Building Up The Church
BUILDING UP THE CHURCH
1 CORINTHIANS 14:6-12
To convey meaning, a sound must be clear and the hearer must be able to understand it.
In Paul’s consideration of spiritual gifts, which extends over chapters 12–14, the most important direction he gives is contained in today’s reading. At 14:12 he clearly indicates first that there was some dispute and uncertainty within the Corinthian assembly over the relative importance of the gifts in their diversity (12:4), and this lack of understanding had engendered a rivalry and zeal to lay claim to “best gifts”; and secondly that his instruction is an insistence that all shall be done for the “building up of the church.” This healthy reminder points back to 12:7 where the manifestation of the Spirit is given “for the common good,” ie for the benefit of the whole community of believers. The communal nature of the Christian life and spiritual experience is a principle written into Pauline understanding of the church, and we neglect it today at our peril.
The gift of tongues is a test case. Apparently this was a spiritual endowment on which the Corinthians (or some of them) placed great store, and the whole church was divided over the use of this gift. The gift of tongues was practiced in the public gatherings for worship and Paul’s ruling on this matter was sought.
With characteristic generosity he puts himself in the place of the one who gives expression to this gift (14:6). Notice how he regards as most vital the need to benefit others by the various components of Christian worship. Any benefit from the exercise of tongues can only come if there is accompanying interpretation, otherwise the gift has no value whatever (14:9). This is an indication that this gift is practiced in public assembly, in contrast with the situation of 14:24. Paul’s commonsense attitude runs through this section, with illustrations drawn from ancient musical practices (14:7), military parades (14:8) and the art of communication by speech which is only effective if the language is understandable.