The False Gift Of Tongues
Rev. Daniel R. Jennings, M.A.
There is much interest in our times being shown to the phenomena
of “speaking in tongues”. Within the body of Christ there is much confusion
regarding this topic from both those who support it and those who are against
it. The majority of Christians appear to be left wondering how best to respond
to all of the discussion. As men and women who believe in the authority of the
Bible we know from the Scriptures that we cannot forbid people from speaking in
tongues:
“Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to
speak with tongues.” 1Co14:39
But while we are told not
to forbid people from exercising the gift of tongues we are also commanded in
the Scriptures to be discerning:
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether
they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By
this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ
has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that
Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.” 1Jn 4:1-3
“Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good.”
1Th 5:20-21
The New
Testament makes five references to the experience referred to as “speaking in
tongues” (Mk 16:17, Ac 2:1-41, 10:1-48, 19:1-7, 1Co 12:1-14:40). It is simply
defined as the supernatural ability, given by God’s Holy Spirit to an
individual, to speak in a language which they were previously unable to speak
in. It is very clear from the Scriptures that there is such a thing as the
“gift of tongues” although scholars debate exactly what it looks like and how
it functions. To date millions of Christians have sought and are currently
seeking to have this experience. Many have found what they believe to be the
experience after much earnest seeking. In churches where the gift of tongues is
emphasized these individuals are often pointed out as examples to the others
that they too can experience what these men and women have. What is rarely
pointed out, however, is that oftentimes persons who are seeking the gift of
tongues do indeed receive it, but in a counterfeit form—a demonic
gift of tongues that looks and appears like it may be the
Biblical gift but comes from an evil spirit instead of the Holy Spirit. The
purpose of this paper is to list cases that either appear to be or are clearly
examples of The
False Gift Of Tongues. Please note from the beginning—it is not the purpose of this paper to
discuss whether the gift of tongues occurs now, and if so, in what form it
would occur (that will be left up to the reader)—the purpose of this paper
is to document reliable examples of persons having received the ability to
speak in a previously unlearned language only to discover upon counseling or
investigation that this ability came from a demonic spirit.
The following color scheme will be used to distinguish the
cases below.
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Cases of tongues that are
questionable and suspected of being the result of demonic activity will be
highlighted yellow. |
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Cases of tongues that are
clearly the result of demonic activity will be highlighted orange. If a
tongue occurs in a non-Christian religion it will be assumed to be the result
of demonic activity. |
Click on either a case study
section below or scroll down to read the cases. Also, don’t forget to scroll
down to the bottom or click here to read How To Tell If Your Tongues Are Genuine.
Case Studies
E. A. E. Ruark
F. John R. Rice
G. Kurt Koch
I. N. Gropmann
J. A. M. Hills
L. Anonymous #2
N.
Albert Le Baron (pseudonym for Henry Guy
Waters)
Q. Mormons
U. Jerome
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Examples Of The False Gift Of Tongues |
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"In
an era of charismatic confusion, Christian counselors are frequently being
confronted with believers who have become completely disoriented spiritually
as a result of being misled in the matter of the filling of the Spirit. A
Christian woman, having read Demons In
The World Today, wrote to me for help. A believer for many years, she had
been nurtured in the truth of the Word concerning the believer's security and
his position before God in his placement in Christ. When a keen desire for a
deeper walk with God developed in her soul, she strayed from the simple Bible
way to be filled with the Spirit--by faith in what the believer is in Christ
(cf. 2 Corinthians 11:3-4)--and began to be lured away to seek an experience
beyond salvation evidenced by the physical manifestation of speaking in
tongues. For years she sought this experience avidly and determinedly, doing
everything she was told to do and submitting to everything she thought she
should submit to, including the laying on of hands. Finally
the tongues came. But the blessing was a mixed one. The ecstatic joy of
giving vent to the tongues was followed by abject gloom. The emotional high
was succeeded by a spiritual low. Worse still, peace vanished and she lost
all sense of security. She found herself invaded by alien spirits who took
her into the deepest type of depression and goaded her on to commit suicide. "When
the tormentors begin their work on my mind and body," she declared,
"they blaspheme and talk back." I directed
this harassed believer to a prayer group whose members had had much
experience and success in conducting spiritual battle for deliverance of the
demonically oppressed. Her road back to spiritual health has been long and
arduous. Her fate stands as a sober warning to all believers who lose sight
of their completeness in Christ and who seek for spiritual fullness anywhere
else than in Him alone." (What Demons Can Do To Saints, "In
1967 a friend gave me a book about speaking in tongues. My spiritual life was
at a low ebb, and I was intensely seeking after God. I knew I was saved, but
there seemed to be an emptiness in my soul. After
reading this book, I began to believe that the experience of tongues was
necessary to fill the spiritual void. For six years I asked for the
experience. During
1973 I became ill. The desire for a closer fellowship with the Lord and to
have the power of God upon my life became more intense than ever before. I
read several books on tongues...and I began seeking out people who had this
experience. My
husband, a baptist minister and a student of the Word, would explain the
Scripture teaching on this subject, but my mind was made up that tongues were
the ultimate and only reliable evidence of being Spirit-filled. I
contacted a charismatic Baptist minister and received the laying on of hands,
which brought a most ecstatic experience...undoubtedly supernatural. I had
never experienced such a wonderful feeling--too different to be merely
psychological. I felt certain no on had ever been so happy, contented, and
filled with joy. Tongues
did not come to me with the laying on of hands, but I kept asking for them.
Two months later they came, accompanied with unusual happenings. Each
day was a new and wonderful experience. Prayers were answered, miraculously,
and always in the name of Jesus. One of the greatest deceits is the
"other Jesus spirits," who do not confess Jesus Christ as Savior
and Lord (1 John 4:2; 2 Corinthians 11:4). At
that time no one could have made me beleive that Satan could produce these
happenings, although the Word of God warns that he is "prince of the
power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2). The
week that tongues came to me, strange happenings occurred inside my body. My
will had no control over the happenings, and I was doing nothing to produce
them. Some
of the manifestations were lewd and my mind was greatly disturbed, since they
always came after the tongues, which I supposed were produced by the Holy
Spirit. The
tongues were new and exciting, and I used them frequently at first. I knew
the physical happenings were demonic, but I thought Satan was trying to
defeat the wonderful experience of the Holy Spirit. I
was filled with glory over the tongues, but at the same time, suffered agony
over the constant evil that prevailed. I returned to my charismatic friends
time after time for help. Each time there was the laying on of hands and the
command for Satan to leave me alone. Although
the physical manifestations never left me, for several days I would have
relief from the mental oppression. I
asked for more tongues, going deeper into the experience, trying to get away
from Satan. When the glory of the "high" was over after each
tongues experience, the presence of evil was more prominent. Many
times it seemed the entire room was filled with evil. Several
months after receiving the tongues experience and alternating from day to day
between glory and misery, a still, small voice spoke definitely to me, saying
that the tongues were a form of Satan worship. Being certain that this was
the work of the Holy Spirit, I was horrified, although the suspicion had
existed for some time. Being
increasingly certain that I was being controlled by Satan, I determined to
resist him. Torment beyond description followed. Voices would speak to me
about the most hideous things imaginable. Horrible
suspicions about my husband and dear Christian friends took hold of me.
Terrifying dreams and nightmares occurred. Voices said that I should die
because I was corrupt, and God would never use me now. Sometimes
becoming desperate with fear of losing my sanity and life, I would yield to
the tongues which were welling up within me. Great relief followed, until I
refused them expression again. Many
times I called upon the Lord and claimed the blood of Christ. But each time I
would be thrown to the floor in agony. Fourteen months after receiving the
tongues, I was ready to take my life. As
a final plea for help, I called a very dear Baptist minister-friend, who knew
something of these Satan workings among God's people. He worked and prayed
with my husband and me about three months. Other ministers prayed with us,
sometimes for several hours at a time. During
this time we saw the power of the resurrected Christ demonstrated against the
foe in a spectacular way. Although
I had lent myself through ignorance to the influence of the evil powers of
Satan, the Lord in love continued to draw me out of the snare of the enemy. It
has been a long journey back from the realm of darkness into which I had gone
so deeply, but the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ has been sufficient to meet
every need.” (Testimony of a Baptist Pastor’s Wife in What Demons Can Do
To Saints, "This
case has to do with a young man, an Indian...This young man began to manifest
demonic symptoms by a sickness that showed no physical cause at all. A little
while later I was called late one night. He had jumped into the well! After
pulling him out, and then talking and praying with him and his family for an
hour, I came to the conclusion that his trouble was demonic…I finally left
the house after another hour of counseling and praying…the young man, whose
name was Fernando, got worse again. I went to see him and talked very frankly
with him about his salvation. With tears he assured me that he was saved, but
that he would go empty-handed into the Lord's presence, because he had little
faith. Moreover, he was certain that he was going to die, because he had been
so weak spiritually. He complained also that at times he saw spectres around
the room. Two
days later he had another attack. I and five other men went to see him.
standing at the head of his bed, I saw him suddenly looking wildly at
something across the room and he cried out, "Why have you come to
torment me?" In
an instant his voice changed (the demon taking over) and glaringly he turned
to us, yelling loudly, "Who are you? I am stronger than all of
you!" With
that he began to scream, curse, kick, and swing his arms violently. His
strength was such that the six of us could not hold him down. Fortunately
help soon arrived. At the end of two hours he quieted down somewhat, but it
had taken eight to ten men at a time to control him. After two hours seventeen
strong men were worn out, yet he was still as strong as ever. These
outbursts would usually come at night. As a rule he slept all morning, and in
the afternoon was more or less normal. At these times he would talk and act
quite sanely. He was very sure he was going to die as a chastening from the
Lord, but equally certain he was saved. Before
the demon took control, he generally knew it and would say, "It is
coming. Grab me!" During
these attacks, his voice would change completely (the demon talking through
him). Even his face would be altered completely. Often he would under seizure
attempt to injure himself. On
several occasions he told the time of the day exactly, despite the fact that
I had the only watch in the crowd. He would call himself prince of power of
this or that and suddenly lapse
into speaking in a foreign tongue. Finally
one night, after a violent attack, he quieted down and became unconscious. A
doctor was called, but said there was nothing he could do. I went home and
got my folding ruler to measure the body to make a casket at the request of
the young man's father, a firm Christian. Meanwhile
when his pulse beat became so weak that I could only get it at the jugular
vein and the patient began to get cold, the end seemed very near. While
he was unconscious, I heard him speaking as though to the Lord--very softly
and reverently. Suddenly he opened his eyes, sat up, and spoke to me. He
declared the Lord had given him "an hour". He wanted to see my wife
(we had both often counseled with him) and all the members of his family. When
we were all assembled, his pleas to us was, "Fear and serve the Lord.
Take not of what happened to me." At
the end of the hour I expected him to die. When it passed, I asked him about
it. He
appeared puzzled, saying, "The Lord didn't say if it was an hour by a
watch or what. I don't know!" He
was sure, however, that he had been told to testify for the Lord. This he did
consistenly and several came to know the Lord, and every one of these has
remained true to the Lord to this day... With
this the spiritual life of the congregation began its upsurge. Three
neighboring churches also experienced growth and blessing as a result of this
incident. Fernando
continued with a constant, sincere testimony, as well as with a warning to
others to consider what had happened to him. As a result a number of young
people dedicated their lives to the Lord, and three years later several came
to study in our Bible Institute...” (What Demons Can Do To Saints, "The son of a bishop in |
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“A third instance was that of a young man of twenty-two
years of age. He had been very desirous of the gift of tongues. Though warned
of the serious danger of concentrating on any gift, rather than on the Giver,
he persisted in seeking with intensity. Finally, he obtained what he sought.
So confident was he that the experience was of the Lord, that he considered
he now had sufficient light to carry him forward without the Word of God; the
personal revelation was all-satisfying. Then came suddenly the understanding
that his tongues were not genuine. The effect was a most bitter
disillusionment. He came to the writer’s house, and while attempting to pray
became unconscious. The test revealed the presence of demons, one of whom
gave the name of “False Tongues.” Deliverance came after a somewhat protracted
struggle, and he is now free in spirit and mind and body. He has learned to
abide in the Lord, and is recognized as helper of others.” (Encounter With Darkness, Ch 7) |
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“ She had definitely
trusted Christ as her Savior and was seeking to live for Him. She had
recently come to a new appreciation of what it meant to be “in Christ” as she
studied the Word of God. As we considered her background, her family, and
personal experience, we found real reason to suspect that the harassment and
molestation she had been experiencing may have been demonic in origin. We
sought to ground her in the Word and deal with her attitudes regarding her
self-worth, her position in Christ, and matters of proper interpersonal
relationships, including forgiving those who had hurt her and rejected her.
She confessed her sins and her wrong attitudes and rejected the tongues if
they were not of God…and…she asked God to show her the truth about her own
tongues experience. We asked God to govern
the counseling situation and to show us what was really going on in her mind
and life. She gave me permission to confront any wicked spirit present within
her. I then commanded that if there were any tongues spirit present he would
come to the fore and answer me as I claimed the authority of the crucified,
risen Savior. A tongue spirit did finally manifest itself in sullen fashion.
It resisted me but did confess that it had come in through the laying on of
hands. It took the occasion to come in to give her what she desired and to
lead her astray. After several counseling sessions, the demon confessed that
Christ was its victor, that “In my own counseling, I have found about fifteen
cases of false tongues spirits who came in through the laying on of hands, a
typical occult practice for transferring power.” (Demon Possession And The Christian, “A girl I counseled in |
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“Many charismatics insist that everyone filled
with the Holy Spirit will speak in tongues. If this is the only way to know certainly
one has been filled, no wonder people become desperate for this
"evidence." One young man lay on the ground for hours earnestly
pleading for tongues. In another instance the subject had been urged by
charismatic tutors to keep repeating the word "Hallelujah" until he
could break out in tongues. In both cases the subjects did acquire the
coveted ability. Later testing, however, revealed that in each case a demon
had entered the victim and had imparted the glossolalia. In the latter case
the tongues demon was named Hallelujah.” (Tongues
Should Be Tested. The “I have learned four lessons through experiences
in testing tongues in people who have voluntarily approached me and my
colleagues during the past few years. First, I have been astonished at the high percentage of demonic tongues
encountered. Counselees include people from virtually all sections of
the Many, but not all, used
their tongues largely in private devotions. Some had doubts about the
validity of their gift, but many were quite confident that the test would
demonstrate a true gift from the Holy Spirit. But the shocking fact is that over 90 percent of those who requested
a tongues test had a demonic tongue.” (Tongues Should Be Tested. The “One young lady asked me for a demonic test since
she felt evil influences in her life. Routine questioning revealed she had come
from a Pentecostal church and possessed a tongues gift, but she felt
confident that her gift was divine. She informed me during the interview that
a lady in her home church with discernment had assured her that her tongue
was of the Holy Spirit. When the deliverance
session was later conducted we encountered a spirit named Jesus. He hated the
Lord Jesus Christ. I was suspicious because past experience had revealed that
tongues demons often deceptively adopt the name Jesus. Upon my inquiry the
demon admitted he was the spirit giving her her gift of tongues, rather than
the Holy Spirit.” (Tongues Should Be
Tested. The “An intelligent university graduate claimed she
used her tongue only in private devotions and generally felt uplifted
afterwards, and yet her gift proved demonic. One of my counselees had one
demon who provided her tongues gift, another demon named Real Tongues, whose
purpose was to make her believe her tongue was from God, and still another
demon who kept her feeling rejected because of tongues.” (Tongues Should Be Tested. The “Soon after a young lady from a Roman Catholic
home was born again she was with some friends in a parking lot witnessing.
All overflowed with joy. They decided to go to the home of one of the group
for a prayer meeting. Soon she was speaking in tongues. After she approached
me and we had studied the Scriptures she affirmed she would not again speak
in tongues until her gift had been tested. Then one day when her emotions
sagged something within her seemed to say: "I gave you this gift; can't
you trust me?" As she later related
these facts I asked her whose voice would likely say this, when the Holy
Spirit had already told her in Scripture to "try the spirits." She
saw the point. When she later submitted to a test, the tongues spirit
answered initial questioning correctly but later was trapped in his own
deceptions. He admitted giving this young lady gifts of tongues,
interpretation and prophecy.” (Tongues
Should Be Tested. The “Perhaps the most revolting thing about a false
tongues experience is the horrible utterances people say in a language they
cannot understand. This can be illustrated by the experience of an earnest
young man who came to me after ardent charismatic involvement. When he
offered public prayer or conversed about spiritual things, one could sense
how deeply he loved the Lord Jesus Christ. He used his tongues gift
frequently in private, and the words he spoke often formed the same line. In our prayer session the
spirit providing this gift was exposed as a demon. A missionary participating
as an intercessor inquired if it would be possible to have the interpretation
of the words the demon kept the counselee speaking. When the chairman
commanded the tongues demon to interpret the line, the response was: "I
hate you, hate you, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus." The victim was as shocked as
the rest of us.” (Tongues Should Be
Tested. The “One middle aged lady visited only one
charismatic meeting. When a saintly looking elderly man there urged,
"Just yield your tongue," she did. She received nine different
demonic spirits who all professed to provide her with tongues gifts.” (Tongues Should Be Tested. The |
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“A missionary brought pictures of an African
under demon possession. They showed the native throwing himself on the ground
and going through many contortions. He was speaking in tongues while doing this.
The other natives wanted the missionary to interpret for them as they thought
the language must be English.” (Falsities
Of Modern Tongues, p.9) “A group of converts in “Some instances of demon possession have taken
place immediately [after] the person relaxed the body and mind for the
“baptism”. One, a Mrs. E., was greatly rejoicing that she had the “baptism”.
But she found afterwards that whenever she opened her mouth to pray, the evil
spirit prevented her talking to God. All she could do was speak in tongues. It
took a long time for her to get free of this demon control, and regain
control of her own body so that she could pray.” (Falsities Of Modern Tongues, p.15-16) “Those who declare that the first time one speaks
in tongues in the “baptism” and after that it is a “gift”, find no support in
the Scriptures for such teaching. The demon which spoke through a person the
first time in response to a false doctrine will often remain with that one
and continue to speak through him. This was proved when a group thought they
had the gift of tongues, and had spoken in tongues more than once. These
spoke again in the presence of one who understood the language. He said he
had never heard such foul utterance and blasphemy from human lips.” (Falsities Of Modern Tongues, p.25-26) |
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“Another, a man at Y, was seeking baptism with
tongues for a long time. He was in great distress because he could not get
it. When, finally, he did speak in tongues, he said something “snapped” in his
head. The result was that he had to be confined in a mental hospital.” (Falsities Of Modern Tongues, p.16) |
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“In |
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“In March 1975 I gave several addresses in Dr.
Kenneth Moon’s church in The missionary did not
leave it at that. “Which church?” he asked. “The “In Toccoa in the state of “Shirley came from a Christian family. As a young
girl she came to faith in Christ, and a few years later joined a youth group
called “Youth with a Shirley prayed much for
the gift of tongues. Then one day at a meeting of the Pentecostal church she
went forward to the platform, holding her hands in the air. She received the
gift of speaking in tongues. “Praise the Lord!” everyone shouted in joy,
“Shirley got the baptism of the Holy Spirit.” Some time later, she
heard about demonic imitations of the gift of tongues. At the same time she
noticed that most of the members of the “Youth with a “Lucifer with three of
his comrades,” came the reply. “Saul, Demetrius, Judas.” Then the voices
cried out from the girl. “I hate you, I hate you.” The girl at once jumped up
and tried to strangle brother Birch. This man of God put himself under the
protection of Jesus Christ (Luke 10:19) and bound the demons in the name of
the Lord. Then he commanded them, “In the name of Jesus Christ, tell us when
you entered this girl.” “At the meeting of the
Pentecostal church,” they replied, “on August 17.” “What do you intend to do
with her?” “We want to keep her back
from the truth. That is why we took control of her tongue.” Brother Birch then
instructed Shirley to declare herself free from these demons in the name of
Jesus Christ. She did so. Then brother Birch commanded the demons to leave
the girl, because she belonged to Jesus Christ. The girl was freed, and she
gave God thanks and praise for her salvation and deliverance.” (Occult ABC, Sec. A:58, Example 203) “The Rev. Blackstone of the “During my first lecture at Down Lodge Hall in “I was on a lecture tour
of the Far East when I had the opportunity of visiting the Bible School of
Febias in We
continued to command them to go, singing the hymn ‘There is power in the
blood of the Lamb’ to give strength to our prayers. Suddenly the student
began to scream. His whole body convulsed. Then he became quiet for a few
moments without gaining consciousness. We prayed again, and as we did so a
new voice began to speak. “How many of you are left,” I asked the voice.
“Forty nine,” it replied.
An hour had already gone by. What could we expect to happen next? While
all this had been going on, some of the Christian teachers got together and
began to support us in prayer. More and more of the students joined them,
until towards the end two groups were meeting simultaneously for prayer and
praise. We found, too, that no single person was able to confront the demons
for more than a short period at a time, the effort being too strenuous. In
fact, the whole session lasted from 8 o’clock Friday morning until half past
three the following Saturday morning, a total of nineteen and a half hours. In
the process of all this, one of the teachers commanded the voices, “In the
name of Jesus tell us your name.” “Rahrek,” the voice replied. “Where do you come from?” the teacher
continued. “From When I heard that the voice had come
from Again
we commanded the demons to depart in the name of the Lord, and again the
student shrieked and convulsed and became quiet for a short while. “How many
of you are there now,” we asked. “Forty eight,” was the reply. We realized that quite a battle lay ahead
of us. If one described all that took place it would fill a book. As
the struggle proceeded, one of the
demons answered, “We have come to destroy Pat.” Instantly the
possessed boy tried to choke himself. He had to be forcibly restrained,
sometimes by six, and sometimes by up to nine men. His strength was
enormous….Another voice
claimed to come from In
the end, however, Pat was wonderfully freed. After almost a day he regained
consciousness when the last demon finally left. At first he began to cry and
then he began to praise the Lord.” (Demonology
Past And Present, “A missionary from Africa was spending his
furlough in |
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“A student in a teachers' training college told
me his story. He had been invited to a conference of the “In “A preacher belonging to the tongues movement was
in the habit of praying first in tongues before giving his message. It has
happened several times now that he has been unable to cease from speaking in
this foreign tongue. He has had to have a towel given to him to stop up his
mouth. What powers are these, if the preacher cannot end his own prayers? The
spirits of the prophets are usually subject to the prophets.” (The Strife Of Tongues, “I came across another example in my counselling
just as terrible as this. So as not to endanger anyone I will not mention the
country in which it took and is unfortunately still taking place. A girl who
was greatly distressed came to me for counselling. She is a student at a
Bible college. One of the teachers there is a follower of the new tongues
movement. This teacher speaks in tongues and has dragged a number of students
into the same experience. On top of this, the woman has lesbian tendencies
and commits sexual offences with some of the girl students. The girl in
question had also been seduced by her.” (The
Strife Of Tongues, “An even more alarming example was told me after
I had held a series of lectures at an English Bible college. On entering the
Bible college my colleague and I noticed the magazine of a certain evangelist
lying around, who is rather fanatical. I asked the principal if he agreed
with what the man preached. He told me that he did. I did not mention a thing
about the new tongues movement in my lectures there. We had decided that this
would be our policy even before starting on the lecture tour. Yet the problem
could not be avoided. We noticed in discussion, that not all the teachers
were of the same opinion as the principal. Added to this, many of the
students were inwardly against these things. We heard so much from these
Bible students on the negative side concerning the breaking out of the
tongues movement in the Bible college, that this itself would be enough to
reveal the dangerous character of the influx. A student, who is already
completely submerged in this flood, declared that he did not need to read the
Bible anymore. God the Father would himself appear and speak to him. Six
other students who had at first sought this 'second blessing', discounted it
when they felt something weird was going on.” (The Strife Of Tongues, “While I was writing this pamphlet two Anglican
ministers came and told me of a large ministers' conference which had been
convened by Mervin Stockwood, the Bishop of Southwark. About 400 Anglican
ministers came together for a week, including Bishop Robinson of Woolwich,
the author of 'Honest to God'. Near the end of the conference many of the
ministers witnessed a small sensation. A minister of the “A devout
pastor was holding a weekly prayer meeting. Present were the pastor, his
wife, and some believers belonging to the congregation. In the midst of the
prayer meeting the wife suddenly began to pray in tongues. The pastor was
horrified. This was the first time it had happened in his congregation.
Hardly had she finished when another woman who was a believer began to speak
in tongues. There was no interpreter. The pastor felt uneasy. He broke off
the prayer meeting and sent the members home. As I see it, the wife has allowed
herself to be tainted. She owns a large number of fetishes, idols, devil
masks, and all kinds of cultic objects from the mission field. She thinks of
herself as a collector of harmless objects, not realizing that a person can
be tainted by cultic objects that have served for devil worship. Other
Christians have the same impression. They, too, think this woman is tainted.
It is a common experience for people to speak in tongues in the vicinity of
an occult taint or mediumistic capabilities, or even in the train of
spiritualism. Meanwhile, this “irruption of tongues” in the prayer
meeting ended in tragedy. The pastor’s wife and the second woman who spoke in
tongues both lost their minds and are in a mental hospital.” (Charismatic Gifts, The Variety Of
Ministries, 9:Speaking In Tongues, p.121-122) |
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“I
was seeking out a church that would satisfy my soul, as at the age of twelve
years I felt the call of God to be saved from my sins. At this age I
disobeyed the call of God. Then I moved from After
receiving the gifts, the Demons started to talk to me using the Lord's name.
They told me I wouldn't live to be forty. On Jan. 26, 1958, I decided to take
my own life. If I didn't the Demons told me they would. I was just 10 weeks
short of being forty when help came. I
went to another Tongues Movement seeking more light. I believed in their
doctrine of Apostles, Prophets, Pastors and Teachers. Eph. 4:11-13. I
used the Voice gifts in the church for the exhortation of others present. I
became a medium in Disguise. I could tell where the dead were and foretell
death for others. On Sept. 20, 1950 I prophesied that a strange event would
take place and darkness came over parts of the I saw the Devil trying to choke me to death. He
did this twice. To keep the devil away I keep a light lit. I thought I was
very near the Lord but in reality the devil had me. Chains rattled in the
house. The Devil would jump on the bed and talk to me. All the time I thought
it was the Lord. One
thing that caused me to come out of the Tongues Movement and spiritualism was
the death of my mother. She was dying of cancer and sugar diabetes but the
Lord healed her and then delivered her from the tongues. She had great
victory, dying three years later of blood poisoning. My
eyes were opened through these Scriptures; Prov. 16:25, Matt. 7:22-23 and
Rev. 2:2. But it took five years after this to convince me that I was wrong.
I began to seek the advice of several evangelists and pastors. I wrote to My
pastor and wife came to my house on January 26, 1958. I was waiting for
someone to come for this was to be my last day on earth. I had a feeling that
they would help me. I opened my heart to them and was relieved to a degree.
Prayer was made by the pastor and I promised to go to church that night. The
Demons were caught off guard that night. Prayer and tears is what moved me to
the altar. The word 'Blood' irritated the Demons but the name of 'Jesus' had
no effect the first night. Monday
morning they made themselves known to me again. The king of deceivers told me
that I was all right and could still use the tongues. I knew better and
refused to do so. He told me that I could cover up and live like other
Christians? Some
of the Demons names were: The Tongue of the Chaldean, Demon Release, We are
Satan's Helpers, and the Tongue Demon. The Barking Dog Demon and the King of
Deceivers made themselves known to me first. There were a total of six
Demons. The remainder of them would have told me, their names if the pastor
would have kept on asking. I couldn't utter one word nor could I move for the
Demons had me tied up. Rev.
Clyde Flewelling came for a special revival meeting to begin on Wednesday
evening, January 29, 1958. I was at the meeting. Earl Sones led the singing
and the songs were all about the 'Blood' of Jesus. This pierced me. During
the message the Demons were fighting to keep me from the altar. They told me
they were going to throw me on the floor if I went to the altar. This they
started to do. I just faintly remember going to the altar. At the altar I
heard God's people praying. I couldn't speak the names, 'Jesus' and 'Blood.'
The demons forbid me to say it. At this time I saw a beautiful light shining
above the altar. During
praying the Demons began tearing my stomach as some were coming out. I asked
the, praying folks to pray that I wouldn't be torn so much. This was very
painful. Thirteen Demons came out of me. I thought they were all gone. On
Tuesday evening February 1, 1958, I told my husband to call my pastor. As
they came in I was dying. The pastor placed the Bible on my head and pleaded
the Blood. Several more demons came out. Through prayer I was spared from
death. More praying warriors were called in.The Demons would talk to me and
they took my strength. After more than four hours of praying they ceased to
fight further. This was the last battle with the Demons. On Sunday night they
just gave up without any resistance. Victory has been won through Jesus Name
and His Blood. Dear
Reader, in dealing with demons, don't commend them to be cast into Hell, for
they know there is a Hell of punishment. They pleaded with me to have them
cast out into the world. Be kind to the ones who are in the Tongues Movement
and spiritualism, for they are deceived, blind and miserable. Luke 6:39. Do
not argue for it will do no good... plead the Blood in Jesus Name. I PRAY TO
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST THAT THIS TRACT WILL BE USED FOR HIS GLORY, TO LEAD
OTHERS OUT OF THE SAME DARKNESS THAT I WAS IN. TO THE TRIUNE GOD BE ALL THE
GLORY.” (Delivered From Demons And
Tongues. The Missionary Revivalist, January 1959) |
|
“At Brother H---’s home
in Thereafter
he began to torment the woman by accusing her of disloyalty to God, and pronounced
curse after curse upon her, predicting her destruction and death in the near
future. He began to tear and pull her around the room in a terrible way. The
more we prayed, the more furious he became—cursing and swearing at us. I am
not nervous, but I felt a cold shiver running down my back, and it seemed as
if the room were filled with devils. The climax was reached when we laid
hands on her in the name of Jesus. We could not possibly be mistaken
concerning the reality of demon possession since he used the vocal organs of
the victims to curse, swear, and call us names. The language was so shocking
that I could not very well mention any of it here. Often I was able to
understand without the woman’s interpreting—a mixture of Latin, Italian, and
French. Now and then I was able to catch a word very clearly. I
shiver to think that these cursing and swearing demons are finding entrance
to the hearts of people. What are people coming to when they give place to
such devils? Is it not a sign of the times? Is not this the beginning of
‘strong delusions’ which God will send upon the earth, and into which people
who refuse to walk in the light will be ensnared? (The Pentecostal Tongues. |
|
“We will now let our missionary friend in China
tell what he has seen of this fanaticism on the foreign field: ‘False
prophecies (proved so by time) have abounded; contrary tongues have appeared
in the same individual; demoniac
possession, or at least control, came to some most deeply-spiritual people
from which they were only delivered by faith and prayer upon the part of
others.” (The Tongues Movement) “One sister, of a prominent Christian family and
largely used in the Master's work, sought long for this manifestation,
finally speaking in tongues (so-called). Later her husband, a fine Christian
man, returned from a trip abroad. He was made to investigate, and looked with
some favour on this movement. Believing the messages his wife
had were from God, he spent, one day, three hours in prayer, because she had
a message that he must do this. Finally he became suspicious that all was not
well—that another spirit was controlling his wife. One day, as he had
occasion to know that her words carried a deception, he said to her, 'Look
here, the Holy Spirit does not lie.' Instantly she rushed at him, pulled his
hair, and became violently possessed with a demon. Some days after, the
violent spirit gave place to one of quietness, meekness, and lamb-likeness.
But it is in possession still! She no longer prays to the Heavenly Father, or
Jesus. Now it is the 'New Father.' She worships a 'new father,' prays
to him, tries to get others to worship him, will not do the least thing
without spending much time in prayer before him. She says to others, when
they tell her they only know the Heavenly Father, 'Why, see how the new
father has made me meek, quiet, and joyous.' How sad! A contrary spirit
received and worshipped a personal demon out of the pit! Where did this
control begin? When she chose to attribute every manifestation to God, then
she put herself under the control of the power that produced many of these…”
(The Tongues Movement) "To my mind there are not simply wrong
doctrines and mistakes, but a real spirit of evil, personal demons, sweeping
down on God's children, marked as an angel of light, but who come from the
pit. Two of God's children have told me that they were strongly moved upon by
unseen forces to relinquish their hold on the Word, and swing out into this
experience, with the inner assurance that they would speak in tongues, but
that they cried: 'To the Word I cling. I plead the Blood, the Blood.' And as
they did so the power of the influence was broken upon them.” (The Tongues Movement) |
|
"Some years ago two young ladies came out to
“One, after an experience in which the whole body
was most violently shaken, was thrown by an unseen hand from a sitting
posture to prostration on the floor. While lying
there this unseen hand moved her body along. Feet foremost, she was thus
borne out of one room into another, then into the hall, and then down a steep
flight of steps. The descent of the steps was with increased velocity.
Friends saw, as she moved along, that she was moving toward the stairs, and
tried to avert this, but she waved them back. On reaching the bottom of the
flight she spoke in tongues. That morning she had said on entering the room
that she was determined to have her 'Pentecost' that day, even if she had to
roll down the steps for it. She had previously resisted manifestations.
Later, when she returned to the "Another lady lay on the floor as if pinned
there by unseen powers for more than twelve hours, and it was impossible for
her to rise; the least movement of her limbs caused intense pain. At
times the physical suffering was so intense that it seemed the mortal body
could not endure more. She was taken through 'the suffering of the Cross,'
experiencing the piercing of her hands and feet as by driven nails and the
thorn-pierced brow. All the while she thought the experience God-given. After
twelve hours the leader, coming to the morning meeting and entering the room,
said in her presence: This is of the devil.' It was a surprise to her and to
others. But he prayed for her, and commanded the demon to depart from her. He
then took hold of her hand, lifted her up, when she weakly walked across the
floor to her seat. She is one of the most spiritual of women, but had spent
much time in fasting and prayer for her Pentecost, which brought her body
into an enfeebled condition, and this, coupled with the belief that all the
manifestations were of God, gave the enemy easy access to her body.” (The Tongues Movement) “We have known a most worthy couple of the
deepest piety, and most remarkable in prayer, loved and honoured
by a whole community of saints; they were ruined in one week by the
"tongues-movement." The dear husband became a nervous wreck as if
stricken with palsy, and such a nuisance that he had to be forbidden
the privileges of the worshipping assembly. The wife, who could pray the very
heavens open before, suddenly lost her usefulness. We have known a college
community to be swept by this craze as by a deadly simoon
of the desert. We have known an earnest, sanctified Christian man, in
disregard of our own kindly warning, to dabble with "tongues," and
backslide utterly; he then wrote a sad letter of confession, and begged us to
pray for him.” (The Tongues Movement) “A number of those who have spoken in tongues say
they have no accompanying blessing. One who was most prominent in speaking
and interpreting asks why there had been no change in her life, why there was
still defeat, and why she still lacked power in witnessing?”
(The Tongues Movement) |
|
“Being
much interested in mission work of all kinds, one of the first things I did
on my coming to this locality, was to seek out the missions. My attention was
directed to a mission where they said, “God was working in a marvelous way.”
I went there, and I found, indeed, that wonderful things were being done. I
was so amazed and carried away [by] the signs and wonders that I failed to
perceive the danger signals that in a calmer moment I would have heeded…They
preached the full gospel, emphasizing the ministry of holiness and also the
universality of the gospel invitation. They taught with great conviction the
immediate return of our Lord, and the necessity of being filled with the Holy
Spirit as a preparation for the rapture. They taught divine healing; in fact,
the gospel, as we understand it, with this addition, the gifts of tongues.
Their preacher was attended with tremendous power, and the audience would often
be swayed as if by some invisible influence. Words fail me when I try to
describe the preaching, power, and charm of the testimonies. Suffice it to
say, I was completely won over, and committed to seeking of any new gift that
He wanted to give me. It seemed perfectly scriptural, and it seemed to stand
every test…Completely carried away, committed to the idea of seeking this new
blessing from God, I became a seeker nightly; and one fateful night, four of
the workers together placed their hands upon me. As I looked back upon it
now, I see I must have immediately lost my own personality and will power;
but it seemed to me, then, that I was only dreaming. From the hands of those
four, some strange power, which swayed and shocked them, was pouring into my
body. They had told me it was the Holy Spirit, and I was much too dazed to
realize that it was. In fact, I was limp and
as helpless as a child. What I want you to note here, is, it was wholly a
physical exercise, there being no conscious, spiritual exercise connected
with it. The power, as it came from their hands, felt exactly like
electricity, as you have felt it when taking hold of a battery. I was under
this power over an hour, and all the time kept growing colder until it seemed
to me, a corpse could not be more so. Gradually, convulsions seized my limbs,
and I was shaken and jerked about painfully. Then, I realized that the power,
whatever it was, was centering its attack at my throat, and I seemed to be
choking. It worked around my throat until I found myself speaking (wholly
against my will). It seemed to me that someone else was in my body and using
my voice, and I found myself listening curiously. I could not make out the
language, although it was evidently a language, and I found the tones of the
voice expressed the wildest joy, but not one iota of this joy did I feel
myself. It came from some other personality. I, myself, seemed to be on one
side, a curious listener. And, then, too, I was suffering keenly, though
hardly aware of it. That power was using my vocal chords in such a way to
hurt me extremely. I was then conscious that my face was working, and I put
my mind what was left of it, upon that to see what it expressed, and I found
that I was smiling and eventually beaming with joy. Well, after talking a while, the influence seemed to
release me, and life gradually returned to my limbs, and I was told too, my
tongues was some Indian dialect, and I was congratulated most heartily. But
as my normal consciousness returned, I began to see more and more clearly
that it was not the blessed Spirit of God who had thus used me, and I was
thrown into great spiritual darkness. This had occurred late Saturday night,
and all the next day with ceaseless prayers I fought off the influence, which
I frequently felt stealing upon me again. Soon, I realized that I would have
to get divine help in reality or go insane, for the constant struggle against
the power was wearing me out, and so Sunday evening I felt led to do down to
the ---- church. The pastor spoke that night on spiritual growth and warned
his people against the very evil I had fallen into. So, after the sermon I
stepped up to the altar rail and asked permission to speak a few words. I
then briefly-very briefly-related my story, confessing my mistake in going astray,
and asked them in Jesus’ name to pray for me, that God would restore me. I told them-what I still believed-that
instead of the Spirit of God, a demon had been using me and was still wearing
me with his efforts to gain control.” (An anonymous letter published
in B. W. Huckabee’s The Gift Of
Tongues, Again. The Pentecostal Advocate, March 14, 1907) |
|
“I attended the Tongues meeting at H---. Here I
found men and women lying on the floor in all shapes, and the workers would put
big blankets over them. These people on the floor would be jabbering all at
one time in what they called unknown tongues. While I was praying, one of the
workers took hold of me and said, ‘Holy Ghost, we command Thee to go into
this soul.’ The workers were jabbering and shaking their hands over me, and a
hypnotic demon power (as I know now) took possession of me, and I fell among
the people on the floor and knew nothing for ten hours. When I came to my
senses, I was weak and my jaws were so tired they ached. I believed then that
this power was of God. They said I was wonderfully blest, and the leader sent
me from one place to another so that I could jabber in tongues. I was told
that when I was speaking in the unknown tongues the people would fall on their
faces and say, ‘Yes, Lord,’ ‘We will, Lord,’ of course believing that God was
speaking through me. I am now praising God for delivering me from the devil’s
gibberish. When we receive the real
power of God, we can see that this Tongues movement is of the devil…I am now
going to towns where I spoke in tongues and telling the people it is of the
devil.” (In Alma White’s Demons And
Tongues, |
|
“I have known many other cases which it is unnecessary
to record in full. It may be said in general of possessed persons, that
sometimes people who cannot sing, are able when possessed to do so; others
who ordinarily cannot write verses, when possessed composes in rhyme with
ease. Northern men will speak
languages of the south, and those of the east the language of the west;
and when they awake to consciousness they are utterly oblivious of what they
have done.” (In John L. Nevius’ Demon
Possession And Allied Themes, |
|
“In
the summer of 1894 I had occasion, for the sake of a certain literary
project, to visit a portion of our coast. At a place to which I will give the
name of Suddenly an entirely new and strange
psycho-automatic force shook through me like a gust of fierce wind through a
tree. I willed myself into a state of passivity in order to observe the
phenomena. I went into no trance however. The force became intelligent in
action. It drew back my neck. Additional motor violence was displayed in my
limbs. I was brought, from my sitting posture, down on the flat of my back.
The force produced a motor disturbance of my head and jaws. My mouth made
automatic movements; till, in a few seconds, I was distinctly conscious of another's
voice—unearthly, awful, loud, and weird—bursting through the woodland
from my own lips, with the despairing words: "Oh! My People!"
Mutterings of semipurposive prophecy followed. One of the clairvoyants added
additional weirdness to the experience by positively affirming that phantasms
of ancient Egyptian sages stood over me. I was so dazed and
"rattled" by the experience and the motor disturbances, that, at
the close of the seance, I
had to be assisted to my feet, and was walked for some time to and fro in the
night air to recover my equilibrium…On Sunday morning, September 30th, 1894, I had my first experience in
"speaking in unknown tongues," at my residence in the
suburbs of New York City. I had been conversing with the psycho-automatism
the night previous, and up to that time had received sufficient deific verbiage,
one way and the other, to make a small book. Suddenly, whilst conversing with
it in my bedroom on Sunday morning, it changed abruptly off from English into
unintelligible sounds resembling a
foreign tongue, and which, had I not been, as I think, pretty
level-headed at the time, I should have construed as a mental state
pathognomic of mania. And yet I was not sufficiently "at myself" to
immediately seize pencil and pad and write down the sounds…On Monday, October
1st, 1894, I left my home in the suburbs of |
|
“I
have already said that towards the close of my visit a number of misfortunes
befell the Todas [tribe of The only occasion on which I saw the process of divining
was at a funeral. The buffalo which was to be killed had been caught at some
distance from the place appointed for its slaughter. The animal was unusually
refractory and at length lay down and all the natural efforts of the Todas failed to make it move. Midjkudr and Mongudrvan
were then called upon to discover the cause of the obstinacy of the buffalo.
Mongudrvan first began to dance slowly to and fro, away from and towards the
buffalo. He had taken off his cloak and was only wearing the tadrp. As
I already knew the man, I was able to observe that his general appearance was
unaltered and that he did not appear to be in any abnormal mental condition.
He was soon joined by Midjkudr, who danced up and down much more wildly. His
general appearance was very different to that usually presented by a Toda
man. His hair seemed to stand out from his head, although it shook with each
of his violent movements; his eyes were abnormally bright and his face gave
every appearance of great mental excitement. I had not previously known the
man, but when he came to see me a few days later I could hardly believe that
the quiet, self-possessed man whom I saw before me was the same individual whom
I had seen dancing at the funeral. It was obvious that he had been in a
distinctly abnormal condition of frenzy during the divining process. After
dancing for a time Midjkudr began
to utter broken sentences in a loud and almost chanting voice, while
Mongudrvan remained silent throughout. After Midjkudr
had in these sentences given the reason for the obstinacy of the buffalo, and
had prescribed what was to be done, he took a red cloth and dancing more
violently than ever waved the cloth before the buffalo and pushed against the
body of the animal. Then after the people had dragged the buffalo a little
way, it rose and went quietly to the place where it was to be killed. I had much difficulty in finding out
exactly what Midjkudr had said. When he came to see me a few days later he
stated that he did not know at the time what he was saying, and that his only
knowledge was derived from those who had heard him, and I am inclined to
believe that he was speaking the truth. His appearance during the
divining was remarkably different from that of ordinary days, and strongly
suggested a semi-hypnotic state, during which he might well have had no
knowledge, or only a very vague knowledge, of anything he said. In his ordinary condition he professed
to be ignorant of Malayalam, the language which he was said to use in his
frenzied condition. My ignorance of Malayalam, and the
obvious difficulties of the investigation, make me hesitate before expressing
any decided opinion as to the real nature of Midjkudr's condition when
divining, but I have a very strong leaning towards the idea that the man was
in a genuinely abnormal condition, allied to the hypnotic state, and I am disposed to accept the statement
of the Todas that he was speaking in a language
of which he had only a very vague knowledge when in a normal condition.”
(The Todas, |
|
“Mr. [Charles H.] Foster could give a
communication in any language. He would make mistakes, speak slowly, and
sometimes not very accurately, but could in nearly all cases be understood by
the questioner. In this connection, I remember one remarkable experience
which occurred in |
|
“The Holy Ghost was with
us in more power during the eight months previous to April 6, 1830, than ever
at any time thereafter. Almost everyone who was baptized received the Holy
Ghost in power, some prophesying, some speaking in tongues, the
heavens were opened to some and all the signs which Christ promised should
follow the believers were with us abundantly.” (An Address to All Believers in Christ (1887), by David Whitmer,
Ch. 4, p.33) "Soon after he [Alpheus Gifford] went to "About the 8th of November I received a
visit from Elders Joseph Young, Brigham Young, and Heber C. Kimball of
Mendon, “The gifts which follow them that believe and
obey the Gospel, as tokens that the Lord is ever the same in His dealing with
the humble lovers and followers of truth, began to be poured out among us, as
in ancient days;--for as we, viz.: Joseph Smith, Jun., Sidney Rigdon,
Frederick G. Williams, Newel K. Whitney, Hyrum Smith, Zebedee Coltrin, Joseph
Smith, Sen., Samuel H. Smith, John Murdock, Lyman E. Johnson, Orson Hyde,
Ezra Thayer, High Priests; and Levi Hancock, and William Smith, Elders, were
assembled in conference, on the 22nd day of January, I spoke to the conference in another
tongue, and was followed in the same gift by Brother Zebedee Coltrin,
and he by Brother William Smith, after which the Lord poured out his Spirit
in a miraculous manner, until all
the Elders spake in tongues, and several members, both male and
female, exercised the same gift. Great and glorious were the divine
manifestations of the Holy Spirit. Praises were sung to God and the Lamb; speaking and praying, all in tongues,
occupied the conference until a late hour at night, so rejoiced were we at
the return of these long absent blessings. On
the 23rd of January, we again assembled in conference; when, after
much speaking, singing, praying, and praising God, all in tongues, we proceeded
to the washing of feet (according to the practice recorded in the 13th
chapter of John’s Gospel), as commanded by the Lord.” (History of The |
|
*The following account is
from a spiritualist séance in which the medium Hélène Smith (pseudonym for
Catherine-Elise Muller) was able to speak Hindi after a spirit came upon her.
In this case the Hindi is supposedly the words of a wife (Simandini) sharing her
affection for her husband (Sivrouka). Théodore Flournoy, the scientist investigating the phenomena, asks
“Leopold”, another spirit whom Smith has formed a relationship with for the
interpretation. Flournoy later confirms with the linguist and Sanskrit expert
Ferdinand de Saussure that Smith was indeed speaking Sanskrit. “The next outbreak of
Hindoo took place five months later (September 15, 1895), in the midst of a
very long Oriental seance, in
which I only refer to points especially interesting to us—to wit, Hélène's
supposed Sanscrit, the French interpretation which Leopold gave of it, and
the curious evidences of agreement of these two texts. In one tender scene, with sighs and tears, in connection
with Sivrouka, Hélène uttered in an exceedingly sweet voice the following
words: ou mama priva (or prira,
priya)—mama radisivou—mama
sadiou sivrouka—apa tava va
signa damasa—simia damasa
bagda sivrouka. During the various phases which precede the
awaking, I ask Leopold the meaning of these words. He at first refused to
give it, saying, "Find it out yourself"; then, as I insist, "I
would have preferred that you found it out yourself." I beg him to give
at least the correct spelling of an Oriental text furnished us in so
uncertain a manner, but he disappeared, saying he was ignorant of Sanscrit.
By means of later questions which he answers by "yes" and
"no," it is discovered that they are words of love from Simandini
to her husband, who was about to leave her for a voyage to his principality.
Then suddenly, as the awaking seems to be approaching, Leopold moves the
index-finger feverishly, and commences to dictate impatiently: "Hasten
[to spell] . . . My good, my excellent, my dearly loved Sivrouka, without
thee where to find happiness?" His answers to our questions lead us to
understand that this is the substantial meaning of all the Sanscrit spoken
that evening (and given above), that it is not he, Leopold, who speaks this
language to Hélène, because he does not understand it, but that it is indeed
he who gives us the French equivalent for it, not by a literal translation of
the words themselves, since he does not understand them, but by interpreting
the inmost feelings of Mlle. Smith, with which he is perfectly familiar.
Shortly afterwards Hélène awakes without recollection. According to M. de Saussure there are certainly in this
text some Sanscrit fragments answering more or less to the interpretation of
Leopold. The most clear are mama
priya, which signifies my dear, my dearly loved, and mama sadiou (corrected to sâdhô), my good, my
excellent. The rest of the phrase is less satisfactory in its present
condition; tava could well be of
thee, but apa tava is a
pure barbarism, if it is intended for far from thee. In the same way
the syllable bag in bagda seems to mean, independently
of the translation of Leopold, bhâga,
happiness, but is surrounded by incomprehensible syllables.” (From |
|
“I have carefully studied the story of many cases of possession
amongst the Ba-Ronga [tribe of Africa]…the treatment [for possession amongst
them]...comprises four principal rites: the drum performance, the ablution in
the gobo calabash, the drinking of the blood and the hondlola ceremony…In the
case of Mboza the patient was covered with a large piece of calico during all
the drum performance…Sometimes the concert of tambourines [which accompanies
the witchdoctor’s exorcism] continues
for three or four days, a week, or a fortnight…It may be that, at the first
sitting, the spirit will claim some satisfaction*: a “nuru”, a piece of
calico of such and such a colour. It is also generally at this time that the
patient will sing his song. Every possessed
person invents a song which will be henceforth his, and by means of which crises, or trances will be provoked or
cured…These songs are generally in Zulu, and it is asserted that, even if the patient does not know this
language, he will be able to use it in his conversation, by a kind of miracle
of tongues!” (The Life Of A
South African Tribe, Vol.2, p.439-445) *Apparently, a gift of
appeasement that the demon spirit asks for. |
|
Lewis Spence |
|
“The Palace of the Living
and of the Dead was built for the use of this person (the high priest of the
Zapotecs)…There were four chambers above ground and four below…for the more
important feasts which they celebrated with sacrifices, or at the burial of a
king or great lord, the high priest instructed the lesser priests or the
subordinate temple officials who served him to prepare the chapel and his
vestments and a large quantity of the incense used by them. And then he
descended with a great retinue…And when he entered the chapel they put on him
a long white cotton garment made like an alb, and over that a garment shaped
like a dalmatic, which was embroidered with pictures of wild beasts and
birds; and they put a cap on his head, and on his feet a kind of shoe woven
of many-coloured feathers. And when he had put on these garments he walked with
solemn mien and measured step to the altar, bowed low before the idols,
renewed the incense, and then in
quite unintelligible murmurs he began to converse with these images,
these depositories of infernal spirits, and continued in this sort of prayer with hideous grimaces and
writhings, uttering inarticulate
sounds, which filled all present with fear and terror, till he came
out of that diabolical trance and told
those standing around the lies and fabrications which the spirit had imparted
to him or which he had invented himself.” (Magic And Mysteries Of *The above narrative is a
quote from the Catholic priest Fray
Francisco de Burgoa (1606-1681). |
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“This man told me, how,
in that great mortality which happened in this city, in the time of that
noble man Narses, there was a boy in the house of the foresaid Valerianus,
called Armentarius, who was very simple and passing humble: when, therefore,
that mortal disease entered that lawyer's house, the foresaid boy fell sick
thereof, and was brought to the point of death: who suddenly falling into a
trance, and afterward coming to himself again, caused his master to be sent
for, to whom he told that he had been in heaven, and did know who they were
that should die out of his house. "Such and such," quoth he,
"shall die, but as for yourself, fear nothing, for at this time die you
shall not. And that you may be assured that I have verily been in heaven, behold
I have there received the gift to speak with all tongues: you know well
enough that ignorant I am of the Greek tongue, and yet will I speak Greek,
that you may see whether it be true that I say or no." Then his master
spake Greek, and he so answered him in that tongue, that all which were
present did much marvel. In the same house there was a Bulgar, servant to the
foresaid Narsus, who in all haste, being brought to the sick person, spake
unto him in the Bulgarian tongue; and the boy that was born and brought up in
Italy, answered him so in that barbarous language, as though he had been born
and bred in that country. All that heard him thus talking wondered much, and
by experience of two tongues which they knew very well that before he
knew not, they made no doubt of the rest, though they could make no trial
thereof. After this he lived two days, and upon the third, by what secret
judgment of God none can tell, he tare and rent with his teeth his own hands
and arms, and so departed this life. When he was dead, all those whom before
he mentioned did quickly follow after; and besides them, none in that house
died at that time.” (Dialogues Of
Gregory The Great, 4:26) |
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“An officer of the Emperor
Constantius whose golden hair and personal beauty revealed his country (it
lay between the Saxons and the Alemanni, was of no great extent but powerful,
and is known to historians as Germany, but is now called France), had long,
that is to say from infancy, been pursued by a devil, who forced him in the
night to howl, groan, and gnash his teeth. He therefore secretly asked the
Emperor for a post-warrant, plainly telling him why he wanted it, and having
also obtained letters to the legate at The old man at the time was taking a walk on the soft
sands and was humming some passage or other from the psalms. Seeing so great
a company approaching he stopped, and having returned the salutes of all
while he raised his hand and gave them his blessing, after an hour’s interval
he bade the rest withdraw, but would have his visitor together with servants
and officers remain: for by the man’s eyes and countenance he knew the cause
of his coming. Immediately on being questioned by the servant of God the man
sprang up on tiptoe, so as scarcely to touch the ground with his feet, and
with a wild roar replied in Syriac
in which language he had been interrogated. Pure Syriac was heard flowing
from the lips of a barbarian who knew only French and Latin, and that without
the absence of a sibilant, or an aspirate, or an idiom of the speech of
Palestine. The demon then confessed by what means he had entered into
him. Further, that his interpreters who knew only Greek and
Latin might understand, Hilarion questioned him also in Greek, and when he
gave the same answer in the same words and alleged in excuse many occasions
on which spells had been laid upon him, and how he was bound to yield to
magic arts, “I care not,” said the saint, “how you came to enter, but I
command you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to come out.” The man, as
soon as he was healed, with a rough simplicity offered him ten pounds of
gold. But the saint took from him only bread, and told him that they who were
nourished on such food regarded gold as mire.” (Life Of Hilarion, 22) |
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Clement Of |
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“Plato attributes a
dialect also to the gods, forming this conjecture mainly from dreams and
oracles, and especially from demoniacs, who do not speak their own language
or dialect, but that of the demons who have taken possession of them.” (Miscellanies, 1:21)* *The work of Plato to
which Clement is referring is apparently lost now. |
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How To Tell If Your
Tongues Are Genuine After reading
the above examples of persons receiving the false gift of tongues persons may
be concerned as to how they might discover if their gift of tongues was
genuine or false. Christians are divided over whether the gift of tongues is
something that only occurs momentarily or is an ability that can be exercised
at will. For those who feel that they can speak in tongues at will there is a
Scriptural test which any true believer can use to discern whether their
tongue is real. The test is found in 1John 4:1-3 which states, “Beloved, do
not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God;
because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know
the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in
the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ
has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the
Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the
world.” What follows is the advice of two seasoned experts when it comes to
how to test a gift of tongues to see if it is genuine. Gerald E. McGraw’s Method “No spiritual speaking gift today enjoys more popularity than tongues
and none harbors such inherent possibilities of deception. In keeping with
Biblical directives (I Thessalonians 4, I Corinthians 12, and I John 4) It is
proper to conduct a prayer session to test a tongues spirit. I believe that
such testing is best done in a private setting, with a chairman and a small
group of intercessors, and only with the full consent and intelligent
cooperation of the tongues speaker. After a period of intercession it is well -- but not essential -- for
the counselee to speak in the tongue. Thereupon the chairman addresses his
questions not to the person but to the spirit inspiring the tongue. If the
chairman and the counselee normally speak English, the tongues spirit should
be commanded to give all answers in English. The chairman should be alert for deceptive answers. Judgment depends not
upon the sound of the tongue nor on subjective feelings but upon answers
given to the questions in God's Word (cp. Psalm 105:19). The Holy Spirit promptly, freely and consistently confesses Christ. A
demonic spirit will give one or several answers that betray his real
identity, or he will stubbornly evade the question, in itself a refusal to
confess (I John 4:3). A demon may give a number of favorable answers, for he
hopes to preserve his deceptive hold on the victim, but persistence and faith
will soon unveil his actual identity, name and purpose. If a tongues gift is being supplied by one or more demons, Scripture
gives full authority to cast them out (Mark 16:17). The victim first should
verbally renounce ground given to Satan through practicing a false tongue and
should declare his rejection of spirits inspiring a satanic gift. The leader
should order the demons to depart to the abyss (cp. Luke 8:29, 31; Revelation
9:1-3) and should retest to make certain they have actually departed. In all
of this God can grant "the power to discriminate between the true Spirit
and false spirits" (I Corinthians 12:10, Williams).” (Tongues Should Be Tested. The Archie E. Ruark’s Method “The writer found in actual experience that a demon spirit opposes
being tested with all the power that it can muster. At the very suggestion of
the test it puts into the mind of the person a terrible feeling of resentment
with the thought of sinning against the Holy Ghost. It brings up all sorts of
arguments why a test should not be made. [These arguments include thoughts
such as] ‘This is blasphemy, unbelief, sin.’ It gives reasons why this should
not be attempted, and makes it quite plain that the spirit is grieved. All
this is evidence of a false spirit, since the whole thing is against obeying
God’s written Word. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2
Cor. 3:17). There is no hindrance imposed by the Holy Spirit in the matter of
obeying the Scriptures. Furthermore, a man may disobey the Holy Spirit
without strong opposition such as comes from a demon spirit in the matter of
testing the demon’s identity. The test of a spirit should be made when the possessed is speaking in
tongues. The one who does the testing should address, not the human being,
but the spirit, in this manner: “Spirit in the Name of Jesus Christ, answer,
Is Jesus Christ come in the flesh?” A demon is most reluctant to answer this
question. It will either leave, evade a definite and positive answer, or say
“No.” In one case, when a woman was speaking in tongues, another asked the
spirit that question. The woman knew the Scripture and tried to say “Yes,”
but the spirit overpowered her voice and said “No” against her will. When one has the true gift of tongues from God, it is truly a “gift”
which belongs to the person and is under his control at all times. “The
spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets” (1 Cor. 14:32). Other
spirits try to get control, whereas the Spirit who is from God permits
Himself to be controlled.” (Falsities
Of Modern Tongues, p.7-8) To these
two accounts I would add a few more points of advice. *First,
be weary of the possibility of a demon answering the question of whether
Jesus Christ has come in the flesh in a vague manner. A demon spirit may try
to answer in such a way as to make the listener think that he is
acknowledging this when in reality he is slyly dodging the question. *Secondly,
I would not recommend allowing someone else who speaks in tongues but has not
had their gift tested to take part in the testing session. This could easily
affect the result of the test if the person doing the testing has a
counterfeit. *Thirdly,
I know that the Scriptures say, “If you then, being evil, know how to give
good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask
Him! (Lk 11:13)” but this promise has nothing to do with the gift of tongues
but instead with the gift of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
There is no mention at all of the gift of tongues or any other spiritual gift
in this passage. *Fourthly,
if you asked from a wrong motive or reason (i.e. you wanted to speak in
tongues for your own glory and not for the glory of God or from the
perspective of elevating the gift of tongues above the gift of prophecy (1Co
14:5), or you sought it because you accepted an unscriptural and unbalanced
view of tongues, etc.) God may have allowed you to receive a false gift to
discipline you (He 12:6). If you asked from a wrong motive, it is of the
utmost importance that you confess this error to God and ask Him to cleanse
and heal you of this. *Fifthly,
and perhaps most importantly, if for any reason you just do not feel
comfortable using your gift of tongues I would recommend that you not use it.
If there is uncomfortableness in your spirit, this could be the Lord warning
you that you have a counterfeit. *Above
all, remember that it is commanded
in Scripture to test all experiences such as gifts of tongues, prophecies,
etc. (1Jn 4:1-3, 1Th 5:20-21). Every person who has ever received a gift of
tongues is required by the Scriptures to test that gift and failure to do so
is direct disobedience to God. |
Key words: speaking in tongues,
gift of tongues, baptism with the Holy Spirit, baptized in the Holy Ghost,
baptism in the Holy Spirit, baptism of the Holy Spirit, Pentecostalism,
Charismatic, demon possession