The Greatest

 

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Corinthians 13:7)

Love endures all things because of being protected in God’s hands and walking each day with Him. We can endure and grow because God gives us strength, and He encourages and teaches us through all things when we listen to and heed Him.

Because of the love of God for and in us, and the personal knowledge of His love, we can believe in God’s strength, encouragement, and faithfulness and not be dissuaded or discouraged. Belief in God is a gift He gives.

Because of God’s love, we can hope. We rest in that hope that God is faithful, He loves us, and He protects us, so we can continue to have faith in Him—hope in Him.

Because of God’s love for and in us and His faithfulness to Himself and His promises to us, we can endure all things. We can bravely, calmly, and patiently persevere.

Notice each of these actions are doable because of Who God is, what He’s done, and what He’s taught us. We cannot bear up, believe, hope, or endure without Him. We wouldn’t have God or the gifts He gives us to be able to do these things without God.

Today and in the the rest of your tomorrows, live in and live out this love that only God gives. You will be assured, comforted, encouraged, protected, strengthened, and taught, so your faith and hope in God grows. Then you can bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things and, by that, testify about God with your life. You will know in your heart, mind, and spirit that Love never fails. Three will remain—faith, hope, and love. The greatest of these is love (directly from God to you).

Love has Power

 

“(Love) bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” 1 Corinthians 13:7

 

What does love do in this verse? Consider the four verbs.

 

Love BEARS all things. Love covers, as in excuses with grace (the grace Jesus gives His followers), the errors and faults of others. Jesus modeled forgiving everyone over and over again. He taught we are to forgive 70 times 7 times—perfect perfection, basically. We show our love by excusing errors and faults and don’t hold a grudge or wish for vengeance. We take Jesus’ example and apply it to our lives, so that we are gracious to people who err or with whom we’d be inclined to judge as being at fault.

 

Love BELIEVES all things. This is more than having absolute faith in Jesus. Jesus knew that because of sin, humanity was marred. He never gave up on humanity. Jesus believed we could be good again, but only through His power. He was not unaware of the greed and deceit Judas was capable of (We are each capable of sin.), yet He knew when people believe in Him for salvation, they are capable of doing and being good. This is the kind of belief in people love has, according to Paul. Love, God’s agape love in us, because of the Holy Spirit living in us, enacted by us believes can change. We believe by Salvation through Jesus that sinner and/or one who torments us can be good. Our faith should look forward to what a person can be, just like how we are changing for good because Jesus saved us. Like love BEARING, BELIEVING a person can be good comes from Jesus. He died because He knew people could and would be changed by belief in Him. We know the person has some goodness in him/her because of the hope we have in that person’s possibility of salvation. We can’t save the person, but we know he/she can be. It’s a looking toward the future to what he/she can/will be. This believing requires hope.

 

Love HOPES all things. We actively wait with full confidence that Jesus saves people and can save this one about which we are thinking. Jesus bore everything humans put Him through because He believed they could and would change for good, the true goodness only God is and gives. He holds on with hope of a person’s salvation and graciously excuses the faults and errors of this person and all people. Jesus actively waits with confident faith and hope knowing many people will be saved and perfected when they arrive in heaven. Likewise, we can have this same hope for people to be saved, changed, and perfected because we know Jesus personally and ultimately believe in Him, His power, His plan of salvation, His love, the future perfection of Christians. Only because Jesus saved us can we have this ultimate, unsupersedable hope.

 

Love ENDURES all things because of God’s power. Jesus knew this when He prayed in the garden before His betrayal when He said to His Father, “Not My will but Yours be done.” He endured the worst form of death to be the sin sacrifice because He knew every person could and many myriads would believe, be saved, would change, would bear, and would endure many things by other people while others watched the Christian’s attitude, actions, and words. The Christian would because Jesus did and because of their hope in the promise of being with God in heaven and being perfected there. 

 

Only by God’s power and following Jesus’ example can a Christian love to the depths Jesus did. Loving a person because of who they can be with Jesus’ touch by salvation. Love bears all things from people. It believes the best of people. Love hopes by waiting confidently for what Jesus will do in that person. And love endures everything knowing that what God promised will happen and what Jesus said is true. He loves us. He died for us. He can and will save those who believe in Him. 

 

Jesus can help us bear, believe, hope, and endure all things from all people because Jesus gives us the power to do them like He did and because we care for them and see the good they can be because of Jesus. He can change each person by saving them. Each person gets to believe in Jesus for him/herself. Salvation is personal. No one can save another by baptizing him/her or being baptized in place of him/her. Jesus gives us the ability to believe in Him. 

 

Will you believe? He gives us the ability to bear, believe, hope, and endure. 

 

Are you accepting His power and living as Jesus lived? Jesus’ love has the power to save you, then make you strong enough to live love like Him. 

 

Will you choose to live by and through His power-filled loved?

Love is…

 

 

“(Love) does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;”

— 1 Corinthians 13:6

 

Love, the “far better way” about which Paul began to write in 1Corinthians 12:31. 

 

He wrote about love in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13.

 

Love does not rejoice and take delight in unrighteousness—injustice and evil—but rejoices and finds joy in life that is in harmony with divine truth—righteousness. [my paraphrase]

 

Each person receives one or more spiritual gifts from the Holy Spirit. No gift is better than the other, just as no Christian is better than the other in the body of Christ. Each believer should strive to know God better and grow to be more like Him daily, as Jesus taught.

 

Instead of comparing ourselves to another, follow Jesus’ example, who, because He loves each person, chose to live as a man for about 33 years. He faced temptations but did not sin, endured ridicule and persecution by people close to Him, as well Gentiles and the people of Israel. Jesus chose to continue to teach, face accusations and scrutiny, endure doubt and betrayal by men, and suffer the pain and suffocation of the crucifixion because He loves each person He creates.

 

Love is God’s motivation. He loves us so much that He chose to send His Son, Jesus, to earth to endure all these evil things so that our sins (our wrongdoings) could be erased from our names. God wants an eternal relationship with each of us. If we do not believe in Jesus and His death as the sacrifice (the Savior) for our sins, God’s judgment of each person requires unbelievers to receive the just judgment for those sins. 

 

What is justice for unrighteousness (choosing your will/desires instead of what’s right)? Unrighteousness is opposite of righteousness—rightness with God. Since God is holy and the epitome of righteousness, unrighteousness is the opposite of holy; it’s evil. Because evil cannot exist where holiness is, the judgment for unredeemed sinners (someone who has not believed in Jesus and accepted the sacrifice He paid to redeem and free each person from the penalty and right judgment of his/her sins) is separation from God. Therefore, since God is in heaven in His kingdom, unsaved sinners cannot exist forever with Him in heaven. So unbelievers will be judged for their sins and suffer the penalty of eternal separation from God, which is hell.

 

“We know love by this, that Jesus laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren (other Christians).” 1 John 3:16.

 

Love is rejoicing because of living in harmony with God and sharing His love with others. God’s love for us is our ultimate example of how we are to love and live. Rejoice and delight in God’s love, then rejoice and delight in loving other people like God does.

Reflection

 

Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. (1 Kings 19:3 [NIV])

For now, we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. (1 Corinthians 13:12a [NIV]) 

If you are like me, you would never consider saying you are like Elijah. He was the great prophet of God who told the king that God was sending a drought, then it happened. Elijah was the man who challenged the 850 prophets of Israel to burn sacrifices to their god, Baal, so God would show them He is real and almighty. He was the man who promised a widow she would not run out of oil and flour during the drought; God kept His promise. Elijah, along with Moses, stood with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:3). God took Elijah and Moses to heaven without them first being buried. Both men pleased God and received the reward of their faith in God. Who of us even dares to consider ourselves equal to this great man of God? How can we say we are like Elijah?

We can say we are like Elijah the prophet in several ways, though we would not like to acknowledge them. We would rather say we have his faith, steadfastness, and obedience to the Lord. Yet, when we consider a person to emulate, we should consider that person’s characteristics, actions, and words. Elijah obeyed God. He did each of the above listed things. Still, he had his weaknesses.

Elijah feared Jezebel, King Ahab’s wife, would kill him because he had killed her priests, the ones who proclaimed what she wanted. He isolated himself from people who could encourage him as he walked with the Lord, including his servant. No person can work with God in reaching unsaved people without growing weary, needing encouragement, rest, nourishment, and counsel, and needing solitary time with God. For several reasons, each person needs other people who will walk with him or her-to encourage, teach, console, and correct him or her. Elijah became tired and had no one to remind him to rest and eat. God did this for him. He experienced depression because of obeying God while serving God; he chose isolation. God led him toward people.

This prophet of God had his mountain top experiences, literally, with God. In obeying God’s commands, he needed great faith and people to encourage him to go into the valley. Many of us cannot truthfully say we go into the valley when God tells us, but we read in the Bible that Elijah did. We might have a mountain top experience with God, but sometimes we refuse to serve God in the valleys. If we are truthful with ourselves, our commonalities with Elijah are more in his humanness. We fear, tire, isolate ourselves, and get depressed. We challenge God like Elijah did when the widow’s son died after God provided oil and flour to sustain them. We rail at Him asking, “Why”. Our faith in God is shallow. Our humanness is more comfortable to us.

Yes, we are more like Elijah in these ways than the others. We would love to say we are like him in his spiritual faithfulness to God, but honestly, that would not be the truth. The good news is that Elijah was not always close to God. He began his walk with Him like we do, with a step of faith. That step that takes us from promise to assurance, knowing without doubt that Almighty God is our God, and we have a hope and future with Him (Joshua 29:11). To perceive God’s voice, Elijah had to grow in his faith so he would learn how He sounds as a still, quiet voice, a voice like the roar of a storm, and the voice like the crashing and shaking of an earthquake. Elijah’s steps of faith continued. He wanted to follow God’s will for his life. Elijah desired to pursue God’s purposes. Though he faltered in his life’s purpose because of his human weakness, he continued to seek God and to love Him through obedience to Him. Elijah bravely faced 850 prophets and Almighty God showed He is real. When Elijah ran away in fear, God took him to a quiet cave beside a still brook so he could rest and replenish with sleep and the food and drink God sent.

Each time Elijah’s human weaknesses arose, God showed him He provides for the needs of those who follow Him with their whole being-heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:4-7 & Matthew 22:37). Elijah understood and related to God in the way Paul expressed when he wrote Romans about a thousand years after Elijah’s time. Paul said in Romans 8:26a & 28, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness…And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (NLT) Elijah’s spirit cried out to God in his weaknesses-tiredness, isolation, fear, and depression. Though he mentally and physically felt beaten and his heart fainted at the task, Elijah trusted God and relied on Him.

As humans, we are very much like Elijah. We can have hope, like him, if we take a step of faith. We can do like Elijah did and cry out to God. God can remake us in His image for His purposes. He makes us more than we could ever make our own selves. God made Elijah into the man who was His great prophet. Through Elijah, the Lord did great things to remind the Israelites He is one true God. He did that with each of His prophets and servants. He equipped, trained, and remade them for His purposes, to be people who would seek Him above everything and everyone. Just as Oswald Chambers notes in the title of His devotional book, God remade and remakes people to be the utmost for His highest, so that each person will come to hear about Him, trust in Him, and receive salvation from their sins and death through Him.

Elijah had a mother who delivered him into this world. He was a man. Just like any other person, Elijah had human weaknesses. He learned about Almighty God and believed in Him. Elijah believed God and determined to serve His purposes for his life by being obedient to His plans. God took this life offered wholly to Him for His use and remade it into who He wanted him to be. This enabled Elijah to do His will-telling and reminding the people of Israel about Him. Elijah, because of his love for God, willingly sacrificed his life to God for His purposes. He allowed God to direct His paths.

Are you like Elijah? Consider his life. Elijah was born, raised, heard about God, desired to know Him more, loved and obeyed Him, had human responses of fear, tiredness, isolation, and depression, learned to trust God more each day, and received God’s promise in full when He took him to His kingdom. We are like Elijah in our humanness and can be like Elijah in his faith in Almighty God. Our greater calling is to be as relationally close to God as possible. Through Jesus, His Son, God made that closeness to Him available to each person who believes in Jesus Christ. Consider, you are already partly like Elijah; you are human. Elijah became more than just a man. He had faith in God. Because of Elijah’s growing faith in God over the years, God called and trained him to be His prophet. His growth in faith and obedience to God grew him toward being perfect, toward being like Jesus, though he had not seen Him. Elijah saw Jesus in the glass darkly (1 Corinthians 13:12) but saw Him clearly, face to face, when God took him on His chariot of fire to heaven (2 Kings 2:11).

We are each like Elijah; we are humans. But God can remake us into His image, like at creation.

How much like Elijah are you?

·       Will you admit your human weaknesses of tiredness, fear, despair, depression, etc.?

·       Will you take the step of faith and move from promise to assurance of salvation?

·       Will you listen to God’s voice and obey Him by taking another step of faith, like Elijah?

·       Will you allow Him to train, encourage, correct, and lead you?

We can be more than like Elijah. We can be like the One he hoped for, the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who came to earth and now sits on His throne in heaven.

Be more than one who sees his reflection in the mirror.

Begin to see Jesus as you allow God to renew you. 

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now, we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. (1 Corinthians 13:11-12 [NIV])

Guidelines for Speaking/Teaching in Church

Guidelines for Speaking/Teaching in Church

1 Corinthians 14

When we come across the situation where someone claims to have an anointing by God and wants to preach or teach in our church, the main passage of Scripture that we should follow is 1 Corinthians 14. In this passage, Paul said all things, preached or taught, must be done for the edification of the church and it must be done in an orderly manner. We must also consider 1 Corinthians 13 as it also teaches about prophets. Chapter 13 says each of the services must be done in love. These three things - done in love, done for the edification of the church, and done in an orderly manner – must be the overarching guidelines for anything taught or preached in the church.

            Paul said in 1 Corinthians 14:3-4, “One who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. One who speaks in tongues edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church.” The word “edification,” according to Thayer and Smith’s NAS New Testament Greek Lexicon, means “to build up or promote someone’s growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, and holiness.” Paul spoke of edifying the church in this chapter in verses 4, 5, 7, 12, and 26. Prophecy is for the edification of the church, not to bring acclaim to one’s self. If it is not said or presented in a way the church will understand, then is does not edify and does not need to be said. Prophesying or speaking/translating is only good if it edifies the people of the church. In verse 7 and 8, Paul spoke of instruments as a metaphor for prophesying. The tone that is played must be recognized, likewise the prophet must be recognized as being from God and having a word from God, and the hearers must understand (recognize) what is being said. “If the bugle plays an indistinct sound, who will prepare for battle” (vs. 8). Paul reiterates this point often. “So also you, unless you utter by the tongue speech that is clear (definite, distinct, well marked), how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air” (vs. 9)? Paul said, “Let all things be done for edification” (vs. 26).

            Edification of the church is not the only criteria that helps us determine if we should let a person stand up and proclaim/teach to the church what God has told him or her. We must determine if what the person wants to say is biblical. If it is not biblical, it should not be allowed. If the person says God gave them a new revelation and you determine it is not biblical, they may say it is something new God wants people to hear. What do we do with this then? We have a few guidelines to follow. We could look to the Deuteronomic passages of Deuteronomy 13:1-3 and 18:20-22. These passages say:

13:1-3, “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, 'Let us go after other gods (whom you have not known ) and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the LORD your God is testing you to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

18:20-22, “But the prophet who speaks a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die. You may say in your heart, 'How will we know the word which the LORD has not spoken ?' When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing, which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.”

To sum this up,

1. He or she must claim to speak what God has revealed to him.
2. The true Old Testament prophet of God must predict the future and it must have come to pass exactly as prophesied.
3. His or her message must be in harmony with the revealed word and will of God. If the message contradicts other Scripture, the speaker and his or her word is to be rejected.
4. His or her message must be true and he or she must lead people toward God, not away from Him.

Should these two verses not be enough and the person insists it is a new revelation, we can rely upon four other passages to guide us through which we can explain to them about God’s revelations. From the Old Testament all the way to the end of the New Testament, in Revelation, God said that only that which He says is revelation is to be considered from Him.

Deut. 4:2, "You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.”

Deut. 12:32, "Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.”

Prov. 30:6, “Do not add to His words or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar.”

Rev. 22:18-19, “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.”

The book of Revelation records the final revelations from God to humankind. It tells of revelations in the past, present, and to come in the future. Should this not be enough to quiet a supposed prophet who wants to speak in our church, but is not found to be biblical, the pastor can remind the person of the passage in 2 Timothy 3:16, which says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration from God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." The Scripture, the Bible, contains all of God’s revelation, teachings, commands, and the message of the Gospel and hope for eternal life. Nothing more is to be added. If what the person wants to proclaim is not in the Bible or is contrary to the teachings in the Bible, it should not be allowed to be spoken to the church.

            The final thing to be considered before allowing a person to speak “an anointed message” to the church is will it lead to chaos and confusion. Paul said in verse 33, “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” Paul closes with this thought, too. In verse 40, Paul said, “But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.” Given that a prophet is a person who exhorts, teaches, instructs, comforts, encourages, rebukes, convicts, and stimulates their hearers, foretells of Jesus, and is filled with the Spirit of God (Thayer and Smith Greek Lexicon), a pastor of a church is a prophet to the church from God. He is a shepherd of a local church who proclaims the Word of God, just as a prophet does. Since this is the case and since the preacher is the shepherd of the church, the “anointed prophet” who wants to speak should first meet with the pastor so the pastor can determine if the word the prophet wants to speak to the church follows the guidelines above, that is, it does not add to or subtract from God’s Word, but expounds on what is in the Bible. Paul said this in verse 29 also. He said, “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment.” Judgment, in the Greek Lexicon means to make a distinction, to determine, separate, and to discriminate if the prophecy is from God. Hence, the judgment Paul spoke of in verse 29 is to determine if the prophet’s words are biblical or if it is counter to the revelation of God, the Bible. The pastor is the other prophet who will judge the one wanting to speak “an anointed word.”

Paul further stated in verses 32-33, “And the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets; for God is not a God of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” This “confusion” means instability, disorder, and disturbance. Confusion in the Bible is likened to sin in James 3:16, wars and disturbances in Luke 21:9, beatings, tumults, imprisonment, labor, sleeplessness, and hunger in 2 Corinthians 6:5, and strife, jealousy, angry tempers, disputes, slanders, gossip, arrogance, and disturbances in 2 Corinthians 12:20. Confusion is not from God, but from Satan. God does not want confusion and chaos in His Church and puts His shepherds over His churches to judge the words of others as to the source of their revelation and if they are biblical. The pastor is the prophet to the church from God who helps maintain order in the church for God.

            In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul spoke of prophets and tongues and gave guidelines for their use in the church. What the prophet and speaker of tongues must ensure is that the word they speak is edifying and that it is biblical. If it is not biblical, it is not from God. Additionally, the method to use to speak what you feel is a word from God must be done in an orderly manner. The person must speak with the pastor, God’s prophet for that church. The pastor will determine from the Deuteronomic guidelines and his own biblical studies if the word to be shared with the church is acceptable according to God.

Finally, this chapter is secondary to 1 Corinthians 13. In chapter 13, Paul said, “If I have the gift of prophecy…but do not have love, I am nothing” (13:2). When a person speaks to a church or pastor, what they say must be done out of love for the hearers. If it is not, then the person is a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal (13:1). Because the gifts of prophecy are “done away” and love never fails, love for God and His people must be the overarching requirement for a prophet/speaker. Biblical teaching is the second requirement for prophets, which includes edification of the church. The final requirement is that the prophet go about getting to speak and speaking in an orderly manner, from the first talk with the pastor to presenting the teaching to the church in a way they understand – considering language and method. A true prophet today will teach or preach what God revealed in His persevered Word, the sixty-six books of the canon

Building Upon the Foundation Of…

1 Corinthians 14

Paul continues to speak to the Corinthians concerning being unified in one mind and not trying to “lord It over” the others. He speaks of spiritual gifts in this chapter and tells them they should seek to love. Without love, other actions are shallow. There becomes a mind-set of self-satisfying with our actions so we are seen instead of acting for the profit of the person receiving. The first brings glory to the actor, while, the latter brings glory to God.

Paul carries on with this thought of love moving from the gifts of the Spirit to the fruits of the Spirit. It appears obvious that self-serving people crave the “flashy” fruit, for example speaking in tongues or preaching. Paul speaks to the Corinthians in this book concerning being unified. A member being self-serving and self-focused brings disharmony into any group. The person takes a role that draws attention to him or herself instead of to the group. In the context of a church, this occurs when a person takes it upon him or herself to be at the center of attention. In consideration of the gifts of the Spirit, self-focused people consider the gift of tongues and speaking in groups as desirable because of this outcome. Paul, in 1 Corinthians chapter 14, speaks to just these people. He states in verse 1, “Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy” (New American Standard Bible).

Paul ties the spiritual gifts to the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22-23. He states firstly that love should be the guide in using spiritual gifts. Paul’s wish is that they prophesy. Why is this his wish for them? Consider what he says in verse 3, “But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation” (NASB). This tells why Paul says for them to crave for and develop this spiritual gift. As readers in the 21^st century, though, we need to understand what Paul meant by edification, exhortation, and consolation.

For the times in which Paul lived and in the century or two after, edification meant to build up or help another Christian grow in wisdom, piety, happiness, and holiness. Paul used this term in Romans 14:19 as well. He wrote, “So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another” (NASB). Things which brought righteousness, peace, and joy are ways to serve Christ acceptable by God and men (Romans 14:18, NASB). If our goal is to help others grow in their faith and wisdom, not only are we edifying them, but we are building up the body of Christ to which that believer belongs. Prophecy assists in growing the body of Christ. The goal of prophecy then is not self-serving, but submission and subservience to the Church and, as a result, to Christ. It is building upon the foundation laid by Christ with things that will make the members stronger in their faith, knowledge of God, wisdom, and happiness.

Paul considers the spiritual gift of prophecy as the highest because its attribute of exhortation. To us in the 21^st century, this means telling others in a persuasive way of the validity of our cause/principles/vision. During the early Christian era, exhortation meant calling persons near/summoning them with entreaties and encouragement to follow the espoused path of the speaker. Paul uses this nineteen of the twenty-eight times the word occurs in the New Testament. Paul uses this word to describe Barnabas in Acts 4:36. Barnabas’ name means “Son of Encouragement.” For Paul, the exhortation he is speaking to the Corinthians is that which encourages others to continue in their walk with Christ. This encouraging gives believers courage to stand strong in the face of persecution. It keeps them strong everyday to walk in God’s way. This form of prophesying is to encourage a follower of Christ to stand strong everyday in usual business as well as when he or she faces trials for being His followers.

The final way in which Paul considers prophesying most important is because it brings consolation. Consolation in this context means to persuade continuance, arouse strong allegiance, and calm and comfort when encountering trials. Prophesying for this purpose is profitable for its soothing and driving to continue on the journey to which Christ calls each follower. In the New Testament, only 1 Corinthians speaks to this use of prophesying. Paul considers prophesying highly important since it helps others grow in their faith, encourages them to continue following during hard times, and calms and comforts as they are being battered by the spiritual conditions of the world.

Paul continues in 1 Corinthians 14 by comparing the gifts of prophesy and tongues. Prophesying is for the building up of the church, the body of believers, and for convicting unbelievers of their sin. Tongues are desirable only when an interpreter is present, so mostly for the spiritual life of the believer in commune with God. Tongues do not build up the body of Christ unless there is an interpreter. Paul says in verse 2, “For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God; for no one understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries” (NASB). Paul continues in verse 4, “One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church” (NASB). The church is a place for sinners, not just the current body of Christ. If a person enters the church and hears words spoken in another tongue, the outsider is not edified and considers the people in the church mad. If the person enters the church and prophecies are occurring, the believer and unbeliever grow, one to greater knowledge, wisdom, and piety, and the other in awareness of his sin and the love of Christ. Consider what Paul says,

Therefore, if the whole church assembles and all speak in tongues, and ungifted men or unbelievers enter; will they not say that you are mad? However, if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you. (1 Corinthians 14:23-25, NASB)

Paul does not say tongues are a gift to which you should not aspire or should not cultivate. Rather, he says tongues are only useful for the person speaking with God. For it to be beneficial to others, an interpreter needs to translate so that “Amens” can respond. (“If you bless in the spirit only, how will the one who fills the place of the ungifted say the "Amen " at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what you are saying?” vs.16) Paul’s statement most specific in regards to these two gifts is found in verse 12, “Since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the edification of the church.” Paul acknowledges their wish to be growing Christians useful to the Lord for His service. He says that the most important thing to consider is that the building up of the church and its members should be paramount. Whether we are visible working for the Lord and receive praise or are not visible and receive only the praise of our Father, what is of considerable worth is the building up of the body of Christ.

            Ultimately, love is the consideration, though. Paul’s first two words in this chapter speak to this, “Pursue love.” We want to have spiritual gifts with which to minister with God. The Spirit, by whom we are seen as Christians, gives us fruit. Paul, in considering both of these, states that love is the most important. Without love, we are a “noisy gong and a clanging symbol.” He says in 1 Corinthians 13:8-10, 12-13,

Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away… now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. (NASB)

We each must come to the point where we are not striving for our own selves, but are choosing the greater. The challenge comes, are we living in love, seeking to serve others through the love of God? It gives us pause. Do we want to be the show or do we want to show Jesus’ love to others?