1 Corinthians (Part 22)

Pastor John

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:01

So this past week I've been able to uh spend time with my family who have been uh absolutely incredible and I've been having an incredible time being able to show them around and stuff like that. Pete is much more gracious than I am. He is able to uh uh adventure with our family even when he was sick, and then to be able to sing songs in both Korean and English. But I am gonna provide them a transcript afterwards because, of course, as you guys know about me and Peter, we preach from our the top of our domes, like we prepare everything, but we go without notes, and so um that's just been a life-giving thing to our church, but I'm gonna provide a transcript for them afterwards. And so uh, but thank you for just being kind and gracious to my family, to my extended family as they've been here. Um, and he's going to try his best, I think, with my aunt and uncle to translate as best as possible. Hey, before we dive into anything else, we're gonna just take a moment to pray over the word, and we are going to get into two topics that are particularly fun to debate, especially when it comes into uh our faith. And so let's go ahead and take a moment to pray. Holy Spirit, I pray um that you would speak so distinctly, distinctively today, Father, to every single person that's here. I ask, God, that as we continue to dive and as we get closer and closer to closing out First Corinthians, that we would be able to hear what you have to say to each and every single one of us, God. Would you equip us, Father God? Be with us. We love you, we thank you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So just uh a quick force, uh just a quick uh summary of what we've been going through in the in 1 Corinthians. There have been specific problems that Paul had been talking about, that he's been trying to address with the church. And as he is talking about these specific problems, a lot of it can just a lot of it is pointing to idolatry, the things that they are beginning to see and and beginning to just really have their attention upon, and what Paul is trying to recalibrate, he's trying to get them to just center back to the gospel of Christ. And so as we've addressed the problem specifically, there are specific things that he's trying to encourage the church to begin to form into, and one of those things is the talkings of spiritual gifts. And so we'll go ahead and put it up on the screen. But we've been covering these things because I really believe as a church that we need to equip these things in our everyday lives. But so many times we look at some practical things that are more, or we look at some spiritual gifts that are more practical than others. If you don't have it, it's fine. Um others, and then some of the ones that we need to absolutely possess are the ones that aren't sought after, are are the ones that are just overlooked. And I had mentioned it several times back when I was preaching that it's even the talkings of faith, right? Supernatural faith. And those are the type of people that I need in my corner that says, John, everything's gonna be okay. That we're gonna continue to push forward, that we're gonna continue to build the church together, that uh that we have people in our corner that are continuing to just believe and to know that the church is in a good place and we're gonna continue to move. Obviously, we've seen some gifted teachers, we've seen people that are able to preach, right? There's other things like administration and knowledge and wisdom and all those different things. But the two things that Paul would begin to talk about in chapter 14 specifically is prophecy and tongues. You know, like there's um these two gifts are highly debated, highly talked about when it comes to the church. And as Paul has written in 1 Corinthians 14, these are things that we should earnestly seek after. But if you don't have it, does that become a problem? No. Some of us even have it when we're not even faith-based, right? Not even following the Lord. It gets corrupted and it turns into other things. But as Paul is talking about these gifts, it's not for one to have so that they can pursue it selfishly, but that they can pursue it selflessly and continue to build the church. Now, um, you guys might have heard us kind of snicker and talk about, even as when it comes to speaking in tongues, like a joke, right? There's this popular joke amongst Pentecostal circles that if you want to speak in tongues, that you say that you should have bought a Honda, but you bought a Hyundai, right? Like there's this, I and it's okay to laugh at that, right? We're not making a mockery of those things. It's a joke that has been said over the years. But in seriousness, I think that there's a uh there's a there's that there's a need to talk about these things and to actively, correctively teach upon it, because so many times people use these these gifts in such a manner that manipulates the church. And if it's done well, it could really help the body continue to grow. And so, as we're talking about these things, we're gonna see what scripture says, and we're going to dwell into these things. So if you have your Bibles, go ahead and turn with me to uh 1 Corinthians chapter 4. It starts off with this pursue love. So we're gonna pause right there. Pursue love. When I was reading this, there was this instant conviction of whether I was actively pursuing the love of God. Because as Peter had graciously just gotten done preaching about these past two weeks, right? There's the forms of love that we would begin to talk about and begin to articulate, but this is where we would even begin to understand why we do what we do. And so he writes, he says, pursue love. How many of us are actively pursuing after the love of God? Some of us can say, yeah, I think I am, but deep down inside, this is why Christianity can become so stagnant at times. Is because we just want to sit and we just want to receive, and we expect that God would pursue after us. But how many of us know that in our faith it's not just a one-way street where God is speaking to simply us? Yeah, he does that. But we need to be, as we are in an active relationship, we need to pursue the love of God as well. And I think that the the Church of Corinth was just in this position where they were thinking to themselves selfishly that they could just continue to just sit and just expect God to show up. Right? Now, look, God can do what God can do, God would do what he will do. But if you're just expecting him to show up without pursuing anything, then I'm gonna challenge you to get off of your behind and pursue the love of God. And he, as he writes this, he says, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. 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. Now, this is more of an opinion piece, but as I have grown up in the pen in a pretty reformed charismatic church, uh, it was taught that every single person should be actively speaking in tongues. Now, just a show of hands, um, how many of us speak in tongues? Just show of hands, right? How many of us do not? Show of hands, and how many of us really don't have a clue what we're talking about, right? Which is okay, because these are things that, and there's a reason why you're sitting today and you're learning about these things, because uh sometimes it can get really blurry, right, in regards to some practical things that are taught here within the context of church. Um but how many of us, now just show of hands, how many of us are able to prophesy? How many of us are, how many of us can't? Right? Show of hands? How many of us don't even know, really know what we're talking about? And for the most part, especially when we get into Christianity and when we get into churches, these things are often missed upon or not talked about because a lot of people have misinformation about these particular things. So I want to just start off by saying this that when we're talking about specifically tongues, tongues is a self-edifying language between you and the Lord, and it's not meant for anybody else. Alright? So if somebody is around you and they're praying out loud in tongues and it's meant for a communal session, they must have an interpreter. But very much like how there are things that deep down inside convict us or just consciously or subconsciously satisfy us, right? Like there is so many different things in regards to examples that I can make, okay? Um when it comes to food, okay, food by example. Some of us eat for function. Like literally, like they could eat chicken, rice, and broccoli every single day, but there is something that is deeply satisfying to me, okay. This is just to me, when we're able to find like a really good cheeseburger, right? Like if you're able to find something that just like and it hits deep down inside, and it really doesn't speak to the other person, right? A form of art. Like if you go up to the mountains, like how many of us like to go up to the mountains and go hiking? I need to put my hand down because that is not me. Bless your heart, you're able to go up there, and there's just this deep sensation in your soul when you are able to see something and you're just like, wow, this is absolutely beautiful, and it speaks deep down inside of your heart. Now, whether it comes into many different forms, there are things that speak to you specifically. And when it comes to speaking in tongues, there's this deep, edifying connection between you and the Lord that only you understand. And so, are you disqualified if you don't speak in tongues? You're not. Because the only qualification that you need is the price that you cannot pay that comes through the cross of Christ. You are qualified because Jesus makes you qualified. You're not qualified because of the giftings that you possess. The giftings that you possess are the things that are gifted to us by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Man, so many times people will mark you and say, oh, you don't have this gift, you don't have that gift, you are you can't lead this, you can't lead that. Right for a moment. Okay, hold on. I need to pause right there because I can't throw people under the bus. So I'm going to retract my statement, I'm gonna be cautious, I'm gonna be hinged, not unhinged, and just pause right there, okay? So, talking about these specific things, right? Specifically speaking in tongues, it was one of those things that were constantly talked about. But the more and more that I dived into scripture, I saw this word prophecy. And now many times when we hear the word prophecy, all of a sudden we get these like we get these, we get the the chills, we get the the goosebumps on our skins, like the hair rises, because there's like this spooky element when we hear the word prophecy. Because a lot of us think that it's like this black magic, like this voodoo witchcraft type of deal. Now, can it be argued that for because okay, just fundamentally, there's good and then there's bad. Right? And so, can it be used what was meant for good, can it be meant for evil? Absolutely. It talks about that in scripture, and so people will use and abuse these specific things for bad things. But what Paul is saying is that when it comes to prophecy, things that are edifying the body of Christ, there's a particular knowledge that's there that is meant to build up the church. And so many people will shy away from what is being said because they're scared that the words that they are speaking aren't going to be correct. But this is where, even as we talked about it before, there's a certain echo that comes from the voice of God. Look, we are not God, but God provides these things as an echo of Himself to be able to relay these specific things to help us continue to grow the church. And I, for one, would much rather us take the absolute necessary shots to continue to help us grow rather than cower away in fear. Now, I had mentioned this in Timothy, where Timothy writes that God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. And if we're able to demonstrate these things that the Lord will continue to use us actively in the body, in the church today, to continue to help us grow. Continuing on, it says this. On the other hand, the one who prophesies, going into speaking specifically on prophecy, prophesies, speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consultation. The one who speaks up in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church. 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. So as we looked at the dynamics of the Corinthian church, they're very charismatic. They were very, very gifted, but they were also using their gifts for so many other things that were incorrect. And as they were doing these things, this is what Paul was encouraging them, because a lot of them were speaking in tongues and they're building up themselves, but they were doing it in inappropriate manners. And what he was saying is that they should earnestly seek the gift of prophecy so that they would be able to build up the church. And they would share it, and it would not be correct. And I have discovered that the ones that share these things that feel it in their spirit or they feel it in their emotions and are often incorrect are the ones that are simply unhealthy. And they shouldn't be speaking these things in the first place. What I have found is that the people who are actual prophets within the church and are able to prophesy to the church are the ones who have fundamentally have grown in maturity and are able to possess this gift in a very mature way. And so that they would be able to speak into the church. People that are healthy, people that won't misuse or mislead this spiritual gift. And if you ask anybody that's mature in the faith, commonly they would all come to agreement about the same thing. Because the ones that are unhealthy, the ones that are immature, the ones that want to simply manipulate, will use it strategically in a very unhealthy manner. But the ones that are healthy, the ones that are mature, the ones who want to see the kingdom of heaven continue to advance, are the ones who do it in a very, very spiritual and healthy way. But this has been misled in the context of church and how we do church and how we talk about the spiritual gifts. And there's just been this like pedestal, I guess you can say, of being able to speak in tongues, like Pete has alluded to it. Man, I would actually hear those echoes of people saying that Pete was disqualified because he wasn't able to speak in tongues. But we know that as a church community, that Pete is such a gifted preacher and teacher, and if anything, he preaches and teaches better than I do, right? And so many people will seek this gift, but what good is the self-education? What good is the edification of self? What's more important is the edification of the church body. Now, I think that over the last several weeks, I'm hoping that there's this deep challenge that deep down inside that you are able to think about the giftings that you possess so that you're able to help continue the church grow. Maybe some of you guys are in a real stagnant position. Maybe some of you guys are like, man, I just want to sit back and relax, which is totally fine. But you can't sit for too long. I believe that the Holy Spirit right now is specifically talking in such a way to every single person in this place in order to activate a spiritual gift that will help continue to compel the body of Christ to grow. Whether it be here or whether it be in Korea or wherever we may be, that we continue to use our giftings to help the body of Christ, the church, the kingdom of heaven, continue to advance. Let's continue on. Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, now this is Paul talking about just his reintroduction to wanting to be in proximity of them, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? If even lifeless moments, if even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played? But if the bugle itself gives an distinct sound, who will get ready for battle? So with yourselves, if your tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what it says? What is said? For you will be speaking into the air. There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning. 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. So with yourself, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church. So he makes this reference about speak or about being able to play instruments. Now, um we have talented musicians that are part of our church, but yet every single week we have one person that's leading on the guitar, singing, um, and of course they're using their gifts to lift up the church. I'm going to use an example specifically about what Paul is writing in regards to music. Because what Paul is referencing here is he's talking about just the emphasis of being able to prophesy to continue to build the church, but he's talking, he's he's talking about just even the languages that they speak and being able to speak in tongues. Because again, the church of Corinth was in a hub city, very so many different languages, so many different backgrounds, so many different cultures that people were uh that people were congregating together, so there were many tongues. But there was a lot of selfishness that was coming because a lot of them were simply speaking it themselves. And very much so, like for us as a team, there's uh if we are uh on like a special event, we have our team that is playing many different instruments, but there's this process that comes because when you are solo, you have these ideas, you have these nuances, you have these mannerisms by themselves. Trust me, I'm one of those people that come up here by myself. I want to be by myself because I don't have to instruct, I don't have to teach, I don't have to lead, I don't have to do any of those things. I can do everything on my own. But when you have other people that are around you, you are in this place where you are trying to teach them very specific things: mannerisms, cues, and so what he's referencing is the playing of instruments, right? So this is the best way to put it. For a person that is able to prophesy is very much like a conductor that's orchestrating and bringing these sounds together. Sure, you could be you may be able to play a flute or a harp, as Paul is saying, but unless you are being able to have unless you are able to bring it together to create this beautiful sound, what good is the sound that you're playing? And that's what Paul is saying is that very much like a like an instrument that's being played on its own to no audience, that's you and your uh ability to speak in tongues. It's a solo, only you are able to hear those things. But when you're able to prophesy, you're able to conduct and to bring this beautiful thing together to encourage the body of Christ. Now continuing on, it says this therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. What do 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 also sing with my mind also. What 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? For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being built up. I thank God that I speak that I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. Nevertheless, in church, I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others than ten thousand words in a ton in a tongue. So again, he's just emphasizing that he's he's talking about that the gift of tongues is not a useless gift, but that prophecy is a more better than being able to speak in tongues. And he's just continuing to instill that thought into the Corinthian church. Now we're going to finish off with this brothers, do not be children in your thinking, be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. But in the law it is written, by people of strength tongue uh 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. Thus tongues are a sign not for believers, but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers, but for believers. If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speaks in tongues, and outsiders are unbelievers enter, will they not so 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 undisclosed, and so falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you. So as we drive this point home, as we drive this point home, he's specifically talking to them, and he's mentioning that as they are congregating together, you have to remember that there are many people from many cultures, many backgrounds that are coming together, and as they're entering into this worship service. Now, again, next week we're going to be talking about orderly worship. Like, we don't just come in here without a plan. We have a specific order of worship, right? Like, even from the beginning, we ask people to stand and we do that because we are in reverence of the Lord. Um, we have specific things that are detailed. That's not the point that I'm trying to make. But as people are coming in, imagine walking into a room filled with hundreds of people, and they are just yelling out loud from the top of their lungs in their spiritual language, praying out loud without an interpreter. Um, look, I had reference to many of you guys that as you guys came in that Paul that Peter was going to be singing a song in both Korean and English. Can you imagine as you came in, used to being in an English-speaking church, that you would come in and you'd be like, What is happening right now? Right? Especially without the lyrics that are on the screen. Now, these people were coming in to a worship service and they were like, What is happening right now? And there was no specific teaching that was being conducted. Now, this is why the gift of prophecy is so important. Because there is this common language that is being used to continue to build and to edify the church. I, for one, and I am being challenged by this, I for one believe that it needs to be more implemented within the church. We don't need more people to speak in tongues because it's a it's a self-edifying gift to a person. We need more people to be able to prophesy. We need more people to be able to speak in to the heart and the soul of the church. Now, so many people, now people may even think that it's the ability to use words, but being able to prophesy might just be even like your own mannerisms, being able to be warm and open with a person. Now, I'm trying I'm trying to stay away from like the specific nuances of it, but being able to prophesy is especially important for the church as we continue to move forward so that we would be able to continue to build the body of Christ. Man, for myself, I want to um remove the stigma of just us being able to seek after the gift of tongues because great you know what the gift of tongues is great, but there's so many other gifts that are important to the context of church, prophecy being a great one that Paul would even specifically write in his letter, centering in on the church to be able to talk about, but also so many other things that will continue to help build the body of Christ, whether it be words of knowledge, words. Of wisdom, uh being able to even have a gift of administration, supernatural faith. There's a list of these things that are being that that are being put upon that that are continually in scripture, whether it be in Ephesians, whether it be in Corinthians, whether it be in Romans, and we've been talking about these things for myself, and this is where I'll end. I don't want to be a lifeless church. And a lifeless church is ones that will never administrate their own giftings, but they would rather just sit back and just come in and go out. Even if you have a workman's heart to be able to serve in the church, that is a gift. But it is most important for us to understand that those gifts are not products of our own self, but it's products that are given to us by Jesus Himself. These things that are meant to continue to fuel the church and the body of Christ. Can we go ahead and pray?