The gifts of the Holy Spirit

[4mysonK]

I was talking to my friend about my son's unusual comments. The thought of a past life freaked her out, of course, as she is a BIG religious person. She was a bit more open than I'd expected, though.

I was telling her that he seemed to be speaking in another language occasionally---just a word here and there. Her explanation was that he was "receiving the holy ghost." Of course, in some churches, people believe they can receive miraculous gifts during worship service, as a sign to others that there is a God. Or, to edify believers. I've always had a problem with the "speaking in tongues" thing because why would God have you speak in say, German, if no one else in the church could speak that language? How would that help or prove anything?

So, I started thinking....

Here is a passage from a quick reference I used to find the "speaking in tongues" verses. To me, it seems to mean something completely different that how the writer of the article suggested. What do you think?.....

The Holy Spirit is sovereign in the distribution of these gifts. Following the listing of the gifts, Paul adds, “But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He will.” (1 Corinthians 12:11).

Christians have always had a hard time understanding exactly what the Holy Spirit is, and even in my extensive church background, in a highly academic environment, no one has really been able to explain it. In fact, the only unforgivable sin is listed as involving the Holy Spirit.

MATTHEW 12: 31-32 "Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. And whoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in the age to come".

I hope Father God doesn't see my question as blasphemy! That's not my intention, of course.

It is said that the Holy Spirit is one with God. It is part of the Trinity, belonging there with God and His Son.

Could the eternal soul of every person be this Holy Spirit? The divine part of ourselves 'bestowed' when we decide to follow God? (As in, we should begin to use our eternal spirit to further our progress as souls. We should then have the foresight and maturity to use our experiences to make life more holy, thus leading us closer to Heaven.)

Here is another excerpt from an online article:

A. The Holy Spirit is involved in the new birth.

B. The Spirit sanctifies (I Pet. 1:2).

C. The Spirit convicts (Jn. 16:8, ASV)

D. The Spirit comforts (Acts 9:31)

E. Teaches (I Cor. 2:13)

F. Saves (Tit. 3:5)

G. Purifies (I Pet. 1:22)

H. The Spirit also exerts power (Rom. 15:13).

Please tell me what you guys think. There may be another thread on this, but I'm desperately seeking answers. In fact, just THINKING this (given my background) is a scary thing. I simply want to understand.

Back to the original topic. The church where I studied doesn't "believe" in speaking in tongues. They say that is a miraculous gift, which passed away when Jesus did, and died out completely when the last of his disciples died. Of course, no one in 'my' church EVER speaks in tongues.

HOWEVER, so many other people report this. Good people. Smart people! Where my congregation is quiet, still, and orderly, others are free to cry, be joyful, move around, etc. They become 'worked up in worship,' so to speak.

Could people be entranced or in such deep meditation that languages from their past lives come to the surface? Whereas, in other churches, where these gifts aren't 'possible,' they are never in the meditative state to reach them. Just like you can't be forced into hypnosis if you strongly believe against it.

According to my friend, people often don't know what they even sounded like during the experience. They certainly didn't 'know' the language. She spoke of one man who suddenly began praying in Choctaw (rare Native American language), and it happened that a man in the church understood it. He was Choctaw! He came up and asked the man where he'd learned that language, and he had no idea. If not for the Native American's presence, this would have sounded VERY foreign, possibly a language from Heaven and not of this earth. (Many believe that.)

In the Bible, this 'gift' was used to speak to people who couldn't understand or wouldn't accept what was being said. For example, if I went to France, where I could barely speak the language or needed a translator, the Holy Spirit would help me suddenly speak fluent French so as to prove what I'm saying. In that way, this 'gift' serves a great purpose.

Could this blasphemy against the Holy Spirit mean that you mustn't ignore the eternal soul inside you? The "HOLY" spirit in you?

Luke 12:10
Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the person who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.


Also, do you guys know of anyone who has spoken about this particular topic? Any references?


q6gif

Again, this whole discussion makes me feel like I'm going to Hell. I was never encouraged to question anything for fear of judgment from others, and especially from God. I don't want to blaspheme the Spirit, but instead, to know it more intimately than ever before.

 

[ChrisR]

I was telling her that he seemed to be speaking in another language occasionally---just a word here and there. Her explanation was that he was "receiving the holy ghost."

Hi 4mysonK,


Thanks for sharing. My explanation would be that your son was experiencing xenoglossy, of which there is plenty written about here in the forum (just type it in the search box at the top of the page)


I also found a few other threads that may be of interest to you -


What does the Bible say about reincarnation?


Reincarnation and the Bible 1


Reincarnation and the Bible 2


What Jesus said about children who do not forget


It's good to ask questions in my opinion, I hope these threads answer a few of them for you -


btw, I couldn't open the link you gave in your post, maybe it's just me -

 

[Ailish]

Hi 4mysonK,


Welcome


My ex-stepmother’s church advocated speaking in tongues - and I was never really comfortable with it, although I have always had a love of languages and have had some experiences with xenoglossy throughout my life. To me - they seemed to be very different experiences.

Could the eternal soul of every person be this Holy Spirit?

I believe we are all connected - all part of the Universal energy that has existed since the creation of souls - and so, yes in essence, all a part of God or Spirit, by whichever name you choose to call it. Prayer has proven to be a powerful force in many people’s lives - and I believe it is the power of intention that is a strong force in many things we do. With an open mind, an open heart and positive intent - I believe we are more apt to connect to that Universal Energy.

Again, this whole discussion makes me feel like I'm going to Hell. I was never encouraged to question anything for fear of judgment from others, and especially from God. I don't want to blaspheme the Spirit, but instead, to know it more intimately than ever before.

Questioning is good. There is absolutely no reason why one cannot reconcile reincarnation and other such phenomenon with a love and respect for God.


Btw - thanks for sharing your son’s story in the other thread. I’ve been following along and enjoying the story of Soh-Soh and Leon.


Aili

 

[4mysonK]

Hi guys! Thanks for responding. After thinking about it, I realize I'm coming from a background of thinking that other people aren't familiar with. It would be impossible for me to explain completely what I was taught. My brain is on that track. (Or, maybe it's OFF its track.....finally.)


Thanks for commenting on the 'speaking in tongues thing,' Ailish. I've not been in the presence of this, so it is, indeed, a full-on question. I have no clue how such things go. )


I just want opinions. I'm excited to live and learn. That's all.


Love this forum! :thumbsup:

 

[deborah]

Hi again,


It's the week before finals here and well - I am swamped. I hope to get back to your other posts before the weekend. If not -I mean well and will soon.


Regarding scripture and beliefs. I highly recommend BEYOND BELIEF by Elaine Pagels. It is well written, throughly researched and beautifully presented. She has a Ph.D. from Harvard University and is a professor of Religion at Princeton University.

 

[soulfreindly]

Could the eternal soul of every person be this Holy Spirit? The divine part of ourselves 'bestowed' when we decide to follow God? (As in, we should begin to use our eternal spirit to further our progress as souls. We should then have the foresight and maturity to use our experiences to make life more holy, thus leading us closer to Heaven.) [/i]

This is lovely , finding the maturity to use our experiences to make life holy .. I see being in touch with our experiences in past lives gives us a deeper sense of the power of the young soul in all of us... As a child we have humility , and we have that great enthusiasm for the possibiities in life . As we grow up we lose trust in these vulnerabilities and we get stuck in patterns .


There must be something eternal in all of us as we always keep on going, even beyond times when we would like an end to it.. I think by remembering the younger part of us we remain in touch with the eternal parts that always are there... ,


I thought the term Holy Ghost was used also?? Which thinking about it now, is also an interesting way of describing some concept concerning God ?? I always thought ghosts were looked as something paranormal and something to be avoided talking about in the christian faith.


soulfreindly


..

 

[tanguerra]

Hi there 4mysonK,


Don't worry, all this stuff takes a bit of getting used to. It is perfectly OK, in fact it is encouraged, to ask as many questions as you like, so don't apologize, go right ahead.


First of all, don't worry. I very much doubt whether God (however you conceive Her) has so little to do that She would worry Herself about people asking potentially 'blasphemous' questions on the internet about the possible connection between the Holy Spirit and reincarnation. In fact, I think it would tend to amuse Her more than anything, don't you?


Secondly, it's very simple. It's all God. The ants, the teacups, the people, the mountains, the sky, the stars, the galaxies, the universe.... There is no end to it and no beginning. If God has an aspect of Her being (one of many zillions, after all) which some describe as 'The Holy Spirit', that's all fine with me. I don't have a problem with it, I certainly don't see why She would. I imagine that God is at least as sensible and tolerant as I am, you know, being perfect and all-powerful and everything, eh?


I believe all the world's religions are attempting to explain 'what is going on', and find satisfying answers to all those difficult 'why' questions - why am I here, why does the sun come up, why is there suffering, why is there 'evil' in the world... They are all trying to marry the many and varied 'spiritual experiences' that people have, and have always had, within some sort of framework which makes sense to them, given their culture, level of scientific understanding, social structures, personal preferences and so on. All of them, however, are searching for 'the light' in the end.


Various different 'churches' and their individual creeds, beliefs, schisms, arguments about theology, speaking in tongues, not eating shellfish, wearing their hair a special way, no music on Sundays, etc. are really just social expressions of the same essential truth. Personally I don't take all the details too seriously as long as they're not hurting anyone and playing nicely. All religions have this in common: there is 'something' out there that is 'bigger' than us and we sense it as God(s); in general God(s) would like us all to be 'good' and not hurt each other.


I think that's all great, but apart from that, I don't personally have a lot of patience with most of the other shenanigans that go on with organized religions, although I totally respect people's right to believe whatever they like as long as they don't hurt anyone. I don't mean to shock you or in any way discourage you from trying to find a way to fit reincarnation in with Christian creed. I encourage it! I think a belief in reincarnation is compatible with all the religions really, and in fact is quite central to many of them.


I wrote in more detail about my thoughts on this and the benefits of keeping an open mind here. I take a very 'long view' of religions generally though, perhaps because I have such an unusual perspective. After all, I have seen many of them come and go over the centuries. Most of them have merit, although I think the whole blood sacrifice thing was highly distasteful and a bit of an aberration and am very glad that has gone out of fashion.

Could the eternal soul of every person be this Holy Spirit? The divine part of ourselves 'bestowed' when we decide to follow God? (As in, we should begin to use our eternal spirit to further our progress as souls. We should then have the foresight and maturity to use our experiences to make life more holy, thus leading us closer to Heaven.)

I think you have put it very well yourself, in any case. As Soulfriendly says, it's lovely and you are absolutely right, except that I don't believe we have 'to follow God' to have life bestowed on us by the Holy Spirit (or God). Life just 'is what it is' for want of a better way of explaining it. Life is God. God is Life. It's what the Universe 'does'. Life is bestowed on us (as it is on God) whether we like it or not, just as trees blossom and galaxies rotate. We people, however, can do whatever we want with our time here, for good or ill - that's life. We have free will after all. Eventually, hopefully, we will work out that being 'good' is a more pleasant experience on the whole though it might take many, many, many tries at it to get it 'right':


The others have given you some good threads about all this. I quite like this one too:


What is it that travels from one life to the next?

 

[4mysonK]

Thanks for the lovely responses. I've been thinking about it, and thinking about it...and thinking some more. I kind of like to do that. :thumbsup: It's also nice to be encouraged to do so!


*hugs!*

 

[alaskanlaughter]

I love to think too. If I didn't have a life filled with work and family, I'd love to just think all day.


I like how she explained religion up there. "Be good and play nicely." :laugh: That's so simple and soooo true. If only religious wars had believed in that concept.

 

[Susie]

Hi 4mysonK:


Having been raised in a fundamental Christian church who did not believe in speaking in tongues, and having a wonderful evangelical friend who does believe in speaking in tongues, I can understand your confusion. I believe that the holy spirit is a universal energy within us all, a part of our essence. To blasphemy the holy spirit would be to blasphemy ourselves- and why would we want to do that?


One time, I told my evangelical friend that I saw a spirit out of the corner of my eye and the place was very cold. Her interpretation was that I saw a demon and needed to pray it away. My interpretation was that I saw a spirit and needed to allow it to just be unless he/she somehow came to me for help.


My point is that different viewpoints open the door for interpretation- I am a true believer in taking what I like and leaving the rest. I know that reincarnation is a difficult subject for many people, especially those who choose to follow the religious path. But, that's okay- it's good your friend shares her truth with you. :thumbsup:


I would not worry about God (or the Universe, Spirit or your interpretation of God) being unhappy with you. I believe God is within and not the reprimanding father figure that I was taught to believe in. I believe Spirit is in everyone and everywhere, it's just that sometimes people fail to see that wonderful light, or they reject it. That's okay, too, everything happens in its own time.


As for your son speaking in another language- I would suggest research on xenoglossy, as suggested here. I would think that he has either picked up on the language from someone else or it is tied to a past life. You don't say how old your son is, though.


I am looking forward to hearing more.