1 Corinthians 14: You people are crazy!

Thank you for listening to First Day. I am Patrick Cooley. Please like, subscribe, and share so the podcast can reach its goal of seventy new listeners per series. And speaking of series, we are coming up on the conclusion of this series on 1 Corinthians. So, let’s get going on chapter fourteen.

Pursue love and desire spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy. For the person who speaks in a tongue is not speaking to people but to God, since no one understands him; he speaks mysteries in the Spirit. On the other hand, the person who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouragement, and consolation. The person who speaks in a tongue builds himself up, but the one who prophesies builds up the church. I wish all of you spoke in tongues, but even more that you prophesied. The person who prophesies is greater than the person who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets so that the church may be built up.

Paul continues his discussion of charismata and his focus on agape. Teaching, preaching, healing, miracles, and prophecy all have been gifted by God for the purpose of building up the Church and the people of God, “for their strengthening, encouragement, and consolation.” Although he does not dismiss the most valued gift among the Corinthians—gift of tongues—out of hand Paul does diminish its importance because in the exercise of this gift a “person who speaks in tongues builds himself up” and not rest of the congregation. Paul tacks a caveat onto the end of this that if the tongue is interpreted then there is greater value of the members of the Body. 

Paul’s most treasured gift—and the one that he suggests all Corinthians should strive to possess—is the gift of prophecy. This charisma does not allow a person to look into the future like a fortune cookie or like Sister Roberta and her crystal ball; no, the gift of spiritual prophecy has been present since the very beginning of humankind’s relationship with God. Put simply, God’s prophets examine the world and the people around them and seek to bring them in harmony with God’s righteousness and life. They have been chosen by God to speak His word, thus “the one prophecies builds up the church.”

So now, brothers and sisters, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I speak to you with a revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 7 Even lifeless instruments that produce sounds—whether flute or harp—if they don’t make a distinction in the notes, how will what is played on the flute or harp be recognized? In fact, if the bugle makes an unclear sound, who will prepare for battle? In the same way, unless you use your tongue for intelligible speech, how will what is spoken be known? For you will be speaking into the air. There are doubtless many different kinds of languages in the world, none is without meaning. Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker, and the speaker will be a foreigner to me. So also you—since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, seek to excel in building up the church.

In these verses we may well be catching a glimpse of why the Corinthians’ are so enamored with glossolalia. Often in Paul’s letters we are not told exactly what problem a congregation is facing. So, we must make an educated guess about the circumstance by examining the details of the instruction that Paul gives them. When considering the ongoing theme of this letter and Paul’s effort to convince the Corinthians to come together as one community instead of continually working to show-out, Paul’s words reveal that the Corinthians are babbling “divine” language that no one can understand. It's just noise that draws attention to the speaker and humiliates the listener. I can imagine it. “Well, you don’t understand because you aren’t as wise as I am. I guess I’m just holier than thou.” If we apply the same standard that Paul used when discussing Holy Communion, it is reasonable to argue that these Corinthians may not even be practicing this charisma. 

Therefore the person who speaks in a tongue should pray that he can interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with my understanding. I will sing praise with the spirit, and I will also sing praise with my understanding. Otherwise, if you praise with the spirit, how will the outsider say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what you are saying? For you may very well be giving thanks, but the other person is not being built up. I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you; yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, in order to teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

Paul has already explained why the Corinthians should seek the spiritual gifts that edify others over glossolalia. Here, the apostle points out that there are two limitations to their sought-after gift. Firstly, without interpretation the gift is “unfruitful” in edifying one’s Christian sisters’ and brothers’ understandings. Secondly, the charisma engages only the speaker’s spirit; it is internally focused.  

There is some debate over Paul’s use of to pneumati—“the spirit”. Is he speaking of the Holy Spirit or the human spirit? Which one it is depends on if the translator has chosed to capitalize the S in spirit or not; in Greek script there is not variation script size: everything is written in lower case letters or in upper case ones. Here, I think Paul is referring to his human spirit, since he contrasts “the spirit” with the mind—interpreted here as “understanding”. Notice the contrast in these statements:

“For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful…if you praise with the spirit, how will the outsider say, ‘Amen’ at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what you are saying…yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, in order to teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.”  

It appears that when Paul uses “the spirit” he is speaking about his spirit. This is the intangible, unrelatable part of human existence that only you yourself and God know—his emotions and feelings, perhaps. It’s raising your hand in praise during the song or the sermon. It’s what Mary did that night when the shepherds came and told her about the angels: She cherished it in her heart. Paul compares this to his mind.

He would rather speak five words from his own understanding to others and ten thousand words in a tongue. To put this another way, he would rather speak a few words of his head for others’ understanding than to speak countless words from his heart. 

Brothers and sisters, don’t be childish in your thinking, but be infants in regard to evil and adult in your thinking. 21 It is written in the law,

I will speak to this people
by people of other tongues
and by the lips of foreigners,
and even then, they will not listen to me,

says the Lord. Speaking in tongues, then, is intended as a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is not for unbelievers but for believers. If, therefore, the whole church assembles together and all are speaking in tongues and people who are outsiders or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your minds?

How we modern Christians sho...