Order
This week's study is on 1 Corinthians 14:32-33:
These verses say a lot about church life. The apostle Paul had seen a bunch of churches in his lifetime and had to know a lot about God's character in order to blaze the paths he blazed. In these verses, he talks a bit about churches that are in disorder versus churches that are orderly.
In the churches that were in order, things worked harmoniously. God was allowed to enter people's lives through signs and miracles, but it didn't clash unnaturally with the natural flow of the gathering. In churches that were in disorder, things clashed with each other. People shouted over each other. Messages were interrupted by people yelling out. Leaders tried to control and micromanage everything. People drew attention to themselves at the cost of the other things God was doing.
Paul's wisdom is clear: The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. In other words, just because you have a message doesn't mean you have to blurt it out instantly and interrupt the other things God is doing. Just because you feel like you need to pray in tongues doesn't mean you have to yell it out. You're still a participant in a larger thing. Just like a kid should learn to wait until the adults have finished talking to interrupt, we should understand that we are part of something bigger than us. Self-control is part of maturity.
God is not a God of disorder. He doesn't bring people up to pit them against each other. He doesn't send conflicting messages and make us have to strain to reconcile them. It isn't the natural world where people have to fight for dominance over each other. Everything God has for a group of people has a place, but no one thing should dominate the others by interrupting them.
I've been in orderly Christian meetings where powerful things happened, and I've been in disordered Christian meetings where chaos was the only thing that reigned. Where the Holy Spirit is in control, there is order. One of the fruits of the spirit is humility, and humility knows that it's not the only game in town. Humility can wait its turn. Humility knows not to run the other voices out of the meeting with a Christian prayer filibuster. Humility checks to see what God is doing. Humility knows the danger that it could be wrong.
God is not a God of disorder, but of peace. When all of the pieces of the puzzle fit together as they should, the result is beautiful. When doing God's work, ask if the timing is right. Realize that you're only part of the puzzle. Be thankful for the chance to be invisible or to be slighted. Know your place and be happy there. When everyone does their part, there is peace, not strife.
The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.
These verses say a lot about church life. The apostle Paul had seen a bunch of churches in his lifetime and had to know a lot about God's character in order to blaze the paths he blazed. In these verses, he talks a bit about churches that are in disorder versus churches that are orderly.
In the churches that were in order, things worked harmoniously. God was allowed to enter people's lives through signs and miracles, but it didn't clash unnaturally with the natural flow of the gathering. In churches that were in disorder, things clashed with each other. People shouted over each other. Messages were interrupted by people yelling out. Leaders tried to control and micromanage everything. People drew attention to themselves at the cost of the other things God was doing.
Paul's wisdom is clear: The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. In other words, just because you have a message doesn't mean you have to blurt it out instantly and interrupt the other things God is doing. Just because you feel like you need to pray in tongues doesn't mean you have to yell it out. You're still a participant in a larger thing. Just like a kid should learn to wait until the adults have finished talking to interrupt, we should understand that we are part of something bigger than us. Self-control is part of maturity.
God is not a God of disorder. He doesn't bring people up to pit them against each other. He doesn't send conflicting messages and make us have to strain to reconcile them. It isn't the natural world where people have to fight for dominance over each other. Everything God has for a group of people has a place, but no one thing should dominate the others by interrupting them.
I've been in orderly Christian meetings where powerful things happened, and I've been in disordered Christian meetings where chaos was the only thing that reigned. Where the Holy Spirit is in control, there is order. One of the fruits of the spirit is humility, and humility knows that it's not the only game in town. Humility can wait its turn. Humility knows not to run the other voices out of the meeting with a Christian prayer filibuster. Humility checks to see what God is doing. Humility knows the danger that it could be wrong.
God is not a God of disorder, but of peace. When all of the pieces of the puzzle fit together as they should, the result is beautiful. When doing God's work, ask if the timing is right. Realize that you're only part of the puzzle. Be thankful for the chance to be invisible or to be slighted. Know your place and be happy there. When everyone does their part, there is peace, not strife.
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