“And God has appointed in the church... third teachers, then miracles, then

Therefore, the true and certain, regular and ordinary, main Biblical meaning, sense, or use of this gift is for a foreigner/stranger to speak about God in the language of the listener, obviously without the need for interpretation. The purpose is for unbelievers to hear the gospel in their own language. If the gospel could only be preached in one language then the whole world would have a much harder time understanding it. Therefore, God has enabled certain people, in times past miraculously (Ac 2), to communicate the gospel in the language of the hearer without the need for an interpreter. God wants the gospel to spread rapidly in to all the world, and He does not want different languages to be a barrier. So he has enabled certain people to speak in variety of languages.

Note: Cornelius and those with him were enabled by the Holy Spirit to speak in tongues. Peter and the others with him not only heard them praising God in different languages, they more importantly understood that now God was going to save the Gentiles with the gospel of Jesus Christ, not just the Jews (Ac 10:46, 47). A great and convincing turning point for the apostles and their co-workers in the beginning of the spreading of the Gospel.

In his first corrective letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote three chapters on the things that we need to know about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. One of the gifts to which he paid the most attention in these chapters was the gift of tongues, or the things we need to know about the gift of tongues.

The subject of this verse is how God placed or ranked certain gifts in the church.

“Do you not see where He [God] has set this gift, and how He everywhere assigns it the last rank?” -- Chrysostom (1 Cor 12:10, 11, 28, 30)

Contrary to what many may think, tongues is one of the least gifts to have or seek after. It’s an important gift, as are all the gifts. But in this line up of 8 gifts, it’s dead last, 8th. If you could carry my bags on one of my missionary trips to another land, then you would be more helpful to me than the one who could speak in tongues, unless of course it is the tongue of those that I would visit.

Additional verse: 1 Cor 14:5

“All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they?” (1 Cor 12:30).

The point here is that God does not give each and everyone the same gift. It’s evident that a lot of people cannot speak in more than one language. I speak in only one language, English. Even so, I do not envy, but admire those who can speak in more than one language. I’m very glad about it. Some of you likely speak in only one language. Many in Kenya, Africa speak in more than one language (their mother tongue, that is the language from their tribe, such as, Kikuyu and their national language, Swahili, and also English; three tongues).

“For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God; for no one understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries. But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church” (1 Cor 14:2-4).

The main subject of this passage is which speaking gifts edify the church. Which speaking gifts help the church to grow spiritually? Specifically, with tongues, who gets edified, the church or just an individual? No one but God could understand a foreign language unless he has the gift of speaking that language or if it is interpreted to him in his own language. Therefore tongues in and of itself is not a clear speaking gift, but prophecy and teaching are clear speaking gifts.

Here Paul is not introducing the idea that tongues are for prayer, because it has already been established by the same apostle that tongues are for foreigners/strangers to communicate the gospel to unbelievers (1 Cor 14:21, 22).

So God gives this gift to certain individuals so that they can speak the word to unbelievers, not to go off and pray in private to God. But here Paul also is not restricting the one who speaks in a different language from speaking to God since God understands his language. Therefore, there is no need to speak a different language to God. He does not need tongues, but the church needs some form of it to spread the gospel to unbelievers. So God does not give gifts of prayer languages, as some incorrectly assert. You are badly mistaken if you believe that “tongues” is some sort of special prayer language that God gives to His children to talk with him. You are missing the point and purpose of this gift. You are especially beguiled if you do not even know what type of tongue it is that you claim to have.

Paul told members who want to speak in tongues to instead seek for gifts that edify the church.

“So also you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the edification of the church” (1 Cor 14:12).

“I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all; however, in the church I desire to speak five words with my mind so that I may instruct others also, rather than ten thousand words in a tongue” (1 Cor 14:18, 19).

Since the church receives no edification from tongues, Paul did not desire to speak in tongues in a Christian assembly. However he claimed that he spoke in tongues more than them all [we know that he spoke Greek -- Ac 21:37 and Hebrew -- Ac 21:40]. But instead of speaking even ten thousand words in a foreign tongue to other believers, he earnestly desired to speak just 5 words in the language of the hearers so that it would instruct them. Foreign languages do not instruct the church.

Tongues are for unbelievers. For example, on the day of Pentecost, the apostles spoke to unbelievers in recognizable languages (Ac 2). Have you heard this figure of speech, “He’s speaking my language”? We say this when someone says or does something that we can truly relate to. But now I do not want to use it in a figure. Literally, go to a church that speaks your language.

“If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret; but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God... Therefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak in tongues” (1 Cor 14:27, 28, 39).

This Scripture authorizes the use of tongues in church only if they can be interpreted. Otherwise they one with a tongue must remain silent in church. The reality is that tongues are not to be used around believers. A person who speaks in a tongue is in the category of what is called “a Romans 14 issue”. That is, he must keep his tongue between himself and God (1 Cor 14:28). He is not permitted to speak to other believers in that tongue, just like we are not permitted to speak for or against disciples who are vegans or meat eaters (Ro 14:22). Therefore, the one who speaks in tongues [languages] must do what James said to do, or else his religion is worthless. He must bridle his tongue (Ja 1:26) to have a worthwhile religion.

“If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret... But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner” (1 Cor 14:27, 40).

This Scripture does not permit “a free for all” of tongues, where more than one or all attempt to speak in so called “tongues” at one time. Avoid getting together with disciples to speak in tongues.

An apostle of Christ said that tongues will cease (1 Cor 13:8). The question is when will they cease and what aspects of tongues would cease, for not all peoples speak the same language.

Tongues is the ability to speak in different languages. It is one of the gifts of the spirit, but it is one of the least gifts as well as one of the most regulated, for some very good reasons. First, not all speak in tongues; therefore not all interpret or understand tongues. So, speaking in a tongue does not benefit most all the hearers but just the speaker. This is why Paul, an apostle, did not speak in tongues in church. In fact, Paul quoted a Scripture from the Old Testament to help prove and give evidence that tongues are not for the church, but for unbelievers. In Acts 2, we see that the apostles spoke in tongues to unbelievers, that is in the languages of those unbelievers. Tongues are forbidden in church unless someone can recognize that tongue and interpret it, and then only one person, not all, is to speak in a tongue at a time. But in your consideration of the gift of tongues, you should do what the apostle said for you to do, to earnestly seek the greater gifts (1 Cor 12:31; 14:12). Do not be deceived, you cannot have the number one and two gifts, that of the apostle or prophet, for these have already been set into the foundation that we are to be built upon (Eph 2:20). You cannot be the foundation. But you could learn to teach the word of God. You could learn to help others spread the gospel. You could help organize and administrate.