Paul Washer on Tongues | Is it for today?

See for yourself by watching the full clip and hear his thoughts.

[frankjennings]

Jesus saved me outside of church and I knew not what had happened to me. It was a mystery. I found it in the Bible that I'd been born again. Then He baptized me in the Holy Spirit and gave me the gift of tongues and others. Again I had to find it in the Bible not understanding what it was. That was 40 years ago. One of the words I often said was"yeshua". I would pronounce it emphasized like "YESH-ua" with the yesh being emphasized. We'd been married 14 years and doctors said we could not have children. Jesus promised us a son however and I was praying in tongues one day and He gave the interpretation saying my wife was pregnant. She was. She put our sons name in a baby book and he was born eight and a half months later. He's 36 now, a man of God. Jesus Christ the same yesterday today and forever. Never never let religion tell you what God doesn't do anymore. He's unchangeable.

[stephengehly]

This is actually a video, not merely a picture. Paul Washer has trained himself to give a sermon while stonefaced staring daggers into one particular audience member's soul. Incredible.

[realtime]

2:00 It is impossible to live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit.

[kevinblaha]

It honestly took me way too long to figure out this was a still frame picture. Got a good laugh outta that.

[beginningandlast]

I met an old Christian lady during a mission trip, who was raised and lived in a farm in Mexico all her life. Her and her family had very little education and only knew how to speak Spanish. She also didn't know how to read in English or Spanish. I heard her one night praying in her room in perfect English with no accent. He prayer moved me because it was all directed to God in praises and thanksgiving. I asked her later how she learned to speak English so well. She said she never learned..her prayer in English was her prayer language to God.

[kingjesuscomes]

Apostle Paul said in 1Cor.14
- He who speaks in tongues (prayer in tongues) speaks not to men but to GOD for no-one understands him. "However in the spirit he speaks mysteries". (1Cor.14:2)
- Paul said that he who speaks (prays) in tongues edifies (builds up) himself and he who prophecies builds up the church! (1 cor.14:4). AMEN!
- He also said he wishes that "you all" would speak in tongues, but even more that all of them would prophecy.(1Cor.14:5)
- He also said that in praying in tongues the spirit of a man prayes indeed (he thanks well!) but his understanding is fruitless. (1Cor.14:14)
- He said he prayes & sings with the spirit but also prays and sings with the understanding. Here is two types of prayer and singing. (1Cor. 14:15)
- And Paul said he thanks God he speaks with tongues "more than all of you."! How much is that! And in the context this seems to mean his PRIVATE PRAYER LIFE, not the church meetings. (1Cor.14:18-19)

[paulsims]

This is the problem with today's church to much separation. The Bible is truth you either believe all of the Bible or none!!! Can't choose to believe what you choose to pick. May Jesus speak to us all and bring unity in Jesus name amen!!

[johndavidloewen]

Whenever you hear this question, you know for sure that whoever is asking it does not speak in tongues.

[ericbrock]

The problem is people put limitations on God

[SUPERJEWELS]

As a born again Christian I grew up in a Church that taught that the gift of speaking in tongues had ceased...At that time, I believed that to be true. But, almost 20 years ago I desired to surrender my life more completely to Jesus Christ, and much to my amazement I received the gift of tongues. The tongues I speak are phonetically distinct, individual languages with different intonations, and accents etc....They sound like languages from all over the world!...Definitely not gibberish!! Sometimes tongues can be faked, but no one can convince me that this gift is not very real today! It can sometimes feel very lonely to have a spiritual gift that is so misunderstood, and causes so much fear and confusion within the Body of Christ. My prayer is that God would reveal His Truth to all Believers. God Bless!

[rootandvineministries]

I have always liked Paul Washer, this is one of those instances. I agree with him. However, a missionary friend of mine was given tongues as a missionary in a mountaintop unreached people group. He was conversing with the tribal leader and they were both speaking, but hearing each other in their own language. The community accepted Christ that day. Tongues/Languages do occur among those God is using for the spreading of the Gospel. Beyond that, I have serious doubt.

[John-lqhs]

“For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.”
‭‭I Corinthians‬ ‭14:2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

[sruckel]

As a matter of full disclosure, I speak in tongues. First, let me say that I appreciated the non-hostile tone of the presentation. Too many Christians lack the decorum to allow for a loving dialogue. Second, let me point out one issue I had with the comment regarding tongues being a human language. 1Corinthians 14:2 refutes that often used argument against present-day​ tongues. It is clearly not a "missionary language tool." The Apostle Paul is quite clear "For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit." Another verse within the same chapter, verse 14 tells us that tongues is not just for use in the congregation, but is also useful in a believer's prayer life. Going back to verse 4, Paul reminds us that speaking in tongues can build up the beiever.

[wayfarer]

I can pray in tongues. l build myself up praying in tongues. While l did evangelism work in Spain l met a Finnish guy whom l spoke Finnish with for an hour. l read to him out of a Finnish Gospel of John. He grabbed the Finnish Gospel, opened to a page, asked me questions, l answered, in Finnish, he listened, nodded his head slowly, asked another question and l gave him another answer. Twice he burst out laughing as the Holy Spirit must have said something very funny to him. Twice he looked away from me, shocked, as he sank down in his chair, looking as if l had addressed the deepest secrets of his heart. At the end of an hour he stood up, shook my hand, said to me in ENGLISH!!!, ''Best sermon l ever heard.'' Witnessed by half a dozen other believers.

Yes, Mr Washer. Tongues for prayer and tongues for preaching are still here today. lt was after praying IN tongues that l entered into the flow of SPEAKING to someone in HIS TONGUE.

The Holy Spirit is wonderful. Today.

[LabuEx]

Love the honest sounding comments, but still this speaker misses key texts such as 1 Cor 14:2. Tongues is a language spoken to God, not men. Or 1 Cor 14:14, my spirit prays but my mind does not understand.

[skylarkz]

I was singing and praising The Lord alone at work in 2006, suddenly my heart was so overflowed because Tha Holy Spirit was there, that I started saying things I can not understand. It happens when I praise and pray and God wants to.
Not to be yelling at churches and showing off but between you and God. Peace !!!
One more thing very important :
Your salvation doesnt depend on speaking tongues. It depends on your repentance and accept Lord Jesus as your saviour and Lord and forsake sins ( praying and fighting ) to be close to God.

[theradiantmomclub]

As a young girl seeking God earnestly with tears and hunger I began to speak in tongues. To say that it is not for today is not true. There was a distinct time in my life of profound stress. I had prayed for weeks and the weight was still there. Then one night I started praying in tongues, I don't know what I said but immediately the weight lifted. How tragic that this gift from God is not encouraged in all Christian churches.

[duderureal]

You can not get much clear than what Apostle Paul said below.

1 Corinthians 14:2 (NKJV)
For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.

[ChristianWarrior]

Tongues are for today. They are real languages. Tongues fall into two categories - (1) devotional which is for personal edification to operate in as you see fit or as prompted by the Holy Spirit and (2) public which is to edify those that hear it, tongues with interpretation AS THE SPIRIT WILLS.
There is the INITIAL infilling in Acts 2:4 and the REFILLING in Eph. 5:18.

[assievanderwesthuizen]

I am so glad that I grew up in a home and church where all the gifts of the Holy Spirit operated. Since my early childhood I heard and saw it manifested, and I saw the positive results. I read in Paul's letters to the Corinthian church, and I see that there are times when somebody speaks in a tongue, and someone else gives the interpretation. In my Dad's church in Windhoek in my teens (late 1950's to 1961), there was a humble, simple lady who was a very dedicated prayer warrior. The gift of tongues frequently operated through her. One Sunday morning there was an Italian gentleman visiting us, but few people knew that his mother tongue was Italian. After the sermon the lady referred to above spoke in tongues, and when she finished one of the gentlemen stood up and gave the interpretation. After church the visitor said to the person whose guest he was: "That lady spoke Italian fluently, and the gentlemen gave a perfect translation". Bur neither of them could understand or speak Italian.

There is an excellent book called "They speak with Other Tongues" (by John Sherrill, a sceptical journalist who was contracted by a consortium of news media to investigate and proof to be false, the speaking in tongues by the Charismatic people). In the book he describes his investigations and how he ultimately accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour, was baptized in the Holy Spirit and experienced the speaking in/with other tongues himself which enabled him to conclude the book from an "inside" perspective. The book was first published in 1964 and updated a number of times. The latest E-copy is available at Amazon Books.

One of the testimonies in Sherrill's book that I remember was that of a Jewish rabbi who was visiting the US, where he attended a church service of a charismatic group. At the conclusion of the sermon an invitation was given for people who needed prayer to come forward. This was totally strange to this rabbi but he felt a very strong desire to go forward, and as he stood there in front of the pulpit, a stranger came and stood behind him, laying his hands on the rabbi's shoulders and started talking to him in fluent Hebrew. Not only that, but he addressed him with "You, Rabbi so&so (using his full name and surname), son of Rabbi that&that (quoting his father's names) ... and went on to give him a very detailed message that he needed to hear then. After the message was delivered, he turned around and thanked the man in Hebrew, wanting to know how he knew his and his father's names, only to find out that the man did not know his and his father's names, and could not speak one word in Hebrew, he said he was just "praying in tongues".

During 1974, long before cellphones were known in our country(South Africa) I was suddenly, late one afternoon, compelled by the Holy Spirit, to pray urgently; I immediately went down on my knees but found that I could not pray in my mother tongue, since a strong anointing of the Holy Spirit came over me, and for about 15 minutes I was glued to my knees while the unknown language just rolled over my lips. I was sufficiently educated in these matters (having been baptised in the Holy Spirit 15 years prior to this experience) to know that the Bible teaches that sometimes the Holy Spirit intercedes for us (through our prayers) and that He prays according to the perfect will of the Father, so I did not hold back, I just let it flow. About 15 minutes later it stopped abruptly and I could rise and joined my wife at the supper table. The next day we visited a very dear spiritual brother of mine, and we barely sat down, when he related to me the near-death experience he had the previous afternoon, a struggle for life when a small piece of bone he swallowed inadvertently during his meal, got stuck in his throat, causing his air pipe to choke. His wife could not get it out, and as it was after hours, she rushed him to the medical doctor's residence in the small mining town where they lived. There was no one home so she rushed him to the hospital about 3 km (about 1.85 miles) away. He said at that time he had to steady himself against the walls of the hospital passage, in order to stay on his feet, since he was beginning to lose consciousness. His wife shouted down the passage: "The doctor!!! Please, we need the doctor urgently!!!" and a nurse replied: "Madame, doctor is off duty, he's not here". Realising that God is now their only hope, she put her one hand on his shoulder (NB, she did not slap him behind his back) and called with a mixture of desperation and authority: "In Jesus' Name!!!" and the needle-sharp points of the piece of bone lost their grip, and the bone popped out of his throat like a marble that was spat out. When we compared "notes" we found that the time when his ordeal started and ended, checked 100% with the times that I was instructed to pray, and when I suddenly felt relief and stopped praying.

Often I spend long periods of time praying in tongues, feeling spiritually uplifted and I am convinced that is what Paul referred to in his letter to the Corinthians: after teaching them how they should apply the gifts of tongues and interpretation in an orderly manner during their services, he said "I thank God that I pray more in tongues than any of you". I am confident that he did no boast about being used by the Spirit in the services more than anyone else, he was referring to long periods of praying in tongues during his private prayer time. I am not the only one in modern times who experience spiritual upliftment when praying in tongues, I've heard many testimonies in that regard. It is a powerful "tool" (with all due respect) available to us, and we will be depriving ourselves from many blessings if we say to God "No thank you Sir, I don't understand it and I don't think it is necessary for today" (as if we know better than the Holy Spirit Who wants to help us overcome).