What is the Perfect? (1 Cor 13:8-13) | Adult Sunday School
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Many people ask the question, “does the gift of tongues continue to today?” Some say “yea”s” and others “no”. But does Scripture provide a clear answer? Paul provides that answer.
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- 반죽이 완성되면, 반죽을 반으로 갈라줍니다.
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- We know spirits often
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- Give you Jesus Jesus There's no
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- Say control
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- It's not No I Jesus Jesus All right, am
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- I on there we go good morning everyone come on in and find your seat and We'll shut those doors along the back
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- All right. We have a guest teacher this morning for adult Sunday school classes Well as the main service
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- Andrew Rappaport was the very first equipping conference speaker that we had in October of 2018
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- Andrew runs the striving for eternity's ministries the Christian podcast community he is the host of apologetics live and he is the host of the rapper report and Many of you already know
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- Andrew because you have had relationship with him or you were here several years ago and got to hear Him speak and of course preach on the
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- Sunday morning So it is with that that I'm pleased to turn over Sunday school to Andrew Rappaport. Come on up Andrew.
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- Thank you Well, good morning Some of you might have been here about two weeks ago there was a message on Baptism, I think
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- Jim announced that the church has been growing. It's grown since the last I was here His attempt to get rid of people through controversial messages obviously did not work.
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- So let me Make my attempt if you turn to the book of 1st
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- Corinthians, we're gonna deal with something controversial Jim had asked me what
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- I had ready what I had prepared and I told him I have Just recently done a study on the one on one word
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- We're just gonna look at one word. No, we'll look at more And that is in 1st Corinthians 13 and some of you think the one word is
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- Yeah, you're all wrong. It's it is the word perfect What is the perfect because whatever that word is tells us whether tongues?
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- Continue for today or not. And so that's what I had prepared So it is not directed toward anyone who believes differently than me.
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- I didn't have that in mind But if you know Jim was trying to chase people out with controversial topics,
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- I figured I would just continue You know, obviously it didn't work. But let's let's start with the word of prayer Heavenly Father we come before you we are so grateful
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- For all that you provide The breath that's currently in our lungs is more than we deserve and yet you have been so long suffering with us
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- You not only have been long -suffering but for those of us who know you You have given us your grace and your mercy
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- It is unconceivable to us That you would care for us
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- Psalmist says what is man that you're mindful of him and we we understand that You are so great as we look into your word in this hour we ask that you would
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- Use this to help us to better understand you To understand who you are and to understand your words that we would live
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- Appropriately we ask this in Christ's name. Amen Well, let me read first Corinthians 13 8 and following that'll be the text we'll look at I Anticipate that this will be more of an interactive
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- So if you have questions, just feel free to raise hands and ask the questions. I'll repeat them so that everyone else can hear
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- Except of course for Paul in the back there because he's gonna ask me difficult questions now It is good to be here with with friends people
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- I know well Some who I see Paul wasn't here when I was You know when
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- I came here, you know, he came afterwards This is Jim's way of getting people to join the church through inviting them to speak, right?
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- All right. So let's look at verse 8 love never ends as for prophecies
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- They will pass away as for tongues They will cease as for knowledge.
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- It will pass away For we know in part and we prophesy in part
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- But when the perfect comes The partial will pass away
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- When I was a child, I spoke as a child. I thought as a child. I Reasoned like a child, but when
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- I became a man I gave up childish things For now we see in a mirror dimly but then face to face now
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- I know in part Then I shall know fully even as I have been fully known so now faith
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- Hope and love abide these three, but the greatest of these is love
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- So let's deal with this question. There's a question that many people have many Are you know, it will be asking a lot more.
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- There's a film coming out soon Called sensationist. I'll encourage it for all of you to check it out
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- Your pastor was was will be in that I have a feeling You won't miss him.
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- He's in a bright orange shirt for the film Granted I'll give you his defense.
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- He didn't know he was going to be interviewed that day they just saw him and asked whether he would you know come and so but This this is something a lot of people have questions with Ever since really about the the 1900s early 1900s this became an issue
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- Within churches and many people have questions with it. Do tongues continue for today? I'm gonna take a very strong stance
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- I'll give you my conclusion up front the answer is no Now I'm gonna say that I think
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- I have many dear friends who say no as well And I have some who say yes that they continue
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- One of my best friends does think that they continue But that's okay who he and I've debated on many things where I think he's wrong.
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- You gotta correct him in heaven But I think that people say was there a passage that says tongues will cease and I believe this one actually says that let me read that again tongues will cease.
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- There you go. Hey, what do you know? Now the only question is when? When we look at this passage there are a couple different views of this passage many will take this and many that say that tongues will cease will take this and say that this is referring to either
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- Christ's second coming or the end times and I I think that that becomes difficult within the context to to make that case
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- Okay, some others there's there's actually I have a article I'm striving for eternity What is the perfect I think is the title of it and it goes through all of the different views
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- One view that I think some people have that actually could be plausible is When we die
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- Okay, when we're in a glorified state That actually would be plausible because if someone has a gift of Speaking in languages and they immediately go to heaven guess what they don't need a gift of languages anymore
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- We'll all understand each other but As we look at this looking at the context
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- It's saying that in verse 8 as for prophecies they will pass away as for tongues
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- They will cease and as for knowledge it will pass away now notice the phrase pass away is twice
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- It's where it's tied to prophecies and knowledge But tongues is a little different.
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- It says tongues will cease Now this is also seen a little different within the
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- Greek Okay with the pass away in the Greek is something that will be caused to pass away
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- Where the tongues that will cease cease on their own the action occurs on itself
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- Now what is the prophecy in the knowledge I would argue that those are revelatory type of gifts
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- So that is gifts that are required in providing revelation such as this right here
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- When when Paul writes 1st Corinthians that is prophecy It's not just telling the future.
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- That's prophecy It's also a knowledge and what we end up seeing there is I think that this is speaking of Gifts that were given to give revelation.
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- Well if God doesn't give more revelation guess what? They stop and they stop immediately because something caused it what caused it
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- God stops giving the revelation But how do tongues stop on their own first off tongues is a poor translation in our generation.
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- I Really enjoyed the Holman the common Christian standard Bible because they clarified the issue in my opinion and referred to tongues as languages and So, you know, that is the proper way we would understand it
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- We speak languages. Some of us speak multiple languages my bride Grew up speaking
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- Cantonese Paul Taylor, I don't know what that language is
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- He speaks but we would like him to speak English any of you need translation for him I've learned how to translate whatever that is.
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- He speaks there That is a longtime joke that he and I have had we spoke at a conference together
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- I kept asking people if they needed translation for him and We were in the Midwest and So I think at the
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- Q &A Q &A's are the best part by the way that the Q &A We're sitting there and I asked the moderator.
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- I said, you know, Michael can you get us some water because that's how you pronounce it in the East Coast and Without missing a beat
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- Paul picks up the microphone because because Mike goes what is that you need and he picks up the microphone goes He would like some water.
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- I Deserved it So as we look at this though We look at the gift of languages.
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- It would be the ability to speak a language. You don't know I'm so in in the case where you know,
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- I Butcher the Cantonese language my wife would confirm that I usually try to order food and get something different than I thought
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- I ordered But it would be me suddenly being able to understand that language
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- Now there's differing views with this and and there really isn't a lot of Scripture that we have nor historical documents that we have to that describe this gift of languages
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- So there are some differing views You know the one view that What Justin Peters would hold to and you you guys in here know him?
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- He would say that it's a gift that you can speak a language But you may not know it yourself and someone else would have a gift of interpretation
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- My view is that it would be that you have a gift that you suddenly understand that language Which would then make sense that this would cease on its own because when someone when
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- God stops giving that gift Then what would happen people would still have that gift until they pass away
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- They would still know that language so it would cease on its own when those that were given that gift stop you know stop living and So my view of this is that there what we see is that the tongues or languages is something that ceases on its own
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- It's different than the prophecy and the knowledge But here's the interesting thing when most people look at this
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- Let me give you the some things that people will do with this passage They look at the the verses at the at the toward the end there verses 10 and following Where they see about the childhood being coming to manhood they look at?
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- knowing Looking at a mirror dimly versus and seeing face -to -face. Maybe I'll focus on that phrase face -to -face and The other is knowing as I'm fully known and what many people will do is say that well
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- Well, when are we gonna see face -to -face? Well, that's when we see Christ face -to -face When will we fully be fully known when we see
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- Christ and so they'll say this is the end times There are some that will take that same phrase and they will apply that to them when we die and we see
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- Christ face -to -face individually However, I don't think that's the context.
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- So let's start with what the word perfect means Many people think perfect. Some people will say perfect must be
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- Christ because he's the only perfect one however, perfect this word teleos is the same word that Jesus used on the cross it is finished
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- It's the same idea. It's something the idea of something that comes to completion or maturity So it's not just the idea of Perfection as as some tend to think our
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- English gives us that idea But if this was translated when the completion is comes or when the maturity comes
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- We wouldn't think it's Christ We tend to think it's Christ just based on an English word and we should never
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- Interpret the Bible based on English We should always when we have issues go back to the Greek or the
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- Hebrew and make sure we have a right Understanding of those words in the original language. So the word means to be complete or mature or Perfect in the idea that you know
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- If you have for example a jigsaw puzzle if any of you do jigsaw puzzles some of my daughter and I very much enjoy and my wife kind of just looks at us strangely and so When you have a jigsaw puzzle and it is
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- Partial it's just not complete. It's not perfect But when you get all done with it, we always step back and look at it and it's perfect Now is it perfect without flaw?
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- No, it means that somebody My son hasn't taken a piece away just to drive us.
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- Absolutely nuts Because there's nothing like a jigsaw puzzle of 10 ,000 pieces and you get done and you can't find the one piece
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- And so that's the idea of the perfection So When we look at this word, it doesn't mean perfect as many say so the question though is what is this teleos?
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- Because whenever the teleos comes That's when the tongues will cease Well, one of the main rules of interpretation is
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- Context and So as we look at the context, let's start it says here as as we look in verse 9
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- It said actually yeah for we know in part We prophesy in part so right there
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- He's taking two of the gifts that he just mentioned right what is gonna pass away in in verse 8.
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- It's gonna be prophecy tongues and knowledge now he's referring to the prophecy and the knowledge and He's saying
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- That we know in part we prophesy in part some translations ends up end up saying no versus You know as a reference to the knowledge and so what we see here is two of these gifts and I'm saying these are two revelatory gifts are
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- Tied directly to the context here. So whatever the perp the perp the perfect is is
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- Something that is tied to revelation in my opinion I'm drawing this out from the context and so as we look at this
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- I think that you see the prophecy and the knowledge for we know in part we prophesy in part, but when the
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- Perfect comes when the teleos comes The that which is partial is done away, right?
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- So if you have something that's in part Now it's complete. You don't need the the part anymore.
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- In other words if you are headed down to California, I don't know why any of you would want to do that.
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- Um, I Unfortunately got a rental car with California plates and every
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- Idaho and yeah, thank you I I was like I want to get a sign that says it's a rental Please don't blame me.
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- I understand Idaho and you know But say you were for some reason wanted to torture yourself and and see what hell was like so you wanted to go to California and You decide to go and you're really not sure the way maybe your your phone gave out of its
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- Internet and now you have to Do a thing called following those signs, you know California 300 miles 200 miles
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- You know, what's the sign do it points to something, right? Do you need the sign once you enter,
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- California? No, you need to get out of there as quickly as possible And and ask yourself what you were thinking
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- But you don't need the sign once you arrive Well, once you have the completion of something you no longer need that which was partial to lead you to the completion does that make sense and Feel free to ask questions anywhere throughout.
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- I will be happy to ignore you. Um, no But when you get to the perfect to the fullness of something you no longer need the partial
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- That's the idea of this so when we have a completed something that's completed we no longer need this partial the partial being the prophecy and the knowledge
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- And that's that's directly in the very context of the verse that everybody brings up. Why do
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- I mention that? Well because of the fact that what many people end up doing is they to interpret what the teleos is
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- They will look at verses 11 and following But where is that verse mentioned or that word mentioned in verse 10 what's mentioned in verse 10 the knowledge and the prophecy that are partial
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- So it's a direct connection here between these revelatory gifts being partial tied to this completed thing
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- That would lead me to believe that whatever is partial being revelation is
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- Then completed with Revelation that I believe is the direct context and So I believe that once the canon of Scripture was closed there was no more need for revelatory gifts and the gift of languages was included in that and so Many people then say but look at the rest of this that would say it's end times.
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- Well, okay Let's take a look at that and see if that's what it says and It should have asked pastor
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- Jim. What time do we close Sunday school? 10 15, it's a really a sad thing.
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- You know, I can be on the street doing open -air preaching for three hours. No one stops me And so as we look at this notice here what we end up seeing is three
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- Illustrations of the main point the main point that we see is in verse 10 You have revelatory gifts that are partial they get completed now he illustrates this with three different illustrations of something that's partial to completion and One of the rules of interpretation is that you do not take an illustration and make it a literal
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- In other words if I'm illustrating something if I'm saying that I'm so hungry I can eat a cow you do not assume that I can fully eat.
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- I can eat a full cow Unless of course you haven't seen me eat Josh tried to make me eat an entire cow the other night.
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- I did my best But I have gotten older It says here the first illustration verse 11 when
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- I was a child I spoke as a child I thought as a child I reasoned As a child, but when I became a man,
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- I gave up childish things He's talking here about what a child becoming a man.
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- What what do we call that? Maturity right he's maturing. Oh, isn't that the very definition of the word telly us?
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- Yes, a child becoming a man maturing and what do we do when we have the maturity we put away childish things
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- Okay, some of us do I'll mention the next hour that some people don't but The the reality is that when we should put away childish things and so This is the idea that when this completion comes
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- Which I'm going to argue is the canon of scripture. We no longer need Any of these gifts that are the partial we don't need revelatory gifts
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- Now a good a good friend of mine who holds to the fact that gifts continue We've actually debated it you can go on on my youtube channel
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- It's his name is Matt slick and he and I've debated this issue He bases it on the fact that first Corinthians 1 7 uses the word charismatic or charisma and and says that the church will not lack be lacking any charisma or Charismatic gifts until Christ returns.
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- So his argument is these gifts would have to continue until the second coming of Christ the only problem with that is
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- When we look at first Corinthians 1 7, it says the church will not lack. What is the word lack mean?
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- It means there's a need for something you don't have Well, if there's no need for something guess what you don't lack it
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- Once we have a completed Canon We no longer lack
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- Revelation we have everything we need for faith and practice That doesn't mean this answers everything
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- Right. This tells us everything we need to know for faith and practice It does not tell us everything we might need to know does it is it gonna answer questions of you know
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- What is a woman? Well, actually it does. Sorry. I shouldn't have used that one But but there's there's things that we might have in science that this isn't gonna answer
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- Is it gonna tell us the origin of monkeypox? No, he's gonna tell us the origin of coronavirus
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- No, do we need to know that for faith and practice? No, are we lacking then? No, we don't our faith and practice doesn't lack because we don't know some of those things
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- But everything we need to know from the that God has revealed of himself to us
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- We have complete and now we don't lack anymore So I can take first Corinthians 1 7 and say
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- I agree with it. The church is not lacking any revelatory gifts Because it doesn't need them.
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- Why doesn't it need them because we have a completed word Okay, that makes sense
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- All right So as we look at this We see that the first illustration is a child coming to manhood or to adulthood
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- By the way, you know since I mentioned what is a woman's many people have this wrong If you've seen that documentary
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- Matt Walsh gets it wrong. A woman is not an adult female a
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- Woman is whatever God the creator of women says they are That's where we base it on Okay there what they're actually trying to do is get away from the
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- Creator. That's a side note Just because the question gets asked by Supreme Court justices and they don't know
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- But as we look at it The first ill the first illustration he gives us is childhood to adulthood
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- The the Paul goes on if you look in verse 12, and this is something that we struggle with in in modern day
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- He says for now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face -to -face And many people will take the word face -to -face and they they take this not as an illustration
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- But as a literal and say well, when are we gonna see Christ face -to -face? Well, first off where did where do you see
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- Christ in here mentioned? He's not They assumed that from the word perfect But it's not mentioned
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- What is the the context of this looking in a mirror dimly being compared to seeing face -to -face and Many of you are going well,
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- I looked in the mirror dimly. Hopefully you didn't have the reaction. I have every morning Mm -hmm, but we look in a mirror every morning and we go.
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- Well, that's clear as day That's because we don't have the mirrors of the first century
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- Go in your cabinet take a spoon polish it up real nice and then look at it That's the mirror of that day
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- You're gonna be able to see if there's you know, some broccoli in your teeth in that. No, you're not The comparison is looking in the mirror of that day, which is not so clear and you can kind of see rough images
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- You know an illustration we could have today is for some of us who who have glasses just take your glasses off Especially be a really really strong Prescription and then look at everybody and then put the glasses back on that is what
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- Paul's illustrating The idea of seeing dimly seeing vaguely not really seeing the detail versus when we look at each other and see one another face -to -face
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- The the idea is the of something that you can't really see completely and then you see it clearly
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- Now, is there anything in the text that makes me think that it's seeing something clearly? Well, yeah, because it says looking in a mirror dimly
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- That's the indicator He's saying that we can't really see clearly in a mirror of that day, but we can see clearly when we're looking face -to -face
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- So the idea here is not that we have to see someone face -to -face
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- And I know the argument that's made Actually was made in the debate I had with Matt where he says face -to -face always means seeing someone in person face -to -face
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- There's a nice thing when someone says always All you have to do is find one case where it's not true
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- Being it being a good friend of his I know his debate so I knew his arguments so I only had to find one case in Proverbs where it refers to looking into water and It's translated face reflects face
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- But it's the same language face -to -face That's the idea we have here face
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- Reflecting face. So if we look in a mirror dimly, it doesn't reflect it clearly But when we when a face reflects a face, it's clear.
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- So again, this is an illustration of something that's coming to completion to maturity to Fulfillment and so I don't take the face -to -face as a literal why because you don't take an illustration as a literal
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- And I've and I see people that will say this and they suddenly take this as literal But they will admit that the verse just before it was an illustration and some will even admit.
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- This is an illustration Why take the face -to -face as a literal I? Don't want to speak for everybody, but I think for some not everyone of obviously but I think for some it's because they come to the text with a conclusion and They're looking to make the text say what they want it to say.
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- That's not true for everybody And and I will say that you know, I am in my view that this is speaking of the canon of Scripture I know that I'm in disagreement with men like John MacArthur But he'll be corrected in heaven on one thing at least, you know but I think that you know people that will take this because they look at the face -to -face and take that as a literal and I just think that we have to always try to apply good
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- Harmonetics to and harmonizes the art and science of interpretation to every passage we look at and so if we have an illustration we have to say what is it illustrating and That's what we examine what it illustrates it is only there to give us what it illustrates not beyond You know one of the things you'll see with people.
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- They'll take parables, you know false teachers love parables and the Old Testament because they make parables and the
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- Old Testament say things it was never meant to say and So we have to do with it is look at what it what it's illustrating.
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- So it's illustrating is something coming to completion We have one more illustration that he gives
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- He says now I know in part Then I shall know fully
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- Even as I'm fully known now again if I take this as an illustration Does this fit with the context that I'm laying out?
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- Yes, this is the idea of something partial coming to completion If I take this as a literal
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- Which many people do what do I get? Well, when will I be fully known? Well either when
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- I'm dead or when Christ returns I'm in heaven the end times and that's where people get this that view if they take this and say well
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- I won't be fully known Until heaven or glorification or the second coming
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- But again that assumes that this is meant as a literal There's nothing in the context where he gives anything to indicate that he has shifted from his main point
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- Away from an illustration and turns it into a literal so if this is an illustration is
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- Knowing in part versus knowing in full does that fit with the context of something partial to completion?
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- Yeah So it's fitting perfectly with our context So as we go through this we end up seeing that if we take these as three
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- Illustrations of the main point the main point being that we see in verse in inverse
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- Sorry nine for we know in part and prophesy in part But when the perfect comes the partial will pass away
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- That all fits within that context you have partial to completion Here it is in part.
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- What's in part? revelatory gifts prophecy and knowledge Those are done away with When when the
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- Canon is complete why because when God stops giving revelation? That is that gift if it is a gift
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- Doesn't continue now. This would be a different type of gift by the way because Most most of the gifts that we have we have for life
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- By the way, I think that most of the gifts we have today as Christians. We get at our salvation From the
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- Holy Spirit, and we have them for life So some of us would be gifted with the the gift of you know admonition
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- Just so you know Thomas Leo is not that guy But exhortation is his gift and So you know some of you may have the gift of giving come see me later.
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- No Giving is more than money though. It's also your time your resources
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- You'll think of it it just as as money, but some people have a gift of teaching
- 41:14
- And there's a difference between a gift and a talent Some people will have a talent you're just born that way
- 41:21
- I mean I make this distinguishing thing I don't know what others do, but I think I think of a town is something you're born with I was born
- 41:28
- Organized I think I came out of the womb trying to organize the womb Okay, I had a friend when I moved that he was helping me move
- 41:35
- And he went into my attic and he came down he's he went to church next day He's like even his attic is organized. I have a
- 41:41
- CD my wife has curbed me of that We when we got married and she did laundry first her first time and she's trying to explain how
- 41:48
- I do my shirts They have to be in long -sleeve versus short -sleeve Then the type of shirt then the color the same material and she just looked at me and said okay
- 41:56
- We got two choices you could do the laundry or you could just deal with me putting them wherever I put them I've learned it was frustrating, but you know you
- 42:06
- Why so you know men can actually be taught sometimes? just sometimes
- 42:14
- Let's not overdo it. So what you end up seeing though is that a talent is
- 42:19
- I I was always organized But there's a gift of that But teaching something
- 42:26
- I was never good at until I got saved When I got saved I started to be able to communicate to people and that's and giving was that if you knew me before I was saved you would not think that I have a gift of giving or a talent of giving
- 42:39
- I was very selfish Everything was for me, and if you had it it was for me if I wanted it
- 42:46
- I sounded like a first grader right or for one year old Oh, yeah, you know that story if you have a toy, and I wanted it's mine
- 42:52
- You know if you played with the toy if I played the toy 20 minutes ago, but I put it aside It's still mine.
- 42:58
- You know if I just want it. It's mine Well that was me and but all of a sudden a change occurred when I got saved That's what
- 43:03
- I call spiritual gift, so I make that distinction and so I think that Revelatory what
- 43:08
- I call revelatory gifts though are in a category on their own because Paul Didn't exercise this gift of revelation
- 43:17
- Every time he wrote because this is first Corinthians. We call it first Corinthians, and we have second
- 43:22
- Corinthians But actually I think there is a letter that came before first Corinthians and a letter that came in between first and second
- 43:30
- Corinthians and They aren't in our scriptures because they weren't revelation And so what
- 43:36
- I see is that when we look at these gifts Specifically in this passage to answer the question of when do the these gifts end when do
- 43:47
- Really the the one of languages when does it end I would say once the Canon was complete
- 43:54
- God's the Holy Spirit stopped giving The gift of languages and when he stopped that people who had that gift
- 44:01
- Continued that ability to have that gift until they passed away, and so it ceased on its own
- 44:08
- And so what we end up seeing is that we no longer need those gifts I don't believe because we have a completed
- 44:14
- Word of God, and this is all we need Now we'll speak a little bit. Let me just stop there and see is anyone have questions with that Okay, yeah
- 44:37
- Let me repeat the question so the question is on the third Illustration when it's knowing in part versus knowing fully am
- 44:43
- I saying that this is the Canon that when Paul's writing? It wasn't complete and that the completion and knowing fully is the
- 44:49
- Canon. I would say yes Okay, so the question is why do
- 45:01
- I think that knowledge is referred to revelation right? The the issue there knowledge.
- 45:07
- I mean we have words that are used different ways for example prophecy is used different ways Okay, some people will refer to when someone gets up at a pulpit and preaches some people refer to that as prophecy
- 45:19
- So prophecy has the idea of a fourth telling and a foretelling one is telling the future versus telling the past Knowledge is is a similar thing.
- 45:28
- We have multiple meanings for that word and so in in the context of a giftedness
- 45:34
- We because that's what we this is in the in the middle of three chapters chapters 12 13 and 14 that speak of spiritual gifts, so it's the gift of knowledge and So though we don't have a lot of understanding of what the gift of knowledge is and I've seen a lot of different definitions one thing that seems
- 45:53
- Consistent with people is that they that the view is that the gift that this was a gift of knowledge
- 45:58
- That had to do with giving of revelation that God gave a knowledge of what to write When writing scripture or what to say that was
- 46:06
- God's Word So it's hard to pin down though because there's just not a lot of scripture we could turn to there's a hand over here first Mm -hmm.
- 46:26
- It's okay. So so the question is the Greek word telly us
- 46:31
- We and and which Christ said on the cross was was to tell a tie
- 46:36
- They're the same root though, and that's why yeah, but it's the most known which is why
- 46:42
- I end up using it It has the same the same base root is that to complete to finish?
- 46:48
- There is a hand back here. I saw yes, sir. I will pride it
- 47:31
- Yeah So the question is is it is it that God doesn't give it and make sure I get the question, right?
- 47:37
- But is it that the fact that we don't know everything we could know is it our
- 47:42
- God keep you know Our pride that God doesn't tell us everything. Yeah Yeah, so there's a reason that we can't that we can't know everything
- 48:01
- Well, yeah, the one reason is we're finite Right. We're not omniscient like God is
- 48:08
- But we got to look at this within context. I'm not saying that God has revealed everything we could possibly know because clearly not
- 48:18
- But I do think that what God is revealing is everything we need to know what we would call his self revelation
- 48:24
- So everything we need to know about God he has revealed to us now Think back put yourself back in you know before Christ Would a
- 48:35
- Jewish person think that he had a completed Canon? Probably and you know right before Christ there was 400 years of silence
- 48:46
- No more writing of Scripture. They might have thought they had a completed Canon right
- 48:52
- But then God started writing again. And so what he what he's saying is once that is completed
- 48:58
- There's no more need for more revelation about what he wants to reveal to us
- 49:03
- And so it's not that we know everything that we could possibly know It just means that we don't we know everything we need to know that he's gonna reveal himself.
- 49:10
- Does that make sense? Okay. Okay. So how do we deal with the two prophets that are gonna be in the future?
- 49:22
- Well, I'm I would argue and I don't know. I'll look over this way. See if I'm gonna get myself in trouble I don't
- 49:29
- I don't rule out that God can't start writing again Yeah, he could provide and and those two prophets will be speaking for God and so God will provide revelation possibly in the future
- 49:42
- But not in in what I would say this dispensation this time period Because I think that he's closed the
- 49:48
- Canon for us and there'll be something new but there's an interesting thing That you see when it comes to miracles
- 49:56
- We because we put this kind of a lot of people put these gifts in the in the miracle category There's three times in history where miracles are kind of normative
- 50:09
- And there's something unique about all three times history. The first is Moses then Elijah and then
- 50:15
- Christ What's interesting about all three of those times is the writing of new revelation?
- 50:22
- after a period of silence and And what does it do the signs do the signs point that the person who's saying
- 50:29
- I speak for the Lord? Here's some evidence of it He's gonna do something that only the
- 50:34
- Lord could do through him And so I think that if God was to continue writing again
- 50:39
- If he was if he was to have the two witnesses where we see about those two witnesses They're gonna do some miraculous stuff.
- 50:46
- And so the miracles will validate what they're saying Will they say something different than what we already have recorded?
- 50:53
- I don't know You know, they may just give a prophecy remember
- 50:59
- I said prophecy could also be foretelling Foretelling and forth telling so one is telling the past.
- 51:05
- They may just proclaim what's already written. I Would argue like in the Millennial Kingdom.
- 51:10
- We won't need more scripture because we're gonna have Christ Like what better like let's see a
- 51:16
- Bible or Christ Give me Christ Was there any questions over here because I wasn't looking over this way
- 51:23
- Okay, two questions here let me get let me get
- 51:28
- Nora first she had Nora had her Nora had her hand up first, sorry And ladies first, I know.
- 51:33
- Yeah Yeah The two witnesses rose from the dead or you know
- 51:45
- Whatever happens there. I have no idea
- 51:56
- So the question is would they have wisdom for their time, you know when they disappear and have time with Christ Would they would they get the wisdom from there?
- 52:05
- Don't know that falls under Deuteronomy 2929 the secret things belong unto the
- 52:10
- Lord, but those things which he has taught has commanded us We teach we obey and teach to our children paraphrase
- 52:18
- So sorry, I do say by the way If you ever on Thursday nights join apologetics live Jim said that I do that podcast
- 52:24
- I do start that podcast every week saying that I can answer any question you have about God in the Bible I don't know is a perfectly good answer.
- 52:33
- I Do that on the streets in New York and I could feel it give this really challenging question I go, I don't know. You said you can answer anything.
- 52:39
- I think I don't know as an answer You're wrong. I Just get that other way
- 52:58
- Yeah, so the question is doesn't that doesn't history show us that at the end of the Completion of the canon that the apostolic age ended
- 53:05
- I was trying to deal with the text of Scripture But yes, so when we look at his history
- 53:11
- We don't see the the gifts of languages normative meaning it was normal after the closing of the canon
- 53:20
- Now I know that this gets me in trouble. I'll say it anyway because well, I don't seem to avoid trouble
- 53:27
- When we look historically, we don't see the gift of what's called tongues today
- 53:33
- Being used within Christianity as normative until you know, basically really in 1905 a little bit before that but Azusa Street before Azusa Street The only place we really see it is in the cult and the occult
- 53:49
- Mormonism was teaching it in the 1800s It was one of the big things that that They focused on that was how they said they could prove that the
- 53:56
- Book of Mormon was was accurate because they had the gift of languages You see it in the occult.
- 54:02
- You'll see it even today in in a Hindu Kundalini The idea being that they would speak the way that This would be a little bit longer.
- 54:12
- Let me just answer this The way many people say is today is that they speak an angelic language every person
- 54:18
- I know and I know many But that all those that practice the gift of tongues that I know speak angelic languages
- 54:27
- You know, they that's the claim I've yet to meet someone that speaks in language.
- 54:33
- That is a human language. The only passage we have that argues for a Angelic language is in this chapter.
- 54:40
- Look at verse 1 of chapter 13 if I speak in the tongues of men and of angels
- 54:46
- But have not love I'm a noisy gong and clanging cymbal That is the only passage we have that teaches or seems to imply that people can speak in angelic language
- 54:56
- What is it Paul is doing if you read this chapter his whole emphasis is on love
- 55:03
- That's the emphasis Now is he saying that he can speak an angelic language?
- 55:10
- Well if we're to take that literal that he's speaking in a juggler I think what he's doing is exaggerating saying if I could speak the minute the language of all men even of angels
- 55:20
- I think he's exaggerating and And he's saying but have not love he just sounds like noise and And the idea there
- 55:29
- I think is he's he's over emphasizing why do I think that because I read verse 2 and If I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and If I have all faith so to remove mountains, but have not love
- 55:48
- I'm nothing if you understood all mysteries and had all knowledge. What would we call you?
- 55:55
- God You'd be omniscient is Paul claiming that he's omniscient.
- 56:01
- No He's over exaggerating and I think within the context that that fits because the emphasis is not on the the the tongues or the knowledge
- 56:10
- There it's about the love last question correct
- 56:19
- Yes, or Paul says I though I may speak of more more tongues than any of you and in the context there
- 56:26
- He's he's he again is trying to say that it's not the fact that he speaks more languages that gives him a greater spirituality
- 56:34
- Right, it's love that the emphasis is on love so in other words It's not how much how spiritual how many spiritual gifts we have
- 56:46
- It's really what we do with them Is the emphasis it's about love that what was going on in Corinth is they were all trying to have a spiritual pride like I'm better than you because I got this gift and that gift in this gift and Paul's saying no, but if you're not loving one another it's useless
- 57:03
- We see this in churches today where people are trying to outdo one another. I got this I got that and And it's not you know, it's like well
- 57:12
- What we should be doing is showing love for one another So, let me I got to close let me just close with this really quick Something that I know pastor
- 57:20
- Jim speaks on often We have a completed canon This is sufficient for everything we need for faith and practice
- 57:31
- We do not need To have a spirit some spiritual gift that someone else doesn't to be spiritual
- 57:39
- We do not need to hear from from God hear a voice of God that sounds like you know God doesn't whisper that sounds familiar.
- 57:46
- Where did I hear that from? But we don't need to hear from God. We don't need some experience
- 57:53
- There's nothing more than God could give than what he has already given He has said this is sufficient for all that we need for faith and practice
- 58:01
- We do not need any more and what a lot of people are doing they say well
- 58:07
- I have the Word of God, but I want I need to add No This is all we need.
- 58:13
- Do you have this known? I mean you haven't memorized word for word Genesis through Revelation you understand all of it if the answer is no then don't worry about looking for the other things
- 58:24
- Spend the lifetime studying this we still won't fully know it, but it's everything that we need.
- 58:30
- All right Now real quick. I'll just mention I mentioned to Jim I'd mentioned this But I do have we have a table in the back my beautiful bride.
- 58:37
- Are we back there? It's worth just going back there to see her. She's gonna beat me up later Every one of you could pick up a copy of our newsletter
- 58:45
- If you don't like the printing blame Josh, um But I just had to toss that in there, but I encourage each of you to pick that up We do have as Jim mentioned podcasts
- 58:56
- I have actually have five podcasts, but only two that I'm really active in on a weekly basis But you could pick these up There's a bunch of podcasts you may be familiar with your sermon the sermons that are preached at this pulpit are on there
- 59:09
- Justin Peters has a podcast did a K on there. What's that one Bitcoin in the Bible wants to talk about Bitcoin in a
- 59:14
- Bible But that's on there But so those are some things some resources that we have.
- 59:19
- I've written two books One is what they believe which is on world major Western religions It's gonna tell you what they actually believe not try to refute them.
- 59:27
- What do we believe? Which is about what the Christian Christian theology a book?
- 59:33
- I'll also encourage you is sharing the good news with Mormons I brought this because I know you guys have a lot of Mormons up here. There are 24 different authors here that wrote this
- 59:41
- I'm one of 24 and what we did was really try to give you tactics of how to witness to Mormons So it's you can read any chapter independent of itself
- 59:50
- There none of us read what anyone else wrote until it was done So it's it's really good you could pick up any chapter each chapter is maybe six pages
- 59:58
- So if they're quick, it'll teach you a little bit of Mormonism as well as teach you how to evangelize So with that I'll close in a word of prayer and then
- 01:00:06
- I guess we take a break get coffee Lord, we're grateful for your word.
- 01:00:11
- We're grateful that even though we don't Fully know it as much as we would love to It causes us to dig into your word and study it more and more so that we could be
- 01:00:22
- As accurate as we can be this side of heaven. We asked Lord that we would look to your word to know we have the
- 01:00:31
- Practices that some churches will practice such as the gift of speaking in tongues
- 01:00:36
- Lord, may we look to your word to say that it's your word indicates. We no longer need such gifts
- 01:00:43
- We no longer need gifts of revelation because you have completed your canon for us and we have all that we need
- 01:00:50
- Help us to to know your word to study your word to love your word because in it
- 01:00:55
- We learn more about you and that is the love of our life for those who know you we thank you for it