Correction or Encouragement

(1 Cor 3:1-3 NRSV)  And so, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. {2} I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready, {3} for you are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations?

Now this may seem like a harsh verse to start out this week.  I just want you to catch the tone of Paul’s teaching in his first letter to the Corinthian church.  This tone seems to be carried out through out Paul’s first letter.  With that in mind we approach chapters eleven through fourteen to see how Paul addresses the manifestations of the spirit, and gifts to the church.  As we deal with these chapters I want to raise some points and questions for all those who do believe in the manifestations and those who do not.

In Paul’s correction to the Corinthian church we should note a few things, and with that ask a few questions.

1. Nowhere does Paul discourage them from manifestation no matter how messy it was.
2. I would like those who say that the manifestations is over or no longer needed prove it by scripture.
3. Paul makes no case that the gifts of apostles, prophets, or such were exclusive to the original twelve.
4. It is easy to see the Corinthian church operated in the gift offices and manifestations
5. Much of what Paul does address should be taken in a tone of correction, yet encouraged to continue.
6. Paul did encourage the church to seek to operate in the manifestations, gifts, and tongues.
7. Unity and love for each other is the core of what Paul was seeking to accomplish in this letter to the Corinthians.

The questions we should be asking after reading Paul’s letter to the Corinthians might be like as follows.

1. What’s the difference between gifts, services, and manifestations?
2. What did Paul mean by “to each is given”?
3. Is it just for an individual personal use or the good of all?
4. What was Paul trying to get the church to see by using the body example?
5. What is meant by desiring the best gift?
6. What is the more excellent way Paul was talking about?
7.  Did Paul say tongues, prophecy, and knowledge was no longer needed?
8. What is meant by “Those who speak in a tongue build up themselves, but those who prophesy build up the church?”
9. Did Paul really encourage tongues and interpretations, and no more than two or three?
10. What was Paul saying when he rather we prophecy?
11. Can a person control what happens?
12. What about the woman issue?
13. What should decent and orderly look like?
14. What is meant by the spirit is subject to the prophet     

I will start in chapter eleven to hopefully show you what I have seen Paul teach the church.  As I have mentioned before Paul was correcting the Corinthian church in their conduct and I believe you have to understand the context of Paul’s mind when he does address the manifestations and gifts.  This seems to be clearly reveled in chapter eleven. 

(1 Cor 11:17-19 NRSV)  Now in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. {18} For, to begin with, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you; and to some extent I believe it. {19} Indeed, there have to be factions among you, for only so will it become clear who among you are genuine.

I believe these instructions are carried on through the next three chapters.  Notice, Paul was not giving them credit for doing things right and pointed out their motives and actions were wrong.  They were clearly divided and everything they did as group was most likely confusing and un-orderly.  As Paul began to first address the Lord’s supper we will find he was not setting a precedence on how to take the Lord’s supper as we have it today.  He was not telling the group how often to do it and the way we do it today most likely would never be accepted by them then.  As a matter of simple reading one should be able to tell they broke bread as often as they came together. 

(Acts 2:42 NRSV)  They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

(Acts 2:46 NKJV)  So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,

(Acts 20:7 NRSV)  On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread, Paul was holding a discussion with them; since he intended to leave the next day, he continued speaking until midnight

 (1 Cor 11:26 NRSV)  For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Paul was making it clear however that when the Corinthian group was coming together there was a complete disregard for others.  They were being selfish and arrogant, eating until overfilled and drinking until drunk while others did without.  This same attitude seemed to carry over into all the Corinthian group did.  They were divided over food, purity, leadership, their gatherings, and how they moved in manifestations and gifts.  They judged one another and most likely divided socially, having their little clicks.  Does this sound like many modern churches?   As Paul put it they were not paying attention to the rest of the body of Christ.  They had sick, hurting, wanting, some even dying and no one seemed to be concerned for the others, but themselves.

Paul was correcting this issue when he continued into the spiritual gifts.  It is because of our modern Bible with chapter breaks we tend to separate chapter eleven from chapter twelve.  We need to start in chapter eleven so we may be able to see what Paul was saying in chapter twelve when he began to address spiritual gifs like such.  With my own paraphrasing of what Paul said, “This is the attitude and way I want you to break bread with each other.  Stop judging one another and be aware of the needs of others around you.  Wait on each other and do not come to the meeting hungry if you can.  Then concerning spiritual gifts let’s not be ignorant.  Stop acting like you did when you worshiped idols. God’s spirit works in anyone who He wishes and just because they are not doing it just like you, does not mean they are not the Lord’s. As a matter of fact no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the spirit.” 

Paul, does go on and starts to set the record straight.  I think a person could conclude that the Corinthian church was messing up the gifts as well as the Lord’s Supper.  They most likely were having the same attitude and behavior towards one another in the gifts as well.  I do want you to notice that even though they were wrong on so many things, Paul not once told them to stop the gifts, manifestations, or the speaking in tongues.

I want to break down chapters twelve through fourteen as much as I can.  By doing this it may take several postings and articles to complete these three chapters.  So, let’s begin from the top.

(1 Cor 12:4-7 NRSV)  Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; {5} and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; {6} and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. {7} To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

Paul to me broke down the operations of God’s spirit in the church into four areas. 

1.      Gifts

2.      Services

3.      Activities

4.      Manifestations

We will start with gifts first.  The Greek word used here is charisma.  We use this term when it comes to people who naturally can do things, saying things like Johnny is a great preacher he has charisma.  The Greek meaning is a spiritual endowment, miraculous faculty, and gift.  I think that everyone should know that when God gives out gifts he does not take them back.  It is up to the receiver of a gift to be responsible in how they use the gift given.  We should never judge a person by their gifts; often this will lead you astray.  In the end God will judge all those who have received gifts and how they used them.

(Rom 11:29 NRSV)  for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

This is the same word used in Ephesians four when Paul address the five gifts of leadership as well as in Romans twelve when he address operations in church along with leadership.

(Eph 4:8 NRSV)  Therefore it is said, "When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people."

(Rom 12:6-8 NRSV)  We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; {7} ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; {8} the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

I feel we can come to the understanding that God has poured out His spirit and birthed the church (Acts 2).  It is the deposit of what is yet to come, but until then it works in corporation with us. The spirit never forces its self on us and makes us do what we would not do on our own, that would be called possession (I will deal with this more later).  Because it works in corporation with us, it works differently in each of us because of our nature and personality. Paul said there were varieties of gifts, how many varieties one could ask.  I would say that would be hard to number.  There are those who would say just five according to Ephesians four.  I say five plus those mentioned in Romans twelve, then multiply that times the number of believers God has gifted by the different personalities and cultures.  The point I want to close with this week is we should not judge one another by their gifts; God does not gift two people just alike.  Unity needs to come to the church through our diversity of gifts.