In the last lesson I tried to emphasize what Paul had emphasized regarding spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, which is, that spiritual gifts come solely from the Holy Spirit at His discretion, timing and for the benefit of whom He chooses. And, in spite of what Paul says, there are those who continue to believe that once received, spiritual gifts are permanent, that they can be exercised at will, that any gift can be received if prayed for, that you can choose which gifts you want or don’t want and that those gifts can be more effectively developed over time.
So, in our examination of Paul’s instruction concerning spiritual gifts in chapters 12-14, let’s try to be objective. There were several influences that contributed to the abuse of these gifts in Corinth, especially the gift of tongues, as I will point out as we go. And, lest anyone want to think my remarks in the following several lessons are prejudiced against those who practice tongues as some sort of legitimate, spiritual, ecstatic language, I will say at the outset here, that it should become obvious that Paul’s presentation in these three chapters centers on the abuse of the gift of tongues. It should also become obvious that his instruction and the restrictions placed on this gift were designed to rein in this abuse.
The remainder of chapter 12 is used by Paul to describe unity in the church. He uses the human body as a metaphor to illustrate this, so, just as the physical body must have all of its parts functioning properly, the church likewise. The point may be subtle, but his reasoning is this – if some gifts are overly emphasized, some others may be neglected and that is not healthy. For example, in what follows in chapters 13-14 Paul makes it clear the spiritual gift of prophecy was neglected to the detriment of the church.
Paul ends his discussion of the body with this in 12:31, “But earnestly covet the best gifts. And yet, I will show you a way that is better by far.” And here we have to stop and pay attention. This is one of those times we have to stress the fact that words have meaning and that meaning must not be misconstrued. “Earnestly covet” (or “earnestly desire” in some translations) is from zeloo, to seek or desire eagerly. The noun form, zelotes, is often used as the adjective, “zealous”. The words “zeal” and “zealous” convey the idea of enthusiasm with right motives.
What is the point Paul is making here? He’s encouraging the church in Corinth to covet the best gifts for the right reason. Why, because they had desired a certain gift for the wrong reason. And that gift was tongues, and considering what Paul had just said in 12:1-30 (that spiritual gifts came at the discretion and timing of the Holy Spirit and a healthy body requires the function of all the gifts) the excessive demonstration of this gift was not contributing to the spiritual health of the church.
Paul then launches into the great “love” chapter (1 Corinthians 13), further exposing the self-centeredness of the Corinthians. When you condense all he says in this short chapter, it comes down to this: the abuse of the gifts shows your lack of loving concern for the spiritual well-being of others and exposes your selfish, immature and competitive desire to demonstrate what can only be a counterfeit spirituality.
But, let’s look at it in a little more detail. In verses 1-3 he makes these comparisons: speaking with the tongues (languages) of men and angels without love is only making noise; having the gift of prophecy and having all the knowledge that is possible to know, or having a faith that can move mountains, without love, I am nothing; if I give everything I have to the poor, or give my body to be burned, but I don’t have love, then I gain nothing.
What’s Paul doing here? He never claimed to speak the language of angels, there’s no evidence in scripture such a language even exists. He certainly never claimed to know everything and never demonstrated the faith to literally move mountains. This is hyperbole, an intentional exaggeration to make a point – the importance of love. And what is the overarching characteristic of love? Well, let’s see what Paul says about it, then I’ll give my conclusion and you can see if you agree or not.
This is verses 4-7, “Love is patient and kind; love is never envious, is not boastful or proud. It is not impolite, not self-centered, not easily angered and keeps no record of wrongs. It does not delight at injustice, but rejoices when truth prevails. It suffers in silence, believes the best in everyone, always hopes regardless of the circumstances and endures without weakness.” My conclusion: when you have love, you’re strong, confident and not concerned with self; instead, your focus is on the needs and well being of others.
Paul uses the remainder of chapter 13 (verses 8-13) to explain why love is superior to spiritual gifts. However, since this passage is generally misunderstood, I want to look at it in some detail. This is verse 8-10, “Love will never come to an end. As for prophecy, it will cease; tongues will be no more; and knowledge will pass away. For now our knowledge is incomplete and our prophecy is imperfect, but when the complete and perfect comes, the incomplete and imperfect disappears.”
Love is superior to spiritual gifts because it will never become obsolete. But the time will come when spiritual gifts will no longer be necessary. But when will that be? To know that, we must identify the phrase “when the complete and perfect comes” in verse 10 above. There are those who try too hard by half to say the gifts of prophecy, tongues and knowledge all ceased when the canon of the Scriptures was completed. Their reasoning is that once God revealed all He wanted the church to know through these gifts and it was recorded in the Scriptures, He stopped giving those gifts.
But that position is shortsighted at best and spiritually lazy. The idea that the gifts of prophecy and knowledge are no longer needed in the body of Christ today is absurd. “Prophecy” (from propheteia) is the ability to interpret the will and purpose of God. “Knowledge” (from gnosis) is the ability to discern, understand and explain what is gained from life experiences with God. Both are essential elements of the ministry. How many times have people said, “I read the Bible, but just can’t understand what I’m reading.” Or, “I don’t understand what God wants me to do, or what He’s doing in my life.” And it is those to whom the Holy Spirit chooses to give these spiritual gifts (and others) that are able to help them along in their pursuit of God.
I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never personally witnessed the legitimate spiritual gift of tongues, that is, someone praising God in a language not their own. However, I have heard anecdotal accounts from missionaries in the past. But this idea of these gifts having ceased with the completion of scripture is simply an attempt by some to explain away the illegitimate practice of ecstatic utterance or speaking in an unknown tongue (an issue we will fully explain in the next lesson when we look at what Paul says in chapter 14).
But, that position disappears into thin air when verses 11-13 are understood. This is what Paul says, “When I was a child I talked like a child, thought like a child and reasoned like a child. But, when I became a man, I put those childish ways aside. For now we see only a dim reflection, like looking into a mirror in the dark; but then we will see clearly. Now I know in part; then, I will know fully, even as I am fully known (by God). But for now, these three remain: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love.”
So, Paul says in verse 10 that for now our knowledge is incomplete and our prophecy is imperfect. Guess what, even with the completion of the Scriptures, our knowledge is still incomplete and our prophecy is still imperfect! And the reason is because “that which is perfect” still has not come. “Perfect” is from teleios, an adjective that describes something that has reached an end, that is, it has been completed.
What has not yet reached an end or been completed? It is God’s plan of redemption for mankind, the eradication of evil and the complete renovation of the heavens and the earth in preparation for an eternity with Him. Right now our understanding of what it will be like when God’s plan is complete is like trying to see our face clearly in a mirror when it’s dark. But when that time comes, we will see clearly, just as clearly as God sees us now.
This is what John is talking about in 1 John 3:2, “My dear friends, now we are the children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made fully clear. But we know that when He appears, we will be made to be like Him, and for the first time we will see Him as He really is.”