I Used to be a Pentecostal....BUT, No More

[davidandme]

Davidandme - The purpose of the gift of tongues is to bring people together in a common understanding of the spoken word.  When God confused the languages by the tower of Babel He did it to confused people and drive them away from the tower.  The purpose of the gift of tongues is to do the opposite.  Bring people together when people can't understand each other because of the language barrier.
 
larry2 - I have no idea where you get that. 1 Corinthians 14:22  Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not.

Dear Davidandme, have you ever spoken in tongues? Has God used you to bring other peoples that can't understand together by speaking in tongues?   

John 14:17  "Even the Spirit of truth; - - ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." Is He in you Davidandme? How do you know? The apostles all spoke in tongues; are you different? Thus the question in Acts 19:2: - -  He (Paul) said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?

In Jesus' name - larry2 

Pentecostals claim that without evidence of tongues the Holy Spirit is not in you.  The Bible says Mat 7:20  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

But Pentecostals claimed that you shall know them by a gift. (speaking in tongues)  Sorry pentecostal brothers but when most of you think that you are speaking in tongues you are really not.  Most of it are emotional outbursts.  And Larry the tongues are languages and yes they can be a sign.  But they are not a sign in themselves.  Any one can mimic them. I have seen them do it.  God bless us as we continue to find the truth that is in His word.

[larry2]

Davidandme - Pentecostals claimed that you shall know them by a gift

larry2 - I do not know of any that say that, as it is not a gift one is known by, but fruit (righteous works). Are you saying we shall know who has received the Holy Spirit by their fruit? To me Jesus was talking of false prophets there. Even the apostles had to receive the Holy Spirit.

You can make every accusation, draw upon every unrelated scripture you want, but until you receive the Holy Spirit, He remains with you, but not in you. Even Paul asked: do all speak in tongues? 1 Corinthians 14:39 "Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues." Perhaps you think this means to learn Spanish.  Dear Davidandme, you make sport of something you absolutely know nothing of.

In Jesus' name - larry2

[ex cathedra]

I was in a Pentecostal church for 3 years during my later High School years.

I believe God put me there, to learn things I can share with others....to warn them of the dangers there.

I saw laying on of hands, to heal people (supposedly).

I heard many people speaking in tongues, (And I thank God, I never did).

I heard prophetic predictions, which never occured.

I heard about the Rapture theory for the first time in that church, and I believed it UNTIL......I read everything that the Bibel say, about Christ's 2nd Coming, again.

Pentecostals tend to rely upon the Holy Spirit(?)....instead of believing what the Bible really has to say.

The Bible verse which really opened my eyes was:

Revelation  16:13   And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs [come] out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.  
  16:14   For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, [which] go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.  

QUESTION: How do 'frogs catch their prey "

ANSWER: With their tongues !

your right

Any Spirit apart from scriptures is of the devil.

THE Holy Spirit does not come apart from scriptures  as some  Schwärmerei  wills him to.

[davidandme]

Davidandme - Pentecostals claimed that you shall know them by a gift

larry2 - I do not know of any that say that, as it is not a gift one is known by, but fruit (righteous works). Are you saying we shall know who has received the Holy Spirit by their fruit? To me Jesus was talking of false prophets there. Even the apostles had to receive the Holy Spirit.

You can make every accusation, draw upon every unrelated scripture you want, but until you receive the Holy Spirit, He remains with you, but not in you. Even Paul asked: do all speak in tongues? 1 Corinthians 14:39 "Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues." Perhaps you think this means to learn Spanish.  Dear Davidandme, you make sport of something you absolutely know nothing of.

In Jesus' name - larry2

Larry Paul is saying in this very text that the gift of prophesy is more important than the gift of tongues.   Check the Greek and you will see it.  Paul did not forbid anybody to speak in a different language if it was necessary.  You should read the following verse. (v.40)  It talks about doing these things in an orderly fashion.  I am sorry but I don't see that in the pentecostal churches specially when they are all  jumping and shouting.  One day somebody invited me to a Pentecostal church and I had to leave in the middle of the service because I thought that my head was going to explode with all that noise.  I was listening to the preacher and he all of the sudden started to bable and the whole congregation began to do the same thing.  I couldn't stand the noise and I had to step out for a while.  I must admit that I do like Pentecostal music.  God bless.

[larry2]

Dear Davidandme - I have no argument with the fact that Paul put emphasis on prophesy being better than speaking in tongues because prophesy edifies others, but the fact remains that speaking in tongues is a fact.

Is there a benefit to speaking in tongues? 1 Corinthians 14:2 "For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries." Here no man understanding them is made known as you say; you didn't understand. I have not attended meetings where such disorder was prevalent as you did as there may have been at Corinth, though I have experienced and participated in much oral praise of the Lord.

David, even though you do not know in experience, or in scripture what tongues is all about, you have not done as 3AM has done and attributed what God has told us in His word about tongues being a gift, or a sign and comparing that with being spirits of devils To me, that is dangerous if just not disrespectful to God.

As for the sound being too much for you, you might just prepare for the future when you will be confronted with Revelation 19:6  "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." I've heard that when in the presence of Niagara's mighty waters you cannot hear someone next to you hollering.
 
In Jesus' name - larry2

[davidandme]

Dear Davidandme - I have no argument with the fact that Paul put emphasis on prophesy being better than speaking in tongues because prophesy edifies others, but the fact remains that speaking in tongues is a fact.

Is there a benefit to speaking in tongues? 1 Corinthians 14:2 "For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries." Here no man understanding them is made known as you say; you didn't understand. I have not attended meetings where such disorder was prevalent as you did as there may have been at Corinth, though I have experienced and participated in much oral praise of the Lord.

David, even though you do not know in experience, or in scripture what tongues is all about, you have not done as 3AM has done and attributed what God has told us in His word about tongues being a gift, or a sign and comparing that with being spirits of devils To me, that is dangerous if just not disrespectful to God.

As for the sound being too much for you, you might just prepare for the future when you will be confronted with Revelation 19:6  "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." I've heard that when in the presence of Niagara's mighty waters you cannot hear someone next to you hollering.
 
In Jesus' name - larry2

In Cor 14:2 Paul is talking about certain people that were praying outloud in their own language.  Corinth was a city that had people that spoke many languages.  Some people in their own language were praying out loud not realizing that their prayers  were disturbing their brothers with a language that they did not understand.   A person might be praying to God in their own language or tongue but they might disturb somebody near that does not understand the prayer.  So bottom line is that if you are in public and you are the only English speaking person in the room, please do not pray out loud so you don't disrespect the people around you that can't understand you.  If very body in the same room (specially in a church) would start praying in their own language out loud, wouldn't that cause a confusion, even if they were all praying to God? I love my pentecostal brothers because they are very sincere and I like their music but they base their christian experience in emotions to much.  God bless.

[larry2]

OK my dear brother in the Lord. God bless you too in Jesus' precious name - larry2

[davidandme]

OK my dear brother in the Lord. God bless you too in Jesus' precious name - larry2

Thank you Larry.

[Lifesaver]

I was in a Pentecostal church for 3 years during my later High School years.

I believe God put me there, to learn things I can share with others....to warn them of the dangers there.

I saw laying on of hands, to heal people (supposedly).

I heard many people speaking in tongues, (And I thank God, I never did).

I heard prophetic predictions, which never occured.


QUESTION: How do 'frogs catch their prey "

ANSWER: With their tongues !

your right

Any Spirit apart from scriptures is of the devil.

THE Holy Spirit does not come apart from scriptures  as some  Schwärmerei  wills him to.

Excathedra, you are right.  If anyone is speaking in tongues and they do not bear the other fruits of the Holy Spitit,(self-control, good health, understanding etc. then you can be sure that the 'tongue' they are speacking in is the tongue of a deceiving evil spirit 
Don't forget the devil is an ex angel, efore God threw him out of heaven, so he knows very well how to speak in tongues, the language of the angels ...

Lifesaver

 

[fenton]

Larry
did you tell him about the tongues of self edification?

[Lifesaver]

Davidandme - The purpose of the gift of tongues is to bring people together in a common understanding of the spoken word.  When God confused the languages by the tower of Babel He did it to confused people and drive them away from the tower.  The purpose of the gift of tongues is to do the opposite.  Bring people together when people can't understand each other because of the language barrier.
 

Larry 2, since this thread is about speaking in tongues, I have copy and pasted my post in the other section about my insight of speaking in tongues.  I hope it is helpful to all readers:

"I believe the Holy Spirit is around everyone, but those who actually receive him inside themselves are those who firstly believe this is possible, and not some fairy tale. As He says "Signs will follow those who believe."

I attended the Catholic Church for many years and did not know anything about receiving the Holy Spirit. However at various occasions during that time, I used to communicate with 'spirits'.  It was only after I started attending a pentecostal church that I learnt that good and bad spirits can communicate with you.  From that pentecostal church I was able to differentiate between evil spirits and good spirits, as evil spirits cannot read your mind.

When I look back I realise that the Holy Spirit had been in my life for decades
but because some churches preach that hearing voices and other communications are from evil spirits, I had rejected all communications of that nature.  On discovering that evil spirits cannot read your mind, I then began to communicate in my mind with God directly in June 2007.  To my surprise, He would reply back to me directly, in my mind.  This has been happening upon demand now till today. 

I feel the sessions with God/The Holy Spirit is very fulfilling.  I can ask Him any question, I mean any question on any matter and 90% of the time He would give me an answer.  On the occasions He did not give me an answer are when, on reflection, I already new the answer.

Receiving the Holy Spirit and utilizing resourse to its fullest extent is extremely powerful and beneficial for those who are strong.  Yes, those who are strong - because if you get to communicate with Him to the level I do, He will remold you, as He points out home truths about yourself that you thought was unimportant and OK with Him and which needs to be changed.  The Holy Spirit is my No. 1 adviser on every aspect of life.  My life will not be complete with Him

Just one point.  All my children know about my very close relationship/ communicatin with God.  They also know about the connection of speaking in tongues and the Holy Spirit.  One day my daughter asked me  very intelligently.  "Why don't you speak in tongues, since you quite clearly have the Holy Spirit?"  I considered this was a very good point.  The next day I did not hesitate to put it to God in one of our communicating sessions.  The answer was more or less "To speak in tongues you do not understand what you say, but as you are communicating with God directly, you are closer to God, since you are understanding what He is saying to you..."

So I conclude that speaking in tongues has its place in the bible somewhere and in life generally, but to really experience God in your life, you need to start to speak to Him directly, whoever you are, holy or unholy - whether or not you  currently speak in tongues.  If you do not communicate with God directly, you are missing out big time ... 

Just shut yourself in your bathroom, bedroom, toilet etc., turn off all music/noise, zip your lips open your mind and connect with the Holy Spirit.  Do this regulary, whether or not you receive any response; but be persistent.   Eventually He will respond - when He knows you are serious."


Lifesaver

[Eagle]

Does one HAVE to speak in tongues to be filled with the Holy Spirit?

[Lifesaver]

Does one HAVE to speak in tongues to be filled with the Holy Spirit?

Eagle, as you can read from my post above, from my experience, no, you do not need to speak in the tongues of the angels to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  I am filled with the Holy Spirit and I do not speak in  the tongue, as we expect. But I understand the 'tongue' of God Himself.

If you want to be filled with the Holy Spirit, just follow the instructions above and get talking to God Himself and take it from there.

Lifesaver   

[fenton]

enjoyed your post Lifesaver   

[Lifesaver]

enjoyed your post Lifesaver   

Thank God you enjoyed His message through me.  Keep in the Spirit of God always ...

Lifesaver