(1 Cor 14:14,15, 18-20) For if I pray in tongues, my spirit is praying, but I don’t understand what I am saying. Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand… I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you. But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language. Dear brothers and sisters, don’t be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind.
This morning we continue our series entitled, “Re-Energizing Your Prayer Life.” I have been praying about whether or not I should even mention tongues. There has been a great deal of confusion over tongues in the Body of Christ and I believe it is because many leaders refuse to teach what the Bible says about it. So, as I am led, I will address it. Please read the passage I provided for you thoughtfully and prayerfully.
I believe most of the confusion stems from the difference between the gift of tongues and praying in tongues. By all accounts the church in Corinth was an unruly church. Believers were seeking spiritual gifts, but for the wrong reasons, and they were not operating under the proper authority. So Paul wrote a letter in which he addressed spiritual gifts and how everything should be done in an orderly way. In Paul’s first letter, in the 12th chapter, Paul taught about the 9 gifts of the Holy Spirit. Paul said, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.” He went on to teach about the revelatory gifts (the eyes of God), which are the gifts of: word of wisdom (v.8), word of knowledge (v.8), and the discernments of spirits (v.10); the power gifts (the hands of God), which are the gifts of: faith (v.9), healing (v.9), and the working of miracles (v.9); and the gifts of utterance (the mouth of God), which are the gifts of prophecy (v.10), tongues (v.10), and the interpretation of tongues (v.10). Of the 9 gifts, only the last two I listed (tongues and the interpretation of tongues) are interdependent, meaning that you cannot have one without the other. Whenever the gift of tongues is in operation, one person speaks in tongues and either that person, or another person, will interpret what was said so that the church can understand what God is saying to the Body. I have been in many church services where this happens and in every case it is God speaking to His people, through His Spirit, supernaturally. Once again, this is God speaking by His Spirit, through humans, to the church. This is a top-down operation.
Paul clearly said that he prayed in tongues and that when he did he not understand what he was saying, and he mentioned no interpretation. This is NOT the gift of tongues. That is NOT God speaking to the church, through a human. That is God’s Spirit in a human, praying back to God, for things and in ways that the human is unaware of. The human does not know what he or she is saying, but God’s Spirit in them is leading the prayer, therefore it is still a form of prayer and it is very effective, because the human mind (and it’s limitations) is out of the way. In this case no interpretation is needed, because it is NOT God speaking to the church (top-down), it is a spirit-led human praying to God (bottom-up). These are NOT the same thing.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. The gift of tongues is God speaking to the Body of Christ, through a human, and an interpretation is required. This is a top-down operation.
2. Praying in tongues in the Holy Spirit in man praying back to God, without the human’s mind getting the way, and no interpretation is required. This is a bottom-up operation.
3. Praying in tongues is Biblical. Like all things, you must seek divine understanding and then ask God to give you all that He desires for you to have while you are in the land of the living.
Closing Confession: Father, Your Word is truth. I refuse to allow what others have said about Your Word to go unchallenged. I read Your Word for myself and I seek divine insight concerning all that You desire for me to have while I am in the land of the living. I see the 9 gifts of the Spirit and I ask You for release in me all the gifts that You desire for me to operate in. I don’t chase the gifts, but I do want all the gifts that I require to fulfill my life’s assignment. I declare by faith that I seek and receive divine insight concerning praying in tongues. When my spirit prays I may not understand what I am saying, but You do and it becomes a perfect prayer, untainted by my own thoughts and limitations. Lastly Father, I just want to thank You for Your Word. You left us Your Word and everything I need to maximize my purpose and potential is in it. I desire Your Word more than my earthly food. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
