1Corinthians 14B. Our study of spiritual gifts in this letter has been building to this moment

Transcription

1 1Crinthians 14B Our study f spiritual gifts in this letter has been building t this mment Paul s taught us abut hw they arrive, when they arrive, why they arrive and why they must ne day cease As well, Paul has cautined the church against misusing gifts r misunderstanding their purpse He s als encuraged the church t seek fr the greater gifts s that the bdy might enjy the mst f Gd s lve But nw in chapter 14, Paul will address the specific errrs this church has been making in their understanding and use f spiritual gifts In particular, this church has develped an unhealthy fascinatin with the gift f speaking f tngues They prbably saw the gift at wrk in Paul r in new believers in the church, and it caught their attentin Later, after Paul left twn, sme began teaching that this gift was the mst imprtant spiritual gift, causing thers t wish fr it themselves Eventually, the entire church was invlved in an in apprpriate and cunterfeit versin f the gift, hping t create in their flesh what Gd had nt chsen t d fr them in the Spirit Paul has heard f these prblems, f curse, s he is writing t crrect them S nw Paul is ready t expse the mistakes and right the wrngs Last week he intrduced this final sectin with a cmparisn between the mst imprtant gift available t the church with the least imprtant gift The mst imprtant gift available within the church was the gift f prphecy Only the apstlic gift is higher, and there were n apstles in Crinth in the mment Paul wrte this letter The least imprtant gift was the gift f tngues 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 1Crinthians 14B 2 f 13 1Cr. 14:4 One wh speaks in a tngue edifies himself; but ne wh prphesies edifies the church. 1Cr. 14:5 Nw I wish that yu all spke in tngues, but even mre that yu wuld prphesy; and greater is ne wh prphesies than ne wh speaks in tngues, unless he interprets, s that the church may receive edifying. Paul supprts his cntentin that prphesy was a greater gift than tngues n the basis f their ability t edify in the church The gift f tngues wrks t yield edificatin in nly the persn wh speaks, because nt even the ne speaking knws what he s saying S when smene uses the gift in tngues, the edificatin pprtunity is limited t nly ne persn, and then nly in a very limited way The speaker is encuraged t see the Spirit wrking in them And there is a strengthening f the spirit whenever the Spirit f Gd is shwn wrking in us Grdn Fee cmmented n this feature f gifts Cntrary t the pinin f many, spiritual edificatin can take place in ways ther than thrugh the crtex f the brain. Paul believed in an immediate cmmuning with Gd by means f the S/spirit that smetimes bypassed the mind; [but] in church he will have nly what can als cmmunicate t ther believers thrugh their minds." The gift f tngues can bring edificatin t the speaker at a spiritual level, but by itself it lacks the ability t transfer that edificatin t thers But the gift f prphecy reaches many ears with pwerful spiritual knwledge and spiritual insight Nt nly is the speaker edified by what he has been given t reveal, but he can edify many mre by sharing it S the church is t seek after thse wh can bless them with prphecy far mre ften than seeking after smene wh can speak in tngues In fact, the church shuld never trade the pprtunity t be edified by Gd s wrd fr the limited edificatin f speaking in tngues In v.5 Paul makes a statement that sets up the rest f the chapter 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 1Crinthians 14B 3 f 13 He says he wished that that culd all speak in tngues Ntice Paul chse the wrd wish He said he wished that everyne in the church culd speak in tngues, which means that nt everyne did speak in tngues If all did speak in tngues, then Paul wuld simply have said, I m glad that yu can all speak in tngues... S, self-evidently, nt everyne in the church pssessed this gift, which is cnsistently with what Paul has said earlier We nly pssess the gift that Gd assigns us And He assigns a diversity f gifts in the bdy S why des Paul says he wishes they culd all have the thing they desired? Paul is speaking t the church like a father speaking t a child wh has an unrealistic Christmas wish list Sn, I wish yu culd have a dinsaur fr Christmas. Daughter, I wish yu culd have a pny. Paul s sympathetic fr their desire, but they have unreasnable and immature desires Cnsider hw Paul finishes the thught by saying that his greater desire fr them wuld be they all culd prphesy It s n mre pssible fr the church t all prphesy than it is that they all speak in tngues, but if he culd give them smething, it wuld be prphesy In ther wrds, if Paul had a magic wand and culd use it t assign every believer in Crinth a specific spiritual gift, Paul says he wuldn t chse t award every believer the gift f tngues... Instead, he wuld chse t award the gift f prphecy, because it s the greatest gift available in the bdy f Christ He wants what s best fr them, and like a child with an unrealistic Christmas wish, the church was seeking fr the wrng pririty 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 1Crinthians 14B 4 f 13 Paul s pint isn t that such a magic wand exists, that believers can actually btain the spiritual gift they want Like the child wh wishes fr a dinsaur r a pny, it was unrealistic fr the Crinthians t want fr a cmmn gift But even it were pssible, their chice f the gift f tngues was misplaced Instead, if a cmmn gifting were pssible, they shuld have desired fr prphecy It s a far mre pwerful edifying frce in the bdy f Christ In fact, Paul adds that unless an interpreter is present in the bdy, the gift f speaking in tngues hlds n prspect fr edifying anyne beynd the speaker alne As we cvered last week, the gift f speaking in tngues is the ability fr a persn t speak in a freign language they d nt understand The gift f interpretatin f tngues is the ability t understand a freign language that the persn cannt naturally speak When the gift f tngues perates with the gift f interpretatin, the message f the speech can be relayed t the cngregatin But withut the gift f interpretatin present, the gift f tngues lses any chance f edifying anyne beynd the speaker Finally, ntice at the end f v.5 Paul says that the ne wh prphesies is greater than the ne wh speaks in tngues He s reiterating the pririty f prphecy ver ther gifts, especially tngues And again the basis fr that pririty is measured in the degree f edificatin that takes place in each case S mving frward in the chapter, Paul gives specific instructins fr the use f gifts in the bdy accrding t this test Gifts are t be used in a lgical, disciplined way t ensure edificatin by placing gifts in their prper pririty While still making pprtunity fr every gift t perate within reasnable limits 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 1Crinthians 14B 5 f 13 And the first set f rules regard hw the gift f tngues may be practiced in the church gathering 1Cr. 14:6 But nw, brethren, if I cme t yu speaking in tngues, what will I prfit yu unless I speak t yu either by way f revelatin r f knwledge r f prphecy r f teaching? 1Cr. 14:7 Yet even lifeless things, either flute r harp, in prducing a sund, if they d nt prduce a distinctin in the tnes, hw will it be knwn what is played n the flute r n the harp? 1Cr. 14:8 Fr if the bugle prduces an indistinct sund, wh will prepare himself fr battle? 1Cr. 14:9 S als yu, unless yu utter by the tngue speech that is clear, hw will it be knwn what is spken? Fr yu will be speaking int the air. 1Cr. 14:10 There are, perhaps, a great many kinds f languages in the wrld, and n kind is withut meaning. 1Cr. 14:11 If then I d nt knw the meaning f the language, I will be t the ne wh speaks a barbarian, and the ne wh speaks will be a barbarian t me. 1Cr. 14:12 S als yu, since yu are zealus f spiritual gifts, seek t abund fr the edificatin f the church. T begin, Paul describes a hypthetical situatin in a church gatherings in which the gift f tngues is put t use Paul says if he shuld cme int a church gathering in Crinth with a gift f tngues, he asks hw culd his presence in the gathering prfit anyne? By prfit, Paul means spiritual benefit Paul says his spiritual benefit t the bdy was dependent n sharing smething meaningful with the rest f the bdy He wuld need t share a revelatin f Gd, a piece f spiritual knwledge, a prphecy, a teaching... He must share smething understandable, smething that can be received and used by the hearers Otherwise, his presence and his gifting is useless t the bdy Paul s drawing upn the very purpse f a gathering The church is gathered fr the same reasn a basketball team gathers n a curt fr practice 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 1Crinthians 14B 6 f 13 Basketball players can practice by themselves t a degree, dribbling, shting, rebunding But unless the team gathers, there are many aspect f the game that simply can t be perfected withut teamwrk Likewise, Christians can wrk alne in develping disciplines f prayer, study, and the like But there are many aspect f ur Christian walk that simply can develp prperly withut teamwrk We need the gifts thers pssess t rund ut ur spiritual develpment But imagine if a basketball player shwed up at practice and then prceeded t stand in the crner f the gym dribbling by himself Of if he std at the ppsite end f the curt shting free thrws alne What if he never participated in the practice in such a way that he made the ther players better r they helped him? That s the prblem with a church that placed emphasis n the gift f tngues at the expense f ther gifts like prphecy It s like a gym full f basket players all dribbling alne and by themselves S in v.7 Paul uses his wn analgies...instead f basketball, he uses musical instruments He says even lifeless musical instruments like flutes r harps can nly benefit us if they play in harmny If they were t play their wn thing in the midst f an rchestra, they wuld disrupt the gathering But if they play smething sensible, they cmmunicate smething beneficial in cncert with the ther instruments And a bugle nly serves a purpse in battle if it plays a recgnizable tune Sldiers were tld when t attack and when t retreat, when t flank r when t hld psitin by specific bugle calls 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 1Crinthians 14B 7 f 13 The bugle had the ptential t aid the sldiers but nly s lng as it cmmunicates smething useful Then Paul makes his applicatin t the use f tngues in the gathering He says in v.9 that unless the speech we utter in the gathering is clear, then wh will understand it? The answer is n ne Paul says t speak withut being understandable is t speak int the air He is referring t sund waves He means that that sund may leave ur muth, but it stays in the air It never lands n anyne s ears in a useful way It never enters the brain It s simply lst in the air Paul s speaking abut tw situatins, bth prblematic, but ne is wrse than the ther First, Paul s alluding t a false frm f this spiritual gift, a cunterfeit With s much interest in speaking in tngues in the Crinthian church, there was a peer pressure fr believers t acquire this gift Since we knw that a spiritual gift is nt available except t thse Gd chses t give it, any desire t btain a gift is ging t be a fruitless desire Nevertheless, if the pressure is great enugh, a Christian may resrt t cunterfeiting the gift t feel accepted r apprved by their peers Cunterfeiting a speaking gift is impssible and easy at the same time On the ne hand, it s impssible t fake any spiritual gift in a meaningful way If a spiritual gift frm Gd culd be btained thrugh the wrks f ur flesh, then what it say abut spiritual gifts? 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 1Crinthians 14B 8 f 13 The value f a spiritual gift wuld lse it s significance if it was within man s ability t create it in his wn pwer It wuld lse it s ability t glrify Gd S it s literally impssible fr smene t fake speaking in anther language If yu dn t knw anther language, yu aren t ging t fl anyne by trying t imitate it If I dn t knw Spanish, I can t fake it by taking English wrds and putting the letter at the end (i.e., dg-, cat -, etc.) It s silly On the ther hand, if I didn t realize that speaking in tngues means speaking in a real human language, then I might be fled int thinking that any frm f unintelligible babbling was speaking n tngues In that case, faking it wuld be very easy I see ne persn babbling in repetitive nnsense syllables, and I just mimic the behavir with my wn mantra f babbling Just like that, I m tld I have spken in tngues, and in ignrance I accept what I m tld And that s what had begun happening inside the church in Crinth Paul alludes t this behavir in v.10 when he reminds the church that there are many kinds f human language in the wrld Gd prduced an unknwn number f languages at the Twer f Babel and mst cntinue t this day But every human language pssesses meaning, Paul says Every language has as it s purpse the cmmunicatin f thught, and s they all pssess structure, syntax, and vcabulary In ther wrds, there is n tngue that cnsists entirely f nnsense babbling The secnd situatin Paul s addressing is the inherent limitatin f the gift f speaking f tngues 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 1Crinthians 14B 9 f 13 Even when it s used in a genuine way, the gift f tngues is still limited by it s nature t edifying nly the speaker Since n ne can understand what s being said, the gift f tngues has n edifying purpse in the gathering f believers Ntice in v.11 Paul says that when smene speaks t me in a language I can t understand, they are like a Barbarian t me and vice versa A Barbarian was a Greek term fr any nn-greek speaking persn Paul s pint if there is n fellwship taking place between peple wh can t understand ne anther It s like an instrument playing ff tune in an rchestra Or the basketball player practicing by himself in the gym The gift f tngues has individual benefit, but it s nt a team sprt It has n edifying purpse in the gathering T cnclude, Paul says in v.12 that since the church was zealus t pssess and use their spiritual gifts, Paul says make yur gal t see the greatest pssible edificatin in the church He says make sure the gifts abund fr the edificatin f the church Cnsider hw t put them t use in a way that ensure the greatest pssible edificatin takes place This shuld be the aim f every church, every gathering, every time Why d we spend rughly half f ur main gathering in study f Gd s wrd? Because there is simply n better way t edify the church But neither is it the nly way, s we als make time fr ther gifts t wrk in the gathering Paul isn t asking fr ne gift t be used t the exclusin f all thers, but he expects the church t give preference t greater gifts 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 1Crinthians 14B 10 f 13 Therefre, since the gift f tngues has a very limited pwer t edify, Paul places severe restrictins n its use in any Christian gathering 1Cr. 14:13 Therefre let ne wh speaks in a tngue pray that he may interpret. 1Cr. 14:14 Fr if I pray in a tngue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 1Cr. 14:15 What is the utcme then? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind als; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind als. 1Cr. 14:16 Otherwise if yu bless in the spirit nly, hw will the ne wh fills the place f the ungifted say the Amen at yur giving f thanks, since he des nt knw what yu are saying? 1Cr. 14:17 Fr yu are giving thanks well enugh, but the ther persn is nt edified. 1Cr. 14:18 I thank Gd, I speak in tngues mre than yu all; 1Cr. 14:19 hwever, in the church I desire t speak five wrds with my mind s that I may instruct thers als, rather than First, if a Christian pssesses the gift f tngues and desires t cntribute t the gathering with their gift, they are cmmanded t pray fr the pprtunity t interpret their wn speech The fact that interpretatin may be btained thrugh prayer in this manner demnstrates that interpretatin is nt a distinct spiritual gift Instead, the gifts f tngues is a general categry f gifts that include the ability t speak and/r interpret freign languages S a persn with the gift f tngues may have the ability t speak in a freign tngue and at ther times they may pssess the ability t interpret They might be mved by the Spirit t interpret smene else s freign speech Or as Paul says here, they can be mved by the Spirit t understand their wn freign tngue Therefre, Paul tells all wh pssess these gifts f tngues t pray fr interpretatin befre they use their gift in the gathering The reasn they shuld pray int his way is s they might ensure their gift edifies thers Paul uses himself as an example saying that if he shuld speak in tngues withut the ability t interpret his wn speech, his spirit is edified but his mind is left ut f the lp 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 1Crinthians 14B 11 f 13 As Grdn Fee said earlier, there is an edifying effect in the spirit that desn t transfer t the brain S in v.15 Paul says what shuld be the utcme then? In ther wrds, what wuld be the better alternative? The better alternative is t have bth ur spirit and mind engaged in the spiritual service, allwing bth t be edified S Paul preferred t pray in a way that bth his spirit and mind were engaged He preferred t sing in a language that bth his spirit and mind culd understand and agree with In ther wrds, Paul says even if he might pray r sing in a freign tngue, he wuld prefer t pray and sing in a recgnizable language s that thers wuld be edified thrugh his service Ntice in v.16 Paul says that the effect f praying r singing in a cmmn language is t trigger an Amen frm the thers in the gathering Ministry is happening in that mment, as evidenced by anther persn s agreement in the expressin Amen It means smene is feeling blessed at my display f faith and wrship It means smene is learning smething thrugh my teaching It means smene else is mved t bless the name f the Lrd because f what He did thrugh me That s edificatin But edificatin depends n cmmunicatin, s unless we are blessed t be able t interpret ur wn speech, we shuld refrain frm sharing it We might still exercise ur gift f tngues in private, because it still brings us persnal benefit In v.17 Paul says it s well enugh fr us t give Gd thanks thrugh ur gift But it ges n where else 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 1Crinthians 14B 12 f 13 As an apstle, Paul pssessed the gift f tngues, s he uses himself as an example f the prper use f the gift In fact, Paul says he was glad t have the gift mre than anyne else in the church Paul makes this claim t establish his credibility n this issue His mtive fr placing restrictins n the use f the gift was nt spite r jealusy On the cntrary, Paul was the greatest practitiner f tngues in the church, he says Nevertheless, Paul restrained his use f the gift In fact, he says he wuld rather speak five wrds in an understandable tngue rather than speak 10,000 wrds in a freign tngue He s exaggerating t make a pint, f curse, but it s still a very strng statement Paul s emphasizing that there is virutally n value t be fund in allwing smene t speak in a freign tngue in the bdy during the gathering If smene else has even five intelligent wrds t ffer the cngregatin, that persn shuld be given pririty ver a persn with the gift f tngues Because the pprtunity t edify is entirely in favr f the understandable speech When we return, we ll finish the chapter lking at hw Paul instructs the church t restre rder t a service that s deterirated int a free-fr-all We ll learn that rder and purpse must reign But in the meantime, if yu shuld have an experience tday in a church where the gift f tngues is suppsedly in use, remember Paul s cunsel in the first half f chapter 14 Is the speech a true freign language r repetitive babbling sunds? If it s babbling, it s nt a result f the Spirit; it s just the flesh deceived int a mimicking behavir 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 1Crinthians 14B 13 f 13 And if yu re ever in a church where yu ve been pressured t jin in t such behavir, then cnsider Paul s wrds Cnsider whether this is a place yu shuld cngregate Fr if the church has ignred such clear instructin in scripture n this tpic, where else have they been deceived? We must use the discernment we ve been given by the Spirit 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.