The Truth About Tongues
Carl
Scripturally the topic of speaking in tongues. More specifically MacArthur
examines; a) what tongue speaking actually is according to the Bible, b)
what the Biblical requirements, guidelines, and processes are concerning
tongues speaking, and c) if the modern speaking in tongues fits the Biblical
standards.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
---
The Truth About Tongues
by John MacArthur
PART ONE
Introduction
At the Tower of Babel, God confused the languages of men. The only other
biblical incident that can rival that confusion of languages is the
confusion of tongues at Corinth. They had so confused their understanding of
the gift of tongues, that they had substituted the reality for a satanic
counterfeit. Because of this, Paul had to write an entire chapter just to
deal with that issue.
Now, when we studied chapter 13, we saw that God did give a true gift of
languages to the early church. It was only one of the miraculous sign gifts
that God gave to the early church to authenticate the message of the new
age. You see, the writer of Hebrews tells us that "God, who at sundry times
and in diverse manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son..." (1:1-2a). There was a
new message, so to let the world know (particularly the Jewish world) that
this was a new era and that God was speaking again, there were attendant
signs and wonders. One of those signs was the ability that the Apostles, and
some who worked with them, had to speak a language, under divine
inspiration, that they did not know. That was the gift of languages or
tongues.
In previous lessons, we have learned that the gift of tongues was the
ability to speak a foreign language. It was always a known language! For
example, when the disciples spoke in tongues on the Day of Pentecost in Acts
2, verse 6 tells us that "every man heard them speak in his own language."
But as we come to the Corinthian situation, we find that they had
counterfeited the real gift of tongues and substituted an ecstatic kind of
speech that was very common in pagan religions.
A. The Corinthian Background of Tongues
1. THE INFILTRATION OF CORINTH INTO THE CHURCH
The Corinthian church had allowed the entire world system in which they
existed to infiltrate their assembly. For example, they were emphasizing
human philosophies (chapters 1-4), they had a hero worship cult (chapter 3),
they were involved in terrible, gross, sexual immorality (chapters 5-6),
they were suing each other in court (chapter 6), they had misevaluated their
home and marriage relationships (chapter 7), they were confused about pagan
feasts, idolatry, and things offered to idols (chapters 8-10), they had
relinquished the proper place of women in the church (chapter 11), they had
misunderstood the whole dimension of spiritual gifts (chapter 12), and they
had lost hold of the one great thing--love (chapter 13).
You see, they had let the satanic system that existed in their society
infiltrate the church. And with it came the pagan religious practices--with
all of the ecstasies, eroticisms, and sensualities. The Corinthians accepted
it all, creating a confused amalgamation of truth and error.
2. THE INVOLVEMENT OF TONGUES IN PAGANISM
a. The Ecstasy of the Greco-Roman World
At the time of the Corinthian church, the Greco-Roman world had a multitude
of gods. In their worship of these gods, it was very common for a person to
go into ecstasy, which literally means "to go out of oneself." They would go
into an unconscious state where all kinds of psychic phenomena would occur.
They believed that when they were in an ecstatic trance, they actually left
their body, ascended into space, connected up to whatever deity they were
worshiping, and would begin to commune with that deity. Once they began to
commune with that deity, they would begin to speak the language of the gods.
This was a very common practice in their culture. In fact, the term used in
1 Corinthians to refer to speaking in tongues (glossais lalein) was not
invented by Bible writers. It was a term used commonly in the Greco-Roman
culture to speak of the pagan language of the gods which occurred while the
speaker was in an ecstatic trance. By the way, this language of the gods was
always gibberish.
b. The Eros of the Greek World
The Greeks had a word for this ecstatic religious experience. It was the
word eros. Sometimes translated as sensual love, the word eros had a broader
meaning. It meant "the desire for the sensual," or "the desire for the
erotic," or "the desire for ecstasy," or "the desire for the ultimate
experience or feeling." Their religion, then, was an erotic, sensual,
ecstatic religion-- designed to be felt. In fact, when people went to their
various temples to worship, they would actually enter into orgies with the
temple priestesses. So the erotic, sexual, sensual, ecstatic religion was
all rolled into one big ball along with the gibberish of divine utterances.
And these mystery religions, which had been spawned in Babylon, had found
their way into the Corinthian society...and the church.
B.The Charismatic Reproduction of Corinth
I'm afraid that what has happened today in the Charismatic movement is just
a reproduction of exactly what happened in Corinth. Because of a deadness in
the church, because of years of ignorance of the true work of the Holy
Spirit, because of a lack of good Bible teaching, and because of the dearth
of anything really significant going on in the church, people in the church
began to reach out to feel God and to sense His reality. Well, that just
paved the way for Satan's counterfeit to come flooding in. As in Corinth,
the Charismatic movement has married the system of pagan religion with
Christianity. They have developed a sensual, feeling-oriented, experiential,
erotic kind of approach to Christianity, and call it the work of the Holy
Spirit. However, it is most likely the counterfeit of Satan.
Confessions of a Pentecostal
In his book Spirit Manifestations and the Gift of Tongues, Sir Robert
Anderson quotes from a pamphlet written by a former leader of the
Pentecostal movement in India:
"Finally, I went to the mission at 328 W. 63rd St., Chicago asking only one
question, `Why do I not receive the baptism? What is the matter with me?'
The good friends prayed with me and said that nothing was wrong, I only
needed to wait.
"Praise the Lord they were right. For the first time I knelt at the altar on
Sunday afternoon, March 17, the power began to seize me and I laughed all
through the following communion service. In the evening about 11 p.m., I
knelt with a few of the friends praying for me (Elder S-- placed his hands
on my head for a short time, several times during the afternoon and
evening). After some little waiting I began to laugh, or rather my body was
used to laugh with increasing power until I was flat on my back laughing at
the top of my voice for over half an hour. On rising, I found that I was
drunk on the new wine, acting just like a drunken man in many ways and full
of joy. On kneeling to meet the Lord again, I was suddenly seized with an
irresistible power of beseechings with groanings that could not be uttered,
asking the Lord to have mercy on me a sinner, and telling Him that I wanted
to go all the way with Him. The power of this praying was too great for me
to endure, and suddenly my eyes opened to see Elder S--, who had been
standing a few feet distant, fall as though he had been struck. I was
relieved, and in a few seconds was straight up in the air shouting, `Glory!'
at the top of my voice. Again kneeling, my eyes grew dark, and I was rolled
over onto the floor, lying there for some time nearly unconscious. Then
coming to and kneeling, I felt my jaws and mouth being worked by a strange
force. In a few seconds, some baby gibberish was uttered, then a few words
in Chinese that I understood, and then several sentences in a strange
tongue. This turned into singing, and I did not again speak in tongues until
Wednesday, three days later."
Now, what is going on there? All kinds of experiences that are based on
feelings and emotion--experiences that are apprehended by the senses rather
than the mind. Well, these kind of experiences were common to pagan
religions--not Christianity! For example, Plato, who lived from 429-347
B.C., wrote page after page in his Dialogues describing pagan ecstasies of
speech. This was not anything that belonged to Christianity. The true gift
of languages in Christianity was only used when somebody who spoke the
language was present in order that it might be a sign that God was there and
that God's people were speaking God's truth. Never was it intended to be
confused with paganism.
C. The Counterfeit Activity of Satan
Whenever God does something, Satan tries to counterfeit it, doesn't he?
Well, to cloud the true revelatory work of the Holy Spirit in the early
church, Satan put up a smokescreen that consisted of phony revelations,
phony visions, and phony tongues. That's why the Apostle John said that when
somebody comes along and starts telling you they speak for God, you'd better
"test the spirits whether they are of God" (1 Jn. 4:1). It's easy to fall
prey to the phony. And because the Corinthians had decided to marry the
spirit of the age, they became victims.
Now remember, Satan is called "the god of this age" (2 Cor. 4:4) and "the
prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children
of disobedience" (Eph. 2:2b). Satan not only wants to be like God (Isa.
14:12-14), he appears "transformed into an angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14).
He wants to counterfeit reality and trick the church into accepting that
which is phony. That's his business!
In Corinth, the counterfeit practices of heathenism had engulfed the church.
I'm afraid the same thing is happening today. Those kind of ecstatic,
sensual, feeling-oriented experiences, however, are never associated in the
New Testament with the true work of the Holy Spirit...never! In fact, in 1
Corinthians 14:32, Paul says, "And the spirits of the prophets are subject
to the prophets." In other words, nobody is ever to give up his spirit or
lose control of himself. At the end of chapter 14, Paul's final word on this
subject was, "Let all things be done decently and in order." It's not the
Holy Spirit's way to have a worship service where everybody jumps up with
their own psalm, doctrine, tongue, revelation, and interpretation (1 Cor.
14:26). That's nothing more than the confusion of paganism that has engulfed
the church.
D. The Chaotic Worship of the Corinthians
The mystery religions of Babylon, which dominated the Corinthian culture
during Paul's day, had developed all kinds of rites, rituals, vows,
baptisms, animal sacrifices, feasts, fasts, ablutions for sin (like dunking
in a frozen river or crawling on bleeding knees for miles), ecstatic
speeches, visions, and prophecies. And all of it had entered, to one degree
or another, into the Corinthian church, causing absolute chaos. Do you know
that people were actually standing up cursing Jesus in tongues, and people
were saying, "Oh, it must be the Holy Spirit"? That's why Paul had to write
and tell them that "no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus
accursed" (1 Cor. 12:3). Their worship was total confusion. "The wild frenzy
of the Greek paganism became madness in the Corinthian church," says one
writer. "And they, like the pagans, no doubt uttered their ecstatic speech
with foaming lips and streaming hair."
Beloved, as much as I wish it weren't true, I'm convinced that what we see
going on in today's Charismatic movement is the same kind of situation that
occurred in the Corinthian church--an engulfing of the church in pagan
religion. That which is counterfeit has been accepted as reality because it
impacts the emotions of people who sat, for a long time, in churches where
they never got anything that changed their lives.
Let's begin our look, now, at 1 Corinthians 14. I'm going to divide the
chapter into three parts: The Position of the Gift of Tongues--Secondary
(vv. 1-19), The Purpose of the Gift of Tongues--A Sign (vv. 20-25), and The
Procedure of the Gift of Tongues--Systematic (vv. 26-40).
I. THE POSITION OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: SECONDARY (vv. 1-19)
In the first nineteen verses of 1 Corinthians 14, Paul establishes that the
position of the gift of tongues is secondary relative to the other
gifts--specifically, the gift of prophecy. He gives three reasons to support
this. Let's look at the first one:
A. Prophecy Edifies The Entire Congregation (vv. 1-5)
The gift of tongues is secondary to the gift of prophecy because tongues
cannot edify and prophecy can. You say, "So what!" Well, what is the purpose
of the church when it meets together? Its purpose is edification. At the end
of 14:26 Paul says, "...Let all things be done unto edifying." At the end of
14:12 Paul tells the Corinthians to "seek that ye may excel to the edifying
of the church." In other words, the purpose of the church when it meets
together is edification. Throughout chapter 14 this same concept is repeated
over and over again. For example, verse 4 says, "...he that prophesieth
edifieth the church." Verse 5 says, "...that the church may receive
edifying." Verse 31 says, "...all prophesy one by one, that all may learn,
and all may be comforted." The point is this: The church is to come together
for edification--to be built up. So Paul says, "Look, tongues cannot
edify--especially the counterfeit kind that you have. But prophecy edifies
the whole congregation." That's the basic proposition of the first five
verses.
1. THE PURSUIT OF PROPHECY (v. 1)
"Follow after love, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may
prophesy."
a. "Follow after love..."
This phrase is really the end of chapter 13, isn't it? Paul's really saying,
"I've just told you about love--the greatest thing there is. That's what you
ought to chase." In 12:31, which is best translated as an indicative because
of the context, Paul is actually saying to the Corinthians, "You're coveting
the showy gifts, but I show you a more excellent way. You're busy chasing
the ego-building, up- front, dramatic gifts, but I want to show you a better
way-- seek love." Then he gives them a great statement on love in chapter
13, which is almost parenthetical. In 14:1, he picks up where he left off in
chapter 12 and says, "Now, if you're going to earnestly seek something, then
earnestly seek love."
The phrase "follow after" is the Greek word dioko, which means "to chase, to
run after, to pursue." Oftentimes it is translated "to persecute." It is to
be so vehement, so excited, and so energized, that you literally persecute
it and dog its steps. So Paul says, "If you're going to chase, follow, or
run after something, let it be love. But at the same time...
b. "...and desire spiritual gifts..."
Literally it says, "...but continue desiring spirituals...." The word
"desire," because of the context, should be translated as a continuous
imperative. And the word translated "and" (Gk. de), would be better
translated "but," as a contrast rather than a statement of equivalent ideas.
In other words, Paul is saying, "You are pursuing the showy gifts instead of
pursuing love. But don't stop pursuing spiritual gifts, because you should
want the ministry of the Holy Spirit through the gifts of the Spirit. I'm
not saying don't have anything to do with gifts. I'm just saying to pursue
love and continue to seek the spiritual realm, the realm of the operation of
the Holy Spirit, the true things that the Spirit of God is doing."
c. "...but rather [lit. `most of all'] that ye may prophesy."
You see, tongues are secondary. Paul is saying, "When you come together to
worship, instead of having the chaos, confusion, and gibberish of tongues,
you should have the clarity of prophecy."
The verb "to prophesy" in the Greek is propheteuo. It comes from the two
words pro, which means "before," and phemi, which means "to speak."
Literally, then, the verb propheteuo means "to speak before." To prophesy is
to speak before somebody else. That's what I do every Sunday from the
pulpit--prophesy. You say, "I thought to prophesy meant to predict the
future." No. The idea of predicting the future never came along until the
Middle Ages when the English word took on that meaning. That isn't its
intention in the Greek. Propheteuo simply means "to speak before somebody."
So Paul says, "Instead of everybody shouting at the same time in ecstatic
gibberish, somebody ought to stand up before everybody else and speak the
Word of God." You see, that's what ought to be going on. The speaking of
those who speak the voice of God ought to take the place of the chaos and
confusion of tongues.
Now, there were times in the early church when the gift of prophecy was
revelatory. And there were also times when the gift involved reiterating
revelation that had already been given. But the point that I want to make
here is that the church is to come together to hear the Word of God spoken--
not to hear an ecstatic and emotional free-for-all. All things are to be
done to edify. We are to gather to hear God speak to us through men who have
been given the gift of preaching and teaching. So Paul says, "More than
seeking tongues, you should seek that which is intelligible-- prophecy."
The obvious reason for the inferiority of tongues is that nobody could
understand what was being said. The only time the gift of tongues was ever
to be used was when there was somebody present who could understand what was
being said, or when there was a connection to be made to Pentecost (such as
in the repeated occasions in Acts). The gift of tongues was a sign gift, and
was never intended for edification. In fact, tongues were useless to edify
the church by themselves. Edification could only come when tongues were
interpreted by someone who understood what was being said or by someone with
the gift of interpretation. However, its purpose was not edification. Its
purpose was as a sign to show that God was speaking and that the prophets
and Apostles of the New Testament were truly representatives of the voice of
God.
---
2. THE PERVERSION OF TONGUES (v. 2)
"For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto
God [lit. `a god']; for no man understandeth him; however, in the spirit he
speaketh mysteries."
a. The Principal Purpose Violated
What Paul is saying is this: "You people with your pagan ecstasies are not
doing what all spiritual gifts were given to do--minister (or speak) to men.
Rather, you are all wrapped up in speaking pagan mysteries in ecstatic
speech to a god. Nobody can even understand what you're saying!" Paul's not
referring to the mysteries (Gk. musterion) of God or the mysteries that he
taught, he's referring to the mysteries of paganism.
Now let me give you a basic, bottom-line truth: All spiritual gifts are
given for the purpose of ministering (or speaking) to men. No spiritual gift
was ever given for the purpose of ministering to God. All spiritual gifts
are given to build up the body of Christ by ministering to the members of
the body. God doesn't need us to minister a spiritual gift to Him--He's not
incomplete! So Paul is saying, "You have fallen down on the basic use of
spiritual gifts--their use among men to build up the body. The tongues
speaking that you are involved in, however, is not for men, it's for a god."
By the way, the word "God" does not have an article in the Greek (the
anarthrous construction). And because of the context, I think it's better
translated "a god" rather than referring to the true God. In other words,
they were involved in ecstatic communication with some pagan god, and
speaking in pagan mysteries. And they were violating the principal purpose
of spiritual gifts--the fact that they are to be ministered to other people
in the body of Christ. God certainly didn't need them to talk to Him in some
ecstatic gibberish!
b. The Private Prayer Language Condemned
It's amazing to me that the modern Charismatic movement is simply repeating
the same error that the Corinthian church was involved in. Charismatics
teach that the essential use of tongues is as a private prayer language to
God. Well, that is exactly what Paul is condemning here in this passage.
Paul is saying, "You've missed the point of the true gift of tongues. This
gift was designed to speak to men, like all the other gifts. But you are
involved in some kind of communion with a pagan god speaking in pagan
mysteries, and nobody knows what you're saying. God certainly doesn't want
to be talked to like that."
Is there biblical evidence for a private prayer language?
It was never God's intention to be addressed in a language that is
incomprehensible to the speaker. I believe the Bible supports this. If you
were to examine every prayer prayed in the Bible, and if you were to study
every passage in the Bible which taught about prayer, you would not find
anything, anywhere, anytime that even suggests that prayer should ever be
unintelligible. You'll never find it. In fact, Jesus said the exact
opposite. In Matthew 6:7 Jesus said, "But when ye pray, use not vain [or
`meaningless'] repetitions, as the pagans do...." The phrase "vain
repititions" is the Greek word battalogeo. The verb logeo means "to speak,"
and the prefix batta is not even a word. It is a figure of speech that in
English we call an onomatopoeia--the naming of something by a vocal
imitation of the sound it makes. For example, we say that a bee goes buzz,
or a zipper goes zip, or a plane goes whish. Those aren't words, they're
onomatopoetic figures of speech. Well, batta isn't a word either. What Jesus
is literally saying in Matthew 6:7 is, "When you pray, don't say batta,
batta, batta--the sound of the stammering, stuttering gibberish that the
pagans offer to their gods. The Father isn't interested in that kind of
communication." So, we are to pray intelligibly and "with the understanding"
(1 Cor. 14:15).
When Jesus went into the Garden to pray to the Father, He didn't talk in
some heavenly language. Why should you? When deity communed with deity, it
was in a language that was clear. When Jesus stood by the grave of Lazarus,
He prayed before He raised him from the dead. John heard every word of that
prayer and wrote it down just the way He said it--clear and intelligible.
John 17 is the intimate prayer between Jesus and the Father. It's all very
clear--translated beautifully into English from the original language. The
point is this: There is no biblical evidence whatsoever of a private prayer
language! We are to pray in an intelligible, understandable way.
The carnal Corinthians (like current Charismatics, I'm afraid), with their
desire for the showy, attention-getting, ego-building, emotionalistic gift
of tongues, were using it as a badge of spirituality and saying, "Oh, I have
reached such a spiritual plateau that I can now talk to the eternal God in
my own private language." That is pure paganism! So Paul writes to them and
says, "You have missed the whole point of the use of the true gift of
tongues. You're supposed to speak to men with the true gift, but you're
speaking to a god in mysteries." By the way, it was believed that these
"mysteries" were hidden secrets that only the initiated could know. It was
also believed that these mysteries were received from the god that they
connected up with when they went into an ecstatic trance. They had really
missed the point of the true gift of tongues!
3. THEPRODUCTS OF PROPHECY (v. 3)
"But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation,
and comfort."
Paul says, "When you come together, don't seek to speak in an unknown tongue
that no one even understands. Rather, seek to prophesy." Then he lists three
things that will happen when the Word of God is spoken: People will be built
up, people will be encouraged to a new kind of behavior, and people will be
comforted in their agonies and their hurts. Instead of coming together and
saying, "Batta, batta, batta," they were to hear the proclamation of the
Word of God.
4. THE PROSTITUTION OF TONGUES (v. 4)
"He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself, but he that
prophesieth edifieth the church."
Now, which is better? To edify oneself, or to edify the church? Well, what's
the point of the whole chapter? The point of the entire chapter is the
edification of the church, not edifying yourself! Listen, beloved, we were
not given spiritual gifts for ourselves. If a person takes a spiritual gift,
however, and uses it to edify himself, he has prostituted the gift. Why?
Because it's for others. It's only to be used to build up the body of
Christ.
a. The Inability of Tongues to Edify the Church
You say, "John, it says in verse 4 that you can speak in an unknown tongue
and edify yourself." Well, the point is that it doesn't edify the church.
You say, "But if the tongues are translated, they edify the church, don't
they?" Yes, but it was the gift of interpretation that edified, not the gift
of tongues. The gift of tongues was useless to edify the church, because
nobody knew what was being said. You see, even if the real gift was used, it
wouldn't edify anybody by itself. It would always have to be translated
first. That's what he says at the end of verse 5: "...except he interpret,
that the church may receive edifying."
It's wonderful to know that when the true gift of tongues was used as a sign
and other Christians were present, God would always have somebody there with
the gift of interpretation to interpret what was being said. Why? So that it
would not go without meaning to the church. God gave the gift of
interpretation so that the church would be edified. You see, God never
wanted anything going on in the church that didn't edify and build up. The
Corinthians, however, were using the gift in a very chaotic way. Not only
that, they had determined that it would edify the church all by itself.
Well, it won't!
b. The Issue of Tongues Edifying Oneself
The Corinthians' use of the gift of tongues for personal edification was a
second perversion. First of all, they had perverted the fact that spiritual
gifts are meant for men, not God. Second, they had perverted the fact that
spiritual gifts are meant for others, not for yourself. This same perversion
is still going on today in the Charismatic movement.
Donald Gee, a well-known Charismatic, wrote the following statement: "...the
revealed purposes of the gift of tongues are chiefly devotional, and we do
well to emphasize the fact" (Concerning Spiritual Gifts [Springfield: Gospel
Publishing House, 1937], p. 59). Another Charismatic, Larry Christenson,
wrote, "One speaks in tongues, for the most part, in his private devotions.
This is by far its most important use and value" (Speaking in Tongues and
Its Significance for the Church [Minneapolis: Bethany Fellowship, 1968], p.
28). Now that is the very opposite of what Paul is saying here in 1
Corinthians. He is saying, "Your gift is not to speak to God, and it's not
for you. Your gift is for others in the body. So, if you seek to edify God,
or yourself, you're out of line."
When Paul says, "He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself,"
it's possible that he's being sarcastic. So far in this epistle, Paul has
already dealt with the whole idea of self-edification in a rather pointed
way. For example:
1) 1 Corinthians 8:10-11--In this chapter, Paul is telling the Corinthians,
"It's not wrong to eat meat offered to idols. But because there are some
weak Christians who think it's wrong, don't do it--or you'll make them
stumble." In verses 10-11 he says, "For if any man see thee, who hast
knowledge [i.e., you're a mature Christian], sitting at the table in the
idol's temple [eating the idol's meat], shall not the conscience of him who
is weak be emboldened [Gk. oikodomeo=`built up, edified'] to eat those
things which are offered to idols, and through thy knowledge shall the weak
brother perish...?" In other words, it is possible to edify someone to his
harm. In this case, edification would cause a weaker brother ruin.
So, edification can be for good or for bad. In chapter 14, the point is that
if you use a gift to build up the church, it's for good. If you use the gift
just to build yourself up, it's an act of selfishness...and that's bad. The
word edify, then, can be for good or for bad, so you have to find some
qualifying principles.
2) 1 Corinthians 10:23-24--Paul says, "All things are lawful for me, but all
things are not expedient; all things are lawful for me, but all things edify
not." Edify who? Well, look at verse 24, "Let no man seek his own
[edification], but every man another's [edification]." Do you see the point?
Paul is saying, "All things might be okay for you, but don't do them because
they're okay for you-- do them because they're going to mean something to
somebody else." That's the point of all spiritual gifts. They're not for God
and they're not for you, they're for the church. So Paul says, "When you
come together, instead of everybody seeking his own edification, seek to
love one another." Why? Because love "seeketh not its own" (1 Cor. 13:5).
Gifts are not supposed to be directed to God, and they are not for
self-edification.
What is Paul saying here in 1 Corinthians 14? He's telling them, "Tongues
can't edify the church. Furthermore, if you have the true gift of tongues
and you use it on your own for self-edification, you're misusing the gift.
Use it for what God intended. Otherwise, even if you were able to speak with
the tongues of men and of angels, if you are seeking your own edification,
you don't have love. And without love, you're nothing more than sounding
brass and a tinkling cymbal."
5. THE PLACE OF TONGUES (v. 5)
Now finally in this section, Paul balances his strong words on the secondary
nature and the uselessness of tongues to edify, by acknowledging that there
was a true gift of tongues and that it did have a true place.
a. The Emphasis of Hyperbole (v. 5a)
"I would that ye all spoke with tongues..."
You say, "Why did Paul say that?" Well, the Charismatics interpret it to say
that Paul wanted everyone to speak in tongues. However, we have to take this
statement of Paul's in light of other passages here in 1 Corinthians. For
example, in 12:30 Paul says, "Have all the gifts of healing? Do all speak
with tongues? Do all interpret?" What's the answer implied by the Greek
construction? No! And in 12:11 he says, "But all these [gifts] worketh that
one and the very same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He will."
You say, "Why does Paul say, `I wish you all spoke in tongues,' if he knows
they can't?" Well, I believe that he is talking in hyperbole. Let me show
you why.
In 1 Corinthians 7:1-6, Paul talks about marriage as a good thing. Then in
verse 7 he says, "For I would that all men were even as I myself...." In
other words, "I wish you were all single." Now is that an actual divine
mandate? No. That's wishing the impossible for the sake of emphasis-- which
is exactly what Paul is doing in 1 Corinthians 14. He's saying, "Hey, I'm
not downplaying the gift of tongues. I wish that everybody could have the
real gift. But we know, of course, that that isn't possible." You see, Paul
is using hyperbole as an emphasis. He's balancing off his strong words
denying the primacy of tongues to emphasize the fact that there is a true
gift.
b. The Excellence of Prophecy (v. 5b)
"...but rather that ye prophesied; for greater is he that prophesieth than
he that speaketh with tongues, except he interpret, that the church may
receive edifying."
Paul says, "If I had my way it would be fine if everybody spoke in tongues;
but if everybody was a proclaimer with the gift of prophecy, that would be
even better!" But that isn't going to happen either, is it? Now, why does
Paul say that prophesying is greater than speaking in tongues? Because
unless tongues are interpreted, they don't do any good to the church.
In fact, those people who think they have a great thing going with a private
prayer language, are severely mistaken. A private prayer language won't do
anybody any good for the same reason that it won't do the church any
good--there's no knowledge of what's being said. Consequently there's no
learning in the mind, and it's nothing more than sensual ecstasy, a feeling,
an emotion. Christianity, beloved, has never been predicated on a
feeling...never!
Well, what does all of this say to us in our day? Basically, two things.
First of all, when the church comes together it is to come together to hear
the Word of God. Second, we need to be careful to prevent pagan religious
forms to infiltrate the truth of God's pure church.
There's an interesting little footnote here. Notice in verse 2 and in verse
4 where it says "tongue," that the King James translators put the word
"unknown" preceding it. However, notice that in verse 5 where it says
"tongues," the word unknown isn't there. Do you know why? It seems that the
translators put the word unknown in with the singular word tongue and left
it out with the plural word tongues. It's possible that they did this
because they believed that Paul was using the singular to refer to the
ecstatic gibberish (which was all one kind--gibberish) and the plural to
refer to the true gift (which would have been responsible for many languages
[cf. Ac. 2:6]). So in verses 1-4 he's saying, "Your false gift is all
wrong." But in verse 5 he's saying, "The true gift is all right when it's
used properly and interpreted."
Beloved, let's be sure that when we come together, we come to hear the Word.
Also, be constantly on guard against the infiltration of paganism into the
church, because Satan hasn't changed his tactics. And remember, it's a
dangerous thing to seek something that God is not giving, because then
you're wide open to Satan's counterfeit.
PART TWO
Introduction
A. A Charismatic Confrontation: The Motive
Let me begin by saying that I do not approach this text with an ulterior
motive. My only motive is to understand what Paul is saying. I am not
attempting to direct these messages on 1 Corinthians 14 to speak against the
current Charismatic movement. I'm simply trying to teach what the text is
saying, and then to make application. Now I know that it's hard for some
people to accept the fact that I'm not personally attacking individuals who
believe as the Charismatics believe. However, I am only endeavoring to give
a clear understanding of the things that are in the Word of God regarding
the phenomena of speaking in tongues and how it applies to us today.
With that in mind, let's look at 1 Corinthians 14.
B. The Corinthians' Carnality: Its Manifestation
First Corinthians 14 brings us to the issue of tongues in the Corinthian
church--another manifestation of their carnality.
1. THE GIFT OF TONGUES CLARIFIED
The true, biblical presentation of the gift of languages (or tongues) can be
seen in Acts 2:6 when the disciples spoke in tongues and the people heard
them speaking it spoken in their own languages. The true gift of tongues is
the miraculous ability to speak a foreign language which is unknown to the
speaker, in order that he might communicate the truth of God in the language
of someone present. It also acted as a sign that God was present, by virtue
of its miraculous element, and it authenticated the message that was being
proclaimed.
Now, there is no reason to think that the clear definition and purpose for
the gift of languages ever changed. The Greek terms that are used in 1
Corinthians 14 are the very same words that are used in Acts 2. There is no
new definition given. In other words, the gift of tongues in Acts 2 is the
same gift that is mentioned by Paul in 1 Corinthians 14. It was still a Holy
Spirit-given, miraculous ability to speak a foreign language that wsa
unknown to the speaker, in order to authenticate the message to someone who
does know that language.
2. THE GIFT OF TONGUES CORRUPTED
The confusion about tongues comes because the Corinthians had corrupted this
very simple and clear gift by misusing it and by mixing it with the heathen
concept of speaking in ecstatic gibberish common to their culture. It was
relatively easy for Satan to counterfeit the true gift of tongues because of
the pagan ecstasy that was so common to the Corinthian culture. But the true
gift was uniquely of God--actual languages which could be understood. In the
Corinthian assembly, they had counterfeited the real gift of tongues and had
turned it into the ecstatic speech of the pagans. With its concomitant
emotional excesses, it had begun to dominate the Corinthian assembly. So
Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 14 to separate the worship of false gods and the
personal objective of self- satisfaction, from the worship of the true God
and the objective that reached out to others. Paul wanted the Corinthians to
use whatever gift they had (if it was really a true gift) to minister to
others--not to use it selfishly to minister some special, ecstatic blessing
to themselves.
Alexander Hay sums it up with the following statement: "These believers, in
their heathen days, had believed that when they spoke in a tongue not
understood by men, not even by the worshiper, they were speaking secrets or
mysteries with their god. They believed it was their spirit speaking. The
benefit was received by the worshiper alone; no one else understood. The
worshiper profited through the ecstasy of feeling aroused and the sense that
he was really participating with the spirits in the inner circle. He had no
thought for the building up of the other worshipers. Paul contrasts this
selfish objective with the Christian objective. The purpose of the
manifestations of God's Spirit is that the whole congregation be edified"
("Counterfeit Speaking in Tongues," What Is Wrong in the Church?, Vol. 2,
[Audubon, N.J.: New Testament Missionary Union, n.d.] p. 32).
Are there two kinds of tongues?
Charismatics and Pentecostals realize that there is a difference between the
tongues of Acts 2 and what is going on in 1 Corinthians 14, and they explain
the difference by saying that there are two kinds of tongues. They say that
the tongues of Acts 2 are real languages and the tongues of 1 Corinthians 14
refer to an ecstatic, private, devotional speech which one speaks in an
unknown tongue to God personally and privately for self- edification. They
recognize a difference and resolve the difference by saying there are two
gifts of tongues.
I also recognize a difference, but I resolve it by seeing the true use of it
in Acts 2 and the false use of it in 1 Corinthians 14. First Corinthians 14
doesn't talk about another gift; it talks about a perversion of the intended
gift and its mixture with the heathen counterfeit. The Bible doesn't teach
that there are two kinds of tongues speaking--one a language and one an
ecstasy. In fact, the same term describes the gift in Acts 2 and in 1
Corinthians 14. So if God wanted to make a distinction, He would have used
another term--but He didn't. It is the very same word. It is the normal
Greek word for language. There is no reason to justify the selfish use of
tongues in 1 Corinthians 14 as if it were some new, special gift.
To say that what the Corinthians had was the true gift of tongues, being
truly exercised, is to counter-argue against the most basic truth of
spirituality. The Corinthian church could never have been manifesting a true
gift in the spiritual state that they were in. They were worldly, divisive,
opinionated, cliquish, carnal, fleshly, envious, strife-ridden,
argumentative, puffed up, self- glorying, smug, immoral, compromising with
sin, defrauding each other, fornicating, depriving in marriage, offending
weaker Christians, lusting after evil things, idolatrous, fellowshiping with
demons, insubordinate, gluttonous, drunken, selfish toward the poor, and
desecrating the Lord's Table. How could they be expressing a true gift of
the Holy Spirit? Well, the answer is obvious. It would defy every single
principle of spirituality if that were true. A believer either walks in the
flesh or he walks in the Spirit. There is no argument about what the
Corinthians were doing. They were walking in the flesh. And when you are
walking in the flesh you are not manifesting a true gift in the true power
of the Holy Spirit. It can't happen.
3. THE GIFT OF TONGUES CORRECTED
As you come to 1 Corinthians 14, you must not conclude that the Corinthians
were exercising the true gift of tongues, or you will violate every basic
truth about spirituality and how the gifts operate. The only possible thing
that could have been happening here was a misuse of the true gift. Why?
Because everything else was wrong in their lives. Paul wrote the first
thirteen chapters of 1 Corinthians to correct the errors in their assembly,
and he wrote chapter 14 because their selfish, pagan use of ecstatic speech
was being justified as the gift of languages given by the Holy Spirit.
Apparently, even those who had the true gift had perverted it, and were
using it to speak in their own private way, as well as in the assembly when
unbelievers weren't even present. They used the gift of tongues as a way to
lift themselves up to a level of spiritual superiority. The Corinthian
church had let every system in the world engulf them. Why would it be any
different with the world's approach to religion?
Review
I. THE POSITION OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: SECONDARY (vv. 1-19)
A. Prophecy Edifies The Entire Congregation (vv. 1-5)
1. THE PURSUIT OF PROPHECY (v. 1)
"Follow after love, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may
prophesy."
Why are we to desire prophecy? Because prophesying edifies the whole
congregation. In seeking the manifestation of the gifts of the Spirit in
your assembly, you're to seek that which will edify the whole
congregation--the best gift. Now, I want to point out something that I
didn't mention in our last lesson. Here in verse 1, Paul is not speaking
about an individual Christian seeking an individual gift. He is talking
about the assembly. He is saying, "When the assembly meets together, you
should seek the manifestation of the gift of prophesying from whoever has
that gift." This view is apparent from the context of the chapter. From
chapters 11-14, Paul deals with the meeting together of the assembly of the
Corinthian church. None of it has reference to a private time or a personal
relationship with God. It all speaks to how they were to behave in the
assembly. For example, chapter 11 talks about how women were to behave in
the assembly. Chapter 11 also talks about how they were to take care of the
Lord's Table and the love feast when they met together. Chapter 12 talks
about how they were to minister their gifts in the assembly. Chapter 13
talks about how they were to manifest love to one another when they met
together. And chapter 14 talks about how they were to use the gift of
languages when they met together. The whole context of chapters 11-14 is how
to behave in the assembly of the church. So, when Charismatic and
Pentecostal people take chapter 14 and make the gift of tongues relate to a
private devotional language, they are taking that totally out of the context
in which it exists in the book. What Paul is saying is this: "When you come
together, instead of wanting the ecstatic manifestations that you are
involved in, seek that you may see someone prophesy, so that God may speak
to you out of His Word."
2. THE PERVERSION OF TONGUES (v. 2)
"For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue [ecstatic speech] speaketh not
unto men, but unto God [lit. `a god']; for no man understandeth him;
however, in the spirit he speaketh mysteries."
In the last lesson, I mentioned an interesting possibility that occurs here
in chapter 14. I'm not going to be dogmatic on this, but the more I study it
the more I like it. The possibility is this: Whenever the singular term
"tongue" appears, Paul may well be referring to the ecstatic gift. And when
the plural term "tongues" appears, he's referring to the true gift. Now, the
reason I say that is because only real languages can be plural--gibberish
cannot. There aren't many different kinds of gibberish, there is only one
kind--gibberish! You can't say, "What kind of gibberish do you speak?" There
aren't any kinds! This may well be why the King James translators put the
word unknown in whenever the word tongue is used in the singular.
Perhaps they recognized this nuance in Paul's writing.
So, perhaps what Paul is saying here in verse 2 is, "He that speaks in this
ecstatic gibberish, speaks not unto men, but unto a god. For nobody
understands him, including the true God. That's not His kind of talk.
However, in his spirit he is speaking mysteries." (Remember, the term
mystery was a big word in all the pagan mystery religions.) In other words,
"When you speak in your ecstasies, you are not speaking to anybody." Right
there is the first perversion of the gift of tongues, because all gifts were
intended to build up somebody other than yourself. If they're not used to
speak to men, they are perverted.
3. THE PRODUCTS OF PROPHECY (v. 3)
"But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation,
and comfort."
Here, Paul contrasts their pagan, ecstatic speech with prophesying--which
truly speaks the truth of God to the hearts of people. That's a tremendous
contrast, isn't it? Then Paul continues on and hits the issue of their
selfishness in verse 4.
4. THE PROSTITUTION OF TONGUES (v. 4)
"He that speaketh in an unknown tongue [i.e., gibberish] edifieth himself,
but he that prophesieth edifieth the church."
I pointed out to you in the last lesson, that the self- edification
mentioned in this verse is not a good thing. In 1 Corinthians 8:10, we
looked at an illustration of a bad kind of edification--building somebody up
to a position where he will fall. We also saw that in 1 Corinthians 10:23-24
Paul says, "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient;
all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. Let no man seek his
own [edification] , but every man another's [edification]." So, since self-
edification and the wrong kind of edification are already in Paul's
vocabulary as negatives, I think it's easy to see it here. What he is saying
is somewhat caustic and sarcastic-- pointing out their self-centeredness.
He's saying, "He that speaks this gibberish is only building himself up, but
the one who prophesies truly builds up the church. So in the assembly,
there's no place for this kind of ecstatic speech."
5. THE PLACE OF TONGUES (v. 5)
"I would that ye all spoke with tongues [the plural indicates the true gift
of languages] but rather that ye prophesied; for greater is he that
prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues [or `languages'], except he
interpret, that the church may receive edifying."
The true gift is all right if it's used in the right context, if somebody
who speaks that language is present, and if it's truly interpreted for the
church to understand. But apart from that situation it has no purpose.
So, since prophesying edifies the whole church, the true gift of tongues
takes a secondary place. The false gift has no place at all. The second
reason that tongues are secondary is...
B. Tongues Are Unintelligible (vv. 6-12)
1. IDENTIFYING THE PROBLEM (v. 6)
"Now, brethren, if I come unto you speaking with tongues [or `languages'],
what shall I profit you, except I shall speak to you either by revelation,
or by knowledge, or by prophesying, or by doctrine?"
In other words, Paul says, "Even if I, the Apostle Paul, with all the clout
and all the godliness that I have, come to you and speak with the true gift
of languages, what good will it do you? You speak Greek, you don't need me
to speak another language to you. It wouldn't profit or benefit you."
It's amazing to me that anyone in the church would ever put such an
incredible premium on unintelligible communication-- communication that
nobody, not even the speaker, understands. It's also amazing to note that
many times when the so-called interpretation is given, it can be proven that
it is, in fact, not a true interpretation at all. There are many, many
testimonies to the effect that people have experimented by speaking in
Hebrew, or other known foreign languages, and the interpretation given had
nothing to do with what was actually said.
For some unknown reason, the modern Charismatic movement has created a
spiritual hierarchy where those who are able to communicate to nobody with
ecstatic gibberish are highly regarded. But the Apostle Paul says, "If I
came into your assembly and used the true gift of languages, it wouldn't
mean anything to you because you speak Greek."
2. ILLUSTRATING THE PRINCIPLE (vv. 7-11)
a. The Use of Sound (vv. 7-8)
1) To Create Music (v. 7)
"And even things without life, giving sound, whether flute or harp, except
they give a distinction in the sounds, how shall it be known what is piped
or harped?"
The flute and the harp were the most common instruments of that day. They
were used at banquets, funerals, and religious ceremonies. So the
Corinthians would understand what Paul was referring to. The phrase "things
without life" refers to these inanimate instruments which were known for
beautiful music and the moods of joy and sorrow that they could create. The
phrase "except they give a distinction" means that unless these instruments
are played with a distinction in tone and rhythm, their sounds mean
absolutely nothing. The Greek literally means "unless there is a
difference." In other words, there has to be variation in sound to make
sense. There has to be a studied, calculated variation. A flute or a harp
makes sense only when there is meaningful variation in the sound. Paul is
saying, "Sound alone, even from a beautiful instrument, means nothing unless
there is enough variation in the tone for somebody to understand the
melody."
You say, "Well, what's the point of this analogy, John?" The point is this:
You can't be benefited or edified when you hear somebody speak unless there
is an understood variation in the tone that communicates meaning. Paul says,
"It doesn't do any good to do it any other way." You see, even the true gift
of languages used with people who don't understand it is useless--to say
nothing of the gibberish which is always useless.
2) The Call to Action (v. 8)
"For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to
the battle?"
Can you imagine what would happen if a bugler was supposed to blow the sound
to prepare the troops for battle, and instead he got up and blew any old
tune he wanted? The soldiers wouldn't know whether to get out of bed, go
back to bed, put on their armor, or what. It's very obvious that the bugle
has to have significant variation to have meaning. A military trumpet was
the clearest and the loudest of all instruments, but no soldier would have
any idea what to do if it didn't blow something with significance.
b. The Use of Language (vv. 9-11)
1) It Must Be Easy to Understand (v. 9)
"So likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood,
how shall it be known what is spoken? For ye shall speak into the air."
Paul's point is that there is absolutely no signification for
gibberish...ever. Why? Because nobody is ever able to understand it. The
only significant time for the use of the true gift in the apostolic era was
when somebody was present who understood the language. If it occurred in the
assembly of believers, it would be translated in order that the believers
might also be edified by it. But if it wasn't understandable, they were just
blowing into the air.
Paul is really drawing some sarcastic pictures for the Corinthians, isn't
he? Musical instruments that are so out of tune they can't be recognized,
and an army bugler so incompetent that the army has no idea what's going on.
Then he says, "That's about what's going on in the Corinthian assembly--pure
confusion and chaos." Paul is trying to get these believers to recognize and
realize that the purpose of the gifts of the Spirit is to proclaim the
gospel to the unsaved and to teach the truth to God's people--and in some
cases, to authenticate those who would do both of those things. And that can
only be done through intelligible words. So with irony, and some sarcasm,
and much patience, and great illustration, Paul is trying to break through
the barrier of ignorance, emotion, and superstition that exists in the
Corinthian church.
2) It Must Have Meaning (vv. 10-11)
"There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices [lit. `sounds'] in the world,
and none of them is without signification. Therefore, if I know not the
meaning of the voice, I shall be unto him that speaketh a barbarian, and he
that speaketh shall be a barbarian unto me."
Paul says, "If you don't talk in something I can understand, we're two
barbarians trying to talk to one another." Do you know what a barbarian is?
To the Corinthians, a barbarian was a foreigner who didn't speak Greek. So
he's simply saying, "If you talk in that kind of stuff, we're just going to
be incommunicado. We would be like two barbarians--neither of whom have a
common language."
The word "barbarian" (Gk. barbaros) is onomatopoetic. It is a word that
sounds like what it refers to, like buzz, zip, and hiss. An onomatopoetic
word simply repeats a sound. Well, the word barbaros comes from the
repetition of the sounds "bar, bar, bar." In other words, Paul is saying,
"If you speak in unintelligible languages, I won't know the meaning of what
you're saying. It will be nothing more than saying, `Bar, bar, bar, bar' to
me."
The whole point, then, is the uselessness of their unintelligible language
of pagan gibberish. It had absolutely no signification whatsoever. And,
according to verse 10, it was contrary to all the laws of sound and meaning.
Everything has meaning, except for what they were doing. All languages
communicate, except for their kind. And remember, they could have been
indicted for the misuse of the true gift by speaking a language as if it
were some great spiritual accomplishment and doing it when there was nobody
around who would even understand it.
So, no spiritual ministry can ever be accomplished with that kind of
confusion. Unbelievers coming into their assembly would look around and say,
"These people are mad!" (14:23). In other words, they would see that the
frenzy of the Corinthians wasn't any different than the frenzy of the
worshipers of Diana. They would see that the Corinthians were going through
the same kind of ecstasy that the pagans were engaging in. Consequently,
they would see no difference between the Christian church and the temple of
Diana.
3. INSISTING ON THE PRIORITY (v. 12)
"Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye
may excel to the edifying of the church."
Paul says, "Since you're so zealous of spiritual gifts, and you so want the
manifestation of the Spirit, seek that which will be the true manifestation
to truly edify the church. Incidentally, this is how Paul ended the first
part of this chapter in verse 5 when he said to seek "that the church may
receive edifying." In fact, this is the way he ends each of the various
sections of this chapter because he's dealing with their selfishness. When
the Corinthians came together, all of them were seeking this ecstatic,
sensual experience. And we still have that today. Charismatics and
Pentecostals are all seeking a personal, ecstatic experience of speaking in
tongues. But that is the antithesis of all spiritual gifts--gifts that are
designed to edify the body.
So, the position of tongues is secondary because, first of all, prophecy
will edify the church. A second reason why tongues are secondary is that
tongues are unintelligible and consequently have a very limited use.
Incidentally, that limited use was limited to the Apostolic Age. A third
reason why tongues are secondary is...
C. The Effect Of Tongues Is Emotional Rather Than Mental (vv. 13-19)
1. THE REJECTION OF PRAYING IN TONGUES (vv. 13-14)
a. Praying for an Interpretation (v. 13)
"Wherefore, let him that speaketh in an unknown tongue [i.e., `gibberish']
pray that he may interpret."
This is a very difficult verse to interpret. What does Paul mean when he
says, "Let him that speaks in gibberish pray that he may interpret"? Well,
let's look at it.
1) The Meaning
As we know from our study already, the Corinthians were speaking in a
private kind of ecstatic communication with a pagan god and thinking that
they were praying to the true God. But praying in gibberish was never the
intention of the gift of tongues--it was the perversion. What Paul is saying
is this: "Look, the one praying in gibberish ought to pray with the purpose
of interpreting what he's praying." In other words, I think Paul is being a
little sarcastic and saying, "Hey, you that are so busy praying in your
gibberish, why don't you pray for something that will have some meaning to
somebody?"
In case you think that's forcing the issue, read carefully through 1
Corinthians. You'll find that such sarcasm and irony is introduced on many,
many occasions. In other words, "Let the one who is so anxious to pray in
his private little language, pray instead for the gift that's intelligible.
Let him ask God for something that the rest of the body can be benefited by,
because what he's doing is so very selfish."
2) The Misunderstanding
Somebody is probably saying, "You really pushed that interpretation into
that verse." Well, there's only one other way to interpret it. The other
alternative is this: "Wherefore, let him that speaks in an unknown tongue,
pray that he may receive the gift of interpretation." Now if we interpret it
that way, the verse is saying that we can seek certain gifts, right? It's
saying that if we want the gift of interpretation, or any other gift, all we
have to do is pray for it. Well, is that true? No! First Corinthians 12:11
says that the Holy Spirit gives the gifts to whomever He wills. And in 1
Corinthians 12:30 it says, "...Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?"
What is the answer implied by the Greek construction? No! God never said
that we can pray for any gift we want or that we can seek for any gift we
want. Therefore, this verse can't be saying that we ought to seek the gift
of interpretation.
Another reason why verse 13 can't be interpreted as advocating the seeking
of the gift of interpretation is seen in verse 28. Paul says, "...if there
be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church...." In other words,
if somebody was going to use the true gift that an unsaved person in their
midst would understand, he shouldn't use it unless he knows that there is an
interpreter present who will interpret it for the church. Consequently, I
also believe that they knew who among them had the gift of interpretation.
The true gift was so limited, then, that they couldn't even exercise it in
the assembly if the person with the gift of interpretation wasn't there.
There is no way, then, that verse 13 can be exhorting an individual to seek
the gift of interpretation. So, the only other alternative is that Paul is
being sarcastic and saying, "While you're jabbering, why don't you pray
something intelligent, like asking God for something that will benefit
everyone else."
b. Praying Mindlessly (v. 14)
"For if I pray in an unknown tongue [ i.e., `gibberish'], my spirit [Gk.
pneuma= `breath, wind'] prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful."
In other words, Paul is saying, "If I pray in gibberish, do you know what
I'm doing? I'm just blowing air into the air. That's all." You see, the word
pneuma can be translated "spirit," "breath," or "wind." Some would even say
it refers to the inner feelings. Charismatics, however, make the word
pneuma, here, refer to the Holy Spirit. It doesn't say the Holy Spirit,
though. It says, "my spirit." And even though it could be argued that the
Holy Spirit is our spirit, it's compared, in this verse, with our
understanding. So if the human understanding is on one end of the
comparative, the human breath or spirit must be on the other end. They must
be balanced.
So Paul says, "If I'm praying in gibberish, my wind may be praying, but my
mind is unfruitful." In other words, there is nothing beneficial occurring.
There is no fruit bearing. The gibberish of ecstatic tongues praying, then,
is mindless. "If I pray in an unknown tongue," says Paul, "I'm just blowing
air into the air like the heathen. I won't understand what I'm saying, and
neither will you." So, the counterfeit gift just set up an emotional
experience. It had no mental benefit at all!
Beloved, you know as well as I do that there is never a time in the Word of
God when God wants us to be mindless. God never sets a premium on your brain
being turned off...never. There is never a time when God wants us to
function on pure emotion without understanding. What was going on in
Corinth, then, was wrong. They engaged in mindless, emotional experiences
that had no meaning. In fact, in Matthew 22:37, Jesus said, "Thou shalt love
the Lord, thy God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all
thy mind." To pray or sing in a tongue is useless--useless to you and to
anybody else. It is mindless emotion.
2. THE REQUIREMENT OF ONE'S UNDERSTANDING (v. 15)
a. Praying with Understanding (v. 15a)
"What is it, then? [i.e., `What is my conclusion?'] I will pray with the
spirit [or `breath, wind, or inner being'], and I will pray with the
understanding also..."
Paul says, "When I talk to God, it's going to come from inside of me. I'm
going to use my breath (or my wind), but I'm also going to use my brain."
b. Singing with Understanding (v. 15b)
"...I will sing with the spirit [or `breath, wind, inner being'], and I will
sing with the understanding also."
Apparently, the Corinthians used to sing in ecstatic languages as well as
pray in them. Modern Charismatics sing in tongues, too. But Paul says, "I
don't do that. What purpose does that serve, except to show off to everybody
that I have a private prayer language that hooks me up to God in a special
way? Well, I'm not going to do that. I'll pray with my breath and my mind,
and I'll sing with my breath and my mind--not mindlessly."
When we pray in English, God understands. And when we sing in English, God
understands. That's far superior than talking to God in some kind of
gibberish--no matter what anybody tells you. God doesn't need that.
Should musical instruments be allowed in the church?
The word "sing" in 1 Corinthians 14:15 originally meant "to play the harp."
Through the years it came to mean "to sing to the accompaniment of the
harp." Now there are some people who say that the church shouldn't have
musical instruments, but that can't be supported biblically. In the New
Testament and in the Septuagint, the word sing was understood to mean "to
sing to the accompaniment of a harp." So, we can, and do, use musical
instruments in the church.
3. THE RESTRICTION OF TONGUES (vv. 16-17)
a. The Inability to Say Amen (v. 16)
"Else, when thou shalt bless with the spirit [without your mind], how shall
he that occupieth the place of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of
thanks, seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest?"
Notice the phrase "the place of the unlearned." In the Greek the word is
idiotes. Here, the word means "ignorant," and simply refers to somebody
ignorant of the language being spoken. In other words, if you speak in
tongues, the person who occupies the place of ignorance about the meaning of
what you said, can't even say, "Amen," at the giving of your thanks. Why?
Because he doesn't understand what you're saying.
Now, amen is simply a Hebrew adjective that means "True, say it, brother!"
or "So let it be," or "I'm with you." And in the Jewish synagogue, saying
amen was so important that you could hardly get your lesson done because of
all the amening. Let me give you some quotes from the rabbis:
"He who says amen is greater than he who blesses." Here's another one:
"Whoever says amen, to him the gates of Paradise are opened." Here's another
one: "Whoever says amen shortly, his days shall be shortened; whoever says
amen distinctly and at length, his days shall be lengthened." Consequently,
do you know what happened in a synagogue? It was a contest to see who could
amen the most to get into the Kingdom.
This was also common in the early church--though much more genuine. So Paul
says, "Look, if all you have is blind, emotional ecstasy going on, nobody
can even agree because nobody knows what's happening." Do you get the point?
When we come together, our spiritual gifts are for everybody's benefit. And
whatever you do that leaves somebody else out is wrong.
b. The Inability to Edify Others (v. 17)
"For thou verily givest thanks well, but the other is not edified."
You might be doing a great job. And if you happen to have the true gift, in
your own heart you might be thinking, "Boy, am I thankful to God."
Unfortunately, nobody else is edified, which makes the use of your gift
wrong because you've missed the point of the assembly. You've missed the
point of coming together.
Now somebody might say, "That's just why we teach that speaking in tongues
is to be done in private." But that still misses the point of the gift,
because it was never a gift to be used in private. The gift of tongues was
always to be used in the presence of somebody who spoke the language. What
good would it do to speak in tongues in private? Well, here in verse 17,
Paul says that even if speaking in tongues is done in public, it doesn't do
any good unless somebody there understands what you're saying.
4. THE REAFFIRMATION OF TONGUES (v. 18)
"I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all"
Here, Paul does the same thing that he did earlier in the chapter.
Basically, he says,"I've been kind of hard on this subject of tongues, and I
don't want you to get the wrong idea. I do believe it's a true gift, and I
thank my God I speak with languages more than all of you." In a sense he's
saying, "If you're wondering why I'm a little on the outside and don't quite
understand all of this ecstatic phenomena, I just want you to know that I've
probably spoken in tongues more than any of you."
Paul had the true gift of tongues. Since he was an Apostle, he had the gifts
of an Apostle (2 Cor. 12:12). He exercised those gifts, no doubt, as he
traveled around. You say, "Well, how did he use this gift?" Well, first of
all, I'm sure he didn't use it as a private prayer language. Second, I'm
sure he didn't use it in Christian meetings to show he was spiritual. And
third, I'm sure he didn't use it for his own benefit.
Now, let me tell you how he did use the gift of tongues. He used it when he
traveled to a place where there were people who spoke a foreign language
that he didn't know. In that kind of situation, he was given the ability by
God to speak that language, so that they might know God was present and a
miracle had happened. Then he would speak the truths of God and they would
be given the opportunity to be converted. Paul was a missionary to the
Gentiles, so he might have had many instances in his missionary travels when
he could have used this gift. It's interesting to me, though, that he ranked
the gift of tongues so very low. In fact, in all of his writings, he never
refers to using this gift...except here in 1 Corinthians 14:18. And even
here, he doesn't give an illustration of when he used it.
5. THE RANKING OF TONGUES (v. 19)
"Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that
by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown
tongue."
Paul says, "The true gift of tongues is fine for evangelizing pagans in a
language they understand, and for showing them that God is present and that
God is speaking. But in the church, I'd rather speak five words that I
understand, so that I might teach others, than ten thousand words in an
unknown tongue."
Now I want you to see something interesting. Five words to ten thousand
words is not the ratio. The Greek word translated "ten thousand" is murioi.
And the reason that this word is used here is that it was the largest number
in Greek mathematics for which there was a word. For example, in Revelation
5:11, it talks about the angels and says, "...and the number of them was ten
thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands." Well, in the
Greek, it just keeps repeating the word murioi because it was the word that
represented their biggest number. In the English, verse 19 would be more
accurately translated, "I would rather say five words with my understanding
than quintillion words in gibberish." In other words, there isn't even a
comparison. Why? "Because nobody is going to learn and I want to use my
voice to teach others also."
Conclusion
A. The Charismatic Repetition of the Problems
Does this passage tell us how to govern tongues in the church? No, because
the gift of tongues has ceased. You say, "Well, what does this passage teach
us?" First of all, it shows us that the modern Charismatic movement is
simply repeating the same old Corinthian problem all over again. Now, I say
that with love and great concern--but I believe that it's true. They use
tongues in their assemblies today, they speak in gibberish, they do it for
private self-edification, they seek the emotional experience rather than the
intellectual understanding, they sing in tongues, they are absorbed in their
own experiences, they glory in the unintelligible as if it were some secret
communion with God, they do it among believers, and their missionaries do
not have the true gift to reach people with different languages. So what I
see in the modern Charismatic movement is a mirror of the Corinthian
problem.
PART THREE
Introduction and Review
In 1 Corinthians 14, the Apostle Paul corrects the carnal Corinthians on the
basis of their misuse and perversion of the gift of tongues (or languages).
In the New Testament era, the true gift of tongues was the ability to speak
a language which was unknown to the speaker but known to someone present.
Now, God had a very definite purpose for this gift, which we'll see later on
in this lesson, but the Corinthian assembly had taken the true gift and had
twisted it for an untrue use. They also had added a counterfeit gift to the
true gift.
It was common, in the pagan mystery religions of that day, for the people to
believe that they could enter into a state of frenzy or ecstasy, slip out of
their body, and commune on another level with a deity. And when they did
that, they would speak to that deity in an unknown language--the language of
that god. They believed that this ecstatic, supernatural phenomenon was a
great act of devotion toward that god. Consequently, it was very
self-edifying. Well, as with other practices of the world's system, this
pagan practice of speaking in ecstatic languages infiltrated the Corinthian
church.
The Corinthian Christians actually believed that the gift of tongues was
speaking an ecstatic babble or gibberish and communing with God in a private
prayer language. So, the Apostle Paul had to write this chapter to dispell
the idea that the true gift is that kind of ecstatic gibberish. He also
wrote this chapter to make sure that when the true gift was exercised, it
was exercised properly in the right context to accomplish the right purpose.
First Corinthians 14 is a very urgent chapter for us today because
Charismatics are constantly telling us that speaking in tongues is necessary
in order to realize the full manifestation of the Holy Spirit--the full
expression of His power in our lives. They're loudly crying out to us to
have this experience, so we need to understand exactly what Paul is saying
here.
This chapter can be divided, basically, into three major points. In our last
two lessons, we talked about the position of the gift of tongues and saw
that it was secondary. The second point, which we are going to look at in
this lesson, is the purpose of the gift of tongues. And the third point,
which we'll consider in the next lesson, is the procedure for the gift of
tongues.
I. THE POSITION OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: SECONDARY (vv. 1-19)
II. THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: A SIGN (vv. 20-25)
This is an extremely vital area of study, because if we can determine the
purpose of the gift of tongues, then we will be able to evaluate what's
going on today, or at any time in history, relative to this gift. It either
fits the biblical purpose or it does not. Consequently, we can determine
whether it's legitimate or not.
A. The Purpose Suggested
1. PERSONAL EDIFICATION AND DEVOTION
a. Described
Now let me begin by reiterating what is often offered as the purpose of
tongues--particularly today among our brothers and sisters in Pentecostal
and Charismatic fellowships. They tell us that the purpose of tongues is
primarily for personal edification and devotion. In other words, they say
that it is to be used as a private prayer language because it builds you up
and allows you to have devotions with God in a supernatural way.
Donald Gee, a well-known Pentecostal scholar, said, "...the revealed
purposes of the gift of tongues are chiefly devotional, and we do well to
emphasize the fact" (Concerning Spiritual Gifts [Springfield: Gospel
Publishing House, 1937], p. 42). Larry Christenson, who is a more modern
Charismatic, says, "One speaks in tongues, for the most part, in his private
devotions. This is by far its most important use and value" (Speaking in
Tongues and its Significance for the Church [Minneapolis: Bethany
Fellowship, 1968], p. 28).
They are saying, then, that speaking in tongues is a new way to have your
devotions, a new way to edify yourself, a new way to build yourself up, a
new way for you to have communion with God and experience something deeper
and more meaningful than you could experience any other way.
b. Disputed
In the first 19 verses of 1 Corinthians 14, Paul basically chides the
Corinthians for their selfish use of tongues. When we studied verse 2, I
showed you that Paul was telling the Corinthians, "When you speak in
ecstatic gibberish, you are doing what is done in the mystery religions by
people who are speaking to their gods. This is not the design of any
spiritual gift, because all spiritual gifts are designed to speak to men or
to serve others." In 1 Corinthians 12:7 Paul says that the gifts were given
to profit all. So, they had misused this gift.
All the gifts are to be used to edify one another. The idea of
self-edification is a perversion. In verse 4 of 1 Corinthians 14 Paul says,
"He that speaketh in an unknown tongue [lit. `gibberish'] edifieth
himself...." Now, he is not telling them to speak in tongues to edify
themselves; he's merely recognizing that this is what they are doing. You
say, "What's wrong with edifying oneself?" Well, that's selfish; and no gift
is ever to be used selfishly! So Paul says, "You are actually speaking in
this gibberish for the purpose of building yourselves up. But the truth of
the matter is that your understanding is unfruitful (v. 14), and nobody who
hears you can even say amen (v. 16). You are totally ignoring the people
around you because you are selfish. As for me, I'd rather speak five words
that others can understand, than ten thousand words in a foreign language"
(v. 19). You see, they were speaking in tongues for self- edification, but
that wasn't the point of the gift.
Tongues were never intended for the purpose of edification. In fact, tongues
can't edify the church because the members don't understand what's being
said. And when they are interpreted, it is the gift of interpretation that
edifies-- not the gift of tongues. Further, tongues can't edify an
individual because his mind is unfruitful.
It isn't possible, then, that tongues can be defined as a self-edifying
prayer language to God. If you study prayer in the New Testament, you will
never find a verse that tells you to pray to God in an unknown language. In
fact, when Jesus laid out the model for prayer in Matthew 6:9-13, there
wasn't any gibberish or ecstatic language involved, was there? I certainly
don't think that we can come up with a better model than that of our Lord
Himself. People say, "But speaking in tongues is a method of praising God in
a marvelous and free way." Well, if it's such a great way to praise God, and
praise is the very character of heaven, why does 1 Corinthians 13:8 say that
tongues will cease?
So, we can't conclude that the gift of tongues is for self- edification or
devotion. A second suggestion that some people give for the purpose of
tongues is...
2. EVANGELISM
Some people say that the gift of tongues in the New Testament was to enable
somebody to preach the gospel in another language. Now, that sounds like a
good idea. And I wouldn't deny that somewhere on a mission field, God may
have given somebody the ability to speak a language he didn't know in order
to give the gospel to somebody in a very critical situation. However, that
doesn't support the idea that the gift of tongues in the New Testament was
to preach the gospel to people who didn't understand. Do you know why?
Because there are no illustrations of the gift of tongues being used like
that in the whole New Testament.
You say, "What about in Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost when the disciples
spoke in tongues and everybody in the crowd heard them speak in his own
language?" Yes, but do you know what the multitude heard? They heard them
speaking "the wonderful works of God" (Ac. 2:11). In other words, they went
over the great historical events that God had done in the Old Testament. Do
you know why? They were drawing the attention of the Jewish crowd so that
Peter could stand up and preach the gospel to them in a language that was
common to all (Ac. 2:14- 40). So, rather than saying that the purpose of the
gift of tongues was evangelism, you might say that it was more useful for
pre-evangelism. It gathered the crowd and then the gospel was preached.
So, Charismatics have suggested that the gift of tongues is for edification,
while others have suggested that it's for evangelism. But those don't really
fit the New Testament pattern. A third suggestion for the purpose of the
gift of tongues is that it is a...
3. PROOF OF SPIRIT BAPTISM
In our study of 1 Corinthians 12 (see the study notes entitled Spiritual
Gifts), we discussed this erroneous view that the gift of tongues is the
proof of the baptism of the Holy Spirit at great length. There are several
problems with this view, as seen in the following passages:
a. 1 Corinthians 12:13, 30--Paul writes, "For by one Spirit were we all
baptized...." How many were baptized? All! Look at verse 30: "Have all the
gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?" Well, the
Greek construction of this verse implies a negative answer. In other words,
all are baptized, but all do not speak in tongues. You cannot equate those
two.
b. Acts 2:38--After Peter preached in Acts 2, he said, "Repent, and be
baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for [lit. `because
of'] the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit." Three thousand people responded to Peter's sermon that day (v. 41).
Do you know how many of them spoke in tongues after they received the gift
of the Holy Spirit? The Bible doesn't say that any of them did!
c. Acts 4:31--Referring to the early church, Luke writes, "And when they had
prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit...." At that point, do you think they
all spoke in tongues? No! "...they spoke the word of God with boldness."
In 1 Corinthians 12, all are baptized by the Spirit; in Acts 2, people
receive the Spirit; and in Acts 4, people are filled with the Spirit. But in
each of those cases, an accompanying phenomenon of tongues is not mentioned.
Therefore, you can't equate the baptism of the Spirit, the receiving of the
Spirit, or the filling of the Spirit with speaking in tongues.
You say, "John, if speaking in tongues isn't a sign of Spirit baptism, and
if it isn't for the purpose of actually proclaiming the gospel, and if it
isn't for the purpose of building myself up in a private way, what is the
gift of tongues for?" Well, let's look at the text and find out.
B. The Purpose Stated (vv. 20-22)
1. THE PROBLEM OF THE CORINTHIANS DETECTED (v. 20)
"Brethren, be not children [lit. `stop being children'] in understanding;
however, in malice [Gk. kakia=evil] be ye children [lit. `infants'], but in
understanding be men."
Now this is a rather strong indictment, so Paul starts by calling them
"brethren" to conciliate them a little bit before he hammers them. The
admonition, here, suggests that because of their misuse of tongues they were
practicing evil. Let me show you what I mean.
a. Their Lack of Understanding
Paul says that the Corinthians were "children in understanding." In other
words, they hadn't really grown up spiritually to the point where they
understood solid doctrine. They were "children, tossed to and fro, and
carried about with every wind of doctrine..." (Eph. 4:14). They didn't use
their minds. In fact, 1 Corinthians 14:14 implies that their minds were
unfruitful. They were not thinking through the right things--the biblical
things-- that they had received. Consequently, the Corinthians were
"children in understanding" rather than mature men with minds that grasped
the truth.
b. Their Love of Evil
The Corinthians should have been infants in malice and evil...but they
weren't. You say, "What do you mean by that?" Well, a little infant has no
evil thoughts or malice toward anybody. A little infant is full of love,
gentleness, kindness, tenderness, care, and sensitivity. So Paul is saying,
"Why don't you treat each other like that? Why don't you be little infants
when it comes to the way you act with each other and be mature in your
thinking, instead of being infants in your thinking and mature in your
evil?"
You see, because of their selfish exercise of spiritual gifts for the
purpose of self-edification, they were ignoring the rest of the family of
God. There was no room for any real teaching of the Word of God because of
the total confusion that characterized their worship. In fact, not only
couldn't the members of the church get anything out of the services, people
who visited their congregation thought that they were insane because of the
absolute chaos that occurred as everybody in the church just did his own
thing.
The problem in the Corinthian church really boiled down to a preference of
anti-intellectualism over existential experience--which is basically what we
see happening today. A pervasive kind of anti-intellectualism has allowed
the Charismatic movement to sweep into the church and accommodate that kind
of thinking.
Paul says, "Stop being children and treating people unkindly, and start
thinking like adults." After having said that and calling them to attention,
Paul gives the purpose of tongues:
2. THE PURPOSE OF TONGUES DELINEATED (vv. 21-22a)
"In the law it is written, With men of other tongues and other lips will I
speak unto this people; and yet for all that will they not hear me, saith
the Lord. Wherefore, tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but
to them that believe not..."
Now if you never learn anything else about tongues, you can be sure about
one thing: "...tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them
that believe not...." That statement alone is the heart of this chapter. In
fact, if anyone today thinks he has the gift of tongues, all he needs to do
is to deal with the reality of that statement, and he will be forced to
reconsider just what he does have. It couldn't be any simpler. Tongues are
for a sign to those who don't believe!
Now basically, the purpose of tongues as a sign is threefold. They are a
sign of cursing, a sign of blessing, and a sign of authority. Let's look at
each one separately:
a. A Sign of Cursing
This is the primary purpose of the gift of tongues, according to these
verses. Let's look at verse 21 again: "In the law [which can refer to the
Pentateuch or the entire Old Testament] it is written [freely quoting Isaiah
28:11-12], With men of other tongues and other lips will I speak unto this
people [referring to Israel]; and yet for all that will they not hear me,
saith the Lord." Then, having stated that Old Testament proclamation of
Isaiah to Israel, Paul applies it to the time of the Corinthians in verse
22, and tells them that if tongues were a sign in the time of Isaiah, they
were still a sign: "Wherefore, tongues are for a sign, not to them that
believe, but to them that believe not...." So, Paul draws a conclusion from
the Old Testament text. What's his conclusion? Tongues are not for believing
people, they are for unbelieving people. What unbelieving people? Well, the
phrase "this people" in verse 21 is referring to Israel, so tongues are
specifically a sign to unbelieving Israel.
---
Now, let me give you a little bit of background:
1) Old Testament Warnings of Judgment
a) Isaiah 28:7-12
In Isaiah 28, we find ourselves in the southern kingdom of Judah during the
reign of King Hezekiah. The year is approximately 705 B.C. In 722 B.C.,
seventeen years earlier, the northern kingdom of Israel had been taken and
destroyed by the Assyrians as a judgment of God on Israel's unbelief and
apostasy. Now, in 705 B.C., the southern kingdom of Judah was also behaving
in a terrible, disobedient manner. So God spoke to them through the prophet
Isaiah to warn them of their impending judgment. That is the message of the
first 15 verses of Isaiah 28. It is a warning from the prophet to the
southern kingdom of Judah, that they are going to receive the same kind of
judgment that the kingdom in the north received.
Now, let's see how Isaiah approaches the problem. In verse 7, he finds the
leaders of Israel, the prophets, and the priests, in a drunken stupor: "But
they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the
way...." They had failed to fulfill their function as leaders because they
were drunk. Verse 7 continues: "...The priest and the prophet have erred
through strong drink; they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way
through strong drink, they err in vision, they stumble in judgment."
Look at the ugliness of verse 8: "For all tables are full of vomit and
filthiness, so that there is no place clean." Isaiah finds them at some
party in a drunken stupor, having vomited all over the tables. So he unloads
his message of rebuke and of coming judgment.
Do you know what their reaction is? They mock him, scorn him, chide him, and
deride him. Look at what they say in verse 9: "Whom shall he teach
knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Those who are
weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts." In other words, "Who
could he ever teach? Babies!" Why? "Because he always goes `precept...upon
precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a
little, and there a little' (v. 10). He must think we're babies. He keeps
repeating the same simple stuff over and over again."
So, they mock him. They don't appreciate his attitude, so they begin to
sneer at the prophet and call his teaching simple and childish. He tried to
teach them over and over again, but they never heard him. So, in verses
11-12, Isaiah speaks for God, and says, "For with stammering lips and
another tongue will He speak to this people. To whom He said, This is the
rest by which ye may cause the weary to rest, and this is the refreshing;
yet they would not hear." In other words, God says, "You wouldn't hear the
simple, repeated, childlike message of Isaiah, so I'm going to talk to you
in a language you'll never understand." He was referring to the babbling
Babylonians who had already encompassed their city, who would take them out
of their land, destroy them, slaughter them, and burn them. And when they
began to hear that unintelligible language of Babylonia, they would know
that the judgment of God had fallen. By the way, the Babylonian invaders did
come in 588 B.C. Because of Judah's unbelief and apostasy, God brought a
terrible judgment.
b) Deuteronomy 28:49
The people of Israel had been warned before the warning we just saw in
Isaiah. Back in the fifteenth century before Christ, Moses gave the
following warning in Deuteronomy 28:49: "The LORD shall bring a nation
against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle
flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand." I believe that
this warning could have reference to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D.
70.
So, in the fifteenth century, God warned them that when they heard a strange
language it would mean judgment. And in the eighth century, God warned them
through the prophet Isaiah that when they heard a strange language it would
mean judgment. There was also a similar warning in the sixth century by the
prophet Jeremiah:
c) Jeremiah 5:15
That great weeping prophet said, "Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from
far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD; it is a mighty nation, it is an
ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither
understandest what they say."
In the Old Testament, then, God had clearly pointed out to the people of
Israel that when they were going to be judged there would be a sign. That
sign was that they would hear a language they couldn't understand.
2) New Testament Warnings of Judgment
When Paul quotes Isaiah 28 in 1 Corinthians 14, he is saying, "Look, just as
when Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah said it, those languages are a sign to the
unbeliever that God is about to act in judgment." That's what he's saying.
"But what did it mean in Paul's generation?" you ask. Well, when they began
to speak those languages on the Day of Pentecost, every Jew should have
known that the judgment of God was eminent. And it was! In A.D. 70, the
Roman Emperor came in and wiped out Jerusalem. And the sacrificial system of
Judaism, which ceased when the Temple was destroyed, has never been
restored. They should have known the judgment of God was going to fall.
If the judgment of God fell on the unbelief and apostasy of the Northern
Kingdom in 722 B.C., and if the judgment of God fell on the unbelief and
apostasy of the Southern Kingdom in 586 B.C., then it seems to me that God's
judgment would certainly fall on a nation that turned its back on and
crucified its own Messiah in the first century. Well, it did. It also seems
to me that once the destruction of Jerusalem came in A.D. 70, the whole
purpose for the gift of languages ceased. It did! The gift of tongues was
never intended to be something for a Christian. That's not my opinion; it's
what 1 Corinthians 14:22 says. The gift of tongues was for a Jew who didn't
believe, so that he might know God was going to act in judgment.
a) Proclaimed by Jesus
In Luke 13:35 Jesus said, "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate...."
And in Luke 21:20, He carried it a step further: "And when ye shall see
Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that its desolation is near."
Then in verse 24: "And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shalt
be led away captive into all nations; and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by
the Gentiles...." In other words, Jesus was saying, "Hey, judgment is
coming!"
b) Presented in Acts
This purpose for the gift of tongues can be traced and verified in the book
of Acts. In Acts 2, many unbelieving Jewish people were present. And later
on in the book of Acts when speaking in tongues occurred (in chapters 8, 10,
and 19), even though there were no unbelieving Jews present, the message of
judgment was still the same. The recurrence of the same phenomenon that
occurred at Pentecost reinforced, in the mind of the believing Jews present,
the reality that God was going to judge the nation of Israel. Also, when
these believing Jews told their fellow countrymen what had occurred, God's
judgment would again be confirmed.
So first of all, and primarily, the gift of tongues is a sign of cursing to
unbelieving Israel. A secondary purpose, which is actually a residual effect
of the primary purpose, is that the gift of tongues is also...
b. A Sign of Blessing
When tongues occurred at Pentecost, the message to the Jews was this: "God's
not going to work exclusively through one nation any longer--speaking only
one language. God's not going to favor one people any longer. Instead, God's
going to go to the world and through the world to build His church." You
see, the very fact that all those languages were spoken at Pentecost was
God's way of saying, "It's all over for the uniqueness of Israel. I'm going
to speak in the world's languages and build the church that was hidden in
the Old Testament."
So primarily, tongues speak as a sign of the curse on Israel. But notice
that a residual effect of that curse is the blessing that comes to the whole
world. You see, as Christ turned away from a rebellious people, He opened
His arms to the world. So the gift of tongues was also a sign of blessing,
residually. Paul speaks to this issue in Romans 11:12 when he talks about
the fall of the Jews becoming the riches of the world. Jerusalem was
destroyed and Israel was temporarily set aside--and we became beneficiaries
as God reached out to us.
At Pentecost, the disciples suddenly burst out declaring the wonderful works
of God in every language (Ac. 2:11). This was an unmistakable sign that a
transition had come--a curse on one hand, but a blessing on the other. And
even Jews could still come to God, couldn't they? Three thousand Jews were
saved on the Day of Pentecost (Ac. 2:41). So in a sense, while being a
judicial sign of a curse, residually it was also a sign of blessing. A third
purpose for the gift of tongues is that it is...
c. A Sign of Authority
Who were the great messengers who preached this transition? Who were the men
of God who spoke of the curse and the judgment? Who were the men of God who
spoke of the blessing to come to all nations? The Apostles and the prophets.
And it was to them that God gave the ability to speak these languages as an
authenticating, validating sign that what they were saying was indeed the
truth. To the Jewish mind, the idea that God would make such a transition,
would be so shocking, so shattering, so incomprehensible, so stupendous,
that there would have to be some kind of reinforcement that what they were
saying was true. So God gave them the ability to speak these languages.
In 1 Corinthians 14:18, Paul said, "I thank my God, I speak with tongues
more than ye all." The gift of tongues authenticated Paul's position as an
Apostle, as well as the other sign gifts that he had. He even said, in 2
Corinthians 12:12, that he had "the signs of an apostle...signs, and
wonders, and mighty deeds." So, the gift of tongues was a sign of authority
to those who preached the message of transition.
A good way to remember this threefold purpose of the gift of tongues is to
remember it as the ABC's of the purpose of tongues: A (authority), B
(blessing), and C (cursing). The purpose of tongues is not private
devotions, evangelism, or a proof of Spirit baptism. The purpose of tongues
was very unique. Once the transition was made, the church was born, and
Jerusalem was destroyed, the sign was no longer necessary.
When is a sign no longer necessary?
When I take a trip somewhere, I rely on signs to tell me how close I am to
my destination. For example, if I'm driving north from L.A. to Sacramento,
the first sign I see may indicate that I have 300 miles to go. The next sign
may say, "Sacramento--200 miles," then, "Sacramento--150 miles," then,
"Sacramento--30 miles." Once I arrived in Sacramento, however, the signs
would stop. Why? Because the purpose for the signs, as they pointed ahead to
something, ceased once the destination was reached. Well, tongues were a
sign. They pointed to something--a curse of God upon Israel. And once the
curse came, the sign was no longer necessary.
3. THE PRIORITY OF PROPHECY DEMANDED (v. 22b)
"...but prophesying serveth not for them that believe not, but for them who
believe."
Prophesying isn't restricted to unbelievers during a limited period of
history; it is for believing people through all the years of the church age.
Tongues were a sign, pointing to something else; but prophesying is
something in and of itself. The New American Standard Version has the
phrase, "prophecy is for a sign," in verse 22. They did put it in italics,
indicating that it's not in the original, but it's an unfortunate
translation. Prophecy is not a sign! Prophesying doesn't point to something,
it is something. Prophesying is that which edifies. Verse 3 says, "But he
that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and
comfort." Verse 4 says, "...he that prophesieth edifieth the church." And
verse 1 says, "...desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy."
You say, "What does it mean to prophesy?" It simply means "to proclaim the
Word of God."
The Corinthian church was characterized by hysterical, selfish,
self-centered, ego-building confusion. So Paul says, "Cut all that stuff
out. Tongues have a specific purpose, for a specific time, to accomplish a
specific thing. But when you meet together, seek to prophesy and proclaim
the truth." It's far more important to preach the Word.
Did you know that there is absolutely no record in the entire Bible of
anything ever said by anybody in tongues? Do you know why? Because it was a
sign that was meant to pass away. It had no lasting value, even in a
revelatory sense. But on the other hand, Peter calls the entire Bible "a
more sure word of prophecy" (2 Pet. 1:19). You see, there's just no
comparison between something that's a sign and something that's a reality.
So, tongues are a sign to unbelieving Jews, attached irretrievably to one
point in redemptive history. They served well to show that Christianity was
not to be distinctly Jewish, but worldwide. They served to corroborate and
authenticate the speakers and the messengers who brought that message. And
they served to show Israel that they had again rejected God in unbelief and
apostasy. People say, "Well, don't you think that tongues could have a
purpose today?" No. If tongues were around today, they would still have to
have the same purpose that they always had. And what point would there be in
signifying today that God is moving away from Israel to open the gospel to
the nations? He did that two thousand years ago. That's fairly clear, isn't
it? We don't need more information on that. It's already done.
Now, having stated the purpose of tongues, watch how Paul relates it to the
assembling together of the Corinthians:
C. The Purpose Scrutinized (vv. 23-25)
1. THE RESULTS OF TONGUES IN THE ASSEMBLY (v. 23)
"If, therefore, the whole church be come together into one place, and all
speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or
unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad?"
Why would someone entering the Corinthian assembly think that they were mad?
Well, there are two reasons. Reason number one: If the person was a Gentile,
he wouldn't understand the sign of tongues. Reason number two: If the person
was a Jewish unbeliever, the true gift of tongues wouldn't mean anything to
him because of the chaotic way in which it was exercised. In verse 27, Paul
states that when the true gift is used properly, there would only be two or
three people in the entire church who would speak in tongues, and each one
would do it in order-- not all at the same time.
So, when an unbeliever came into the Corinthian assembly, he said, "These
people are mad!" Now, the word "mad" (Gk. mainomai) is a word that means
"frenzied." Plato used this word to describe the ecstatic experiences that
were involved in pagan worship. In other words, an unbelieving Gentile would
enter the Corinthian church and say, "Hey, this is no different than the
temple of Diana." And an unbelieving Jew who entered the church would say
the same thing. You say, "But tongues were supposed to be a sign to the
Jews." Yes, that's true. But if it was exercised in a chaotic fashion, it
wouldn't mean anything to them--even if it was the true gift used in the
wrong way.
So, the gift of tongues was a specific gift, to be used at a specific time,
in a specific way, with a specific person in mind, with a specific intent.
Apart from that, its significance is nonexistent. "On the other hand," says
Paul, "instead of speaking in tongues in your assembly, prophesy." Look at
verses 24-25:
2. THE RESULTS OF PROPHECY IN THE ASSEMBLY (vv. 24-25)
"But if all prophesy [speak the Word of God], and there come in one that
believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convicted of all, he is judged of
all. And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling
down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a
truth."
Tongues are useless to edify either the church or an individual, and they're
useless to evangelize. They were simply a pre-evangelism sign to a nation
that it had been cursed. So Paul says, "Rather than speaking in tongues,
make sure that you are proclaiming God's Word to edification, exhortation,
and consolation. Then, when an unbeliever comes into your midst, some
amazing things are going to happen...
a. "...he is convicted of all..."--In other words, he will feel guilt.
b. "...he is judged of all"--In other words, the verdict will be rendered
that he feels guilty, because he is guilty.
c. "...the secrets of his heart [will be] made
manifest..."--In other words, his sin will become apparent--unmasked.
Then in humiliation, with a sense of self-condemnation...
d. "...falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is
in you..."--In other words, he will say, "I have found the true God here in
your midst."
Paul's point is this: "You're going to get results if you prophesy."
Beloved, don't you want that to be the case in your fellowship? Don't you
want the people who come into your fellowship to see God? You don't want
confusion. You want to be obedient to God's pattern. This is a thrilling
promise to a church that exalts the proclamation of the Word of God. The
impact will be tremendous. But a service of speaking in tongues will produce
sterility in the congregation and confusion among the visitors.
The gift of tongues was very limited and very regulated, for a day and time
that has long since passed. And what we're seeing today, I'm afraid to say,
is the Corinthian perversion all over again. Now, I'm not questioning the
motives of those who claim to have the gift of tongues. I'm just saying that
they have the same approach to an individual, private prayer language that
was characteristic of the pagan mystery religions. Beloved, I want to exalt
the Word of God and lift it up. It is the "more sure word of prophecy" and
contains all the answers to everything. I hope you're devoted to the truth.
Someone who I've been patiently discipling for three years called me
recently and said, "John, I just had the greatest spiritual breakthrough
I've ever had. Something just happened in my life that has dramatically
transformed me. I finally understand what you've been saying to me for three
years. I want the Word of God so much, that it's consuming me." Then he
said, "I just want you to know that if somebody told me I would have to
choose between my Bible and food and water, I would tell them to take the
food and water and leave my Bible. That's my sustenance! I have to have it
to live." Well, that's great, isn't it? God help all of us to be people of
the Book--not seeking the experience but seeking the truth; fruitful in our
understanding; and ministering to each other that which edifies and builds
up.
PART FOUR
Introduction
A. The Emphasis of Edification
As we have noted in our earlier studies of 1 Corinthians 14, the key to this
chapter is the word edification. Many times the actual word "edification" is
used (or one of its various forms), and in some cases it is alluded to. For
example: verse 3 talks about edification; verse 4 talks about edifying the
church; verse 5 says, "...that the church may receive edifying"; verse 12
says, "...to the edifying of the church"; in verse 19 Paul says, "...that by
my voice I might teach others also"; and verse 26 sums it up by saying,
"...Let all things be done unto edifying."
This, then, is the thought that is emphasized throughout this entire
fourteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians. When the church comes together in
corporate worship, the primary issue is that the people be edified.
B. The Etymology of Edification
Let's look, for a moment, at the word edification. The Greek verb oikodomeo
and the Greek noun oikodome both come from the combination of two words:
oikos (which means "house") and demo (which means "to build"). So, the word
edify/edification literally means "to build a house/a house builder." To be
edified, then, is to be built up. That's the term that is used here in 1
Corinthians 14.
The word oikodome is translated "builders" five times in the same phrase in
the New Testament: "The stone which the builders rejected, the same is
become the head of the corner..." (Mt. 21:42; cf. Mk. 12:10; Lk. 20:17; Ac.
4:11; 1 Pet. 2:7). This is a metaphorical phrase picturing Christ. The
point, though, is that the word used there for builders, in all five cases,
is a form of the word that is also translated edification. So in a spiritual
sense, edification is like building a house. The church is to have, as its
intention and design, the building up of the saints into full completeness.
To edify someone, then, means "to promote spiritual growth," "to develop the
character of the believer to the place of real maturity."
C. The Equal Responsibility of Edification
The major element of the church is edification. We are to be edified
together as a body. Now, even though we're to be edified when the church
comes together to worship, it is also the responsibility of every believer
to be actively involved in individually edifying one another. This is simply
put by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 where he says, "Wherefore, comfort
yourselves together, and edify one another...." So, it is not just the task
of the preacher or leader to edify the church; it is also the task of every
believer.
Now, edification is the task of the leader as well. In Ephesians 4:11-12 it
says, "And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some,
evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the
saints for the work of the ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ."
So, the leadership and the people are involved together in building one
another up to spiritual maturity. This is our calling, our God- given
responsibility, our divine mandate--that which God seeks as the expression
of His will in the church.
Now, this presupposes that we are never to act selfishly. We are never to be
concerned about our own things, about our own successes, about our own
glorification, or even about our own edification. Instead, we are to be lost
in the edifying of one another. In Romans 15:2 it says: "Let every one of us
please his neighbor for his good to edification." Then, as an example, verse
3 continues, "For even Christ pleased not Himself...." Christ came, "...not
to be ministered unto but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for
many" (Mk. 10:45). Christ did not seek that which would be the most
beneficial to Him, but that which would be most beneficial to others. And
that is exactly what we are enjoined to do. We have a responsibility before
God to edify each other.
D. The Error of Self-Edification
In 1 Corinthians 14:2, Paul is pointing out an error, rather than
emphasizing a truth, when he says to the Corinthians: "For he that speaketh
in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men...." You see, that's what they
should have been doing--speaking to men and edifying each other. In verse 4
he said, "He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself...." Well,
that was all wrong! The Bible never calls on us to edify ourselves. We're to
edify each other.
E. The Elements of Edification
We are together for the purpose of building each other up. Now, that
involves several elements:
1. THE RIGHT ATTITUDE: Selflessness
In order to edify one another, we must have a right attitude. Paul talks
about it in Romans 14:19 when he says, "Let us, therefore, follow after the
things which make for peace, and things with which one may edify another."
In other words, he says, "Look, pursue that which will build up somebody
else." Don't exercise your own liberty. Don't say, "Well, I have every right
to do thus and so because I'm under grace" or "I don't care what anybody
thinks. I'll do what I want" or "I'll seek my own self-glorification" or
"I'll preach this sermon so they'll think I'm really something. Then I can
make a name for myself" or "I'll do what I do for my own good." You see,
those attitudes violate the right attitude--the attitude which seeks to
edify one another.
Edification demands the right attitude. It also demands...
2. THE RIGHT TOOL: God's Word
If you're going to edify one another, there's only one tool that's
effective--the Word of God. Second Timothy 3:16-17 says that it is the Word
of God which is able to build us up and make us perfect, or complete.
We are responsible, then, to have an attitude that seeks the other's good,
and to use the Word of God to teach each other. We also have to have...
3. THE RIGHT PERSPECTIVE: God's Work
I think we have to have patience with one another and let God do His work in
His own time.
F. The Effect of Edification
We are to be committed to edifying one another and to meet together to
edify. You say, "But where does evangelism fit into the picture? How can we
reach out to others if all we're doing is edifying the saints?" Well, the
answer to that is in Acts 9:31. It says this: "Then had the churches rest
throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified...." The
churches were doing what they should have been doing: They were being
edified and built up to maturity. Now, look what happened because they were
being edified: "...and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort
of the Holy Spirit, were multiplied." You see, growth is a result of
edification. As the church is built up it will reach out. Evangelism will be
a by-product.
So, we're to meet together to be edified, beloved. We're to meet together to
be taught the Word of God and exposed to God's truth in a way that will
cause us to grow to maturity. Edification is the priority in the church.
Review
In the Corinthian church, the whole procedure of edification had come to a
screeching halt. Edification was non-existent because of the confusion and
the disorder with which they were functioning. So, in the fourteenth chapter
of 1 Corinthians, Paul tries to call a halt to the perversion, the
counterfeit, and the confusion, and bring the Corinthians back to a system
of order that would grant them edification.
Now, you'll remember that in 14:1-25, Paul laid out some of the principles
relative to how tongues and prophesying should function, as well as what
they are in terms of their purpose and position. He also gave us some clear
theological definitions. Now, beginning in verse 26, he builds on those
theological definitions with practical exhortations. In other words, he
says, "Since this is true of these gifts, this is the way you should act."
So far in our study of chapter 14, we've seen the following points:
I. THE POSITION OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: SECONDARY (vv. 1-19)
II. THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFT OF TONGUES: A SIGN (vv. 20-25)
Now, let's look at our third and final point:
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.
Now, let's see what they were doing:
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 Corinth on any given Sunday, the following is what you'd
experience:
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 Corinth,
it became a point of pride, where everybody was trying to outsing everybody
else. It was quite a mess!
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 Corinth all over
again. Everybody's speaking in tongues, all at the same time, with nobody
interpreting. But it doesn't matter...they do it anyway. It's Corinth all
over again.
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 Corinth? They
didn't even have a pastor-teacher, as far as we know. None are ever
indicated. The Corinthian church didn't have any of the people that are
designated as leaders in the Pastoral Epistles--elders, bishops, presbyters,
or pastor-teachers. They did have prophets, however. But they were only for
that foundational time of the church.
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
Ephesus, or because of a problem in Timothy's town. Verses 13-14 give us the
reasons: "For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived,
but the woman, being deceived, was in the transgression." In other words,
this is a divine design from the beginning. You can't just slide it out the
door and get rid of it on the basis of culture. It is in the law of God.
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 Corinth." No, no, no! These are God's commandments.
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.