Talk 5 Key Principles in 1 Corinthians 14:26
Hello again, and welcome to Talk 5 in our series on NT Guidelines for Small Group Meetings.
Today we’re going to be seeking to identify the key principles underlying our key verse for this series, 1 Corinthians 14:26:
What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.
I see three key principles in this verse, Participation, Variety, and Edification. Paul wants everyone to participate in the meeting. This will happen in a variety of ways. And the purpose of it all is to strengthen or edify the church.
Participation
Paul hardly needed to recommend that the Corinthians participate in their meetings. That was something they were doing already. The problem was not lack of participation, but too much participation in things that did not edify the church, like speaking in tongues without interpretation, and everyone speaking in tongues at the same time.
But despite these problems, Paul still wants them to participate. He just wants them to participate in the right way – for the strengthening of the church.
As we saw from chapter 12, every part of the body is needed. There should always be opportunity, whenever we gather, for the expression of the many gifts and graces that the Spirit has imparted to the members.
This should be easy enough in home groups, even if it’s not always possible in church. But even there, I believe there should always be opportunity for them to do so
And they should be encouraged to do so. People are more likely to participate when time is specifically allocated for this, and it’s made clear that participation is welcome. If we really want people to participate, we must make room for it.
Variety
Paul refers to:
a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.
These are, of course, just a representative sample of what might happen in a meeting, but they suggest three main areas:
· The musical dimension (a hymn)
· The doctrinal dimension (a word of instruction)
· The supernatural dimension (a revelation, a tongue, etc).
We have already dealt with the supernatural dimension at some length. So we will confine our attention to the musical and doctrinal dimensions.
The musical dimension – everyone of you has a hymn
The first thing Paul refers to in 14:26 is a hymn. Actually, the word in Greek is literally a psalm, and everywhere else in New Testament it refers to one of the Psalms in the Old Testament. However, a psalm has been defined as a song or poem used in worship, so the translation hymn is quite appropriate.
But what exactly did Paul mean by having a psalm? At the very least, Paul is saying is that everyone should have the opportunity to contribute to the worship by having a song. But how do you have a song?
This must mean more than joining in the songs chosen in advance by the worship leader! So does he mean that everyone should have the opportunity to sing a solo?! Clearly not! So how can we put Paul’s recommendation into practice?
Well, one way would be to do what we used to do years ago. We could give opportunity for people to choose a hymn for everyone to sing, or, in a time of open worship, to spontaneously start singing a well-known hymn or chorus for everyone to join in – but please don’t do that if you’ve got a voice like mine! It’s not your ministry!
I realise that this may not easily fit in with modern styles of worship where the pursuit of excellence in performance is important, but I do know from experience what a blessing it can be when someone in the congregation spontaneously has a song in one of the ways I have just suggested – and this should be easy enough to make room for in home groups .
But now I want to look at the only other reference to singing in 1 Corinthians 14, where in verse 15, talking about singing in tongues, Paul says:
I will sing with my spirit (in tongues), but I will also sing with my mind (in a language I understand).
We’ve already seen that this is part of what Paul is recommending for the use of tongues in private, but this raises the question as to whether singing in tongues is appropriate in public. There may be a reference to this in Ephesians 5:19, where Paul mentions spiritual songs along with psalms and hymns. KJV is more literal than NIV when it translates this as
speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord…
We know from 1 Corinthians 14 that speaking in tongues is one way of speaking to ourselves and to God (28) and that in doing so we are praying or singing with our spirit (14-15). However, in Ephesians 5:19 it’s unclear whether Paul is envisaging a public or private situation. The reference to heart rather than hearts might suggest that he is speaking to them as individuals, whereas speaking to yourselves (plural) could be taken to refer to when they are gathered in worship.
Perhaps he intends both. At Pentecost the disciples were filled with the Spirit both collectively and individually. And we need, both as a church and as individuals within it, to keep on being filled with the Spirit. If I can sing in tongues privately to maintain the fulness of the Spirit, cannot the church do so collectively?
I confess that I was once rather concerned about this, especially when unbelievers were present, on the basis of what Paul says about them thinking we are mad (14:23). But then something happened that made me think again.
During part of the time when I was Principal of Mattersey Hall Bible College, the college chapel was across the road from the main part of our campus, and the students’ worship could easily be heard by anyone passing by. There would often be times when everyone was spontaneously singing in tongues to worship the Lord, and I wondered what the local residents might think of it.
But I was greatly reassured when I heard that one of them had asked:
What is that beautiful singing I sometimes hear when I walk past your chapel? It’s so unusual, and it gives me a great sense of peace.
The Corinthians were undoubtedly out of order in the way they were exercising the gift of tongues and clearly needed the strong warning that Paul gave them. But perhaps today he might be encouraging some churches at least to move in the opposite direction!
As at Pentecost, there will always be those who criticise the moving of the Spirit, but if we are able to give an explanation of what’s happening, as Peter did, there may well be more who are persuaded by our message than those who oppose it.
The doctrinal dimension – a word of instruction
The Greek word translated in NIV as a word of instruction is didache, which literally means teaching. It can also mean doctrine. Paul says relatively little about this in 1 Corinthians 14, but in verse 19 he stresses the importance of teaching when he says:
But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.
And of course, most of the contents of Paul’s letters were written to instruct the churches in the truth and to expose false doctrine. What we believe is of vital importance and every genuine experience of the Spirit finds its foundation in the truth of God’s word.
There are many scriptures that emphasise the importance of doctrine. In WYCT Chapter 8, for example, I refer to Matthew 15:9 and 16:12, John 8:32, Colossians 2:22, 1 Timothy 4:13, 16, 2 Timothy 3:16, Titus 1:9 and 2:10, and 2 John 7-10.
The sound exposition of the Scriptures is essential whenever we come together. The teaching of the Word of God shouldn’t be neglected in favour of other things. As we’ll see later, there needs to be balance in our meetings.
Edification
This is the major theme of the whole chapter. If love is the dominant theme of chapter 13, in chapter 14 edification is the way that love is expressed in the context of the gathered church. That’s why Paul says everything must be done for the strengthening of the church.
We have already looked at Paul’s specific teaching on tongues, interpretation, and prophecy in some detail, but now we need to consider the key principles that underly that teaching and see if they can be applied more widely than the specific issues Paul was addressing in Corinth. As we do so, we will discover five principles that need to be applied if our meetings are to be edifying.
Putting other people first
This is the principle underlying Paul’s teaching in verses 1-5. There he is saying that in church prophecy is more valuable than tongues because when you speak in tongues you edify only yourself, but if you prophesy you will edify others. He picks up the same theme in verse 17:
You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not edified.
The principle underlying this teaching is putting others first. And that principle can be applied far more widely than the issue of speaking in tongues. For example, it’s good that I have the freedom to stand and worship the Lord while others are sitting down, but if by standing I prevent the person behind me from singing because they cannot see the words on the screen in front, I may be ‘giving thanks well’, but the other person is not edified. We need to be considerate to others in the way we worship the Lord.
And perhaps those of us who frequently lead in prayer, and sometimes several times in a meeting, might consider holding back to make space for others so do so. As my old pastor, Alfred Webb, used to say, Please don’t take more than your fair share of the cake!
Intelligibility
Another of the ways we can build up our fellow Christians is by making sure they can understand. In verse 9 Paul says:
Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying?
Of course, he’s talking about the futility of speaking in tongues in church unless it’s interpreted. It’s pointless unless people can understand it. But that’s true of everything we do in church. Not everything we say in English is easy to understand – but it should be!
This applies to our preaching, our prayers, the songs we sing, our praise and worship – everything. In verse 16 it’s clear that Paul expects that everyone present should be able to say Amen to whatever we say, but to do that they must first understand it,
…how can one who… does not understand say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying?
For example, how can I say Amen to someone’s prayer or praise if I can’t make out what they’re saying because the people around me are making too much noise, or if the background music is too loud? Saying Amen means expressing your agreement with what’s been said, and you can’t do that if you haven’t heard it properly.
Responsibility
As we saw in the last talk when discussing prophets and prophecy, Paul says that
The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets (32).
This implies that both prophets and those who have the gift of prophecy are responsible for what they say and how they use their gifts. But the need to take responsibility for our actions goes far wider than the gift of prophecy. If God has entrusted us with any spiritual gift, we are responsible for how we use it.
For example, the Holy Spirit does not force us to speak in tongues. He enables us to do so. We are responsible for when, how often, and how loudly. This principle applies to everything we do in church. We are to follow the teaching of Scripture and of our leaders (37-38) and we cannot make the excuse: I couldn’t help it. The Holy Spirit made me do it. And, as we have already said, the very fact that Paul gave us instructions on how these gifts should be used shows that we are responsible for how we use them.
Order
Paul says that God is not a God of disorder but of peace (33), and it’s our responsibility to see that everything is done in a fitting and orderly way (40). In the context this meant ensuring that speaking in tongues should be done one at a time and that only one person should interpret each utterance (27). And the same principle applied to the use of prophecy (30).
Paul’s specific teaching on this still applies today, but the wider principle holds good for everything we do. Everything should done in a fitting and orderly way.
Balance
Finally, it’s clear from Paul’s teaching that there needs to be a measure of balance in our meetings. In Corinth there was too much speaking in tongues. In another church it might be too much music, or even too much teaching! If there is to be the variety of which Paul speaks in verse 26, and if each member is to have the opportunity to contribute, leaders need to ensure that there is a healthy balance in each meeting.
But that is not to say that there cannot be special occasions when an entire meeting is given over to teaching, or to prayer, or to worship, for example. Such occasions are not to be confused with our regular meetings, where preserving a measure of balance will be essential to the edification of all God’s people.
Summary
1. There are three principles underlying Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 14:26 – participation, variety, and edification.
2. Our meetings should include the supernatural, the musical and the doctrinal.
3. Most important of all, everything should be done for the edification of the church.
4. That will be achieved by:
a) putting others first
b) making sure that what is said is intelligible
c) taking responsibility for our actions
d) preserving order and balance in our meetings.
That’s it from me for today. Now over to group leaders for questions for discussion.
Questions for discussion
1. How could we implement Paul’s recommendation to have a song in our meetings?
2. How much time should be allocated for teaching in our home groups?
3. How can we show more consideration for others by what we do in our meetings? Consider different ways of putting other people first.
4. How can we ensure that everything is done in a fitting and orderly way?
5. How can we encourage those who rarely, if ever, say anything in our meetings to participate more, and those who participate regularly (and maybe a bit too much?) to participate less? Which category do you come into?