Sermon Tone Analysis
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Where are the words of knowledge, the prophesy, the healings the miracles the speaking in tongues today?
Sure, some charismatic churches today claim to be demonstrating supernatural, miraculous, spirit-filled, displays of these gifts.
but even they don’t compete with Corinth.
By chapter 14, Paul is so overwhelmed by the endless displays of spiritual gifts that they display,
he has to give them some points of ‘good ordered’ to hold them back
You can’t stop these guys!
This is a church on Fire - the Fire of the Spirit.
We attended a church in South Africa that claimed to have raised a women from the dead,
they held huge healing events,
Everyone apparently spoke in tongues - if you couldn’t you weren’t as spiritual - you were missing out!
I was regularaly told - I’m missing out.
We didn’t stay long at that church.
Have I been missing out for 43 years?
Are you, we missing out today?
Isn’t it a little ironic - that this scripture passage is the one used by many churches today to say - you’re missing out.
When this passage actually makes precisely - the opposite point.
If you are able to say ‘Jesus is Lord’ - you have the HS.
He very much fills your heart and your life.
I’ve called this section:
Speaking by the Spirit
We know what Paul means,
If we have repented for our sin before God, trusting in the death and resurection and the future glorious return of Jesus for eternal life - then only the HS can enable us to do that!
It is only by the indwelling of the HS that anyone can say
such powerful and comforting words.
‘Jesus is Lord.’
How those words must be echoing around the hearts of Ukrainian Christians this last fortnight.
Jesus is Lord.
They, are speaking by the Spirit - for they cannot truly believe those words without the Spirit.
Or when life is triumphant, great blessings have come and we are able to shout for joy
Jesus is Lord
The HS empowered you to say that.
Don’t be uninformed says Paul
- there are no 2 categories of Christian,
no second blessing,
no extra topping up of the Spirit in our hearts.
The Spirit is a person, once he entres your heart he’s in.
The Power of God has awakened your soul,
and we can speak his words..
And His words say what He is all about - and that is exhulting Jesus:
so we say:
Jesus is Lord.
Every single Christian has been filled by the Spirt to speak by the Spirit.
No other miracle or sign is required - other than the sign of salvation which is true belief in Jesus as Lord.
Paul uses another common phrase, often misunderstood today in v13.
Baptised by the Spirit
You see Receiving the Spirit at Conversion - baptises us into one body of Christ.
The Corinthians (and I might suggest this is a danger of todays Charismatic church) is to imply a sense of hiracy within Christianity - based on an individuals display of the Spirit’s gifts.
But Paul’s point is not that Baptism of the Spirit segregates you into different camps of spiritual giftedness,
but quite the opposite -
You receive One Spirit to Speak Jesus is Lord - and by that one Spirit you are baptised into One body to love each other equally.
Rather than elevating certain gifts or manifestations of the Spirit - Paul wants to level the playing field for us all.
So you might in Corinth have been able to miraculously heal someone, or, you might be serving tea and coffee after the service, or you might be caring for someone who is mourning, or stacking the chairs.
The healer is not greater than the server, and the server is not lesser than the worker, and the worker is not greater than the miracle worker.
If any Christian does something to build up the local church - they are only able to do so by virtue of the HS’s work in their life.
Of course a non-Christian can stack chairs, but they can’t do it selflessly for The Lord Jesus,
in a way that builds up the church.
There are other forces and motivations at work.
Elsewhere in the Bible Paul talks about the gifts of hospitality or administration for example (although I would put the gift of administration in the miraculous category!).
The point is, all are equal - All that we are and have been given freely by God to serve the church
- whether it appears to be miraculous or ordinary - all is the Spirit’s work to build up the local church..
The whole illustration of the body made of many parts emphasizes this point:
I’m not a preacher, so I don’t belong to the church - I’m not impressive enough!
Rubbish - you’re truly essential and valuable to us all - why?
Because every part of our physical bodies is important (apart from perhaps your appendix - but we get Paul’s point)
I don’t preach becasue I’m more spiritually gifted than a helper in Diggers - we are just differently gifted
- although you may want to debate my gifting..
Kids drive me mad!
You might be nervous to speak to a crowd.
I’m a foot - you’re a hand.
i think we all know what Paul’s getting!
We are baptised by the HS into the one body in Christ -
And That means a few things.
1 - Do not look down (or up) at others - we are all gifted by the same Spirit to love each other.
look to Jesus as Lord.
2 - It means we must attend church - a Christian is someone who has been baptised into the body.
At worst If you don’t come then perhaps you’re not Spirit filled.
Or at best if you don’t come often you’re detaching yourself from your body!
3 - It also means we come to church to serve and build up the body.
We’re not consumers, or observers - we are the body - each part must play it’s part.
So - now - onto the the elephant in the room...
or you might argue the elephant not in the room..
Charismatic gifts of the Spirit
Charistmaitc is the origional Greek word for gift In v4
Are we missing out?
Have we forgotten something,
Are we denying this particular work of the Spirit here at GCWP, or at the millions of reformed, or conservative, churches, bible schools across our world?
Well I hope you’re not surprised to hear me say, no - absolutely not.
We’ve already seen how we are all filled with the spirit if we are able to declare that Jesus is Lord.
So what is going on here in Corinth - and why is is different today?
In scripture miraculous ‘signs and wonders’ have marked significant changes or times or individual people in God’s salvation history.
The plagues in Egypt and the miracles of provision in the wilderness - marked the beginning of God’s new nation and people.
Elijah the prophet, in the face of near eradication of all of God’s prophets performs miracles to restore the glory of God in the face of defeat.
Jesus - comes with a new covenant - to complete salvation for all who truly repent and believe.
We would be surprised if Jesus and his time didn’t come with signs and wonders.
So around Jesus - around the greatest development in salvation history we have an explosion of signs and wonders.
The apostles are all given the ability to perform great and unquestionable miracles.
Even in Corinth - there was recognition that the apostles had another level of gifting..
For example in Paul’s next letter to them he writes..
But On top of all that, there also appears to be something else going on in the wider church at this significant time.
Great visions - such as John’s account in Revelation
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