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NASB | Ephesians 4:14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Ephesians 4:14 So that we are no longer children [spiritually immature], tossed back and forth [like ships on a stormy sea] and carried about by every wind of [shifting] doctrine, by the cunning and trickery of [unscrupulous] men, by the deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything [for personal profit]. |
Bible Question: i believe i had a vision and so when i was in the presence of God i asked if he'd baptise me with the holy spirit and all of a sudden the word holocalumba came out of my mouth a few times. when i came back to what i was doing i said it a few more times till i finaly wrote it down. a couple days later while praying i was remembering speaking this and again all of a sudden holocabola came out. my questions are...are these words a known language? did i speak in tongues? if so why cant i speak tongues when i want? |
Bible Answer: In the days when “tongues” was valid, it was a gift from God, and it served a useful purpose. But now, it has positively no meaning, and it serves no useful purpose. That is one way we know it is not from God. The word “holocalumba” has no meaning. If I understand this conversation so far, the word means nothing to you, the one who spoke it, and nothing to anyone who has heard it, so far. That is probably why it doesn’t “google”; there is nothing close to it in any language. By the way, was the word “holocalumba” or “holocabola”? Perhaps it makes no difference. Listen, my friend. Your experience was not of God. The vision that you think you had was not from God, and the presence that you felt was not God. If the Scriptures are a sure guide, and they are, God does not work that way, and that word, whatever it is, was not given to you by God. You should test that spirit, and what I say here, by the word of God (1 John 4) The gifts that God gives are for the benefit of the church, for the edification of the saints (1 Corinthians 14). Over time, God has spoken to his people in many ways (Hebrews 1). He gave visions, and “Tongues”, in particular, were for a sign. That phenomenon helped the early church to understand and accept that gentiles were being added to the church. Even the one who was speaking the unknown words was edifying himself in that respect. But that is clearly not the case here. The one who spoke the word has received no benefit from it. By this time, you see, that message to the church has been received, the sign has served its purpose, and the sign is no longer needed. The church is mature enough now, and authentic “tongues” has long since passed away, even as Paul told them it would pass away (1 Corinthians 13). In the days when “tongues” was valid, there were rules under which that gift could be exercised in public. Those utterances could only be made in the presence of others, when there was someone present to interpret them. In a case like this, where the utterance was made in private, it was to be kept between the person and God, and other people would not even hear of it. Hearing of it now means nothing, except that some other spirit is interacting with our brethren (1 John 4:1). It does not mean that the person having that experience is being especially spiritual. It means only that we are spirit being and subject to interaction with other spirits. If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that have been written unto us are the commandments of the Lord. But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant. It seems strange, at first blush, that Paul would talk like that. He is the one who was exhorting us to love, and he was likely writing in love. But he had recalled the Lord saying, “I speak unto this people; and yet for all that will they not hear me“ (1 Corinthians 14:21). (What is the proper way the question as it was posed here? It seems appropriate that our brother Hank should answer in the way that he has done above. Someone read that post and could hardly stop laughing. Perhaps I should have answered differently myself, as I remember Proverbs 26:4 and 5. Or perhaps “kennyittis” is pulling our collective leg and having his own laugh. But in his short time on this forum, he has asked a good question of two. See #153775.The person who laughed suggested I should act in light of Ephesians 5:11. But I do know Christian people who sincerely struggle with this issue, and I trust that someone will yet benefit from this post). No doubt this is a controversial issue, and some of our brethren believe that God still speaks to us through “tongues” today. Perhaps it is people like me that God had in mind when he said he would speak to us in other tongues. “With other tongues and other lips will I speak”. Perhaps God is saying, “holocalumba” or “holocabola” to us today, and we are not hearing. If so, may the Lord have mercy on us. We have no interpreter, and we have no idea what he is saying. But, brothers and sisters, don't think like children. When it comes to evil, be like babies, but in understanding, be mature. |