Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20011230.htm

SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY (ORGANIZED BIBLE KNOWLEDGE)
Part XI: Pneumatology (Doctrine Of The Holy Spirit)
D. The Gifts Of The Holy Spirit
1. The Transitional "Sign" Gifts
  1. Introduction
    1. The Bible teaches the Holy Spirit gave Early Church Christians the spiritual enablings to speak in tongues, to prophecy of future events, to heal, to perform miracles, etc. and the office of apostleship!
    2. However, Article III, Section 2 of our Church bylaws says these are not gifts for today!
    3. We study contemporary evidence in light of Scripture for the reasons for these beliefs as follows:
  2. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit: The Transitional "Sign" Gifts.
    1. Current evidence with Scripture reveal the Biblical gifts of tongues and interpreting them no longer exist:
      1. The New Testament spiritual gift of tongues was an ability to preach God's truth in a human language naturally foreign to the speaker with no prior practice or training on the speaker's part, Acts 2:1-11.
      2. Yet, some hold 1 Corinthians 14 teaches God gave a different gift than is described in Acts 2, a gift of an unintelligible utterance. Viewing Acts 2 with 1 Cor. 14 shows the same gift exists in both books:
        1. The word "unknown" modifying "tongue(s)" in 1 Cor. 14:2, 4, 13 & 14 is italicized in the KJV as it is supplied by the translators -- not the Greek! (UBS, Nestle & Kirkpatrick eds. of the Greek N.T.)
        2. The word "tongue(s)" in 1 Cor. 14 is identical to that used in Acts 2, cf. Moulton & Geden, Concordance to the Greek Testament, p. 172-173.
        3. Some Christians use Paul's reference to speaking in angelic tongues in 1 Cor. 13:1 to sanction using unintelligible utterances as they claim thus to speak in angelic languages not understood by humans! However, Paul there does not claim he actually speaks in angelic utterances; rather, he makes a statement of exaggeration for effect, asserting that were he to be able to use even angelic languages, but had no love, his ministry would still be a vain one, cf. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3!
      3. No current evidence proves the Biblical gift of tongues or the gift of its interpretation has been revived!
      4. Personally, I believe Scripture teaches the gift of tongues can not exist today for the following reasons:
        1. Tongues were a sign to Israel as a nation under the Mosaic Covenant: (a) Under that Covenant, Israel was warned she would have to heed foreign Gentile languages in national captivity were she to rebel against God's laws, Deut. 28:49. (b) When Israel rebelled this way, God warned of the coming judgment of Israel's being addressed in a foreign Gentile language in Isa. 28:11; 33:19! (c) Later, when Israel rejected Christ, God gave the gift of Gentile languages to signal impending national judgment for violating God's call through Moses for Israel to heed Messiah, Acts 2:22-23, 37-40 in light of Deut. 18:18-19! (d) This would explain the four arrivals of tongues in the Book of Acts as a sign to onlooking Jews who were present each time: ((1)) In Acts 2, Jews are shown by God to be included in the Church. ((2)) In Acts 8, people of mixed Jewish and Gentile lineage were shown by tongues to Jews that they were to be included in the Church. ((3)) In Acts 10-11, God signaled to Jews by tongues that Gentiles were proved to be a part of the Church. ((4)) In Acts 19, Old Testament economy Jews previously ignorant of Christ, spoke in tongues when educated about Christ in proof to onlooking Jews that they belonged to the Church. (e) There is an Old Testament precedent for one-time spiritual sign gifts: In Numbers 11:25 (NIV and NASB), the 70 elders spoke in prophetic utterances only once to show to Israel that God had put His Spirit upon them!
        2. Since we are no longer under the Mosaic Covenant (Rom. 7:1-6), and God will no longer work with Israel as a nation since A. D. 70's destruction of Jerusalem until after the Rapture (Rom. 11:25), I believe the gift of tongues speaking and interpreting tongues can not appear until after the rapture!
    2. The Bible with contemporary evidence shows prophecy, healing and working miracles are not for today:
      1. A miracle that is from God must be used with perfect results every time it is used, Deut. 18:20-22!
      2. No such perfection exists for such alleged contemporary expressions of these miraculous "gifts."
    3. Scripture also reveals the office of Apostleship no longer exists:
      1. One must have seen Christ and been commissioned by Him to hold an apostolic office, 1 Cor. 9:1.
      2. One must have been sanctioned to be an apostle by Christ's original 12 apostles or by their words to hold an apostolic office, Eph. 2:19f; Rev. 21:14 with 1 Cor. 15:8-10; Gal. 3:9; Rom. 16:17 & Rev. 2:2.
      3. As no party today can fit these categories, no one today can hold the office of apostleship.