Are tongues for today? (Part 2)

Thanks for tuning in to No Compromise Radio with pastor and author, Dr. Mike Avendroff. Today on No Compromise Radio, we'll be hearing Pastor Mike open the Word of God in a recent message he preached at Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston, Massachusetts.

Now let's join Pastor Mike in progress as he preaches through the Scriptures verse by verse with No Compromise.

Tongues, Interpretation, and Edification in 1 Corinthians 14

Verse 4, the one who speaks in a tongue builds himself up. You don't have an interpreter? I'm going to speak in a language that I've never learned? Look at me. As I say all the time, it's flashback to high school football, I guess.

I've got spirit. Yes, I do. I've got spirit. How about you? I've got tongues. Yes, I do. And I feel like I'm built up because I'm superior. But the one who prophesies builds up the church. Of course, through this chapter, you're going to feel the dripping sarcasm come out at times as Paul, of course in love, lays the wood to their selfish thinking that needed more love from 1 Corinthians chapter 13.

You need interpretation or you can't understand it. Now look at verse 5. You've heard me say tongues with interpretation plenty, even though the text didn't directly say it. And here it says it and it's everywhere you go.

The key is interpretation, otherwise you can't understand. Now I want you all to speak in tongues. And he is using what Dr. Thomas calls a hyperbolic concession. Just figure of speech. He's not against speaking in a language you've never learned because it's a gift from God.

But he's using it as a comparison. But even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues. Why? Because you can't understand him unless someone interprets. Unless someone interprets so that the church may be built up.

What is that guy saying? I have no idea what he's saying. Paul's not wishing the impossible, but he's emphasizing something. Edification is the key. By the way, congregation, what does this do to private prayer language where you're just mumbling and jumbling?

First desire is we as a congregation should want spiritual gifts in our congregation that build up. Second of all, found in verses 6 to 19, we should desire as a congregation spiritual gifts that are intelligible.

And look at all these supporting analogies. This is Paul at his best. This is really just a neat way to write. Look what he says. Now, brothers, verse 6, if I come to you speaking in tongues, look at the edification language even though it doesn't use the word edification or upbuild.

How will I benefit you? See, that's what you're after. It doesn't love do that. I want what's best for you. How will that benefit you unless I bring some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching?

He says, logically, now I'm going to talk about this. You can't understand what I say. You're not going to be edified or built up. Tongues without interpretation is not going to help anyone. Let's think about language in general.

How about musical instruments? Hearers must benefit. Verse 7, even if a lifeless instrument, or excuse me, if even lifeless instruments such as the flute or the harp do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played?

If you have a bunch of cacophonous notes all just jammed in there together, no syncopation and no melody, Charlie gave me a little note here, telling me these are some musical terms, melodious versus cacophonous, harmonious versus dissonant, lyrical versus noisy.

If you have music that's noisy, dissident, and cacophonous, it doesn't communicate anything to me except it's an eight-year-old trying to learn how to play the tuba. That's basically me, taking home the tuba to tell mom, I'm playing the tuba now for the band.

I was older than eight. I think I was probably 13 or something, carried that thing all the way home, and then mom and dad sit down, I'm going to play this. Didn't go over so well. They look like you're looking right now.

They had a big amphitheater there at Corinth that would seat 20 ,000 people for a musical concert. I like it when I go to my kids' concerts at school, and then they all are trying to tune their instruments, and the leader gets up, and this is a band with clarinets and oboes and other things and saxophones, and then there's the piano that hits the key, and then they're all supposed to do the same chord, and it just sounds like, it actually sounds like a very sick elephant in this fourth grade class.

It's not communicating anything to me. It's turning my stomach, but it doesn't communicate, and Paul says, instruments communicate. That's what they're supposed to do. Verse eight, and if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will be ready for battle?

Think of bugles today, pretty much bugles back in those days. The bell, the mouthpiece, no valves, and so you're out in the war zone. They had no communication devices, and so they had a bugler, and he could say, retreat, ambush, fall back, regroup, celebrate, we won, but if he doesn't make distinct sounds, you don't know if it's taps or reveille, you have no idea.

Some kind of trumpet playing things. The war scrolls in ancient documents said bugle calls could signal, muster, alarm, ambush, pursuit, reassembly, enlistment, encampment, battle formation, funeral, retreat, and homecoming, but if it's just a bunch of blah, blah, blah, doesn't make any sense.

Speech communicates. Verse nine, so with yourselves, see how he ties it back in? If with y 'all's tongue, if with ye and your tongue, you utter speech, speech now when you see the word tongue, it's used for your tongue in your mouth.

Instruments make sounds. Your tongue, how do you use your tongue? If with your tongue, you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is said? For you are speaking into the air with your tongue emphatically.

When you use that organ in your mouth, and it's just la, la, la, la, ba, ba, ba, I don't know what you're talking about. It doesn't communicate anything. Verse 10, even normal human languages are supposed to communicate.

Are they not helpful? They're not useful. Verse 10, there are doubtless many different languages in the world. I read this week up to 5 ,000, depending on how you count dialects. Many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning.

Even dogs communicate differently with a certain kind of bark, and donkeys with a certain kind of bray, horses with a certain kind of neighing. Speech without meaning, Archibald Robertson said, is a contradiction in terms.

Language is supposed to communicate. You've got the gift of languages, aren't you supposed to communicate? There's no interpreter, nobody knows what you're saying. How about this, verse 11, but if I do not know the meaning of language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker, and the speaker a foreigner to me.

Purpose of language is to communicate, not saying, I've got tongues and you don't. I've got languages and you don't. It's to say, let's communicate, in this particular case, communicating God's Word. So what's the application?

He says to the church of Corinth, so with yourselves, verse 12, since you are eager for the manifestations of the Spirit, that's an understatement, strive to excel in the building up of the church, our building up the church.

It's all about the church being built up. Put your energy there. Don't put your energy saying, you know what, I don't have tongues, so I think I'm going to try to get it. If I just say, shoulda, bouda, honda enough, I'm going to make it happen.

Hey, you're after spiritual gifts, there's nothing wrong with that, but put it in the right direction. Otherwise, it's just selfishness. The opposite of edification is self-glory. The opposite of love is selfishness.

And think about even other people who look at this, verse 13, therefore, what happens if people speak in tongues without interpreters, like at Corinth, therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret.

You need somebody to interpret what you're saying. Why? Verse 14, for if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. Okay, if I'm speaking a language I've never learned, and it's not interpreted, the people that I'm talking to don't get any good out of it.

And I don't get any good out of it either, because it's a language I've never learned. I've never learned this language. I don't know this language. I'm talking this language. I don't even know what I'm saying.

The audience does not benefit, and you, the speaker, don't even benefit. Look, it's all back to the mind, but my mind is unfruitful. He doesn't even know the language. So what's Paul's conclusion? Prophecy is to be preferred because you can understand it.

What am I to do? I said to the first service congregation, say that to your kids, don't you? So you go in, and the whole room's a complete disaster, a buzzsaw. You look at the kids, and you say, what am I to do?

Paul says, what am I to do? For him, though, it's more, what am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also, and I will sing praise with my spirit, and I will sing with my mind also.

That's what I'm going to do, and you watch me. I'm the one that God used to plant the church and to preach the gospel. You got saved through that. That's what I'm going to do. Do as I do. Don't do as you people say.

Edification cannot exist with an emptied mind. Otherwise, you're going to get alienation. Verse 16, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say amen to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you're saying?

Okay, an outsider comes along, believer or unbeliever, and he sees you and listens to you speak in tongues, but he doesn't know the language. There's no interpreter, and he would like to just be like Bruce Binney at our church, saying amen once in a while.

You know, good thing we have Brother Bruce around here. Otherwise, it'd just be this dead church when it comes to preaching. Mark Schaefer does give me some love once in a while. But if I'm up here talking, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, when does Bruce Binney say amen?

Because amen means I solemnly affirm that, but I solemnly affirm what? That you're playing Reveille, and I'm thinking taps. I mean, I have no idea what you're doing. Are you braying like a donkey or what?

I mean, I'm waiting to go amen, except I can't say amen because it's just back to la, la stuff and this gibberish and static speech. I remember once I preached in South Central Los Angeles, and I was preaching, and every so often, I'd hear them say, preach it, chief.

I like that name. I was thinking about that too. B .B. Warfield, all the great theologians, D .G. Hart. They don't go by their first two names. It's all their initials. So M .L. Abendroth, won't work.

How can you say amen when you don't know how to affirm something? I truly believe it. Maybe so, verily, verily, la, la, la, you can't do it. Of course, there's sarcasm laced through all here. For you, verse 17, may be giving thanks well enough.

You may be thinking, I'm talking a language I've never learned. God, you're the greatest. I didn't even have to learn how to parse. I didn't even learn what a pluperfect is, and I'm saying all these things.

I know it's a language, but you don't even know what it says. You might be thanking God in your heart, but the other person isn't being built up. Worship is all about knowledge and mind and the other person, not you.

Never say to yourself, well, I didn't really like the worship today. Say to yourself, was I a good worshiper today by the grace of God? I didn't really like that song. On my mean days and my California days, I'd say, well, what do you mean by that?

On my New England days, I'd say, I never asked you. Some people in California will say, you know, oh, we'd love to have a church out here. And would you love to come? I said, I'd get blown out of California in about four weeks.

I'm a tough-nosed guy, transplanted in New England. And that's why I'm here, is because I'm a mean New Englander. La, la, la, la, la. You wouldn't know when to say amen. We pick worship songs that are about God, because it's not about us and God.

It's not about us. It's about God. Well, what'd you think of the service today? Then you should really be saying, was I an active listener, an active giver, an active praiser unto God? Then he says in verse 18, Paul says, he doesn't say there's no such thing as tongues back then.

He's been to a lot of churches before, and it's a true gift. They're just misusing it. And Paul knows to have an interpreter. I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all. Nevertheless, in church, I would rather speak five words with my mind.

You're not going to have an interpreter in order to instruct others than 10 ,000 words in a language that no one can be edified by because it's unintelligible. All right. So think about us for a second.

All right. It's easy to go to say to yourself Corinth in a transitional time of the church when sign gifts were around, focused on uninterpreted tongues as a sign of spirituality. And they should have been thinking about prophecy.

Men saying, thus saith the Lord. So what about us today? What do you need in your life that God uses empowered by the spirit's grace to make you built up? What is the only thing that builds you up in the faith and conforms you to the image of Christ?

If you'd like to grow and mature in Christ Jesus, what do you need more of? Show me a person who doesn't study the Bible and memorize the Bible and is consumed by wanting to understand the Bible. And I'll show you a person who is not grown up.

People say, well, I want to just have the zap. No wonder people come to the front of churches and get zapped. I like their motive. I'd like to be more holy, but there's no bypassing for being edified through not tongues today with interpreters, not prophecy, but through what?

The word of God preached. I thank God that Bethlehem Bible Church desires spiritual gifts of teaching because you want the word preached to you. If I didn't preach the word, I would be gone. You should have seen your faces when I said I'm now into church growth stuff.

You're thinking this is the one and done. California, you'd say, well, I'd better talk to him and see what he means and feels by that. But for you, you're like he's one in Shepherd's crook. Shepherd crooks edify with intelligible speech.

Did you know that? So as you look at this, the lesson we can learn because we want to honor the Lord for all that he's done for us and free salvation, full forgiveness. We've been justified and redeemed and we're being sanctified.

We have this great God and we owe everything to him. We're a great debtor of his grace. Let's turn to first Peter chapter two. And let me just remind you that if you'd like to grow the way you can understand spiritual growth, the best is just to say, God, take your word, plant it deep in my heart and change me.

If you'd like to say no to sin more often, yes to righteousness, more to I think I could love. I'd like to love my wife better. I'd like to submit to my husband better. I'd like to be a harder worker at work.

I'd like to complain less. I'd like to praise more. I'd like to have a closer relationship with Jesus Christ. I'd like it to be more about who he is than just kind of doctrinal facts. I'd like to love my enemies better.

It is directly related to the word of God in your life directly. This is what strengthens edifies builds up. This is for your benefit. And take a look at first Peter chapter two. You know, the verse like newborn infants long first 10 verses of first Peter chapter two.

This is the imperative. It is the only imperative long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into salvation. I went to pretty and Sunita's two nights ago. They've got that little baby Sandy.

Have you met Sandy before? Sandy and I were playing and I just thought I shouldn't stop with four kids. She just kept going. The more unregenerate kids in the house, the merrier it is. What shall I say to you?

And I have this pride thing. You know about that. But specifically when I hold a baby and they start to cry, you will never see me just go. You can always tell it's an inexperienced guy or dad or something.

The baby starts to cry. I guess, you know, help SOS even smoke signals communicate. Please somebody take this kid from me. And you know, why is the guys like hold them extra far out here? Here you go.

But what I try to do is I think, you know what, when I get that little baby and they start crying, I'm going to try to get that baby to stop crying. So there's all kinds of things you can do. Sometimes you just blow in their face.

It stops too long, but it stops distraction. You know, and sometimes I'll go, oh, you know, look at that light and kind of talk that way that distracts them a little bit. Sometimes I'll I'll hold them and just gently go like this.

Because every time you do that, then they feel like, oh, my equilibrium is about to fall and, you know, fall to the ground. I better keep my eyes awake. And then, you know, they're distracted. But when that kid wants food, nothing is going to make that kid stop crying.

So I took my my finger. I took a shower before I went over there and I took my finger. Every kid needs some dirt. Why is it the sickest people I know are the people with all like bleach and antibacterial?

You need some dirt for your kids. So I thought, you know, here's a baby's going to cry. And so I put my knuckle in the kid's mouth. Sandy's like, oh, this is pretty good. Big white guy's knuckle. And she's like, oh, this is nice.

Rubbing it around. She starts really going thinking this is this is this is amazing. Got the touch. I don't think my dad meant give him a knuckle sandwich with that. But that was something different. And I I thought it's working.

But all of a sudden, she had to have food. She had to do it. Nothing you could give them. You can give them binkies. You can give them. How many how many weeks in a row do you mention a binky from the pulpit?

But you give knuckles anything you give them. It has to be the word. Friends, you know this. So let me tell you again, the way you grow in sanctification and in knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ is through the Bible alone.

Scriptures are not deficient. They're sufficient. Everything you need to know is right here. So quit trying to get slain in the spirit. Hearing a voice from God. Read the Bible so that you may grow with respect to salvation.

It's the preached word. And so you say it's the red word. You say, well, why do they have, you know, just 10 minutes of singing and 50 minutes of preaching at the service? This is the answer. Why do they have IBS?

This is the answer. Why is Carl Truman coming? That's the answer. Why a radio show? That's the answer. Why do we teach them about the Bible in VBS, Awana, junior church, senior church, home Bible studies?

That's the answer so that you may grow. You say, well, I just been not really, really reading my Bible much. You know, it's always amazing to me. I'll meet people from our church and I'll go. Some are memorizing the book of Romans.

And you know what I know about those people's lives who are memorizing the book of Romans? They have all kinds of trouble, but their heart is stayed on Christ Jesus. There's a firm foundation because their mind thinks like the Bible.

God big, me small. God can be trusted. I walk by sight. No, no. Start walking by faith. And then show me someone who I hate to say, but we have these people at our church too. I hope you're not one of them.

That you won't pick up your Bible until next Sunday morning. Now, that doesn't mean you lose your salvation, but that means spiritually. You're in junior church. So why don't you just change today? Why do you say God stir up in my heart a new desire for the word that I might long for it and crave it?

And that whether it convicts me or comforts me, I want to desire God's word. Kim and the kids get home and kids tomorrow and Kim and a couple of days after that. I can't wait to see him. I'm longing. I'm desiring.

That's what we're supposed to have. And you go, you know what? I'm just on empty. God grant me these things. God grant me to be like Job. I have not departed from the command of his lips. I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.

God grant me to be like the psalmist. How sweet are thy words to my taste? Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth. God, would you give me the heart of Jeremiah? You save me. You give me everything else. Would you please?

I'm struggling. Give me the heart like Jeremiah. Thy words were found and I ate them and thy words became a joy and the delight of my heart. David Livingston started his trek across Africa with 73 books of all different kinds.

Three backpacks weighing 180 pounds. He's a man after my own heart. Bring the books. After the party had gone 300 miles in Africa, Livingston was obliged to throw away some of the books because of the fatigue of those carrying his baggage.

The porters couldn't carry them all. He continued on his journey. His library grew less and less until he had but one book left. The purpose-driven life. No, wait. His Bible. And when babies desire that pure milk of the word, just do a quick study someday on milk.

And it's just not something that gives you nutrition. It's a sign, an illustration in the Bible of abundance. Milk. I shall delight in thy statues. I shall not forget thy word. Father in heaven, would you help us?

We are weak and frail and feeble people. Would you help us to study the word regularly, earnestly, carefully? Help us to love your commandments, to love your precepts, to love your law. Help us to delight in your word like a baby delights in the pure milk of her mother.

And Father, for those at Bethlehem Bible Church, and of which there are many who do study, I pray that you'd encourage them in their study. Help them to strive for excellence in their study. For those who are having a hard time studying, Father, I pray that you would be gentle as you use hardships in their life to realign their minds with repentance.

But Father, I pray that you just grant them what none of us, none of us deserve. And that is just grace upon grace when it comes to studying the Bible. Father, thank you that when we study your word, we see your son, Christ Jesus, everywhere from Genesis through Revelation.

And we see him in the Messianic Psalms. And we see him in the Gospels. We see him proclaimed in the Epistles. Father, may Bethlehem Bible Church be a church that is growing, that you would give us real and true spiritual growth for your sake.

In Jesus' name, amen.

No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life-transforming power of God's word through verse-by-verse exposition of the sacred text.

Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 8 .30 and 11 a .m. and Sunday evenings at 6 p .m. We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston, Massachusetts. You can check us out online at bbcchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.

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