Verse 18
I thank God, I speak with tongues more than ye all.
This is the verse, beyond all others, that is supposed to take the lid off tongue-speaking and to legitimatize it for all generations; but this cannot be. We have already noted that Paul never used the gift in the presence of others, or in church assemblies. Furthermore, Paul's speaking in tongues "more than ye all" is tremendously significant. His speaking in tongues was genuine, a true gift, to edify himself; the "gifts" he was correcting were (1) either the misused genuine gifts, or (2) the affectations of the tongue counterfeiters; well, actually both of these were condemned.
What then was the apostle's purpose in bringing up the fact that he himself spoke in tongues? Bruce gave the probable explanation thus:
His speaking with tongues belonged to the sphere of his private devotions. We should not have known of his possessing this gift (even in this passage) were it not that his possessing it in an exceptional degree gave him the undeniable right to put it in its place in relation to other spiritual gifts.[8]
If Paul had not possessed the gift, some of his critics would have responded merely by saying, "Well, you know nothing about it." As it was, Paul's possession of the gift superlatively enabled him to pour a pitcher of ice water over the whole practice. Bruce further commented on what Paul did here, saying, "(This was) a master-touch which leaves the enthusiasts completely outclassed and out-maneuvered on their own ground."[9]
The tongue-speaking fraternity cannot claim Paul as an advocate of their practices, there being no record whatever that he ever did it in the presence of another human being; and, besides, his gift was the real thing!
[8] F. F. Bruce, Answers to Questions (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1972), p. 99.
[9] Ibid.
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