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Fathers of the Church was a term given by the Christian church to many of the outstanding theologians of at least the first six centuries. It is used in an ecclesiastical sense, to refer to those who have preceded us in the faith, and thus able to instruct us in it. Their patristic writings and commentaries have been invaluable to an understanding of the early, historic church and its doctrines.¹

The church established four qualifications for bestowing the honorary title of Church Father on an early writer. In addition to belonging to the early period of the church, a Father of the church must have led a holy life. His writings must be generally free from doctrinal error and must contain an outstanding defense or explanation of Christian doctrine. Finally, his writings must have received the approval of the church.

A roster of all the post apostolic Church Fathers would not be feasible here, however some of the most notable of the first century were Polycarp, Ignatius, Papias, and Justin Martyr. Of the second and third centuries were Clement, Origen, Irenaeus, Tertullian and Hippolytus. It has been said that the fourth century produced many of the more prominent scholars, such as Athanasius, Hilary, Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory of Nazianzus, Ambrose, Augustine, Chrysostom and Jerome.

The use of the term “father,” both in regard to the historic church leaders, or priests of the Catholic church, has been considered controversial, as it appears to contradict Jesus’ disapproval of such titles, “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven” (Matthew 23.9). However, the context of this passage (Matthew 23.1-39) deals with one of Jesus’ most scathing censures of the self-righteousness and hypocrisy of the Pharisees. He repudiated their ostentatious use of titles such as “Father, Rabbi, or Teacher,” which they used to posture themselves as superior to others. His objection was actually targeted at “arrogance and self-exaltation,” not the humble use as adjectives. The scriptures later validate descriptive titles such as Pastors and Teachers (Ephesians 4.11), and even Paul described himself as a father to his young understudy, Timothy. “…as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel” (Philippians 2.22).

¹ Baker’s Dictionary of Theology

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Historically, Christmas has been an object of debate and controversy by church leaders, largely because its celebration did not originate in the Bible, and because many of its customs contain a mixture of non-Christian ideas which evolved from various secular and pagan cultures over a period of centuries. In fact, Christmas was actually outlawed in colonial New England, from 1649 to 1658, by the influence of Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans, who cited the “heathenistic traditions” involved in the celebration. It took two centuries for the celebration to gradually gain acceptance in the New World. Massachusetts was the first American state to recognize Christmas as a legal holiday in 1856.

Christmas was never mentioned in the New Testament, and we have no evidence that it was ever celebrated by the earliest believers. However, this fact alone does not invalidate its place in Christian worship. Since the birth of Christ is a Biblical truth, we are at liberty to celebrate His birth anytime we wish, especially once a year set aside for this purpose.

The annual celebration of Christ’s birth can be traced back to at least 336 A.D., when it was observed by western churches on December 25th. Since the event was honored in the form of a religious service, the term “Christmas” came from the Old English term Cristes Maesse, meaning “Christ’s Mass.”

The original date of Jesus’ birth was never known for certain, as it remains today. But toward the end of the second century, Clement of Alexandria was known to have cited various opinions of concerning Christ’s birth date, the two most prominent of which were January 6th and December 25th. Later in the fifth century, Augustine commented: “For He is believed to have been conceived on the 25th of March, upon which day He also suffered… but He was born according to tradition upon December 25th.”¹

It’s strongly speculated that December 25th was selected for the Christmas celebration as an effort to bridge the gap between Christian and pagan traditions. Such mergers became common practice for Constantine, Emperor of Rome (306-337), after his controversial conversion to Christ. He legalized Christianity, and by decree, combined numerous pagan customs with state Christianity — which provided many of the traditions observed by the church of that era. In Rome, the supposed birthday of the pagan sun god was on December 25th, and the pagan winter feast of Saturnalia was celebrated for seven days from December 17th to the 24th, marked by a spirit of merriment, gift giving to children, and various forms of entertainment. It seems likely the latter was the basis for modern day Christmas gift traditions. Later, the cultures of such nations as the Germans, French, English, Scandinavians and others, eventually influenced the celebration by their added traditions.

The Christmas tree has especially been a major source of controversy, as it has sometimes been associated with an idol, described in Jeremiah: “Thus says the LORD: Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, for the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile; for one cuts a tree from the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with nails and hammers so that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, and they cannot speak; they must be carried, because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, nor can they do any good” (Jeremiah/worse-one 10.2-5). Indeed, this rendering does sound much like a Christmas tree. But the original Hebrew makes it clearer, “They cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with a chisel.” This would indicate that the tree itself was not the idol, but its wood was carved into an idol which was overlaid with silver and gold. While a Christmas tree is admittedly secular in its origin, it’s not likely that it came from the idol described by Jeremiah.

The traditional Christmas tree, an evergreen trimmed with decorations, only dates back a few centuries. There are several unverified traditions which claim its origin — even one which says that it began with Martin Luther, the famed reformist of the church, who used candles to decorate it as symbols of the light of the world. However, historical references seem to show that it was probably derived from the so-called “paradise tree” that symbolized the Garden of Eden portrayed in German mystery plays in the 16th century.

The widespread use of the Christmas tree in connection with the holiday gained popularity in the early 17th century, spreading throughout Germany, France and northern Europe. In 1841, Albert, prince consort of Queen Victoria, introduced the Christmas tree custom to Great Britain.

The custom had apparently accompanied immigrants to the U.S. where it gained acceptance in the early 19th century. From a family diary, the earliest evidence of an American Christmas tree was recorded on December 20, 1821 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania — where a tree was displayed in the German settlement home of Matthew Zahn.²

Santa Claus has been criticized as a counterfeit persona which diverts attention away from the real central figure of Christmas, which is Christ. In reality, Santa is a fictional character, a combination of the Germanic legend of Kriss Kringle, derived from Christkindle, meaning “Christ child,” intermingled with the inspiring history of Saint Nicholas in the fourth century. Nicholas was orphaned in his youth by the sudden death of his wealthy Christian parents, and eventually rose to become the bishop of Myra, a coastal town of Lycia (now in Turkey). He was legendary for his generosity and giving of gifts, especially to children. The term, Santa, is another spelling for saint, and Claus was a Dutch pronunciation of the last part of his name, Cholas. Over the years, these interwoven legends of “Santa Cholas” were handed down from one European generation to another.

Eventually Dutch immigrants to America brought their custom of celebrating St. Nicholas Day on December 6th, and especially on St. Nicholas eve, when gifts were given to children. British settlers to America later incorporated the tradition as part of their Christmas eve celebration, and Santa Cholas gradually evolved into the embellished image of Santa Claus, who was assimilated into our common Christmas customs.

These secular traditions and others, combined with a very commercialized, materialistic emphasis makes Christmas somewhat less than a pure Christian celebration. However, we realize that our society is filled with many other secular customs in which we all participate. For instance, many of the traditions surrounding a wedding ceremony are based upon non-biblical ideas. Dozens of other social customs, which are common to most Americans, also had their roots in secular beliefs. Merely because a custom is not biblical in origin, doesn’t make it evil. It would, however, be inappropriate for a Christian to “substitute” these customs in the place of what Christmas is supposed to represent to us — the birthday of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Regardless of whether Christmas began in New Testament times or not, its origin seems ordained of God. It is the one day of the year when Jesus is spoken of more than any other. It perhaps is the single greatest opportunity to speak about Christ during an entire year, giving an open door to explain his birth — His reason for coming into this world. In my opinion, Christians need not be concerned about secular Christmas customs as long as they don’t “secularize Christmas” into the commercial, pagan holiday it has become to the world.

¹ De Trinitate, Augustine
² The Christian Book of Why, John C. McCollister

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Despite what people sometimes think, the spiritual environment of the church does not rest solely on the shoulders of the minister. We may remember the extraordinary miracles performed by Jesus throughout his earthly ministry. However, when he returned to Nazareth, his hometown, he was unable to do many great miracles there. Imagine, Jesus Christ himself, the son of God, could not bring revival to Nazareth — He could not produce many great results there. But it was not due to a lack of anointing upon his ministry, but because of their unbelief. “And He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief” (Matthew 13.58).

If we want to improve the spiritual climate of our church, the congregation must work together with their spiritual leaders as a team, becoming a people of prayer, faith and spiritual commitment. We must learn to add our faith to the preachers’, to lift up Christ together to promote an environment that will invite the moving of the Holy Spirit.

In the services, the preacher and worship leaders seek to encourage an “atmosphere” of worship to the Lord, along with faith, expectancy, unity, and enthusiasm. Those in the congregation need to cooperate in this endeavor, to help lift the atmosphere of the service into a spiritual climate. By participating in worship, we help to create a corporate environment of God’s presence that will accommodate faith and the richness of the Holy Spirit. This attitude tends to subdue unbelief, a lack of expectancy, and other negatives represented there that will hinder the effectiveness of the ministry.

The word “atmosphere” is an important word as it relates to the disposition and climate of a church service. The atmosphere is the impression or the “awareness” that is perceived by the people in the congregational setting. Any gathering of people has a collective personality or “spirit,” in the same way individuals do. When we assemble with a group, we sense the overall spirit and attitude of that group. Since human beings are reflectional creatures, we tend to reflect the attitude of that group’s personality. When people laugh, we tend to laugh. If people are friendly, we are inclined to be friendly.

In effect, when people come into a group atmosphere charged with praise and worship, they will likely react by joining in. An atmosphere of excitement and expectancy breeds excitement and expectancy. If the atmosphere tends to be disinterested, unresponsive, and unbelieving, people tend to reflect this attitude.

Christians should learn to help be catalysts of worship. By faith, we should try to help encourage praise to God within the body, by leading out with our own attitude of worship. Our enthusiastic participation helps to influence the atmosphere of the whole gathering. As more people participate in such attitudes, the service takes on an enhanced personality. Perhaps this is one reason why David saw the importance of expressing his worship boldly before his brethren. “I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the congregation I will praise You” (Psalm 22.22). The psalmist also said, “I will give You thanks in the great congregation; I will praise You among many people” (Psalm 35.18).

Since “we” are the temple of the Holy Spirit, it makes sense for believers to let the Holy Spirit’s presence flow out of their temple and into the environment of the service (1 Corinthians 6.9). The Word says the Lord “inhabits” the praises of His people (Psalm 22.3). That means He brings His presence to wherever He is praised and lifted up — that His presence resides in the praises of His children. When we lift praise and worship to Christ out of our spirit, His presence is made real and flows in the atmosphere of the service. This is what Jesus was referring to when He said, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18.20). We should always gather with the goal to lift up Christ and allow the Spirit of God to fill the climate of the service — the atmosphere of the meeting.

Every believer can help lift the spiritual climate of their church, if they will be people of participation, prayer and spiritual commitment. Intercede regularly and fervently for your church — pray for your pastor and leaders. And when you gather with the church to worship the Lord, contribute to the positive impact of the gathering. By faith — that is without relying on feelings — enter into the service enthusiastically. Participate eagerly with the songs of worship. Respond to the preaching with an audible “Amen” once in a while (guaranteed to be noticed by the pastor). Make the joyful noise of praise and help overcome any climate of lethargy, spiritual coldness, or unbelief. This will help elevate the service into an awareness of the Lord’s presence and will help to improve the spiritual climate of your church. “Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises” (Psalm 98.4).

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Most churches have far more in agreement than people ever realize. However, the matter of spiritual gifts is one of those particular issues that remains controversial and divisive to some, with varying degrees of opinions.

The New Testament describes 21 gifts to the church that are sometimes categorized under the heading of (1) Ministry (office) gifts, (2) Motivational (practical) gifts, and (3) Charismatic (spiritual) gifts. These are found in Ephesians 4.11, Romans 12.3-7, 1 Corinthians 12.1-12, and are listed below:

Ministry Gifts
Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher

Motivational Gifts
Service, Exhortation, Giving, Leadership, Mercy, Helps, Administration

Charismatic Gifts
Wisdom, Knowledge, Discernment, Prophecy, Tongues, Interpretation, Faith, Healing, Miracles

Among various churches and denominations there’s not too much squabble over the acceptance of the more subtle, “Motivational” and “Ministry” gifts (although the modern day offices of apostle and prophet are frequently disputed).

However most of the controversy usually lies with the nine spiritual gifts (Greek, CHARISMATA) listed in 1 Corinthians 12.1-12. On the farthest extreme, some churches do not believe in any modern day operation of such gifts. In brief, their view is that these were only intended as a limited supernatural empowerment to help the early church get started, and that they vanished after the last Apostles of Jesus died — the scriptures taking their place. Their estimation of those who embrace these supernatural gifts, such as the Pentecostals or Charismatics, may vary — that they are either fanatical extremists or possibly even demonic and cultish. This view, however, is not as prominent as it once was and has been diminishing since the emergence of the Charismatic renewal in the late 1960’s, which affected many of the historic, mainline churches — believed to be a part of a latter day outpouring of the Holy Spirit as described in Acts 2.17 and James 5.7.

Historical records indicate that the abundant exercise of the Charismatic gifts may have diminished somewhat after the post New Testament era — especially in the dark ages, due to the years of inaccessibility of scripture to the common people in their own language. But there is much history to substantiate that the supernatural gifts were never absent from the church. Scores of statements to this effect were recorded by church leaders such as Irenaeus, who wrote around A.D. 150 “…we hear many of the brethren in the church who have prophetic gifts, and who speak in tongues through the spirit, and who also bring to light the secret things of men for their benefit [word of knowledge]…” Elsewhere he said, “When God saw it necessary, and the church prayed and fasted much, they did miraculous things, even of bringing back the spirit to a dead man.”¹ Near the close of the second century, Tertullian cited similar incidents, describing the operation of prophecies, healings and tongues,² and in 210, Origen reported many healings and other Charismatic gifts, as did later writers such as Eusebius, Firmilian, Chrysostom and others through many centuries.³

The Encyclopedia Britannica says that Charismatic gifts such as glossolalia (speaking in tongues) have occurred in Christian revivals of every age. In the same vein, a German work, Souer’s History of the Christian Church, cites a reference to the famed leader of the Protestant reformation of the 16th century, stating, “Dr. Martin Luther was a prophet, evangelist, speaker in tongues, and interpreter, in one person, endowed with all the gifts of the Spirit.”

Today, Charismatic gifts are increasingly being manifested in all kinds of Christian fellowships and denominations throughout the world. Although the Pentecostal and Charismatic churches are especially known for this, the gifts seem to emerge wherever believers or congregations are receptive to their existence and open themselves to the inner workings of the Holy Spirit.

It is obvious that the Charismatic gifts never vanished and remain as a part of God’s plan for His church. These gifts are sometimes called God’s “power tools,” given to the body of Christ as valuable helps to accomplish ministry objectives. As the scripture describes, they are distributed through persons within the body at the Holy Spirit’s discretion.

1 Corinthians 12.7 “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
12.8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,
12.9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,
12.10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
12.11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”

Among those fellowships which embrace the operation of Charismatic gifts, as with most other doctrines, there continue to be moderate differences in opinion as to their value, application, order, and so forth. But most will generally agree that each of the nine gifts are a supernatural intervention of natural laws, bestowed by the Holy Spirit where His presence is invited and accommodated.

A definition of the 9 Charismatic gifts:

(1) Word of Wisdom — A Word means “a supernaturally imparted fragment.” Wisdom generally means a practical skill in the affairs of life, such as prudence, decision making.
(2) Word of Knowledge — Supernaturally inspired utterance of facts.
(3) Faith — Supernatural impartation of assurance in God.
(4) Gifts of Healings — Supernaturally ministering health to the sick.
(5) Working of Miracles — Supernatural intervention of natural laws. The Greek describes it as “works of power” and implies instantaneous results.
(6) Prophecy — A supernaturally inspired utterance from God. A genuine prophetic utterance never contradicts, neither is equal to, the written Word of God. To forthtell or foretell. To speak from the mind of God. (Prophecies are to be judged according to 1 Corinthians 14.29, 1 Thessalonians 5.20-21).
(7) Discerning of Spirits — This gift enables one to discern a person’s spiritual character and the source of his actions and messages, such as the Holy Spirit, demon spirits, the human spirit or the flesh.
(8) Different Kinds of Tongues — Supernaturally imparted utterance in an unlearned language. The purpose is to edify the body. This is distinguished from “praying” in tongues, which is intended to edify one’s own spirit (1 Corinthians 14.14). A message in tongues to the body is always to be interpreted (by another gift), and is limited to three within a gathering (1 Corinthians 14.27).
(9) Interpretation of Tongues — To interpret a message in tongues into the understandable language of the hearers. It is not a “translation” but an interpretation.

The scriptures show that the purpose of the charismatic gifts is to edify the church, and their delegation within the body relies upon the volition of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12.11). The Apostle Paul intimated that it’s appropriate to seek particular gifts, however, one’s motive must be for the building up of the church, not for self gratification. “…since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel” (1 Corinthians 14.12).

There is a difference between spiritual gifts and fruit. Gifts are the Spirit’s manifestation through a vessel, but fruit is the offspring of one’s spiritual character. Spirituality cannot be measured by gifts, but by fruit (Galatians 5.22-24). Love is the predominate feature of spirituality (1 Cor. 13:13), without which, charismatic gifts cannot function effectively (1 Corinthians 13.1-2). Paul expressed that the church should have a desire for spiritual gifts, but it should follow the foremost pursuit of love. “Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts,” (1 Corinthians 14.1).

Churches who allow such gifts to operate within their services are sometimes criticized for promoting confusion or mayhem. Without doubt, the service where these gifts function will take on a less structured, more spontaneous environment that may seem peculiar to some. But in 1 Corinthians 14, the Apostle Paul established specific guidelines for their use so to remove the potential for confusion and disorder. Rather than banishing the operation of these gifts entirely as some churches have done, they should seek to understand and implement the order Paul instituted. Concerned that churches might “throw the baby out with the bath water,” the Apostle addressed this issue with his closing words of that chapter: “Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14.39-40).

Generally speaking, the various gifts to the church have several beneficial effects: (1) They manifest Christ’s body on the earth (1 Corinthians 12.12-14,27), (2) They assist in world evangelization (Mark 16.15-18), (3) They demonstrate God’s power and bring Him glory (1 Corinthians 2.4-5, 1 Corinthians 12.7), (4) They edify the church (1 Corinthians 14.3,12,26), (5) They provide ministry help and deliverance of God’s people (Romans 12.6-8), and (6) They contribute toward the maturing and equipping of the church (Ephesians 4.11-14).

¹ Refutation and Overthrow of False Doctrine
² Anti-Nicene Church Fathers, Tertullian Vol. IV
³ Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians, James Gilchrist Lawson

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In the strictest sense, a revival is really a spiritual awakening — a stirring of repentance among God’s people to a fresh obedience to God. However, in the casual sense, a revival has often been used to refer to a special series of evangelistic church meetings, conducted by an evangelist or minister, hoping to arouse renewed spiritual fervor. In recent years, it was an annual tradition for many evangelical churches to conduct one or more such meetings, which would extend nightly for a week or longer. In years past I conducted hundreds of these type meetings, however, due to the trends of our present society, prolonged revival meetings have (sadly) become unpopular and nearly obsolete in some circles.

The idea of revivalism, and special meetings devoted toward revival, emerged from the evangelistic preaching and prayer meetings of the Great Awakening of the early to mid 1700’s, with such famed preachers as John Wesley, George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards. This was later combined with the tradition of the camp style meetings of the early 1800’s, popularized by pioneer preachers such as Presbyterian, James McGready, Methodist Circuit Rider, Peter Cartwright, and evangelist Charles Finney.¹

It’s possible to conduct a series of revival meetings anytime we wish. Such meetings would be advisable and a good idea for every church, as has been the tradition of many evangelical churches at least a couple times a year. But real revival — that is a spiritual awakening, occurs only under certain conditions. Charles Finney (1792-1875) was one of our nation’s greatest revivalists, and taught on the subject later in his life. In his “Lectures on Revival,” Finney wrote that there are several things that suggest when a revival is imminent: “First, when the providence of God indicates that a revival is at hand… Second, where the wickedness of the wicked grieves, humbles and distresses Christians… Third, when Christians have a spirit of prayer for revival… And lastly, when believers have a desire and anxiety to a call of repentance and to a new or fresh obedience to God.”²

History shows that the great revivals of times past turned the tide of our nation’s morality, yielded hundreds of thousands of converts to Christ, reversed religious apathy and rekindled the spiritual fervor of churchgoers. Jonathan Edwards (1703-1764), one of God’s choice instruments of the Great Awakening of the eighteenth century, described his observations of the effect that revival has upon the hearts of people:³

(1) “Revival brings an extraordinary sense of the awful majesty, greatness and holiness of God so as sometimes to overwhelm soul and body, a sense of the piercing, all-seeing eye of God so as to sometimes take away the bodily strength; and an extraordinary view of the infinite terribleness of the wrath of God, together with a sense of the ineffable misery of sinners exposed to this wrath.”

(2) “Revival especially brings a longing after these two things; to be more perfect in humility and adoration. The flesh and the heart seem often to cry out, lying low before God and adoring Him with greater love and humility… The person felt a great delight in singing praises to God and Jesus Christ, and longing that this present life may be as it were one continued song of praise to God. There was a longing as one person expressed it, ‘to sit and sing this life away;’ and an overcoming pleasure in the thought of spending an eternity in that exercise. Together with living by faith to a great degree, there was a constant and extraordinary distrust of our own strength and wisdom; a great dependence on God for His help in order to the performance of any thing to God’s acceptance and being retrained from the most horrid sins.”

By all means, a spiritual awakening is something desperately needed again in our nation — an objective that every Christ-devoted church should be praying for. Without exaggeration, America’s widespread sin and rebellion toward God has brought our nation to the precipice of judgment and disaster.

The verse of scripture that probably best summarizes the cause and effect of revival is found in 2 Chronicles. “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7.14).

¹ Eerdman’s Handbook to the History of Christianity
² Revival Lectures, Charles Finney
³ Revival, Winkie Pratney

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Pentecostals and Charismatics make up the main body of churches who embrace speaking in tongues as a part of their official doctrine. They represent about 10% of all American congregations.

Speaking in tongues has long been considered a controversial issue among many churches. Often blamed for creating division, or attributed to heresy or fanaticism, the practice has been banned entirely by many churches. This seems somewhat ironic since the primary author of the New Testament, the Apostle Paul, possessed an abundant gift of tongues (1 Corinthians 14.18), encouraged all believers to have the same experience (1 Corinthians 14.5), and warned the church to not forbid persons from speaking with tongues (1 Corinthians 14.39).

Some have sought to discredit the modern day validity of speaking in tongues, claiming that it vanished with the other Charismatic gifts at the close of the apostolic era. However, any good student of church history realizes this theory is baseless, as numerous references to tongues and other gifts are consistently seen in the writings of church leaders for twenty centuries. The History of the Christian Church, by Philip Schaff records that speaking in tongues occurred among the Camisards, the Cevennes in France, among the early Quakers and Methodists in the Irish revival of 1859, and among the Irvingites in 1831. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that glossolalia (speaking in tongues) has recurred in Christian revivals of every age — among the mendicant friars of the thirteenth century, among the Jasenists and early Quakers, the persecuted Protestants of the Cevennes, and the Irvingites.

The idea of speaking in tongues originates in the New Testament book of Acts. At the height of the Jewish festival, Pentecost, the post ascension disciples of Jesus were filled with the Holy Spirit and manifested this unique phenomena of speaking in other languages (glossolalia).

Acts 2.1 “Now when the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2.2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
2.3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.
2.4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Prior to His departure to Heaven, Jesus had instructed his followers to wait in Jerusalem until they received this promised blessing (Acts 1.4). The baptism with the Holy Spirit, as He described it (Acts 1.5), would give them special power (Greek, DUNAMIS, miraculous, dynamic power), enabling them to proclaim the Gospel everywhere. “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1.8).

The day of Pentecost marked the beginning of the Holy Spirit’s outpouring upon the church, but it was not the conclusion. Other followers also experienced this infilling of the Holy Spirit, accompanied by the same manifestation of speaking in other tongues. In fact, it appears that speaking in tongues became viewed as the initial, physical evidence which proved the infilling of the Holy Spirit. This was first seen by the events which occurred at the house of Cornelius, a gentile, to whom God sent Peter to minister. Until this time, most believers (who were mainly Jewish) thought the baptism with the Holy Spirit was exclusive to the Jews. However, Peter was amazed to see Holy Spirit given to Cornelius and his family. How was he able to recognize this? He cited, “For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God…” (Acts 10.46).

This pattern was repeated again when Paul ministered at Ephesus. Once more tongues accompanied the gift of the Holy Spirit. “And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied” (Acts 19.6). However, when Peter and John ministered at Samaria, the Holy Spirit was given again, but this time nothing is mentioned about tongues. “Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8.17). Verses 18 and 19 say that an observer, Simon the Sorcerer, “saw” the reception of the Spirit by the Samaritans, and whatever he witnessed motivated him to offer money to purchase the same ability to bestow the Spirit. It’s speculated that he probably saw them speaking in tongues.

The fifth century church father, Augustine of Hippo, was very insightful about the beliefs held by the early church regarding speaking in tongues and supported this view. From his comments about Acts 8.17-19, it was his assumption, due to his own experience in such matters, that Simon must have seen the Samaritans speaking in tongues. Augustine wrote, “We still do what the apostles did when they laid hands on the Samaritans and called down the Holy Spirit on them by laying on of hands. It is expected that new converts should speak with new tongues.”¹

Most Pentecostals and Charismatics generally agree that the baptism with the Holy Spirit is evidenced by speaking in tongues, and is separate and distinct from the birth of the Spirit (John 3.7), which occurs when faith is placed in Christ for salvation.

Furthermore, they believe that speaking in tongues is involved in three distinct functions: (1) As the initial, physical evidence of the baptism with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10.46), (2) as a spiritual prayer language which is used for personal edification (1 Corinthians 14.4, Romans 8.26-27), and (3) as a special utterance gift to the church, which when interpreted, serves to edify the body (1 Corinthians 12.10, 14.6). Paul indicated that not all persons would have the latter “gift of tongues” used to edify the church (1 Cor. 12:30), but desired for all believers to be able to speak in tongues for personal edification. “I wish you all spoke with tongues…” (1 Corinthians 14.5).

¹ Augustine, Vol. 4