The Manifestation Gifts - Tongues
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 - But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
The nine manifestation gifts of the Spirit are listed as follows:
1. Tongues
2. Interpretation of Tongues
3. Gift of Prophecy
4. Word of Knowledge
5. Word of Wisdom
6. Discerning of Spirits
7. Faith
8. Healings
9. Working of Miracles
The nine gifts of the Spirit can be divided into three groups of three each.
Gifts that say something
1. Tongues
2. Interpretation of Tongues
3. Gift of Prophecy
Gifts that reveal something
4. Word of Knowledge
5. Word of Wisdom
6. Discerning of Spirits
Gifts that do something
7. Faith
8. Healings
9. Working of Miracles
Spiritual gifts are manifestations of the Holy Spirit. These gifts belong to the church and are supernatural manifestations of the Holy Spirit and are manifest through Spirit-filled believers.
These manifestations are visible expressions of the Holy Spirit and reveal His character and His will.
The Word of God teaches us that we do not possess any of these nine gifts, but they manifest on any individual that the Spirit may choose for a particular time or purpose according to the will of the Spirit.
They are therefore temporary gifts and no-one can claim a permanent possession or operation of the gift.
When a believer exercises the gift, the Holy Spirit exhibits His power through that particular person and the Holy Spirit will reveal Himself in a special way.
These gifts therefore operate by faith and are given by grace and are given for the benefit of others. They are not intended for any self-glorification, but are for the benefit of others.
The purpose of the gifts is to build up the church. The Spirit manifests Himself through these gifts to edify the church and demonstrate the reality of God to unbelievers.
The gifts and the ministries of the gifts of the Holy Spirit have the purpose to build the church in unity and love for Christ.
* Edification - to build up
* Exhortation - to stir up
* Comfort - to cheer up
* Direction - to bring direction to the body of Christ
These are the means by which the Holy Spirit works publicly in gatherings of Gods people. These nine gifts are real, effectual and powerful in edifying, or building up the local church made up of believers in Christ Jesus. They aid in carrying God’s work forward in the world. They are operated through the members of the body and not just the leaders in the five-fold ministry. They are for each church and each member of the church. The Holy Spirit distributes the nine gifts across the whole body as He wills and the gift at the time of need is imparted for ministry purposes.
These gifts belong to the church and are manifested through individuals as the Spirit wills, not as man wills.
The following should be understood when it comes to any of the nine gifts of the Spirit:
* They are given freely by God to individual Spirit-filled believers - 1 Corinthians 12:7-11
* They are not a permanent mantle on any particular person but operate only as the Spirit wills for a particular occasion - 1 Corinthians 12:11
* The gifts operate by grace and faith - Romans 12:6
* They are not based on maturity - Acts 19:6
* They are not based on correct doctrine - 1 Corinthians 3:1-3
* The gifts of the Holy Spirit cannot be earned - 1 Corinthians 4:7
* The gifts cannot be purchased - Acts 8:18-21
Tongues
The gift of tongues is one of the nine gifts of the Spirit and is one of the three gifts that say something.
For to one is given different kinds of tongues distributing to each one individually as He wills.
This gift of the Holy Spirit can only be done as the Holy Spirit wills. In other words, these gifts cannot be turned on and off at our will.
The gift of tongues is the Spirit-given ability to receive and communicate timely Spirit-inspired messages from God that bring edification, exhortation, and consolation to the body of Christ, either individually or as a corporate body.
In church there is the need for all to be built up. In a corporate gathering, the church needs to receive building up or edification.
Tongues is a special gift given by the Holy Spirit to speak in either an earthly or heavenly language not learned by the speaker. Believers can receive and communicate a message from God to His people through an unknown tongue. The listeners understand seldom the utterance without an interpretation.
The gift of tongues is dependent upon the gift of interpretation of tongues in order for it to be effective in encouraging and comforting others.
If somebody speaks in a church meeting in an unknown language, it should be interpreted because all of the nine gifts are given to the church to build up and encourage other believers gathered together and therefore they should understand what was being said.
Speaking in tongues is physical proof that the speaker is Spirit-filled and can also be used in private prayer to speak to God.
This manifestation gift has nothing whatever to do with one's linguistic ability because it is a manifestation by the Holy Spirit which simply employs human speech organs.
1 Corinthians 14:22 - Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers…
The gift of tongues is available to every believer and is a sign to unbelievers Jesus is alive. Do not be intimidated by the presence of unbelievers in church services. Many times, Christian leaders become embarrassed when the Holy Spirit moves and when people exercise the gift of tongues in case others might be offended.
We can so easily grieve the Holy Spirit by controlling what God wants to do in a meeting.
In fact, it is in meetings like these that people are convicted by the Holy Spirit and they give their lives to the Lord. They also have the opportunity to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit in meetings that are anointed.
Believers are also encouraged to practice the interpretation of their tongue in their personal time of prayer and allow God to reveal His Word to them. This is one of the ways God edifies us in our spiritual walk.
1 Corinthians 14:39 - Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.
The final word on tongues in the entire New Testament is that speaking in tongues must not be forbidden. Christians today should be following Paul’s guidelines just as they did in the first century so that they can be edified.
Like all nine gifts, this gift is to encourage the church to conduct itself in faith, courage, love, and good works.
The gift of tongues is not for personal promotion but is intended for the edification, exhortation, and comforting others. We should encourage tongues to function in the church and we should never allow ourselves to stand in God's way regarding this gift.
