This one thing I know to be true … when writing the Bible, God wasn’t working with a publisher that demanded a certain word count before publishing the Book. Not one single word found in the Bible is a space-filler. With certainty, we know that God did not fill His Book with needless, unnecessary statements.
With that being said, we should recognize that the teaching found in God’s Word about being filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues is not a subject to be taken lightly. Jesus’ directive for believers to “speak with new tongues” (Mark 16:17) wasn’t a flippant, mindless statement. From the scriptures, we know that it is expected that every believer is to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) and pray in the Spirit with other tongues (1 Corinthians 14).
Sadly, much confusion and needless division is seen in the Body of Christ today over this one subject. Let’s look at a third question often presented about speaking in other tongues.
Question #3 – Doesn’t the Bible Teach that Speaking in Tongues Will End?
This question is so easy to answer … YES! Next question please.
Oh, that’s not enough explanation? I did answer your question. Tongues will end. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it … tongues will end. We learn this in 1 Corinthians 13:8.
I guess that the better question might be, “When will speaking in other tongues end?” I trust that you noticed that I wrote “When will” and not “When did“. The word “will” refers to a future tense, a time that is yet to come. The answer to “When will speaking in other tongues end?” is simple. Speaking in other tongues will vanish at the very same instant that prophesy and knowledge cease to exist. I am quite sure that no one would be bold enough to declare that prophesy has disappeared or that knowledge has vanished (although I have seen a few people whose ignorance would challenge my belief). No, a million times no. Both prophesy and knowledge are still very much present. And, no where in the scripture is there even the slightest inference that God is working on a gradual elimination process … first tongues will cease and then prophesy and then eventually knowledge. All three are present today and will continue to be present until the day when that which is perfect is come and we stand before the Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 13:10).
Next week, we will look at Question #4 – Doesn’t the Bible Minimize the Importance of Speaking in Other Tongues?
