Building the Church Through Love and Spiritual Gifts
Summary
In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul addresses the Corinthian church's fascination with spiritual gifts, particularly the gifts of prophecy and speaking in tongues. The Corinthians were enamored with the more extravagant gifts, associating them with spiritual status. However, Paul emphasizes that all spiritual gifts are manifestations of the Holy Spirit and are given to all believers for the common good. He likens the church to a body, where every part is essential, and stresses that the most important aspect of any gift is that it is used in love.
Paul highlights that while it is good to desire spiritual gifts, the focus should be on those that build up the church. He contrasts prophecy and tongues, explaining that prophecy is more beneficial for the church because it edifies, encourages, and consoles the congregation. Prophecy involves declaring God's words with authority, which strengthens and equips the church. In contrast, speaking in tongues, unless interpreted, benefits only the individual and not the congregation as a whole.
Paul further explains that the profitability of spiritual gifts is measured by their constructiveness, clarity, and ability to bring conviction. Constructiveness refers to how a gift builds up the church, clarity ensures that the message is understood by all, and conviction leads to repentance and worship. Paul argues that prophecy fulfills these criteria better than tongues, as it communicates God's truth clearly and powerfully, leading to the edification of the entire church.
Ultimately, Paul encourages the Corinthians to pursue love and earnestly desire spiritual gifts that are profitable for the church. He urges them to focus on building up the body of Christ, emphasizing that the church is not just a place for rituals but a community where each member contributes to the growth and maturity of the whole. By using their gifts in love, believers can create a vibrant, thriving church that glorifies God and impacts the world.
Key Takeaways:
1. The Importance of Love in Spiritual Gifts: Paul emphasizes that love is the most important aspect of any spiritual gift. While gifts like prophecy and tongues are valuable, they must be exercised in love to truly benefit the church. Love is the enduring quality that ensures gifts are used for the common good and not for personal status. [10:45]
2. Prophecy vs. Tongues: Paul contrasts prophecy and tongues, highlighting that prophecy is more beneficial for the church because it edifies, encourages, and consoles the congregation. Prophecy involves declaring God's words with authority, which strengthens and equips the church, while tongues, unless interpreted, benefit only the individual. [16:37]
3. Constructiveness, Clarity, and Conviction: The profitability of spiritual gifts is measured by their constructiveness, clarity, and ability to bring conviction. Constructiveness builds up the church, clarity ensures understanding, and conviction leads to repentance and worship. Prophecy fulfills these criteria better than tongues, as it communicates God's truth clearly and powerfully. [25:51]
4. Maturity in Spiritual Understanding: Paul urges the Corinthians to grow in maturity, moving beyond a fascination with extravagant gifts to a deeper understanding of their purpose. Spiritual maturity involves recognizing the value of gifts that build up the church and contribute to its overall health and strength. [35:52]
5. The Church as a Community: Paul envisions the church as a vibrant community where each member contributes to the growth and maturity of the whole. By using their gifts in love, believers can create a thriving church that glorifies God and impacts the world. The church is not just a place for rituals but a community where each member is valued and indispensable. [39:44]
Youtube Chapters:
- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:30] - Introduction to 1 Corinthians 14
- [02:15] - The Challenge of Spiritual Gifts
- [04:45] - Paul's Response to the Corinthians
- [07:30] - The Importance of Love
- [10:45] - Prophecy vs. Tongues
- [13:20] - Defining Prophecy
- [16:37] - Understanding Tongues
- [20:00] - Profitability in the Church
- [25:51] - Constructiveness of Gifts
- [30:15] - Clarity and Understanding
- [35:52] - Conviction and Worship
- [39:44] - Building Up the Church
- [42:00] - Conclusion and Invitation
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide
Bible Reading:
- 1 Corinthians 14:1-25
Observation Questions:
1. What does Paul say about the purpose of spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 14:1-5? How does he prioritize prophecy over speaking in tongues? [16:37]
2. According to the sermon, how does Paul describe the role of love in the use of spiritual gifts? [10:45]
3. What examples does the pastor give to illustrate the concept of gifts that "keep on giving"? [04:45]
4. How does Paul use the analogy of a body to explain the importance of each spiritual gift? [07:30]
Interpretation Questions:
1. Why does Paul emphasize the importance of prophecy over tongues in the context of building up the church? How does this reflect on the church's priorities? [16:37]
2. How does the pastor explain the difference between "forth-telling" and "foretelling" in the context of prophecy? Why is this distinction important for understanding Paul's message? [20:00]
3. In what ways does Paul suggest that spiritual maturity involves moving beyond a fascination with extravagant gifts? How does this relate to the overall health of the church? [35:52]
4. How does the pastor describe the potential impact of prophecy on an unbeliever who enters the church? What does this suggest about the role of spiritual gifts in evangelism? [35:52]
Application Questions:
1. Reflect on your own spiritual gifts. How can you use them in love to benefit the church community rather than seeking personal recognition? [10:45]
2. Consider a time when you witnessed or experienced the use of spiritual gifts in a church setting. How did it contribute to the edification and encouragement of the congregation? [25:51]
3. How can you pursue spiritual maturity by focusing on gifts that build up the church? What steps can you take to grow in this area? [35:52]
4. Think about a situation where clarity and understanding were lacking in a church setting. How can you contribute to ensuring that communication is clear and constructive in your community? [25:51]
5. How can you create an environment in your small group or church that welcomes and convicts unbelievers through the clear and powerful communication of God's truth? [35:52]
6. Identify one way you can encourage and console a fellow believer using your spiritual gifts this week. What specific actions will you take to support them? [25:51]
7. Reflect on the pastor's analogy of gifts that "keep on giving." How can you apply this concept to your own life and ministry within the church? [04:45]
Devotional
Day 1: Love as the Foundation of Spiritual Gifts
The Apostle Paul emphasizes that love is the most crucial element in the exercise of spiritual gifts. Without love, even the most impressive gifts are meaningless and fail to serve their true purpose. Love ensures that gifts are used for the benefit of the entire church community rather than for personal gain or status. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul reminds the Corinthians that spiritual gifts are given by the Holy Spirit for the common good, and they should be exercised in a way that reflects Christ's love. This love is patient, kind, and selfless, seeking the welfare of others above all else. [10:45]
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (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. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing."
Reflection: Think of a spiritual gift you possess. How can you use it today to demonstrate love to someone in your church community?
Day 2: The Greater Benefit of Prophecy
Paul contrasts the gifts of prophecy and speaking in tongues, highlighting that prophecy is more beneficial for the church as a whole. Prophecy involves declaring God's words with authority, which edifies, encourages, and consoles the congregation. It strengthens and equips the church, providing clarity and understanding. In contrast, speaking in tongues, unless interpreted, primarily benefits the individual and does not contribute to the edification of the entire church. Paul encourages believers to desire gifts that build up the church and contribute to its overall health and strength. [16:37]
1 Thessalonians 5:19-21 (ESV): "Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good."
Reflection: Consider a time when you received a word of prophecy or encouragement. How did it impact your faith journey, and how can you offer similar encouragement to others?
Day 3: Constructiveness, Clarity, and Conviction in Spiritual Gifts
The profitability of spiritual gifts is measured by their constructiveness, clarity, and ability to bring conviction. Constructiveness refers to how a gift builds up the church, clarity ensures that the message is understood by all, and conviction leads to repentance and worship. Paul argues that prophecy fulfills these criteria better than tongues, as it communicates God's truth clearly and powerfully, leading to the edification of the entire church. Believers are encouraged to pursue gifts that contribute to the growth and maturity of the church community. [25:51]
Ephesians 4:11-13 (ESV): "And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."
Reflection: Reflect on a gift you have that brings clarity and conviction. How can you use it to help someone understand God's truth more clearly today?
Day 4: Maturity in Spiritual Understanding
Paul urges the Corinthians to grow in maturity, moving beyond a fascination with extravagant gifts to a deeper understanding of their purpose. Spiritual maturity involves recognizing the value of gifts that build up the church and contribute to its overall health and strength. Believers are encouraged to pursue love and earnestly desire spiritual gifts that are profitable for the church. This maturity leads to a vibrant, thriving church that glorifies God and impacts the world. [35:52]
Hebrews 5:12-14 (ESV): "For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil."
Reflection: Identify an area in your spiritual life where you need to grow in maturity. What steps can you take today to deepen your understanding and practice of your faith?
Day 5: The Church as a Vibrant Community
Paul envisions the church as a vibrant community where each member contributes to the growth and maturity of the whole. By using their gifts in love, believers can create a thriving church that glorifies God and impacts the world. The church is not just a place for rituals but a community where each member is valued and indispensable. Paul encourages believers to focus on building up the body of Christ, emphasizing the importance of unity and collaboration in the church. [39:44]
1 Peter 4:10-11 (ESV): "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."
Reflection: Think of a way you can contribute to the growth and unity of your church community this week. How can you use your gifts to serve others and glorify God?
Quotes
"For instance, in Deuteronomy chapter 18, verse 18, God kind of helps define a little bit or set the expectation for what prophecy it really is, or what a prophet is supposed to do, where he says that he is going to raise up a prophet from among his people, and God says, I'm going to put my words in his mouth that he might declare them to you. That's a helpful thing to kind of keep in mind, because then, even as we think of the Old Testament prophets, and what did they do, yes, surely the prophets had some of their roles saying, hey, this is what's coming down the pipeline, but it always was preceded by what phrase, thus says the Lord, thus says the Lord, if you reject me and rebel, here's the word." [06:12] (47 seconds)
"prophecy is a good thing what paul is getting at he's saying we are taking what god has said we are declaring it boldly as if it were the oracles of god to god's people at a particular time to build them up that's why he says this is constructive for the church all right that's fine we can work with that now we got this thing of tongues and if we're to define tongues it's a little wee bit more tricky but not overbearing right so when we think of tongues there's probably certain things that pop into your head when you think of the speaking in tongues but biblically what we're going to do is is understand that there there are two general generally accepted ways of viewing the speaking in tongues and we're going to get a little bit technical for a second i'm going to put it on the screen for you so you don't have to try to remember fancy words all right the first view of speaking in tongues is what we would refer to as xenoglossia you're like wow didn't know we were getting big words today in church you're getting big words in church today okay xenoglossia would be this this interpretation of tongues that what the bible is talking about is speaking in other human languages that were unknown to the speaker that the spirit as the as the gift of the spirit of speaking in tongues would be that jeremy would start speaking in french right now not knowing french but speaking in french by the power of the spirit all right that's that's the idea of what xenoglossia is talking about now that's exactly what we see happening in the book of acts all right so if you were to kind of flash back in your mind to acts chapter 2 the day of pentecost right and the spirit finally coming and descending upon it and this is what it says happens it says and divided tongues as a fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them great and they were all filled with the holy spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance cool now there were dwelling in jerusalem jews devout men from every nation under heaven and at this sound the multitude came together and they were bewildered whoo 'er passed people after– I don't know." [10:22]
" Why? Because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And the verses that follow, if you go to Acts chapter 2, list out about like 10 different regions of the world where people had gathered from. And the people were amazed. They're saying, hey, these are a bunch of Galilean dudes. How are they talking in my native tongue? They're bewildered. Because by the Spirit, they were communicating in other human languages that were previously or otherwise unknown to the speaker. That's xenoglossia. And so we know for sure that when the Bible talks about speaking in tongues, at some level, that's what's involved. But there's another view of speaking in tongues that's also brought into the conversation, and that's going to be another fancy word called glossolalia. And glossolalia, again, you've got it on the screen here, is the understanding that tongues can sometimes be an unknown or heavenly language. A lot of times that's where we hear the idea of speaking in tongues as a prayer language. That that's maybe what Paul is talking about here. The problem with us understanding these things is that the Bible doesn't talk much about tongues." [12:29]
"Outside of what Paul says here in 1 Corinthians, there is no other explicit teaching in the Scriptures about the speaking in tongues. We have passages in the book of Acts that describe it being done, but nowhere else does the Bible speak explicitly to this thing, say this is exactly what it is, this is exactly how it works, yada, yada, yada. We have 1 Corinthians 14, and that's about the extent of what the Scriptures teach on this. So the challenge becomes in understanding, well, what exactly is Paul dealing with when he's talking to Corinth about speaking in tongues? Number one, he believes it's happening. Number two, he says that we need to do it carefully." [13:45] (47 seconds)
"Paul's like, these things have meaning and value just as our languages do. And so in verse 10 there, that's where he's saying, listen, it's not elevating Greek or Hebrew or Aramaic or English or any of these languages one over another. He's like, listen, there's lots of different languages. All of them have their meaning. They're great. That's fine. But let's just be practical for a second. If I only spoke French, we would have a bit of an issue this morning because I wouldn't understand you and you wouldn't understand me. That's what Paul says in verse 11. There's just going to be a divide. And when the divide happens, there's not constructiveness that's brought to the church. And so when he digs into this, if you notice, back up in verse three, he says that on the other hand, right? So instead of just profiting self or benefiting self, he says, on the other hand, the one who prophesies, who takes the words of God and declares them as the oracles of God, the one who does that, he says, speaks to the people for their upbuilding, encouragement, and consolation." [22:52] (69 seconds)
"Encouraging is that idea of like, hey, you're coming alongside someone, you're putting your arm around them. So I know some of you guys are bold and brave and you've done things like run marathons, which I'll never, I don't think, do in my life. If you catch me running a marathon, pray. All right? Or do this, because you'll probably see me running and you're gonna have to come and put your arm around me and carry me across the finish line. That's the picture of encouragement. That's exactly what Paul was saying. He said, hey, when prophecy is happening, it's encouraging. In other words, what it's saying is it's coming alongside and it's energizing the church. The encouragement is like you're taking water and you're boiling it. You're saying, let's create some energy here, right? So some of you guys have said in the past seven days, hey, last week Sam did the announcements, and you guys were like, that was the greatest time of announcements the church has ever seen or ever known that if Jeremy does announcements again, we're leaving the church because it's just boring, right? Because what Sam does is she has a way of energizing the church, saying, hey, there's good work to be done. Let's go do it, right? We can do this. There's encouragement in that where Paul is seeing that the gift of prophecy says, hey, let's stir the church up to, what does Hebrews say? Love and good deeds." [24:58] (76 seconds)
"Consolation is when in the church there's times of difficulty and grief and suffering. And what prophecy does in Paul's eyes is it takes the words of God, declares them as the oracles of God, so that you meet people, you meet the church in the moment of suffering, and what you do is you empower people. And you say, here's the promises of God, where God says this is true, where God says he's going to do this, and he is going to be with you. And so you take people in the most painful and hurting season of their life, and what prophecy does is it props them up and empowers them to endure whatever circumstance they may be going through because we're looking back to the promises of God and saying this is what God said." [25:57] (43 seconds)
"clarity so that people understand we are able to edify and build up and strengthen one another that's measurement number two measurement number three then is seen in conviction and this is where the passage gets a little fun if you've read ahead all right so down in verse 20 paul starts saying he says this now brothers do not be children in your thinking be infants in evil but in your thinking be mature in the law it's written by people of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners why speak to this people and even then they will not listen to me says the lord thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers while prophecy is a sign not for believers but for not for unbelievers but for believers 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 but if all prophesy and an unbeliever or outsider enters he is convicted by all he is called to account by all 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 and so there's this this interesting thing going on here we're in verse 20 paul's dealing with this immaturity and maturity issue again because if there's one thing that we have learned over and over and over again in corinth is they thought they were mature they thought they were there they'd arrived they had spiritual maturity and over and over paul's saying listen you're missing it you're not as mature as you that you're you're like those spiritual teenagers that think you've arrived but you got a long way left to go that's what paul's saying so here again he's he's saying listen as we contrast this immaturity in maturity he let's let's grow up guys let's continue to grow up in our thinking if you're going to be ignorant of anything be ignorant of evil because we can leave that behind evil evil is from the past right the old is gone the new has come so let's let's grow up into maturity in the new and so that means we got to put our thinking caps on for a second you" [31:12] (125 seconds)
"and so here in their immaturity the corinthians are thinking hey big box exciting gift and paul's like that's how kids think grown -ups think a little bit different and so he helps to paint the picture of that just a little bit and so what he does is in verse 21 he says let's not forget something real quick that you guys are enamored with this this gift of tongues right big box big gift but paul's saying tongues haven't always been a good thing right don't you remember in isaiah in isaiah 28 11 when god spoke to the prophet isaiah and he said that he was going to use the these strange tongue the peoples of strange tongues to communicate his word why because his people failed to listen to the clear and understandable words through the mouth of the prophet isaiah god says that judgment is going to come when foreigners come and they're speaking a strange tongue and they are going to declare god's judgment on his people and so paul's saying time out for just a second tongues hasn't always been the great big wonderful thing that you're making it out to be sometimes tongues are a form of judgment for instance paul says here's the issue if someone who wasn't part of our church this morning walked in this is where i love paul because he's just a logical guy he's like let's let's take this down from 30 000 feet and we're back on ground level for a second he's like let's say you all showed up to church this morning and we came in and all of us were speaking in tongues and someone decided to visit with us today they're going to walk in they're going to stand in the back and they're going to see all this prophecy or all the speaking in tongues and that nobody understands there's no understanding of it and they're just like you people are out of your minds paul's like they have every right to think that why because tongues is a sign for the unbeliever the outsider as a sign of judgment so what happens then paul is saying in the church what's important is clarity and understanding and structure and order that in these moments when the church is gathered it's not chaotic it's not confusing but that we bring clarity and" [33:17]
"structure to these times. Otherwise, what Paul says is what could happen is the outsider may come in and they will declare God's judgment because the church is mishandling these gifts by saying you're out of your minds. God's judgment through the mouth of an outsider. Just like in Isaiah's day, God's judgment through the mouths of pagan nations. On the contrary, Paul says that if when the church gathers, we all come and we are prophesying, then the outsider may come in and they're going to be able to hear and understand clearly to a place where it brings conviction. And the conviction is because we're taking the words of God and we're declaring them as the oracles of God in a way that is to a particular people in a particular place at a particular time. Now conviction can come out of that and conviction brings conversion and conversion brings worship. And that's, Paul's like, isn't that better? Isn't that what we should be striving towards? That when we come, five words with our mind rather than an infinite amount in spirit." [35:24]
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