“Edification Exhortation”
(1 Corinthians 14:1-5)
Series: Chaos & Correction (1 Corinthians)
Rev. Todd A. Linn, PhD
Henderson’s First Baptist Church, Henderson
•Take your Bibles and join me in 1 Corinthians, chapter 14 (page 774; YouVersion).
We are progressing quickly through this letter. It seems like just a few weeks ago that we began and here we are now in the last three chapters.
Most recently we have been studying the matter of spiritual gifts. The church at Corinth had asked their founder, the Apostle Paul, about these spiritual gifts. That’s why chapter 12 begins as it does in verse one with Paul saying, “Now, concerning spiritual gifts.” The sense is, “Now about these matters you’ve raised in your letter. Let me talk to you now about spiritual gifts.”
And so Paul talks about how each Christian is an integral part of the church body. He assumes every Christian at Corinth is a member, an active member of the local church at Corinth, and that each person is engaged in local ministry. The popular American notion of “Church hopping” or “Church attending” without ever uniting with a church is a foreign concept to the Bible, reflecting more our desire for religious autonomy rather than reflecting what the Bible teaches about local church membership.
So Paul has been talking about spiritual gifts and, as we read these chapters, it is clear that the Corinthians were misusing some of these gifts, especially the gift of speaking in tongues. We’re going to be studying the gifts of speaking in tongues and prophecy in today’s message and the next couple weeks.
This morning we’ll be studying the first few verses of chapter 14. And you’ll note that verse 1 of chapter 14 reminds us of Paul’s previous discussion on love. Chapter 14 verse 1 Paul says, “Pursue love.” That statement follows directly after a nice treatment of love in chapter 13 where Paul talks about the superior nature of love as that which is more important for a Christian to demonstrate than any spiritual gift he or she might possess.
So, the last part of chapter 12, verse 31, Paul says, “But earnestly desire the best gifts,” or the greater gifts—which tells us that some spiritual gifts are greater in benefit to the church than others—and then Paul concludes verse 31 of chapter 12 with, “And yet I show you a more excellent way,” and that way is chapter 13; the way of love.
So in chapter 14 now Paul returns to this discussion of spiritual gifts and that’s why he begins chapter 14 and verse 1 with, “Pursue love.” In fact, Paul mentions those two themes together at the end of chapter 12 in verse 31—“desire the best gifts” and “yet I show you a more excellent way,” so those two themes: spiritual gifts and love—he picks up those two themes again at the beginning of chapter 14 in verse 1, those two themes again, this time in reverse order—pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts.
•Please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word.
1 Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
2 For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.
3 But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.
4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.
5 I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.
•Pray.
Introduction:
So here we go “speaking” about “speaking in tongues!” So many people are interested in the spiritual gift of speaking in tongues. They see a guy on TBN or some other form of Christian media and this person is speaking in words that seem like gibberish and they want to know, “Is this stuff real, or what?!”
We’re going to be talking about that today and the next couple weeks. You know, there are many Christians who have an understanding of speaking in tongues that may be different from what many of us have understood. In fact, there are many Christians who stress the works of the Spirit perhaps more than some of us have been taught. And while we may disagree on some of the finer nuances of these spiritual gifts, we can certainly rally around the truth of the Gospel.
Many of us have heard the story about the guy who died and went to heaven and an angel is showing him around heaven. And so the angel takes the man over to one spot in heaven and these folks are gathered together and singing and the guy asks the angel, “Well, who are they?” And the angel says, “Well, they’re the Methodists.” Then the angel takes the guy to another part of heaven and there’s a group of people standing and reverently listening to preaching of the Word, and the guy says, “Well, who are they?” And the angel says, “They’re the Presbyterians.” Then off to another part of heaven and there’s a group of people singing and clapping and raising their hands into the air and the guy says, “Who are they?” And the angel says, “They’re the Pentecostals.” And then the angel take the man over to a section of heaven where there’s a group of people all sitting down quietly, huddled together by themselves. And the guy asks, “Who are these people?” And the angel says, “Shh! These are the Baptists. They think they’re the only ones here.”
Well, heaven isn’t only for Baptists. Heaven is for all sinners who have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, be they Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, or Pentecostals, or others.
Someone once asked John MacArthur if he thought charismatic Pentecostals would be in heaven. He said, “Yes, if they don’t overshoot it.”
So I want you to ask you to do this morning is to do your very best to set aside any preconceived understandings you may have about speaking in tongues. Try to be as though you have never once heard of this before and let’s allow the plain meaning of chapter 14 to teach us this morning. All in favor? Good, look again at verse 1:
1 Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
Two things Paul is telling Christians to do here in verse 1: pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts.
First, he says, “Pursue love.” The word pursue has the connotation of hunting. Chase after love, get love in your sights, track love down, get love in your sights, and capture love. Hunt it down. Pursue love.
And the verb “pursue” is in a verbal tense that suggests continual activity. So the idea is, “Always and forever pursue hard after love.” Hunt it down the way a hunter tracks down wild game, like tracking a deer or a bear. The only difference here is that hunting season for love is always open. When it comes to hunting love, there is never an “off-season.” It’s “open season.” You can and must hunt love, pursue love, all year round.
The second thing Paul says to us in verse 1 is, “Desire spiritual gifts.” Your wanting to have and use spiritual gifts in the church is a good thing. It’s good to want them. It’s good to desire them, whether they be the gifts of healings, helps, administrations, prophecy, tongues, or other gifts. Paul says, “Desire spiritual gifts.”
You may have one gift that you know God has definitely given you. You have the spiritual gift of teaching or of exhortation, encouragement, you know. And you are using that gift. But did you know that you may have more than one spiritual gift? Paul says clearly here in verse 1, “Desire spiritual gifts,” plural, more than one.
Now, having said that, note what follows next. Paul says in verse 1, “Desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” So we note that there is a ranking of gifts at least with respect to the gift of prophecy. Paul says, “Desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.”
Prophecy is noted here as an exceptionally desirable gift, a gift contrasted with a less desirable gift mentioned in verse 2 which is the gift of tongues. So when you read verses 1 and 2 you understand that Paul considers the gift of prophecy as more desirable than the gift of speaking in tongues. And he says why that is in verse 2 and following:
2 For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.
3 But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.
So the reason the gift of prophecy is a more desirable than the gift of speaking in tongues is because, verse 3, “he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men,” to others.
Whereas, speaking in tongues, verse 2, is not about speaking to men but, verse 2, “For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God,” and, “no one understands him.” So speaking in tongues is about speaking to God and prophecy is about speaking to men.
Now, before we go any further this morning, since Paul tells us that it is good and right to desire spiritual gifts and especially the gift of prophecy, then it it’s probably a good idea to consider what exactly is the gift of prophecy.
Prophecy in the most general sense is the proclamation of God’s truth. And in this sense, preaching and teaching the Bible would be a form of prophecy because preaching and teaching is about proclaiming God’s truth.
Sometimes popular teachers make the distinction between prophecy in this sense of simply proclaiming truth and prophecy in the sense of telling future events. And so they’ll state that prophecy is not so much about “fore-telling”—as it is about “telling forth,” a telling forth or “proclaiming forth” of the truth of God.
Well, certainly prophecy is a “telling forth,” but it also contains an element of “fore-telling.” God’s truth does tell us about the future. So there is an element of “fore telling,” such as when you witness to a co-worker this week, or when you share your faith with a friend or fellow student at school. When you are witnessing, you are often including what the Bible teaches about the future, about heaven, about hell, about the judgment to come.
So if you’re friend says to you, “What are you some kind of prophet?!” You can reply, “Well, yes in one sense I am!”
So again, prophecy in its most general sense is the proclamation of God’s truth and in this sense, preaching and teaching the Bible would be a form of prophecy because preaching and teaching is about proclaiming God’s truth.
Now, having said that, it is probably not this kind of prophecy that Paul has in mind here in these chapters, especially chapter 14.
Defining prophecy in this most general sense, so as to equate it with preaching or teaching the Bible, does not harmonize well with what Paul teaches here in chapter 14. There is a more narrow kind of prophecy about which Paul is concerned here in this chapter.
New Testament scholar Leon Morris does well by saying that prophecy here “is something like our preaching, but it is not identical with it.” He adds, “[Prophecy here] is not the delivery of a carefully prepared sermon, but the uttering of words directly inspired by God (1 Corinthians TNTC, 187).”
I think that idea is much closer to what Paul is talking about here to the Corinthians in chapter 14. And Paul will go on later in this chapter and talk about the need to “judge” prophecy, to “weigh it,” to consider whether or not the one speaking prophetically is actually speaking truth and so for that reason, prophecy is not equal in authority to the written Word of God because the written Word of God is always true.
So I think theologian Wayne Grudem does best with his definition. And It’s his definition from which I have borrowed this morning, but I have tweaked it a bit, to better suit my understanding. So let me give you this definition of prophecy:
Prophecy, “Proclaiming what one believes God has brought to mind suddenly or spontaneously.”
Prophesying involves the telling of human words which may contain God’s truth and must be judged for truth. Prophecy, therefore, is not equal in authority to God’s Word in the Scriptures, because God’s Word in the Scriptures is God’s truth, no question about it.
A person who has the gift of prophecy may frequently sense the Lord impressing upon himself or herself a truth to be shared with others. And so a person with this gift might find himself or herself saying, “I sense the Lord is leading me to share this right now. It’s seems there is someone here today who needs to hear this,” and then the person shares whatever the impression is.
Because prophecy is the speaking of human words, the spoken prophecy must be judged or weighed for truth. We’ll note that fact more thoroughly in the coming weeks, but for now you can just make a note if you like of verse 29 where Paul calls for the “judging” of prophecy, the weighing of what is said in order to discern whether the one speaking is speaking God’s truth.
Now let’s briefly introduce the gift of speaking in tongues.
Speaking in tongues is actually better translated “Speaking in languages” because that’s how the word translated “tongue” is to be understood in these contexts. Translating the gift this way would be helpful in clarifying a great deal of misunderstanding but, because most people still refer to this gift as the gift of “speaking in tongues” then we’ll continue to talk about it that way.
Paul says in verse 2:
2 For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.
We’ve noted before that, unlike prophecy where God speaks to a person who then speaks to another person, tongues is about a person speaking to God. Prophecy involves God addressing men and women, and tongues is about men and women addressing God.
So here’s my definition of speaking in tongues and again, I am heavily indebted to Wayne Grudem, but I don’t agree entirely with his definition so again, I’ve tweaked it to suit my understanding.
Speaking in Tongues, “Prayer or praise spoken in words generally not understood by the speaker.”
Prayer and praise is addressed to God. verse 2, “He who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God.” Prayer and praise spoken to God.
And what is spoken to God is spoken in a language generally not understood by the speaker. That is, these spoken words are not known by the speaker nor known by others. This is why Paul adds in verse 2, “For no one understands him; however, in the spirit (and this by way of the Holy Spirit) he speaks mysteries.”
So when a person speaks in tongues he or she is addressing God and speaking words not immediately understood by the speaker. Spoken privately as words of prayer and praise to God, a person may worship God and be drawn closer to God by this experience even if he or she doesn’t understand what he or she is saying.
Now I know that may sound a bit strange to many of us, but we are allowing for a plain, straightforward teaching of the text, and we’ll fill-in much of this in the next couple weeks.
For now, understand that if and when tongues are spoken in public worship, they require interpretation. Paul goes on to stress this truth and even says that a person speaking in tongues may himself or herself pray and ask God to grant the interpretation or meaning of what he or she has just spoken (verse 13).
Again, we’ll talk more about this in the weeks to come, but for now, note Paul’s point in these introductory verses, note that the gift of speaking in tongues is a gift not nearly as beneficial to the church body as the gift of prophecy. And why is that? Because without interpretation tongues do not edify the body the way prophecy edifies the body. Verse 3:
3 But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.
Why? Because everybody understands what the speaker is saying! There is no mysterious language that requires interpretation when one is prophesying. Even lost people, unbelievers present in the gathered church body, understand what the speaker is saying. So in this sense, prophecy is more likely to edify the church body. Verse 4:
4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.
So the superiority of prophecy over tongues is with regard to its having a greater likelihood of edifying as many persons as possible.
The concept of edifying is found throughout this passage and throughout this chapter. You see it in one form or another no less than seven times. You see “edify” or “edification” there in verse 3, twice in verse 4, you see it again in verse 5, and on down in verses 12, 17, and the last part of verse 26 where Paul says, “Let all things be done for edification,” for the “building up” of other people.
We must remember that spiritual gifts are given not for the glory of the individual church member, but for the good of others, for the good of the entire church membership.
It’s like little flecks of paint on an artist’s canvass. It’s not the individual dots or flecks or lines that make the painting a work of art, it’s the collective splendor of all those dots, flecks, and lines coming together as one.
Spiritual gifts are to be used the same way. Spiritual gifts are given by God not for the glory of each individual member, but for the good of the entire membership and the glory of God. So Paul says in verse 5:
5 I wish you all spoke with tongues (which implies that they didn’t; not everyone has this gift or is required to have it), but even more that you prophesied; (and again, why?)for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.
So again, prophecy ranks higher than tongues “unless” there is interpretation. So if there is an interpreter, if someone is gifted by God to say, “Here is what these spoken words mean,” then tongues ranks at least equal to prophecy. And why is that? Because the greater goal is “that the church may receive edification.”
That is, the church is now being “built up” because with interpretation, the church now understands what was previously not understood. The spoken words previously sounding like so much gibberish are now understood. And so, the church hears a truth about God that results in their being edified or built up.
More about this in the coming verses! For now, here are two takeaway points of action required of every Christian. First:
1) Continue Seeking Ways to Love Others
Remember that Paul said in verse 1, “Pursue love,” or, “Hunt love,” and for Christians, for church members, it’s always “open season” for hunting love.
What does love look like? Want to know what love is? Just go back and read again chapter 13. Apply it to your church and apply it to your marriage and to your family.
Love suffers long with others, love is kind to other church members, love does not seek it’s own, but seeks the good of others, love leads a spouse to endure all things with his or her mate. Love never fails.
So seek ways to love others in your family and in your church family. Secondly,
2) Continue Seeking Ways to Edify Others
How do you “build up” others in the church?
Recall verse 3 where Paul mentions edification in the context of exhortation and comfort. Speak words that encourage and comfort others.
Talk this way to one another. Seek to live among others in such a way that you are about the business of building up and not tearing down. Be known as a positive person, a person who seeks the good in others and speaks in such a way as to comfort and encourage. Be known for that.
In fact, let me suggest this prayer for your daily use:
“Dear God, guard my tongue and guide my speech that I would not say anything foolish or harmful, but only those things that would build others up.” That’s a good daily prayer. Hear it again:
“Guard my tongue and guide my speech that I would not say anything foolish or harmful, but only those things that would build others up.”
•Stand for prayer.
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