Sermon Transcript:

Thank you so much. Thank you, Joy. So we are in a study on First Corinthians, and we are at First Corinthians 14. I want to be honest with you, I have been in ministry since I was 16, and heard all kinds of sermons. I've never actually heard anybody brave enough to preach the chapter I'm going to preach on. So I don't know what that says about me or about preachers or teachers at large, it is in the Bible, and I'm not afraid of it. I think we can come to some really clear conclusions. And so we're going to we're going to do that today. We have started a section, and just think about this in terms of the Bible is a lot of times in the New Testament, it's written in letters, and letters were to specific churches and places. And so this letter was to a real city, the city of Corinth, and it is Corinthians as the First and Second Corinthians. But we know there were other other letters that are not included in the testament. We know that also that he is addressing specific things that were occurring at that church. And so he's trying to address those, Paul is, that is, but he's doing that with the authority of an apostle. So it has relevance for the original church at Corinth, and it has relevance for us today. But again, very I think, important to see that he began a section on exercising of the gifts in the church, in the body of Christ in chapter 11, and he's going to finish it today at the end of 14 last week, was a very famous passage on the love chapter. And hope you enjoyed that, and just how we maybe even thought about that in a way that you haven't heard of before, where love is not meant to be a be a burden, but it's, it's what God enables in us as we walk in him. So he begins, and I will begin today in verse one. This is a long section of scripture I'm going to read. So you can either follow in your Bible we read from what's called the New Living Translation, or you can follow it up on the screen. But I just want to, want to let you know it's a long passage that we're going to look at, and I'll try to go as slow as I can, and to help us to see what God, God has for us today in it. So love, let love be your highest goal. Now keep in mind why he's saying that, because he just finished chapter 13 on the actual love chapter. So he's saying that's our goal when we think about our spiritual giftedness or spiritual abilities, but you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives. By spirit there, it's capital S, I take it to mean holy spirit, especially the ability to prophesy, or prophecy. Now prophecy, I just want to make sure we're real clear on this. In the Old Testament, a lot of times, a prophet or prophetess, whether it was a male or female Prophet, they were speaking directly for God, because the scriptures weren't complete yet. And it's very obvious that God would, from the heavens, tell a prophet or a prophetess something, and then they would go communicate that to the people. When you get into the New Testament. After Jesus comes and he has a sent out from Jerusalem and Judea and to the uttermost parts of the earth, you'll see that churches are established all throughout the known area, all throughout the Mediterranean Sea. And the way prophecy is used in the New Testament, and up to this very day is that, do you have a prophetic word which just really means a word from the Lord. That may also be because you studied and you have wisdom that you're giving that is a truth. And all truths can be examined by scripture, but it takes wisdom to sort of examine if prophecies from the Lord, and you're going to see him bring that up. But I just want to be real clear on what prophecy is. A prophet is a truth teller as a prophecy is speaking in such a way where you're giving good biblical truths, and if you want to know if they're from the Lord, you can you can test them, and you can see, okay, is that consistent with who God is in the scriptures, or is that something else? Okay, so prophecy,

for if you have the ability to speak in tongues. Now, we talked about this last week, but you're going to see that tongues, or languages, has to do with what I think are known languages that you can interpret supernaturally. You will be talking only to God, since people won't be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit. But it will be but, but will all be mysterious. But the one who prophesies strengthens others. Why? Because they can understand it. Everybody can understand it. It encourages them. It comforts them. Strengthens encourage, comforts a person who speaks in tongues or languages, maybe strengthen personally, but the one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church. Why? Because prophecy can be understood by everyone. A language can only be understood by whoever knows that language. I wish you could all speak in tongues. But even more, I wish you could all prophesy, for prophecy is greater. Than speaking in tongues unless someone interprets what you are saying, so that the whole church will be strengthened, dear brothers and sisters, if I should come to you speaking in an unknown language, how would that help you? But if I bring you a revelation or some special knowledge or prophecy or teaching that will be helpful, even lifeless instruments like a flute or the harp must play the notes clearly or no one will recognize the melody. And if the bugler doesn't sound a clear call, how will the soldiers know they're being called to battle? It's the same for you. If you speak to people in words they don't understand, how will they know what you are saying, you might as well be talking into empty space. There are many different languages in the world, and every language has meaning, but if I don't understand a language, I'll be a foreigner to someone who speaks it, and the one who speaks it will be a foreigner to me. And the same is true for you, since you are so eager to have the special abilities the Spirit gives seek those that will strengthen the whole church. So anyone who speaks in tongues should pray also for the ability to interpret what has been said. For if I pray in tongues, my spirit is praying, but I don't understand what I am saying. Again, that's supernatural. Well, then what shall I do? I will pray in the Spirit, and I will also pray in words. I understand. I will sing in the Spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand. For if you praise God only in the spirit, how can those who don't understand you praise God along with you? How can you? How can they join you in giving thanks when they don't understand what you are saying, you'll be giving thanks very well, but it won't strengthen the people who hear you. I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you, but in a church meeting, I would rather speak five understandable words to help others, than 10,000 words in an unknown language. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Don't be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind. It is written in the Scriptures. I will speak to my own people through strange languages and through the lips of foreigners, but even then, they will not listen to me, says the Lord. So you see that speaking in tongues is a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers. Prophecy, however, is for the benefit of believers, not unbelievers, even so if an unbeliever are people who don't understand these things, come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in unknown language, don't think you're crazy, but if all you are prophesying and unbelievers are people who don't understand these things come into your meeting, they will be convicted of sin and judged by what you say. As they listen, their secret thoughts will be exposed, and they will fall through their knees and worship God, declaring God is truly here among you. I told you it was a long passage. Thank you for letting me get through that. Couple things that are very evident to me as I read this passage, when we think about the word tongues, or languages, which is the same word in Greek. And I told you that you can go back and look at Acts, and it's very clear that that in Acts chapter two, that when, when the gospel starts to go out, that people stand up, and all of a sudden they understand the gospel in their own language. That's what's going on here. So let's just use the language of of French. I was it's hard to use the word, it's hard to use the language of Spanish here, because what ends up happening is over half of us in the room know a little bit of Spanish, or even if you're Spanish speaking only you know a little bit of English. So we'll, we'll sometimes fudge on this, on this principle, and we'll have people who pray in Spanish or sing in Spanish, so that that's not what he's talking about, because in our culture, we understand a little bit of both languages. That's why here on the borderland we have Spanglish. They made a whole movie about that, okay, but, but, but, let's show. Let's just take that away for a minute, and let's just talk about French, because we have very few French speaking people, although we've had them. We had one last week, and we had one who used to be a member here years ago. But if we were all up here, if I was up here teaching or preaching or prophesying in French, that would not be a benefit to most, if not all, of y'all in the room, unless I had an interpreter here, and so you can see that that's what he's going with. He's saying, Listen, if you have people who are praying or prophesying or speaking in some way, but you don't have an interpreter there, it will be nonsense. It won't help you any, right? I mean, that's where we get the phrase. It's Greek to me, uh, there's very few of y'all probably in the room that can read or understand Greek, so that's where we come up with that phrase. So in the same way, any language that you and I don't know, if someone starts speaking that to us, it doesn't do us a look of good, right? We understand that, and that's what Paul's talking about here. He's saying that when you exercise these spiritual gifts, understand that they have to strengthen, encourage and comfort. First point I wants to see this morning, our spiritual gifts must be for edification. So I don't want to complicate things, whatever God has gifted you and me in whether you have the gift of administration, you have the gift of teaching, you have the gift of numbers. You have the gift of languages it there will both be a natural aspect to it and a supernatural aspect to it. If you're doing it by God's grace. Here's what I mean by that. You won't find yourself if I if I pulled one of you up on stage and I asked you some real clear questions. I was like, Hey, are you good with numbers? No, I stink at numbers. I'm always getting them all mixed up. I can't really keep a good, you know, checkbook. In fact, someone else in my family does that, and I was always bad at math and, you know, but I'm really good at painting and art and these kind of things. I wouldn't say, Well, God may have gifted you with numbers. No, it's just not how it works. We understand that God uses our our natural abilities and abilities that we have honed over time, and he really blows wind on those. It's kind of like a sail in our sailboat to to propel us forward with what God has for us, our spiritual gifts that go along with our wiring, because God made us and He wired us and who he wants us to be, our spiritual gifts are for edification, and that's a big word. Why didn't I just use the word like encouragement or strengthen or comfort? Because edification encompasses all of those. Let me just show you Webster's definition of what does it mean to edify someone. It is to instruct and improve, especially in moral or religious knowledge. It is to uplift, it is to enlighten, it is to inform. So then you get to ask yourself, Who decides if any of y'all or me or anybody else is gifted in admin or in singing or in teaching, etcetera? Well, it's two things. There's always a sort of a sort of a double thing going on. Number one is an internal desire and just evidence, right? We know this. If you're terrible at keeping things organized and straight, you yourself ought to have enough self awareness to know I may not be gifted in administration and organization, but all of a sudden you may find yourself, man, I think I'm gifted in singing. I think I'm getting and sometimes we find this right. You think, man, I'm gifted in singing, for the church, singing for the Lord, whatever. So then that's that's the first inclination that you may be gifted in singing. But there's another part to play. Someone else has to affirm, and preferably more than one, someone else has to affirm that gift in singing. And so what will happen in like our setting, is, if you say, I think I'm gifted in singing for the Lord, you may think that, but then we will give you a child, or we'll sort of figure out, okay, can you lead in worship? And guess what? If you're if you're leading in worship, if you're leading and singing isn't edifying to anyone else in the room, then we would conclude, well, you may not be gifted in singing. You may think you are, but if you're not blessing anyone else with that gift, then you aren't gifted in singing. Why? Because spiritual gifts are for edification. It encourages and people who are around you will recognize those gift sets, and they will say, Yes, more of that.

It's obvious that you're good at that. It's

obvious that you're good at teaching, because when you do that, people understand the concepts you're trying to bring out. And in the same way, let's take an issue like prophecy or tongues, which sometimes have some controversy around them for reasons of like miraculous and healing. These are often called the the charismatic or the charisma gifts. It's just that whole idea of things that God uses. I don't want us to be confused by this. It's no different than any other gift. I know it's exercised in different ways, but but the purpose of all gifts, I'm just saying it right here, is for edification of others. If it's just about you, if it's just about me, if it's just for show, then we're not dealing with something that is spiritually edifying. So when it comes to the gift of tongues, what is the gift of tongues? What's one of two things? It's either going to be for interpretation, like, oh my gosh, someone is up here speaking French, and I can explain that to someone else, or it is the supernatural ability to either speak French when you haven't been formally trained on it, or you've been formally trained on it a little bit, and languages just come easier for you. We all know people in this world who speak multiple languages, not just sort of understand Spanish, but they understand English, and really are good at Spanish, and also really good at some other romantic languages, whether it's, you know, French or Greek or whatever, we could keep going you, you know, people like this. And so what ends up happening is that God uses those things, and again, he puts wind in the sails of those gifts for the edification of the church. It's both supernatural and natural giftedness, and people recognize it. And I was like, my gosh, I was in the audience, and I didn't understand what was going on, and I needed someone to speak French to me if I was to understand the gospel today. And all of a sudden someone stood up and they spoke French, and then for the rest of the people in the audience who didn't speak French, an interpreter got up and spoke the interpretation so that no one who was there would be confused, right? You see, what's going on? Here. And this is true in large settings and in small settings. The Corinthian church was probably the same size as the average church in America today, somewhere between 50 and 100 the average church is about 75 to 80. And so that's what's going on here. So second point I want you to see from this same passage is the gift of tongues is publicly gifted tongues, publicly is the speaking and interpretation of known languages. I can't get around this. Any other way of reading the text. You guys just read it along with me. How many times did you see in there just this whole idea of speaking in an unknown language? Someone understands it because an interpreter, and then they're encouraged, edified or comforted you don't see in here. In fact, it's actually said, Please don't be one of those people who speaks French when noone in the group understands French. What are you doing that for? I mean, guys, this would be so obvious. If you and I went to work tomorrow, y'all will have a roundup somewhere at your at your job site or at your office, and there'll be 567, or eight of y'all standing around. If someone just came in and started speaking French, how would that encourage any of y'all you won't even know what's going on. Why are you here? Why are you speaking this? Right? And that's what that's what Paul's saying. It's just very obvious that if none of us understand this language, what do you what are you spouting this, this French language for so the public use of tongues is always the speaking and interpretation of known languages. Now, I know some of y'all come from the more charismatic backgrounds, more Pentecostal backgrounds, and you may have had a preacher or teacher at some point say, Now wait a second. God has gifted you to to speak to the Lord in this private prayer language, and God gives that gift to you, and you're to exercise that, some would say, in a large crowd, which we've already seen from this passage and others, that's chaotic. If you walk into a church and they're all sort of speaking in this language that's unknown, and everyone is sort of speaking in it, and someone from upstage is speaking in it, but it's not done in a decent, orderly way with interpreters of a known language. You can say, Man, that's not what First Corinthians 14 was talking about. But what it may be alluding to, and I'll say the word, what it may be alluding to is some sort of private prayer language. Now, what's this? And you may have heard this some of y'all in the room, because I know y'all claim that God has gifted you to have this sort of private prayer language where, when it's just you and the Lord, and you're praying in your room or in your prayer closet, that all of a sudden the Lord will give you words that you don't understand. And it's not a language that's a known language, it's not even a language that you've been educated in, but it's a private prayer language between you and the Lord, and you don't know what to pray, but God comes in and supernaturally gives you some sort of tongue, some sort of language that only you and him sort of communicate with one another. Now I don't think that's what this passage is talking about. Now, what if you like, but I think I really have that gift, which I know people in this audience who sincerely think Man, because of my background or because of what the Lord has given me, I believe I really have a private prayer language between me and the Lord. And I would say, Okay, I believe that you might have a private prayer language between you and the Lord. However, let's make sure that it stays private in your exercising of it. Why

do you say that? Brent? Because

think about what this passage is saying. If you're going around in a large group setting, or even a small group setting, and you're exercising this gift, it doesn't do anyone around you any good. So if there is such thing as a private prayer language, which I'm going to say there may be, I don't think I have it, but I know others who do and feel like it's been given to him by the Lord. I think that is best understood as something that comes from a different passage. So if you like flipping through your Bibles or through your digital Bibles, I'm going to give you one passage that I think more clearly articulates these sort of utterances and groanings and private prayer language that some of you may have and that you may have friends and relatives who do. And that's Romans eight verses, 26 to 27 says this. This talking about prayer. It says the Holy Spirit. Romans, chapter eight verses, 26 and 27 and the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. He says, For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for, but the holy spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the father, who knows all hearts, know what the Spirit is saying for the spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's will. So you guys, maybe have been there. How many of y'all have been there in desperation with the Lord in prayer, and you've hit your knees, maybe in maybe, maybe in the wilderness, or maybe in the woods, or maybe by the by the bedside of your table, or whatever, and so you've you've been desperate for the Lord, and sometimes you and I don't know what to pray. I know that some people in this room say. At that moment, something takes over, and they're giving some sort of groanings and utterances that aren't even in any sort of known language. And somehow the Lord comforts them in that. I'm not here to dismiss that that may be what God is doing. I don't see that as the gift of tongues. Some would from First Corinthians 14. This pastor doesn't, but I'm not going to say that that gift is illegitimate. I'm just saying I see that best express in terms of Romans, eight verses, 26 and 27 it's this it's these groanings when you don't know what to pray, the Lord takes over and he expresses our prayers for us. I would say for me, when I have those moments of what I don't know what to pray. It becomes more like meditation, where I'm just sitting there in silence, and I'm asking the Lord to do something, or I'm asking him to give me something, or to show me something. And so I'm just sitting there silently, and the Lord himself, he comes and he comforts me, and He speaks to me in the sense of not audible, not like a voice from heaven, at least that's not how he does for me, but just a sense of where he brings around things to mind, that the scriptures are true about him, and he's using that to minister to me in those moments. So for me, when I have those private prayer moments and I don't know what to pray, I sense that the Lord comes and he ministers to me anyways, others of y'all in the room may feel like the way that he ministers to me is I begin to cry out to the Lord in unknown languages that I myself didn't learn, and he ministers to me in that way. I think that maybe legitimate, but I don't think, as I understand this passage in tongues, that that's what this passage is talking about, because I can't get around that tongues in this passage is about known languages that are then interpreted for the edification of the body. So third and final point, let's call to orderly worship that he's going to help us sort of wrap all these things together. And the end of 14 says this, well, my brothers and sisters. So he's addressing us as as this familial term, because that's what we are. We're brothers and sisters in Christ. Let's summarize, because he's coming to the end of this, this idea of, how do we do orderly worship together? When you meet together, one will sing, which we had that right? We had singers, one at a time, or harmony together, like he already talked about, another will teach. Another will give some sort of special revelation which is, which is similar to a prophetic word, which we have that happen here. I can name the people who come up here on this stage and and go to a microphone and do these various things God has given. One will speak in tongues, and another will interpret what is said, but everything that is done must strengthen all of you, right? What good would it do to to speak in some sort of unknown language here in a public setting? No more than two or three should speak in tongues, right? We

don't want to be here all day. How

many of y'all came from traditions where,

you know, brother, so and so or sister, so and so we just stand up, we're doing one more hour, right? I mean, y'all, I know that's true about some of the traditions you, you guys came from, or you've heard of that. Because why? You don't want to go beyond two or three people sort of, sort of speaking into this. Otherwise we could be here all day and all night, and it could turn into not edification of the body, but about a show of who needs to say something, or who needs to do something. And y'all have all been there, right? You've been part. Been part of one of those prayer requests sessions that turn into some sort of gossip session. So what can happen? They must speak one at a time. You can't speak over each other, and someone must interpret what they say otherwise. What's the point? We've all been this is true whether you're in the office or in the church. I know what's going on, but if noone is present who can interpret they must be silent in your church meeting and speak to God privately, or speak in tongues to God privately. Now would I take this to mean again? Could it be a private prayer language? Maybe, but I think it could also be that you and I sometimes we pray in our heart language. That's why I said that. Going back to Spanish, sometimes we'll have people who come up on this stage and they'll pray in Spanish. Why is that? Because that was their heart language. And by heart language, I mean that was the first language they learned as a child, and so they're most comfortable talking to God in that original heart language. So I take it that listen, if you're in a room where literally 0.0 understand the language you're about to pray in, I'm not sure how much edification that's going to be for those around you. That's what he's talking about there. Let two or three people prophesy and let the others evaluate what is being said. Remember how I told you that prophecy? Anybody, whether it's me or anyone else comes to you and wants to say a word, and it doesn't have to be in some big setting like this. I do pastoral care. I think there's elements of prophecy there. Sometimes prophecy is planned words, sometimes it's spontaneous words, but it's all based off of God giving you these gifts. Let the others evaluate what is said. But if someone is prophesying and. Other person receives a revelation, lowercase r, not the book of revelation from the Lord. So using this term of prophecy and lowercase revelation interchangeably, the one who is speaking must stop. Okay, we don't anything chaotic going on like, let's figure out what's going on here. In this way, all who will prophesy will have a turn to speak, one after another, so that everyone will learn and be encouraged. I told you again, think about the way the Bible's tried to help us just order relationships and order meetings. It's the same thing you and I practice at work. How many of y'all have ever been to one of those work meetings where you didn't get anything done because everybody talked over one another, where they kept interrupting one another and they we couldn't move forward with the project or with the understanding of what our boss wanted us to do. Same way in the church. In this way, all who prophesy will have a turn to speak one after another, and everyone will learn and be encouraged. Remember that people who prophesy are in control of their spirit and take turns. We know what we're saying. It's not just like supernatural tongues, where we oftentimes, or sometimes we'll speak in a language we weren't trained in. For God is not a God of disorder, but of peace, as in all the meanings of God's holy people. So we, we are, we are in a passage on the order of worship, and that God is not a God of chaos, but he's one of peace, because he wants things organized in such a way to where we all benefit from it. Can we all agree on that? That's what's going on here, and he's helping us to understand that and set up a church in such a way, and future churches in such a way for the edification of the saints, of everyone. Now he's going to now go into something that may be confusing at first, and I hope to bring clarity on it again. This is why people don't preach through First Corinthians 14, right here, this verse I'm about to read, they're gonna be like, that'll kill you. Okay, so, but I'm gonna read it, and I'm gonna explain to you what I think it means in its context, because we live in a time and age, and Paul is in a time and age when people love to take things out of context and make them mean whatever they want them to mean. How many of y'all have seen on Twitter or on whatever social media thread you and I look at, it's called x Now I realize that, but on whatever social media thread that we look at, where something could be taken out of context, a phrase or a paragraph, and then you can make it mean whatever you want it to mean. We do this with our politicians. We do this with our businesses, and we do this with our spiritual leaders. You and I know better. Okay, so we're still we're still locked in. We're still learning. We're still good with what God's showing us here in First Corinthians says this right here, women should be silent during the church meetings. It's not proper for them to speak. They should be submissive, just as the law says, if they have any questions, they should ask their husbands at home for it is improper for women to speak in church meetings. Or do you think God's word originated with you Corinthians? Are you the only ones whom it is given? If you claim to be a prophet or think you are spiritual, you should recognize that what I'm saying is a command from the Lord Himself. But if you don't recognize this, you yourself will not be recognized. So my dear brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and don't forget, don't forbid speaking in tongues, but be sure that everything is done properly, and in order go back two slides there to where we address that right there. Thank you so much. So what is going on here? Now, let's just say what we know is not going on here. We know that he is not saying that women have to be silent at all times in the church, because that would be in direct contradiction to what he spent almost an entire chapter going over in First Corinthians 11. So if you are here with us several weeks ago, went through First Corinthians 11, those were instructions about orderly worship. And we said, this is one whole section here, and he gives very specific instructions for when a man or when a woman praise or prophesy, make sure they do it in a proper and orderly way. So let's just say right from the get go, that he does not mean that they cannot participate in worship, period, because he's already sort of given instruction for how that should go about. Now, lest you think, no, I'm not convinced, because, because I can read the black and white, he's saying that the women, I'll be silent in the meetings. What are you talking about? Brandon, okay, let, let me. Let me say it to you a different way. If you and I were trying to get our book published on any given subject, we would have multiple chapters, just like the book of Corinthians has multiple chapters. And if in chapter three, we said something that was the exact opposite of what we said in chapter five. You and I both realized that no publisher would publish us. You understand that, right? Because there are, there are certain ways of understanding how publishing a letter or a book works, and you can't self contradict yourself in any given book or noone will touch it. I know you can self publish it, but that can be anything, alright. But I'm talking about because why they'd have to say you have to bring clarification either by context or footnotes. I think Paul brings clarification by context because he's talking about orderly worship. So here's the best way I would say, it's just like there were standards for publication. In our day, there were standards for Paul as well. He can't self contradict himself. So what's he talking about? I told you that Corinthians is one of those letters where he's addressing specific issues that were coming up. So evidently we know this because he's addressing it. Evidently some women were interrupting worship with even possible legitimate concerns. So before I go here, let me, let me go back to the workplace. Okay, actually, Imma ask you to raise hands. I very rarely do this. How many of y'all work at a place of employment that has 50 or more employees? Raise your hand if you work at a place of employment 50 or more employees. Okay, so if not, you've, you've, you can imagine if you do, or you've seen movies or shows that, where they do now, when you have 50 or more employees, because I know how it works, because I've worked at a church that had 130 employees, every once in a while, the big boss will come and he will address everyone, or she will he, or she will come to address everyone, and it's 50 or more people in a room. And those of y'all who work in a place of employment of 50 or more people, this happens at least a couple of times a year, if not regularly. And what will that what will that boss? What will he or she do? They'll come and they'll address all of us, okay, and wherever you're at in the organization chart, whether you're kind of a newbie or middle management or upper management, you're all there in the room. And what does the boss, what does he or she do? They present what, what they're supposed to do as a company. And they'll always ask, Do you have any questions now? What does a newbie do who literally doesn't understand authority? What will the newbie do? Well, I got a question. Okay? And what they do is they raise their hand, they say something. They think it's a good question. They're real proud of themselves. Oh, great. The CEO wants to know what I think in a room full of 50 plus people, what happens those of you all who working in a place like that, what happens nine times out of 10, or 10 times out of 10, your direct supervisor pulls you aside and says, hey, hey, that does anybody have any questions he or she was just asking that they didn't really mean for you to speak up. Okay, if you had any questions, you should have asked me your supervisor, because I supervise seven to eight. Remember, in our modern day world,

we don't have any more than typically, 12 reports. A lot of times, 789, 10 reports, you should have asked me. You should have been silent in that setting, because this wasn't your time to speak up. Same thing happens with some of y'all may not know this about me, but I love Robert's Rules of Order. That doesn't make me weird or sick, just go with me on this. Okay, I just love it. I think that's it's so cool how things are done in a decent and orderly way. And our government, a lot of times, if you ever go to the to the chamber floor and see our house of representatives or our Senate, no matter how much of a fool they act out and about and on cameras, they follow Robert's Rules of Order to a T in our Congress to this day, and they always have, since they were established and since we were established as a country. But Robert's Rules of Order goes something like this. It says only one person's able to speak at a time, and until that is thoroughly understood or dealt with, we don't go on to the next person. There's all kinds of other things. You can table things, and you can kick things the next meetings, I get all that. Some of y'all have maybe been to large business meetings, and I've been to business meetings at church, even our church, sometimes we have, every once in a while, and we'll set up a microphone, maybe one in each aisle, and we'll say, Hey, if you got something to say, come up and say it at this time. But, but you can't just do it anytime. I mean, y'all know that right now, if one of y'all decided to just stand up and start talking to me, arguing with me, or just you thought you had a word from the Lord, you know, we have security that would come and put their arm around you and say, Hey, we're going to walk you to the back and because it's not that they may not be legitimate, you may have questions about what I am saying as I'm speaking about it, but it's now the right time to stand up and ask that question, Is now the right time for, if you're in a 50 plus employee place to ask the question? Or Is now the right time to circumvent Robert's Rules of Order and just go chaotic and just say and do whatever you want? The answer is always no. It doesn't mean they're not legitimate. So I think that somehow, and I don't know what it was going on here, somehow you had, evidently, some women who were interrupting worship with possible legitimate concerns. They may have been legitimate. And then the sort of thing says they ought to remain silent, as the law says, I don't know what law they were thinking about, because it wasn't in the Old Testament law. Maybe it was just common law and common understanding in their setting. Just like we have a common understanding, right? We have a common understanding that on the organization chart, if you're an intern or a newbie, are you allowed to address the boss in these large, 50 plus group meetings? Are you No, if not, you're reprimanded for at least, I always was. I don't know where y'all work. Why? Because? Why? Because we have authority structures. I mean, even as I say that, I know that some of us are even uncomfortable with that. You're like, well, the boss is no better than the than the entry level employee. Well, they're no better, but they're on a different part of the org chart and on a different part of of of salary. Okay, it doesn't mean they're better in terms of individual worth, but it does. That there's an authority structure here, and that newbies don't get to fire bosses, but bosses get to fire newbies. You know, I understand that, and so that's what's going on here. This leads to my third and final point this morning, is that church gatherings must be done orderly. We know that's what he's talking about. So So if anyone ever like uses a passage like this and wants to beat you over the head or say the Bible's irrelevant, because the Bible says that all women must stay silent in all churches at all times like No, no, no, I went to Life Church had a pastor there. He explained something to me. It's called context. It's the same thing that you and I, we can't fall for these different things on social media, when someone wants to take a phrase or a paragraph and go against what a certain politician or a certain religious leader or a certain company and say, Listen, there cuckoo out there. I want you to, I want to pull this phrase or this paragraph out and show you what they think or believe. You always need to say, what's the context? What's the context and what the context is of this is orderly worship. Evidently, there were some women who were interrupting the worship, maybe with legitimate concerns, but they were out of order. So, closing thoughts, I want us to see that the scriptures are meant for our edification. Remember, in that passage that we looked at, we looked at that passage about tongues and prophecy, and the way he ends here is like, Listen, you ought to desire these things, because these are really cool, and they can be used for God's glory in the church, but over and over again is meant to strengthen, to encourage and to comfort, if that's your aim, in what God has given you, right? And what is God given you? We think of gifts as what God has given me in my tool belt, what God has given me in my hands, what God has laid on my heart, and then it's affirmed by others. Man run in that church, whatever God has given you, however he's gifted you, and we have people in this congregation who are gifted, I think, legitimately, with the gift of languages. Some of y'all can interpret both Spanish and English quite fluidly. Some of y'all can only understand your auntie and uncle, and I understand that too, okay, but that's not fluency, and that's the gift of tongues, okay? That's just getting by at dinner time, but, but God has gifted Some of y'all, and we need you in this church to to help with prayer and for for other things when people come, because a lot of times we'll have, because we're a multi generational church, we'll have maybe a different generation that will come in who doesn't understand Spanish, and we need people to pray. Might even need someone to we have the ability to for interpretation, but it hasn't been utilized, because we just haven't had a lot of people who have asked for it or who have felt like they needed it. But whatever God fills you up with, whether it's prophetic words, whether it's the healing, whether it's prayer. Whether it's just all I've got in my hands is the gift of administration and numbers, or all I've got is my ability to paint or to sing, whatever God fills you up with, whatever he has gifted you and me with, we're not meant to hold it in, right? You know that old thing from from from elementary school where you learned about Jesus, and it's like, hide it under Bush. Oh no, I'm going to let it shine. How to interrupt? You know that's what God means with our gifts be and if your gifts are all about you, it'll be evident pretty quick, and God won't use that. But if it's all about him and his glory, if you understand that the reason why God fills you and me up in our times of worship is to pour it out for others, well then this is amazing and beautiful life, indeed, isn't it that we get the privilege and the opportunity to take what God has given us, just like that, just like that boy who had five loaves and two fishes and God just multiplied it to the crowd, because he's super your life and my life in The supernatural hands of the Almighty God, the church has just there's no limit. There's no limit to what God may want to do as we submit ourselves to Him, let me pray, Father. I thank you so much for your word. I thank you that you bring such clarity to things that may be confusing upon first reading, I pray for life, church and myself, that you would encourage us this day, encourage us to live for you. Encourage us to be serious about our gifts, whether it's prophecy, tongues or other things, so that we can live and honor you all the days of our life. We ask this in Christ's name and for your glory. Amen.