The first person to speak in tongues in the Bible is not known. We are only told of the first people to speak in tongues which makes us conclude that the first person was one of them.
The disciples of Jesus were the first group of people to receive the gift of speaking in tongues. They were gathered in the upper room on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon them and they spoke in tongues.
Why God concealed the Identity of the First Person to Speak in Tongues
God intentionally chose to conceal the identity of the first person to speak in tongues for good reasons. Pioneers of anything usually have authority over the thing they pioneer.
A good example is Jesus who was the pioneer of living a sinless life. Because of His heroic feat, everyone else who wants to live a sinless life can only do it by following the footsteps of Jesus.
When it comes to matters of faith, Abraham was the first man to have faith in God. By being the father of faith, everyone else who wants to have faith must follow the ways of Abraham.
But as we know, men have weaknesses. Whatever a man pioneers grows with both his strengths and weaknesses.
A son takes the trait of the father. Because of this fact, God chose to eliminate the influence of the pioneer in some aspects of salvation.
Jesus was conceived without the involvement of a man to prevent the weaknesses of men from manifesting in Him.
Jesus who had no blemish became the pioneer of salvation so that all those who would get salvation would be perfect as the pioneer.
Speaking in tongues and other gifts of the Holy Spirit were also introduced in such a way that there was no pioneer. Or in simple terms, the pioneer was God.
That way, these gifts would be free from the weaknesses of men.
The first person to speak in tongues is a mystery and God made it a mystery for our good.
The First Person to Speak in Tongues Apart from the Bible
Apart from the Bible, there have been many pioneers of speaking in tongues in different places. When the disciples of Jesus dispersed from Jerusalem and went to preach the gospel in other cities, they were the first people to speak in tongues in those cities.
To this day, there are people who were first to introduce speaking in tongues in their churches or even in their homes.
In the home I come from, out of the 9 members, I was the first person to speak in tongues. Despite being the lastborn, I became the pioneer of speaking in tongues.
Technically speaking, everyone who speaks in tongues is the first person to speak in tongues in one way or another.
When I was in high school, I was the leader of the Christian Union but I was not the pioneer of speaking in tongues. A friend of mine who was the treasurer was the pioneer of speaking in tongues.
Each of us who pioneers speaking in tongues in a particular place leaves a legacy imprinted in the place forever.
I was introduced to speaking in tongues in a certain church and to this day, I speak in tongues based on the philosophy I learned in that church.
How speaking in tongues was pioneered in my life is how it will develop for the rest of the time.
If you have the gift of speaking in tongues, know that you are the first person to speak in tongues in some capacity.
Be a noble pioneer.
First Person to Speak in Tongues: Lessons to Learn
1. God Concealing the Identity of the First Person to Speak in Tongues was Intentional
You would be a fool to seek to know the identity of the first person to speak in tongues. This is information that God concealed and there is no intention of revealing it to us.
Even the people who were in the upper room could not tell who among them was first to speak in tongues. When the Holy Spirit landed, He landed on all of them at once.
From the narrator in the book of Acts we understand that flames in the shape of tongues appeared on all who were in the room.
Those who were outside the room heard the disciples speaking in tongues but of course they could not tell who was the first to speak in tongues.
What has been concealed has been concealed for a purpose.
2. You are the First Person to Speak in Tongues
Instead of looking for the first person to speak in tongues, know that you are the first person to speak in tongues in some capacity and behave accordingly.
Jesus told us that the kingdom of God is not something we can watch because it is within us. Being the first person to speak in tongues follows the same principle; you are the first person to speak in tongues, why do you look for another?
Focus on being a pioneer that God will be pleased with. At the end of the day, God will repay us based on what we do when we were on earth.
Be wise!
3. Speaking in Tongues has always existed
The day of Pentecost was the day speaking in tongues was revealed to us but who knows when speaking in tongues was created?
There are hints that show us that angels speak in tongues. Apostle Paul talks about tongues of angels. If tongues of angels exist and angels existed prior to the day of Pentecost, what makes you think they didn’t speak in tongues before us?
But we know that speaking in tongues is reserved for men because it is powered by the Holy Spirit and only human beings can be filled with the Holy Spirit.
The tongues of angels are only a subset of speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues is greater and mysterious.
Who was the First Person to Speak in Tongues in the Bible? Conclusion
The conclusion of the matter is this; the first person to speak in tongues is not known. Only the first group of people to speak in tongues is known.
Everyone who receives the gift of speaking in tongues is the first person to speak in tongues in some capacity and that is important.
Be wise and focus on the important thing.
Peace!