1 Corinthians 14:1-25 - Spiritual Words for Spiritual Good

Introduction:

Good morning,

If you have your bibles let me invite you to open with me to 1 Corinthians 14.

We will begin reading in verse 1 and we will read all the way to verse 25.

1 Corinthians 14:1–25 ESV

Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. 2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. 3 On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 4 The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church. 5 Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up. 6 Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 7 If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played? 8 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 9 So with yourselves, if with your tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10 There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning, 11 but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 12 So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church. 13 Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. 15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also. 16 Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying? 17 For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being built up. 18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. 19 Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue. 20 Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. 21 In the Law it is written, “By people of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord.” 22 Thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers but for believers. 23 If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds? 24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.

Lets Pray

1 Corinthians 14:1 (ESV)

Pursue love….

Love in the local church is not something you stumble into accidentally.

It is something you pursue.

It is something you pursue even in the way you use your spiritual gifts when the church gathers together.

There are ways to focus only on yourself when the church gathers…

And there are ways to focus primarily on building others up in love when the church gathers…

And Paul makes this distinction by comparing two different spiritual gifts and how they are being used in the Corinthian Church.

We can gather from the context that the Corinthians have developed an unhealthy persepctive and practice of using a spiritual gift referred to as “speaking in tongues”

When Paul pleads for unity in the church in chapter 12 verse 10 he mentions the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues as his last example

In his illustration on the body of Christ in chapter 12, again tongues finds its place at the end of the list of gifts In verse 30.

And finally, In his plea for congregational love for one another in chapter 13, his first example of a useless spiritual gift without love is the gift of tongues.

1 Corinthians 13:1 ESV

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

This spiritual gift of speaking in tongues is apparently a hot topic in the church of Corinth

but what exactly is Paul referring to and how are we to understand this gift?

Now, I know there may be a variety of views on this represented even in this room.

This is a commonly debated topic and text of Scripture among many Christians,

but do recognize that this is not what we would call a primary doctrine on the level of first importance. There is room for disagreement here.

We can land at different places in our interpretation of this passage, and still be very happy church members together and we can serve together until we see Jesus face to face and we find out who was right.

but I am going to take several positions throughout my sermon and do the best I can to accurately portray what I believe Paul to be saying especially here in this particular passage.

Here is our path forward:

Two truths on the gift of tongues,

Two truths on the gift of prophecy,

Five Important Takeaways

Firstly, let’s define the gift of tongues.

#1 The Spiritual Gift of Tongues is a Way of Communing with God Through Words that are Spiritual but Unintelligible

Look with me at verse 2.

1 Corinthians 14:2 ESV

2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit.

To speak in tongues in this context then is not the same as the gift at Pentecost where the apostles spoke known languages for the people to understand the gospel in their own language.

What Paul addresses here is primarily for the purpose of personal prayer to God.

It is for the quiet places of stillness in the presence of God where someone with this particular gift can bear their soul before God in a special way that goes beyond their own human language.

It may be, though not certain, what Paul references briefly in Romans 8…

Romans 8:26 ESV

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

The gift of tongues here in 1 Corinthians seems to be a kind of Spiritual intercession that occurs in the moment of deep and concentrated prayer.

Its not that the person who has the gift of tongues completely empties their mind of meaning,

Rather the mind is filled with thanksgiving and worship and prayer..,

The overflow is a kind of spiritual speech that pours out from a depth of emotional love and dependence on God.

In fact, Paul warns against speaking in tongues without also being able to understand what you yourself are communicating and expressing to God.

If you have this particular gift of communing with God in this way,

he urges you to pray for a clear understanding of the kinds of things you are praying for

1 Corinthians 14:13–15 ESV

13 Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. 15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.

Paul does not forbid this gift of speaking in tongues, rather he aims to guide it.

I personally do not have this gift.

I struggle to pray In deep focused lengthy ways.

For me to be able to pray for any length of time I need to pray the Scriptures, or I need to pray through particular lists of requests.

The gift of speaking in tongues, however, seems to be tied to the unique ability to linger in the presence of the Lord in communion with him.

And Paul portrays this gift as a good thing

This kind of communion with God is personally advantageous.

It draws you into his presence,

it builds you up.

It increases your faith, and your strength, and your joy in the Lord.

1 Corinthians 14:4 (ESV)

4 The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself…

The apostle Paul apparently had this Spiritual gift, and he does not discourage anyone from exercising this gift.

1 Corinthians 14:18 ESV

18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.

In fact, Paul later warns against forbidding this gift.

1 Corinthians 14:39 ESV

39 So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.

This is a gift that few people seem to have but it is for their own spiritual good and nearness to God.

I can think of only four or five people in our church of over 160 members that pray to God in this way.

let me encourage you, if you do have this gift, use it to draw near to God in prayer.

If you are uniquely gifted to enjoy lingering in the presence of the Lord through lengthy prayer to the point of spiritual overflow like this…, seek to use that gift in the privacy of your home for your own spiritual good and for the sake of your prayers for others.

But if you don’t have that ability, thats ok.

Contrary to some Pentecostal and assemblies of God teaching…, This gift itself is absolutely not something that every Christian has or should have…

Paul has already made that clear.

1 Corinthians 12:30 ESV

30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?

Not everyone has this Gift.

The whole point of chapter 12 was that God sovereignly gifts his people with a variety of gifts so that not everyone is able to do the same thing in the same way.

In fact, there is good reason to believe that this gift is rare.

1 Corinthians is the only new testament letter that gives any instruction regarding this particular gift…, and there is no biblical teaching that suggests this gift should be common to every believer.

The primary reason that its getting mentioned here is that it is being abused And over-emphasized in the Corinthian church.

These few positive statements are scattered throughout a passage that is full of predominantly warnings against it’s misuse and abuse.

Because this spiritual gift is more obviously a supernatural manifestation of God’s presence…,

and because this gift is more easily either faked and/or flaunted in the midst of a congregation,

it is uniquely susceptible to misuse and abuse.

this brings us to Truth #2

#2 Without Interpretation the Gift of Tongues in the Gathered Church is a Sign of Judgment

Now that truth may seem intense, but I am using the argument that Paul is making.

Look with me at verse 6.

1 Corinthians 14:6–11 ESV

6 Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 7 If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played? 8 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 9 So with yourselves, if with your tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10 There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning, 11 but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me.

The point here is that the gift of tongues is not something to be done in corporate worship where those around you cannot understand what you are saying.

Exercising this gift in the gathering does not build anyone else up.

It might tear others down.

It makes outsiders feel like foreigners to the gospel message…,

like they are standing on the outside,

unable to receive salvation because they cannot understand what is being said.

When the people of Israel were put into a situation where they could not understand the language of those around them…, it was not a sign of salvation…, it was a sign of judgment.

Paul uses this analogy in this argument by quoting from the book of Isaiah.

Look at verse 21

1 Corinthians 14:21–23 ESV

21 In the Law it is written, “By people of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord.” 22 Thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers but for believers. 23 If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds?

So here is the illustration that Paul is using.…He quotes a judgment oracle in Isaiah.

Isaiah 28:11 ESV

11 For by people of strange lips and with a foreign tongue the Lord will speak to this people,

When the people of Israel were surrounded by Assyrians who spoke a foreign tongue….

They knew they were in trouble.

Judgment was upon them, not salvation.

Similarly, Paul makes the point…, if a non-believer enters a church gathering and they cannot understand what’s being said, they are a foreigner to the message of salvation, and judgment is upon them.

They will not come to faith in the good news of Jesus if what they hear in the gathering is unintelligible.

they will not come to eternal life unless the good news is spoken in intelligible words.

In fact, they will assume that you are out of your mind.

Therefore, the gift of tongues is rare gift primarily for private and personal communion with God, not for the public gathering of the church..

so Paul advocates that Christians pursue an alternative gifting when it comes to the public gathering.

He advocates for the gifting of prophecy.

Now we turn to

Two Truths About the Spiritual Gift of Prophesy:

beginning with a working definition.

#1 The Gift of Prophesy is the Gift of Speaking What God Reveals in Ways that are Understandable, Applicable, and Powerful

look with me at verses 2-3

1 Corinthians 14:2–3 ESV

2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. 3 On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation.

the gift of tongues is a gift of prayer to God,

while the gift of prophecy is a gift of speech to others

The gift of tongues is unintelligible

The gift of prophecy is understandable

Understandable

Prophecy is the gift of discerning God’s will and speaking in ways that people can easily understand.

Its a gift of speaking words that are especially applicable to a particular person or group in a particular moment.

Prophecy in 1 Corinthians chapter 14 is not about predicting the future…,

The spiritual gift of prophesy here is not the same thing as the Old Testament prophet who declared, ‘thus says the Lord.” We will discuss the differences a bit more later in this sermon and in next weeks.

This spiritual gift is about building up the people of God by speaking specific true things into their lives and situations.

Someone with this gift can often, but not always, sense and receive guidance from God and then discern how to speak that guidance to a person in a way that builds them up, encourages them, comforts them, or even convicts them.

They speak the right word at the right time.

They speak a supernaturally applicable word.

The gift of prophesy is not the same thing as the gift of teaching, though it can happen in the moment of teaching.

It is not the same thing as preaching though it can happen in the moment of preaching.

I don’t believe I have this particular gifting primarily, but I do believe that their are occasions where the Holy Spirit does this kind of thing while I am preaching.

There are moments in preparing to preach, where the Holy Spirit especially directs the writing of my sermon.

There are moments in my preaching where the Holy Spirit guides and directs me to say things I had not prepared to say or planned to say…., and I unknowingly speak into someone’s situation exactly what they needed to hear.

After service, they may say something like, “I felt as if he was speaking directly to me and to my situation.”

Some have asked after a sermon if I had knowledge about their week or their particular sin struggle…

That is the kind of thing the Holy Spirit of God does when the church gathers together.

He speaks through his people to his people.

This is what we pray for every week.

We want God to speak not just in the sermon moment, but we want him to speak through the songs we sing, the prayers we pray, the Scriptures we read, and the conversations we have with Spirit-filled people.

We want God to speak through others to our souls.

And We want to be so in tune with God’s Spirit that we are used by him to speak to others.

Paul says that we all should pursue this particular gifting,

Though we cannot control when it happens, we should long for it.

1 Corinthians 14:1 ESV

1 Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.

1 Corinthians 14:5 ESV

5 Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.

1 Corinthians 14:12 ESV

12 So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church.

All this leads to Truth #2 about the gift of prophesy

#2 The Gift of Prophesy is Unique to Some, but Should Be Pursued by All

In other words there are going to be some individuals in the church who more uniquely and more regularly discern the Spirit’s leading in special ways, and who will often use that gifting to speak truth into the lives of others…,

But just because there are some who are uniquely gifted in this way, does not mean that we should all just leave it to those people to build up the church.

Paul is urging us to pursue such things and to strive for such things.

But how do we do that?

Well, Paul has said the most excellent way is love.

We walk in an ever deepening love for God and love for others,

and we seek to express that love through words.

We love our God through prayer, through obedience, through studying his revealed word in Scripture.

We pray for God to fill us with his Spirit in such a way that we might see things the way he sees things, and that we might say the things he would have us say things.

And we love people in our church with a love that desires their most ultimate good.

And as we express love for them, we begin to speak true things to them.

And sometimes, in a way that is totally out of our control,

and only on the basis of God’s sovereign will…,

sometimes, God will reveal very specific things to us,

or he will lead us to say very specific things, in our attempts to show love…

and then we will find that it was a prophetic spiritual moment of God’s sovereign intervention…, and we will see the sweetness of the fruit of his grace in using that gift in and through us.

We should long for that to happen throughout the life of our church.. a people so full of his presence, that God speaks directly through them to one another.

The church then becomes this walking, breathing, organic community of miracle working power…. where God’s word lives in his people and flows from his people when they gather together.

Listen to Paul as he envisions what happens when an unbeliever walks into a gathering like this:

1 Corinthians 14:24–25 ESV

24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.

When a church walks in step with the Holy Spirit of God….,

When they are united by their love…,

When they are saturated in prayer and the word of God…,

God builds his church by speaking through his people.

Unbelievers are convicted of sin.

the secrets of their heart are disclosed,

they sense the very presence of God in and through God’s people

and they fall on their face and they worship.

May God do this in our midst…

May we come to our gathering here at St. Rose Community Church praying that God would meet with us in this way…,

So that unbelievers and outsiders will fall on their face and worship God and declare… God is really among you.

Brothers and sisters I want our church to depend on God

I want us to be desperate to see the glory of God’s work in us and through us.

I long for those moments where everyone knows and believes God is really among us.

These moments don’t happen all the time.., but we should long for those moments.

Paul’s whole missionary life came out of one of those moments:

It was one of these prophetic moments where The Holy Spirit spoke to an entire church and the missionary movement to the Gentiles began.

Acts 13:2–3 ESV

2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

No doubt this moment in history was unique, but the gift of the Holy Spirit’s guiding presence is active still today and should be something we long for.

Truth #2 The Gift of Prophesy is Unique to Some, but Should Be Pursued by All

Now for five important takeaways:

Conclusion:

#1 Pursue Love

Remember that Paul prioritizes first the primary motivation of love.

We have to prioritize our love for God and our love for others more than any desire to experience or participate in any type of spiritual gift.

Building up the body of Christ in love is our first order of business or else any pursuit of any spiritual gift is vain.

#2 Pursue Spiritual Gifts

It is ok to pray for and long for supernatural displays of God’s Spirit.

I pray for a certain degree of prophetic, spirit-filled, unction every single week before I preach.

I long for it.

I wish that every sermon was like fire from heaven that opened the eyes of the lost and dying sinner.

Its ok to pray for that.

but in a way that trusts God’s sovereign hand.

#3 Trust God’s Will in His Spiritual Gift Distribution

You can ask God for things in prayer, but you cannot twist his arm or force him to do anything by any formula or process.

He is God and we are not.

He gets to decide how and when and where and through whom he expands his kingdom.

He owes us nothing, but has already given us everything in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We aren’t sovereign over our spiritual gifts.

He is… so we are faithful to what he commands, and we trust him with the results.

#4 Test Everything with Scripture

We do not trust something to be authoritative just because it sounds or feels spiritual.

Though God may reveal things to his people for the good of the church.

He is not establishing any more inspired apostles who speak on behalf of Christ in infallible ways for the founding of the church.

No spiritual person speaks any kind of spirit-filled word that in anyway contradicts or goes beyond the Holy Scriptures that God has given us.

All things, especially seemingly spiritual things, should be tested

1 Thessalonians 5:19–21 ESV

19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good.

And what do we use as our standard for testing?

We use what Peter calls the fully confirmed prophetic word, the Scriptures:

2 Peter 1:19–21 ESV

19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

God Speaks…

He speaks through Holy Spirit filled people in our lives, but people are fallible.

Sometimes you can be faced with a decision and you can have two groups of Christians you love who are counseling you in two different directions.

And God sovereignly orchestrates those moments that everyone might be humbled,

that everyone might get on their knees before God in prayer and fasting,

And that everyone might go to their bibles for clear principles of what God does and how he does it.

God clearly speaks through the Scriptures… so lets live in the most fully confirmed Word of God before anything else so that we might know God’s voice when he directs us in particular situations.

We want to be the kind of people who know our savior’s voice.

#5 Cherish the Gracious Voice of God

The infinite God of the universe owes us nothing but judgment.

He sent Jesus to die for our sins, that we might be forgiven.

Through faith not only are we forgiven, but we enter into an active relationship with an infinite God through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Through faith we know God,

We are known by God,

He loves us, is present with us, and we hear his voice through prayer and meditation upon his word.

I’ll close with this word from Jesus and a prayer that we might cherish the voice of God:

John 10:27–28 ESV

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Praise God we are a people who can know the voice of God.

Lets Pray

If you are an unbeliever let me speak to you for just a moment as we close.

This gathering of people you have found yourself in is a miracle gathering of people.

God is really among us.

We are all sinners against a Holy God.

We don’t deserve his forgiveness.

We don’t deserve friendship with this God.

We deserve his wrath.

But in love, he sent Jesus to take his wrath upon himself.

Jesus, the son of God, lived a perfect life, and he took our place on the cross.

he paid our penalty.

he made a way for us to be forgiven when we place our faith in him as savior and Lord.