August 19
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STRIVE TO EXCEL IN ORDER TO EDIFY THE CHURCH
6 But now, brothers and sisters, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I speak to you either by way of revelation, or of knowledge, or of prophecy, or of teaching? 7 Yet even lifeless instruments, whether flute or harp, in producing a sound, if they do not produce a distinction in the tones, how will it be known what is played on the flute or on the harp? 8 For if the trumpet produces an indistinct sound, who will prepare himself for battle? 9 So you too, unless you produce intelligible speech by the tongue, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will just be talking to the air. 10 There are, perhaps, a great many kinds of languages in the world, and none is incapable of meaning. 11 So if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be unintelligible to the one who speaks, and the one who speaks will be unintelligible to me. 12 So you too, since you are eager to possess spiritual gifts, strive to excel for the edification of the church. – 1 Corinthians 14:6-12
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In this letter, Paul rebukes the Corinthian believers who were fascinated by the gift of tongues and tells them that it doesn’t really build up the church but they need to strive to excel in the following in order to edify the church:
• Revelation- Easton bible dictionary defines it as an uncovering, a bringing to light of that which had been previously wholly hidden or only obscurely seen; to make a supernatural revelation of himself and his purposes and plans, which, under the guidance of his Spirit, has been committed to writing. The Scriptures are not merely the “record” of revelation; they are the revelation itself in a written form, in order to the accurate preservation and propagation of the truth.
• Knowledge-The Hebrew root yada [[;d”y],translated “know”/”knowledge, ” has a wider sweep than our English word “know, ” including perceiving, learning, understanding, willing, performing, and experiencing. Knowledge is not the possession of information, but rather its exercise or actualization.
• Prophecy- or prediction, was one of the functions of the prophet. It has been defined as a “miracle of knowledge, a declaration or description or representation of something future.
• Teaching- the process of disciplining and training men. As teaching is both a condition and an accompaniment of disciplining.
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REFLECTION
• Which among the gifts mentioned here have you been edifying the church with?