what I ask for in Your will. I now receive it in the Name of Jesus. Thank You, Lord. I am now baptized in the Holy Spirit.”
At that point, I told him that he could speak in tongues. Would he like to try and speak it out? He started to make up words. Very soon, he was speaking in a fluent language. It was a great time for us both. There was no hype about it. No forcing. No pressure. And yet we had a lot of fun and laughter as a result.
His life changed from that point. He lost his hesitancy with Christian things. He had a much brighter, more “bubbly” personality. We were friends for many years afterwards, and the last time I saw him, he was still joyful and positive in the Lord.
Mark: Mark was 14 years old when I first met him. He was a young person in Teen Challenge, a coffee bar ministry in Palmerston North, New Zealand. I was a leader in the ministry. Mark asked me to pray for him to receive the gift of tongues. I sat him down and took him through the teaching and the method for receiving the gift. When he was ready, we prayed the prayer [that I just mentioned]. I said, “Now you can speak in tongues.” He had a mental block. I took him through saying ‘my’ tongue language. Still there was a mental block. We did this for twenty minutes until I gave up. I said, “Lord, You are the baptizer in the Holy Spirit. I have done my best to get him through. I now give Mark up to You.” Immediately he said “Oh!” and began speaking a beautiful, new fluent language.
I learned something very valuable. Jesus showed me that He is the baptizer in the Holy Spirit. No method will work unless He does the work. Therefore I should not trust in the method, even though it was the one He showed me. He wanted me to trust Him. Ever since then I have always acknowledged Jesus as the baptizer in the Holy Spirit.
I have never had anyone who has had a mental block like that since. Mark went on to become a vibrant Christian, and when he was 18 years old, he joined my discipleship group and was a productive member of it.
Dominic and Camilla: I met this couple in my church just after they arrived in the country from Zimbabwe. During some school holidays, I visited them for a cup of coffee, and the conversation got around to the things of the Spirit. They told me that they spoke in tongues a little, but were not very free in it. I suggested that I could help them in that. They were glad to participate. I went through my method and prayed the prayer with them. We then started to speak in tongues together. The Holy Spirit fell on us and we all became very fluent in tongues.
We praised God with much laughter and rejoicing. In the same room with us was a budgerigar in a cage, and we were somewhat bemused by the thought that it would soon start speaking in Japanese if we went on too long! That brought about more laughter.
For the next three years, I took them for a bi-weekly Bible study, and we had hours of great learning and fellowship. They are still close friends and neighbours.
Transdenominational Conventions: During the late 1970’s, my Pentecostal church hosted major Easter conventions that were held in the grandstand of the local racetrack. People from all over New Zealand came to these conventions. They were famous throughout the country at that time, and hosted many big-name ministries from around the world. I was a deacon of the church and a leader of Teen Challenge, so I was appointed as a counsellor at these conventions. My function was to pray for people to receive the baptism in the Spirit. Because I felt that my ministry was for those who had difficulties coming through to the baptism, I waited until all the ‘easy’ ones were ministered to. Then the ‘chronics’ were left. I went to each one in turn and offered my services. Many of these successfully came into the baptism.
One young woman in particular had a wonderful experience. She initially had difficulty. I took her through the four steps then she suddenly broke out in a fluent tongues language right after she told the Lord that she accepted the gift in Jesus Name! She appeared to shudder suddenly, and then started speaking in a beautiful language. I was amazed at the greatness and love of God that He would suddenly answer the prayer of this young woman in such a dramatic way.
Harry: Harry was and is a very good friend. He was born in Glasgow in Scotland, and immigrated to New Zealand in the late 1960’s. He worked like a slave until he had enough money to bring the rest of his family out. He was a reliable and enthusiastic member of my discipleship group in the middle to late 1970’s. When our group first started, he told us that he had difficulty with speaking in tongues. We ministered to him and prayed the four-step prayer. I then told him to speak out in tongues in the Name of Jesus. He broke forth in such a loud and dramatic tongue that all of us present collapsed with laughter - we couldn’t help it. The more he spoke in tongues, the more we felt like laughing. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and we had a lot of it that night!
Hans: I have used this name for him because I have forgotten his real name because I met him only once at our discipleship group. He was a tourist who was visiting a member of the group and came along to have some fellowship with us. He expressed a desire to be baptized in the Spirit. When we prayed for him, he spoke in the most beautiful language I have ever heard. I just wonder at the grace of God and His beauty when someone, who couldn’t speak in tongues before, could come out with such a wonderful language when prayed for.
These are the most notable experiences of people that I have had a hand in praying for to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues. There have been countless other times when I have ministered for seekers and they have received the gift of tongues without any dramatic effects or fanfare. Mostly, the sessions have been in my lounge, or in a counselling room, where I teach them about the ministry of the Spirit in a calm, relaxed, almost ‘cold-blooded’ way.
This is quite different to what some people believe about Pentecostals. They see only the hype that can happen with groups of people. Group dynamics can be quite powerful, but it can be the wrong power. People can be caught up with what the group is doing and lose sight of what God may want to do. They can be loud and dramatic when God might want them to be quiet.
He doesn’t need loud noise or “swinging from the rafters” stuff to do His work in the Spirit. Sometimes the Spirit can work more effectively in an atmosphere of quietness and peace. The fruit of the Spirit is firstly love, joy and peace (Galatians 5:22-23). That’s why I don’t make any apologies for laughing when the Holy Spirit comes and fills a seeker.
There it is.
It will be genuine, because you are approaching it with faith in God’s Word. You won’t receive a counterfeit because you are following scriptural principles.
“What father among you, if his son asks him for a loaf of bread, will hand him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, evil-minded as you are, know how to give good gifts – gifts that are to advantage - to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask and continue to ask Him!!” (Luke 11:11-13).
The only people who open themselves to counterfeits are those who have other spiritual problems that need addressing and healing. You are more likely to receive a counterfeit if you are pressured into a manifestation by a group of people yelling in your ears as they simultaneously lay hands on you. You can’t think straight when that is going on. You need to be cool, calm and collected, thinking it all through with an open (not blank) mind.
“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity . . . but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7).
“Beloved, do not put faith in every spirit, but prove (test) the spirits to discover whether they proceed from God; for many false prophets have gone forth into the world” (1 John 4:1).
If you think that someone who offers to pray for you has a wrong spirit, ask him or her if they believe that Jesus came to the world as a real human being [i.e.: in the flesh], for a wrong spirit cannot make that confession.
“By this you may know (perceive and recognize) the Spirit of God: every spirit which acknowledges and confesses [the fact] that Jesus Christ, the Messiah, [actually] has become man and has come in the flesh is of God – has God for its source” (1 John 4:2).
A wrong spirit will become unsettled and agitated when asked that question. If that happens, walk away from that person because he cannot help you. If he lays hands on you, unpredictable things might happen. This is why I adopt a straight, calculating, scriptural approach to the baptism in the Spirit and the speaking in tongues. Emotion in the form of weeping and joy may come as you break through to victory in the Spirit. That is correct and scriptural. But beware of people trying to induce strong emotion into you before you come through in the Spirit. Also keep clear of people trying to apply undue pressure on you. The Holy Spirit never works this way.
The Holy Spirit works by giving you a conviction in your heart that you need what He has for you. He increases the desire in your heart for a greater effectiveness for God. He shows you in your heart that the baptism in the Spirit is the way to achieve that. He will wait until you are ready before He will do anything.
Remember this . . .
The Holy Spirit will not do anything that will make you feel afraid, depressed, spooked, or ‘manic’ (2 Timothy 1:7). He will also not make you do anything that would make a fool out of you. This sort of thing will devalue the Name of Jesus in the eyes of others. This would be unacceptable to the Holy Spirit for that to happen.
God is a good God! He wants to do good things for you. The real baptism in the Spirit will do the following things:
And the list goes on . . .
It is about making us better Christians, who will grow in grace and be effective church members and witnesses for Christ.
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-ooOOoo