The Spirit's Ministry - Tongues and Prophecy

ave tongues and prophecy ceased? In the last section, we discovered that prophecy will continue until Jesus returns. We also discovered that prophecy is “forth-telling” for God and does not always include future predictions. The spiritual gift of prophecy will continue, but the spiritual gift of tongues will cease on its own. Eusebius, an early church father, makes this interesting comment about the apostle Paul in his book “Church History of Eusebius.”

For the apostle thought it necessary that the prophetic gift should continue in all the Church until the final coming . . . (Church History of Eusebius. Book 5, Chap. 17).

When will tongues cease? Some believe that tongues stopped with the last apostle. They refer to statements of the earlier church fathers. Some Christians have responded by referring to the Holy Spirit’s appearance and ministry in the Old Testament, His ministry in the New Testament, and the quotes of some early church fathers who said that spiritual gifts were present, including tongues. They state that the Holy Spirit’s charismatic gifts have always been present. A short review is important before we examine the historical evidence.

It is true that the scriptures teach that the Holy Spirit has always been present. However, the ministry of the Holy Spirit has changed over time as we have seen in our study. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew text reveals that the Holy Spirit came upon men for a period of time; but after Pentecost the Holy Spirit lived inside believers permanently. Jesus repeatedly referred to the coming of the Holy Spirit in a new way. In the New Testament period, the Holy Spirit baptized, sealed, taught, and empowered believers by filling them. The Holy Spirit also gave spiritual gifts. Ephesians 4:7-11 reveals that these gifts also come from Christ. The ministry of the Spirit was unique.

It is a mistake to assume that the Holy Spirit’s ministry has always been the same. The gift of tongues is not referred to in the Old Testament. It is mentioned in only two New Testament books - Acts and 1 Corinthians. We have discovered that a display of the power of the Holy Spirit was predicted by Joel, and the fulfillment occurred at Pentecost. The display was obviously tongues. That is the message of Acts 2:15-17. Tongues started with the apostles. Even though the book of Acts mentions tongues only three times, it is clear that tongues occurred on other occasions. The Apostle Paul is a good example. 1 Cor. 14:5, 18 reveals that he spoke in tongues, but this fact is never revealed in the book of Acts. Also, the book of Acts does not reveal that the Corinthians spoke in tongues, but they did according to 1 Corinthians 14. Consequently, there is a temptation to suggest that tongues were universal, to assume that speaking in tongues is the normal Christian experience, and to assume that tongues will always exist.

However, we cannot use scripture to justify that claim. There is no scriptural evidence to support that claim either in the Old Testament or on other occasions, since scripture is silent. In fact, 1 Cor. 13:8-10 indicates that the gift of tongues will cease. It does not promise that tongues will continue until Jesus returns, even though there is a promise that knowledge and prophecy will continue. Scripture teaches that tongues will cease at some point in history before Jesus returns. The question we will now explore is, “Did tongues cease after the last apostle, John?”

We will discover shortly that spiritual gifts were known to the early church fathers. They quoted passages from 1 Corinthians 12-14 and referred to a variety of the gifts. Tongues was referred to by a number of the early church fathers but not by all of them.

Apostolic Fathers. A review of the books that were written by the early church fathers reveals that the gift of tongues was not a major topic. The apostolic fathers (A.D. 30-155) were silent about the gift of tongues. It is never mentioned by the earliest church father, Clement of Rome (A.D. 30-100), in his letter to the Corinthians. Yet, his life overlapped the apostles. If tongues were still active in the church at Corinth, it would seem that the gift would have been mentioned in his writings.

While there is clear evidence from Scripture that the gift of tongues was in operation during the time of the apostles, it is significant that the gift is nowhere alluded to, hinted at, or found in the Apostolic Fathers. It might be objected that this is simply an argument from silence and has as much support for the continuance of the gift as for the cessation of the gift. However, the importance of this silence takes on added weight when viewed in the light of certain facts.

. . . the wide geographical coverage of the Apostolic Fathers makes their silence significant. Clement wrote from Rome to Corinth; Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, wrote to those at Philippi; Ignatius of Antioch wrote to the churches of Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Smyrna, Philadelphia; the Epistle of Barnabas was probably written from Alexandria; The Shepherd of Hermas may have been written from Rome; Papias was from Hierapolis in Phrygia; the Didache may have been written from Egypt or possibly from Syria or Palestine; and the Epistle to Diognetus was probably written from Alexandria. This covers practically every significant area of the Roman Empire, and certainly if the gift of tongues were widespread and in abundance, it would surely have been alluded to or mentioned in some way. (Rogers, Cleon L. “The Gift of Tongues in the Post Apostolic Church (A.D. 100-400),” Bibliotheca Sacra. Apr-June 1965. Vol. 122. p. 135-6.)

The Apostolic Fathers included: Clement of Rome, Mathetes, Polycarp, Ignatius, Barnabas, and Papias. They wrote about every theological subject, including future prophecy, but the spiritual gift of tongues is never mentioned (Rogers, Cleon. Ibid.).

Justin Martyr. Justin Martyr (A.D. 100-165) wrote after the apostles had died. History tells us that he was a Jew who became a Christian in A.D. 132 in the country of Turkey. Soon after he traveled the Roman Empire extensively proclaiming Jesus Christ as the savior of the world. He became a martyr for his faith in A.D. 165.

His travels would have exposed him to the various charismatic gifts among the believers, if they existed. Yet when Justin Martyr referred to the charismatic gifts, he listed only seven gifts and not tongues. The gifts that he listed are as follows:

For one receives the spirit of understanding, another of counsel, another of strength, another of healing, another of foreknowledge, another of teaching, and another of the fear of God. (Martyr, Justin. Dialogue with Justin. Chap 39).

Later in the same book, he tells us that the gift of prophecy was still present. This is consistent with 1 Cor. 13:8-12.

For the prophetical gifts remain with us, even to the present time. And hence you ought to understand that [the gifts] formerly among your nation have been transferred to us. And just as there were false prophets contemporaneous with your holy prophets, so are there now many false teachers amongst us, of whom our Lord forewarned us to beware; so that in no respect are we deficient, since we know that He foreknew all that would happen to us after His resurrection from the dead and ascension to heaven. (Martyr, Justin. Dialogue with Justin. Chap 82).

Irenaeus. It is estimated that Irenaeus (A.D. 102-202) wrote “Against Heresies” in about A.D. 165-175. He wrote after Justin Martyr died. In chapter 6 section 1, we discover that he refers to the existence of prophecy and tongues.

In like manner we have also heard many brethren in the Church, who possess prophetic gifts, and who through the Spirit speak all kinds of languages, and bring to light for the general benefit the hidden things of men, and declare the mysteries of God, whom also the apostle terms “spiritual,” they being spiritual because they partake of the Spirit, and not because their flesh has been stripped off and taken away, and because they have become purely spiritual. (Irenaeus. Against Heresies. Book 5, Chap. 6)

However, he used the perfect tense, audivimus, of the Latin verb “to hear” (audire) when he referred to having heard about the gifts. The perfect tense of the Latin verb implies completed action in the past. He does not say that he saw or witnessed them himself. In fact, he uses the term “we” indicating that he and his fellow believers were not eye witnesses to prophecy or tongues.

The following quote is extremely interesting. Irenaeus refers to the gift of knowledge and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. In addition, he tells us that Matthew wrote a gospel to the Jews. Mark wrote a gospel for Peter. Luke wrote for Paul, and John wrote a gospel by himself.

We have learned from none others the plan of our salvation, than from those through whom the Gospel has come down to us, which they did at one time proclaim in public, and, at a later period, by the will of God, handed down to us in the Scriptures, to be the ground and pillar of our faith. For it is unlawful to assert that they preached before they possessed “perfect knowledge,” as some do even venture to say, boasting themselves as improvers of the apostles. For, after our Lord rose from the dead, [the apostles] were invested with power from on high when the Holy Spirit came down [upon them], were filled from all [His gifts], and had perfect knowledge: they departed to the ends of the earth, preaching the glad tidings of the good things [sent] from God to us, and proclaiming the peace of heaven to men, who indeed do all equally and individually possess the Gospel of God. Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, did also hand down to us in writing what had been preached by Peter. Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him. Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia. (Irenaeus. Against Heresies. Book 3, Chap. 1)

Clement of Alexandria. Claims have been made that Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 153-217) referred to spiritual gifts and tongues specifically. For example, one author states that Clement believed that tongues would cease in the future. Yet, a careful review of the references to the spiritual gifts reveals that Clement was only quoting scripture. Here is the passage in question:

“Love covers a multitude of sins. Perfect love casts out fear. Vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Love never faileth. Prophecies are done away, tongues cease, gifts of healing fail on the earth. But these three abide, Faith, Hope, Love. But the greatest of these is Love.” And rightly. For Faith departs when we are convinced by vision, by seeing God. And Hope vanishes when the things hoped for come. But Love comes to completion, and grows more when that which is perfect has been bestowed (Who Is the Rich Man That Shall Be Saved?, 38, p. 861).

Montanus. We have already discussed the fact that Montanus (circa A.D. 150) was a heretic who distorted the scriptures and claimed that he spoke for the Holy Spirit. Eusebius, an early church father, states that Montanus was a priest of the oriental ecstatic cult called Cybele. the mother goddess of fertility before he became a Christian. After his conversion he joined a group known as the Illuminati (“the enlightened”).

Before his conversion to Christianity, he apparently was a priest of the Oriental ecstatic cult of Cybele, the mother goddess of fertility. According to the 4th-century church historian Eusebius of Caesarea, Montanus . . . entered into an ecstatic state and began prophesying in the region of Phrygia, now in central Turkey. Montanus became the leader of a group of illuminati (“the enlightened”), including the prophetesses Priscilla (or Prisca) and Maximilla. The members exhibited the frenzied nature of their religious experience by enraptured seizures and utterances . . . (Encyclopedia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD).