Don't Pentecostal churches believe we can talk to God by "talking in tongues?" My grandmother, a regular attender to Pentecostal churches has failed to inform me as to how this works. Could you please tell me?

Most Pentecostal denominations believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit as recorded in Acts is available for any person who believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and personal Savior. We believe that when you accept Jesus as your Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of you. His purpose is to shape your life into the character and service of Christ. This is sometimes called sanctification.

The Holy Spirit will also lead you to another experience uniquely with Him called the "baptism of the Holy Spirit." This is the event described in the Book of Acts in Acts 2:1-4 and more specifically in 10:44-46 and 19:1-7.

Pentecostals believe there are four distinct uses of "tongues" in the New Testament:

  1. Speaking in tongues as initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The texts mentioned above reflect this. This can happen at any point in your Christian life, including when you first become a Christian. It does not make you a "better" or "superior" Christian. The baptism of the Holy Spirit releases the power of the Holy Spirit into your life in a greater dimension of service and love.
  2. Speaking in tongues as a form of supernatually communicating the gospel in foreign languages previously unknown to the speaker. This occurred in Acts 2:1-4 and has been witnessed on occasion throughout church history.
  3. Speaking in tongues in a worship setting as a form of divine communication. This kind of tongues should be interpreted in order to be effective in the church. This is described in 1 Corinthians 14.
  4. Speaking in tongues as personal prayer and in singing as personal devotion. This is described in 1 Corinthians 14:14, 15. The purpose of this is to build up your personal faith as the Holy Spirit prays through you (Jude 20).

Like all experiences in the Christian faith, speaking in tongues is an exercise of faith. Often the person speaking in tongues is consciously aware of speaking in abstract syllables. Your conscious mind is aware of these sounds. But faith in Christ and the certainty of being covered by His shed blood, enables a person to speak these sounds with the confidence that the Holy Spirit is speaking through you in a spiritual language known to the Spirit of God and ministered to your the depths of your human spirit.

To receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit:

  1. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior of your life.
  2. Ask Jesus to forgive you of any sins that you consciously know are hindering your life.
  3. Ask the Holy Spirit, who lives in you by faith, to begin to speak His holy language through you.
  4. Begin to speak what the Spirit begins to utter.

Remember, the purpose of speaking in tongues is to empower you for Christian service, to allow the Holy Spirit to speak into the depths of your being bringing His transforming work to your character, and to reveal the love of God in Jesus Christ through you in greater measure.

Dr. A.D. Beacham, Jr., Executive Director,
IPHC Church Education Ministries

Last update on 7/30/07
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