Mopsie
April 16th, 2008, 10:11 AM
This is from a thread I posted a while back:
Often times, in our pursuit to better understand the body of Christ and churches and denominations in particular - seeing the divisions and contentions of the church up close, my husband and I have been boggled by another area of doctrine that seems to have been disregarded. We have walked through a 14 year journey that ended last year of visiting, attending and even joining a number of churches and different denominations. We really wanted to know personally what was out there, rather than just make generalizations or assumptions about churches or denominations but to be able to offer what we have found to be true. And in the course of all of this, God has taken what we have seen and now know to be true to guide us into being more scripturally sound and Bible based. He has been faithful to us and in turn - as we have worked to build our lives around Scripture, to correct our wrongs in order to be better witnesses of the faith, to bring unity to the Church - the body of Christ - he has called my husband to be a pastor and has called us to plant a church.
That said, this is what we have struggled with:
Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order. 1 Cor. 14:39,40
We have a good friend here in town. She is a local business owner, a beautiful Christian woman and someone we have been blessed to get to know. She, however, is Full Gospel and very charismatic at that. There have been different times that we have clashed with her in regards to beliefs and the practices of her church. She has invited us to her church and we were considering attending. But we held back for one reason.
You see, at the beginning of their services they reserve about a half hour to an hour for speaking in tongues and prophecy. And this is why we have not attended. There is dancing about and people just going crazy in jibber jabber. No regard for "things being done decently or in order." And that is something we do not condone nor is it scriptural. They feel as if one does not speak in tongues, or prophecy, that somehow they really aren't saved and have not received the gift of the Holy Spirit. And that is clearly wrong.
However, we have another close friend that attends a very strict Bible church, with beliefs holding true and strong ties to the Baptist denomination. She has, on a number of occasions, told us how sinful it is for people to speak in tongues. She has regarded that at some point the Holy Spirit stopped giving the gifts of prophecy and speaking in tongues. Really? This is clearly wrong too and we have noticed that so many churches, those who tend to clearly mark themselves as conservative or traditional have completely thrown out 1 Corinthians 14:39,40. This is also clearly wrong.
Let no corrupt word proceed out of out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:29,30
The Bible is very clear that worship - and that pertaining to speaking in tongues and prophecy - is to be done so with order and decency. We have no qualm with that obviously. But what we do have a problem with is when the Church says "you may not do this" when Scripture clearly says yes.
There are so many divisions and contentions facing the Church -the body of Christ - and speaking in tongues and prophecy are certainly both a part of this.
Think about this argument: many people we talk to who are conservative or traditional tell us that the signs and wonders of prophecy and tongues are no longer needed. Again, really? Perhaps we too quickly forget the world and times we live in.
Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophesying is not for unbelievers but for those who believe. 1 Corinthians 14:22
If prophecy is unbiblical, then you wouldn't be reading this because this site would cease to exist. No, instead we come here for encouragement and to build one another up in the hope of Christ as believers.
Perhaps then, our unbelieving, dying world - longing for truth and needing the hope of a Savior could use the sign of tongues. Because that is what the Bible says the Holy Spirit equips believers with this gift for.
God forbid that we divide his word any longer, causing the work of the Holy Spirit to be grieved and enabling division and contention in His body. We are called to unity - certainly with order and decency in mind, but to first and always being obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Often times, in our pursuit to better understand the body of Christ and churches and denominations in particular - seeing the divisions and contentions of the church up close, my husband and I have been boggled by another area of doctrine that seems to have been disregarded. We have walked through a 14 year journey that ended last year of visiting, attending and even joining a number of churches and different denominations. We really wanted to know personally what was out there, rather than just make generalizations or assumptions about churches or denominations but to be able to offer what we have found to be true. And in the course of all of this, God has taken what we have seen and now know to be true to guide us into being more scripturally sound and Bible based. He has been faithful to us and in turn - as we have worked to build our lives around Scripture, to correct our wrongs in order to be better witnesses of the faith, to bring unity to the Church - the body of Christ - he has called my husband to be a pastor and has called us to plant a church.
That said, this is what we have struggled with:
Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order. 1 Cor. 14:39,40
We have a good friend here in town. She is a local business owner, a beautiful Christian woman and someone we have been blessed to get to know. She, however, is Full Gospel and very charismatic at that. There have been different times that we have clashed with her in regards to beliefs and the practices of her church. She has invited us to her church and we were considering attending. But we held back for one reason.
You see, at the beginning of their services they reserve about a half hour to an hour for speaking in tongues and prophecy. And this is why we have not attended. There is dancing about and people just going crazy in jibber jabber. No regard for "things being done decently or in order." And that is something we do not condone nor is it scriptural. They feel as if one does not speak in tongues, or prophecy, that somehow they really aren't saved and have not received the gift of the Holy Spirit. And that is clearly wrong.
However, we have another close friend that attends a very strict Bible church, with beliefs holding true and strong ties to the Baptist denomination. She has, on a number of occasions, told us how sinful it is for people to speak in tongues. She has regarded that at some point the Holy Spirit stopped giving the gifts of prophecy and speaking in tongues. Really? This is clearly wrong too and we have noticed that so many churches, those who tend to clearly mark themselves as conservative or traditional have completely thrown out 1 Corinthians 14:39,40. This is also clearly wrong.
Let no corrupt word proceed out of out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:29,30
The Bible is very clear that worship - and that pertaining to speaking in tongues and prophecy - is to be done so with order and decency. We have no qualm with that obviously. But what we do have a problem with is when the Church says "you may not do this" when Scripture clearly says yes.
There are so many divisions and contentions facing the Church -the body of Christ - and speaking in tongues and prophecy are certainly both a part of this.
Think about this argument: many people we talk to who are conservative or traditional tell us that the signs and wonders of prophecy and tongues are no longer needed. Again, really? Perhaps we too quickly forget the world and times we live in.
Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophesying is not for unbelievers but for those who believe. 1 Corinthians 14:22
If prophecy is unbiblical, then you wouldn't be reading this because this site would cease to exist. No, instead we come here for encouragement and to build one another up in the hope of Christ as believers.
Perhaps then, our unbelieving, dying world - longing for truth and needing the hope of a Savior could use the sign of tongues. Because that is what the Bible says the Holy Spirit equips believers with this gift for.
God forbid that we divide his word any longer, causing the work of the Holy Spirit to be grieved and enabling division and contention in His body. We are called to unity - certainly with order and decency in mind, but to first and always being obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit.