Miracles and the Gift of Tongues
By Daniel T. Bourdeau
Are miracles superseded by the astounding progress and feats of modern science, especially those of medical science? and is the gift of tongues now dispensed with by a wise providence, because the Holy Scriptures have been translated into hundreds of tongues and dialects, and there will henceforth be no further need of that gift? With not a few at the present time there is a growing tendency to answer these questions affirmatively. But this is a bad omen, especially when those who return an affirmative answer to such questions pretend to believe the teachings of Holy Writ. It is not at all surprising that those who are professedly ignorant of the Scriptures, who do not profess faith in the divine inspiration of the Bible, and do not pretend to know the saving power of God's grace, should take such an attitude toward miracles and toward the gift of tongues; but to see those who profess to believe in the Bible, and to be familiar with its teachings, and who profess the religion of Jesus Christ, take such a position as this, is indeed most painful to such as really know the Scriptures and are acquainted with God's plans as therein revealed, and who know by personal experience what is meant by the saving power of God's grace. Those who daily and momentarily take in by experience the meaning of the power of divine grace that saves men from the power of sin and Satan, know that that power is miraculous in all its manifestations, that it is miracle-working from first to last. Its manifestations mean miracles to those who continually believe. The saving power of God's grace is miraculous in that it goes infinitely beyond the power of finite man in saving those who lay hold on it by faith, from sin and the power of sin. It converts the repenting believer, and in doing this it creates him unto good works (Eph. 2: 10); and nothing short of miraculous power is required to create. Therefore to claim that miracles are now superseded by the progress and wonderful feats of science, is to deny that men and women are being converted to-day, and that at the present time the work of preparing a people for a better world, and for a glorious, immortal state in that world, is going on in our world. Are we prepared to adopt9such a conclusion?—Certainly not. Then let us with heart and voice thank God that the day of miracles has not passed. Why, dear readers, not only does the record of the blessed Bible open up with a relation of the wonderful miracles of creation, but that truthful and interesting record continues to its close in the relation of miraculous wonders that God has wrought in behalf of his believing children, and against those who have oppressed them. It is a special trick of the wily arch-deceiver to put divine miracles in the shade, and put the wonders of science in the front, flattering men with their great wisdom and might in making such wonderful discoveries and bringing into use such wonderful power by the application of scientific principles, and in causing them to believe that they are of great importance, and no more need miracles with which God used to strengthen the faith of his children, encourage them, and give them influence and power to rapidly advance the work of the gospel in the earth. Thus it is that Satan fills not a few with a spirit of self-sufficiency, and prepares the way for them to be captivated by his astounding wonders, and to think that they are the divine manifestations of miraculous power in harmony with scientific principles. We are safe only as we follow the teachings of God's Word. As we do this, we shall see from this infallible detector and guide that God vouchsafes to us, even in these last days when deceptions and counterfeits are multiplying on every hand, the manifestations of his miraculous power through the gracious gifts of his Holy Spirit, including even the gift of tongues, which is certainly embraced in his plan for carrying forward his work in the earth. Mark 16: 17; 1 Cor. 12: 28-30. We have indubitable evidence that this gift was manifested in the early history of this work. This was to show us what God would do through this gift for the furtherance of his cause when the final pentecostal season would come to the remnant church, answering to that in the early days of the Christian church. How effectual was the exercise of this gift on the day of Pentecost and thereafter, in publishing the gospel message to different nations! This miraculous gift brought with it most convincing power to those of different tongues. They wondered when they heard men speak in tongues which they had never learned. Acts 2. This brought deep conviction to unbelievers, and many of them were converted. It is written that this gift is a sign “to them that believe not.” 1 Cor. 14: 22. Such needed this sign in the days of the primitive church. Do not such need this sign to-day?—They certainly do, and will soon have it, notwithstanding the unbelief of many with regard to it. And the exercise of this gift will not dispense with the necessity of missionaries learning the tongues of those nations to whom they are sent. There is a proverb in the French language which says, “Aide-toi, et Dieu t’aidera” (Help thyself, and God will help thee). This is true with regard to the languages. Learn as many of them as you can, and use them in communicating the final gospel message to different nations; and God will sanction your efforts by working miraculously in the same sense through the gift of tongues. Get the Bible out in as many languages as you can; and God will approve of your noble work by re-enforcing you through that miraculous gift which will serve as a mighty means of conveying the last gospel message to those of different languages. We have no more right to exclude that gift than we have to exclude the gift of prophecy, the gift of teaching, or the gift of miracles. All the gifts of the Spirit are, by God's word and plan, perpetuated throughout the gospel age. The gift of tongues is one of those gifts; therefore we should plead for its manifestation in our day, for the glorious finishing of gospel work in the earth. There are too many thousands of believers in present truth who have witnessed the miraculous healing of persons who were given up to die by faithful physicians, for us as a people to believe that the progress and feats of medical science supersede the necessity of old-fashioned miracles performed by divine, supernatural power. And in saying this we do not belittle the efforts put forth by good physicians to restore the sick to health, nor would we give way to any wild freak of fanaticism by repudiating the use of natural and truly scientific means and methods for the restoration of the sick. Let these be used, and let the blessing of God be invoked upon them and upon good and faithful physicians. But when all these fail, let God come in by his Spirit and miraculous power, and do for the sick what every other available means can not do, if he, with his infinite knowledge sees that it will be for his glory and for the best good of the afflicted and of all concerned to restore the sick to health. Indeed, all of those in the faith who shall be alive when Christ comes, will have experienced the manifestations of God's miraculous power in transforming their characters after the likeness of that of their perfect model, Jesus Christ, in enabling them to do wonderful things to the furtherance of God's cause among men, and in wonderfully strengthening them physically, mentally, and morally, to pass through the time of trouble such as never was, and to stand before the Son of man at his coming. May it be true of us in that day that this has been our experience in the present state, that it may be ours in the immortal state to delight in witnessing the display of God's almighty power through his wondrous works, and to there join with the remnant church in singing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy; for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.” Rev. 15: 3, 4.