“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 and interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” (1 Corinthians 14:26)
The theme of chapter 13 concerned our need to pursue love. For love guarantees that all our labors will be both pure and a blessing to those around us. In chapter 14 Paul gives us a practical application of how love should operate in our Christian gatherings. Love demands that everything we do in church be only for the “edifying” or building up of other believers.
This rule excludes all other motives for serving in God’s church. It means that we do not lead in God’s church to satisfy a hunger for power or a need to control others. It means that we do not preach or teach to fulfill a longing to be noticed or praised for our eloquence and knowledge. It means that we do not sing or play music in order to be the object of attention. No, we are to do all that we do in order to bless others and bring them closer to God.
To exercise our spiritual gift in love means that we are mindful of the needs of others. We say and do things in the most tactful and non-offensive way. This ensures that our words and songs will be palatable to others – and therefore effective. It’s easier to drink from the gentle flow of a fountain than from the blast of a firehose. Therefore, we wisely tone our message so that people can most easily receive it.
Abiding in love also means that things in church are done in an orderly way in which we wait our turn to speak and submit to the authority of the pastor and elders. We don’t monopolize on a Bible study by always being the one who makes a comment. We recognize that other points of view are valid and that the listeners may need to hear from others. It also means that we make room for others who wish to serve God in the same capacity as we do. We must be focused on honoring God and meeting the needs of His people.
As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:26. “Everything must be done so that the church” – not our ego or self-image – “may be built up.”
REFLECTION
- Be honest with yourself. Can you truthfully say that your reasons for serving God are to bring Him honor and to bless and encourage others?
- On the other hand, do you refuse to serve God because you’re afraid of failure or embarrassment? Can’t our motives for serving or not serving be wrong?
- We need to heed Paul’s admonition to Timothy: “Rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:6-7).
