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The Greek word cri`sma (charisma ; plural charismata) means "a gift of grace," that is, a gift from God’s undeserved love. It is the Bible's word for the special gifts the Holy Spirit freely gives to God’s people. Some of the Spirit's charismata such as instantaneous healing or speaking in tongues are spectacular. Others like teaching or showing mercy may seem ordinary and unexciting. All the Spirit's gifts, however, are intended for the good of the Church.

The term charisma has been adapted as a label for the Charismatic Movement, a movement which seeks to reclaim the supernatural gifts of the Spirit and use them in the modern-day Church. Its adherents have a fascination especially with the spectacular gifts of tongues-speaking, healing and prophecy. In fact, a charge could be leveled against them that they neglect or place little value on the non-spectacular gifts of the Spirit.

In the past Pentecostal churches were relegated to the fringes of Christianity. Lately, however, the Charismatic Movement has made inroads into most denominations throughout the world. Its adherents tend to remain in mainline congregations, while faulting "ordinary" Christians in their churches for a lack of spiritual zeal.

The majority of Christians have looked skeptically at the Charismatic Movement. Yet the zeal and excitement of charismatics catch our eye. We can not help but wonder if perhaps we are lacking something or leaving unused exciting gifts of the Spirit.

The Scriptures indicate that each believer receives charismata. "To each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.... All these [spiritual gifts] are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each man, just as he determines" (1 Cor 12:7&11).

There are numerous gifts -- all coming from the undeserved love of God. There is, therefore, no reason -- or right -- for any believer to feel superior or more important than another. "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us" (Rom 12:6). The Spirit doles out gifts as he sees fit, so that the body of Christ is healthy and functioning properly.

The Spirit gives his gifts with the intention that they be used to benefit others. "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms" (1 Pet 4:10).

Charismatic gifts are not essential to being a Christian. Faith, not charismatic gifts, makes a Christian. It is wrong to expect “real Christians” to have specific gifts such as the ability to speak in tongues. The Spirit's gifts are given in differing amounts and combinations as he sees fit.

Spiritual gifts are different from responsibilities. All Christians have the responsibility to serve, exhort, teach, give witness, show mercy, grow in knowledge and wisdom and so forth. To some the Spirit has given a special aptitude or charisma for carrying out one of those responsibilities.

The Spirit's gifts are not the same in every age or situation. Rather the Spirit gives his gifts for a purpose. He supplies whatever gifts are needed for the good of the Church at a specific time and place according to its circumstances.

It is time for a definition. Spiritual gifts are endowments of special abilities bestowed by the grace of God on individual Christians for the good of the Church. In fewer words, spiritual gifts are talents or aptitudes through which the Holy Spirit equips believers for spiritual service.

Four lists of spiritual gifts are given in the New Testament (Rom 12:6-8; 1 Cor 12:8-10; 1 Cor 12:28; Eph 4:11). Some charismata occur in more than one list. Prophecy or prophet, for example, appears in all four listings; teaching/teacher in three; miracles in two. Other gifts, such as evangelist, exhortation and giving, appear only once. In addition to the lists just mentioned, Peter speaks of "various forms" of gifts and then points to speaking and serving as two general categories (1 Pet 4:10-11). We do not imagine that these lists are exhaustive. There certainly are others gifts, such as music or art, which are not specifically mentioned.

In the rest of this session we look at special gifts which the Spirit has given in the past, but no longer seems to be giving. In the next session we will look at spiritual gifts he still gives for the good of the Church.

A prophet is one who speaks for God. In the days before the completion of the Bible, the prophets received revelations directly from God and relayed them to the people. Among the divine messages which they faithfully delivered to the people were predictions regarding the future.

The Bible prescribes two tests of a true prophet. First, his message will not contradict God's revealed will: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn” (Isa 8:20). Secondly, all his predictions will come true: “If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him” (Deut 18:22).

We can define the charisma of prophet this way: the divine endowment to receive and speak forth truth which was received by direct revelation from God.

Through the prophets God gave us the Old Testament. "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son" (Heb 1:1-2). The New Testament Church in its early years was also blessed with prophets (Acts 11:27; 13:1; 1 Cor 14:29; Eph 4:11). In the completed Scriptures (New and Old Testaments), "we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place" (2 Pet 1:19). We conclude that prophets who received direct revelations from God were gifts for the time before the completion of the Bible.

When I speak of the prophet as a foundational gift, I am talking about those whom God chose to receive direct revelation from him and pass it on orally or in writing. In the Old Testament there seems to be a distinction made between such prophets and the “sons of the prophets” [1] who appear to be believers who banded together in apostate times to give mutual encouragement and to testify to God’s Word. These groups were guided by prophets such as Samuel, Elijah and Elisha. It is also possible that such “companies of prophets” were actually seminaries, that is, schools for training men for the proclamation of God’s Word.

There are also instances when prophecy served a confirmatory purpose. For example, God showed his approval of the selection of 70 elders to assist Moses through the gift of prophesying. The Lord “took of the Spirit that was on him (Moses) and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did not do so again” (Numbers 11:25). [2] Joel prophesied that, as a sign of the coming of the Messiah, God promises: “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy” (Joel 2:28). Peter says that Joel’s words were being fulfilled at the first Pentecost (Acts 2:17). That fact that Joel mentions daughters’ prophesying should not trouble us, since confirmatory gifts are by their very nature exceptional and go contrary to the general order of things.

A side issue, but an important one is the mention of prophetesses Miriam (Exodus 15:20) and Deborah (Judges 4:4) in the Old Testament, the prophetess Anna (Luke 22:3&) in the New Testament, the statement that Philip’s four unmarried daughters prophesied (Acts 21:9), and the women prophesying in the Corinthian congregation (1 Cor 11:3-10). Do we here have women preachers? The Scriptures say that a woman is not to teach or have authority over a man (1 Tim 2:11-12) nor “to speak in the church” (1 Cor 14:33-35). These references to females’ prophesying do not compel us to see a violation of what Scripture teaches regarding a woman’s role in the church. There is nothing that says that their prophesying was done in public worship or in authority over men. Perhaps they prophesied for other women.

Scripture does recognize exceptions to its general rules in rare and unusual cases. The judge Deborah must have served in a way that was acceptable to the Lord. In another Bible case Priscilla joined her husband Aquila is teaching Apollos, “they....explained to him the way of God more adequately” (Acts 18:26). Here we can be certain that Priscilla taught with a servant’s attitude and in a private setting. In the case of the Corinthian congregation, on the other hand, Paul is upset because the women were prophesying in a manner that did not show a proper attitude of submission to God’s order.

Prophesying is preaching, that is, proclaiming God’s message which was received by divine revelation. The prophets were the preachers of their day. Their work continues today in the preachers who are called into the public ministry to proclaim God’s truth. Now, however, preaching is based on God’s written revelation, the Bible, which is complete and contains all that is necessary, “so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:17). “Preach the Word,” Paul writes (2 Timothy 4:2).

If someone today claims to have received a revelation from God, his message must pass God’s twofold test: it must not contradict in any way God’s revealed Word and 100% of his prophecies must come true. Moreover, now the Scripture is complete. No alleged prophesy dare add to or subtract from God’s Word (Rev 22:18-19), alter the message of the Bible (1 Pet 1:25), or imply that the Scriptures are lacking in any way (2 Tim 3:16-17). In the matters of God, Peter’s guideline will always serve us well: “If anyone speaks, he should do it an one speaking the very words of God..., so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11).

The word apostle comes from the Greek verb ajpostevllw (apostello) which means "to send out." Its noun derivative, ajpovstolo" (apostolos), was a nautical term in classical Greek. It meant a vessel sent on a mission. Apostolos came to mean a person sent out as an envoy.

“He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons (Mark 3:14). Our Lord Jesus chose a total of 13 men to be apostles. There were the 12 disciples (who remained 12 in number because Matthias replaced Judas Iscariot) and Paul. One of the qualifications of an apostle was that he had "been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us" (Acts 1:21). The Lord Jesus himself made an exception to that rule in the case of Paul. The apostles were given special powers to back up the message they were sent out to proclaim: "The things that mark an apostle -- signs, wonders and miracles -- were done among you with great perseverance" (2 Cor 12:12). The Apostles were Jesus' specially chosen ambassadors to be foundational teachers of the New Testament Church and to proclaim the gospel to the world -- through their preaching and through the Scriptures they wrote.

The gift of apostle is the divine charisma given to a limited number of believers to act with God-given power and to speak with God-given authority by virtue of personal knowledge of Christ and direct revelation of the Spirit.

Today no one can meet the qualifications of apostleship, in particular being an eyewitness of Jesus' ministry. Moreover, special revelations are no longer needed since the Scriptures are complete, containing everything necessary "for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Tim 3:15). We conclude, therefore, that the Holy Spirit no longer gives apostles to the Church today.

The prophets and apostles were foundational gifts essential for the establishment of the Church. They faithfully carried out their assignment. The Holy Christian Church stands today, "built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets." They continue to speak to us through the Scriptures.

The listing of the Spirit's special gifts includes discernment or "distinguishing between spirits" (1 Cor 12:10). Before the Bible was completed and everyone agreed which books belonged in it, this foundational gift was also needed. "Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said" (1 Cor 14:29). "Do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil" (1 Thess 5:20-22).

A striking example of this gift in use is found in Acts 5. [3] Peter looks into Ananias’ heart and discerns that Satan has filled his heart. Only God can look at hearts, and yet here Peter is granted the miraculous ability to discern the evil spirit at work in Ananias. Peter demonstrated this gift also in his second letter when he equates Paul’s writings with the Old Testament Scriptures and so recognizes them as God’s inspired Word (3:15-16).

The foundational gift of distinguishing between spirits was the ability to evaluate the message of one who claimed to have received a revelation from God. Through this spiritual gift the believer was able to determine if the message came from the Holy Spirit or if its source was the speaker's own human spirit or even an evil spirit.

All Christians need to "test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world" (1 John 4:1). Today the Holy Spirit enlightens us and equips us for such testing through the Scriptures. The gift of supernatural powers of discernment seems to have been foundational, however. Need for it ceased once the Scriptures were available as the norm for Spirit-enlightened testing.

We can label some of the Spirit's gifts “confirmatory gifts.” These gifts seem to arouse the most interest these days. Miracles, healing and speaking in tongues are spectacular in nature. Moreover, Pentecostals and charismatics claim to be receiving these gifts today. If these gifts are still available to the believers, we would like a piece of the action too!

Among the spiritual gifts is miraculous powers through which the Holy Spirit provides "workers of miracles" (1 Cor 12:10&28). The Greek words used are duvnami" (dunamis/ power), tevra" (teras/wonder) and shmei`on (semeion/sign). A miracle is an act of supernatural power through which God overturns the normal course of nature. A miracle elicits awe and wonder and serves as a sign to authenticate the doer as one backed by God. The gift of miracles then is the ability to perform supernatural acts which show God's approval of the message or messenger.

Jesus encouraged his believers to preach the good news to all creation with the promise: "Signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons;...they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well" (Mark 16:17-18).

Healing is a sub-category of miracles. The person with the gift of healing served as an intermediary through whom God intervened with supernatural power to cure illness and restore health. Jesus performed numerous miracles of healing; 25 are specifically mentioned in the four Gospels. Jesus' healings were instantaneous and complete. When he attempted a healing, he had a 100% success rate. [4] His healings included raising the dead. Jesus’ miracles were not ends in themselves. Rather they were used to authenticate his preaching and his claims that he was the Messiah (Cf. Matt 9:1-8).

Driving out demons is another form of healing. It stands side by side with the other forms of miraculous signs and wonders. Demonic activity may well have been greater during Jesus’ lifetime and the Apostolic Age. Satan and his demons had much reason to mount the strongest assault of which they were capable in hopes of destroying Christ and his Church.

It seems that in the Apostolic age the Spirit made known in some way when a miraculous sign was in order, for not even the apostles had the power to heal everyone or the option of healing whenever they wanted. [5] Paul, for example, wrote regarding one of his faithful coworkers: "I left Trophimus sick in Miletus" (2 Tim 4:20). Rather than heal Timothy's chronic stomach condition, Paul advised him regarding proper health care (1 Tim 5:23). Moreover, Paul's prayers for his own healing were not answered with a miracle. Rather the Lord helped Paul to accept his illness and see God's good purpose for it: “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it [the thorn in my flesh] away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me" (2 Cor 12:8-9).

Miracles and healings were given at critical periods in biblical history. They were especially evident at the time of the exodus, during the perilous times of the prophets, in Jesus' lifetime and in the beginning years of the New Testament Church. Those were pivotal times when God was intervening in world history. At those times God determined that his presence and the authenticity of his message needed to be demonstrated beyond a shadow of a doubt. The gifts of miracles and healing were his way of doing that.

God remains almighty. If he chooses to grant miracles and miraculous healings today, he is fully capable of doing so. The evidence, however, indicates that such gifts served confirmatory purposes at pivotal points in history. Now the Bible is readily available; now the Church is solidly established. Supernatural wonders to confirm God's presence in the Church or his backing of the gospel message are no longer needed.

Today we can take our needs directly to the Lord in prayer, confident that "the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective" (James 5:16). Where demonic activity or devil-possession happens today, through prayer we can call upon God’s power -- and, if it is his will, he will cast the demon from its victim. There is no reason to look for a human with the gift of miraculous healing power when you can go straight to the source of almighty power. In answer to your prayers, God may choose to grant a miraculous healing also.

If someone claims to have healing ability today or to have benefited from a miraculous cure, we hope that he is relating a truthful event for which we can also praise the Lord. We need to examine the doctrine which comes from the healer’s lips, however. The Holy Spirit will not be giving miraculous signs to confirm and support false doctrine.

On the other hand, we may be guilty of too little trust. Let’s praise the Lord for what he does in answer to believers’ prayers. Is it possible that the Lord would level against us the same charge which he leveled through James against Christians of the First Century: “You do not have, because you do not ask God” (James 4:2)?

Glossolalia is the formal label for speaking in tongues and the interpretation of tongues. It comes from the Greek words glw`ssa (glossa/tongue) and laliav (lalia /speaking). On Pentecost the Holy Spirit enabled the apostles to speak in foreign languages which they had not previously known. "Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs -- we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" (Acts 2:9-11) This charisma was the ability to communicate the gospel in recognizable foreign languages to individuals who spoke those languages. It was clear evidence that God backed the message of Jesus which was being preached. (Note: The gift of miraculous tongues was not an essential gift to communicate the gospel at Pentecost since the people had a common language, Greek. But it was confirmatory. Something special was happening here! God showed his approval with tongues.)

In addition to Pentecost, the book of Acts tells of two other times when the miraculous gift of speaking in tongues was given (10:44-47; 19:1-7). In the first instance Peter preaches to Cornelius, a gentile, and God shows his approval by enabling the gentiles to speak in tongues. Could gentiles be saved? Does God approve of going to the non-Jews? God gave his answer. He confirmed his approval through a miraculous sign. Notice that the tongues were recognizable languages just like on Pentecost, for Peter comments: "God gave them the same gift as he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 11:17).

In the second case Paul preaches in Ephesus to believers who knew nothing about the Holy Spirit. Was Paul telling them the truth? God said a clear "Yes" by confirming Paul's preaching. The 12 men were baptized and "the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues" (19:6).

In Corinth things had gotten out of hand. Apparently the tongues-speakers were breaking forth in ecstatic speech which no one present understood and which therefore served no good in communicating the gospel. Paul writes to instruct them about the proper use of tongues. "But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.... Tongues then are a sign; not for believers but for unbelievers,” he writes (1 Cor 14:19-22). Moreover, tongues serve no purpose in the Church without someone to interpret. "If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God" (v.28).

In Acts 2, the only instance that we have the necessary information to make a determination, the speaking in tongues was without a doubt the ability to speak in recognizable foreign languages. In fact, some of the languages are mentioned. But doesn’t I Corinthians 13: 1, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels...,” imply that in Corinth the tongues were something different? Not necessarily! 1 Corinthians 13:1 could be hyperbole -- that is, an intentional exaggeration not intended to be taken literally. Paul used hyperbole in Galatians 1:8, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!” In this verse Paul is not saying that an angel from heaven could or would preach a different gospel. Rather he is making an emphatic statement about God’s attitude toward false preaching. In the same way Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 is not necessarily saying that the people were actually speaking in angel-language. Rather Paul is emphatically stating that, even if it were possible to speak in angel-language, that talking would be worthless without love. The interpretation that 1 Corinthians 13:1 is hyperbole is supported by the context. In verse 2 Paul speaks of fathoming “all mysteries and all knowledge.” This is clearly hyperbole because the only one who is omniscient is God.

We conclude that the gift of speaking in tongues is the special ability to speak in another language, one not previously known by the speaker. Interpretation of tongues is the miraculous ability to interpret the words of a person speaking in a different language.

A study of the Scriptures leads to the conclusion that tongues were like the miracles and healing we mentioned earlier. All three were confirmatory gifts, given by God at crucial times and under extraordinary circumstances to establish his New Testament Church and authenticate the gospel of Jesus. The message was new and subject to the legitimate question: "How can we be sure that you are telling the truth?" The confirmatory gifts were God's way of showing his approval of what was being said in his name. While God can still give the gift of languages, we do not have reason to expect it nor need for it.

Though we do not base doctrine upon Church history, it is interesting to note how speaking in tongues has fared in the history of the Church. It is a historical fact that speaking in tongues for all practical purposes ended with the death of the apostles. Commenting on I Corinthians 12-14, Chrysostom (345-407) writes: “This whole passage is very obscure, but the obscurity arises from our ignorance of the facts described, which, though familiar to those to whom the apostle wrote, have ceased to occur.” [6] Augustine (354-430) confirmed this when he wrote of speaking in tongues as something that was gone from the Church. Speaking in tongues occurred sporadically only in fringe elements of the Church throughout the entire period from 100 to 1900 A.D.. This disappearance of speaking in tongues supports the idea that it was a confirmatory gift given to the Church only at the time of the apostles.

When did the current phenomenon emerge? Modern-day speaking in tongues traces its beginning to January 1, 1901, when Miss Agnes Ozman spoke in what she claimed was a Chinese tongue at Bethel Bible School in Topeka, Kansas, USA It is noteworthy that she spoke in tongues only after anguished longings and prayers for the gift. This reception is in striking contrast with the tongues of the Bible, which fell on people unexpectedly and without being sought. From this rebirth in Kansas, speaking in tongues has spread around the world.

We have much reason to challenge the role for tongues claimed by many modern-day Pentecostals and charismatics. Such individuals speak of a second baptism, a Spirit baptism, which is proven by the ability to speak in tongues. The Statement of Fundamental Truths of the Assemblies of God says: "The Baptism of believers in the Holy Ghost is witnessed by the initial physical sign of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit of God gives utterance.” [7] As this quote illustrates, most Pentecostals believe that, unless you have spoken in tongues, you have not yet been baptized in the Holy Spirit and are still lacking some of the Spirit's gifts.

Charismatics maintain that at the time we are brought to faith, the Spirit has only come to the believer, but by the Spirit-baptism he fills the believer. Scripture teaches, however, that baptism with water is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Through that baptism the Spirit comes to us and gives us saving faith. Divine intervention is necessary for anyone to believe. And God promises to use baptism (with water) as his means of divine intervention. “Baptism... now saves you also,” he promises. “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5).

Paul speaks of “one faith, one baptism” (Eph 4:5). Moreover, in 1 Corinthians 12 as Paul discussed the charismatic gifts problem, he says “ For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Cor 12:13). Along with faith come all the other blessings God has planned for his children. God's ship is a one-class ship. There is not a tourist class for marginal, water-baptized Christians and a first class for Spirit-filled, tongues-speaking Christians. For confirmation of this, we need look no further than the first Pentecost. The word of Christ was preached, the sacrament of baptism was administered, and a vibrant Christian congregation was formed. Everyone who was baptized that day, according to Peter’s promise, received the gift of the Holy Spirit at the same time as he received saving faith and the forgiveness of sins.

Charismatics maintain also that Jesus himself baptizes the person at any time and any place -- apart from any specific means. Confessional Lutherans, on the other hand, hold to the statement in the Smalcald Articles: “We must maintain that God will not deal with us except through his external Word and sacraments. Whatever is attributed to the Spirit apart from such Word and sacraments is of the devil.” [8]

Many modern-day charismatics regard speaking in tongues as the identifying mark of a true follower of Jesus. They establish fellowship ties on the basis of sharing that common experience. One's teaching on other Scriptural doctrines seems unimportant. The true mark of a God-pleasing church, however, is “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Matt 28:20). And the true mark of a believer is holding to all the doctrines of the Bible. This includes also the doctrine of church fellowship and the Bible’s instruction to keep away from those who teach falsely. Where false doctrine is taught or tolerated or where fellowship is practiced without full unity, it is doubtful that there the Holy Spirit is giving tongues to show his approval.

Some are convinced that the tongues-speaking in the contemporary charismatic movement is psychologically self-induced. Others point to the fact that this phenomenon is not limited to Christianity. Heathen religions in places like Africa make use of similar ecstatic speech. Even the devil can "perform great signs and miracles to deceive" (Matt 24:24). While we do not question the sincerity of charismatics, we have reason to doubt what they are doing.

We note also that, when God rescued his church and restored the Gospel in the days of the Reformation, not one of the reformers, whether Lutheran or Calvinist, was a tongue-speaker. Nor did any reformer claim to have received any special revelations from Heaven. It was the Word that saved the Church; it was not tongues-speaking or new prophecies.

We must admit that evaluation of present-day tongues-speaking requires a judgment on our part. WELS Prof. Joel Gerlach comments on what must be the basis for our judging:

Our basis for judging righteous judgment is the whole counsel of God. Thus if a person comes to me and claims to have the gift of tongues, the important thing for me is not to hear a demonstration so that I can determine whether or not it is of the Spirit. I want to know how that person understands and confesses the gospel. If anyone comes to me and does not bring ‘this doctrine,’ then I am not to receive him into my house nor bid him God speed (2 John 10). In such a case there is no need to determine whether his ecstatic speech is of the Spirit or not. His doctrine certainly is not.

On the other hand, if someone comes to me (as in one case with which I am familiar) and claims to have the gift of tongues, and confesses with me the whole doctrine of the gospel, then I am going to extend the right hand of fellowship to that person. As for the tongues, I still may not be certain whether it is a thing of the Spirit or not. I am not certain that it is, but neither can I be certain that it is not. I will simply withhold my judgment. Meanwhile, I will counsel that person with regard to the restrictions St. Paul imposes upon the use of this gift in the Church. He will use it privately, not publicly without an interpreter. And if it is ecstatic rather than a legitimate language, there will be no interpreter available. He will not encourage others to seek the gift because Christians are to desire prophecy rather than tongues, and because in all authenticated cases it was not given to individuals seeking it or even expecting it. I will also warn him about the abuse of the gift as in the case of the Corinthians lest he become ‘puffed up’ as did many of them . [9]

In 1 Corinthians 14 Paul says that “anyone who speaks in tongues does not speak to men but to God” (2), that “he who speaks in tongues edifies himself” (4), that “if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays” (14), do these verses mean to say that there are benefits for the person who speaks in tongues privately? And are these benefits available today? I doubt it, but we will need to follow the advice Professor Gerlach has just given. If we encounter a Christian who confesses the full truth of God’s Word and who tells us that he receives spiritual benefit from his personal tongues-speaking, then we will have to allow the possibility that his experience is real. We may have our doubts, but we will withhold judgment -- or at least not try to bind others to our opinion.

Let me be entirely forthright. The percentage of charismatic tongues-speakers who adhere to all Biblical doctrine and who practice fellowship only with those who adhere to all Biblical doctrine is so small as to be almost non-existent. Moreover, since tongues are being used so heavily to undermine doctrine and fellowship practices, any would-be confessional tongues-speaker needs to ask: Hasn’t the practice of tongues-speaking in the church today became an offense to be avoided, even if by itself it is an adiaphoron?

While the Spirit can still give out the ability to speak in a language one has not studied or previously known, we do not have reason to expect it or need for it. To be sure, we do not expect that spiritual gift to be ordinary or commonplace. Even in the Apostolic Age it was a comparatively rare occurrence, and in the one congregation where tongues were commonplace, they became a source of serious problems. Certainly the gift of tongues is not something every Christian should expect to receive. Instead of craving this ability, heed Paul's advice and place the emphasis on the clear proclamation of the Word. “If the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle? So it is with you. Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying? You will just be speaking into the air....Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the Church" (1 Cor 14:8-12). [10]

The foundational and confirmatory gifts were spectacular, exciting and essential for the time when they were given. In less spectacular ways those gifts continue to be supplied to God's Church today. A form of the gift of prophecy continues in pastors who faithfully preach God's Word. A form of apostleship continues in Christians who lovingly share with unbelievers the good news of Jesus and what he has done. Healing is granted in answer to prayer. Missionaries learn foreign languages and then communicate the gospel powerfully through them. Believers use God’s written Word to discern divine truth from the devil's lies.

In these last evil days of our world, it often seems that we need the spectacular confirmatory gifts once again. They have not been promised to us in our age, however. In fact, the Scripture has told us to expect the opposite. In the last days we should expect persecution and false signs that are so convincing that they would deceive even the elect if that were possible. Remember how Jesus described the days we live in: “For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.... Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.... If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time” (Matt 24:5-25).

Despite the troubles of our day, remember also the promise: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (14). One example of that promise being fulfilled is in Africa. Less than forty years ago Confessional Lutheranism came to Northern Rhodesia (Zambia now). Today the Lutheran Church of Central Africa has grown to a membership of over 35,000 people in over 200 congregations scattered through Zambia and Malawi, with contacts extending also into Mozambique, Tanzania, Congo and Zimbabwe. Another example of God’s blessing on the preaching of the gospel is one Sunday in April, 2000, when one of the WELS missionaries baptized 40 people in a village in Bulgaria.

[1] 1 Samuel 10:5-6; 1 Kings 20:35; 2 Kings 2:3,5,7 & 15; 4:1 & 38; 6:1; 9:1.

[2] For two other examples, see 1 Samuel 10:5-6 and 19:20-24.

[3] Verses 1-11.

[4] Mark 18:22-25 is one slight exception, but even there the complete cure comes about in a few minutes.

[5] See Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:17-23; Luke 9:37-42.

[6] Hodge, Commentary on 1 Corinthians, p 297.

[7] Article VIII, quoted in F.E. Mayer, The Religious Bodies of America, St. Louis, Mo: Concordia, 1961, p 318.

[8] . SA III, Art. VIII, 10.

[9] . Glossolalia, Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly Vol 70, No 4, 1973, p 246.

[10] Thoughts on 1 Corinthians 14:20-25:

V.20: “Grow up,” Paul says. Fascination with tongues is childish.

V. 21: The quote is from Isaiah (11-12). It is a threat of God’s judgment. Because the people refused to listen, in judgment God will conceal His truth in strange languages they cannot understand. The nearer fulfillment is that the Assyrians came with their strange languages and conquered the land. But even this did not lead the people to repentance. Instead it lead only to further rejection of God.

v. 22: Nonsense tongues then are a sign of God’s judgment on those who refuse to believe. The unbelievers in v. 22 are the hardened unbelievers who have fallen under God’s judgment. Paul is warning the Corinthians: If they insist on speaking in nonsense language, in stead of it being a blessing, it may be a sign of God’s judgment, that is, the truth is being lost in unintelligible gibberish. If their ideal is tongues which no one understands, then God’s judgment has come on them!

v.24: The unbelievers in this verse are “those who do not understand” -- that is, they are unbelievers who do not know Jesus and have not been taught what the Bible says. Such an unbeliever needs not tongues, but prophesy. He needs someone to preach law and gospel to him, so “he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner.... So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!’”

Note well: The unbeliever in v.22 is different from the one in v.24. Verse 24 tips us off to this when it says: “an unbeliever or someone who does not understand” -- apistos a idiotas. The a can be used to join related or similar items. So Paul is saying: “But unbelievers, that is, those who don’t understand God’s Word (because they have never heard it or been taught it), will benefit from preaching of law and gospel.

Nonsense tongues cannot help them.