The Kingdom of Peace in Luke-Acts and What Glossolalia Has to Do with It

Abstract

The Acts 2 narrative is central for Pentecostal identity and theology, especially with its emphasis on speaking in tongues. In Luke’s overall narrative structure, Acts 2 also plays a crucial role in defining his vision of the kingdom of God as a kingdom of peace in contrast to other kingdoms during his time. However, since the term kingdom of God (as well as peace) refers to a concept that is part of the world of ideologies (utopia), it cannot be defined without language, for its final reality, like any reality in utopias, exists at first in linguistic symbols, hence, language is foundational for any understanding of the kingdom of God, and language (glossolalia) is, so the argument, a linguistic symbol of God’s kingdom of peace that renounces any form of violence for its realization. By understanding tongues as a linguistic symbol (sacrament) of the kingdom of peace, a Pentecostal missiology will always be fully incarnational and participating in the life of the other so that they may speak their own language (for themselves). Tongues also enable the ‘missionizing group’ to withhold from any form of power (verbal, emotional, physical, or status) that impairs the dignity and identity of the other.