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The Apostles Doctrine
APOSTOLIC DOCTRINE
We believe that "all true believers" received the gift of the Holy Ghost, as promised by our Lord, as a witness to the scripturally-based faith in Jesus (John 7:37-39); and that the new birth of the Spirit (John 3:5) is necessary to place the believer in the kingdom of God or the body of Christ (the Church) (I Cor. 12:12, 13). We further believe that the outpouring of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost marked a "new covenant" in the Spirit's dealing with mankind as prophesied by Joel (2:28,29) and (Isa. 28:11), the Holy Ghost being the "gift" of every believer in this age of grace, both handmaidens, servants, sons and daughters. The Holy Ghost bears witness that "we are the children of God" (Rom. 8:16); it is witness to the faith of our hearts (Acts 15:7-9). The Holy Ghost does NOT indwell the believer simply because he says, "I believe" as many evangelicals teach. Paul shows that the Holy ghost comes after believing (Eph. ] :13), NOT synonymous with it. As said before, the Holy ghost is the "seal of the righteousness of the faith" which the believer has (Rom. 4:11) as circumcision was the seal of the righteousness of faith of Abraham. "Speaking with tongues" as the Spirit gives utterance (Acts 2:4) is the initial evidence of the indwelling of the Spirit; not only on the day of Pentecost, for the one hundred twenty, but for all believers for our time. Jesus told Nicodemus the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and wither it goeth; so is EVERYONE that is born of the Spirit (John 3:8). Speaking with tongues is the "sound" of the Spirit, heard by EVERY believer. It is synonymous with the cry of the "newborn babe: in the first birth (flesh); for God has sent forth His Spirit into our hearts in the second birth (of Spirit) CRYING, Abba, Father (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6).
We believer that there is vast difference between (1) "speaking in OTHER tongues as the Spirit gives utterance" (2) the GIFT OF TONGUES as mentioned by Paul's letter to the I Corinthians (Chapters 12 & 14) "Speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance" is supernatural, Spirit-enforced sign or witness of the Spirit's indwelling. Isaiah predicted this in Isa. 28:11,12, at the time of "rest and refreshing", Jesus said that new tongues would be "one of the signs" following believers (Mark 16:16, 17); it was first demonstrated at Pentecost upon the Jews (Acts 2:4); it also was manifested at Caesarea Phillipi at Cornelius' house (Acts 10:45, 46) where it is evidence of the Holy Ghosts' presence in the lives of Gentiles; it happened again at Ephesus after twelve men were baptized in Jesus' Name by Paul (Acts 19:17).
NOTE - "speaking in tongues" as the Spirit gives utterance (a sign of the Spirits' indwelling) is different from "the gift of tongues", one of the endowments of the Spirit. "Speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance" is the experience common to ALL believers, while the "gift of tongues" is given by the Spirit to those that He wills to endow.
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