Is Speaking In Tongues Required For Salvation Or Receiving The Holy Spirit?
Q: Is speaking in tongues necessary evidence of salvation, or proof that someone has received the Holy Spirit?
A: No. It’s just that simple. Speaking in tongues is not the necessary evidence of salvation, nor is it the necessary evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit. I suppose it could be taken as an evidence. But to regard it as somehow being theevidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit or having salvation is just not biblical. In talking about spiritual gifts, Paul asked in 1 Corinthians 12:30, “Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?” These are rhetorical questions, and the expected answer is “No!” Do all have the gifts of healing? No. Do all interpret? No. In that context, he includes, “Do all speak with tongues?” Again, the answer is no.
The spiritual gift of tongues is not given to every believer. Now, whether or not it’s made available to every believer is an interesting question for another time. For now, rest assured that speaking in tongues is not the evidence of salvation, nor is it the evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit. Do you want to know what is the evidence of being filled with the Spirit? It’s the fruit of the Spirit in a person’s life. That’s the real evidence of a person being filled with the Spirit: the fruit of the Spirit is made evident in their life.