1Cor 14:3 | KingComments | STEP | In the chapter you start with now, a comparison is made between two gifts: prophesying and speaking in tongues or languages. You may have heard about speaking in tongues (which is the same as speaking in languages). The way people talk about it may confuse you. It is often spoken about as a ‘second blessing’. By this they mean that you are indeed converted and have also received the Holy Spirit, although to be a full-fledged Christian you should also be able to speak in tongues. This reasoning is not true at all. Speaking in tongues is explained clearly in the Bible, as you will see in this chapter. In this chapter it is about the comparison between prophesying and speaking in tongues. You will see that the scales will obviously be tipped to the side of prophesying. That is because prophesying is for the edification of the church. Therefore the Corinthians, and you too, are called to strive most for this gift. . You have seen in chapter 13 that love should be the motive to practice a gift, whatever gift that may be. However, if you want to be guided by love – and it is even said here that you should pursue it, you ought to make a determined effort to achieve this – then you will be willing to serve the church with your gift sincerely. Love is to serve others and not yourself. Service to the church will be manifested best with prophesying and you can pursue that, but you should know what prophesying is. In 1 Peter 4 you find a good definition of it. It says: “Whoever speaks, [is to do so] as one who is speaking the utterances of God” ( ). That means that when someone passes on something, it should be something that comes directly from the mouth of God. To be able to pass on the utterances or oracles of God, a person should be living closely to God in his daily life. That is not a privilege of just a single person, but that should be the desire of each child of God. Actually, it should go without saying that each believer has that desire. However, there are many things that can hinder you to live closely to God. Therefore it says that you should pursue it. . Speaking in tongues is totally different than prophesying. This gift does not address people, but God. That seems much higher, and that’s what the Corinthians thought too and that’s also what many Christians are still thinking, but that is not true. At least, that appears to me to be the honest result of the detailed comparison that Paul makes in this chapter between these two gifts. . A widely spread misconception, is that prophesying in the church as it is spoken of here, is in connection with predicting the future. You hear regularly about people who present themselves as prophets. In several denominations of professing Christianity they stand up to say things that will happen to others in the future. Sometimes these things come true. This performance is in contrast to God’s Word. Only God knows how your life will develop further and He will show you personally everything you should know step by step if you live with Him. It is another thing when you are on the wrong track and someone warns you that you will end up badly if you go on like that. But that is nothing new, for that is written in God’s Word. The brother or sister who is warning you, actually is prophesying, but in an exhorting sense. According to “exhortation” is a part of prophesying. He who deals with his or her fellow-believers like that, is concerned to serve the other person. Exhortation is therefore one way to manifest prophesying. But there are still two more elements mentioned, namely speaking to men for edification and consolation. “Edification” is about giving firmness to the faith life of church members. By showing the believers, based on the Bible, which place they have received before God and in the world through the work of the Lord Jesus, they will be more capable to live in a way that pleases God. “Consolation” is also a crucial element of prophesying. As long as the believers live on earth, they have to deal with sad things. God and the Lord Jesus know that and give consolation where it is needed. Do you see that it is necessary to live closely to God to be capable of prophesying? Only He knows what the hearts of His own need. Therefore the excellent thing in a meeting where “two or three prophets speak” ( ) is that each person present hears something he needs, though the speaker doesn’t know what each person is occupied with. Has it ever happened to you that something has been said in a meeting which seemed as if it was meant only for you? You might have been worrying about something and suddenly the word that was spoken seemed to be exactly the answer to your problem. That is what prophesying is like. You experience to be in the direct presence of God. That’s what happened to the Samaritan woman, when the Lord Jesus was talking to her in John 4. She was a woman of loose morals. The Lord says to her that she has had five husbands and that the man whom she now has, is not her husband, but she is living together with him. The woman then says: “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” ( ). She sensed that she was standing in God’s light where you cannot hide anything. Many people have experienced such an awareness when they heard someone preaching the gospel about the depravation of man. Many have said of the one who preached the Word: ‘It seems like that man knows my life.’ To many it has become a blessing, as to the Samaritan woman, when they acknowledged that it was God’s voice they heard. That is still the God’s goal with prophesying. He wants to speak to the hearts and consciences of both believers and unbelievers to bless them at last. He mainly wants to use the meetings of the church for that purpose, for that is the issue of this chapter. . The point is, that a gift is meant to edify others. What happens when someone speaks in a tongue? He edifies himself alone. It is of no use to others, for no one understands him. Therefore Paul prefers prophesying far above speaking in a tongue. . He even says that he who prophesies is more than he who speaks in a tongue. That was quite a sharp lesson for the Corinthians. They were really fond of speaking in tongues. There is only one circumstance to profit the church through speaking in tongues and that is when what is spoken is interpreted into the local language. . In any case, Paul wanted to profit the believers at Corinth, and at all places in the world. That would not be the case if he came there and spoke “in tongues”. In fact, that would have made him very admired. Those people would have said: ‘That man is good!’ But the church would not have been edified by that. No, when he visited the believers, he loved to do that with a “revelation”. He wanted to tell them something about God and the Lord Jesus, what they did not know yet. The Word of God was not complete at that time and that is why God still gave revelations. We now have the complete Word of God. Therefore we do not need new revelations anymore ( ). He also wanted to come to them with “knowledge”. He had great knowledge of the Old Testament. In chapter 10 he demonstrated what value this knowledge has for the believers and he still could have added a lot more ( ). Or he wanted to serve them by “prophesy”. What an edification, exhortation and consolation he could have given to them! The “teaching” is also important; the whole letter to the Romans is a proof of that. Those are things that are of real profit to believers, which they can absorb with their hearts. That is something they can get down to work with. Now read 1 Corinthians 14:1-6 again. Reflection: What is (are) the condition(s) to be able to prophesy?

‏ 1 Corinthians 14:3

That the Church May Receive Edification

In the chapter you start with now, a comparison is made between two gifts: prophesying and speaking in tongues or languages. You may have heard about speaking in tongues (which is the same as speaking in languages). The way people talk about it may confuse you. It is often spoken about as a ‘second blessing’. By this they mean that you are indeed converted and have also received the Holy Spirit, although to be a full-fledged Christian you should also be able to speak in tongues. This reasoning is not true at all.

Speaking in tongues is explained clearly in the Bible, as you will see in this chapter. In this chapter it is about the comparison between prophesying and speaking in tongues. You will see that the scales will obviously be tipped to the side of prophesying. That is because prophesying is for the edification of the church. Therefore the Corinthians, and you too, are called to strive most for this gift.

1Cor 14:1. You have seen in chapter 13 that love should be the motive to practice a gift, whatever gift that may be. However, if you want to be guided by love – and it is even said here that you should pursue it, you ought to make a determined effort to achieve this – then you will be willing to serve the church with your gift sincerely. Love is to serve others and not yourself.

Service to the church will be manifested best with prophesying and you can pursue that, but you should know what prophesying is. In 1 Peter 4 you find a good definition of it. It says: “Whoever speaks, [is to do so] as one who is speaking the utterances of God” (1Pet 4:11). That means that when someone passes on something, it should be something that comes directly from the mouth of God.

To be able to pass on the utterances or oracles of God, a person should be living closely to God in his daily life. That is not a privilege of just a single person, but that should be the desire of each child of God. Actually, it should go without saying that each believer has that desire. However, there are many things that can hinder you to live closely to God. Therefore it says that you should pursue it.

1Cor 14:2. Speaking in tongues is totally different than prophesying. This gift does not address people, but God. That seems much higher, and that’s what the Corinthians thought too and that’s also what many Christians are still thinking, but that is not true. At least, that appears to me to be the honest result of the detailed comparison that Paul makes in this chapter between these two gifts.

1Cor 14:3. A widely spread misconception, is that prophesying in the church as it is spoken of here, is in connection with predicting the future. You hear regularly about people who present themselves as prophets. In several denominations of professing Christianity they stand up to say things that will happen to others in the future. Sometimes these things come true. This performance is in contrast to God’s Word. Only God knows how your life will develop further and He will show you personally everything you should know step by step if you live with Him.

It is another thing when you are on the wrong track and someone warns you that you will end up badly if you go on like that. But that is nothing new, for that is written in God’s Word. The brother or sister who is warning you, actually is prophesying, but in an exhorting sense.

According to 1Cor 14:3 “exhortation” is a part of prophesying. He who deals with his or her fellow-believers like that, is concerned to serve the other person. Exhortation is therefore one way to manifest prophesying. But there are still two more elements mentioned, namely speaking to men for edification and consolation.

“Edification” is about giving firmness to the faith life of church members. By showing the believers, based on the Bible, which place they have received before God and in the world through the work of the Lord Jesus, they will be more capable to live in a way that pleases God.

“Consolation” is also a crucial element of prophesying. As long as the believers live on earth, they have to deal with sad things. God and the Lord Jesus know that and give consolation where it is needed.

Do you see that it is necessary to live closely to God to be capable of prophesying? Only He knows what the hearts of His own need. Therefore the excellent thing in a meeting where “two or three prophets speak” (1Cor 14:29) is that each person present hears something he needs, though the speaker doesn’t know what each person is occupied with. Has it ever happened to you that something has been said in a meeting which seemed as if it was meant only for you? You might have been worrying about something and suddenly the word that was spoken seemed to be exactly the answer to your problem. That is what prophesying is like. You experience to be in the direct presence of God.

That’s what happened to the Samaritan woman, when the Lord Jesus was talking to her in John 4. She was a woman of loose morals. The Lord says to her that she has had five husbands and that the man whom she now has, is not her husband, but she is living together with him. The woman then says: “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (Jn 4:19). She sensed that she was standing in God’s light where you cannot hide anything.

Many people have experienced such an awareness when they heard someone preaching the gospel about the depravation of man. Many have said of the one who preached the Word: ‘It seems like that man knows my life.’ To many it has become a blessing, as to the Samaritan woman, when they acknowledged that it was God’s voice they heard.

That is still the God’s goal with prophesying. He wants to speak to the hearts and consciences of both believers and unbelievers to bless them at last. He mainly wants to use the meetings of the church for that purpose, for that is the issue of this chapter.

1Cor 14:4. The point is, that a gift is meant to edify others. What happens when someone speaks in a tongue? He edifies himself alone. It is of no use to others, for no one understands him. Therefore Paul prefers prophesying far above speaking in a tongue.

1Cor 14:5. He even says that he who prophesies is more than he who speaks in a tongue. That was quite a sharp lesson for the Corinthians. They were really fond of speaking in tongues. There is only one circumstance to profit the church through speaking in tongues and that is when what is spoken is interpreted into the local language.

1Cor 14:6. In any case, Paul wanted to profit the believers at Corinth, and at all places in the world. That would not be the case if he came there and spoke “in tongues”. In fact, that would have made him very admired. Those people would have said: ‘That man is good!’ But the church would not have been edified by that.

No, when he visited the believers, he loved to do that with a “revelation”. He wanted to tell them something about God and the Lord Jesus, what they did not know yet. The Word of God was not complete at that time and that is why God still gave revelations. We now have the complete Word of God. Therefore we do not need new revelations anymore (Col 1:25).

He also wanted to come to them with “knowledge”. He had great knowledge of the Old Testament. In chapter 10 he demonstrated what value this knowledge has for the believers and he still could have added a lot more (1Cor 10:1-13).

Or he wanted to serve them by “prophesy”. What an edification, exhortation and consolation he could have given to them!

The “teaching” is also important; the whole letter to the Romans is a proof of that.

Those are things that are of real profit to believers, which they can absorb with their hearts. That is something they can get down to work with.

Now read 1 Corinthians 14:1-6 again.

Reflection: What is (are) the condition(s) to be able to prophesy?