Is Speaking in Tongues Necessary for Salvation? BY Adriel Sanchez for Core Christianity
GNN Note – I sure hope not because up to this moment that gift has evaded me. / END
We don’t need to speak in tongues in order to be received by the Father in heaven, but we do need to have the Holy Spirit.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians that no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. So, recognizing by faith who Jesus is—that’s a work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. But not everyone who has the Holy Spirit speaks in tongues.
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This is setting aside the question of if speaking in tongues is still for today. But even if someone holds that view, Paul makes it very clear in 1 Corinthians 12:27–31:
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
Do you all speak in tongues? he asks. The answer is no—it’s just not the case. We don’t all have the same spiritual gifts. And that’s part of the point: God has gifted each of us uniquely. I don’t have the gift of administrating. If I try to do administrating, things begin to fall apart. We’ve seen that in our church. I need to delegate that to other people God has gifted in that way.
A bigger question, and a really important one is, what do we need to do to be received by the Father? Well, think of it like this: It’s not what you do. It’s who you know.
