Why This Matters Today
There has never been a time in history when God’s people didn’t desperately need the Holy Spirit. We need Him the way lungs need oxygen, the way a branch needs the vine, the way a traveler needs the road home.
Without Him, faith collapses under its own weight. Without Him, worship becomes an empty performance. Without Him, church turns into a club with a hymnbook and a cross on the wall.
We believe the Spirit is not only real—He is essential, active, alive, and present for every believer today.
And that is exactly why this subject matters.
Because when confusion surrounds the work of the Spirit, God’s people get anxious. When Christians feel pressured to prove their spirituality through emotional displays, joy begins to crumble under insecurity. And when a gift meant to unite believers becomes a reason to doubt, compare, or divide, churches lose their focus on the mission Jesus gave us.
Tongues were never intended to create categories:
“the deeply spiritual”
and
“the regular people.”
Tongues were never given to turn prayer into performance art.
Tongues were never meant to measure maturity.
But today, many believers—quietly, privately—carry questions they’re almost embarrassed to ask:
“If I’ve never spoken in tongues…
am I missing something?
Am I spiritually second-class?
Does God love me less?”
Others wonder something else entirely:
“Why do some churches seem to think tongues are everything?
Why is there pressure to create emotional highs?
Why is intelligible speech treated like an optional extra?”
These are not new questions.
The early church struggled with the same issues. That’s why the Holy Spirit gave us Scripture clarity that never expires and never bends to opinion or trend. When we go back to the Bible, confusion melts, fear fades, and truth rises with the warmth of sunlight after a long night.
And so tonight, we go back to the beginning.
Not to a YouTube clip.
Not to a revival livestream.
Not to a modern stage.
We go back to Pentecost.
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Tongues in the Bible: Real Languages for Real Mission
Acts 2 is the birthplace of tongues in the New Testament. And everything the Bible teaches about the gift must flow from what God Himself established on that day.
The disciples were gathered in one place, united in prayer, waiting on the promise Jesus had given: “You shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” And suddenly the heavens broke open—not with smoke machines or spotlights—but with the sound of a mighty rushing wind. Tongues of fire rested on their heads, and the disciples began speaking in languages they had never studied.
And what happened next is crucial.
A crowd gathered—Jews from many nations, each with their own distinct tongue. And they said something that matters more than a thousand modern opinions:
“How is it that we each hear them speaking in our own language the wonderful works of God?”
Not one person said:
“What are these people babbling?”
Not one.
They heard real languages with real meaning spoken with real clarity that revealed the real gospel.
Tongues weren’t given as emotional fireworks.
They weren’t given as a badge for elite spirituality.
They weren’t given to create mystery or spectacle.
Tongues were given for mission.
They lowered obstacles.
They broke language barriers.
They opened doors.
They built bridges.
They drew people in.
They made the gospel clear.
And notice something beautiful:
The gift served the listener, not the speaker.
It wasn’t about “look what I can do.”
It was about “hear what God has done.”
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The Miracle That Changed Everything
Acts 2 is not primarily about tongues—it is about people turning to Jesus in their own language. The greatest miracle that day was not that tongues appeared…
…it was that hearts opened.
Three thousand souls accepted Christ.
A movement began.
A mission was launched.
A world was changed.
The Spirit gave tongues not to entertain the believers,
but to evangelize the unbelievers.
God never wastes a miracle.
He gives gifts to lift the gospel, not the ego.
---
When Emotion Becomes the Measuring Stick
So how did something so beautiful become so confusing?
Because somewhere in Christian history, the emphasis shifted from:
“Help me reach others,”
to
“Help me feel something.”
The church in Corinth struggled with this. They loved spiritual experiences. They didn’t want to just have the Spirit—they wanted to feel the Spirit, visibly, dramatically, passionately.
Paul wasn’t against passion, but he knew something dangerous was happening. Their desire for the spectacular had begun to overpower their desire for clarity, unity, and love.
And so he writes—lovingly, firmly, pastorally:
“Grow up.”
That’s his phrase—“in understanding, be mature.”
He tells them that if no one understands the words being spoken, the church is not blessed. He reminds them that intelligibility is not optional; it is essential. And then he says something that should still echo across pulpits, prayer rooms, and worship centers today:
“I would rather speak five clear words that help someone grow
than ten thousand in a tongue no one understands.”
Why?
Because the Spirit does not bypass the mind.
The Spirit renews the mind.
The Spirit does not compel believers to lose control.
The Spirit produces self-control.
The Spirit is not trying to overwhelm the church.
He is trying to build up the church.
---
Illustration — The Spiritual High Chase
I once knew a man who believed closeness to God was measured by how intensely he felt goosebumps during worship. If the music didn’t hit a certain volume, if the preacher wasn’t pacing, shouting, sweating, and wiping his brow, if the atmosphere didn’t feel electric, he left the service disappointed.
“I just didn’t feel the Spirit today,” he’d say.
Meanwhile, his wife was walking out of the same sanctuary with tears in her eyes because she had been strengthened by the Word. She didn’t shout, she didn’t shake, she didn’t jump. But she served the sick. She prayed over her neighbors. She forgave quickly. She walked humbly. She reflected Jesus.
Two believers.
Same church.
Same worship.
Same message.
One chasing a feeling.
One walking in faith.
Which one looks more like Jesus?
Feelings come and go.
Faith stays and grows.
And here’s the truth many people never say aloud:
You can feel something powerful
and still not be transformed.
And you can feel nothing dramatic
and still grow more in one quiet worship service
than in a thousand emotional moments.
Emotion is seasoning.
Truth is the meal.
Love is the fullness.
Obedience is the fruit.
---
The Spirit Who Renews the Mind
The Spirit is not trying to push believers into uninformed ecstasy.
He is trying to remake them into the image of Christ.
The Spirit does not shout over the mind—
He whispers truth into it.
He does not bypass your thinking—
He restores and elevates it.
Tonight, God wants you to know:
Your value in the kingdom is not measured by volume.
Your maturity is not measured by emotional height.
Your spirituality is not measured by whether you’ve spoken in a tongue.
It is measured by fruit.
By transformation.
By love.
Tongues are real.
Tongues are biblical.
Tongues have purpose.
But without love, tongues accomplish nothing eternal.
And that brings us to the center of the center.
The Spirit’s deepest work is not in the volume of our voice but in the transformation of our character. The Spirit doesn’t simply give gifts — He produces fruit. Gifts are for a moment; fruit is for a lifetime. Gifts may move a crowd; fruit moves heaven. Gifts can impress; fruit blesses.
And when Paul wants the church to understand the heart of true spirituality, he turns not to tongues, not to prophecy, not to miracles, but to the slow, steady, Spirit-driven transformation of the heart.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
Notice the last one: self-control.
That tells us something vital:
The Spirit does not erase your mind;
He illuminates it.
The Spirit does not take away your choice;
He strengthens it.
The Spirit does not overwhelm your will;
He aligns it with God’s will.
There is nowhere in Scripture where the Holy Spirit takes over a person like a puppeteer. He fills. He empowers. He comforts. He teaches. But He never forces.
---
Why Does This Matter?
Because many believers today feel anxiety around the topic of tongues:
“What if I haven’t had the right experience?”
“What if I’m missing something?”
“What if others look at me differently?”
But the truth is liberating:
You aren’t missing anything Jesus says is required.
You have the Spirit if you have Jesus.
Tongues are not the evidence of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is the evidence of the Holy Spirit.
---
A Misunderstood Gift
Let’s go back to Corinth for a moment.
The believers there were not lacking in giftedness. Paul said they came behind in no gift. They had spiritual experiences. They had tongues, prophecy, knowledge, miracles. They had everything you’d want in a lively, passionate church.
But they lacked something more important than all of it.
They lacked love.
They had tongues without tenderness,
prophecy without patience,
knowledge without humility,
zeal without unity.
Spiritual fireworks everywhere —
spiritual fruit nowhere.
Paul was not impressed.
And so he writes 1 Corinthians 13, the greatest chapter on love ever written, right in the middle of the church’s fascination with tongues.
Not accidentally.
Intentionally.
He wanted them to understand:
Tongues may reach the ears.
Love reaches the heart.
Tongues may stir excitement.
Love shapes disciples.
Tongues may grab attention.
Love carries the gospel.
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The Purpose of Pentecost
Pentecost wasn’t a spiritual roller coaster.
It wasn’t God showing off.
It wasn’t believers losing control.
It wasn’t a badge of elite spirituality.
Pentecost was God breaking down barriers so the gospel could break into the world. It was missionary fuel, not spiritual entertainment.
When God gives a gift, it always follows this pattern:
From heaven ? through the believer ? to bless someone else.
Never:
From heaven ? for me ? to prove something.
Pentecost wasn’t about elevating a moment.
It was about elevating a mission.
---
The Mind God Created
Sometimes Christians assume the mind is an obstacle to spiritual experience. But God made the mind. God delights in the mind. God fills the mind.
The psalmist said:
“I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Neuroscience now tells us something profound:
The human brain is wired for learning, memory, and transformation.
It’s built with neuroplasticity — the ability to change and renew.
It’s designed to heal, to adapt, to grow, to connect.
Why?
Because we were created in the image of a God who thinks, loves, reasons, speaks, and relates.
So when the Spirit fills a believer, He doesn’t silence the mind.
He sanctifies it.
He doesn’t drown out thought.
He deepens it.
He doesn’t create confusion.
He brings clarity.
Paul says plainly:
“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Not the removal of your mind.
Not the bypassing of your mind.
The renewing of your mind.
---
Not Fireworks — Fruit
Spiritual maturity is not measured by:
how loudly we pray
how emotionally we respond
how many supernatural moments we’ve experienced
how many spiritual gifts we can list
Spiritual maturity is measured by:
love that keeps showing up
patience under pressure
peace during storms
gentleness with difficult people
self-control when tempted
humility when praised
faithfulness when unseen
obedience when inconvenient
In other words:
The real test of the Spirit is not intensity — it’s integrity.
Tongues may last for a moment.
Character lasts for eternity.
---
Illustration — Quiet Love Is Loudest
There was a woman in one of my congregations who understood this better than most. She was soft-spoken, almost shy. She never raised her hands during worship. She never shouted amen. She never prayed in poetic phrases. She didn’t have the dramatic flair that some equate with spirituality.
But every Sabbath, she arrived early—quietly, faithfully—to help an elderly member out of his car, into the building, and into his favorite pew. She brought meals to grieving families. She remembered birthdays that others forgot. She wrote cards to the lonely. She prayed for people by name. Not in tongues. Not in ecstatic outbursts. Not in public displays.
Just quiet, steadfast love.
When she died unexpectedly, the church overflowed. People stood one by one to speak:
“She prayed for me.”
“She encouraged me.”
“She helped me when no one else did.”
“I saw Jesus in her.”
Not once did she claim a spectacular gift.
But she lived the greatest one.
And that is what Paul meant when he said:
“The greatest of these is love.”
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Love: The Miracle That Needs No Translation
Tongues need interpretation.
Love interprets itself.
Tongues may build curiosity.
Love builds community.
Tongues may attract a crowd.
Love disciples a believer.
Tongues may break a language barrier.
Love breaks every barrier.
It’s the one gift every believer can receive.
The one gift every believer can give.
The one gift that lasts forever.
Paul didn’t tell the church to chase tongues.
He told them to pursue love.
Because love:
never divides
never confuses
never competes
never inflates
never bruises
never demands
never fails
Love is the real evidence of the Spirit.
Love is the real power of Pentecost.
Love is the greatest miracle of all.
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The Greatest Gift: Love Above All
If you listen closely to Paul in 1 Corinthians 12–14, you hear the heartbeat of a shepherd who loves his people too much to let them measure themselves by the wrong standard. Corinth had equated spirituality with spectacle. They measured maturity by intensity. They believed the most visible gifts were the most valuable gifts.
But Paul takes their assumptions and gently turns them right-side up.
He tells them:
“Earnestly desire the best gifts —
and yet I show you a more excellent way.”
What is the “more excellent way”?
It’s love.
Love is the miracle that still moves heaven.
Love is the language every heart understands.
Love is the one gift you can never counterfeit.
Love is the only sign of the Spirit that never fades.
Not prophecies.
Not tongues.
Not visions.
Not power.
Paul says all those will cease one day.
But love?
Never.
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Why Love Is Greater Than Every Gift
Because love accomplishes what no other gift can do.
Tongues can speak to the ears.
Prophecy can speak to the mind.
Knowledge can speak to the intellect.
Teaching can speak to the understanding.
But love speaks to the heart.
Love breaks strongholds no miracle can shatter.
Love reaches places no sermon can touch.
Love heals wounds no theology can bandage.
It’s why Jesus said:
“By this all will know that you are My disciples —
if you have love for one another.”
And love isn’t abstract.
Love is observable.
Love is measurable.
Love is practical.
Real spiritual maturity shows up in:
• kindness under pressure
• patience when provoked
• mercy when irritated
• forgiveness when wronged
• gentleness when disappointed
• humility when praised
• compassion when inconvenienced
• steadiness when offended
In other words:
Love is the most Spirit-filled thing a believer can do.
The most Spirit-filled person in the room is not the loudest…
but the most loving.
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Tongues Are Temporary — Love Is Eternal
Paul says plainly:
“Whether there be tongues — they shall cease.”
He is not diminishing the gift; he is putting it in perspective.
Tongues serve the church on earth.
Love serves the kingdom forever.
Tongues build bridges for mission.
Love builds people into the image of Christ.
Tongues can open doors.
Love changes hearts.
Tongues may begin a conversation.
Love transforms a life.
We will not need tongues in the New Earth —
every language will be one, every word understood.
But love?
Love is the law of heaven.
Love is the atmosphere of eternity.
Love is the oxygen of God’s presence.
If I never speak in tongues,
I am not missing the Spirit.
But if I lack love,
I am missing everything.
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The Gift That Breaks Barriers
Now we return to the title of this message.
Tongues broke language barriers.
But love breaks every barrier.
The barrier of pride.
The barrier of insecurity.
The barrier of comparison.
The barrier of prejudice.
The barrier of old wounds.
The barrier of distrust.
The barrier of bitterness.
The barrier inside my own heart
that resists surrender to God.
The Spirit didn’t come simply to make our mouths move.
He came to make our hearts new.
The Spirit doesn’t just touch the tongue.
He transforms the temperament.
He doesn’t just give utterance.
He gives understanding.
He doesn’t just fill the room.
He fills the believer.
He doesn’t just bring a moment of power.
He brings a lifetime of presence.
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The Spirit Who Changes the Inner Dialogue
One of the most overlooked miracles of the Spirit is this:
He changes the way we talk to ourselves.
He rewrites the inner script.
He removes the lies we’ve believed.
He replaces shame with assurance.
He heals identity with truth.
He drowns fear in mercy.
He uproots insecurity with grace.
He silences accusation with adoption.
You can speak in tongues and still fight shame.
You can speak in tongues and still feel empty.
You can speak in tongues and still lack assurance.
But you cannot walk in the Spirit’s love
and remain bound by fear.
Because:
“Perfect love casts out all fear.”
The Spirit’s greatest work is not ecstatic utterance
but inner renewal.
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The Most Overlooked Miracle in Acts 2
The most overlooked miracle of Pentecost
is not the fire or the wind or the tongues.
It’s the unity.
One hundred and twenty people —
different temperaments, personalities, fears, wounds, opinions —
gathered together with one heart.
The Spirit came upon unity,
and the Spirit produced unity.
Pentecost began with love
and ended with love.
Three thousand people became a family
in a single day.
Not because of tongues.
Because of Jesus.
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The Spirit Lifts Up Christ, Not Us
The Spirit is not here to elevate our experience.
The Spirit is here to elevate our Savior.
Whenever the Spirit is at work, Jesus is magnified.
Not the gift.
Not the moment.
Not the atmosphere.
Not the emotion.
Jesus.
If a spiritual moment leaves me more impressed with myself
than with Christ…
that moment was not from the Spirit.
If it leaves me more excited about an experience
than about obedience…
that moment was not from the Spirit.
If it stirs my feelings but not my character…
it was wind without fire.
The Spirit does not glorify human excitement.
He glorifies the crucified and risen Jesus.
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The Spirit’s Final Word: Pursue Love
Paul ends the entire discussion on spiritual gifts
with one simple, clear, breathtaking command:
“Pursue love.”
Run after it.
Chase it down.
Make it your priority.
Make it your aim.
Make it your story.
Make it your lifestyle.
Make it your witness.
Because love:
• needs no translation
• never divides
• never manipulates
• never intimidates
• never pressures
• never boasts
• never fails
Love breaks barriers.
Love builds bridges.
Love heals wounds.
Love is the greatest sign, the greatest witness, the greatest proof that the Spirit lives within you.
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A Final Illustration — The Barrier Within
A man once told me he had prayed for the gift of tongues for years. He went to revivals. He stood in prayer lines. He attended conferences. He knelt at altars. He wept. He pleaded. He waited for an experience that never came.
One day he said to me:
“Pastor, I feel like God doesn’t love me the same as He loves others.”
I took a breath and said gently:
“My brother, God is not withholding the Spirit from you. God is trying to give you something better.”
He looked confused.
I said:
“You’re asking for tongues.
God is offering transformation.
You’re waiting for syllables.
God is waiting to give you strength.
You’re longing for a moment.
God is building a life.”
Then I asked him:
“Has God made you more patient in the last year?”
“Yes.”
“Has He softened your anger?”
“Yes.”
“Has He helped you forgive someone who hurt you?”
“Yes.”
“Has He made you hunger for His Word?”
“Yes.”
I smiled and said:
“Then the Spirit is already speaking.
And He’s speaking in the one language the devil cannot counterfeit — love.”
The man began to cry.
Not because he finally spoke in tongues.
But because he finally understood:
He wasn’t spiritually lacking.
He was spiritually growing.
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Conclusion — The Gift That Breaks Barriers
God gave the church something better than tongues.
Better than signs.
Better than moments.
Better than emotional highs.
He gave us the love of Christ,
poured into our hearts
by the Holy Spirit.
Tongues were powerful at Pentecost —
but love has been powerful since creation.
Tongues will end —
but love will reign forever.
Tongues can build bridges —
but love builds the kingdom.
Tongues can reach the nations —
but love reaches the soul.
Tongues can break language barriers —
but love breaks every barrier.
And the greatest barrier the Spirit breaks
is the barrier inside my own heart.
The Spirit does not simply move my mouth.
He transforms my life.
He changes the way I speak to others.
He changes the way I speak to myself.
He changes the way I love, forgive, serve, and surrender.
He changes who I am by changing Whose I am.
That is the gift that breaks barriers.
That is the gift that never ends.
That is the gift the Spirit gives to every believer.
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Appeal
Tonight, God invites you to stop comparing,
stop striving,
stop performing,
stop wondering if you’re missing something,
and start resting in the love of Jesus
that has already been poured out in your heart.
If you have Jesus,
you have the Spirit.
If you walk in love,
you walk in power.
If you pursue love,
you pursue the heart of God.
May the Holy Spirit fill you anew —
not with anxiety,
not with pressure,
not with confusion,
but with the one gift that breaks every barrier:
The love of Christ.
