Yahweh will increase
Well-known member
Of course but that was the sign, for they knew those languages being they were residents of those countries and therefore the sign was that God wants to unit all men in the knowledge of the truth and not just the Jews alone like in the OT and that one way that he would do this is through this gift of tongues.Are you aware that on the day of pentecost, all those in the crowd were Hebrew and did not need to hear a message in the langage of the people from where they had been dispersed. Peter went on to preach in a common language which they all understood. The primary use of tongues in the church going forth from the day of pentecost was to deliver a message to the church, thru an interpreter and to edify the speaker
I disagree with your assessment on this, for if everyone in the church already spoke the same exact language, then why would they need to hear a message in another tongue through an interpreter? Makes sense of that why don't you?
No, but what Paul says about tongues used in the church, is that while the gift shouldn't be forbidden altogether as a true gift of the Holy Spirit, if someone had a tongue for someone that might be there that didn't speak their language, that there should be an interpreter for all those who didn't speak his language and which would have been the majority.
In other words the tongue would be for the one visiting from another country and the interpreter would be for all of the rest who spoke their common language so all in that church, the visitor from the other country and the local residents of that church could be edified by the message.
God gave this sign of tongues to those Jews as a sign that he was wanting the other nations to hear the message of the gospel and be saved and not just the Jews alone like it was before Jesus came and died for the sins of all men, that is what it was about.
Therefore "whosoever both Jew and Gentiles" shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" and which is the context of Joel 2 that Peter used to explain what it was all about.
Tongues was not suppose to be for self edification or selfish use and this is where many people get confused by what Paul says about it, for they mistakenly think that Paul is endorsing this when actually he isn't at all. .
You see there can always be someone who comes to a church from another country and who speaks another language and therefore Paul didn't want to forbid the use of tongues altogether but rather to make sure there is someone who has the gift of interpretation also, so that the whole church could be edified also and not just the person from the foreign country of the tongue given.
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