Bible Text: 1 Peter 4:11-19 | Preacher: Pastor Joe Ricchuiti | Series: 1 Peter, Partners in Suffering

“Christlikeness does not depend on speaking in tongues. The goal for every believer is Christlikeness, and the fruit of the Spirit is Christlikeness. That fruit, according to Galatians 5:22-23, does not include speaking in tongues or working miracles. Furthermore, as far as we know, our Lord never spoke in tongues, so we can perfectly imitate Him without doing it either. No one need ever feel under pressure that his spiritual life is lacking in some way because he has not spoken in tongues, for Christlikeness does not depend on that. That deep and abiding fellowship with the Lord which we all desire is fostered by increasingly greater knowledge of the Lord , and that kind of knowledge comes through deeper understanding of His Word.” Dr. Charles C. Ryrie

Tongues in the Scripture is a known language, not some kind of ecstatic speech or gibberish. (see Acts 2 for the languages spoken by the Apostles on the Day of Pentecost. All known languages and named in the passage.

The purpose of Christian service is that God will be glorified, not so that we might have credit for ourselves or win praise for ourselves. In the words of Oswald Chambers: “Are you ready to be not so much as a drop in a bucket—to be so hopelessly insignificant that you are never thought of again in connection with the life you served? Are you willing to spend and be spent; not seeking to be ministered unto, but to minister? Some saints cannot do menial work and remain saints because it is beneath their dignity.”