January 10, 2023

I Corinthians 14: 26 What shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church. (NIV)

The purpose of spiritual gifts is to equip individual Christians to meet the needs of the church as a whole.*

My son, as the worship leader at a church, has had to implement a “no special music” rule. Apparently, he had received one-too-many offers from individuals (and groups) who wanted to present a special “number” during a worship service. With the new rule in place, he no longer has to deal with turning down well-meaning but less-than-talented volunteers. Not everyone is as “gifted” as they think they are!

The church in Corinth must have been facing a similar situation. As a matter of fact, it sounds like their Sunday mornings resembled an episode of America’s Got Talent. Perhaps Paul was employing some hyperbole when he said that everyone had something to present. And maybe he didn’t mean that they did it every time they came together. But the conditions had deteriorated to the point that he felt it necessary to address the subject of orderliness in worship.

It wasn’t just a matter of talent or lack thereof - Paul was dealing with the congregation’s eagerness to share their spiritual gifts. Often the distinction between talent and gifts is fuzzy, so Paul had to draw the line between entertainment and edification. Perhaps many of these people could have qualified for a spot on Corinth’s Got Talent, but a person’s talent may be something different from his spiritual gift. So Paul established a rule of his own: “All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.”

This can be a good rule for us as well. Whether we are offering our gifts or fielding offers from others, we should ask ourselves, “Is this being done for the strengthening of the church?” As Paul concludes (verse 40), “Everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.”

No gift from God can be used to its full potential if the recipient has a heart that is not in tune with him.*