Order Out Of Chaos
Carl
unmoderated Usenet newsgroups. If you'll pardon the expression, it's the
nature of the beast. At least in the way Usenet was designed. That made the
following sermon by Ron Ritchie even more poignant for me personally so I
felt it apt to post it on Usenet.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
---
ORDER OUT OF CHAOS
by Ron Ritchie
A few years ago I was invited by some members of our Discovery International
ministry to travel to Bogotá, Colombia to work with them in their prison
ministry there. They had arranged a five-day conference to encourage and
equip about eighty-five ex-prisoners, who had become Christians in prison,
so that they could go back into those hellholes with the gospel of Jesus
Christ. We all met in a Catholic convent and had a wonderful week together.
But there was one moment I will never forget.
At the beginning of one of my classes I asked them if we could have a word
of prayer. I bowed my head, and the moment I said, "Dear Father...." all
those men and women broke out saying their own prayers, some loud and some
quieter. I looked up in confusion and left my own prayer hanging in the air.
Their praying went on for about two minutes, and then it seemed as if an
invisible conductor waved his hand over the group, and they all stopped at
the same time. It seemed so chaotic at the time, to this day I'm not sure
what happened.
I have a feeling that this was the same kind of confusion that the elders of
Corinth were facing in their chaotic worship services.
The key to order is love
1 Corinthians 14:1-5:
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the
gift of prophecy. For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men
but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his
spirit. But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening,
encouragement and comfort. He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he
who prophesies edifies the church. I would like every one of you to speak in
tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy. He who prophesies is greater
than one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets, so that the church may
be edified.
Remember, the Corinthian elders had written Paul, asking him to help them
with the root problems of competitiveness and divisions in their church. In
this section (chapters 12-14) the apostle has been reviewing spiritual truth
he had already taught during the year and a half he was with them: (1) The
body of Christ is a unit made up of many parts (see 1 Corinthians 12:12-13).
(2) All the parts are necessary for the good of the whole body (see
12:14-26). (3) Each person's part (gift) is essential to the whole, but no
one is the whole body; no one has all the spiritual gifts (see 12:27-31).
(4) There is a more excellent way of expressing spiritual gifts: through the
love and power of Jesus Christ and his Spirit (see 13:1-13).
Now Paul continues, "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual
gifts...." Remember, expressing your spiritual gifts without the love of God
(agape, sacrificial love) leaves you sounding like so much noise, metal
against metal, without meaning or profit on this earth.
Within the context of the love of Jesus Christ, Paul needed to address the
problem the church was having over the relative value of the spiritual gifts
of tongues and prophecy. Prophecy and tongues were the two signs from the
Old Testament to the contemporary unbelieving Jews that God was moving in
judgment against them as a nation, because they rejected God's Messiah Jesus
and his gift of salvation. This was also a sign to the Jews that God was
opening up the door of salvation to the Gentiles (see Joel 2:28-32 and Acts
2:17-22; Isaiah 28:11). As an apostle of Jesus Christ and the spiritual
father of the Corinthian church, Paul wants to encourage the leaders of the
church (this is not addressed to individuals) to eagerly desire spiritual
gifts to be expressed among the saints, especially the gift of prophecy. All
the spiritual gifts are valuable, but like the members of one's body, not
all are necessary in every situation. Apparently, the leaders were holding
back the men and women who had the spiritual gift of prophecy from speaking
during a worship service. This left the door open for those with the gift of
tongues to take a dominant role, resulting in spiritual chaos. Paul wants to
guide them back to the place where they can see that both spiritual gifts
are valuable, but prophecy is more valuable within a worship service.
The gift of prophecy is the spiritual ability to speak forth the mind,
counsel, and revelation of God. In Greek it is the word propheteia, which is
derived from pro = forth and phemi = to speak. Thus it is the ability of men
and women to make the word of God shine, to understand the mind of God as
revealed in his word and apply it to our daily struggles. This gift is used
of God within the body of Christ for (1) edification---to build up a firm
foundation of biblical truth under the lives of believers; (2)
exhortation---to strengthen, support, and admonish believers; (3)
consolation---to seek to identify with their suffering and then offer them
hope from the word of God; (4) instruction of the minds of believers (see
14:19); and (5) conviction of unbelievers (see 14:24-25).
The gift of tongues, in Greek glossa, is the spiritual ability to speak a
foreign language without learning it beforehand, but not understanding it
until someone interprets it. Here Paul continues to try to bring order out
of chaos. If someone having the spiritual gift of languages wants to speak
in a worship service, they must do so in accordance with the purpose of that
gift so as not to cause confusion and chaos. (1) The foreign tongue must be
used to give a verbal offering of praise and thanksgiving to God, not to
direct a message to men and women in the service. (2) The foreign language
that is heard must then be translated for the listeners by one with the
spiritual gift of interpretation; otherwise, the speaker of the foreign
tongue will be speaking mysteries to himself that even he does not
understand, and will end up edifying only himself instead of the body.
You might well ask at this point, "Don't these verses support what some
today call a "private prayer language?" This is in reference to the
statements in verse 2, "...he utters mysteries with his spirit," and,
"...he...edifies himself...." I don't believe, based on the teachings in 1
Corinthians 12-14, that there is any Biblical basis for claiming to have a
private prayer language. What Paul has sought to show the Corinthians is the
following: (1) The Spirit gives spiritual gifts for the common good, not the
good of the one having the gift (see 1 Corinthians 12:7). (2) The gift of
foreign languages is designed for a particular purpose, like all the other
gifts. It is to be expressed in public to offer praise and thanksgiving to
God. (3) The foreign language must be interpreted in order to edify the body
of Christ. And (4) if there is no interpretation, the person doesn't know
what he is saying and ends up with only a good feeling in which he is
personally edified, when what he was supposed to do was edify the body.
These points do not support the use of the gift of tongues as a private
prayer language.
Paul says, "I would like every one of you to speak in tongues," but he
doesn't mean this literally, for he has just said in 12:30, "All do not
speak with tongues, do they?" (No!) He means here that the spiritual gift of
tongues is a wonderful gift when used properly among unbelieving Jews or
within a worship service. It is used properly if there is someone in the
service who has the gift of interpretation. Otherwise, the best spiritual
gift for a worship service is prophecy, because everyone listening to the
word of God can at least hear the truth of God in their own language.
In order to bring order out of chaos, Paul reminds the Corinthians that the
key to order within the body is to allow the love of Christ to be reflected
as they express their various spiritual gifts in the worship service and in
the world around them. And...
The key to love is truth
1 Corinthians 14:6, 12:
Now, brothers, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to
you, unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of
instruction?...Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in
gifts that build up the church.
It is not a reflection of the love of God when one uses his spiritual gift
of foreign languages without having someone interpret it. Without
interpretation, it is just so much noise, because no one is edified. The
gifts that build up the members of the body of Christ are the most important
ones. Paul illustrates this statement by showing them that if he came with a
direct revelation from God, some knowledge from the Old Testament, a
prophecy that would give insight into a current problem, or a word of
instruction about a certain doctrine, the members of the body would be
edified.
In 14:7-12 Paul uses two illustrations to drive home his point that when
gifts are used improperly, they cause confusion. Confusion and disorder
occur when (1) a musical instrument plays notes that are not distinct, and
(2) someone speaks in a foreign language that is not interpreted. "So," he
concludes, "since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in
gifts that build up the church."
A few years ago I was teaching at Mount Hermon. At the end of a morning of
singing and then studying the word of God together, many of us remained
after the session and sat down to talk to each other on the carpeted steps.
One delightful woman came up to me and asked me if she could pray over me
and then give me a "word of prophecy." I didn't quite know what to say, but
in the context of the moment it didn't appear to be improper, so I agreed.
She immediately began to speak in a strange, repetitious chant. When she
finished that so-called prayer, which had no interpretation, she proceeded
to prophesy over me about my future, based on her hopes and dreams for me,
but not on anything from the word of God. Unfortunately, that left me with
about the same feeling I get when I open up a Chinese fortune cookie. She
then thanked me, stood up, and left. To this day I can't biblically justify
that experience.
In order to bring order out of chaos, Paul has reminded the Corinthians that
the key to love is the truth of God. And...
The key to truth is understanding
1 Corinthians 14:13-19:
For this reason anyone who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may
interpret what he says. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my
mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I
will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also
sing with my mind. If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who
finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your
thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? You may be giving
thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified.
I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. But in the church
I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten
thousand words in a tongue.
Again, Paul's point is that they are to use the spiritual gifts that bring
edification and understanding of the truth of God to the members of the body
of Christ during a worship service.
If one feels led by the Holy Spirit to praise God publicly in a foreign
language that he does not understand, he should pray "that he may
interpret...." Some think that the person with the gift of tongues could
also have the spiritual gift of interpretation, and when they felt led of
the Spirit to praise God in a tongue they had never learned, they were to
pray to God that he would give them understanding to interpret, so that all
those in the worship service would be spiritually edified with his prayer of
praise to God. Other biblical scholars believe that if a Corinthian believer
with the gift of tongues were attending a worship service and then were led
of the Spirit to praise God in a foreign language, they should at the same
time pray that there would be someone in that same service with the gift of
interpretation, so that all might be edified. The Holy Spirit would never
lead a believer to express his spiritual gift mindlessly. It must be
expressed in such a way that all who are listening to that person's praise
of God will be able to understand what has been said and say, "Amen, we
agree!" "Praying and singing with the spirit must be accompanied by praying
and singing with the mind also" (J. MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament
Commentary, "1 Corinthians," p. 377).
"I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you." On the Day of
Pentecost (33 AD), 16 different languages were spoken by the 120 disciples,
and they were all understood by the foreign visitors (see Acts 2:4-11). Paul
reminds the Corinthian church that he was given the spiritual gift of
languages to aid him in his evangelistic ministries to the many different
nations of the Roman Empire. Each time he went into a city he would visit a
Jewish synagogue, and regardless of the language they spoke, he was enabled
by the Spirit of God to offer a prayer of praise in a language he had never
learned, and those who heard understood as on the day of Pentecost. There
was a real purpose behind Paul's being able to speak a foreign language in
those synagogues, as we shall see in a moment. "But in the church I would
rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand
words in a tongue [if it is not interpreted]."
In order to bring order out of chaos, Paul has reminded the Corinthians that
the key to truth is understanding. And...
The key to understanding is growth
1 Corinthians 14:20-25:
Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in
your thinking be adults. In the Law it is written:
"Through men of strange tongues
and through the lips of foreigner
I will speak to this people,
but even then they will not listen to me,"
says the Lord.
Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy,
however, is for believers, not for unbelievers. So if the whole church comes
together and everyone speaks in tongues, and some who do not understand or
some unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your mind?
But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while
everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner
and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare.
So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, "God is really among you!"
The Corinthians were acting like excited children who were getting carried
away by their emotions rather than acting out of their minds. Their immature
thinking was causing them to express their spiritual gift of tongues with a
loveless attitude, without interpretation, resulting in selfishness, pride,
competition, and confusion. Some of their speaking in tongues may have been
the false tongues they had learned before they became Christians, in the
rites of the mystery religions. So Paul says, "If you want to live like
innocent babes, do so in the realm of evil, but be spiritually mature when
it comes to understanding the gifts of the Spirit, especially the biblical
purpose of the gift of tongues."
Paul then gives them an amazing insight from the Scriptures to help them
distinguish between the true gift of tongues and a false gift of tongues. He
reminds the Corinthians that Isaiah prophesied in 700 BC (Isaiah 28:11) that
one day the Lord would use foreign nations to discipline his people because
of their sin of idolatry, and would turn to the Gentiles with the message of
salvation.
"'Through men of strange tongues
and through the lips of foreigner
I will speak to this people,
but even then they will not listen to me,
says the Lord."
This was a prophecy that had a double fulfillment: (1) It was partially
fulfilled when God allowed the Assyrians (who spoke with a strange tongue)
to invade the northern tribes of Israel (722 BC) and take them into
captivity because of their idolatry. The Assyrians then moved south into
Judea and surrounded the city of Jerusalem. Those in Jerusalem would have
all gone into captivity but for the righteous prayers and obedient heart of
King Hezekiah. God stepped in on behalf of his people as he had many times
before and defeated the Assyrians (see 2 Kings 18-19). However, 136 years
later the people of God went into idolatry once again. (2) Isaiah's prophecy
was finally fulfilled when God allowed the Babylonians (who also spoke with
a strange tongue) to invade Judah (586 BC) and take the Jews into captivity
for seventy years. These invasions of Judea by foreigners were a sign of
God's displeasure in and judgment against his people as he removed them from
their privileged position.
Now, some seven hundred years later, Paul, moved by the Holy Spirit, has
chosen this passage in Isaiah to demonstrate to the Corinthian church that
the spiritual gift of tongues was given to some men and women within the
body of Christ to be used as a sign for the unbelieving Jewish community, to
show them that once again God was turning toward the Gentiles with the
gospel of salvation, because the Jews rejected his Messiah. When the
unbelieving Jews would hear those foreign tongues spoken by the Christian
Jews and Gentiles in a worship service or in their community, it would
either drive them to repentance (change their minds about Jesus) as it did
on the day of Pentecost (see Acts 2:14-41) or harden their hearts (see Acts
2:13).
You may be asking, are the spiritual gifts of foreign languages and
interpretation valid today? Paul was never opposed to the proper use of the
authentic gifts of tongues and interpretation. Since they were and are sign
gifts for the Jewish people, it seems that they can best be used in
synagogues or Christian worship services with unbelieving Jews in the
audience. But if unbelieving Jews came to a Christian worship service and
heard many strange languages without an interpretation of praise to God,
they would think the believers were out of their minds.
You may well ask the question at this point: Is the repetitive chanting some
of our brothers and sisters are using in the private devotions and public
worship services the authentic spiritual gift of of foreign language? I
would have to say no, based on the context of 1 Corinthians 12-14. We have
already shown that all gifts were given to the members of the body of Christ
for the common good, not our private good (12:7). We have already seen from
this study that the original meaning of the word translated tongues is
foreign language (12:28, 14:10,11). What is the source of this repetitive
chanting? Those scholars who have had an opportunity to study this
psychological phenomenon which occurs in some Christian circles have found
the same repetitive chanting in pagan religions, especially during times of
great religious excitment. Scholars of ancient religions tells of the same
phenomena occurring during the ceremonies of the many mystery religions
during the Greek and Roman period. Is the source of this psychological
phenomena within the Christian community evil? I find no evidence to support
that conclusion. But I do believe we need to go back to our original
translation of the meanings of tongues: a known language used somewhere in
this world.
If unbelieving Jews or Gentiles came into a worship service and heard
someone using the spiritual gift of prophecy, they would be listening to the
word of God. "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any
double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints
and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in
all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid
bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account" (Hebrews 4:12-13).
Some of these unbelievers would understand the message from God and become
convicted of their sins and personally accept Jesus as their Messiah, Lord,
and Savior. And then they would shout out, "God is really among you!"
In order to bring order out of chaos, Paul has reminded the Corinthians that
the key to understanding is growth. And finally...
The key to growth is worship
1 Corinthians 14:26-33, 39-40:
What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a
hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.
All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church. If anyone
speaks in a tongue, two---or at the most three---should speak, one at a
time, and someone must interpret. If there is no interpreter, the speaker
should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God.
Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully
what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the
first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone
may be instructed and encouraged. The spirits of prophets are subject to the
control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace....
Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in
tongues. But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.
God is a God of peace and order, and our times of worship should reflect his
character. At the same time, the worship service includes participation from
many members of the body of Christ. A person may come with a new hymn they
wrote and want to teach it to their spiritual family. Another member may
have a word of instruction leading the spiritual family toward godly living.
A person may come to the meeting with a revelation, either directly from God
or from his word. But all of these must be done for the strengthening of the
church.
"The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets." Prophets
can't just break out in a service and say something like, "I feel in my
spirit that God is telling me to tell you to do such-and-such," without
being accountable to the other prophets. This is God's safeguard against
self-appointed false prophets. Prophets are to listen to one another and,
based on their understanding of the word and will of God, to clarify or
correct one another. There continues to be a need for accountability among
all of them.
In 1 Corinthians 14:33-40 Paul addresses three final problems. The first is
the place of women in the worship services. In essence Paul has already
addressed the issue of headship and the relationship of men and women under
that headship in 1 Corinthians 11:1-16. Every godly woman who submitted to
the spiritual headship of Jesus Christ and of their husbands, or if single,
of their fathers or the elders of their local church, could pray and
prophesy in an orderly manner in the Christian community or in a worship
service (see 1 Corinthians 11:3-6; Acts 2:17-18). However, if while
attending a worship service they carried on conversations with each other
while others were expressing their gifts, thus becoming a source of
disorder, they were to save those questions or conversations until they
returned home, where they could talk to their husband (or their father or an
elder) about it.
The second problem Paul addresses here is apostolic authority. Paul came at
this problem of disorder from the authority of an apostle; thus the commands
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The third is whether the spiritual gifts of prophecy and tongues were to be
expressed in a worship service. "Therefore, my brothers, be eager to
prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But everything should be
done in a fitting and orderly way."
In summary, the key to order is love, the key to love is truth, the key to
truth is understanding, the key to understanding is spiritual growth, and
the key to spiritual growth is orderly worship.
We have come full circle on the subject of spiritual gifts: (1) We began
with the encouragement of Peter to be good stewards of the gifts God has
given us (see 1 Peter 4:10-11). (2) Then Paul told us of the benefits of the
gifts to the body of Christ and the world around us (see Roman 12:1-8). (3)
He also showed us the joy that is ours when we are equipped to use our gifts
(see Ephesians 4:7-10); and (4) he taught us about the body of Christ and
the gifts of the Spirit, which (5) should be wrapped in the love of Christ
and (6) presented to the body and the world in an orderly fashion (see 1
Corinthians 12-14).
"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others,
faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks,
he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he
should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may
be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever
and ever. Amen" (1 Peter 4:10-11).
Copyright © 1995 Discovery Publishing, a ministry of Peninsula Bible Church.
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