•I Corinthians 14:13-19
•Congregational Gatherings Continued
•Corinth
13 Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. 15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also. 16 Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying? 17 For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being built up. 18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. 19 Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.
(I Corinthians 14:13-19, ESV)
Main Point
• We should refrain from thinking of things as spiritual vs physical or emotional vs mind
• We are spiritual and physical, emotional and mind
• The focus right now is not the individualistic experience…but the times of gathering
• In such times we should seek to love one another and build up each other
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Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued
– There is some benefit to individualism
– Each person has value and worth
– There is a downside if taken too far
– “I don’t need anyone else. I can do life all by myself.”
– “Everything should be about me.”
– They are antithetical to what we are being taught and have been taught
– We are in need of others and what they bring to the community
– When we think about the individual, Jesus is the perfect example
– He had the perfect relationship with the Father
– It was His Father’s will to be seen, to be heard, to be experienced, to save individuals, to form a new community out of those individuals
Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued (2)
– This does not mean that Jesus did not have alone time with His Father
– He does spend time alone in reflection, in prayer, in seeking out what His Father in heaven
– He would seek, then He would come back
– Paul has no different of an understanding
– We need to be alone with God because we are individuals
– We need to empty ourselves of all the burdens, struggles, and all the fears and simply know God
– However, when we come to gather if our first question is, “How will I be blessed today?” Then we have utterly missed the point
– It would be better for us to then come speaking in tongues and having this deeply personal experience even when we gather
Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued (3)
– Paul has emphasized repeatedly that it is not about our individual experience
– It is not asking, “How can I be served? Did I like the service?”
– It is asking, “How can I serve? Did others enjoy the service? Did they receive what they need?”
– Paul says even in what we’ve just read, “I thank God I speak in tongues more than all of you.”
– Paul needs to be lifted up
– What Paul and Jesus also recognize is that we are called to be a community in which we can serve
– Jesus did not speak in tongues when he proclaimed to the people
– He did not come speaking unintelligibly
– We are also reminded of something more
– We are called to honor God with all of who we are
– We can have a belief that unless we are experiencing something emotional then we are not really experiencing God
Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued (4)
– We are also to be utilizing our minds for the glory of God
– It is better to be thoughtful with how and what one is praying and worshipping about than spontaneous and not really communicating anything
– There are times when epiphanies happen…moments of pure joy in knowing God
– When we gather we should be thoughtful and reasonable
– We can’t be so intellectual and reasonable as to lose our spirits
– We reason, we know, we feel, we have experiences
– We should lift up the whole human experience to the glory of God
Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued (5)
– There is a warning for us not to be mindless when it comes to our prayers and worship
– Not every song, not every prayer, deserves an amen
– Saying amen to something we ought not to say amen to is no different than saying amen to something we find unintelligible
– We are in need of knowing truth rather than what is a lie
– The final statement of what we went over today…there is more benefit in 5 words being spoken to instruct than 10000 words that none can understand
– Instruction, the mind, how we reason, and the conclusions we come to matter
– Reasoning well can take years of study, thinking, considering, being challenged to think and reason better
– The Lord is good
– He is worthy of us seeking to understand Him more and seek to reason well for His purposes and glory
– This is one of the most important facets when we gather…we can learn from the Word, and we can learn more about the truth
Application Points
• Congregational Gatherings Continued (6)
– As Paul comments in today’s text, one can have deeply personal experiences with God without others, but that does not mean one is learning more or being taught
– There is no guarantee that one will be gifted in such ways
– If what we are learning is glorifying to the Lord, and if leads to obedience and faithfulness, then what is happening will lead to deeper and relational connections with each other and God
– Be encouraged to gather
– Do not just say amen, but consider whether or not what we are experiencing and what we are learning is the truth
– Don’t just say amen because a prayer is over…say amen because you have heard and have experienced the truth
– Congregational worship can lead to deception if we are not careful
– It requires us all to be thoughtful
– Let us do these things together, and let us encourage each other to seek God as individuals as we face this hostile world
– Knowing when we gather we will find encouragement, praises, prayers, and be taught in the truth
•Application Points
•The Gospel of Christ
–Origins
–Where we began
–Fall
–What went wrong
–Redemption
–How it is fixed
–Glorification
–Where it at leads
