Chapter Twenty Seven

Having considered the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to evangelism and conversion, we move to His active ministry in the life of believers. This chapter is divided into three major divisions:

After conversion, the Spirit continues to have an active ministry in the life of believers. Here, we will investigate how the Holy Spirit empowers the believer in his battle with the "flesh," using some New Testament expressions and texts that give us specific information on how this takes place:

The Biblical expression, "sets His desire," describes a phase of the Holy Spirit's work within the believer. The word "desire" is the New American Standard Bible's translation of the Greek epithumia. It means "strong desire," whether good or evil. When used of the Holy Spirit it refers to good desire, and it follows that this is the desire for the will of God to be accomplished. Notice the tension or struggle this creates:

To summarize, this phase of the Spirit's work is to create a resistance to the desires of the flesh (tendencies to sin remaining from our unregenerate state). Part of His "strong desire" against the flesh is convicting or convincing the believer that a given desire of the flesh is indeed sin (John 16:8). As the flesh resists, this produces a kind of stalemate. In effect, the flesh's desire prevents you (the believer) from doing "the things that you please," as a new creation in Christ. Were it not for the Holy Spirit resisting the evil in me, I would find myself in precisely the condition Paul describes in Romans 7:14-24: wanting desperately to do good, but not being able to do it.

1.2 The Holy Spirit Empowers the Believer to Obey God (Romans 8:4-11; Galatians 5:16)

The Holy Spirit empowers the believer to obey God, including:

The believer is commanded to walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). The "stalemate" between the Spirit and the flesh can be broken by "walking in the Spirit," that is, depending consciously on the Holy Spirit to energize my resolve and actions. Thus, I will defy the "lusts of the flesh," and "fulfill the requirement of the law" (do God's will). The metaphor "walk" is Paul's term for living; thus walking by the Spirit is living in conscious reliance on Him to enable me as I choose to do what is right.

1.2.2 Being filled with the Spirit

The Bible commands believers to be "filled with (controlled or influenced by) the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18). Ephesians 5:18-21 implies that the filling of the Spirit is a way of life, not a single, mystical experience. Men, like the seven administrators of the early Jerusalem church (Acts 6:3) and Barnabas (Acts 11:24), were full of the Spirit.

At conversion the believer is indwelt (i.e. baptized) by the Spirit; during his life he needs to be controlled by the same Spirit. At Pentecost, the disciples were "filled" in connection with being baptized (Acts 2:4; cf. the experience of Paul, Acts 9:17). Though the "filling" by the Spirit is commanded, baptism is not; that is, baptism is to be a single once-for-all experience event in the life of a believer, while filling is to be his way of life under the control of the Spirit.

The general filling ministry, which relates to control and spiritual growth and maturation, and into the special fillings, which relate to special movings of the Spirit. Peter was filled with the Spirit when he spoke (Acts 4:8; cf. 4:31), but surely he was already full of the Spirit before he spoke. We can assume that he was living a Spirit-filled life when in critical times he was filled in a unique and special way with the Spirit.

The believer is engaged in a battle: the flesh against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. It takes the indwelling Spirit of God to provide the victory (Romans 8:13; Galatians 5:16-17). The Spirit is the secret to victory. This was true in Old Testament times as well, for Zechariah 4:6 reads, "'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of hosts." It is the Spirit who produces in us the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22f.; cf. Ephesians 5:9; Philippians 1:11).

Another phrase related to this empowering of the Holy Spirit is a "mind set on the Spirit" (Romans 8:5-6). This is the
believer's determination to let the Holy Spirit do His work.

1.2.5 Being led by the Spirit

Being "led by the Spirit" (Romans 8:14), according to the context, involves "putting to death the deeds of the body." That is, saying "no" to sin, and "yes" to the Holy Spirit's guidance. The early church enjoyed the leadership of the Spirit; the Spirit:

He also intercedes for believers before the Father (Romans 8:26). The Spirit of God does a blessed work in the life of each believer, and believers are cautioned not to:

1.3 The Holy Spirit Imparts Spiritual Truth and Wisdom to the Believer (1 Corinthians 2:15; 1 John 2:20)

Jesus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit to guide them into truth (John 14:26; 16:13). The Holy Spirit teaches the believer from the Word of God by illuminating, or making plain, the Scriptures to him.

All believers will know the truth when they hear it because they "have an anointing from the Holy One" (1 John 2:20). They have the Spirit and, therefore, they do not need some additional special revelation or mystical insight (1 John 2:27).

In 1 Corinthians 2:6-13 the Holy Spirit "reveals" the things of God, and enables the believer (called "he who is spiritual") to "appraise all things" (1 Corinthians 2:15). The result is that we are able to know the truth or will of God that centers in the Scriptures.

Some add to the Holy Spirit's ministry guidance in human decision making. However, there appears to be no Biblical evidence of that kind of guidance apart from this work in revealing and making plain the Word of God. This raises the question of whether feelings and impulses come from the Holy Spirit independent of His use of the Word of God. We find no such clear Biblical evidence for this. The exception is Acts 16:6-10 where the Holy Spirit intervenes directly in the travel plans of the apostle Paul. But even this event falls during the apostolic period (before the Scriptures were complete), and cannot be given as the sole support for the normal or regular way in which the Holy Spirit ministers to believers today.

1.4 The Holy Spirit Produces Christ-Like Character in the Believer (Galatians 5:22-23)

This familiar passage on the "fruit of the Spirit" directly follows the passage on walking by the Spirit in Galatians 5:16-21. Previously we said that walking by the Spirit is the way the believer obeys God instead of the desires of his flesh. It appears here that the results of this walk are:

This dependence on the Spirit is the means by which the "fruit" is cultivated and brought to maturity in the believer. When we "walk by the Spirit" we allow the Spirit to change our character traits and mold us into the image of Christ.

The active ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers is summarized in the following table and picture:

The Holy Spirit sovereignly gives spiritual gifts to believers for the edification of the church, and for the benefit of all believers (1 Corinthians 12:4, 7-11; cf. Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:11; 1 Peter 4:10f.). Whether or not some of these gifts are still in use today is a source of disagreement among Christians.

The charismatic movement began at the turn of the twentieth century among people who called themselves "pentecostalists," and it continues today among an even broader group known generally as the "charismatics." It is characterized by the belief that all, or at least most, of the spiritual gifts listed by Paul in the New Testament are still given today. Only unbelief and spiritual coldness prevent them from being manifested among all believers. {Note: "Charismatic" comes from the Greek term for "gift" in the New Testament, charisma (1 Corinthians 12:4). Another term is pneumatikos, translated "spiritual gift" in 1 Corinthians 12:1. The narrow use of this Biblical term today (used only to label a certain segment of believers) is unfortunate, because, in its true sense, charismatic is descriptive of all Christians who recognize and practice their spiritual gifts.}

On the other hand, certain evangelicals believe that some of the New Testament gifts (typically tongues, miracles, healing) were temporary, and functioned only during the earliest years of the church. Their purpose was to authenticate the ministry of the apostles while the church still lacked the completed Scriptures.

What is true is that the Holy Spirit gives each believer a gift or gifts, and that every gift is for the church's overall benefit. We will give a brief survey and description of some of the representative gifts.

A brief survey of some of the spiritual gifts mentioned in the New Testament is provided in the following table:

This list involves people who function in a certain capacity or office. We may find more than one of these gifts in an individual. For instance, Paul himself worked miracles (Acts 13:11), performed physical healing (Acts 28:8), prophesied (2 Corinthians 12:1), spoke in tongues (1 Corinthians 14:18), evangelized (Acts 13:16-43), and taught (Acts 15:35), all of which are manifestations of spiritual gifts.

Because they pertain to a specific ministry we term the following "functional" gifts:

Some of the more spectacular gifts seem to serve the purpose of confirming the message of the apostolic church. Hebrews 2:3-4 says that God "confirmed" to the second generation of believers (those that were not original eye-witnesses of Jesus Christ) the message of salvation through "signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit." Believers disagree whether this sort of validation is necessary today, or whether it was a process brought to completion in the apostolic age. That may be implied by the passage in Hebrews 2 just cited. The gift of miracles and the gift of healing fall into this category.

The question of whether all of the gifts which were operative in the New Testament church are permanent ministries for the church age has been greatly debated, especially in recent years with the upsurge of the so-called charismatic movement.

Modern "non-charismatics" believe that the following gifts functioned only in the early days of the church and are no longer in use:

Some, of course, allow for an occasional extraordinary manifestation of one of these gifts as part of God's will today but believe that they are not to be expected in the ordinary functioning of the church.

Most charismatics believe that all of these gifts are still in use, although they define some of the gifts differently than those who view them as obsolete (like the gift of "prophecy" and "tongues" especially).

The different viewpoints of "speaking in tongues" are given in the following table for your information:

I would like to provide the reasons for both the charismatic and non-charismatic views in the following table. The readers are recommended to read them carefully and decide which view is correct by themselves under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Charismatic	Non-Charismatic	My Opinion
Carl states, "There is the total absence of any definite declaration by the Lord of His intention to cause tongues and other powers to cease shortly after the establishing of the church" (Carl Brumback, What Meaneth This?).	1 Corinthians 13:8-10 says that prophecy and knowledge would "be done away" by "that which is perfect" (a possible reference to the complete New Testament), and that tongues would "cease" (a verb meaning "stop functioning").	Trying to identify what "perfect" refers to presents a problem. The connection between "perfect" and the complete New Testament is only implied. Also, there are no specifics provided regarding when tongues would cease. God may allow for an occasional extraordinary manifestation of one of these gifts.
Speaking in tongues is a sign of spirituality (Acts 2:3-4; 10:44-46). Through speaking in tongues, we can have better communication and relationship with God. If most disciples in the first century were able to speak in tongues, then it is reasonable for us do so now.	According to the New Testament, speaking in tongues is the ability to speak in a language previously unknown by the one speaking it. Tongues are not ecstatic utterances which many people today are seeking (read Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 13-14). The New Testament does not encourage us to seek to speak in tongues (1 Corinthians 13-14). It plainly states that not all speak in tongues (1 Corinthians 12:28-30). Further, tongues are listed last signifying they are least in importance of all the gifts listed. Rather, we are strongly challenged to seek the better gifts, those that edify (1 Corinthians 12:31). Furthermore, we are never told to seek this gift - one used especially for the Jewish nation which had been dispersed among the nations of the world where they had to learn a different language (Acts 2:3-8). Instead, we are to seek to edify others through those gifts that minister God’s truth in such a way that everyone can understand (see 1 Corinthians 14:1f). In all of the rest of the epistles that deal with true spirituality and our walk with God, tongues are not once mentioned. In addition, the same kind of ecstatic phenomenon occurs among the unsaved all over the world. The suggestion of 1 Corinthians 12:1-3 strongly warns the Corinthians that they were trying to use the legitimate gift of tongues in the same way they had experienced ecstatic phenomenon before they were saved and caught up in paganism. That in itself should serve as a warning about seeking such an experience.	In our century, tongues and healing have both suffered great abuse. They have been emphasized to the exclusion of other gifts by some, and used as criteria for genuine salvation. I agree that God do not encourage us to seek to speak in tongues. We should seek the better gifts, those that edify. The main purpose of using spiritual gifts is to edify other people and minister God’s truth in such a way that everyone can understand. In most cases, those people who are speaking in tongues, is unconscious. If no one can understand the ecstatic utterances (including the one who are speaking in tongues), then it loses the main purpose of edifying others. It is worth noting that if tongues in the New Testament were merely foreign languages that the speaker had not had opportunity to learn by normal means (see Acts 2), then the typical utterances in today's charismatic churches are counterfeit. Missionaries and experts in Demonology reported that most people who are speaking in tongues, are actually demon-possessed by a evil spirit of tongues (C. Fred Dickason, Demon Possession & the Christian). This should make us suspect of any group that promote this gift for a personal experience (a self-centered purpose contrary to the design and use of gifts) or as a sign of spirituality. Therefore, I recommend all believers should not seek to speak in tongues unless for the purpose of foreign missionaries that the speaker has no opportunity to learn the language by normal means.
Romans 11:29 says that "the gifts and calling of God are without repentance."	The context of Romans 11:29 shows that God's covenant promises are irrevocable because of His own faithfulness and this in no way overlooks the fact that individual Jews are either in or out of right relationship to God on the basis of their faith, nor does it mean that they are not accountable in judgment before God. Therefore, Romans 11:29 says nothing about the permanence of spiritual gifts.	I agree that Romans 11:29 is misquoted (out of the context) by the charismatics and it is irrelevant to their argument.
Hebrews 2:3-4 says that God "confirmed" to the second generation of believers (those that were not original eye-witnesses of Jesus Christ) the message of salvation through "signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit." The promise of Christ in the ending of Mark 16:17-20 states that miraculous "signs shall follow them that believe." Therefore, we should continue to seek for the gifts of divine healing and miracles.	Hebrews 2:3-4 implies that miraculous signs had already confirmed the message of Jesus and His apostles, thus the gift of miracles no longer has a function. The miraculous sign gifts are linked with the unique foundational ministry. Hebrews 2:3-4 identifies that salvation as that "which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will." In this statement three different relations to the message are specified: (1) the Lord began to speak it, then there were (2) those ("them") who confirmed it to (3) the people ("us") of the early church. The signs and miracles are specifically related to the second group, the immediate circle around the Lord who confirmed His message, as God's authentication of their ministry. This special use of these gifts is confirmed by the apostle Paul's references to working "signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds" as "signs of an apostle" (2 Corinthians 12:12), and to bringing the Gentiles to Christ through preaching the gospel accompanied by "mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God" (Romans 15:18-19). The sign gifts were for this early apostolic era, during which the final word of God concerning the fulfillment of the promised salvation in Christ was not complete and its messengers still needed authentication. Our Lord warned us about seeking after signs rather than simply resting in the truth of God’s Word. To the religious leaders who asked Him for a sign, an attesting miracle, He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! (Matthew 12:39).	The interpretation of "miraculous signs had already confirmed the message of Jesus and His apostles" is only implied. In the New Testament, there are no specifics provided regarding when miraculous signs and healing would cease. It is possible that God may allow for an occasional extraordinary manifestation of one of these gifts (e.g. performing miracles and healing) for the authentication of the ministry of foreign missionaries who are preaching the gospel message in remote areas and undeveloped countries. On the other hand, divine healing and miracles have both suffered great abuse in nowadays churches. They have been emphasized to the exclusion of other gifts by some, and used as criteria for genuine salvation. In addition, the sign use of many of these miraculous gifts by the early church is in sharp contradiction to the use made of them by many contemporary advocates. For example, the Apostle Paul healed many as authentication to his ministry (see Acts 19:11ff) but did not - as evidenced in the cases of Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23) and Trophimus (2 Timothy 4:20), who both suffered illness - suggest this gift for the health of the saints; but it is often advertised for such today through healing ministries. Furthermore, the unsaved all over the world can also perform miracles and healing by the power of evil spirits. Does all this mean that God does not perform miraculous things today? Of course not. He is a powerful God and occasionally heals miraculously, etc., but miraculous activity and gifts, as they are being promoted today, have always been the exception and not the general rule. Historically, these signs and wonders as seen in the early church just simply ceased. There were occasional occurrences, but this was not the norm.
It is argued that the needs of the church for the full ministries of the Spirit make all the gifts just as necessary today as at the beginning of the church. Therefore, it is clear that the gift of prophecy, apostles and prophets are still exist in this century for further and better development of the church.	There is evidence which suggests that not all gifts were intended for the permanent life of the church. In the first instance, the ministries of apostles and prophets, ranked by the apostle Paul as first and second in one of the lists of gifts (1 Corinthians 12:28; cf. Ephesians 4:11), are declared to be foundational to the church (Ephesians 2:20). Men with the authority of the apostles are not found in the church today. Rather the church is called to obey the doctrine of those unique ministers of the church, who laid the foundation in their inspired witness to Christ. Similarly, prophets, to the extent that they received direct revelation of God for the needs of the church during its infancy, are no longer with us.The validation of the uniqueness of a foundation ministry is seen in the church's later closing of the canon, which specifically identified and distinguished that which was revealed normative doctrine from that which was built upon it. In the apostles and at least to some extent in the prophets, the principle of the temporary nature of some spiritual gifts is established; and the possibility of other first-century gifts being temporary is open to examination.	The church is built upon the "foundation" (Ephesians 2:20) of apostles and prophets. Since the first century none have been generally recognized by the church. This implies that their function ceased once the church was established. The gift of prophecy was essential in the first century for the communication of New Testament truth through the apostles in the early church because there was no completed canon of Scripture at that time. There are many today who believe the gift of prophecy still exists, but I do not believe this is correct. Now that we have the completed canon of Scripture, Old and New Testaments, the gift of prophecy is no longer needed. Since the early church did not have a completed canon, the gift of prophecy was also temporarily active in churches. Included here was the gift of discernment (1 Corinthians 14 and 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21) to verify the accuracy of the message in others who had this gift. Once God had finished giving the New Testament, the gift of prophecy ceased. Furthermore, the unsaved all over the world can speak in prophecies (e.g. fortune-tellers) by the power of evil spirits. In this connection, I recommend all believers should not seek the gift of prophecy.
Any absence of them, it is concluded, is not due to God's withdrawal of provision but to the "lukewarmness and unbelief" of God's people (Donald Gee, The Pentecostal Movement).	The general cessation of miracles in the history of the church following the apostolic era substantiates the fact that not all the gifts were to be continued in the same way.The rejection of this conclusion, by insisting that the unspiritual nature of the church caused the diminishing of these ministries and that the need of the church for them remained constant, is negated by God's use of miracles in Biblical history. Instead of a record of continual miracle working among God's people, the Scriptures show that miracles were prominent in three main periods: the time of Moses, that of Elijah and Elisha, and the New Testament era of Christ and the apostles. Men such as Abraham, David, and John the Baptist performed no miracles, according to our knowledge. Apparently, miraculous signs were used by God for authentication during certain epochs more than others.	There is a peculiar absence of these gifts in the record of church history. Their absence cannot be attributed to lack of spirituality, for the church has gone through many revivals since the first century. Great spiritual leaders such as: Martin Luther, John Wesley, John Calvin, D.L. Moody, etc, did not perform any miracles. The conclusion is that some spiritual gifts have not been in use since the apostolic age.

On the basis of both the Biblical and historical evidence, it seems most reasonable to conclude that certain of the spiritual gifts active in the early church are no longer given to God's people. This is not to circumscribe the Spirit's activity and certainly not to deny divine miracles. God can and has worked miraculously throughout the history of the church, but these miracles are not necessarily the manifestation of these early gifts. For the most part, the practice and theology today associated with the sign gifts bear little resemblance to the New Testament pattern. I conclude that God occasionally heals miraculously, etc., but miraculous activity and gifts have always been the exception and not the general rule.

Activity	Description of the Activity	Scripture Reference
Filling	Believers are commanded to be "filled with the Spirit." The filling ministry of the Spirit can be divided into the general filling relating to spiritual growth and maturation and to special capacities given by the Spirit for special tasks for God.	Ephesians 5:18; cf. Acts 4:8; 4:31; 6:3; 9:17; 11:24; 13:9
Guiding	Believers are commanded to walk in the Spirit and be led by the Spirit. The Spirit keeps the believer from enslavement to legalism and also provides discipline and direction for the Christian life.	Galatians 5:16, 25; cf. Acts 8:29; 13:2; 15:7-9; 16:6; Romans 8:14
Empowering	The indwelling Spirit provides victory in the Christian life, development of Christian fruit, and the ability to win against the works of Satan.	Romans 8:13; Galatians 5:17-18, 22-23
Teaching	Jesus promised that when the Spirit came he would lead believers into truth. The Spirit illuminates the mind of the believer to the revelation of God's will through his Word.	John 14:26; 16:13; 1 John 2:20, 27; 1 Corinthians 2:15

Gift	Description	Result	Example
Prophecy (Romans 12:6; 1 Corinthians14:29-32)	Speaking truth directly revealed from God.	Understanding mystery (1 Corinthians 13:2)	Timothy (1 Timothy 4:14), Daughters of Philip (Acts 21:8-9)
Service, Helping (Romans 12:7)	Aiding others to do God's work. Giving practical assistance to member of the church.	Serving the church and the needy (Acts 6:1)	Onesiphorus (2 Timothy 1:16)
Teaching (Romans 12:7; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11)	Communicating the truth and applications of the Scripture.	Understanding the Word of God (Acts 18:26)	Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18:26), Apollos (Acts 18:27-28), Paul (Acts 18:11)
Encouraging (Romans 12:8)	Urging one to pursue proper conduct or to console.	Encouragement (Acts 9:27)	Barnabas (Acts 4:36)
Giving (Romans 12:8)	Liberally and cheerfully imparting substance to God's work.	Meeting physical needs (Acts 9:36)	Dorcas (Acts 9:36)
Leadership (Romans 12:8)	Organizing and administering the work of the ministry.	Order (Titus 1:5)	Titus (Titus 1:5)
Showing Mercy (Romans 12:8)	Giving undeserved aid to others.	Sympathy, compassion toward undeserving	Barnabas (Acts 9:27)
Apostleship (1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11)	Being an eyewitness of the resurrected Christ and speaking authoritatively about faith and practice.	Sets forth God's precepts for the church (1 Corinthians 14:37)	Paul (Galatians 1:1), Peter (1 Peter 1:1)
Evangelism (Ephesians 4:11)	Presenting the gospel with clarity and with a burden for the unsaved.	Understanding the Gospel	Philip (Acts 21:8)
Pastor / Teacher (Romans 12:7; Ephesians 4:11)	Shepherding and teaching the church.	Care and godly instruction (Acts 20:28-31)	Paul (1 Thessalonians 2:7-12)
The Message of Wisdom (1 Corinthians 12:8)	Perceiving and presenting the truth of God. Applying God's Word or wisdom to specific situations.	The ability to grasp and apply the revelation given	John (1 John 1:1-3)
The Message of Knowledge (1 Corinthians 12:8)	Understanding and exhibiting wisdom from God. Revelation from God about people, circumstances, or Biblical truth.	Truth understood in its spiritual sense (1 Corinthians 2:6-12)	Paul (Colossians 2:2-3)
Faith (1 Corinthians 12:9)	Trusting God implicitly to perform unusual deeds.	Accomplishment of great tasks	Stephen (Acts 6:5)
Healing (1 Corinthians 12:9)	Being able to cure diseases.	Complete cures (Acts 3:6-7)	Peter and John (Acts 3:6-7), Paul (Acts 20:9-12)
Miracles (1 Corinthians 12:10)	Being able to perform works of power.	People fear God (Acts 5:9-11)	Paul (Acts 13:8-11)
Discernment (1 Corinthians 12:10)	Distinguishing the power by which a teacher or prophet speaks.	Exposure of false prophets (1 John 4:1)	Believers at Corinthians (1 Corinthians 14:29)
Tongues (1 Corinthians 12:10)	Speaking in a language not understood by the speaker.	Praise to God which is understood by those persons knowing the language spoken (Acts 2:1-12). Thanksgiving to God which may be understood if someone interprets the language spoken (1 Corinthians 14:5,16, 27-28).	The disciples
Interpretation (1 Corinthians 12:10)	Making "tongues" understandable.	Confirmation of the foreign language (1 Corinthians 14:27-28)

Category	Traditional Orthodox	Pentecostal	Charismatic
Nature of Tongues	Tongues in Acts are human languages whereas tongues in 1 Corinthians are either human languages, heavenly or angelic languages, or ecstatic utterances.	Tongues in Acts are human languages whereas tongues in 1 Corinthians are heavenly or angelic languages.	Tongues in Acts are human languages whereas tongues in 1 Corinthians are heavenly or angelic languages.
Content of Tongues	Glossolalia is praying to God in a language that one has not studied. Some believe that New Testament accounts of "tongues" ties it in with a knowable or known language which is addressed to God in thanksgiving and praise. Never is it intended that tongues be equivalent to prophecy in being addressed to people.	Tongues may be prayer to God or they may be God's means of speaking to the people of God, equivalent to prophecy, if interpreted,	Tongues may be prayer to God or they may be God's means of speaking to the people of God, equivalent to prophecy, if interpreted.
Need of Tongues	Dispensationalists believe that tongues had a limited value in the early church to demonstrate God's change from Israel to the church. Most are in agreement that they were also used to build up the church when accompanied by the gift of interpretation of tongues. They are not needed today.	Tongues not only to signify the Spirit's presence and power but also to provide the ability to speak to God through the Spirit about concerns that the mind is not able to express. The gift of tongues is also given to some Christians to give the will of God.	Not all Christians will speak in tongues, and the Spirit is present in every Christian, but special power comes to the Christian by means of releasing the Spirit's power by tongues, given to some Christians to give the will of God to the church for its edification.
Purpose of Tongues	The primary purpose of tongues was to demonstrate the change from the nation of Israel to the nations of all the world. They are not a normative indication that someone has received the Spirit of God or a second baptism of (or in) the Spirit.	Tongues are the initial, necessary evidence that one has received the Spirit or the empowering from the Spirit by means of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Further, they are used by the Spirit-filled believer in praying more effectively. Pentecostals differ as to whether one receives the Spirit of God at the moment of conversion or only at the baptism of the Spirit.	Tongues are an indicator (but not the only one) that one has the fullness of the Spirit of God. All Christians have the Spirit from conversion, but the fullness comes through one's letting God take control of one's life. This is not a second blessing but a recognition of God's power. Tongues help one to pray in the Spirit.
Duration of Tongues	Tongues ceased after the completion of the New Testament. There is no reliable evidence today of the miraculous gift of speaking foreign languages.	Tongues have continued throughout the ages, arising again in various periods of the church's history when greater desire for spirituality has occurred.	Tongues have continued throughout the ages, arising again in various periods of the church's history when greater desire for spirituality occurred.