CCF Sunday Messages

We will now wrap up 1st Corinthians 14, and in doing so we will finish the section on spiritual gifts that began with chapter 12. Sure, they were a gifted church, but with all of the giftedness came some real problems, wrong attitudes, and misunderstandings that Paul has had to correct. Many of the same things that were problems for them, we find to be problems that still exist in places in the church today! They overemphasized speaking in tongues and their church gatherings were very self-centered and self-promoting.

This last section gives us real insight into what “church” was like in the first century. It seems there was lots of participation by the people of the church without all of the attention being on one main speaker. While we have inherited a “pastor-centric” church system with little expectation of the average person participating in the gathering, their experience was clearly different! We have to work hard to get people to participate, while Paul had to put limits on their overzealous participation!

How can you tell if the Spirit is active in a church gathering? Maybe you have seen or participated in church services that have become “free-for-alls”? In other words, when the Spirit is moving, people lose control. There are people being “slain in the Spirit”, others are praying or singing or chanting. Everyone seems to be in their own world as the Spirit takes control and some guys plays the organ or synthesizer. Is that right? Is that what the Spirit produces?

And on top of this, we have to address Paul’s comment in this context, “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak.” Aren’t you glad we don’t skip any verses? Did Paul really mean this? Do we believe that? Why does it show up here in the context of orderly church gatherings? Listen in to hear answers to these questions and why Paul was addressing this important topic that is still valuable for us to hear today.

We will now wrap up 1st Corinthians 14, and in doing so we will finish the section on spiritual gifts that began with chapter 12. Sure, they were a gifted church, but with all of the giftedness came some real problems, wrong attitudes, and misunderstandings that Paul has had to correct. Many of the same things that were problems for them, we find to be problems that still exist in places in the church today! They overemphasized speaking in tongues and their church gatherings were very self-centered and self-promoting.

This last section gives us real insight into what “church” was like in the first century. It seems there was lots of participation by the people of the church without all of the attention being on one main speaker. While we have inherited a “pastor-centric” church system with little expectation of the average person participating in the gathering, their experience was clearly different! We have to work hard to get people to participate, while Paul had to put limits on their overzealous participation!

How can you tell if the Spirit is active in a church gathering? Maybe you have seen or participated in church services that have become “free-for-alls”? In other words, when the Spirit is moving, people lose control. There are people being “slain in the Spirit”, others are praying or singing or chanting. Everyone seems to be in their own world as the Spirit takes control and some guys plays the organ or synthesizer. Is that right? Is that what the Spirit produces?

And on top of this, we have to address Paul’s comment in this context, “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak.” Aren’t you glad we don’t skip any verses? Did Paul really mean this? Do we believe that? Why does it show up here in the context of orderly church gatherings? Listen in to hear answers to these questions and why Paul was addressing this important topic that is still valuable for us to hear today.

1st Corinthians chapter 14 moves us to the other side of the discussion on spiritual gifts and ministry in the church. The creamy “oreo” center was chapter 13 — the Love Chapter — and Paul lets them, and us, know that love must be the grand pursuit of our lives!

Now we know that LOVE is superior to GIFTS, but…of all the gifts of the Spirit, which is most important and why? Miracles? Healings? The Corinthians put an over-emphasis on one very outward and obvious experience: speaking in an unknown language. Don’t worry, I will explain more tomorrow. Paul shows them why their focus is misplaced and where it should be.

There are two words that dominate the section: understanding and edification (building up). What we learn from the discussion between Paul and the Corinthian church is that our church participation is not intended to be merely an independent emotional rush. It is much more important that we understand the things being said and what is being communicated so we can act on them and participate in what is happening.

It has never been my experience, but some of you come from church backgrounds where the service (mass) was in Latin or even Greek in the Anglican or Catholic or Orthodox church. Others may have some familiarity with the pentecostal churches and the emphasis on the gift of tongues. Does this chapter have anything to say about that? Listen in and see!

1st Corinthians chapter 14 moves us to the other side of the discussion on spiritual gifts and ministry in the church. The creamy “oreo” center was chapter 13 — the Love Chapter — and Paul lets them, and us, know that love must be the grand pursuit of our lives!

Now we know that LOVE is superior to GIFTS, but…of all the gifts of the Spirit, which is most important and why? Miracles? Healings? The Corinthians put an over-emphasis on one very outward and obvious experience: speaking in an unknown language. Don’t worry, I will explain more tomorrow. Paul shows them why their focus is misplaced and where it should be.

There are two words that dominate the section: understanding and edification (building up). What we learn from the discussion between Paul and the Corinthian church is that our church participation is not intended to be merely an independent emotional rush. It is much more important that we understand the things being said and what is being communicated so we can act on them and participate in what is happening.

It has never been my experience, but some of you come from church backgrounds where the service (mass) was in Latin or even Greek in the Anglican or Catholic or Orthodox church. Others may have some familiarity with the pentecostal churches and the emphasis on the gift of tongues. Does this chapter have anything to say about that? Listen in and see!

We’re spending this Sunday looking at the second half of 1st Corinthians chapter 13: the Love Chapter.

We are looking at, what I would call, the “purest love”. The love of God never has mixed motives and is never corrupted by sin or selfishness. We get glimpses of it, but in our fallen and selfish human state it is very hard to comprehend and live!

Have you ever heard, or said, the words “I don’t love you anymore.” Those are painful words of rejection. But in this next section, we learn about a love that never says that. Never!

We live in the days of poorly made products that are meant to break. We have a throw away society where we don’t expect things to last. They break about two weeks after the warranty expires. “Love” in our day seems to have the same quality. But Paul says: “Love never fails.” Now you might say, “I tried to love my spouse or my friend and they still left me or rejected me. I thought love would win them back but it didn’t. Love failed!”

If you think that is the case, then you need to come to church. Paul exalts love above all else because it is enduring. It never quits, wears out, or gives up. This is the love God has for me and for you! This love is remarkable when we experience it in human relationships.

Lets stir one another up to love and good works!

We’re spending this Sunday looking at the second half of 1st Corinthians chapter 13: the Love Chapter.

We are looking at, what I would call, the “purest love”. The love of God never has mixed motives and is never corrupted by sin or selfishness. We get glimpses of it, but in our fallen and selfish human state it is very hard to comprehend and live!

Have you ever heard, or said, the words “I don’t love you anymore.” Those are painful words of rejection. But in this next section, we learn about a love that never says that. Never!

We live in the days of poorly made products that are meant to break. We have a throw away society where we don’t expect things to last. They break about two weeks after the warranty expires. “Love” in our day seems to have the same quality. But Paul says: “Love never fails.” Now you might say, “I tried to love my spouse or my friend and they still left me or rejected me. I thought love would win them back but it didn’t. Love failed!”

If you think that is the case, then you need to come to church. Paul exalts love above all else because it is enduring. It never quits, wears out, or gives up. This is the love God has for me and for you! This love is remarkable when we experience it in human relationships.

Lets stir one another up to love and good works!

This week’s passage, 1st Corinthians chapter 13, is arguably the most important passage in the New Testament! Affectionately known as “the Love Chapter”, we get a challenging picture of the kind of love that comes from God, and is expressed by God. Could there be anything more important in our lives than love? Everyone agrees we need more of it, but maybe we have different definitions of what it really is. And why is it so hard to do??

Love is the nature of God, the primary characteristic of a Spirit-filled life, and the way people know we are Christians. Even Jesus and the apostle Paul simplify the commandments of God into an expression of love. With that being the case we will take our time in this chapter, spending the next few weeks unpacking this important message.

“But pastor,” you might ask, “what is a passage on love doing in the middle of passages about the spiritual gifts?” Great question! For all of you that have been exposed to 1st Corinthians 13 at a wedding or in a Valentine’s Day card, you may get a new twist on an old passage! Paul does not pull these characteristics of love out of the air. So how does he develop this list? What does it have to do with the Corinthians?

Listen in as we unpack the answer to these questions and get an important reminder about love, and especially God’s love! Who doesn’t need to be encouraged to love? What marriage could not benefit from reminders about this divine love?

This week’s passage, 1st Corinthians chapter 13, is arguably the most important passage in the New Testament! Affectionately known as “the Love Chapter”, we get a challenging picture of the kind of love that comes from God, and is expressed by God. Could there be anything more important in our lives than love? Everyone agrees we need more of it, but maybe we have different definitions of what it really is. And why is it so hard to do??

Love is the nature of God, the primary characteristic of a Spirit-filled life, and the way people know we are Christians. Even Jesus and the apostle Paul simplify the commandments of God into an expression of love. With that being the case we will take our time in this chapter, spending the next few weeks unpacking this important message.

“But pastor,” you might ask, “what is a passage on love doing in the middle of passages about the spiritual gifts?” Great question! For all of you that have been exposed to 1st Corinthians 13 at a wedding or in a Valentine’s Day card, you may get a new twist on an old passage! Paul does not pull these characteristics of love out of the air. So how does he develop this list? What does it have to do with the Corinthians?

Listen in as we unpack the answer to these questions and get an important reminder about love, and especially God’s love! Who doesn’t need to be encouraged to love? What marriage could not benefit from reminders about this divine love?

We spent the first message in our 1st Corinthians 12 study discussing spiritual gifts. Now Paul will give us a framework to understand how spiritual gifts work in a practical way and in real life. The ultimate truth he is conveying to the church is that the gifts are not given to make the recipient superior, but rather to make them useful. The gifts are not for their enjoyment or boasting, but for their contribution to caring for others, using the very gifts God has given them!

The picture? A human body! You are—we are—the most complex machine that exists on the face of the earth. Who could possibly estimate how many functioning parts our bodies have and how many unique functions are performed on a moment by moment basis. Think of that extrapolated out to our entire lifetime!

We are, in fact, a “complex unity.” Our bodies have 600+ muscles, 206 bones, 600,000 miles of circulation, and 12 systems that all cooperate when the body is healthy. In any given moment, all of these various parts of the body are working together—fighting disease, adjusting to stress, accomplishing the simplest of tasks, replacing cells, using energy, and on and on and on.

Some parts are visible and external, but many of the most important functions happen invisibly, hidden from sight. Some parts have great and important functions and others less significant. But each part is there for a reason, by design and the whole functions as one complex but unified unit!

How does the church work like a body? What does a healthy church look like? Listen in as we open up the great truths of 1st Corinthians 12 together!

We spent the first message in our 1st Corinthians 12 study discussing spiritual gifts. Now Paul will give us a framework to understand how spiritual gifts work in a practical way and in real life. The ultimate truth he is conveying to the church is that the gifts are not given to make the recipient superior, but rather to make them useful. The gifts are not for their enjoyment or boasting, but for their contribution to caring for others, using the very gifts God has given them!

The picture? A human body! You are—we are—the most complex machine that exists on the face of the earth. Who could possibly estimate how many functioning parts our bodies have and how many unique functions are performed on a moment by moment basis. Think of that extrapolated out to our entire lifetime!

We are, in fact, a “complex unity.” Our bodies have 600+ muscles, 206 bones, 600,000 miles of circulation, and 12 systems that all cooperate when the body is healthy. In any given moment, all of these various parts of the body are working together—fighting disease, adjusting to stress, accomplishing the simplest of tasks, replacing cells, using energy, and on and on and on.

Some parts are visible and external, but many of the most important functions happen invisibly, hidden from sight. Some parts have great and important functions and others less significant. But each part is there for a reason, by design and the whole functions as one complex but unified unit!

How does the church work like a body? What does a healthy church look like? Listen in as we open up the great truths of 1st Corinthians 12 together!