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NASB | Acts 2:39 "For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 2:39 "For the promise [of the Holy Spirit] is for you and your children and for all who are far away [including the Gentiles], as many as the Lord our God calls to Himself." [Is 57:19; Joel 2:32] |
Subject: Holy Spirit / Tongues for Today? |
Bible Note: Hi, Huron! The Amish, as well as others, believe that technology should not be part of the Believers' life... there are various interpretations of Scriptures that, for the most part, are extremist views that hinder rather than aide man in worshipping God... There were Christians buying into extemes way back when.. Paul addressed the issue of speaking in strange tongues as follows: 1 Corinthians 14 :2 those who speak in them speak to God not others; :4 they help themselves only; :5 I would rather that you proclaim God's Word; :12 aspire for the gifts of the Spirit with which you can help the Church; :19 in Church worship I would rather speak five words that can be understood by all, than thousands in strange tongues; :22 speaking in strange tongues is proof for unbelievers (those who reject God) not for believers; while proclaiming God's message is proof for believers! I've paraphrased these verses, for the unedited version read 1 Corinthians 14:1-25; for mandates on orderly service with reference to speaking in tongues, read 1 Corinthians 14:26-33--note that Paul specifically calls to order that no more than two or three should speak in tongues, and that there should be an order (not everyone all at once); he also cautions that if there is none who can interprete then those speaking in tongues should be doing it in a quiet manner in order to facilitate and orderly service... it is understood that any revelation must be for the edification of the Church--pesonal revelations or any other revelation is unwarranted! Now, since the Holy Spirit did not just appear on earth for the sole purpose of introducing the disciples to the Jewish and Gentile communities, we must understand that He is able to give any Gift to any member of Christ's Body; the gift of tongues is no exception--there's no time restriction to the Holy Spirit's function in the Church! Sadly, we take the Holy Scripture to extremes and we create theologies that, in essence, places God under our control: speaking in tongues; handling serpents; transportation to Heaven; discerning spirits; having the keys to Heaven, life, wealth, health, longevity, exclusive relationships with Christ, the Father, the Holy Spirit; personal revelations; special knowledge of the future... all for the asking, by following some formula or "little known secrets" of the Holy Scripture... When we claim to be able to do something that other Christians cannot do or when we claim that to be in Christ a person must do precisely what we demand of them to do... does that not verge on egocentrism? Speaking in tongues is possible for Christians... but the lack of the ability to speak in tongues does not demonstrate lack of faith or some form of disenfranchisement from God! It is the Holy Spirit who determines what Gift to bestow upon the Believer and when (1 Corinthians 12:4-11); He will impart you, me or any other Christian with the ability that we need to edify the Church... no one can demand or subscribe to a special forum of "self-service" gifts! God Bless! Angel |