Gifts of Prophecy and Tongues
1 Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. 2 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. 3 But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort. 4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. 5 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.
6 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? 7 Even in the case of lifeless things that make sounds, such as the flute or harp, how will anyone know what tune is being played unless there is a distinction in the notes? 8 Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle? 9 So it is with you. Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying? You will just be speaking into the air. 10 Undoubtedly there are all sorts of languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning. 11 If then I do not grasp the meaning of what someone is saying, I am a foreigner to the speaker, and he is a foreigner to me. 12 So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church.
13 For this reason anyone who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret what he says. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15 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. 16 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? 17 You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified.
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. 19 But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.
20 Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults. 21 In the Law it is written:
“Through men of strange tongues
and through the lips of foreigners
I will speak to this people,
but even then they will not listen to me,”
says the Lord.
22 Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however, is for believers, not for unbelievers. 23 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? 24 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, 25 and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”
My Understanding: This passage begins by saying, “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.” The first thing mentioned here is that we need to “follow the way of love.” I Corinthians 13 teaches us that if we speak in tongues or we prophesy, et al, but we don’t have love that we are nothing; we are like a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal, i.e. it is just a bunch of noise. Then, it says that love is patient, kind, not self-seeking, and does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth, etc. So, for us to exercise the gifts God has given to us, the prerequisite is that we follow the way of love laid out for us in this passage in I Corinthians 13 and in the rest of the Bible.
Then, the passage says that we should eagerly desire spiritual gifts. To desire something is to want, yearn, and long for it, to make it a personal ambition, goal and/or objective, to hope for it, and/or to request or to ask for it. We learned in I Co. 12 that “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.” So, even though we are to desire spiritual gifts, it is the Holy Spirit of God who gives the gifts to each one of us just as he determines. We cannot determine which gifts we will ultimately receive, yet we are encouraged to desire them, especially the gift of prophecy.
From this passage in I Corinthians 14, I saw these specific characteristics of the spiritual gift of prophecy in the New Testament. The person with the gift of prophecy:
• Speaks to men (and women) for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort
• Edifies (informs; educates; instructs; and/or improves spiritually) the church
• Gives a clear and distinctive call to get people ready for spiritual warfare
• Builds up (inspires; gives hope; nurtures; cultivates; and develops) the church
• Speaks to believers in Jesus Christ
• Convinces of sin
Gift of Prophecy: “A person with this gift, like its Old Testament counterpart, has a keen awareness of current events and the cultural implications of not following God’s word. This is important because each church is made up of people, customs, and circumstances that are different from others. Prophecy helps us apply the scriptures to where we live. A person with this gift has a burden to warn of God’s judgment and the need for us to repent... This gift helps the church live holy in the culture and time that they are appointed. It rebukes, strengthens and encourages believers. The gift also helps the church in long-term planning and seeking God for His guidance.” http://spiritualgifts.wordpress.com/2007/06/27/65/This passage in I Corinthians 14 also contrasted the spiritual gift of prophecy with the spiritual gift of speaking in tongues. The person with the gift of tongues:
• Speaks to God, not to men
• Mutters mysteries with his spirit
• Edifies the tongues’ speaker
• Has a lesser spiritual gift
• Needs an interpretation of the tongues so that the church can be edified
• Is a sign for unbelievers
Paul’s reasoning for making this comparison appears to be that a problem had arisen in the Corinthian church where the gift of tongues was being elevated above the other gifts, and where it was being misused within the church meetings. So, Paul gave these instructions on the gifts, in particular these two gifts, so that the church would understand the appropriate order of the gifts and the proper usage of them.
It appears, as well, that the purpose of the gift of tongues was two-fold: 1) As a sign for unbelievers, such as we have recorded for us in the book of Acts on the Day of Pentecost where the people all heard the gospel in their own languages. So, it was for the spreading of the gospel and for the salvation of people of many languages, and 2) As a private prayer language between the individual and God.
It had use in gatherings of the church only if it was followed by interpretation and it served to edify and to strengthen the church. I Corinthians 14:26-28 said:
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. 27 If anyone speaks in a tongue, two—or at the most three—should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. 28 If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God.
So, tongues should not be used in the public gathering of the church unless it is followed by interpretation and it is for the strengthening of the church. In addition to that, if anyone speaks in a tongue with interpretation, there should be a limit on the number of people speaking and they should speak one at a time. There are many church congregations today where this is not followed and where tongues are spoken without interpretation, where they are spoken by the masses in the congregation, and where they are spoken all at once. Also, tongues is elevated in many of these congregations above all the other gifts and is given a place of honor as the evidence of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. This goes against, not only this passage here in I Co. 14, but other teachings on the gift of tongues throughout scripture where it is taught as a lesser gift and where it is taught that we do not all have the same gifts. So, if God has given you this gift, please make certain that you are exercising it according to the teachings of scripture.
Paul was not against this gift, nonetheless. In fact, he had this gift and he wished everyone could speak in tongues (the implication that not all did), but he would rather that they prophesy so that the church may be edified. One who edifies informs; educates; instructs; and/or improves spiritually his or her listeners. And, Paul said that the gift of prophecy is a gift that edifies the church. One of the reasons for this was that it gives a clear call for battle, i.e. it prepares us for spiritual warfare against the enemy of our souls and it prepares us to live out the Christian life as God intended us to live it in full surrender and obedience to him. Paul went on to state that if someone who does not understand or if an unbeliever comes into our meetings and hears people speaking in tongues they might think that we are out of our minds. Yet, if they come into our meetings and someone is prophesying, the listener will be convinced by all that he is sinner, the secrets of his heart will be laid bare before God, and he will fall down and worship God. That does not mean that all will respond in this way, as we know not all do, but rather that the gift of prophecy is one that presents the sinner with his sin, that calls him to repentance, and that encourages him toward full surrender of his life to Jesus Christ in all humility and obedience to God’s commands.
Because of Who You Are / Artist: Sandi Patti
Oh Lord I stand amazed at the wonder of your deeds
and yet a greater wonder brings me to my knees
Lord I praise you, Because of who you are
Not just for all the mighty things that you have done
Lord I worship you, because of who you are
You're all the reason that I need to voice my praise
Because of who you are
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=11MCFNNU
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