Speaking in Tongues is not Evidence

Someone asked if speaking in tongues was the witness that one was born again. Here was my answer:

There is no scripture that says speaking in tongues is evidence of salvation. Why would God need any evidence, He already knows. However, God gives us the fruit of the Spirit so we can live a Christ-like life. Our lifestyle and our character which are the character qualities of Christ are our lifelong witness.

Galatians 5:22-23 "22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

This is how believers know one another, by the fruit.

Matthew 7:16-20

"16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thornbushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will know them by their fruits."

It is not true that one believer cannot know the heart of another person who says they are a believer. We do not know them by their outward deeds as much as by their character qualities. Their deeds often express what's in the heart, however, a person with bad character can do good deeds fooling people. We must not believe the good deeds alone, it must match with an overall lifestyle and attitude to be accurate.

We cannot know if an unsaved person will be going to hell or not because they might repent in the future, but we can say, they have no fruit, they are not born again and will go to hell if they do not repent and trust in Christ.