Be The Church Week 18

                                1 Corinthians 14

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Theme: When we look into the church of Corinth we see a lot of things we can learn from! They were a messy church, but they were a church alive! As we dive into this book we can learn a lot, whether it be from their spiritual failures or whether it be from their spiritual success. The one thing we learn is that God has called the church to be the hands and feet of Jesus! And it's when the church comes together in unity and lives on mission together that God moves in the most powerful of ways! In chapters 1-10 Paul addresses how the church should live in the world outside the church. In chapters 11-14 Paul addresses Christians on how they should act inside the church! Let's Be The Church!

Major Points:

Spiritual Gifts in the Church

Ice Breaker: Growing up in the church (or outside the church) what has been your experience when it comes to spiritual gifts? Good? Bad? Crazy? Encouraging? Weird? Edifying? What do you already know about spiritual gifts?

1… Eagerly desire spiritual gifts! (vs 1)

God gives spiritual gifts to his people to use for the sake of building up His church. Paul says that we should eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit! Gifts are something good to desire. If God’s got it we should desire it! As believers, we should be aware of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. There are many gifts that people have but there are certain ones that the Bible talks about in detail. We should have a desire to find our gifting and operate in it for the sake of serving others around us! When is the last time you prayed and asked God to give you gifts for the sake of serving others? When is the last time you asked God to reveal to you what you are gifted at in order to serve brothers and sisters in the church? 

Challenge: 

Get in the Game! If you are saved. You have a purpose!

Eagerly desire to be used by God.

Q - What spiritual gifts has God given you personally? What are some things that you are gifted at that you could use to serve others in the church?

Q - Have you ever desired or asked for spiritual gifts in your life?

Q - Why should we eagerly desire spiritual gifts as Paul said?

Q - Why do you think Paul puts prophesy above tongues and other gifts?

2.. Do not forbid any of them! (Vs 39)

Some people have had bad experiences when it comes to spiritual gifts. Not because the gifts are bad but because they were used wrongly! There are plenty of people in plenty of churches who use tongues or prophecy either out of context or in selfish ways instead of edifying others around them. Plenty of people have abused gifts by using them in selfish manners. Just because we have had bad experiences in the past doesn’t give us the right to throw the baby out with the bathwater. It doesn’t give us the right to just not use or seek gifts altogether. Not when Paul specifically tells us not to forbid them and to eagerly desire them.

All of them are good gifts from a good God. Meant to build up believers.

We need to be open-handed when it comes to spiritual gifts.

Q - How have you looked down on certain gifts just because of others’ misuse of them? 

Q - Are there any gifts that you are hesitant  towards?

Challenge:

Be open-handed to all of the spiritual gifts. Ask God to grow you and shape you in how you view them and how they should be practiced in your life to serve the Church.

3.. Practice them in the right way (vs 26-34)

Like all other gifts that God gives, He gives them on purpose for a purpose. God doesn’t just give you spiritual gifts to use how you want when you want where you want. God gives you gifts to use to build up His church. Period!

Don’t be selfish when it comes to spiritual gifts. They are supposed to build others up not hinder them or confuse them. They are supposed to point people to Jesus.

This passage is less about tongues and more about edifying God’s Church. That's Paul's point. 

Motivated by Love vs 1

Knowledge puffs up, love builds up. It’s not just what we do, it's how we do it that matters. We should use gifts out of Love for God and Love for others.

Attitude of Service

We should use them to serve others and build them up, not puff ourselves up.

This should be the attitude behind spiritual gifts.

An Orderly way

God is a God of order, not confusion! When people come to church they shouldn’t be confused. They should be edified! They should be pointed to Jesus and the Gospel.

Q - How do people misuse spiritual gifts in the church today?

Q - Why is it a big deal that we worship God in an orderly way

Pray

Spend some time praying that God would help you see your gifting, practice your gifting and grow in it to serve the body of Christ.