“What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also…” — 1 Corinthians 14:15

The Atmosphere of New Covenant Communion

Having established that the believer’s life is the dwelling place of God—and that praying in the Spirit is the organic reality of that life rather than a separate act—we must now distinguish it from praying with the spirit, as Paul admonished. Throughout the New Testament, believers are commanded to pray in the Spirit, yet Paul specifically highlights praying with the spirit. Though these expressions sound similar, they are not identical. Confusing the two has caused significant misunderstanding regarding prayer, spiritual gifts, and particularly the role of tongues in the life of a believer.

Earlier we observed that praying in the Spirit describes the entire atmosphere of New Covenant communion. Jesus declared that the Father seeks those who worship Him in spirit and in truth because God is Spirit. Under the New Covenant, believers no longer approach God through earthly sanctuaries but through the indwelling Holy Spirit. Paul therefore commands believers to pray always in the Spirit, while Jude exhorts us to build ourselves up, praying in the Holy Ghost. In each case, the emphasis is not on a particular method of prayer but upon the sphere in which all communion with God now occurs. The believer lives in the Spirit, walks in the Spirit, worships in the Spirit, and therefore prays in the Spirit.

First Corinthians 14 introduces a different expression.

Paul writes, “If I pray with the spirit, my understanding is unfruitful.”

Notice carefully that he does not say in the Spirit, but with the spirit.

The difference is subtle yet profoundly important. Praying with the spirit refers to the participation of the regenerated human spirit in prayer. It describes prayer that proceeds beyond the activity of the natural mind. The human spirit, now made alive by the Holy Spirit, becomes actively engaged in communion with God. The emphasis is no longer the sphere of prayer but the faculty through which prayer is expressed. Scripture consistently distinguishes between the spirit of man and the soul of man. The mind reasons, analyzes, and forms words through understanding.

The spirit, however, communes with God at a deeper level because it has been made alive by the Holy Spirit. Prayer with the spirit therefore reaches beyond intellectual formulation into spiritual communion. Paul demonstrates this distinction by contrasting two forms of prayer. “I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also.” He does not oppose the two. Rather, he affirms both. Prayer with understanding involves the conscious participation of the mind. Prayer with the spirit involves the active participation of the regenerated spirit. Mature prayer embraces both dimensions because God has redeemed the whole person.

This distinction also explains why Paul carefully regulates spiritual gifts in the Corinthian assembly. His concern was never to discourage spiritual expression but to preserve order and edification. Spiritual experiences that bypass understanding may strengthen the individual believer, yet corporate worship requires intelligibility so that the entire body may be built up.

Understanding this distinction prepares us for an even more important question. If praying with the spirit is not identical to praying in the Spirit, then what role does the gift of tongues actually play in prayer? Is every prayer with the spirit necessarily spoken in tongues? Or does Scripture present tongues as one particular expression of a much larger theology of spiritual communion?

For only after distinguishing the atmosphere of prayer from the expression of prayer can we properly understand the place of tongues within the life of the believer.

Further Reading: John 4:23–24; Rom 8:14–27; 1 Corinthians 2:9–16, 14:13–20; Ephesians 6:18; Jude 20