Spiritual Gifts, Part 8: BUILDING THE CHURCH!

Spiritual Gifts, Part 8: BUILDING THE CHURCH!

I Corinthians 14:26-40

Introduction:  We have a lot of guys in the building trades in our church, so let me ask a question: Can you imagine turning a group of builders loose on a piece of property with a pile of building materials in the middle, and then tell them to go ahead and build something, but with no plan or design?  Unless they got together, and came up with a plan, chaos would reign! We might have all the skills necessary to build a mansion, we might have every tool known to the building trades, but if we don’t get together and submit to the architect’s design, we’ll be working hard, doing our own thing, and for all our effort, we’d be out of the Master’s will. Way back in I Corinthians 1:7 Paul told the Corinthians that "...you lack no spiritual gift..." He then reflected on the “building” he did in Corinth back in chapter 3:10-13 when he said,  

¹⁰ According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it.  ¹¹ For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  ¹² Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw-  ¹³ each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

Remember what the writer to the Hebrews said of Abraham as he went out in obedience to God: “For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer [architect!] and builder is God...” (Heb 11:10).  If you have gotten something out of these last few weeks in I Corinthians 12-14, I hope it is that Jesus is the head of the church, and each of us who know Him are a member, gifted and called to serve Him by serving others. He is the master builder and the architect, and he uses us if we allow Him as he builds his church.  For this study, I took two phrases related to the call to discipleship from the gospels to guide us through this final section of I Corinthians 14.  One from the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus made by John the Baptist. The other from Jesus’ own prayer to the Father in Gethsemane, as the crushing burden of what was about to come down on his shoulders was beginning to weigh on Him. Together these statements capture the heart of this passage and expose what was missing in the heart of the Corinthians...

       I. John the Baptist, when told about the expanding ministry of Jesus and His disciples said, “He must increase, I must decrease...”

      II. Jesus, praying to the Father in the Garden, sweating great drops of blood as He prayed, said, “Nevertheless, not my will, but Your will be done...”

I believe these two statements can lead us through this final section of I Corinthians 14.

The Maine Idea: God has designed the church and has gifted its members to serve Him, in an orderly way, as we serve each other and build each other up and carry out His mission in the world. 

I. He must increase, [we] must decrease!  That is the attitude of a disciple. Hudson Taylor, a pioneer missionary and founder of China Inland Mission, was once introduced in very glowing terms by a pastor when he was to get up and speak. Several times the minister used the word “great” as he was talking about the missionary and his work. Finally when he got to the pulpit and said, “My friends, I am the little servant of an illustrious Master.” John the Baptist understood that, “He must increase, I must decrease.”  Spiritual gifts equip us for service, to build others up and to point them to Jesus. Think about it, spiritual gifts are never about putting the spotlight on me. They are about helping others to walk in the light, in order that they might grow as His disciples. As we mature we bear fruit that brings him glory, so ultimately, they turn the light on Jesus. To God be the glory!

²⁶ What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.  ²⁷ If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three, and each in turn, and let someone interpret.  ²⁸ But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church and speak to himself and to God.  ²⁹ Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said.  ³⁰ If a revelation is made to another sitting there, let the first be silent.  ³¹ For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged,  ³² and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets.  ³³ For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.

It takes order to build each other up (26-28)!  Remember the poem I cited a few weeks back, “All I ever needed to know I learned in kindergarten”?  Here we go again! One at a time, take turns! Let others use their gifts, when it’s your turn, use yours!  If our attitude is to serve, and not to be in the limelight, that gets easier!

“...What then, brothers?” Paul is drawing his corrective teaching about gifts to a conclusion and asks, “What is the point I am trying to make?” “What does all this mean?”  He’s talked about the body, unity in diversity, Christ as the head and the church as the body, every member important to the whole. He established love as the guiding principle for “body life.” How does it work out in our experience? As has been the emphasis in these chapters, he points to the coming together of the church, our corporate times of worship.

“...When you come together...” And notice there is no “if” in that phrase. For all of their problems, the Corinthians knew there was value in coming together as the church. They had their problems (this letter is full of them!) but they got this part right. Just a phrase, but a reminder to us of the gist of this whole section of I Corinthians, it’s the expectation, the presupposition, the norm, for believers in Christ. That is, we gather together regularly for worship, mutual edification, and being equipped. How else could we have opportunity to use our gifts for the benefit of “one another...”? Not me as an island, not me as a one man show, not even me locked in my prayer closet alone exclusively (though that had better be an aspect of my personal devotion!). We were made for community and we were gifted for the good of others. If we don’t avail ourselves of opportunities to come together we are robbing others of our encouragement, and we are being robbed of theirs. Remember the words of the writer to the Hebrews,

“²⁴ And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,  ²⁵ not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near...” (Hebrews 10:24,25).

“...Let all things be done for building up...” Notice that Paul doesn’t say, “Let pastors take seriously the responsibility to edify...” He is talking about spiritual gifts, and he says “let all things be done for edification.” The late D. James Kennedy, the founder of the Evangelism Explosion ministry, used to say that Satan’s greatest victory was convincing the church that “ministry” and the “mission” of the church was the work of the few, the professionals. The New Testament pictures the church mobilized, encouraging and building each other up, and going out into the world as His witnesses. This is the idea Paul expressed in Ephesian 4:11-15,

¹¹ And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,  ¹² to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,  ¹³ 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,  ¹⁴ so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.  ¹⁵ Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ...

The pastors and teachers equip the saints for ministry. The saints are equipped for ministry that results in the building up of the body. The goal is that we grow up, we mature into what Christ wants us to be.

For that to happen as God has planned it, we need to follow His plan. We can’t just “do our own thing.”  We need to let order reign for the sake of the brethren!  Instruction and encouragement require order (29-33a).

“...so that all may learn...” The verb here is related to the noun “disciple.” A disciple is a learner, one who receives the master’s teaching and takes it to heart. The great commission was an order to make disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them. God has spoken, He has revealed His truth. His word is an infallible guidebook, and authoritative word on how we should live. Order is necessary in the church so that we can learn, so that we can receive the truth.

“...and be encouraged...” Ultimately the Holy Spirit is called our “comforter,” our parkletos, our encourager.  Remember in Acts, the disciples gave Barnabas his name, “son of encouragement.” It was what characterized him to such a degree that that is what they called him!  Are you a Barnabas?  The “tongue” can be used a lot of ways, it can build up and it can tear down. Be an encourager! God uses his Word, shared by His people, to give encouragement and comfort in times of need.

“...for God is not a God of confusion, but of peace...”  God is not a God of confusion, but of peace!  Remember the creation story, the earth was formless and void, and darkness prevailed. God called order out of chaos. He spoke creation into existence. And it was good. God has a plan. He has designed the church and has gifted its members to serve Him, in an orderly way, as we serve each other and build each other up and carry out His mission in the world.

 

II. Not my will, but Your will be done! Our will must be in submission to His Word. As Jesus prayed, knowing that His passion was about to begin, mocking, scourging, and the cross, He asked if the cup of suffering might be avoided, He knew what was coming. Yet He prayed, “...not my will, but your will be done.” Remember, God in his sovereignty gives gifts as He wills. And Jesus is building His church.

As in all the churches of the saints,  ³⁴ the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says.  ³⁵ If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.  ³⁶ Or was it from you that the word of God came? Or are you the only ones it has reached?  ³⁷ If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord.  ³⁸ If anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.  ³⁹ So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.  ⁴⁰ But all things should be done decently and in order. 

Families Need God’s Order (33b-35). Remember, this is a letter, addressing a particular situation! The Corinthians had written to Paul and asked some questions (see 7:1; 12:1) and Paul has been addressing the issue of spiritual gifts for three chapters. We don’t know exactly what the question was. Paul is tying together something related to the complementary roles of men and women in the body which he touched on back in I Corinthians 11, along with the issue of the use of our spiritual gifts in the assembly.

o   What Paul isn’t saying... He surely wouldn’t be contradicting what he just said in I Corinthians 11:5,13, where it is assumed that women could speak in the proper context, respecting the authorities that God has established. I don’t believe that we are violating the spirit of these Scriptures when women pray or read Scripture or share a testimony in the church service. It seems to me that Paul is responding to a specific historical situation in which he knew the details of some abuse of speaking out in the church service by some women in Corinth. They knew exactly what and who he was referring to! In the light of Paul’s broader teaching it seems to me he is a “complementary egalitarian.” He recognizes the spiritual equality of every believer in Jesus (“...there is neither male nor female...”) in terms of our gifting and our standing before God (Gal 3:28), yet he also affirms that God has restricted the role of elder/pastor to men (I Cor 11; I Tim 2:12-14, etc.).  So it is expected that women will use their gifts in the context of the church, but not in the sense of “teaching or having authority over men.”

o   What he is saying... I believe he must be addressing a specific situation (like the issue of the gift of tongues being abused in Corinth) in which some of the Corinthian women were speaking out in a disruptive or disrespectful way in the worship services. Maybe, in the context, speaking out in the evaluation of the prophetic message? It seems this was disrupting the worship and dishonoring God. It may be they were not respecting God’s plan in delegating the role of pastor/elder to men.  I don’t think we want to push this any further given our limited understanding of the context. Whether or not we understand the “why” we need to recognize the gist of the words, and recognize that God’s plan is best. Our attitude should be to echo the prayer of Jesus to the Father, “nevertheless, not my will, but you’re your will be done.”  That is the point in the final verses...

Submission to God’s Word brings order (36-40). Whatever your gift, let’s agree that the Word is our final authority.  Focus for a moment on verse 37, “If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord.” Paul is writing as an apostle, one sent with the authority to speak the word of Christ. It is not just his ideas or suggestions, it is God’s word that he is bringing. The Corinthians were divided over the marks or the signs of spirituality. Paul says, listen, you think you are spiritual? Hear and obey the Word of Christ.

What is God saying to me in this passage? He must increase, we must decrease. Not my will, but His will be done. Those two phrases can bring order and direction to the church! God has designed the church and has gifted its members to serve Him, in an orderly way, as we serve each other and build each other up and carry out His mission in the world. 

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? As we conclude these chapters on spiritual gifts I hope you are encouraged to find your place in God’s church, and determined to love the Giver, and to use all that he has made you and given you for His glory. Remember, that includes loving one another, because we can’t say that we love God who we have not seen if we don’t love our brothers and sisters who we do see! I see the love and concern many of you have for one another. I love the way you stay after the service, fellowshipping and talking together. How the sick have meals brought to them, and receive calls, and cards of encouragement. I love the passionate prayer on Wednesday nights and Tuesday mornings when we come together to lift each other up. I love the time people put in to the ministries in the church, like Sunday School, and WOL Olympians, and the teen ministry, small group meetings and community involvement. Let’s commit together to seek opportunities in our close “sphere of influence,” each of us considering our ministry to our 8/15, those 8 to 15 people around us, in our sphere of influence. Praying for them, and sharing the Good News with those who are willing to hear.  Think about that.   Amen.