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Scripture Reading: Gal. 5:22-25; Eph. 4:2; Col. 3:12; 2 Pet. 1:5-6; Rom. 14:17; Eph. 5:9; 4:24; Matt. 5:5-6, 8-9; 1 Cor. 12:4-10, 28; Mark 16:17-18; Heb. 2:4; 4-11, Acts 2:16-18; 10:44-46; 19:6
It is easy to realize how the Holy Spirit is life to us in our spirit, but it is more complicated to realize how the Spirit is upon us as power. Therefore, we must speak in more detail concerning this matter.
One reason we must spend so much time to deal with this matter is that we need to see where speaking in tongues stands. Many people are careless in studying and understanding the Word simply because they are careless in their character. They are careless in all things, and when they come to the Word to study and understand it, they are still careless, even to the utmost degree. We must learn the lesson not to be careless. In order to be careful, we must build up our character. Then when we come to study the Word, we will understand it carefully.
The tongues movement began in the previous century in England, and it came to Los Angeles in 1906, two years after the Welsh revival, which was under the leadership of Evan Roberts. This revival influenced some people on the West Coast of the United States. At the start of this movement on the West Coast, they did not have speaking in tongues, but later tongues were brought in. There was also a movement with speaking in tongues on the East Coast. From that time on, speaking in tongues has been a big problem among the Lord’s children in this country, a problem that has not yet been settled. This matter disturbs the Lord’s children very much, and to some extent, it frightens them away from seeking the real experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
At first I had no thought to deal with this matter, but after I stayed in this country for a period of time, I found out that it is a real problem. Today many people pay much attention to speaking in tongues. Many insist on saying that speaking in tongues is the initial and necessary evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Since I came to this country, I have traveled much, and wherever I go, people often ask me, “What about speaking in tongues? Do you speak in tongues?” I have been very surprised to hear this so much.
Now we must study the Word in a very careful way. Two particular chapters in the Scriptures speak of the Spirit. Galatians 5 deals with the Spirit as life within us, and 1 Corinthians 12 deals with the Spirit as power upon us.
Galatians 5:22-25 says, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such things there is no law. But they who are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and its lusts. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Verse 22 speaks not of the fruits of the Spirit but of the fruit, singular in number and with the singular verb is. The nine items mentioned in verses 22 and 23 are not nine fruits but nine aspects of the one fruit of the Spirit. These nine aspects start with love, end with self-control, and have joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and meekness in between.
These nine aspects are the fruit of the Spirit as life within us; they are not aspects of the Spirit as power upon us. We must note, however, that these nine aspects are not all the aspects of the fruit of the Spirit as some teach today in Christianity. We can prove that there are other aspects not mentioned here.
The eighth item in Galatians 5, for example, is meekness, which in the Greek text is prautes. Ephesians 4:2 speaks of “all lowliness and meekness.” Here meekness is the same Greek word as in Galatians 5:23. In addition to meekness, however, there is lowliness, which in Greek means “humility of mind.” This is the same Greek word used in Philippians 2:3 and Colossians 3:12, which also mentions meekness. According to the text of these verses, lowliness and meekness are two different items. Galatians 5 speaks of meekness, but it does not mention lowliness or humility. Since lowliness is omitted from Galatians 5, the nine items mentioned there are not all the items of the fruit of the Spirit.
Second Peter 1:5-6 says, “For this very reason also, adding all diligence, supply bountifully in your faith virtue; and in virtue, knowledge; and in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control, endurance; and in endurance, godliness.” Galatians 5 speaks of self-control, but it does not speak of godliness. Godliness is in addition to the nine items there.
Romans 14:17 says, “The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 5:9 mentions righteousness and truth also. Galatians 5, however, speaks of joy and peace but not of righteousness and truth. Moreover, in Ephesians 4:24 there is righteousness and holiness, but Galatians 5 does not mention holiness. In addition, Matthew 5:5 and 9 speak of meekness and peace, while verse 6 speaks of righteousness, and verse 8 speaks of purity. Galatians 5, however, mentions peace and meekness but not righteousness and purity.
According to the above verses, at least lowliness, godliness, righteousness, truth, holiness, and purity are not mentioned in Galatians 5. There is no reason to doubt that these also are items of the fruit of the Spirit. This proves that the nine items mentioned in this chapter are not all the aspects of the fruit of the Spirit. We should not believe that there are only nine aspects of the fruit of the Spirit as life within us. There are many more than nine. To think that there are only nine is to be careless. We must be careful in studying and understanding the Word. If we understand it carelessly, we will hinder ourselves and damage others.
Galatians 5 tells us that the Holy Spirit within us is the Spirit of life who brings forth spiritual fruit with many aspects, including the nine aspects mentioned here and others. The apostle’s intention is not to tell us how many aspects of the fruit of the Spirit there are. There is no need to do this. His intention is to tell us the difference between the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit as life within us. In order to do this, he illustrates by listing a certain number of the aspects of the fruit of the Spirit. Therefore, we should not say that the items of the fruit of the Spirit are only nine. Rather, we can clearly prove that there are more than nine.
All the foregoing prove how careless some people are in understanding the Scriptures. In some places, people list the nine items in Galatians 5 on a chart and call them the nine fruits. They say that all the fruits are nine in number; love is one fruit, joy is another fruit, peace is another fruit, long-suffering is another fruit, and so on. If we read carefully, however, we can see that these are not nine fruits but nine of the aspects of the one fruit. Moreover, there are other aspects not included here.
First Corinthians 12:4-6 says, “There are distinctions of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are distinctions of ministries, yet the same Lord; and there are distinctions of operations, but the same God, who operates all things in all.” Gifts are of the Spirit, ministries are of the Lord, and operations are of God. This refers to the Triune God.
Verse 7 says, “To each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for what is profitable.” Gifts in verse 4 is plural, and manifestation in verse 7 is singular. The gifts are many, but the manifestation is one. Just as the fruit of the Holy Spirit as life within us is one fruit with many aspects, in the same principle the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power upon us is one manifestation with many aspects, which are the gifts mentioned in verses 8 through 10. These verses say, “To one through the Spirit a word of wisdom is given, and to another a word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; to a different one faith in the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing in the one Spirit, and to another operations of works of power, and to another prophecy, and to another discerning of spirits; to a different one various kinds of tongues, and to another interpretation of tongues.” The word of wisdom, for example, is not the manifestation of the Spirit but only one item of the manifestation.
It is remarkable that here again there are nine aspects. Galatians 5 mentions nine aspects of the fruit of the Holy Spirit as life within us, and this chapter speaks of nine aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power upon us. The Spirit as life brings forth fruit, and the Holy Spirit as power has a manifestation. The fruit of life has many aspects, and the manifestation of power also has many aspects.
However, are there only nine aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power? Verse 28 says, “God has placed some in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then works of power, then gifts of healing, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues.” The nine aspects in verses 8 through 10 do not include helps and administrations, for example. Verse 28 also speaks of apostles and teachers, which we cannot find in verses 8 through 10. Verse 8 mentions the word of wisdom and the word of knowledge, but these may not include teaching. Of the items in verse 28, some are mentioned among the nine items, and some are not. It is clear that at least apostles, helps, and administrations are not included among the nine. Therefore, we cannot say that those nine items are all the items of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit.
Mark 16:17-18 says, “These signs will accompany those who believe: in My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it shall by no means harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will be well.” The first sign mentioned here is casting out demons. To be sure, this is an aspect of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit upon us as power; if someone casts out demons, he must be in the power of the Holy Spirit. However, this is not one of the nine items in 1 Corinthians 12. Of the five items mentioned in Mark 16, only two—speaking with new tongues and healing the sick—are included among the nine. The other three—casting out demons, picking up serpents, and drinking something deadly but not being harmed—are not included.
Hebrews 2:4 says, “God bearing witness with them both by signs and wonders and by various works of power and by distributions of the Holy Spirit according to His will.” Only works of power and distributions of the Holy Spirit are included in 1 Corinthians 12. Signs and wonders are not included there. This is a strong proof that those nine items are not all the aspects of the manifestation of the Spirit. To be sure, casting out demons cannot be confused with any of the nine items; it is a separate item. Therefore, we should not believe that those nine are all the aspects. Besides those nine, there are others.
It is needless to say that if we do not have speaking in tongues, we can still have the manifestation of the Holy Spirit; even if we have none of those nine items, we still can have the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Those today who insist that we must speak in tongues to prove we have the manifestation of the Holy Spirit are carelessly wrong, so wrong that they damage the Lord’s people in this matter.
I have spent much time to study the Word and the present situation with respect to the so-called Pentecostal movement and speaking in tongues. I began to study in this way in July of 1932. At that time I visited one of the most prevailing Pentecostal movements in China. I stayed with those people, and I attended their meetings. By 1935 I myself had been helped in this matter, and I had the experience of speaking in tongues. In the following year, I helped many people also to speak in tongues. The first article I wrote on this subject was published in Chinese in 1936. It dealt with the two aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit and included something about speaking in tongues. By this you can see how long I have studied this matter. Through all this study I have become clear.
In the past more than twenty years, the churches in the Far East have practiced the way of the outward gifts several times, and we learned something from this experience. After much study I have learned that the entire Scriptures make it clear that speaking in tongues is not the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and it is not a necessity. Speaking in tongues is only one of many aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power upon us.
People such as the Brethren and other fundamental Christians say that speaking in tongues is something devilish. They insist that this kind of miraculous gift ended with the apostolic times, so that today there is no more speaking in tongues. I do not agree with this; they are too extreme. Up to today there is the real, genuine speaking in tongues. Yet I do not agree that speaking in tongues is the necessary and initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues is only one of many aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. First Corinthians 12 clearly says that it is one of nine aspects, and as we have seen, these nine are not all the aspects. Besides these, there are other aspects, such as casting out demons.
Acts 2:16-18 says, “This is what is spoken through the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream things in dreams; and indeed upon My slaves, both men and women, I will pour out of My Spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy.’” Here are two additional items—visions and dreams—that are not listed among the nine in 1 Corinthians 12. On the day of Pentecost, Peter clearly said that in the last days the Lord would pour out His Spirit upon His people and that some of them would prophesy, some would have visions, and some would dream things in dreams. Although the disciples on the day of Pentecost spoke in tongues, the prophecy of Joel mentions nothing about tongues. Nevertheless, Peter said concerning the day of Pentecost, “This is what is spoken through the prophet Joel.”
Many people insist on speaking in tongues, but the prophet Joel did not insist on it. Rather, he said that some would prophesy, some would have visions, and some would dream things in dreams. I myself have had some wonderful dreams in the spirit, but I have not seen any visions with my sight, although I have seen visions in the spirit. However, visions and dreams, as well as casting out demons, are not listed among the nine aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power upon us. This again proves that those nine are not all the aspects. Even if those nine were all the items of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues is only one of them. How then can we say that speaking in tongues is the necessary or even the initial evidence of the Spirit? This is too extreme.
With regard to speaking in tongues, some may refer to the cases of the day of Pentecost, the house of Cornelius, and the twelve Ephesian believers. However, we need to read those passages with a proper discernment and logical understanding.
Acts 2:4 is the strongest ground used by the Pentecostals who insist that everyone must speak in tongues. This verse says, “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, even as the Spirit gave to them to speak forth.” Some say that this verse means that they all began to speak in tongues. However, we may use the same grammatical construction to say, “Last night at 7:30 we all came into the meeting and began to pray.” This means that we all came into the meeting, but it does not mean that we all prayed. Verse 4 does not say, “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit in order to speak in tongues.” It says that they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in tongues. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is one thing, but to speak in tongues is another. It is difficult to prove by verse 4 that all one hundred twenty disciples not only were filled with the Spirit but also spoke in tongues.
If we read this chapter logically and carefully, we can realize that not all the disciples spoke in tongues. If all one hundred twenty spoke in tongues, how could the people hear them clearly? Verses 9 through 11 refer to the dialects of less than twenty places. Some of those places may have contained more than one dialect, but the number of dialects was probably still under thirty. All one hundred twenty disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, and many of them spoke in tongues, but probably not all did.
Concerning the house of Cornelius, Acts 10:44-46 says, “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those hearing the word. And the believers who were of the circumcision, as many as had accompanied Peter, were amazed, because on the Gentiles also the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out; for they heard them speaking in tongues and magnifying God.” Verse 46 uses the conjunction and. This grammatical construction indicates that they did two things. They did not speak in tongues to magnify God; they spoke in tongues and magnified God. To speak in tongues is one thing, and to magnify God is another. When the people in the house of Cornelius received the Holy Spirit upon them, they did two things. One was to speak in tongues, and the other was to magnify God. We can be sure that they all were filled with the Holy Spirit, but we cannot be sure that they all spoke in tongues. Perhaps some spoke in tongues while others magnified God.
Concerning the Ephesian believers, Acts 19:6 says, “When Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” This sentence does not stop with they spoke in tongues; it says, “They spoke in tongues and prophesied.” Should we believe that all twelve disciples did two things, both speak in tongues on the one hand and prophesy on the other? This is not a logical understanding. The logical understanding is that after receiving the Holy Spirit upon them, some of the twelve spoke in tongues, and some of them prophesied. Not all who were present spoke in tongues. This also shows that speaking in tongues is not a necessity.
Those with a Pentecostal background insist that the cases in the above three passages—Acts 2, 10, and 19—prove that all believers who receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit must speak in tongues. However, if we use proper logic to understand and consider this matter, we cannot use these passages as proof. On the contrary, we can clearly see in 1 Corinthians 12 that not everyone speaks in tongues. Some speak in tongues as the evidence, or manifestation, of the Spirit, but others have a different manifestation. There is no guessing about this. Let us be clear according to the word of the Lord that speaking in tongues is but one of many items of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power upon us. It is not a necessary item, and it is not the initial item. Therefore, we should not oppose it, and we should not insist on it as a necessity.
In 1 Corinthians 12:30 Paul asks, “Do all speak in tongues?” We should not guess about the answer; rather, we should take the Word as it is. All do not speak in tongues. In 14:5 Paul says, “I desire that you all speak in tongues.” This indicates that not all the Corinthians spoke in tongues. The Pentecostals say that all the early believers spoke in tongues, but if they did, there would have been no need for the apostle to say this.
Those who have a Pentecostal background insist that everyone who has the baptism of the Holy Spirit must speak in tongues. However, 1 Corinthians 12 is a problem to them, because it says that speaking in tongues is only one of many aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Many of them reconcile this problem by saying that speaking in tongues as the initial and necessary evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is one thing, but after that, to exercise the gift of speaking in tongues is another thing. After the initial evidence, they say, many lose the gift of tongues, and perhaps only a few keep it.
An elderly brother, a leading missionary of the Assembly of God in the capital of China, told me that on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down for the first time, all the disciples spoke with unknown tongues rather than human languages or dialects. Then when the people heard their voices and crowded around the disciples, the disciples began to speak actual dialects to them. This brother said that to experience the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the speaking of unknown tongues as the initial evidence is one thing, but after this to exercise the gift to speak in another language is another thing.
After he said this to me, I studied the Word intensely. I found that Acts 2:4 says that the disciples “began to speak in different tongues,” and verse 6 says, “When this sound occurred, the multitude came together and was confounded because each one heard them speaking in his own dialect.” This indicates that before the people crowded to see the disciples, the disciples had been speaking in dialects, not unknown tongues. Verse 11 says, “We hear them speaking in our tongues the magnificent works of God.” Even though the word used in this verse is tongues, not dialects, what the disciples spoke was understandable.
After speaking in tongues when they receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, nearly all the Pentecostal brothers and sisters continue to speak in tongues. Almost no one loses their speaking in tongues; once they speak in tongues the first time, they keep it. It is never the case that one thousand Pentecostals speak in tongues today, but after one week nine hundred fifty lose the gift, and only fifty still speak in tongues. When they come together to meet, almost everyone speaks in tongues.
On the one hand, many of them say that not everyone exercises the gift of speaking in tongues, but on the other hand, they very much insist that everyone must speak in tongues. This is an awkward practice. There is no need to insist that speaking in tongues is the necessary and initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues is simply one of many aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit upon us as power. If today we have the power of the Holy Spirit upon us, we may heal someone, but if we do not have the power, we cannot heal anyone. Therefore, healing also is an aspect of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. When many people receive the Holy Spirit as power upon them, they do not speak in tongues.
We must train our mind to consider these things in a very logical way. How can we speak of an “initial manifestation”? To cast out a demon by the power of the Holy Spirit today and to cast out another one next month is the same thing. We should not say that to cast out a demon is only our initial manifestation; later, we will continue to cast out demons.
Let us be clear, sober-minded, logical, and sound in mind to understand the Word of God. Do not be perplexed or confused by the situation and the wrong teachings. Be sober in mind to read the Word and understand it carefully. Then we will see that healing, speaking in tongues, and casting out demons are just some of the many items of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. There is no such thing as an “initial manifestation.” This term is a human invention used to reconcile the wrong teaching that everyone must speak in tongues. This way of reconciling their teaching is unreasonable.
Many Pentecostals, although they insist that everyone must speak in tongues and that they themselves speak in tongues, doubt in their own heart whether they actually speak in tongues. They simply insist in this way because they are on the Pentecostal line. This is the same as people under certain kinds of government. They doubt that their government is right, but they insist that it is right simply because they are under it. If we question some who speak in tongues as to whether it is genuine, we will find that they doubt it. They do not have the assurance that what they speak is real. Rather, there are many imitations and much human manufacturing. We tried all these things. I myself spoke in tongues, and I helped others to do it. I have seen real speaking in tongues, but not many tongues today are real.
Today the tongues movement has a wrong emphasis, and it causes much damage. Therefore, we must spend time to dig out these matters to clarify the situation, to help the believers to be clear about this, so that we may seek and gain the proper experience.
I have studied these matters both in the Far East and in the United States. Because the Pentecostal believers insist that everyone must speak in tongues, they often force people to do it. They preach this matter, they push it, and they even teach people how to exercise their mouth to change their tone to speak in unknown tongues. There is a strong influence among them that forces everyone to do it.
The issue of this is that a number of them have been disappointed because they cannot do it. Even after trying to, they still cannot receive this ability. Others have been forced to imitate speaking in tongues. Some may be in the spirit but not have speaking in tongues, so because they have the background of the Pentecostal teaching, they speak in tongues by human imitation. I would like to speak freely with many Pentecostal believers. I wish to touch their conscience in a calm way, asking, “Can you tell me in truth, with a good conscience, that your speaking in tongues is the real and genuine tongues?” When I asked some in this way, they replied, “We cannot say whether or not it is genuine, but we feel that it is helpful.”
I have seen many human imitations and manufacturings. In this country some people teach others how to speak in tongues by exercising their mouth to change their tone of voice. While one such person was helping two Chinese brothers in this way, his wife stood by and encouraged them, saying, “Do not speak in Chinese and do not speak in English. Just speak something else.” This means that they were simply to change their tone of voice. As long as their speaking did not have the Chinese tone or the English tone, whatever came out would be speaking in tongues. One of the Chinese brothers eventually imitated a tone in a false way, and the husband and wife rejoiced. They wanted the brother to testify of his experience in the next meeting.
Some people have told me that when the Spirit works upon us, we must cooperate with Him by exercising our mouth. However, this is simply to cooperate by imitating. If the Holy Spirit does something miraculous with us, there is no need to exercise our mouth in this way. We can compare this to electricity. When electricity comes into an appliance, there is no need for the various parts of the appliance to “exercise to cooperate” in this way. To teach people to speak in tongues is not genuine. In 1960 some people came to me in this way. They laid hands on me and told me to say “Praise Jesus” quickly over and over. This was supposed to be speaking in tongues.
At one point I myself helped people to speak in tongues, but eventually I asked myself, “What is this? Before I had this kind of experience, I already loved the Lord and I experienced Him very much. Why do I have to do this?” After that time I dropped this practice. In the many years since then I have been helped by the Lord to know Him, to grow in Him, and to follow Him more and more deeply.
All the aspects of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as power are for the purpose of life. The right, genuine speaking of tongues is to help people to grow in life. Many Pentecostals, however, do not know much of life. They speak in tongues for the purpose of speaking in tongues; they do not speak in tongues for life. On the day of Pentecost, the speaking in tongues was for the preaching of the gospel, and three thousand people were saved, but today many people speak in tongues for a display and a kind of entertainment. All the aspects of the Holy Spirit as power to us are for life. They are not life, but they are for life. Speaking in tongues in the right way is for the growth and edification in life. Even healing is for the growth in life. Today, however, many people misuse these matters because they know nothing about life.
I beg you to be sober-minded and to have a clear and logical understanding of the Word. Is it logical to understand that speaking in tongues is a necessary requirement for the evidence, or manifestation, of the Holy Spirit? No, it is not logical. The logical way is to consider it as only one item of many aspects. We must be clear. I would ask you to read all the above passages again carefully and learn to study the Word carefully, clearly, and rightly. Do not be careless in studying and understanding the Word. Do not listen to the wrong teachings, such as how all twelve believers in Ephesus spoke in tongues. If we read portions of the Word such as Acts 19 in a careful way, we will find something different from these wrong teachings.
Some have said they cannot prove that their speaking in tongues is genuine and real. They themselves even doubt it. However, they say that when they speak in this way, they feel happy and they are helped. This is because as long as we have a heart to seek the Lord, He is always willing to meet us, and He is always gracious to us. Many Pentecostal believers have a heart to seek the Lord and to seek the Spirit, so the Lord meets them, not in the so-called Pentecostal way but in a general, spiritual way. Therefore, they feel very happy with the Lord. However, because they have the background of the Pentecostal teachings, influence, and mentality, they add the false speaking in tongues to their good experience of the Lord. This kind of speaking is not the genuine and real one. It is something they add on by exercising their mouth to change their tone of voice.
When I was in China, I spoke to many Pentecostal brothers about these things. I told them that we experience the Lord just as they do. The difference between our experience and theirs, however, is that they have the Pentecostal mind and background, so when they have a good experience of the Lord, they add on speaking in tongues, although I doubt that their speaking in tongues is genuine. Because we do not have this kind of background, we experience the Lord without adding on anything.
I also asked certain ones who insist on speaking in tongues what the result of their work is, how many people they have won for the Lord, and whether the ones in their meetings are more spiritual than others. I was able to point out to them that there were one thousand brothers and sisters among us who have a good experience of the Lord; they are living, yet very few of them ever spoke in tongues. Those among us are never taught to speak in tongues, and they are never forced to do so. Because they do not have the idea, the mentality, or the background of this kind of teaching, when they have a good experience of the Lord, they do not add anything on.
Those among the Pentecostals, however, are often taught, forced, and influenced to speak in tongues. When they have a good experience with the Lord, they have the mentality, the idea, the background, and the teaching of tongues, so they simply exercise their mouth to change their tone and add something on. I doubt that what they add on is the real speaking in tongues.
This does not mean that I oppose the real speaking in tongues. I do not oppose it. I believe that even in these last days there is the real speaking in tongues. However, I doubt that what is added on by believers under the influence, force, and teaching of the Pentecostal movement is genuine.
Recently, many people on the West Coast of the United States have been brought to the Lord by this kind of movement. However, in the Far East many people were brought to the Lord by us also, yet very few of them spoke in tongues. The great majority did not speak in tongues, but many were added to the Lord and are very much going on with the Lord. I do not like to criticize, but among those who have been brought to the Lord by the recent movements, I do not know how much real experience of the Lord they have. Rather, they are taught and influenced to add something on, which they say is speaking in tongues.
We are clear from the teaching of the Scriptures that speaking in tongues is but one of many items of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit upon us as power. If we spend time to objectively study the present situation, we will be clear that only a small portion of what is called speaking in tongues is real and genuine. The majority are human imitations and manufacturings. Therefore, we conclude that there is no need to insist that speaking in tongues is the necessary and initial evidence of the Spirit.
On the other hand, we should not oppose the real speaking in tongues. We must be very moderate, general, and open to the Lord. If the Lord gives us this gift, we simply receive it. If He does not give it to us, we just go along with Him. We leave this to the Lord, neither opposing it nor imposing it. We are open to Him.
Today we need the real experience of the Holy Spirit upon us as power. We should not be frightened away by the wrong teachings. We should not consider them. We simply must be clear that we need the Holy Spirit within us, and we also need the Holy Spirit upon us. We need to be filled with the Spirit as life within, and we need to be clothed and empowered with the Spirit as power outwardly.
In these days may we all go to the Lord to deal with Him about this, saying, “Lord, I do realize that I need this experience of the Holy Spirit as power to me.” Then we should leave this open to the Lord. We should not regard speaking in tongues, and we should not oppose it. Leave it to the Lord, and have the real experience of the Holy Spirit as power. There are many aspects of the manifestation of the Spirit, of which speaking in tongues is only one. What we must experience is the Holy Spirit as power upon us.
