New Policy: Southern Baptist Missionary Candidates Can't Speak in Tongues

Beliefnet ^ | Nov. 23 2005Beliefnet | Adelle M. Banks

[wardaddy]

SBC always frowned on speaking in tongues as I grew up in the church

first AOG service I went to and saw folks carrying on so was danged odd...happened right in front of me after 30 minutes of singing

[AmericaUnited]

Paul writes that this practice by believers in the presence of non-believers mocks the faith and causes people to think the person is babbling and insane. (First Corinthians 14:23)

You have completely blown it on your understanding of that verse. Paul says in verse 22 "Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not". In 23, he says not to speak all at once, else unbelievers think everyone is mad.

[wardaddy]

too broad a brush and inaccurate

i have seen unstaged speaking in tongues with my own eyes

it's not for me but...

[gitmo]

I Cor 13 simply states that love is the greatest of the gifts. Knowlege, prophecy and tongues will cease / pass away / be stilled. Are you foresaking knowledge yet?

[wardaddy]

one thing for certain....charasmatic churches..at least down here are almost a guarantee to be 100% culturally conservative and not ashamed to say so.

can't say the same for all SBC churches...a fair number of good deeds-be sweet churches among them

SBC member

[chronic_loser]

I have a good friend who stood up in a charismatic church and recited the national anthem in Italian. Some woman said she had an interpretation and it was the usual stuff "Surely saith the Lord... return to Me and I will do a great thing in your midst that you do not yet know" etc etc.

This guy just sat back down and went to the pastor the next day with this question: "I don't believe this woman was demonic, but she clearly spoke in error in the name of God, in first person. They stoned people to death for this in the Old Testament. How do you distinguish between people who "truly" have a gift of interpreting tongues and people just worked up and they want to believe something?" My friend did nto believe there was a "truly" gift at all. He just was non-hostile, gentle, and willing to win the man rather than the argument.

[wardaddy]

the spealing in tongues I've seen has been likened to ancient Israelite hebrew(runic), aramaic, greek, and post-aramaic influenced hebrew

so I'm told.

[Eagle Eye]

Well, you repudiate large sections of the old testament, right?

HUGE assumptions on your part.

To the best of my knowledge I'm not Jewish or of Isreal; I am descended from Gentiles who were never obligated to obey the Levitical laws. But when I was a child my family did observe 'clean' and unclean foods.

Both Peter and Paul tell us that practice is no longer appropriate.

[jer33 3]

Please don't generalize... most Baptists I know and work with are not exclusive.

[solitas]

Um, it's saltechomdu, not saltechamdu - you said "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting banannas.

And, while having fruit that lasted longer than a few of days would be nice; 'everlasting LIFE' is probably a little bit more marketable…

[George W. Bush]

I am happy for the growth of Christ's church, and want to be a part of bringing MYSELF first and then all of the church into a more completed knowledge of the scriptures. Usually the first step in that process is not calling someone who is off the beaten track "demonic," but trying to understand the good that they may have to teach me along with how I might help them in the process.

Maybe you should more closely investigate the demonic Holy Laughter movement, the Brownsville and Toronto revivals, the preaching of Rodney Howard-Browne.

1 Timothy 4:1

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils."

Many old-time Pentacostals are even shocked by the modern excesses. Yet that is the inevitable end of this charismatic path. It is worth noting that Holy Laughter and these 'revivals' are part and parcel of the Vineyard churches' assault on orthodox Christians and, having failed to establish control of non-charismatic churches via their unbiblical Promise-Keepers ruse, they continue their attempts via infiltration efforts.

[chronic_loser]

ancient hebrew was not "runic"

Runes refer to a picture writing originated by the pagan tribes of Europe.

Not trying to be snotty, but it is just a bad description of the ancient hebrew alphabet.

Not knowing where this description came from, it might have some reference to Kaballah, (of Madonna fame!) which is a mystic interpretation of the letters of Hebrew scripture, ascribing to them a "hidden" or "spiritual" meaning, hidden from the unititated. Some of the msytical elements of charismatic theology would glom onto this, maybe.

I think that this is, as Luther said, "monkey business" with the scriptures.

[jer33 3]

Agreed. It is common when you apply to a mission agency that you review and acknowledge the statement of faith. There are enough challenges on the field communicating with nationals. Having to work through doctrinal issues with your teammates further complicates the ministry efforts.

[George W. Bush]

I have a good friend who stood up in a charismatic church and recited the national anthem in Italian. Some woman said she had an interpretation and it was the usual stuff "Surely saith the Lord... return to Me and I will do a great thing in your midst that you do not yet know" etc etc. This guy just sat back down and went to the pastor the next day with this question: "I don't believe this woman was demonic, but she clearly spoke in error in the name of God, in first person. They stoned people to death for this in the Old Testament. How do you distinguish between people who "truly" have a gift of interpreting tongues and people just worked up and they want to believe something?" My friend did nto believe there was a "truly" gift at all. He just was non-hostile, gentle, and willing to win the man rather than the argument.

A sound method for outing charlatans in the church. The prophets are even worse. I think that FR's own prophets all self-destructed because they got into a War Of The Prophets. It was a riot to read one failed prophecy after the next but no attempts at persuasion or pointing out that their prophecies never came true made any dent at all. As far as I know, FR is without prophets currently.

[kygolfman]

Pentacost was a special miracle intended to establish a far-flung group of ancient churches, to plant the seeds of Christianity throughout the Roman empire before Jerusalem was destroyed.

I would not forbid private worship practices, even tongues. However bringing those into Baptist services isn't included in that. We Baptists believe in Baptist liberty but that is not a license to ignore what the Bible clearly says about the results of speaking in tonuges (conversion of foreigners by preaching in languages the speaker does not know).

---

Are you trying to say that the Day of Pentecost was the only time that speaking in tongues was useful or acceptable?

Maybe you could attempt to explain also the speaking in tongues that occurred by new believers not the one preaching (Peter)

Act 10:45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Act 10:46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God...

Peter understood that Cornelius and his household had received the Holy Ghost because he heard them speak with tongues.

BTW Pentacost= Pentecost.

[esopman]

Thanksgiving Blessings to You and Yours.

My $0.02: I am 63, a sinner saved solely by the grace of God through Jesus and...a trained linguist. It is distressing to see this SBC position.

There is much lunacy in the charismatic and non-charismatic branches of Our Lord's church. He will remedy that in his time. Meanwhile, we dare not excerpt the Word in a way that has man's traditions make void the Word itself. To wit: 1 Cor 14:39.

I continue to teach in the trenches of the Methodist Church to hopefully show the love of Christ in an environment which at times could only be charitably described as apostate. I pray there are brave souls doing the same in the SBC. Woe to those leaders who disbar them.

And yes, I do speak in tongues through the mercies of Jesus.

[chronic_loser]

Let the charismatic church-thieves build their own churches instead of stealing the money and labor of Southern Baptists.

......the Vineyard churches' assault on orthodox Christians

having failed to establish control of non-charismatic churches via their unbiblical Promise-Keepers ruse

they continue their attempts via infiltration efforts.

If I buy into your description of the modern charismatics, can I learn how to talk like this in order to glorify God? Most importantly, can you teach me how to hate evil so much that people can't tell the difference between hating evil and hating them? ......... Think about it.

[fish hawk]

I could care less if people speak in tongues or not, just don't tell me that I don't have the Spirit because I don't speak in tongues. Personally I think tongues ceased a long time ago and what is going on now is worked up emotion. That's only my opinion but then I am allowed one.

[Eagle Eye]

Yet that is the inevitable end of this charismatic path.

That is not a true statement.

I've seen this brought to a church in which I was a deacon and I had to walk out of the service. This, unlike speaking in tongues, is/was totally unbiblical and the introduction if it into our church was done with coercision and strong arm tactics.

The two are not comparable. Paul never said that he wished for all to LOL uncontrollably. But he did wish for all to speak in tongues.

[chadwimc]

"...Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue."