The Freedom of the Spirit

 

Text: 1 Corinthians 14:26-33

Focus: The Holy Spirit

Function: to help us feel free to let the Spirit lead in our midst

²⁶ What should be done then, my brothers and sisters? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up. ²⁷ If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three and each in turn, and let one interpret. ²⁸ But if there is no one to interpret, let them be silent in church and speak to themselves and to God. ²⁹ Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. ³⁰ If someone sitting receives a revelation, let the first person be silent. ³¹ For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged ³² (and the spirits of prophets are subject to the prophets, ³³ for God is a God not of disorder but of peace), as in all the churches of the saints.

Good morning to the beloved of God!

This is the last sermon on my mini series on the gifts and the power of the Holy Spirit to bring glory to Christ and build the community faith.

So far we have learned how the Holy Spirit dwells in everybody and gives them gifts of manifestations of God’s presence within them.

The gift of tongues was of either men or angels, according to Chapter 13:1. I believe the tongues of angels is a prayer language whereby we don’t know how to pray, but the Spirit intercedes with groans and mutterings too deep for words and we get to pray our hearts according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26)

Two of the gifts were signs for unbelievers. (verses 1-5) The tongues of men gift was used by God as a sign to unbelievers. They would hear a message delivered to them by someone who didn’t know the language and it would be a word of advice or as it states earlier in our chapter, some sort of revelation about them pointing them to their need for God’s mercy. And preaching, or prophecy, also draws people to Christ. Paul also alludes to that in Romans 10.

Anyway, I think it is a pretty cool gift, and that can be the problem. We can, as they did, get proud.

So, at the end of Chapter 12, Paul tells them to pursue the greater gifts and then he lists them.

He reminds them in chapter 13 to keep focused on love because that is the proof of their faith, not these showy demonstrations of power.

And then in the beginning of 14, he makes it clear that the division was caused by the one gift of tongues.

And I believe he is really careful not to quench the power and the moving of the Holy Spirit in their midst. He just wants them to focus on how the Spirit causes them to love others instead of puffing up their own ego.

So in Chapter 14 he gives organizing, or instructional, principles about how the gift of tongues and its corresponding gift prophesy are supposed to work.

Essentially he says that if you are just praying your angelic prayer language to God, keep it silent because others will only hear babbling and people who don’t understand will mock us.

And it happens, I saw a video last week mocking a preacher of Christian Nationalism praying in tongues. And Paul implies that mocking us for that without someone to explain does indeed appear foolish. So avoid foolish stuff.

But if the tongue is a prophetic message and someone can interpret it, then go ahead.

And he gives instructions, two or three at the most, in order and give watch and see where the Spirit is leading when this is happening.

He gives one caution about the leading of the Spirit and he tells them that they can’t use the excuse that the Spirit took control to break the flow of the meeting.

Specifically he says that we have control over the when and how we speak or move in the Spirit and we should be sensitive to the Spirit’ timing and moving.

I don’t know how to tell you to do that except for me it is a pretty strong gut feeling or intuition that I have at times.

But the main point, after he tells them to not be crazy with their expressions, is the be free to express what the Spirit is doing in their midst.

The point is to be free to let the Spirit flow in our midst.

Now this is where it gets really cool here at Painter Creek.

We have created an environment that enables people to use their Spirit driven gifts, talents and passions to express their love for Christ and others.

One of the best Spiritual expression of that is worship in music since music seems to resonate the emotional and spiritual significance of what we are singing about.

It draws us close to God and I love our music, I think it works well here. I connect with God during our singing.

Musical expression is a gift and a talent from God according to scripture.

But so is art. So is poetry. Look at the beauty of the and meaning behind the table decorations each week. Understand the creativity behind the liturgy each week.

The Bible is full of different kinds of worship expressions. Did you know that Psalms 119, the longest chapter in the Bible is actually an acrostic Poem from the Jewish alphabet? David takes each letter of the alphabet and every line of each stanza starts with that letter. It must have taken him months to write it. It is a beautiful expression of the art of poetry and it is recorded in our book of worship for eternity.

That is why I love to hear the Poetry when it is read because I know that it is God inspired. It speaks to me and draws me closer to God.

The idea in the passage is to get people to express their love for God, for nature and for others through the Spirit’s leading in their lives.

There is also the gift of helps and service when people sense a reward from God for cleaning, fixing things and keeping things going. Paul emphasizes the less visible gifts as the most important because they keep us functioning.

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of meals and hospitality as a Spiritual gift and expression.

When we were meeting at the Fourman’s house, the eating and making of the meals was more than just food. I felt it. It was a spiritual connection and bond.

Look at the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. The angels came to town to see for themselves if the wickedness was that bad.

And Lot was the only righteous person.

And he proves his righteousness by welcoming the stranger. Welcoming the stranger has been a Middle Eastern religious value throughout their history.

The gift of hospitality builds this church. We can keep on growing by capitalizing on that gift.

And now were doing a Garage/Bake sale fundraiser. It’s an inspired idea that will draw us and the community together.

What I am saying is that I see the Spirit moving in many ways here at Painter Creek and you all are participating with your gifts. Thank you.

The Spirit of Charity

Text: 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13

Focus: Love’s importance

Function: to help us see practical ways the Spirit leads us to love others.

³¹ But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.

13:¹ Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. ² And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. ³ And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

⁴ Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, ⁵ doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; ⁶ rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; ⁷ beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

⁸ Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. ⁹ For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. ¹⁰ But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

¹¹ When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. ¹² For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. ¹³ And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Good morning beloved of God!

There is a lot to unpack in this very familiar scripture. It is one we hear read, but not preached on, so today I am continuing the teaching on the Holy Spirit’s power in our lives as it works through and motivates our love.

I started the text from chapter 12:31, because it is the segue between his teaching on the gifts of the Spirit to the power of love.

Remember from the last several weeks, the gifts of the Spirit were powerful in the Corinthian Church and joy of having it turned into pride and was causing division in the church about who was more important.

And in Chapter 13, Paul is reminding them of Jesus’ primary command to the disciples at the end of his instruction when he told them there is a new commandment now to make the Christian life simple: Love one another.

He is reminding them that if they focus on the love that the Spirit is giving them, the pride will diminish and they will get along and honor Christ.

I used the King James today because it translates the Greek word Agape as Charity. It means the kind of love that expresses itself in acts of giving. And it isn’t just physical things we give, more importantly, we give forgiveness and mercy along with the willingness and desire to share because the Spirit is giving us compassion towards others.

Verses 4-7 give us a synopsis of what love, or charity looks like.

So, Charity:

• is longsuffering

• is kind

• is happy, without envy, about the success of others

• is humble and knows its place

• is not selfish

• is patient in the midst of provocation

• is able to see the best in others without being critical

• is not happy when an enemy stumbles

• is happy when truth appears

• is forbearing

• is looking for the best in the other

• is hoping for the best in others

• is forgiving

• is permanent.

And when he mentions permanence by saying it wont fail, he segues again into the point of the passage about the relationship between the gifts and love.

A big problem was happening with them in that some had these showy gifts from the Spirit and others didn’t and they said the more supernatural gifts were the proof of salvation.

Paul steers them back to Jesus’ teaching and the importance of love.

I’m talking about verses 8-11 now. Continuing with the theme of Jesus teaching on love, he sort of explains what he means at the end of chapter 12 when he tells them to seek the higher gifts.

He talks about how we mature in the faith from childish notions to more mature notions.

I see it as going from needing to see signs and wonders to prove the reality of the faith to letting the Spirit lead inside ones own heart and seeing where the love of God takes you.

You remember that Jesus said that we will be known as followers of Christ by our love for others.

Verse 12 is kind of humbling when he speaks of the fact that we barely understand.

I see that.

It seems to me that the more I read, the more I pray, the more I study, the more I prepare, the less and less sure I am of what I know.

And that is because I keep seeing the bigness and wholeness of God in all of creation and in the people I get to meet.

I think it goes back to love not puffing itself up and remaining humble. I realize that I don’t understand it all, but God does, so it makes it simple for me to love and forgive as an act of faith and obedience.

Before we finish, I want to focus a bit on the Spirit’s power to see the good in others.

I wrote that love is seeing the good, the God, in others. There is a touch of the divine in everyone, and the Spirit of God inside of us resonates with that inside of them, God touches them, and perhaps hope is born in the midst of those who are prone to think the evil is good.

Now remember, this section of 1 Corinthians that we are studying is on the Spirit’s power in our lives.

And Paul’s focus on love is consistent with the main emphasis of Jesus’ teaching.

I believe that when we refuse to walk in love, we quench the power of the Spirit in our lives.

Forgiveness is a major part of it.

When I am not forgiving, I simply find that prayer is next to impossible until my prayer is one of forgiveness.

Now, I don’t want to get off the subject here, the problem hindering love in these chapters is pride, not unforgiveness.

But I find pride is the biggest reason I am to stubborn to forgive.

Hopefully we have gained some insights into the power behind letting the Spirit lead us into love.

Let the Spirit lead you into love.

I see that as a defining characteristic of this church. Thank you.

The Body

Text: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

Focus: Spiritual gifts

Function: ‘to help people feel connected to the Spirit’s power

¹²For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. ¹³For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

¹⁴Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. ¹⁵If the foot would say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. ¹⁶And if the ear would say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. ¹⁷If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? ¹⁸But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. ¹⁹If all were a single member, where would the body be? ²⁰As it is, there are many members yet one body. ²¹The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” ²²On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, ²³and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect, ²⁴whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, ²⁵that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. ²⁶If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it.

²⁷Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. ²⁸And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. ²⁹Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work powerful deeds? ³⁰Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? ³¹But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.

Good morning beloved of God!

Today we are continuing our study on the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit.

Brother Paul segues into a teaching during the rest of the chapter about how the Spirit of God draws us into the unity of the Body of Christ.

Remember, in God’s e eyes it is a blessing to God for us to leave planet earth and join God in heaven. Psalms 116:15. So the reason we are still here is because God leaves us on planet earth to do God’s will by showing the world the love of Christ. We are on a mission from God.

So he starts out the passage with this truth: We belong to each other.

We bear responsibility for the wellness and wholeness of each other. “Each member is to have the same care for one another.” (Vs. 25b)

We are linked together integrally just as the members of a body are linked together.

And he’s not just talking about the church here. He mentions unity between the races of humanity when he speaks of Jews and Greeks.

This truth belongs to more than just the church here. Jesus came to transform the society into a place which cares for everyone of all races and there isn’t superior and inferior races.

He reminds us that as an human race that we live together in harmony with diversity that makes us different.

We aren’t the same, God made us different, but connects us together.

And he uses the metaphor of a single body and its different components and how their survival depends on the health and wellness of the other parts of the body even though they have different purposes, gifts, passions, calling and needs.

Our survival depends on the well being of others. We live in a community and we are called to care for that community in Christian love.

So, let us just reflect on that a moment. What does it mean to you that we are part of one physical body?

(pause)

Now, we have to remember that the Corinthian church was experiencing a problem with pride in individual members who thought they were more important than others.

And we are going to hear repeated in these passages in 1 Corinthians how pride gets in the way of love.

Brother Paul addresses it here again when he continues the metaphor and speaks how one member may not feel like it needs the other.

He points out how ridiculous that is.

And it is self-importance that puffs us up and keeps us from honoring and valuing the other members of the body.

Christ wants us to honor and value everyone regardless of their race, religion, gender identity, nationality, and economic status.

By loving them and showing them kindness we set the example for people to give up their selfish ways and live for the strength and health of the body, the community.

Since we are one body, we are called to live for the collective good, not the individual good.

It is worldly, unchristian, and selfish to proclaim that we are not responsible for the entire body of humanity. Everyone is our neighbor. If we want God to bless our nation then remember that according to Jesus, how we treat the stranger is the way we treat Jesus himself. And Jesus says it with the judgment of either heaven or hell as our outcome to the way we care for the stranger.

It isn’t okay to say, “well, we are mainly responsible for our own families and we don’t have to treat the rest as our neighbors.” It contradicts Jesus’ teaching and I feel I must speak up.

Jesus said we are to care for the least of these and in this passage, we see that it is especially important since they are members of our own body.

When a member is sick, we pay attention to it, nurture it and heal it. Sure, we cut it out if its malignant, but almost always at a high price. Remember, Jesus wants to restore, he came to restore us to God and to each other.

So, yes, deal humanely with the criminal element, but the rest are still called neighbor by Jesus and whatever we do, we must do under the command to treat them as well as we treat ourselves and our own.

If we want security for ourselves, then the golden rule dictates that we give it to everyone else regardless of race or their skin color or status.

To end today’s teaching on the gifts, the passage switches back to our problem with pride. He uses the body metaphor again to tell us not to lose heart if no one seems to recognize our contributions to the body.

He speaks of those whose spiritual gifts are not the showy ones that we talked about last week, but behind the scenes gifts. He explains it with the body metaphor by saying we cover up the important parts and the less important parts are seen.

It reminds me that the Spirit of God leads us to Christ, not a person or a personality, or a pastor but to a church, a community, a body. And every gift of service is important from cleaning, repairing, baking, visiting, sending cards, throwing parties, decorating, writing poetry, creating art or whatever we feel inspired to do by God to do.

I heard the story of a woman dedicated to prayer who went ahead of a famous evangelist to the next town and spent the week praying over the city for God’s Spirit to restore people to Christ.

She is a saint who remains nameless. I imagine it is because she came from a time before we were sensitive to Diversity, and Equality and a spirit that Includes everyone instead of the dominant culture or gender.

This passage is about diversity, equality and including those who don’t seem important, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion are commanded here as Christian values.

Let us be different here at Painter Creek and seek to include the entire body.