First Corinthians
14:26-39
14:26
“All of these must be done for the
strengthening of the church”
14:27-28
Guidelines
for Tongues in a church service:
14:29-32
Guidelines
for Prophets or the gift of prophecy:
14:33
In
1 Cor. 11:33 woman were being given instructions on proper prayer and prophecy
in church.
1
Timothy 2:9-15
Some
deal with these verses by saying they are additions to the text in the early 2nd
century. This is not the case. The only proof is the difficulty of the
verses.
This
could refer to women not being allowed to interpret the prophecies, although
they were allowed to prophecy.
This
may refer to woman asking the prophets questions.
This
may refer to disruptive behavior.
14:34
“Women should remain silent in the churches”
Two
reasons are given:
14:35
Why
were they speaking? “. . .they want to
inquire about something”
The
provision for their questions being answered is: “ask their own husbands at home”
Point:
“It is disgraceful for a woman to speak
in the church.”
This
appears to be focused on interrupting the service to have your own personal
question answered. It may fall into the
same category of self-edification. Paul
may be saying don’t interrupt the flow of the service for your own question.
Wait and ask at home. Apparently women
were praying and prophesying in church and Paul has stated that they “all pray
in tongues.”
14:36
Sarcasm.
Did
the Word of God come out of
Does
every one have to come to
14:37
If
your gift is going to be accepted you better follow these directions.
14:38
Ignore
the person and their gift if they ignore the written word of God
14:39
Be
eager to prophecy.
Do
not forbid speaking in tongues.
14:40
The
point of these chapters: Do these things in a fitting and orderly way.
The below
notes are from John MacArthur.
They are inserted here for the presentation of another view on these verses.
In many places Galyn Wiemers does not agree with the
information concerning tongues and spiritual gifts
that MacArthur presents but does want it made available
to compare, contrast and balance with his own teaching.
The Truth about Tongues--Part 4
by John MacArthur
1 Corinthians 14:26-40
III.
THE PROCEDURE FOR THE GIFT OF TONGUES: SYSTEMATIC (vv. 26-40)
A. The State
Of The Corinthians' Worship (v. 26)
"How is
it, then, brethren? When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath
a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all
things be done unto edifying."
1. THE OVERVIEW
Paul basically
says, "How is it, knowing what you know about the foolishness of confusion,
that all of you are doing all of these things...all at the same time, in the
same place?" Now, Paul is not telling the Corinthians to do what is listed
in verse 26, he's simply detailing for them what they are already doing. It's
incredible that such chaos could be going on. All of them were vying for the
preeminence and the prominence, and using their gifts all at the same time. And
those who were using counterfeit or nonexistent gifts were thrown into this
mishmash. So, the Corinthian assembly was something like a meeting at the
United Nations. The only difference in the Corinthian church was that everybody
in the church was standing up and shouting out speeches in an ecstatic
language. Nobody could have been edified in their services if they had tried.
In fact, unbelievers concluded that the Corinthian Christians were out of their
minds.
2. THE
SPECIFICS
a. "...When
ye come together..." This
phrase indicates a church in its assemblage when it comes together for its
corporate time of worship and fellowship. Verse 23 indicates that this is when
the whole church gathers together. In other words, if you attended church in
b. "...every
one of you hath a psalm..." When
we see the word "psalm," we usually think of a psalm from the
Old Testament book of Psalms. And it's possible that some of the people in the
Corinthian church may have had one of those psalms they wanted to read out loud
to the congregation. However, the Greek word used here literally means "a
song sung to the accompaniment of an instrument." So, more likely, what
was going on in the Corinthian church was everybody singing a solo at the same
time.
Can you imagine
the absolute chaos of a situation like that? Anybody who wanted to sing a solo
just started to sing to the accompaniment of someone plucking along on a
stringed instrument or someone blowing a flute. Imagine the cacophony of the
Corinthian chaos that would have been produced. One thing is certain--they
didn't have a music director.
Now psalms were
a common part of Christian worship. Colossians 3:16 mentions "psalms
and hymns and spiritual songs." In fact, the ministry of music was not
something added to the church at a later date. It existed from the very first
time the church began to meet in the New Testament. Singing has always been a
part of the Christian experience--a wonderful part. But in
Now if that
wasn't bad enough, Paul said that every one of them...
c. "...hath
a doctrine..."
This simply
means "a teaching" or "a lesson." Everybody who wanted to
exercise the gift of teaching, or everybody who thought he was a would-be
teacher, just stood up in his own little corner and started giving his lesson.
So, over the din of one group of people singing solos, there was another group
of people giving lessons--teaching whatever it was they felt the church needed
to hear.
Adding to the
cacophony of the singing and the teaching, the next item in the list, according
to the Greek text, is that every one of them...
d. "...hath
a revelation..."
There were
people standing up in the congregation and saying, "Thus saith the
Lord...," and then proclaiming some great supposed revelation they were
having. Of course, they had to do it over the noise of the people who were
trying to teach their lesson, and those people who were trying to sing their
song.
On top of all
that, there were also people who...
e. "...hath
a tongue..."
There were
people who were standing up and speaking with the gift of
languages--legitimately, but out of order and in the wrong place. It was the
true gift in a wrong expression. And there were others who didn't have the true
gift of tongues who were mumbling gibberish. Add that to the rest of the chaos!
Now, I told you
in an earlier lesson that when the word tongue appears earlier in this
chapter in the singular form, it has reference to the false gift, because
gibberish can't be plural. However, in verses 26 and 27, the singular word "tongue"
could have reference to the true gift, because it's simply singling out that
one of them has a tongue. In other words, it could be translated, "One of
you has a language," referring to the true gift, just as easily as it
could be translated, "One of you has gibberish--a counterfeit." The
use of the singular word "tongue" is demanded here because the
subject of the verse is singular. The same thing is true in verse 27, as we
shall see. So that doesn't violate my premise that where the word tongues
appears in the plural it is referring to the true gift and the singular word tongue
refers to the false, counterfeit gift. So, when the singular word is demanded
by a singular subject, it could be referring to either the true or the false
gift.
Besides all the
singing, the teaching, the revelations, and the tongues, there were all kinds
of people who...
f. "...hath
an interpretation."
These people
were attempting to interpret whatever was going on--and probably fighting and arguing
about which interpretation was right.
All of this was
the order of worship in the Corinthian church. Now you can understand why
unbelievers who came in and saw all of this going on said, "These people
are out of their minds! What kind of craziness is this?" Well, at the end
of verse 26, Paul calls a halt to all of this chaos and says, "...Let
all things be done unto edifying." This is a key statement. He's
saying, "Look, the way to resolve all of this confusion is to edify--to
build one another up. Then, as he proceeds to tell them how to edify, in verses
27-35, four things come to his mind to establish...
B. The
Structure For The Corinthians' Edification (vv. 27-35)
1. THE
PROCEDURE FOR TONGUES (vv. 27-28)
Verse 27
begins, "If any man speak in an unknown tongue...." Notice
that the subject is singular, as it was in verse 26. Unfortunately, the King
James translators added the word "unknown" here. I think that
this is the one time they added it when they shouldn't have, because I believe
he's talking about the true gift. I believe this is the case for two reasons:
First of all, the singular subject demands a singular verb and a singular
object. The second reason I believe that Paul is referring to the true gift
here is that Paul would never regulate gibberish. Gibberish was to be totally
eliminated--not regulated! Only the true gift could be regulated.
If any man used
the true gift of tongues and spoke a language, it was to be regulated. So, Paul
gives four principles to regulate this gift:
a. Principle
#1 (v. 27b)
"...let
it be by two, or at the most by three..."
Every gift that
has ever been given by God is subject to the control of the possessor. The Holy
Spirit never does anything through somebody who is out of control--somebody who
is flipped out, slain in the Spirit, bowled over, or rolling on the floor. The
Spirit of God ministers the gifts through people who are characterized by
controlled behavior, not out-of-control behavior like the pagans. Spiritual
gifts were not like the pagan ecstasies, which were totally out of the control
of the individual. The gifts of the Spirit were ministered when people were in
control. Consequently, principles of use could be applied that the people could
respond to.
Now, how were
the people with the real gift of languages regulated? Well, somebody in the
congregation would let a person with the gift know when there was an
unbelieving Jew in their midst that spoke a certain foreign language. Then the
person with the gift would look around to make sure that someone with the gift
of interpretation was also present. So, in the right place at the right time,
the one with the gift of languages would speak that language--a language
unknown to him, but known to that Jewish unbeliever. The message, then, would
reach that Jewish person, the interpreter would interpret it for the
edification of the congregation, and it would be used in its proper way.
The gift of
tongues was always to be used under control. And the first limiting factor was
that there were never to be more than two, or at the very most, three people
using this gift. It was a gift reserved for those special times when both an
unbelieving Jew and an interpreter were there. Those special times and those
alone. And never should it occur more than three at any one given time. That
was the limit.
Now, beloved,
this is not what is done today in the Charismatic movement. They do not have
such limitations. They do not limit their tongues speaking on the basis of an
unbelieving Jew being present, they do not limit it on the basis of a
legitimate language being spoken, and they do not limit it to two or three at a
time. There may be some isolated cases where these guidelines are followed, but
in most cases they are not. So, what we have today is the Corinthian problem
all over again--the problem that ignores these basic features.
b. Principle
#2 (v. 27c)
"...and
that by course..."
The Greek means
"in turn," or "in order," or "in sequence." The
Corinthians were involved in simultaneously expressing their gifts, as I've
pointed out. Well, that is forbidden. But that is precisely what goes on so
frequently in Charismatic tongues meetings today where everybody is speaking in
tongues all at the same time. Have you ever noticed, on Charismatic television
programs, that when the people begin to pray in tongues, they all do it at the
same time? It's just normal procedure in almost all Charismatic churches for
everyone to pray in tongues at the same time-- all in direct violation of 1
Corinthians 14:27! But that's exactly what the Corinthians were doing.
c. Principle
#3 (v. 27d)
"...and
let one interpret."
Now, I want to
show you something that everybody misses. The Greek emphasizes the word "one"
(Gk. heis) in this verse by putting it in the emphatic form. The verse
is saying, "Let one interpret--not two, five, seven, or fourteen--just
one." Why? Because the problem in the Corinthian church was that everybody
wanted to gain the preeminence by giving the interpretation. Consequently,
there was always a fight about whose interpretation was right.
So Paul says,
"I'll settle the problem you're having with tongues. Only two, or three at
the most, are to speak in tongues...and always in sequence. Furthermore, only
one person with the gift of interpretation is to interpret." Now, that
takes care of the problem, doesn't it? You say, "But what if there isn't
an interpreter around to give the interpretation?" Well, that's answered
by...
d. Principle
#4 (v. 28)
"But if
there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak
to himself, and to God."
In other words,
if you had the true gift of tongues, and an unbelieving Jew came into the
assembly, but there wasn't anybody around with the gift of interpretation, you
were to just sit there and meditate. "Why?" you say. "It could
be a great evangelistic tool!" Yes, but if there wasn't anybody there who
could translate, it wouldn't have any capacity to edify the church. And the
purpose for the church meeting together is edification. So, in a case like that
where no one could translate, you would just have to drop it.
Now, do you
know what this verse also tells me? It tells me that the Corinthians were
supposed to know who in their congregation had the true gift of interpretation.
So, if none of them were there, the only alternative for those with the gift of
tongues was to remain silent. There are no legitimate instances of someone
speaking in tongues anywhere in the Bible that are not understandable to
somebody. And if such a case was to ever present itself in the church, it was
to be stopped immediately. If there was no interpreter present, the tongues
speaker was to be quiet. He was to just sit there, meditate, and talk to God in
prayer. But he were not to say anything out loud.
I'd say these
principles regulate tongues pretty well, wouldn't you? In fact, if the true
gift of tongues hadn't ceased in the first century, these regulations would
probably end ninety-five percent of what goes on in the tongues movement today.
What we have today, beloved, is
2. THE
PROCEDURE FOR PROPHESYING (vv. 29-33a)
One might think
that because the gift of prophesying was such a great, grandiose, exalted gift
in this chapter, that it never fell into abuse. Well, it did. So Paul had to
set down some principles for regulating this gift. In verses 29-33a, he
addresses the gift of prophesying, which was so vital to the early church.
Apparently, people in the Corinthian church were jumping up all over the place
and saying they had a word from the Lord that they wanted to proclaim. They
wanted to give a good statement from God and preach a great truth. So, to bring
all of this chaos into some kind of order that could edify the people, Paul
wrote four principles to regulate the procedure for prophesying in the church:
a. Principle
#1 (v. 29a)
"Let
the prophets speak two or three..."
This is the
same principle that regulated speaking in tongues. There were never to be more
than three prophets speaking in one service. One is great, two are okay, but
three are maximum.
1) The
Prophets' Description
You say,
"Who are the prophets that are mentioned here in 1 Corinthians 14? Are
these Old Testament prophets?" No, these are New Testament prophets. The
word prophet comes from two Greek words, pro and phemi,
and literally means "someone who speaks before." The prophets, then,
were the men who spoke before the people. They were those who stood up to
declare God's message.
2) The
Prophets' Declaration
The prophets
spoke in two ways. They spoke direct revelation from God that had never been
given before for the life of a church. And they spoke reiteration-- repeating a
message that had already been given by one of the Apostles, a message that had
already been received. So, a prophet could speak a direct revelation or he
could simply reiterate something that had already been revealed. And the church
service, apparently, was structured so that one, two, or at the most, three
prophets could take their time to be the ones who spoke God's message.
3) The
Prophets' Disappearance
The prophets
were foundational. They're not mentioned later on in the church. For example,
when Paul wrote certain epistles to set the churches in order--1 and 2 Timothy
and Titus--he never mentions prophets. He simply talks about elders,
presbyters, bishops, deacons, and deaconesses. That's all he ever talks about
because prophets passed away with the passing of the Apostolic Age. They were a
unique group. Ephesians 2:20 says that they were given for the foundation of
the church. They belonged to that time.
So, the
prophets were to speak God's message. Sometimes they spoke messages that they
had prepared, and sometimes they spoke direct revelation from God that they had
received. Either way, they were to speak--but never more than two or three.
Why? Because anything more than that would be chaotic, and there would be a
constant fight to see who would be able to stand up and speak.
b. Principle
#2 (v. 29b)
"...and
let the others judge."
The "others"
refers to the other prophets. The other prophets were to sit in the front
beside the one speaking to evaluate the truth of what he was saying. It might
well be that these prophets had the gift of discernment (see 1 Cor. 12:10). In
other words, they were given the ability to discern whether something was of
God or not. They were there to evaluate the truth of the message. People were
not to just stand up and speak without someone evaluating it.
This principle
presents a problem in the Charismatic situation today. When someone stands up
in a church and says, "I have the gift of prophecy and a revelation from
God...," and then proceeds to give his revelation, what criteria does the
church have to know whether or not what he says is of God? Well, the criteria
in that day were men of God who were divinely granted the ability to discern a
true from a false revelation. It had to be that way, because they didn't have
the written Word that we now have.
We don't need
any more revelations today. The complete revelation is here. And when people
today have what they claim are new revelations, they're in real trouble. Why?
Because they have no way of knowing whether or not their revelation is from
God. It's far better to stop with the last part of the book of Revelation and
leave it.
Who were the
leaders of the Corinthian church?
Did you know
that there weren't any elders at the church in
c. Principle
#3 (v. 30)
"If
anything be revealed to another [prophet]
that sitteth by, let the first [prophet] hold his peace."
This is most
interesting. Let's say a prophet was giving a message that he had prepared,
when all of a sudden, God gives a new revelation to one of the other prophets.
The prophet with the new revelation was to immediately pull the tunic of the
prophet speaking, and say, "Hey, God just gave me a new revelation."
At that point, the prophet that was speaking had to sit down. Why? Because a
new revelation always took precedence over reiterating something that had
already been given. God had special words for His church that had never been
given.
Now, beloved,
this reinforces a point that I've been trying to make all along that people
sometimes argue with me about. Some say that the prophets only spoke new
revelation. But I don't think so. I think they spoke either revelation or
reiteration. This verse is one of the strongest proofs of that because it
describes a prophet who is reiterating, who has to sit down if another prophet
gets new revelation. It's very reasonable, then, to see that some prophets
received new revelation on occasion, while others were simply reiterating a
message that was no less from God, but not a fresh, new revelation for the
moment.
Now, at this
point, one of the Corinthian prophets was probably saying, "But Paul, I
don't know if I can do that. When I get under the power of the Holy Spirit, the
words just come out. I can't control it." So, Paul gives another principle
in verses 31-32:
d. Principle
#4 (vv. 31-32)
"For ye
may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted. And
the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets."
Paul's point is
this: "If you're a true prophet, you will be able to control the
gift." You see, a true gift never functions in some kind of pagan
ecstasy...never. True gifts always function under the control of the
individual.
Paul gave the
prophets some simple principles to follow. Why? The purpose is always the same:
"...that all may learn, and all may be comforted." The
edification of the church is the issue. Nobody gets edified if there is nothing
but disorder and chaos. So Paul says, "Don't give me the excuse that
you're out of control." Incidentally, the word "spirits"
is the same word translated "spiritual gifts" in verse 12 of
this chapter. In other words, he's saying, "Your gift of prophecy is under
the control of the other prophets, so you can't operate in an uncontrolled
manner."
At the
beginning of verse 33, Paul sums up his discussion on the procedure for
prophesying with a beautiful truth. He says, "For God is not the author
of confusion but of peace...." This is the key to the whole chapter.
The worship service of the church should manifest the character of God.
"When you come together," says Paul, "all that is a part of your
service should be manifesting the God whom we serve. Our God is not a God of
confusion, He is a God of peace. So, when somebody comes into your church and
sees confusion, and fighting for preeminence, he will conclude that you have a
confused, angry, fighting God."
I'm afraid that
there are people who see what goes on in some of the Charismatic chaos so
prevalent today, and conclude that the God they worship is in the same state of
chaos. However, God is a God of order and dignity. He is a God who functions
systematically for results, not chaotically for feelings. And that
characteristic of God is to be manifest properly in the worship of His church.
After his
discussion on tongues and prophesying, Paul turns to one other category of
instruction:
3. THE
PROCEDURE FOR WOMEN (vv. 33b-35)
"...as
in all churches of the saints. Let your women keep silence in the churches; for
it is not permitted unto them to speak, but they are commanded to be under
obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn anything, let them ask
their husbands at home; for it is a shame for women to speak in the
church."
Now, I believe
that the end of verse 33 should be attached to verse 34. There are many reasons
for this, which I'm not going to go into now. But let me just say that it
doesn't make sense to connect the great, sweeping, theological truth that "God
is not the author of confusion but of peace" with the statement, "...as
in all churches of the saints." That just doesn't make sense. God is
not a God of confusion but of peace...period. Not just in the churches of the
saints.
You say,
"Why does Paul all of a sudden bring up the subject of women in the
church?" Well, it appears that the women in the Corinthian assembly were
leading the parade to seek the showy gifts as well as usurping the place of the
men in the congregation. The women were not being silent and submissive in the
church; they were blurting out and trying to take over the service.
a. The
Woman's Silence
1) Is it
cultural?
I hear people
say, "You know that stuff in 1 Corinthians 14 about women keeping silent
in the church? That was just a Corinthian problem--strictly a cultural thing.
Paul was just trying to accommodate to the Corinthian culture." Well, in
case you think that, look again at verses 33b-34a. Paul says, "...as in
all churches of the saints. Let your women keep silence in the
churches...." It isn't a Corinthian cultural issue; it's to be the
standard in all the churches. In the Corinthian church, women were speaking in
tongues, interpreting, singing their songs, prophesying, and usurping the man's
authority. So Paul singles them out, and reminds them that women are to take
the place of submission and silence in the public service of the church.
Now, I know
that God has gifted many women in marvelous ways. Many of them have wonderful
gifts of teaching and proclaiming God's Word. But they are not to exercise
those gifts in the mixed assembly of the church when it comes together. That
belongs to men.
You say,
"John, that was just a Corinthian problem. It's only cultural." Well,
that's not true. Notice, at the end of verse 34, why women are not permitted to
speak in the church:
2) It is
commanded!
Verse 34 says, "...for
it is not permitted unto them to speak, but they are commanded to be under
obedience, as also saith the law." What law? The law of God--the
Pentateuch. In Genesis 3:16 it says that the man will rule over the woman. From
the very beginning, the man was given the authority over the woman.
In 1 Timothy
2:11-12 Paul said, "Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
But I permit not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to
be in silence." Why? Well, not because of the culture of
b. The
Woman's Shame
In verse 35
Paul says, "...for it is a shame for women to speak in the
church." The Greek word translated "shame" (aischros)
literally means "ugly" or "deformed." In other words, for a
woman to speak in the church is a deformity of God's intention--a perversion of
beauty into ugliness.
Many women are
excellent teachers, and they should be busy teaching other women--in the right
place at the right time. But the right place and the right time is not the
assembly of the church. I thank God for the gifted women who teach other women,
and for the older women who teach the younger women to be godly, as Paul told
Titus to instruct them to do (2:3-5). But we must obey God's standards.
You see, God
has a plan. Husbands are to love and lead, and wives are to submit and respond.
God wants that order made visible because it is His order out of His nature,
and He wants His nature to be manifest in His church. When that doesn't exist
in His church, the revealing of His order and His nature is violated. For
example, God cannot be on display in a church where a woman is preaching. Why?
Simply because His nature, His plan, and His purpose are violated...even though
the woman may say good things.
c. The
Woman's Source
According to
verse 35, if a woman has questions, she's supposed to go home and ask her
husband. Now, that puts the responsibility on the husbands to get some answers,
doesn't it? But that's the way God has designed it. Husbands, don't be content
to give a standard answer of, "I don't know." Get some answers and be
the spiritual leader in your home.
d. The
Woman's Speaking Out
Notice the
phrase "if they will learn anything" in verse 35. I believe
this is saying that some of the women were asking questions in the service
under false pretenses. They were blurting out their questions to confront the
prophet who was speaking. They were interrupting the prophet (and the service)
on the pretense of having a legitimate question. When, in actuality, they just
wanted to be heard. Apparently, according to verses 29-30, the only ones who
had the right to ask questions in the service were the prophets. So, these
women were usurping the place of the prophets, who had the responsibility of
discerning what was being said.
Now, I don't
believe Paul is saying that women are never to ask spiritual questions of
anyone other than their husbands. There's nothing wrong when questions are
asked in the sharing together of Bible study and fellowship. In fact, I believe
it's proper, when we have a question and answer time in our church, for anyone
to ask a question--because that's the order of the time. But during the duly
constituted worship service of the church, when there is structure and order
for the edification of the whole body, we are to follow these patterns. A
public worship service is never to be interrupted and usurped by a woman asking
a question. Can you imagine those poor prophets in the Corinthian church trying
to get through their messages with everyone trying to argue with them?
C. The
Sarcasm To Cause The Corinthians' Acceptance (v. 36)
Paul is really
strong about these procedures for the regulation of women, tongues, and
prophecy in the church. So strong, that he responds, in verse 36, to their
possible resistance to accept his words. He says, "What? Came the word
of God out from you? Or came it unto you only?" In other words he
says, "Do you want to argue about this? Did you write the Word of God? Or did
it just come to you? Are you some kind of a law unto yourselves?" I
believe that Paul is being very sarcastic with them in order to get them to
respond to and accept what he had to say. He is saying, "Did you write the
Bible? Either you are the ones who wrote it or you are required to submit to
it. Those are the only options! Now if you're not going to obey it, maybe you
think you wrote it. Or maybe you just think it doesn't apply to you, just
everybody else. Well, since the same Scripture applies to you that applies to
everybody else, and since it's all authored by God, you only have one
response--to obey." In a strong, sarcastic way, Paul calls a halt to all
their selfish activity, and says, "Do only that which edifies!"
D. The
Summary Of The Corinthians' Exhortation
(vv. 37-40)
1. ACKNOWLEDGE
IT AS A COMMANDMENT OF GOD (v. 37)
"If any
man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual [which I believe refers to the gift of tongues because
it's the sum of what Paul is saying], let him acknowledge that the things
that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord."
This is a great
closing statement. It gets closure on the whole argument. He says, "Those
people who have legitimate gifts will acknowledge that I speak the Word of God.
And if they acknowledge that I speak the Word of God, they will bring their
gifts under submission to the principles I've just spoken. Now, if they don't,
they don't have the true gift. What they're doing is not a legitimate
manifestation of the Holy Spirit." Paul was trying to force the
Corinthians to see that if the gifts of tongues and prophecy weren't used
according to the regulations that he had just laid down in verses 27-33, those
people who violated those principles were not legitimate. So Paul really lays
down the rules.
One of the
greatest claims that Paul ever made to being inspired by God is the statement
that he makes here in verse 37: "...the things that I write unto you
are the commandments of the Lord." I'll never forget the man who
believed only the red letters of his red-letter Bible. I've never liked
red-letter Bibles since. He believed that the words in red, which indicate the
statements of Jesus in the Gospels, were the only important words. Well, I told
him that the words of Paul are just as important as the words of Jesus. Then I
showed him this passage: "...the things that I write unto you are the
commandments of the Lord."
Don't ever try
to pass off Paul's teaching as cultural or only opinion. I hear people say,
"Women don't have to be silent in the church. Women can preach if they
want to. Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 14 are only cultural." I also hear
them say, "We don't have to follow all these different regulations about
tongues and prophesying today, because those regulations were only for
2. REJECT THOSE
WHO IGNORE IT (v. 38)
In verse 38,
Paul recognizes that there are going to be some people who are going to ignore
his commandments: "But if any man be ignorant, let him be
ignorant." Now, the literal meaning of the verse is this: "If
anybody ignores these things, you ignore him." In other words, if a person
didn't recognize that Paul's words of regulation were the Word of God, then
that person can't be recognized as having the true gift. Therefore, that person
was to be ostracized and shut up because he was a phony. If he didn't obey
these principles and acknowledge them as the commandments of God, then he was
to be rejected.
3. DESIRE
PROPHECY IN THE CHURCH (v. 39)
In verse 39
Paul summarizes everything and says, "Wherefore, brethren, covet to
prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues." In other words he
says, "On the basis of all that I've said, zealously desire to
prophesy." Why? Well, do you remember what he said in verse 3? "But
he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and
comfort."
Then Paul says,
"...and forbid not to speak with tongues." For that time and
that age there was a true gift of languages. And even though the gift of
prophecy was to be emphasized in the church, Paul was not forbidding the use of
a true gift in its true expression at its true time. Now this cannot be applied
to today, because the true gift of tongues has ceased (see pp. xx-xx). But for
that time, Paul says, "I recognize the true gift of tongues, and I'm not
forbidding you to use it. It has its place. But when you come together in the
church, seek to prophesy."
4. LET THE
CHURCH SERVICE MANIFEST GOD'S CHARACTER (v. 40)
Summing it up,
Paul says, "Let all things be done
decently and
in order." The word "decently"
refers to harmony and beauty, and the word "order" refers to
things being done in sequence. Well, since God is a God of harmony, beauty, and
order, Paul says, "Let your assembling together manifest those
characteristics of God." And as the church manifests God and is edified,
it will also be multiplied. That's God's promise.