The answer is yes! Some have debated this, and many will say I am wrong. I, however, prefer to be like Kenneth Hagin. When asked a question such as this, he would always respond with, “What does the Bible say?” I have found myself many times repeating this statement when faced with a hard question. My question is “do tongues proceed the initial filling of the Holy Ghost?” Let us examine this:
Seven Times the Baptism was Received
Seven times in Acts, someone received the Holy Spirit. Here they are in order:
1. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:4)
2. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31)
3. Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. (Acts 8:14-19)
4. And Ananias went his way and entered into the house, and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. (Acts 9:17)
5. While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 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. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? (Acts 10:44-47)
6. And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning. (Acts 11:15)
7. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues and prophesied. (Acts 19:6)
A Greater Anointing
In Acts 4:31 the disciples had just had an encounter with the council at Jerusalem because a lame man had been healed. Since the Pharisees could not duplicate this miracle, they saw the disciples as anti-religion and anti-God. Furthermore, they were preaching in the name of Jesus, a practice the Pharisees despised. Their prayer was for a greater anointing, so they could speak “the word of God with boldness.” Since their initial filling had already taken place, speaking in tongues was not necessary as evidence the anointing had come.
In Acts 2:4, 10:46, & 19:6, the Bible states the Holy Ghost was received for the first time, and they spake with tongues. In these instances, we observe that speaking in tongues immediately proceded the initial filling as evidence the Holy Ghost had been received.
Tongues are Implied
In the next three instances, it is implied. For instance, in Acts 8:14-19, a great revival had come to Samaria, and many were saved. Peter and John arrived, laid hands on the people, and they received the baptism in the Holy Spirit. The Bible does not say they spoke with tongues. However, some type of physical evidence was present, for Simon had to hear or see something; otherwise, he would not have offered money for this power. Therefore, we can only assume that tongues were present. In Acts 11:15, Peter recants what transpired in the house of Cornelius when “the Holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word” (10:44). He states the Holy Ghost fell on them just like it did on them at Pentecost. Therefore, they spoke with tongues (10:46). In Acts 9:17, Ananias laid hands on Saul, and he is baptized in the Holy Spirit. It does not explicitly state he spoke in tongues immediately, but we do know he spoke in tongues later. This Saul who later became the Apostle Paul told the Corinthian church, “I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all ” (1 Corinthians 14:18)
Even Jesus spoke in tongues
Did Jesus speak in tongues? The answer is an emphatic “yes”. First, look at how he was filled with the Holy Spirit:
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water. And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God. (Joh 1:29-34)
Now he speaks in other tongues:
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Mat 27:46)
If Jesus is our model and we are to exemplify him, then should not everyone who is born again speak in other tongues?
Summary
As I stood at the front of that church in Lithia Springs, I watched as others were having great emotional experiences as they received the baptism in the Holy Spirit. I, unfortunately, felt nothing, but all of a sudden, I started to shout, and then I started speaking in other tongues as the spirit gave the utterance. To this day, I still speak in tongues (my wife says I speak in tongues in my sleep). I know I received, for I have the evidence.
Will I speak in tongues when I receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit? Yes!
Next Page: How Do I Receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit?
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