The Baptism in the Holy Spirit is not the same as speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues is simply a manifestation of the Holy Spirit but not the literal receiving of the Person of Holy Spirit.
The purpose of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is to endue believers with power for Christian service. It is to make us powerful witnesses of the Gospel.
“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)
However, speaking in tongues is a manifestation of that power and its primary purpose is to edify the believer who is speaking in tongues (1 Corinthians 14:2-4).
This is why it is listed as one of the “spiritual gifts” in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11.
All the spiritual gifts are simply manifestations of the Holy Spirit. In fact, this is what the scripture says in verse 7.
“But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all..” (1 Corinthians 12:7)
So 1 Corinthians 12 is a list of the manifestations of the Spirit, which means that the gifts are the power that we receive when we receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
This is why throughout the book of Acts, once people received Holy Spirit they went everywhere preaching the Gospel and performing miracles and healings (Mark 16:20).
I say all of this to say, that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is about receiving the Person of Holy Spirit and being endued with His ability.
Speaking in tongues is an expression of this Person filling the believer. They are not one and the same, but they do go hand in hand.
For example, if I gave you my iPhone do you have my iPhone but don’t have the ability to call anyone? Or do you have the ability to call but don’t have the ability to google a question?
Of course not! When you receive my phone you receive all of the manifestations that it possesses.
It is the same thing with the Holy Spirit!
Sometimes the manifestation comes right away and people speak in tongues immediately. Other times, it may take a while for someone to yield to Holy Spirit due to incorrect beliefs and doctrines.
[Related article: How to Receive the Holy Spirit and Speak in Tongues (Explained)].
Is the Holy Spirit speaking in tongues?
Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God and He is a Person. Speaking in tongues is simply a manifestation of His presence residing in us. When someone’s received Holy Spirit they have the ability to speak in tongues, but speaking in tongues is not the Holy Spirit.
It is similar to a shoe and the tongue of a shoe. The shoe is not the tongue and the tongue is not the shoe, but you won’t have much of a shoe without the tongue.
Speaking in tongues is meant to benefit us. We receive the ability to speak in tongues from the Spirit of God so that we can edify ourselves and builds ourselves in the Spirit.
It is a gift from God to assist us in allowing our spirit man to dominate our carnal man so that we can truly walk in the Spirit.
Can you have the Holy Ghost without speaking in tongues?
Absolutely you can have the Holy Spirit without speaking in tongues, but you can’t have the Holy Spirit without the ability to speak in tongues. Often, people speak in tongues right when the receive Holy Spirit, but this is not true for everyone.
[Related article: Can You Have the Holy Spirit Without Speaking in Tongues? (Answered)]
When someone receives the baptism in the Holy Spirit and they speak in tongues right away, great!
But if for some reason they don’t, that doesn’t mean they didn’t receive the Holy Spirit it just means that they need to yield to Holy Spirit in some area and start to speak by faith.
There are many hindrances that people have when it comes to speaking in tongues.
For example, many people don’t know that speaking in tongues is at the discretion of the speaker and that God will not overtake you and force you to speak in tongues.
This is why Paul said,
“For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.” (1 Corinthians 14:14-15)
Notice Paul’s language. “I pray in a tongue”, “I will pray” and “I will sing.” It is up to him, the speaker.
Acts chapter 2:4 confirms this same truth.
“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Who was filled with the Holy Spirit? “They were”.
Who were the one’s speaking with other tongues? “They were”.
Who did the Holy Spirit give the utterance to? “Them”.
There have been many hindrances introduced throughout the years when it comes to speaking in tongues such as “tongues have ceased”, “tongues are not for everyone”, “tongues are a real, natural language”, and “speaking in tongues is of the devil.”
I have an article that covers each one of these objections thoroughly. You can check it out by clicking here.
