When someone receives the Holy Spirit and "the gift of tongues" it is a spiritual language, which has many different reasons. It is a purpose, a use, as well as an incredibly useful tool - and there is a lot of information in the bible on how to use it.
Steps
Step 1. Understand that the "gift of tongues" was promised by Jesus and could be received in conjunction with faith:
And these will be the signs that will accompany those who believe: in my name … they will speak new languages. Mark 16:17 (Jesus).
Step 2. Understand that it is the Holy Spirit who gives you the words you speak, and not yourself:
and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them the power to express themselves. "Acts 2: 4"
Step 3. Understand that when you speak in other tongues you are talking to God:
- although at times it could be understood by some as a human language as in the case of Pentecost. Its main purpose is to talk to God.
Because whoever speaks in another language does not speak to men, but to God; since no one understands it, but in spirit he utters mysteries. (1 Corinthians 14: 2)
Step 4. Use the gift of tongues to edify yourself or to improve your spirituality
This is not selfish, but rather its purpose is that when you are able to have greater spirituality you will be able to uplift and encourage others. “He who speaks in another language edifies himself; but he who prophesies builds the church. 1 Corinthians 14: 4
Step 5. Don't expect to understand what you say
You can control the volume and speed at which you speak but not the meaning, for example in prayer language: for if I pray in another language, my spirit prays well, but my intelligence remains fruitless.1 Corinthians 14: 14
Step 6. When alone, use the "gift of tongues" as often as you can
Paul appreciated the benefit of speaking in other tongues; that's why he said "I thank God that I speak in other languages more than all of you;" 1 Corinthians 14:18
Step 7. When in public it is preferable to speak the language of your region in order to be of benefit to those you speak to. but in the church I prefer to say five intelligible words to instruct others as well, than to say ten thousand in another language.. 1 Corinthians 14:19
Step 8. Understand that when you pray in tongues, you also give thanks:
Otherwise, if you bless God only with the spirit, how can the one who occupies the place of the simple hearer say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying?; but the other is not built. 1 Corinthians 14: 16-17
Step 9. Be assured that when you speak in tongues you are not saying anything bad about God or our Lord Jesus Christ: So I let you know that no one, speaking by the Spirit of God, says: Jesus is anathema! and no one can say: Jesus is the Lord! if not for the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12: 3
"For then I will turn the lips of the peoples into pure lips, so that all may call on the name of the Lord, to serve him equally." Zephaniah 3: 9
Step 10. Understand that speaking in tongues is defined as "praying in the Spirit":
and that we should pray both in the Spirit (tongues) and with intelligence (your natural language). 1 Corinthians 14: 14-15
Step 11. Pray in the Spirit (tongues) to build your faith
"Jude 20"
Step 12. Understand that praying with the Spirit is part of God's armor:
and we are told to put on the entire armor of God "Ephesians 6:10, Ephesians 6:18"
Step 13. Understand that the gift of tongues was prophesied by Isaiah:
in the old testament as a sign of the rest. "Isaiah 28:11, 1 Corinthians 14:21, Matthew 11: 28-30"
Step 14. Understand what it means when we read in the Bible “Therefore tongues serve as a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers
”: (“1 Corinthians 14:22”) This is not a contradiction to when Jesus said that believers will speak in tongues as a sign. Think about what a sign is. Your city may have a sign at its entrance that says "Welcome to the City" and also road signs to help you find your way; this can be very convenient if you are a tourist visiting this city for the first time, but if you live there - then you won't need the signs - because you know you live there and you know where to go. But the signs still remain, and you don't want to remove them. This is similar to speaking in tongues. Once you know you have this gift, it is no longer a signal - but to someone who doesn't know it, it is.
Step 15. Remember that when you use this gift or even talk about it, it should be to edify others:
and it must be done in a context of love. "1 Corinthians 14:26, 1 Corinthians 13: 1"
Step 16. Understand that there is a procedure for speaking in tongues in a church meeting:
Do not speak in tongues all together, but instead a maximum of 3 people can speak in tongues in a meeting and each should be followed by an interpretation (given by God to another member). Everything should be done with decency and order (with courtesy for example) and languages should not be banned from meetings. "1 Corinthians 14: 23-27 and 39-40"
Advice
- Check the link [1] to see people who have had the "gift of tongues".
- Consider trying to speak in tongues. Many people have found that after praying in tongues for a long time (sometimes several hours) that their prayers were answered; God revealed something to them; their desire to walk as Christians has increased - or their desire to tell others about Jesus has increased and many other benefits.
- Speak clearly when you pray in tongues. Let the Lord use you completely. Let your mouth and tongue move as the Lord wants them to move and don't grumble.
- Don't worry if your tongue sounds like a babble or appears to be repetitive. (Isaiah 28:11) The more you use and appreciate your prayer language, the more fluent it will become.
- If you haven't prayed in tongues for a long time, and you're not sure if you still have this gift, ask the Lord to give it to you again. Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit will abide in us forever. (John 14:16) So if you've had it once, it should still be there.
- You could pray in tongues with a person who does not speak languages (with their permission), if you tell them what you intend to do, so that they do not get scared and not be surprised.
- Praying in tongues with others (family, friends, etc.) who are able to speak in tongues is a tremendous blessing if you know there will be no visitors.
- If you have never spoken in tongues, and would like to, then research how to go about receiving the Holy Spirit according to the Bible.
Warnings
- Speaking in tongues was never intended to preach the gospel. Even during Pentecost, when tongues were understood by the listener, they were not understood by the speaker, and Peter had to explain what was happening in ordinary language.
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The tongues were to give glory to God - but as Paul said, the explanation must be given in a language that is easy to understand so that others can benefit:
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" But in the church I prefer to say five intelligible words to instruct others as well, than to say ten thousand in another language.
1 Corinthians 14:19
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