Speaking in tongues for personal prayer is a private interaction between God and the one praying. Its purpose is to strengthen the one who is praying. “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude 20-21 ESV). Notice Jude states that when we pray in the Holy Spirit (in tongues) we build ourselves up; however, when we speak in tongues for interpretation to believers in the Church, we edify or build up the Church (see 1 Corinthians 14:5). God desires both, and each is important.

Many believers wonder, Is it possible for me to be filled with the Holy Spirit and not pray in tongues? Yes, I believe a person can be filled with the Spirit and not pray in tongues. But I would also add that every person who has been filled with the Spirit has the ability to pray in tongues. Many believers do not operate in this gift because they have not yet yielded to it by faith. Every gift of God is received and activated by faith.

Think of it this way. Two men walk out into a river. One chooses to stand still and allow the current to flow around him; the other chooses to relax and yield to the river’s flow. Both the one who stands in the river and the one who yields to it are in the water, but only the latter is able to follow the current where it leads. The one who prays in tongues can be likened to one who yields to the river’s current; a believer who has yet to pray in tongues is likewise in the river but has not yielded to its current. (If you want to know how to yield to the Spirit, we will discuss this in the next chapter.)

Communion with the Holy Spirit is one of the many blessings made available to us through Jesus’ death and resurrection. But the experience of the full measure of this communion does not automatically occur at the moment of salvation. Sadly, many believers are not enjoying certain aspects of the gift of salvation. It is vital that we pursue all God has for us. Discovering all that Jesus died to give us is a huge part of our journey in Christ. As we discussed earlier, the Holy Spirit is the one who empowers and equips us for our kingdom assignments. If we forsake the gifts made available to us by the Spirit, we forgo both deeper intimacy with God and a measure of the power we need to serve Him well.

Four: Tongues for Intercession