Lovekr07
Member
- May 25, 2024
- 74
- 73
A Fitting And Orderly Way
'What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up. If anyone speaks in a tongue, two—or at the most three—should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and to God. Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people. Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. Or did the word of God originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached? If anyone thinks they are a prophet or otherwise gifted by the Spirit, let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command. But if anyone ignores this, they will themselves be ignored. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.' (1 Corinthians 14:26-40)
https://www.bible.com/bible/111/1CO.14.26-40
In the church, we gather with the purpose of building one another up and supporting one another. Everything we do should be with this in mind. Not only does the Lord give us gifts for the purpose of building the church, but He also gives us words of instruction, prophecies, hymns, and tongues which must be interpreted by someone. All of this should be done in the power of the Holy Spirit and in an orderly way so that the people are not distracted, confused, annoyed, etc. We should be careful and yielded to the Holy Spirit so that the Lord can accomplish all that He has planned and so that the attention is sole on Him. We should never forget that the Lord is the head of the church and we are there to hear from Him. He is the one in charge of our meetings.
The passage above explains a situation where several people were given a message in tongues. First, all tongues spoken in a public gathering should have an interpretation. Without an interpretation, tongues do not edify anyone but ourselves and are for our own personal worship experiences. Also, each person should take turns speaking and not talk over one another. This is a biblical example of showing respect for others and for having good social etiquette and intelligence. We may get excited about what the Lord has given us and be anxious to share it or worried that we will forget it, but we should hold our tongues until it is our turn to speak. If we forget what we were going to say, then maybe it was not from the Lord anyway. We can pray that the Lord would bring it back to our minds if it was important or necessary. It is inconsiderate, rude, and selfish to interrupt others because it undermines the importance of what they are saying and shows a lack of respect even if we do not mean to. Not only that, but it stirs up confusion and disarray. Everything should be done in a meaningful and orderly way so that everyone is respected and the Lord is able to accomplish all that He wants done. It is also important so that the purpose of the meeting is not thwarted. We definitely do not want to hijack the Lord’s plans. This is also important in other settings as well. I know that I tend to interrupt others and while I do not mean to do it, it is rude and disrespectful. I will say something and then when the other person begins to reply or take their turn, I will remember something I forgot to say and try to quickly throw it in there. It is rude and very inconsiderate. Instead, I should hold my tongue until they are done talking. It is a bad habit and that I am ashamed of, but it is one that I can certainly work on changing.
In the above passage, Paul makes a comment about women in churches that takes me by surprise. I thought that it was Old Testament rules that require women to be silent and that if they have a question, they must ask their husbands. However, he did say “As the law says,” which indicates that at the time that Paul said this, the law for women in the church had not yet changed. I thought that Jesus made it clear that He honors and respects women and shows them special compassion. It is true that we are to respect the authority of our husbands and fathers as the biblical head of the household, but they are also expected to treat their wives and daughters with the same honor, respect, love, compassion, gentleness that Jesus did and does. As far as leaders in the church, government, or organizations, we are to respect and honor them whether they are male or female. The changing culture and laws over time have allowed women to take on these leadership roles, but a marriage and family structure remains to follow the biblical model of the husband and father as the head of the household.
'What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up. If anyone speaks in a tongue, two—or at the most three—should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and to God. Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people. Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. Or did the word of God originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached? If anyone thinks they are a prophet or otherwise gifted by the Spirit, let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command. But if anyone ignores this, they will themselves be ignored. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.' (1 Corinthians 14:26-40)
https://www.bible.com/bible/111/1CO.14.26-40
In the church, we gather with the purpose of building one another up and supporting one another. Everything we do should be with this in mind. Not only does the Lord give us gifts for the purpose of building the church, but He also gives us words of instruction, prophecies, hymns, and tongues which must be interpreted by someone. All of this should be done in the power of the Holy Spirit and in an orderly way so that the people are not distracted, confused, annoyed, etc. We should be careful and yielded to the Holy Spirit so that the Lord can accomplish all that He has planned and so that the attention is sole on Him. We should never forget that the Lord is the head of the church and we are there to hear from Him. He is the one in charge of our meetings.
The passage above explains a situation where several people were given a message in tongues. First, all tongues spoken in a public gathering should have an interpretation. Without an interpretation, tongues do not edify anyone but ourselves and are for our own personal worship experiences. Also, each person should take turns speaking and not talk over one another. This is a biblical example of showing respect for others and for having good social etiquette and intelligence. We may get excited about what the Lord has given us and be anxious to share it or worried that we will forget it, but we should hold our tongues until it is our turn to speak. If we forget what we were going to say, then maybe it was not from the Lord anyway. We can pray that the Lord would bring it back to our minds if it was important or necessary. It is inconsiderate, rude, and selfish to interrupt others because it undermines the importance of what they are saying and shows a lack of respect even if we do not mean to. Not only that, but it stirs up confusion and disarray. Everything should be done in a meaningful and orderly way so that everyone is respected and the Lord is able to accomplish all that He wants done. It is also important so that the purpose of the meeting is not thwarted. We definitely do not want to hijack the Lord’s plans. This is also important in other settings as well. I know that I tend to interrupt others and while I do not mean to do it, it is rude and disrespectful. I will say something and then when the other person begins to reply or take their turn, I will remember something I forgot to say and try to quickly throw it in there. It is rude and very inconsiderate. Instead, I should hold my tongue until they are done talking. It is a bad habit and that I am ashamed of, but it is one that I can certainly work on changing.
In the above passage, Paul makes a comment about women in churches that takes me by surprise. I thought that it was Old Testament rules that require women to be silent and that if they have a question, they must ask their husbands. However, he did say “As the law says,” which indicates that at the time that Paul said this, the law for women in the church had not yet changed. I thought that Jesus made it clear that He honors and respects women and shows them special compassion. It is true that we are to respect the authority of our husbands and fathers as the biblical head of the household, but they are also expected to treat their wives and daughters with the same honor, respect, love, compassion, gentleness that Jesus did and does. As far as leaders in the church, government, or organizations, we are to respect and honor them whether they are male or female. The changing culture and laws over time have allowed women to take on these leadership roles, but a marriage and family structure remains to follow the biblical model of the husband and father as the head of the household.
