WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.160 Well, let's go back to follow. 00:00:08.660 --> 00:00:10.160 That was great. Thanks, guys. 00:00:10.679 --> 00:00:11.679 That was really awesome. 00:00:14.620 --> 00:00:16.820 Well, good morning, friends. It's going to be with you all. 00:00:17.460 --> 00:00:22.839 It's going to be back for vacation. Thanks for all of you who were praying for me and my family while we were away for the holidays. 00:00:25.539 --> 00:00:28.199 If you're new with us this morning, this is a part of our service. 00:00:28.199 --> 00:00:33.539 We spent some just dedicated time devoting ourselves to reading and learning and hearing from God's words. 00:00:33.719 --> 00:00:34.500 We're just together. 00:00:35.060 --> 00:00:38.519 Our sermon text is found in 1 Corinthians chapter 14 this morning. 00:00:38.640 --> 00:00:40.200 I invite you to turn that with me. 00:00:40.820 --> 00:00:43.039 That's page 960. 00:00:44.640 --> 00:00:45.659 I'm ready for you. 00:00:47.420 --> 00:00:49.259 1 Corinthians chapter 14. 00:00:49.259 --> 00:00:49.699 1 Corinthians chapter 14. 00:00:56.699 --> 00:01:01.439 Our focus today is going to be on verses 13 through 25 of this chapter. 00:01:02.839 --> 00:01:05.099 But let's start reading actually in verse 1. 00:01:05.700 --> 00:01:06.659 Just to get the context. 00:01:07.120 --> 00:01:09.319 So we'll read from verse 1 to verse 25. 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:10.400 Let me read this verse. 00:01:11.900 --> 00:01:12.560 All right. 00:01:12.599 --> 00:01:14.039 So this is the church in Corinth and the Bible. 00:01:14.040 --> 00:01:44.020 1 Corinthians chapter 15. 00:01:44.040 --> 00:01:48.760 Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more prophesy. 00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:52.120 The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues. 00:01:52.520 --> 00:01:53.500 As someone interprets. 00:01:54.160 --> 00:01:56.000 So that the church may be built up. 00:01:58.000 --> 00:02:04.480 Now brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 00:02:04.480 --> 00:02:10.539 If even lifeless nutrients such as the food or heart do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know it is void? 00:02:10.539 --> 00:02:15.539 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, how will you get ready for power? 00:02:15.539 --> 00:02:17.539 So with yourselves. 00:02:17.539 --> 00:02:17.699 So with yourselves. 00:02:17.699 --> 00:02:23.139 And with your tongue, if you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what I said? 00:02:23.139 --> 00:02:26.239 For you will be speaking into the air. 00:02:27.439 --> 00:02:31.000 There are doubtless many different languages in the world and none is without meaning. 00:02:32.179 --> 00:02:36.239 But if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker. 00:02:36.899 --> 00:02:38.500 And the speaker a foreigner to me. 00:02:38.500 --> 00:02:47.479 So with yourselves, since you are eager for the manifestation of the Spirit, strive to excel in the building of the church. 00:02:49.539 --> 00:02:52.900 Therefore one who speaks in the tongue should pray that he may interpret. 00:02:53.939 --> 00:02:58.800 For if I pray in the tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 00:02:59.659 --> 00:03:00.599 What am I to do? 00:03:01.240 --> 00:03:05.219 I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also. 00:03:05.219 --> 00:03:09.539 I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also. 00:03:09.900 --> 00:03:15.879 Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say amen to your thanksgiving, 00:03:16.379 --> 00:03:17.919 when he does not know what you are saying? 00:03:19.159 --> 00:03:22.960 For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being God's God. 00:03:24.079 --> 00:03:26.460 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. 00:03:27.180 --> 00:03:34.460 Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind than rather instruct others. 00:03:35.219 --> 00:03:37.340 That ten thousand words in a tongue. 00:03:39.340 --> 00:03:44.199 Brothers, do not be children, but be infants and people. 00:03:44.919 --> 00:03:46.379 But if you think of being children. 00:03:47.659 --> 00:03:48.680 And the law is written, 00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:52.400 By people of strange tongues, by the lips of foreigners, 00:03:52.520 --> 00:03:56.139 that I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to this person. 00:03:57.900 --> 00:04:00.860 Thus tongues are a sign not for believers, but for unbelievers. 00:04:00.860 --> 00:04:05.600 Well, prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers, but for believers. 00:04:06.880 --> 00:04:08.840 If, therefore, the whole church comes together, 00:04:08.940 --> 00:04:11.380 and all speaking tongues and outsiders and unbelievers enter, 00:04:11.520 --> 00:04:13.600 will it not say that you are out of your mind? 00:04:13.599 --> 00:04:19.639 But as well prophesy, and an undeliever out of his letter enters, 00:04:20.319 --> 00:04:21.560 he is convicted by it. 00:04:22.219 --> 00:04:23.399 He is called to encounter it. 00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:26.259 The secrets of his heart are disclosed, 00:04:27.019 --> 00:04:29.399 and so falling on his face he will worship God. 00:04:30.519 --> 00:04:31.699 And pray that God is willing. 00:04:33.540 --> 00:04:34.459 Let's pray for God. 00:04:34.459 --> 00:05:04.439 Let's pray for God. 00:05:04.439 --> 00:05:07.180 And he would help us through this passage to know what it means to 00:05:07.180 --> 00:05:10.719 genuinely worship and talk about the church we are going to know about. 00:05:12.939 --> 00:05:17.680 Lord, help for our sake, for the sake of others, for the sake of your sake. 00:05:20.279 --> 00:05:21.459 Probably we have to say some Jesus. 00:05:25.379 --> 00:05:26.879 Well, 1 Corinthians 14. 00:05:27.040 --> 00:05:27.540 Here we are. 00:05:27.699 --> 00:05:30.579 So this is one of the longest chapters in the New Testament 00:05:30.579 --> 00:05:33.099 that deals explicitly with the topic, 00:05:33.240 --> 00:05:34.639 not just of spiritual gifts, 00:05:35.139 --> 00:05:39.620 but also of the topic of the worship gathering of the church. 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:41.659 Throughout the New Testament, 00:05:41.819 --> 00:05:44.159 we get little pieces, little pictures here and there. 00:05:44.919 --> 00:05:47.039 This chapter is the longest, 00:05:47.039 --> 00:05:50.560 the most sustained treatment of what we might call 00:05:50.560 --> 00:05:52.699 a corporate gathering of the church. 00:05:52.699 --> 00:05:56.199 The particular needs and problems of the particular church in Corinth at the time. 00:05:57.599 --> 00:05:59.979 And it seems, on the surface, as we just read, 00:06:00.039 --> 00:06:03.519 it seems to be all about speaking in tongues and prophecy, right? 00:06:05.420 --> 00:06:10.800 Now, Pastor Greg dove into the nature of those two spiritual gifts last week. 00:06:11.259 --> 00:06:14.680 So we're not going to spend a lot of time kind of rehashing that this morning. 00:06:14.800 --> 00:06:17.199 You can grab that sermon from the website online, 00:06:17.199 --> 00:06:19.680 or you can come talk to me afterwards if you have particular questions. 00:06:19.680 --> 00:06:20.980 I'm happy to talk more about that. 00:06:21.340 --> 00:06:22.720 But today, what I want to do is, 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:28.300 I want to look at one of the underlying priorities or principles 00:06:28.300 --> 00:06:33.900 that Paul emphasizes here when it comes to our worship together. 00:06:35.420 --> 00:06:38.340 What's going on underneath the heart of Paul's discussion 00:06:38.340 --> 00:06:40.319 of speaking in tongues and prophecy? 00:06:41.780 --> 00:06:44.040 And the big priority that comes out here 00:06:44.040 --> 00:06:50.100 is the importance of intelligible worship. 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:56.400 The big problem that Paul has with speaking in tongues 00:06:56.400 --> 00:06:57.800 in the gathered church service, 00:06:58.280 --> 00:07:00.240 at least if there's no one to interpret that is, 00:07:01.000 --> 00:07:04.460 is that it's completely unintelligible to the people who've gathered. 00:07:05.220 --> 00:07:07.420 No one understands a word of what's being said. 00:07:08.200 --> 00:07:09.020 Now, remember last week, 00:07:09.060 --> 00:07:10.480 we said that the gift of speaking in tongues 00:07:10.480 --> 00:07:15.460 was the spirit-given ability to speak words of prayer and praise and thanksgiving to God 00:07:15.460 --> 00:07:17.879 in a language unknown to the speaker. 00:07:19.280 --> 00:07:20.600 And you notice throughout this chapter 00:07:20.600 --> 00:07:23.280 that Paul doesn't disparage that gift in and of itself. 00:07:23.360 --> 00:07:25.420 But he says when the church gathers together, 00:07:26.420 --> 00:07:31.660 he wants them to strive to prophesy all the more instead. 00:07:33.420 --> 00:07:35.000 And again, as we said last week, 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:35.980 what does it mean to prophesy? 00:07:35.980 --> 00:07:38.340 Well, prophecy was the spirit-given ability 00:07:38.340 --> 00:07:42.900 to speak words of encouragement and upbuilding and consolation 00:07:42.900 --> 00:07:47.759 with a particularly keen insight into the needs of the moment. 00:07:49.319 --> 00:07:51.340 In other words, if the spiritual gift of teaching 00:07:51.340 --> 00:07:55.520 is the ability to systematically expound what's true 00:07:55.520 --> 00:07:57.780 for all Christians in every place and time, 00:07:58.860 --> 00:08:00.759 it would seem that the spiritual gift of prophecy 00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:03.480 is the ability to apply that truth 00:08:03.480 --> 00:08:07.300 with poignancy to the needs of a particular place and time. 00:08:09.819 --> 00:08:11.159 So prophecy in the New Testament 00:08:11.159 --> 00:08:13.800 isn't really essentially about predicting the future, 00:08:13.920 --> 00:08:15.159 which is what we often think of with that word. 00:08:15.259 --> 00:08:17.319 No, it's about applying the truth 00:08:17.319 --> 00:08:19.920 with spirit-given insight into our context, 00:08:20.019 --> 00:08:20.920 into our needs today. 00:08:20.920 --> 00:08:27.319 And so for Paul, you see, it's critical 00:08:27.319 --> 00:08:30.640 that what we do and what we say 00:08:30.640 --> 00:08:32.139 when we gather on Sundays 00:08:32.139 --> 00:08:35.500 is above all intelligible, 00:08:35.680 --> 00:08:37.879 understandable to those who gather. 00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:41.779 Look again at verses 14 through 15 of our text. 00:08:42.580 --> 00:08:44.340 It's not just enough, Paul says, 00:08:44.460 --> 00:08:46.680 to have something move us in our spirit. 00:08:46.679 --> 00:08:51.239 It has to be something that we understand with our minds. 00:08:52.199 --> 00:08:54.939 A powerful emotion, a gripping experience, 00:08:55.039 --> 00:08:55.939 they're great to have. 00:08:57.659 --> 00:08:59.859 But just those things alone aren't enough, 00:09:01.059 --> 00:09:03.139 especially when the church is gathered together. 00:09:04.599 --> 00:09:06.679 It has to be something intelligible, 00:09:07.359 --> 00:09:08.659 something we can enter into, 00:09:08.799 --> 00:09:09.859 not just with our spirit, 00:09:09.939 --> 00:09:12.359 but with our minds, with our understanding as well. 00:09:12.360 --> 00:09:16.580 So I want us to consider the importance 00:09:16.580 --> 00:09:18.060 of intelligible worship this morning. 00:09:19.159 --> 00:09:21.500 In verse 20, Paul even goes so far to say 00:09:21.500 --> 00:09:25.000 that what it means to be mature in our thinking 00:09:25.000 --> 00:09:26.399 about corporate worship 00:09:26.399 --> 00:09:28.560 is to understand just this fact. 00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:33.220 So let's look at this issue of intelligible worship. 00:09:33.580 --> 00:09:35.379 And first, before we dive into all the reasons 00:09:35.379 --> 00:09:36.220 Paul gives for it, 00:09:36.440 --> 00:09:37.940 it's worth considering how worship 00:09:37.940 --> 00:09:40.279 can become unintelligible for us today. 00:09:40.279 --> 00:09:43.360 I have never been to a church service at Trinity 00:09:43.360 --> 00:09:45.579 where there are so many people speaking in tongues 00:09:45.579 --> 00:09:48.000 at one time that the whole service was gobbledygook 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:49.459 and people said, you're out of your minds. 00:09:50.000 --> 00:09:53.100 So it doesn't seem like we have the exact same problem 00:09:53.100 --> 00:09:54.539 that the church in Corinth had, right? 00:09:55.559 --> 00:09:58.559 However, the issue of unintelligibility 00:09:58.559 --> 00:10:02.039 is still one that we all actually face. 00:10:02.539 --> 00:10:05.459 It's a danger to every church and every time. 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:08.100 And it manifests itself in a lot of different ways. 00:10:08.100 --> 00:10:10.860 You know, historically, before the Reformation, 00:10:11.019 --> 00:10:12.759 there were long stretches of time 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:16.340 when a typical church service was held in a language 00:10:16.340 --> 00:10:18.180 that no one actually spoke. 00:10:19.600 --> 00:10:22.820 The medieval Latin mass meant that most Christians 00:10:22.820 --> 00:10:25.980 knew nothing of what was being said in worship 00:10:25.980 --> 00:10:26.860 for generations. 00:10:30.379 --> 00:10:32.720 You know, the fact that we have Bibles in our own language 00:10:32.720 --> 00:10:34.259 and hold services in our own language 00:10:34.259 --> 00:10:38.360 is a huge blessing and not one to be taken for granted. 00:10:41.439 --> 00:10:44.340 But again, today, most of us probably won't have trouble 00:10:44.340 --> 00:10:48.220 finding a service in English or in our typical tongue. 00:10:49.259 --> 00:10:52.120 Although we should be sort of especially sensitive 00:10:52.120 --> 00:10:53.819 to those in our midst who are from different parts 00:10:53.819 --> 00:10:55.539 of the world and who struggle to understand English. 00:10:55.639 --> 00:10:57.100 And we need to strive to be clear 00:10:57.100 --> 00:10:58.659 when we're interacting with them. 00:10:58.659 --> 00:11:03.519 But what are some other sort of maybe more dangers 00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:05.120 that are closer to home for us 00:11:05.120 --> 00:11:07.740 that make our services unintelligible? 00:11:08.719 --> 00:11:10.000 Well, I think a bigger danger for us, 00:11:10.039 --> 00:11:10.779 if we're not careful, 00:11:11.439 --> 00:11:15.860 is that the vocabulary or the words that we use 00:11:15.860 --> 00:11:19.699 can make our service feel unintelligible at times. 00:11:19.700 --> 00:11:23.020 And you know, this doesn't just apply 00:11:23.020 --> 00:11:25.420 to using sort of big, long, 00:11:26.060 --> 00:11:29.100 sort of standardized test type words 00:11:29.100 --> 00:11:31.600 when we're preaching or praying or sharing 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:32.759 or doing all these things. 00:11:32.840 --> 00:11:33.860 Of course, that's one danger. 00:11:33.940 --> 00:11:35.900 But you know, there's also the danger 00:11:35.900 --> 00:11:40.860 of using what we might call Christian speak 00:11:40.860 --> 00:11:44.160 that is actually completely unintelligible 00:11:44.160 --> 00:11:46.060 to the people who gather for worship. 00:11:46.059 --> 00:11:49.699 I remember my dad growing up, 00:11:50.179 --> 00:11:51.799 whenever we would take a car trip, 00:11:52.779 --> 00:11:54.039 would get us boys together 00:11:54.039 --> 00:11:56.859 and he would pray that we would be surrounded 00:11:56.859 --> 00:11:58.439 by a hedge of protection. 00:12:00.579 --> 00:12:03.779 I had no idea what a hedge of protection was 00:12:03.779 --> 00:12:05.419 until I was like in high school. 00:12:05.539 --> 00:12:06.719 What does that even mean? 00:12:07.519 --> 00:12:09.179 And there are all sorts of other words 00:12:09.179 --> 00:12:10.679 and phrases that we use 00:12:10.679 --> 00:12:14.079 that are sort of just insider language of Zion lingo 00:12:14.080 --> 00:12:16.580 that no one really understands. 00:12:19.500 --> 00:12:20.780 But you know, it's not just big, long, 00:12:20.800 --> 00:12:21.980 vocabulary words or Christian lingo 00:12:21.980 --> 00:12:23.379 that can make our services unintelligible. 00:12:23.720 --> 00:12:24.960 I think there's a way in which 00:12:24.960 --> 00:12:26.780 maybe if we're not careful, 00:12:26.879 --> 00:12:28.360 the songs that we sing 00:12:28.360 --> 00:12:31.720 can make our services unintelligible. 00:12:31.980 --> 00:12:33.300 And it doesn't just apply 00:12:33.300 --> 00:12:34.639 to the lyrics that we sing. 00:12:36.220 --> 00:12:37.680 What if we were to pick songs 00:12:37.680 --> 00:12:39.879 where the rhythm was so complicated 00:12:39.879 --> 00:12:41.960 and unfamiliar, so syncopated, 00:12:41.960 --> 00:12:44.280 that it made it almost impossible 00:12:44.280 --> 00:12:45.680 to sing together as a congregation. 00:12:47.780 --> 00:12:48.580 And you know, that applies 00:12:48.580 --> 00:12:50.940 not just to some really beautiful classic hymns, 00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:52.580 but a lot of contemporary songs too. 00:12:53.940 --> 00:12:55.080 With the other worship leaders, 00:12:55.180 --> 00:12:56.540 we listen to a lot of great music 00:12:56.540 --> 00:12:57.759 and sometimes we listen to a song 00:12:57.759 --> 00:12:59.360 and we think that will be impossible 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:00.460 for us to sing together 00:13:00.460 --> 00:13:02.320 because the rhythm is so unfamiliar 00:13:02.320 --> 00:13:03.960 and so foreign and so unpredictable. 00:13:06.660 --> 00:13:08.759 Or, you know, there are a lot of songs 00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:11.939 where the range, that is how high the notes go, 00:13:12.419 --> 00:13:14.899 is so big that we can't possibly 00:13:14.899 --> 00:13:15.899 sing it together either. 00:13:20.860 --> 00:13:21.899 I think there are even songs 00:13:21.899 --> 00:13:23.080 where the style makes a song 00:13:23.080 --> 00:13:24.100 practically unintelligible 00:13:24.100 --> 00:13:25.059 and maybe I'm going to step 00:13:25.059 --> 00:13:25.960 on a couple toes here. 00:13:26.600 --> 00:13:27.019 But you know, 00:13:28.100 --> 00:13:29.580 it's not that we don't understand the words, 00:13:29.659 --> 00:13:31.120 but sometimes the style of a song 00:13:31.120 --> 00:13:32.220 is so outdated 00:13:32.220 --> 00:13:34.080 that we can't actually sing the words 00:13:34.080 --> 00:13:34.899 with the right meaning. 00:13:34.899 --> 00:13:38.539 There's a reason why we don't sing 00:13:38.539 --> 00:13:40.059 Shine Jesus Shine anymore. 00:13:41.100 --> 00:13:42.799 Or Lord, I lift your name on high. 00:13:44.019 --> 00:13:45.079 Because stylistically, 00:13:45.259 --> 00:13:46.340 they're just so foreign 00:13:46.340 --> 00:13:47.459 and so out of place. 00:13:50.360 --> 00:13:52.079 But how else might our corporate worship 00:13:52.079 --> 00:13:53.860 become functionally unintelligible today? 00:13:53.919 --> 00:13:55.279 What about our order of service? 00:13:56.159 --> 00:13:56.899 The sort of way in which 00:13:56.899 --> 00:13:58.519 we structure our times together. 00:14:00.319 --> 00:14:01.299 I remember visiting 00:14:01.299 --> 00:14:02.720 an Anglican church in college 00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:04.399 and it was this small, 00:14:04.580 --> 00:14:05.860 super welcoming congregation 00:14:05.860 --> 00:14:06.860 that preached the gospel. 00:14:07.040 --> 00:14:07.600 They loved Jesus. 00:14:07.759 --> 00:14:08.540 It was a good church. 00:14:09.019 --> 00:14:09.379 But you know, 00:14:09.460 --> 00:14:11.100 on my way into the sanctuary 00:14:11.100 --> 00:14:12.379 as the service began, 00:14:12.840 --> 00:14:14.399 they handed me three books. 00:14:15.240 --> 00:14:16.379 It was a book of common prayer 00:14:16.379 --> 00:14:17.580 and a hymnal 00:14:17.580 --> 00:14:19.279 and a hymnal supplement. 00:14:20.180 --> 00:14:20.940 So there I was. 00:14:21.019 --> 00:14:21.980 I marched into my pew 00:14:21.980 --> 00:14:22.820 and sat down. 00:14:23.160 --> 00:14:24.899 And in order to follow the service, 00:14:24.899 --> 00:14:26.560 I had to flip through the pages 00:14:26.560 --> 00:14:27.980 of these three different books 00:14:27.980 --> 00:14:30.220 trying to find what words to say when 00:14:30.220 --> 00:14:32.100 and which songs to sing where. 00:14:32.720 --> 00:14:33.560 And needless to say, 00:14:33.620 --> 00:14:34.120 as a newcomer, 00:14:34.180 --> 00:14:36.060 I was completely about 00:14:36.060 --> 00:14:37.800 two steps behind everyone else 00:14:37.800 --> 00:14:38.759 all the time. 00:14:39.360 --> 00:14:40.100 As a newcomer, 00:14:40.259 --> 00:14:42.740 I was practically an outsider 00:14:42.740 --> 00:14:44.200 and the service was almost 00:14:44.200 --> 00:14:45.420 unintelligible to me. 00:14:47.879 --> 00:14:49.120 Now, that's not to sort of 00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:51.360 just bash on liturgical services 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:52.200 because honestly, friends, 00:14:52.240 --> 00:14:53.120 the flip side of the things 00:14:53.120 --> 00:14:54.300 can happen even in the most 00:14:54.300 --> 00:14:56.160 casual sort of 00:14:56.160 --> 00:14:57.740 non-liturgical service. 00:14:58.580 --> 00:14:59.639 Things can just sort of 00:14:59.639 --> 00:15:00.940 charge through seemingly 00:15:00.940 --> 00:15:02.360 without any rhyme or reason. 00:15:03.140 --> 00:15:04.300 And if the service leader 00:15:04.300 --> 00:15:04.860 and worship leader 00:15:04.860 --> 00:15:06.840 don't explain what's going on, 00:15:08.180 --> 00:15:08.980 the service can be 00:15:08.980 --> 00:15:10.160 quite unintelligible. 00:15:14.540 --> 00:15:15.660 Well, I'm sure that we can think of 00:15:15.660 --> 00:15:17.200 lots of other ways 00:15:17.200 --> 00:15:18.860 that our times of corporate worship 00:15:18.860 --> 00:15:20.180 could become unintelligible today. 00:15:20.420 --> 00:15:21.120 And I hope you see that 00:15:21.120 --> 00:15:23.160 it's not just a first century problem 00:15:23.160 --> 00:15:24.920 or a speaking in tongues problem, 00:15:24.920 --> 00:15:26.040 but it's something that every church 00:15:26.040 --> 00:15:27.040 has to be mindful of. 00:15:27.039 --> 00:15:30.439 But coming back now 00:15:30.439 --> 00:15:31.379 to 1 Corinthians 14, 00:15:31.659 --> 00:15:33.139 the second big point 00:15:33.139 --> 00:15:34.059 I want us to consider 00:15:34.059 --> 00:15:36.240 is the question of why. 00:15:37.000 --> 00:15:39.159 Why should we strive 00:15:39.159 --> 00:15:41.120 for intelligibility, 00:15:41.299 --> 00:15:42.959 for being understood? 00:15:44.439 --> 00:15:45.279 Why does that need to be 00:15:45.279 --> 00:15:47.500 a huge value for us 00:15:47.500 --> 00:15:49.419 in our worship gatherings? 00:15:50.899 --> 00:15:51.899 I mean, think about it. 00:15:52.399 --> 00:15:53.019 After all, 00:15:53.059 --> 00:15:54.519 the people who spoke in tongues 00:15:54.519 --> 00:15:55.159 at Corinth 00:15:55.159 --> 00:15:58.120 were probably having 00:15:58.120 --> 00:15:59.840 really powerful experiences 00:15:59.840 --> 00:16:00.419 of God. 00:16:01.980 --> 00:16:03.159 Paul doesn't question 00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:03.960 the fact that 00:16:03.960 --> 00:16:05.179 that was probably 00:16:05.179 --> 00:16:05.840 the Holy Spirit 00:16:05.840 --> 00:16:06.559 working in them. 00:16:09.199 --> 00:16:10.559 A very powerful experience 00:16:10.559 --> 00:16:10.899 of God. 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:11.759 And isn't that enough? 00:16:13.500 --> 00:16:14.879 Isn't that what we really want? 00:16:14.939 --> 00:16:15.519 After all, 00:16:15.600 --> 00:16:17.500 to really get a deep sense 00:16:17.500 --> 00:16:19.519 of God's presence 00:16:19.519 --> 00:16:20.120 in our midst? 00:16:20.199 --> 00:16:21.120 To see Him maybe even 00:16:21.120 --> 00:16:22.240 visibly show up 00:16:22.240 --> 00:16:23.259 in these particularly 00:16:23.259 --> 00:16:25.899 visible manifestations? 00:16:29.379 --> 00:16:30.379 In the last section 00:16:30.379 --> 00:16:31.139 of Mere Christianity, 00:16:31.320 --> 00:16:32.480 C.S. Lewis tells the story 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:34.340 of a hardened Air Force officer 00:16:34.340 --> 00:16:36.159 who approaches Lewis 00:16:36.159 --> 00:16:37.500 after a talk that he gave. 00:16:38.139 --> 00:16:39.519 And this hardened Air Force officer 00:16:39.519 --> 00:16:40.259 tells Lewis 00:16:40.259 --> 00:16:41.759 of a powerful experience 00:16:41.759 --> 00:16:43.019 that he had had of God. 00:16:44.700 --> 00:16:45.820 The officer told Lewis, 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:46.159 he said, 00:16:46.240 --> 00:16:47.180 I felt Him. 00:16:47.799 --> 00:16:48.620 That is God. 00:16:48.620 --> 00:16:49.919 I felt Him out alone 00:16:49.919 --> 00:16:51.019 in the desert one night. 00:16:51.539 --> 00:16:53.000 The tremendous mystery. 00:16:55.820 --> 00:16:56.519 And then the officer 00:16:56.519 --> 00:16:57.620 goes on to tell Lewis 00:16:57.620 --> 00:16:58.519 that because of this 00:16:58.519 --> 00:16:59.879 powerful experience, 00:17:00.320 --> 00:17:01.500 he didn't believe 00:17:01.500 --> 00:17:02.340 and he didn't think 00:17:02.340 --> 00:17:03.019 he had a need 00:17:03.019 --> 00:17:04.500 for any of the doctrines 00:17:04.500 --> 00:17:05.519 or dogmas of the church. 00:17:06.140 --> 00:17:07.099 He'd experienced 00:17:07.099 --> 00:17:07.619 in his mind 00:17:07.619 --> 00:17:08.460 the real thing 00:17:08.460 --> 00:17:09.359 and he didn't need 00:17:09.359 --> 00:17:10.339 all that intellectual, 00:17:10.720 --> 00:17:11.440 intelligible, 00:17:12.059 --> 00:17:12.859 mumbo-jumbo. 00:17:16.200 --> 00:17:16.839 Now, of course, 00:17:16.859 --> 00:17:17.319 there are all sorts 00:17:17.319 --> 00:17:18.240 of problems with that, right? 00:17:19.099 --> 00:17:20.119 But sometimes 00:17:20.119 --> 00:17:21.339 in our worship gatherings 00:17:21.339 --> 00:17:21.679 together, 00:17:21.679 --> 00:17:22.859 we can functionally 00:17:22.859 --> 00:17:23.959 act the same way. 00:17:26.439 --> 00:17:27.259 It doesn't matter 00:17:27.259 --> 00:17:28.000 what I think. 00:17:28.599 --> 00:17:29.819 The content doesn't matter. 00:17:29.919 --> 00:17:30.399 What matters 00:17:30.399 --> 00:17:31.779 is the experience. 00:17:35.539 --> 00:17:36.259 What matters 00:17:36.259 --> 00:17:37.399 is that I'm feeling 00:17:37.399 --> 00:17:38.459 drawn to God. 00:17:41.959 --> 00:17:43.039 But Paul's going to give us 00:17:43.039 --> 00:17:43.939 three reasons here 00:17:43.939 --> 00:17:45.419 why we need 00:17:45.419 --> 00:17:46.739 our gathered worship 00:17:46.740 --> 00:17:49.019 to be intelligible. 00:17:52.519 --> 00:17:53.839 First reason is this. 00:17:54.920 --> 00:17:56.859 Because intelligible worship 00:17:56.859 --> 00:17:59.400 engages the whole person. 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:02.079 Look at verses 14 and 15 again. 00:18:02.920 --> 00:18:03.359 Paul says, 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:04.120 if I pray 00:18:04.120 --> 00:18:05.000 or praise 00:18:05.000 --> 00:18:05.599 or give thanks 00:18:05.599 --> 00:18:07.079 with my spirit only, 00:18:08.019 --> 00:18:08.339 he says, 00:18:08.420 --> 00:18:10.319 my mind is unfruitful. 00:18:10.319 --> 00:18:12.779 In other words, 00:18:12.819 --> 00:18:13.939 a whole aspect 00:18:13.939 --> 00:18:14.879 of what it means 00:18:14.879 --> 00:18:15.659 to be human 00:18:15.659 --> 00:18:16.819 is left out. 00:18:19.019 --> 00:18:19.700 But you see, 00:18:19.779 --> 00:18:19.899 friends, 00:18:19.939 --> 00:18:20.720 that's not 00:18:20.720 --> 00:18:22.159 how the worship 00:18:22.159 --> 00:18:23.419 of the one true God 00:18:23.419 --> 00:18:24.200 is meant to be. 00:18:25.480 --> 00:18:26.639 God created you 00:18:26.639 --> 00:18:27.019 and I 00:18:27.019 --> 00:18:28.439 as whole 00:18:28.439 --> 00:18:29.519 integrated 00:18:29.519 --> 00:18:30.339 persons 00:18:30.339 --> 00:18:31.139 with a body 00:18:31.139 --> 00:18:32.119 and a mind 00:18:32.119 --> 00:18:32.819 and a heart. 00:18:32.819 --> 00:18:34.700 God wants 00:18:34.700 --> 00:18:36.119 all of us 00:18:36.119 --> 00:18:36.839 engaged 00:18:36.839 --> 00:18:37.859 in that worship. 00:18:39.779 --> 00:18:40.480 And if our worship 00:18:40.480 --> 00:18:41.659 is unintelligible 00:18:41.659 --> 00:18:42.839 for whatever reason, 00:18:43.399 --> 00:18:45.359 then our minds 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:46.480 can't worship God. 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:48.419 And we can't be renewed 00:18:48.419 --> 00:18:49.439 in the image of God 00:18:49.439 --> 00:18:50.000 in the way, 00:18:50.079 --> 00:18:50.859 in the full way 00:18:50.859 --> 00:18:51.779 that God intends. 00:18:53.200 --> 00:18:53.500 Now, 00:18:53.559 --> 00:18:53.779 of course, 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:54.720 God transcends 00:18:54.720 --> 00:18:55.919 our rational capacities, 00:18:56.079 --> 00:18:56.319 right? 00:18:56.899 --> 00:18:57.579 Greg touched on this 00:18:57.579 --> 00:18:58.099 last week. 00:18:58.099 --> 00:18:59.419 We could never 00:18:59.419 --> 00:19:00.700 with our human minds 00:19:00.700 --> 00:19:02.419 fully comprehend 00:19:02.420 --> 00:19:03.380 God. 00:19:05.120 --> 00:19:06.160 But just because 00:19:06.160 --> 00:19:06.900 God exceeds 00:19:06.900 --> 00:19:07.720 our understanding 00:19:07.720 --> 00:19:08.160 doesn't mean 00:19:08.160 --> 00:19:09.039 we can't understand 00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:10.080 anything about God 00:19:10.080 --> 00:19:10.480 at all. 00:19:12.560 --> 00:19:13.200 You know, 00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:14.380 there's plenty 00:19:14.380 --> 00:19:16.019 that my three children 00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:17.380 don't understand 00:19:17.380 --> 00:19:18.660 about me and Beth, 00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:19.240 right? 00:19:19.860 --> 00:19:20.820 Especially Owen 00:19:20.820 --> 00:19:21.880 as he sits in his high chair 00:19:21.880 --> 00:19:23.200 and just slams 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:23.840 the Cheerios 00:19:23.840 --> 00:19:24.740 off of his tray 00:19:24.740 --> 00:19:26.019 in sort of 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:27.200 nine-month-old 00:19:27.200 --> 00:19:28.100 glorious freedom. 00:19:28.980 --> 00:19:30.160 There is so much 00:19:30.160 --> 00:19:30.779 that my kids 00:19:30.779 --> 00:19:31.880 don't understand 00:19:31.880 --> 00:19:32.800 and don't comprehend 00:19:32.800 --> 00:19:33.640 about us 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:34.100 as adults, 00:19:34.180 --> 00:19:34.740 as parents. 00:19:36.640 --> 00:19:37.060 But, 00:19:37.540 --> 00:19:39.300 I think what they 00:19:39.300 --> 00:19:40.200 do know about us 00:19:40.200 --> 00:19:40.860 is true. 00:19:43.380 --> 00:19:44.320 That Beth and I 00:19:44.320 --> 00:19:45.020 are their mother 00:19:45.020 --> 00:19:45.560 and father 00:19:45.560 --> 00:19:45.900 and that we're 00:19:45.900 --> 00:19:46.580 their parents 00:19:46.580 --> 00:19:48.280 and that we love 00:19:48.280 --> 00:19:48.600 them 00:19:48.600 --> 00:19:52.180 and that we intend 00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:53.200 good things for them 00:19:53.200 --> 00:19:53.840 even if they don't 00:19:53.840 --> 00:19:54.680 understand why 00:19:54.680 --> 00:19:55.260 or how. 00:19:57.620 --> 00:19:58.320 It's the same 00:19:58.320 --> 00:19:58.980 with us in God, 00:19:58.980 --> 00:19:59.360 you see. 00:20:00.059 --> 00:20:01.000 We'll never 00:20:01.000 --> 00:20:02.140 plumb the depths 00:20:02.140 --> 00:20:03.039 of the infinite 00:20:03.039 --> 00:20:04.900 beautiful majesty 00:20:04.900 --> 00:20:05.839 that is the God 00:20:05.839 --> 00:20:06.299 who made us 00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:06.960 and yet 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:09.380 in God's grace 00:20:09.380 --> 00:20:10.660 he reveals himself 00:20:10.660 --> 00:20:11.940 truthfully to us 00:20:11.940 --> 00:20:13.140 so we can understand. 00:20:16.440 --> 00:20:17.360 And at this point 00:20:17.360 --> 00:20:18.720 it's worth pointing out 00:20:18.720 --> 00:20:21.339 that when we talk 00:20:21.339 --> 00:20:22.900 about intelligible worship 00:20:22.900 --> 00:20:23.660 of this great 00:20:23.660 --> 00:20:24.480 supreme God, 00:20:24.900 --> 00:20:25.740 that certainly 00:20:25.740 --> 00:20:26.620 doesn't mean 00:20:26.620 --> 00:20:27.859 it's watered down 00:20:27.859 --> 00:20:29.279 or oversimplified. 00:20:32.120 --> 00:20:32.680 You know, 00:20:32.720 --> 00:20:33.680 if we're going to pray 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:34.359 and praise 00:20:34.359 --> 00:20:35.059 and give thanks 00:20:35.059 --> 00:20:36.099 and build each other 00:20:36.099 --> 00:20:37.460 up with our minds 00:20:37.460 --> 00:20:38.620 as well as with our spirits, 00:20:38.759 --> 00:20:39.880 we certainly can't 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:40.640 check our minds 00:20:40.640 --> 00:20:41.240 at the door 00:20:41.240 --> 00:20:42.380 when we come in. 00:20:44.779 --> 00:20:45.380 Of course, 00:20:45.420 --> 00:20:45.900 there are going to be 00:20:45.900 --> 00:20:46.460 things that we don't 00:20:46.460 --> 00:20:47.339 quite understand 00:20:47.339 --> 00:20:47.960 at first, 00:20:48.039 --> 00:20:49.099 whether as new believers 00:20:49.099 --> 00:20:50.240 or people exploring 00:20:50.240 --> 00:20:50.720 Christianity 00:20:50.720 --> 00:20:51.920 or as people 00:20:51.920 --> 00:20:52.620 among us 00:20:52.620 --> 00:20:53.039 who've been believers 00:20:53.039 --> 00:20:53.640 for a long time, 00:20:53.700 --> 00:20:54.319 there are still truths 00:20:54.319 --> 00:20:55.240 that we're wrestling 00:20:55.240 --> 00:20:55.939 to grasp. 00:20:58.139 --> 00:20:59.019 But our services 00:20:59.019 --> 00:21:00.159 should strive 00:21:00.159 --> 00:21:01.240 not to sort of 00:21:01.240 --> 00:21:02.099 avoid those things 00:21:02.099 --> 00:21:03.000 or water them down 00:21:03.000 --> 00:21:03.659 but to make them 00:21:03.659 --> 00:21:04.839 as clear as we can. 00:21:06.919 --> 00:21:07.119 You know, 00:21:07.139 --> 00:21:07.700 that's one of the reasons 00:21:07.700 --> 00:21:08.700 why we don't shy away 00:21:08.700 --> 00:21:09.439 from using 00:21:09.439 --> 00:21:11.659 important theological 00:21:11.659 --> 00:21:12.460 words at Trinity. 00:21:13.980 --> 00:21:14.579 Words like 00:21:14.579 --> 00:21:15.359 justification 00:21:15.359 --> 00:21:18.299 or sanctification 00:21:18.299 --> 00:21:20.759 or propitiation. 00:21:21.899 --> 00:21:22.119 Now, 00:21:22.200 --> 00:21:22.659 you might be here 00:21:22.659 --> 00:21:23.659 and you have no idea 00:21:23.660 --> 00:21:24.460 what those words mean 00:21:24.460 --> 00:21:25.100 and that's okay. 00:21:25.259 --> 00:21:26.300 Hang around a little bit longer, 00:21:26.420 --> 00:21:27.340 we'll explain them 00:21:27.340 --> 00:21:28.160 and they'll become 00:21:28.160 --> 00:21:29.279 beautiful truths for you. 00:21:30.920 --> 00:21:31.500 But you know, 00:21:31.540 --> 00:21:32.460 we can't shy away 00:21:32.460 --> 00:21:33.360 from these things. 00:21:33.800 --> 00:21:34.840 They're worth learning. 00:21:34.960 --> 00:21:35.620 The concepts 00:21:35.620 --> 00:21:36.300 that are contained 00:21:36.300 --> 00:21:37.200 in those words 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:38.580 are worth exploring 00:21:38.580 --> 00:21:39.400 and understanding 00:21:39.400 --> 00:21:39.960 and we want to do 00:21:39.960 --> 00:21:40.820 our best 00:21:40.820 --> 00:21:41.980 as they come up 00:21:41.980 --> 00:21:42.400 in worship 00:21:42.400 --> 00:21:43.779 to explain them 00:21:43.779 --> 00:21:44.880 and make them intelligible 00:21:44.880 --> 00:21:45.480 so that we can 00:21:45.480 --> 00:21:46.460 grasp them not just 00:21:46.460 --> 00:21:46.820 with our spirit 00:21:46.820 --> 00:21:47.600 but with our minds. 00:21:47.599 --> 00:21:53.199 And so the beauty 00:21:53.199 --> 00:21:54.319 of verses 14 and 15 00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:55.599 here is that real, 00:21:56.240 --> 00:21:56.980 mature, 00:21:57.679 --> 00:21:58.579 corporate worship 00:21:58.579 --> 00:21:59.779 calls for our 00:21:59.779 --> 00:22:00.759 whole selves, 00:22:00.839 --> 00:22:01.159 you see. 00:22:03.399 --> 00:22:04.819 Spirit and mind 00:22:04.819 --> 00:22:06.019 and body too, 00:22:06.159 --> 00:22:06.699 Paul would say. 00:22:07.539 --> 00:22:09.199 Nothing gets left behind 00:22:09.199 --> 00:22:11.159 in our worship of God. 00:22:11.799 --> 00:22:12.679 The worship of God 00:22:12.679 --> 00:22:13.500 is not something 00:22:13.500 --> 00:22:14.879 we just partition off 00:22:14.880 --> 00:22:16.340 in our quote unquote 00:22:16.340 --> 00:22:17.820 spiritual lives over here. 00:22:17.900 --> 00:22:20.260 No, it's all of ourselves. 00:22:23.160 --> 00:22:24.220 And in fact, friends, 00:22:24.280 --> 00:22:25.240 isn't that what stands 00:22:25.240 --> 00:22:26.880 at the heart of Christianity? 00:22:27.960 --> 00:22:29.540 The fact that nothing 00:22:29.540 --> 00:22:30.920 about our humanity 00:22:30.920 --> 00:22:32.000 gets left behind. 00:22:34.320 --> 00:22:35.280 Jesus Christ, 00:22:35.420 --> 00:22:36.100 we profess, 00:22:36.480 --> 00:22:37.760 is fully God 00:22:37.760 --> 00:22:39.200 and fully human. 00:22:40.580 --> 00:22:41.520 In the redemption 00:22:41.520 --> 00:22:42.220 that he brings, 00:22:42.320 --> 00:22:43.540 there's no part of us 00:22:43.540 --> 00:22:43.960 as humans 00:22:43.960 --> 00:22:45.039 that gets left behind. 00:22:46.400 --> 00:22:47.120 Jesus took on 00:22:47.120 --> 00:22:48.819 a full human nature 00:22:48.819 --> 00:22:49.640 so that he might 00:22:49.640 --> 00:22:51.259 renew and redeem us 00:22:51.259 --> 00:22:52.819 as fully humans. 00:22:53.819 --> 00:22:54.640 He's taken up 00:22:54.640 --> 00:22:55.880 the whole of us, 00:22:56.200 --> 00:22:57.440 mind and body 00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:58.240 and spirit, 00:22:58.680 --> 00:22:59.079 everything, 00:22:59.279 --> 00:22:59.799 so that it might 00:22:59.799 --> 00:23:00.980 all become renewed. 00:23:05.100 --> 00:23:05.600 And isn't this 00:23:05.600 --> 00:23:06.299 what Jesus himself 00:23:06.299 --> 00:23:07.019 was talking about 00:23:07.019 --> 00:23:07.480 in our reading 00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:08.620 from John 4 earlier 00:23:08.620 --> 00:23:09.480 that Susan and Ivor 00:23:09.480 --> 00:23:10.120 read for us? 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:12.559 That true worship 00:23:12.559 --> 00:23:13.559 worship, 00:23:13.559 --> 00:23:14.339 the worship 00:23:14.339 --> 00:23:15.500 of the true God 00:23:15.500 --> 00:23:17.460 is worship 00:23:17.460 --> 00:23:18.039 in spirit 00:23:18.039 --> 00:23:19.279 and in truth. 00:23:20.139 --> 00:23:21.000 It involves 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:21.659 our affections 00:23:21.659 --> 00:23:22.559 and our understanding, 00:23:22.679 --> 00:23:23.099 our spirit 00:23:23.099 --> 00:23:23.960 and our mind. 00:23:25.039 --> 00:23:25.839 Because God 00:23:25.839 --> 00:23:26.859 created both 00:23:26.859 --> 00:23:27.659 and he became 00:23:27.659 --> 00:23:28.720 incarnate in both 00:23:28.720 --> 00:23:29.519 to rescue us 00:23:29.519 --> 00:23:30.539 and he intends 00:23:30.539 --> 00:23:31.179 for both 00:23:31.179 --> 00:23:32.279 through his Holy Spirit 00:23:32.279 --> 00:23:34.019 to be involved 00:23:34.019 --> 00:23:34.539 in the worship 00:23:34.539 --> 00:23:34.940 of him. 00:23:34.940 --> 00:23:40.380 So that's the first reason. 00:23:40.480 --> 00:23:41.299 Paul quickly moves 00:23:41.299 --> 00:23:42.559 to another reason 00:23:42.559 --> 00:23:43.580 why intelligible worship 00:23:43.580 --> 00:23:44.279 is so vital 00:23:44.279 --> 00:23:44.720 for the church. 00:23:44.799 --> 00:23:45.519 Not only does it 00:23:45.519 --> 00:23:46.440 make us whole 00:23:46.440 --> 00:23:47.440 human beings, 00:23:48.720 --> 00:23:49.120 but second, 00:23:49.259 --> 00:23:49.900 intelligible worship 00:23:49.900 --> 00:23:50.620 is vital for us 00:23:50.620 --> 00:23:51.440 because 00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:54.000 intelligible worship 00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:55.299 builds up 00:23:55.299 --> 00:23:56.259 fellow believers 00:23:56.259 --> 00:23:57.779 instead of 00:23:57.779 --> 00:23:58.799 alienating them. 00:23:59.559 --> 00:24:00.759 It builds up 00:24:00.759 --> 00:24:01.160 the church 00:24:01.160 --> 00:24:01.840 rather than 00:24:01.840 --> 00:24:02.559 breaking up 00:24:02.559 --> 00:24:03.000 the church, 00:24:03.080 --> 00:24:03.400 you see. 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:04.840 And you see that 00:24:04.840 --> 00:24:05.640 in verses 16 00:24:05.640 --> 00:24:06.259 through 19. 00:24:07.860 --> 00:24:08.860 When Paul talks 00:24:08.860 --> 00:24:09.280 about here 00:24:09.280 --> 00:24:10.700 anyone in the position 00:24:10.700 --> 00:24:11.700 of an outsider, 00:24:13.380 --> 00:24:14.660 most commentators 00:24:14.660 --> 00:24:15.180 say that Paul 00:24:15.180 --> 00:24:15.840 isn't actually talking 00:24:15.840 --> 00:24:16.540 about an unbeliever 00:24:16.540 --> 00:24:17.060 who's come in, 00:24:17.120 --> 00:24:17.720 but he's talking 00:24:17.720 --> 00:24:18.740 about the fact 00:24:18.740 --> 00:24:21.240 that there might 00:24:21.240 --> 00:24:21.980 be believers, 00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:22.880 Christians, 00:24:23.440 --> 00:24:24.800 who are made 00:24:24.800 --> 00:24:26.080 to feel like 00:24:26.080 --> 00:24:26.600 outsiders 00:24:26.600 --> 00:24:27.900 in their own church 00:24:27.900 --> 00:24:29.620 because they don't 00:24:29.620 --> 00:24:30.259 understand what's 00:24:30.259 --> 00:24:30.860 being said. 00:24:30.859 --> 00:24:33.419 they're being 00:24:33.419 --> 00:24:34.359 alienated 00:24:34.359 --> 00:24:34.799 from their 00:24:34.799 --> 00:24:35.699 church family, 00:24:35.779 --> 00:24:36.479 from their own 00:24:36.479 --> 00:24:37.679 body by the fact 00:24:37.679 --> 00:24:38.559 that worship 00:24:38.559 --> 00:24:39.579 is being just 00:24:39.579 --> 00:24:40.659 washed over 00:24:40.659 --> 00:24:42.159 by unintelligibility. 00:24:46.039 --> 00:24:46.859 In many ways, 00:24:46.919 --> 00:24:47.339 that was me 00:24:47.339 --> 00:24:48.119 fumbling with my 00:24:48.119 --> 00:24:48.740 book of common 00:24:48.740 --> 00:24:49.479 prayer and hymnal 00:24:49.479 --> 00:24:50.259 with my Anglican 00:24:50.259 --> 00:24:50.579 friends, 00:24:50.659 --> 00:24:51.339 unable to sort of 00:24:51.339 --> 00:24:51.939 keep up and 00:24:51.939 --> 00:24:52.539 feeling like an 00:24:52.539 --> 00:24:52.939 outsider. 00:24:56.740 --> 00:24:57.359 But you know, 00:24:57.399 --> 00:24:57.899 more to the point, 00:24:57.979 --> 00:24:58.419 if we aren't 00:24:58.419 --> 00:24:59.399 striving to use 00:24:59.400 --> 00:25:00.080 intelligible, 00:25:00.280 --> 00:25:01.500 substantive words 00:25:01.500 --> 00:25:02.800 in our worship, 00:25:03.220 --> 00:25:04.660 the whole point 00:25:04.660 --> 00:25:06.400 for Paul is lost. 00:25:09.220 --> 00:25:10.100 Do you see what 00:25:10.100 --> 00:25:10.840 Paul is saying 00:25:10.840 --> 00:25:11.080 here? 00:25:11.940 --> 00:25:13.040 This is so critical. 00:25:13.900 --> 00:25:14.540 What is it that 00:25:14.540 --> 00:25:15.460 builds us up in 00:25:15.460 --> 00:25:15.780 the faith? 00:25:16.040 --> 00:25:16.600 What is it that 00:25:16.600 --> 00:25:17.560 instructs us? 00:25:17.620 --> 00:25:18.080 What is it that 00:25:18.080 --> 00:25:19.280 causes us to grow? 00:25:19.640 --> 00:25:20.280 What is it that 00:25:20.280 --> 00:25:20.900 we're meant to be 00:25:20.900 --> 00:25:22.500 doing when we get 00:25:22.500 --> 00:25:22.880 together? 00:25:24.620 --> 00:25:25.580 What is it that 00:25:25.580 --> 00:25:26.560 causes us to be 00:25:26.560 --> 00:25:27.340 built up? 00:25:27.339 --> 00:25:29.879 not mere 00:25:29.879 --> 00:25:30.799 experiences, 00:25:30.919 --> 00:25:31.439 no matter how 00:25:31.439 --> 00:25:32.119 powerful they 00:25:32.119 --> 00:25:32.679 might be. 00:25:34.639 --> 00:25:35.720 But Paul says 00:25:35.720 --> 00:25:37.319 words, 00:25:38.919 --> 00:25:39.879 intelligible, 00:25:41.000 --> 00:25:41.720 applicable, 00:25:43.179 --> 00:25:44.639 gospel-filled, 00:25:44.939 --> 00:25:45.959 spirit-filled 00:25:45.959 --> 00:25:47.319 words. 00:25:49.220 --> 00:25:50.220 And then Paul says 00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:50.639 something quite 00:25:50.639 --> 00:25:50.980 shocking. 00:25:51.119 --> 00:25:51.399 He says, 00:25:51.559 --> 00:25:52.539 given the choice 00:25:52.539 --> 00:25:53.679 between saying 00:25:53.679 --> 00:25:55.319 five intelligible 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:57.379 words and 10,000 00:25:57.379 --> 00:25:58.519 words in a tongue, 00:25:58.799 --> 00:25:59.859 which would be an 00:25:59.859 --> 00:26:01.019 incredible personal 00:26:01.019 --> 00:26:01.819 experience of the 00:26:01.819 --> 00:26:02.019 spirit, 00:26:02.099 --> 00:26:02.480 would it not? 00:26:04.259 --> 00:26:04.740 Paul says, 00:26:04.819 --> 00:26:05.319 in church, 00:26:06.079 --> 00:26:06.619 when we're all 00:26:06.619 --> 00:26:06.960 together, 00:26:07.960 --> 00:26:09.279 I choose five 00:26:09.279 --> 00:26:10.299 words every time. 00:26:14.839 --> 00:26:15.179 You see, 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:15.379 friends, 00:26:15.460 --> 00:26:16.079 striving for 00:26:16.079 --> 00:26:16.879 intelligible worship 00:26:16.879 --> 00:26:18.000 is important because 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:20.119 the nature of 00:26:20.119 --> 00:26:20.639 corporate worship, 00:26:20.779 --> 00:26:21.519 corporate worship 00:26:21.519 --> 00:26:22.819 isn't ultimately 00:26:22.819 --> 00:26:25.259 about me as 00:26:25.259 --> 00:26:25.779 an individual. 00:26:29.000 --> 00:26:29.639 Corporate worship 00:26:29.639 --> 00:26:30.980 is about glorifying 00:26:30.980 --> 00:26:32.700 God and 00:26:32.700 --> 00:26:34.720 building up my 00:26:34.720 --> 00:26:35.480 brother and 00:26:35.480 --> 00:26:36.240 sister in the 00:26:36.240 --> 00:26:36.619 faith. 00:26:37.700 --> 00:26:38.779 How many times 00:26:38.779 --> 00:26:39.439 does Paul say in 00:26:39.439 --> 00:26:39.980 this chapter, 00:26:40.539 --> 00:26:42.500 let everything be 00:26:42.500 --> 00:26:43.200 done for building 00:26:43.200 --> 00:26:43.480 up. 00:26:43.799 --> 00:26:44.799 It's all about 00:26:44.799 --> 00:26:45.439 serving the church 00:26:45.439 --> 00:26:46.119 and building the 00:26:46.119 --> 00:26:46.299 church. 00:26:46.460 --> 00:26:47.259 That's why you're 00:26:47.259 --> 00:26:47.799 getting together, 00:26:47.859 --> 00:26:48.659 to build one 00:26:48.659 --> 00:26:49.539 another up. 00:26:49.539 --> 00:26:52.859 And of course, 00:26:52.920 --> 00:26:53.700 once we get those 00:26:53.700 --> 00:26:54.399 two things straight 00:26:54.399 --> 00:26:54.899 in our mind, 00:26:54.960 --> 00:26:55.440 that it's about 00:26:55.440 --> 00:26:56.940 seeing God for who 00:26:56.940 --> 00:26:58.379 he truly is and 00:26:58.379 --> 00:26:59.319 building each other 00:26:59.319 --> 00:26:59.519 up, 00:26:59.639 --> 00:27:01.099 then worship is 00:27:01.099 --> 00:27:01.779 also about being 00:27:01.779 --> 00:27:03.639 humble enough to 00:27:03.639 --> 00:27:05.539 recognize our need 00:27:05.539 --> 00:27:06.420 personally to be 00:27:06.420 --> 00:27:07.019 built up in the 00:27:07.019 --> 00:27:07.399 faith too, 00:27:07.460 --> 00:27:08.159 that we need each 00:27:08.159 --> 00:27:08.960 other to be built 00:27:08.960 --> 00:27:09.220 up. 00:27:10.940 --> 00:27:11.500 Of course, 00:27:11.539 --> 00:27:12.379 we all come on 00:27:12.379 --> 00:27:13.359 Sundays looking to 00:27:13.359 --> 00:27:14.079 be refreshed, 00:27:14.420 --> 00:27:15.220 to be fed 00:27:15.220 --> 00:27:15.879 spiritually. 00:27:16.180 --> 00:27:17.200 We're all coming 00:27:17.200 --> 00:27:18.299 hungry for a word 00:27:18.299 --> 00:27:18.740 from the Lord. 00:27:18.740 --> 00:27:19.140 Yes, 00:27:19.200 --> 00:27:19.779 that's a good 00:27:19.779 --> 00:27:20.240 thing. 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:22.599 But friends, 00:27:22.660 --> 00:27:23.299 we're not just 00:27:23.299 --> 00:27:24.380 here for ourselves. 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:27.059 This isn't 200 00:27:27.059 --> 00:27:27.940 people having a 00:27:27.940 --> 00:27:29.220 private experience 00:27:29.220 --> 00:27:29.920 of worship. 00:27:32.700 --> 00:27:33.420 We're here to 00:27:33.420 --> 00:27:34.039 build others up. 00:27:34.200 --> 00:27:34.660 And you know, 00:27:34.700 --> 00:27:35.500 this is true so 00:27:35.500 --> 00:27:38.059 much so that if 00:27:38.059 --> 00:27:38.980 given the option 00:27:38.980 --> 00:27:40.099 on Sunday morning 00:27:40.099 --> 00:27:41.380 between on the 00:27:41.380 --> 00:27:42.079 one hand, 00:27:43.420 --> 00:27:44.539 having a private, 00:27:45.240 --> 00:27:46.640 utterly transcendental 00:27:46.640 --> 00:27:47.900 religious experience 00:27:47.900 --> 00:27:49.780 where God pins you 00:27:49.780 --> 00:27:50.880 to the pew in 00:27:50.880 --> 00:27:52.600 rapturous delight of 00:27:52.600 --> 00:27:53.320 his infinite 00:27:53.320 --> 00:27:54.160 excellency. 00:27:57.160 --> 00:27:58.000 And on the other 00:27:58.000 --> 00:27:58.420 hand, 00:27:59.259 --> 00:28:00.080 speaking five 00:28:00.080 --> 00:28:01.019 encouraging words to 00:28:01.019 --> 00:28:01.620 the person in the 00:28:01.620 --> 00:28:02.380 pew next to you, 00:28:03.920 --> 00:28:04.519 Paul says, 00:28:04.780 --> 00:28:05.460 I pick that one 00:28:05.460 --> 00:28:06.080 every time. 00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:10.040 Now friends, 00:28:10.080 --> 00:28:10.500 I don't know about 00:28:10.500 --> 00:28:10.740 you, 00:28:11.460 --> 00:28:12.220 but that's a 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:13.100 challenging word. 00:28:13.099 --> 00:28:15.599 I'd love to show 00:28:15.599 --> 00:28:16.679 up to church and 00:28:16.679 --> 00:28:17.219 be pinned to the 00:28:17.219 --> 00:28:18.019 pew in rapturous 00:28:18.019 --> 00:28:18.899 delights of infinite 00:28:18.899 --> 00:28:19.779 ecstasy about the 00:28:19.779 --> 00:28:20.659 God who saved us. 00:28:20.939 --> 00:28:21.379 Wouldn't you? 00:28:22.019 --> 00:28:23.199 I hope that happens. 00:28:26.919 --> 00:28:27.719 But Paul says, 00:28:27.839 --> 00:28:28.059 no, 00:28:28.159 --> 00:28:29.259 my primary motive 00:28:29.259 --> 00:28:29.939 for being here, 00:28:30.059 --> 00:28:30.319 yes, 00:28:30.379 --> 00:28:31.099 is to delight in 00:28:31.099 --> 00:28:31.919 God without a 00:28:31.919 --> 00:28:32.179 doubt, 00:28:32.799 --> 00:28:33.859 to worship him and 00:28:33.859 --> 00:28:34.759 say he's truly 00:28:34.759 --> 00:28:35.399 among us, 00:28:36.079 --> 00:28:36.899 but I'm here to 00:28:36.899 --> 00:28:37.500 build other people 00:28:37.500 --> 00:28:37.779 up. 00:28:37.779 --> 00:28:40.720 And that's 00:28:40.720 --> 00:28:41.299 challenging because 00:28:41.299 --> 00:28:41.740 I don't know about 00:28:41.740 --> 00:28:41.879 you, 00:28:41.940 --> 00:28:42.420 but I don't feel 00:28:42.420 --> 00:28:42.940 that way most 00:28:42.940 --> 00:28:43.299 Sundays. 00:28:45.299 --> 00:28:46.139 And I'm up here 00:28:46.139 --> 00:28:46.480 preaching. 00:28:49.960 --> 00:28:50.700 Most Sundays, 00:28:50.819 --> 00:28:51.420 aren't we thinking 00:28:51.420 --> 00:28:52.240 more about our own 00:28:52.240 --> 00:28:52.519 selves, 00:28:52.599 --> 00:28:53.480 what's in it for me 00:28:53.480 --> 00:28:54.139 than I am thinking 00:28:54.139 --> 00:28:54.759 about others? 00:28:57.279 --> 00:28:58.019 And you know, 00:28:58.279 --> 00:28:59.619 if we're honest, 00:29:01.319 --> 00:29:02.339 if I'm honest, 00:29:02.399 --> 00:29:03.299 there's part of me 00:29:03.299 --> 00:29:05.639 that actually kind of 00:29:05.639 --> 00:29:07.299 likes unintelligible 00:29:07.299 --> 00:29:07.759 worship. 00:29:07.779 --> 00:29:10.799 think about it. 00:29:11.799 --> 00:29:12.819 I kind of like 00:29:12.819 --> 00:29:13.799 unintelligible 00:29:13.799 --> 00:29:14.139 worship, 00:29:14.220 --> 00:29:15.579 at least if I'm on 00:29:15.579 --> 00:29:16.279 the inside, 00:29:17.279 --> 00:29:18.799 if I'm the one 00:29:18.799 --> 00:29:19.460 who's in the know, 00:29:19.980 --> 00:29:21.019 if I'm feeling like 00:29:21.019 --> 00:29:21.779 I'm in the inner 00:29:21.779 --> 00:29:22.139 circle. 00:29:24.220 --> 00:29:25.819 I like hanging on 00:29:25.819 --> 00:29:26.519 to the sentimental 00:29:26.519 --> 00:29:28.099 feelings that this 00:29:28.099 --> 00:29:29.879 old hymn gives me 00:29:29.879 --> 00:29:31.539 even though no one 00:29:31.539 --> 00:29:32.440 around me understands 00:29:32.440 --> 00:29:32.839 it. 00:29:36.220 --> 00:29:37.379 I like, 00:29:37.380 --> 00:29:39.240 feeling safe in the 00:29:39.240 --> 00:29:40.280 traditions and the 00:29:40.280 --> 00:29:41.000 ways that we've 00:29:41.000 --> 00:29:42.080 always done it 00:29:42.080 --> 00:29:42.720 around here. 00:29:44.540 --> 00:29:45.460 Even though no one 00:29:45.460 --> 00:29:46.580 understands why and 00:29:46.580 --> 00:29:47.080 it's completely 00:29:47.080 --> 00:29:47.960 unintelligible to 00:29:47.960 --> 00:29:48.760 newcomers and it 00:29:48.760 --> 00:29:49.600 practically obscures 00:29:49.600 --> 00:29:50.140 the gospel. 00:29:52.400 --> 00:29:53.340 And above all, 00:29:53.400 --> 00:29:53.640 friends, 00:29:53.720 --> 00:29:54.360 although we'd never 00:29:54.360 --> 00:29:55.280 say it this way, 00:29:55.660 --> 00:29:56.860 don't we love the 00:29:56.860 --> 00:29:58.100 way that being on 00:29:58.100 --> 00:29:59.000 the inside of 00:29:59.000 --> 00:29:59.700 something that other 00:29:59.700 --> 00:30:00.800 people don't understand, 00:30:00.920 --> 00:30:01.820 don't we love the way 00:30:01.820 --> 00:30:02.960 that that feeds our 00:30:02.960 --> 00:30:03.460 pride? 00:30:03.460 --> 00:30:05.579 to think that we've 00:30:05.579 --> 00:30:06.440 got something that 00:30:06.440 --> 00:30:07.460 someone else doesn't 00:30:07.460 --> 00:30:08.259 and it sets us 00:30:08.259 --> 00:30:08.620 apart. 00:30:11.039 --> 00:30:12.160 We know the lingo, 00:30:12.759 --> 00:30:13.799 we can speak in the 00:30:13.799 --> 00:30:14.140 tongue, 00:30:14.460 --> 00:30:15.480 we can hit the high 00:30:15.480 --> 00:30:16.460 note of that crazy 00:30:16.460 --> 00:30:16.860 hymn, 00:30:17.420 --> 00:30:19.960 and it makes me look 00:30:19.960 --> 00:30:20.259 good. 00:30:24.440 --> 00:30:24.880 Friends, 00:30:24.960 --> 00:30:25.920 how wretched we are. 00:30:26.700 --> 00:30:27.799 How broken we are 00:30:27.799 --> 00:30:28.380 that we come to 00:30:28.380 --> 00:30:29.039 worship with these 00:30:29.039 --> 00:30:30.019 kinds of feelings and 00:30:30.019 --> 00:30:30.480 motivations. 00:30:30.480 --> 00:30:30.640 Christians. 00:30:34.339 --> 00:30:35.160 But don't you see 00:30:35.160 --> 00:30:35.880 that this is what the 00:30:35.880 --> 00:30:38.200 gospel actually rescues 00:30:38.200 --> 00:30:38.700 us from? 00:30:40.640 --> 00:30:41.720 That there's good news 00:30:41.720 --> 00:30:42.319 for us. 00:30:44.299 --> 00:30:45.660 Because God has done 00:30:45.660 --> 00:30:46.579 something that will 00:30:46.579 --> 00:30:48.380 get you to trade your 00:30:48.380 --> 00:30:49.700 love of self and love 00:30:49.700 --> 00:30:51.279 of praise and to trade 00:30:51.279 --> 00:30:55.019 your pride so that you 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:56.360 actually start to think 00:30:56.360 --> 00:30:58.599 about others and you 00:30:58.599 --> 00:30:59.360 start to think about 00:30:59.359 --> 00:31:01.500 coming and caring more 00:31:01.500 --> 00:31:02.079 about what's going to 00:31:02.079 --> 00:31:02.699 build them up. 00:31:04.699 --> 00:31:05.599 What has he done? 00:31:09.319 --> 00:31:09.679 Well, 00:31:09.699 --> 00:31:09.839 friends, 00:31:09.879 --> 00:31:10.559 when we see what 00:31:10.559 --> 00:31:13.399 Christ has done for 00:31:13.399 --> 00:31:13.679 me, 00:31:13.819 --> 00:31:14.439 when you see what 00:31:14.439 --> 00:31:15.179 Christ has done for 00:31:15.179 --> 00:31:15.559 you, 00:31:17.479 --> 00:31:18.119 you see, 00:31:18.199 --> 00:31:19.299 God made himself 00:31:19.299 --> 00:31:20.740 intelligible to us. 00:31:21.339 --> 00:31:22.579 The infinite God that 00:31:22.579 --> 00:31:23.419 our minds could never 00:31:23.419 --> 00:31:24.099 grasp. 00:31:24.099 --> 00:31:25.099 God, 00:31:25.099 --> 00:31:28.259 the God that because of 00:31:28.259 --> 00:31:28.719 our sin, 00:31:28.799 --> 00:31:29.799 we could never 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:30.879 understand. 00:31:32.319 --> 00:31:33.459 This God has made 00:31:33.459 --> 00:31:35.500 himself utterly known 00:31:35.500 --> 00:31:36.199 to us. 00:31:38.699 --> 00:31:39.819 And at the most 00:31:39.819 --> 00:31:41.159 incredible, 00:31:41.419 --> 00:31:42.179 infinite cost. 00:31:43.179 --> 00:31:43.699 Long ago, 00:31:43.759 --> 00:31:44.480 at many times, 00:31:44.539 --> 00:31:45.199 and in many ways, 00:31:45.279 --> 00:31:46.039 God spoke to our 00:31:46.039 --> 00:31:46.619 fathers by the 00:31:46.619 --> 00:31:46.939 prophets, 00:31:47.059 --> 00:31:47.379 the writer of 00:31:47.379 --> 00:31:47.859 Hebrews says. 00:31:48.059 --> 00:31:48.939 But in his last 00:31:48.939 --> 00:31:49.259 days, 00:31:49.259 --> 00:31:50.779 he's spoken to us 00:31:50.779 --> 00:31:51.899 by his son. 00:31:53.079 --> 00:31:54.339 Jesus Christ came 00:31:54.339 --> 00:31:54.920 and didn't just 00:31:54.920 --> 00:31:56.259 reveal who God was 00:31:56.259 --> 00:31:56.559 to us, 00:31:56.639 --> 00:31:58.119 but died on a 00:31:58.119 --> 00:31:59.119 cross for us 00:31:59.119 --> 00:32:00.420 so that our sins 00:32:00.420 --> 00:32:01.019 could be forgiven, 00:32:01.160 --> 00:32:02.000 so that our minds 00:32:02.000 --> 00:32:02.619 could be renewed, 00:32:02.720 --> 00:32:03.180 so that we could 00:32:03.180 --> 00:32:03.759 actually be in a 00:32:03.759 --> 00:32:05.019 relationship with God, 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:07.039 so that God wouldn't 00:32:07.039 --> 00:32:08.240 be a mystery to us 00:32:08.240 --> 00:32:08.639 anymore. 00:32:09.639 --> 00:32:10.319 Someone that we feel 00:32:10.319 --> 00:32:11.059 like we're groping 00:32:11.059 --> 00:32:12.039 and grasping after, 00:32:12.139 --> 00:32:13.759 but someone who 00:32:13.759 --> 00:32:14.200 could be in our 00:32:14.200 --> 00:32:14.960 very midst. 00:32:14.960 --> 00:32:19.160 You see, 00:32:19.240 --> 00:32:19.380 friends, 00:32:19.420 --> 00:32:20.000 when Christ took 00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:20.779 on human nature 00:32:20.779 --> 00:32:22.100 and lived a perfect 00:32:22.100 --> 00:32:23.120 life in your place 00:32:23.120 --> 00:32:24.420 and died on a 00:32:24.420 --> 00:32:24.680 cross, 00:32:24.740 --> 00:32:25.059 the death you 00:32:25.059 --> 00:32:25.920 deserve to die, 00:32:26.140 --> 00:32:27.079 and rose again on 00:32:27.079 --> 00:32:27.700 the third day and 00:32:27.700 --> 00:32:28.539 ascended to the 00:32:28.539 --> 00:32:29.240 Father and where he 00:32:29.240 --> 00:32:29.660 stands now, 00:32:29.759 --> 00:32:30.819 interceding for all 00:32:30.819 --> 00:32:31.400 who believe, 00:32:31.680 --> 00:32:32.840 all this Christ has 00:32:32.840 --> 00:32:33.740 done for us, 00:32:34.400 --> 00:32:35.740 for those who 00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:36.440 trust in him. 00:32:38.200 --> 00:32:39.120 And if Christ has 00:32:39.120 --> 00:32:39.980 done that for me, 00:32:40.039 --> 00:32:40.960 if I have fellowship 00:32:40.960 --> 00:32:42.700 with God through 00:32:42.700 --> 00:32:43.819 Jesus by grace, 00:32:43.880 --> 00:32:44.940 if he's come, 00:32:44.960 --> 00:32:45.519 and made himself 00:32:45.519 --> 00:32:46.500 known to me, 00:32:46.660 --> 00:32:47.360 and I'm in a 00:32:47.360 --> 00:32:48.200 relationship with 00:32:48.200 --> 00:32:48.480 him, 00:32:50.940 --> 00:32:51.920 then why in the 00:32:51.920 --> 00:32:52.539 world do I need 00:32:52.539 --> 00:32:53.519 to have my pride 00:32:53.519 --> 00:32:54.799 inflated or my 00:32:54.799 --> 00:32:56.059 traditions preserved? 00:32:57.420 --> 00:32:58.440 Why do I need to 00:32:58.440 --> 00:32:59.299 be on the inside of 00:32:59.299 --> 00:32:59.940 something that other 00:32:59.940 --> 00:33:00.539 people can't get? 00:33:00.579 --> 00:33:01.480 Who cares about 00:33:01.480 --> 00:33:02.100 that stuff? 00:33:03.059 --> 00:33:04.220 We know God and 00:33:04.220 --> 00:33:05.039 he's made himself 00:33:05.039 --> 00:33:05.519 known. 00:33:08.100 --> 00:33:09.200 And I can lay down 00:33:09.200 --> 00:33:09.940 my life for others 00:33:09.940 --> 00:33:11.880 because I have a 00:33:11.880 --> 00:33:12.620 life in Jesus that 00:33:12.620 --> 00:33:13.200 nothing can take 00:33:13.200 --> 00:33:13.380 away. 00:33:13.460 --> 00:33:14.440 I actually care more 00:33:14.440 --> 00:33:15.519 about speaking five 00:33:15.519 --> 00:33:16.180 words to others 00:33:16.180 --> 00:33:16.640 than having the 00:33:16.640 --> 00:33:17.120 most amazing 00:33:17.120 --> 00:33:18.220 spiritual experience. 00:33:20.220 --> 00:33:21.019 I've got every 00:33:21.019 --> 00:33:21.680 blessing in the 00:33:21.680 --> 00:33:22.640 heavenly places in 00:33:22.640 --> 00:33:23.360 Christ, Paul says. 00:33:23.420 --> 00:33:24.180 Why do I need more? 00:33:24.900 --> 00:33:25.700 They're good to have. 00:33:25.779 --> 00:33:26.559 Don't get me wrong. 00:33:28.759 --> 00:33:29.559 But you've already 00:33:29.559 --> 00:33:30.140 got the most 00:33:30.140 --> 00:33:30.840 precious thing. 00:33:32.880 --> 00:33:34.000 Because Christ has 00:33:34.000 --> 00:33:35.019 gone out for me, 00:33:35.100 --> 00:33:35.900 I can go out for 00:33:35.900 --> 00:33:36.140 others. 00:33:36.220 --> 00:33:36.900 You see, this is the 00:33:36.900 --> 00:33:38.680 very logic and nature 00:33:38.680 --> 00:33:39.580 of the gospel that 00:33:39.580 --> 00:33:40.519 works itself out in our 00:33:40.519 --> 00:33:41.200 corporate worship. 00:33:45.680 --> 00:33:46.420 So friends, let me 00:33:46.420 --> 00:33:47.079 encourage you, let me 00:33:47.079 --> 00:33:47.839 challenge you that when 00:33:47.839 --> 00:33:49.000 you come on Sundays, 00:33:50.359 --> 00:33:51.359 pray for two things. 00:33:53.559 --> 00:33:55.039 Pray that our services 00:33:55.039 --> 00:33:56.680 are on, that they are 00:33:56.680 --> 00:33:57.920 intelligible to those 00:33:57.920 --> 00:33:58.319 who gather. 00:34:00.099 --> 00:34:00.960 Pray that they will be 00:34:00.960 --> 00:34:02.019 intelligible to you and 00:34:02.019 --> 00:34:02.720 intelligible to the people 00:34:02.720 --> 00:34:03.180 next to you. 00:34:03.180 --> 00:34:05.920 And also pray that God 00:34:05.920 --> 00:34:08.159 will give you intelligible 00:34:08.159 --> 00:34:10.340 words, upbuilding, 00:34:10.800 --> 00:34:12.220 encouraging, consoling 00:34:12.220 --> 00:34:13.360 words to speak to one 00:34:13.360 --> 00:34:13.659 another. 00:34:18.740 --> 00:34:19.780 Let's wrap up by looking 00:34:19.780 --> 00:34:20.619 at the third and last 00:34:20.619 --> 00:34:21.720 reason why intelligible 00:34:21.720 --> 00:34:22.760 worship is so important. 00:34:23.420 --> 00:34:24.260 We'll do this briefly. 00:34:24.840 --> 00:34:25.980 In verses 20 through 25, 00:34:26.240 --> 00:34:27.019 here it is, this third 00:34:27.019 --> 00:34:27.320 reason. 00:34:27.420 --> 00:34:28.320 We see that intelligible 00:34:28.320 --> 00:34:30.180 worship is critical to our 00:34:30.180 --> 00:34:32.960 gathered worship because a 00:34:32.960 --> 00:34:35.159 because ultimately that is 00:34:35.159 --> 00:34:37.199 what changes unbelievers 00:34:37.199 --> 00:34:39.380 hearts instead of hardening 00:34:39.380 --> 00:34:39.920 their hearts. 00:34:41.599 --> 00:34:42.599 In other words, Paul has 00:34:42.599 --> 00:34:43.720 just shown us the value of 00:34:43.720 --> 00:34:44.800 intelligible worship for our 00:34:44.800 --> 00:34:45.340 fellow believers. 00:34:46.179 --> 00:34:47.400 Now he wants to say and 00:34:47.400 --> 00:34:48.639 point us to the fact that 00:34:48.639 --> 00:34:49.579 there's value in it, 00:34:49.699 --> 00:34:50.880 inestimable value in it for 00:34:50.880 --> 00:34:52.380 unbelievers and outsiders who 00:34:52.380 --> 00:34:53.440 attend our worship gathering. 00:34:55.460 --> 00:34:56.920 Verses 23 through 25 are 00:34:56.920 --> 00:34:57.320 pretty clear. 00:34:57.400 --> 00:34:59.240 If an unbeliever shows up and 00:34:59.240 --> 00:35:00.320 he or she can't understand a 00:35:00.320 --> 00:35:01.500 word of what's being said, 00:35:01.500 --> 00:35:02.760 they're going to say, 00:35:03.099 --> 00:35:05.099 you're out of your minds and 00:35:05.099 --> 00:35:05.900 their hearts are actually going 00:35:05.900 --> 00:35:06.820 to be hardened to the gospel. 00:35:09.719 --> 00:35:12.480 As a side note, when Paul says 00:35:12.480 --> 00:35:14.420 in verse 22 that tongues are a 00:35:14.420 --> 00:35:19.300 sign for unbelievers, this is 00:35:19.300 --> 00:35:20.059 probably what he means. 00:35:20.139 --> 00:35:21.880 In other words, Paul seems to be 00:35:21.880 --> 00:35:24.780 saying here that uninterpreted 00:35:24.780 --> 00:35:27.900 tongues can actually function not 00:35:27.900 --> 00:35:30.300 as a positive sign meant to lead 00:35:30.300 --> 00:35:31.460 to unbelievers conversion, but as a 00:35:31.460 --> 00:35:32.240 negative sign. 00:35:34.720 --> 00:35:36.760 As a negative sign, just like the 00:35:36.760 --> 00:35:38.840 quote in verse 21 from Isaiah 28, 00:35:39.580 --> 00:35:41.240 a negative sign that they're 00:35:41.240 --> 00:35:42.820 alienated from God in their 00:35:42.820 --> 00:35:44.280 refusal to believe in him. 00:35:47.519 --> 00:35:48.760 Unintelligible worship actually 00:35:48.760 --> 00:35:52.160 can function as a means of 00:35:52.160 --> 00:35:53.420 communicating to unbelievers that 00:35:53.420 --> 00:35:55.200 they're separated from God and to 00:35:55.200 --> 00:35:56.300 just confirm them in that 00:35:56.300 --> 00:35:56.840 unbelief. 00:35:56.840 --> 00:36:03.420 But on the other hand, Paul says, 00:36:03.539 --> 00:36:05.240 if an unbeliever attends the 00:36:05.240 --> 00:36:07.660 service and he or she can 00:36:07.660 --> 00:36:11.000 understand what's being said, then 00:36:11.000 --> 00:36:14.519 the Holy Spirit can bring genuine 00:36:14.519 --> 00:36:16.660 conviction of sin and genuine 00:36:16.660 --> 00:36:18.880 conversion to the worship of the 00:36:18.880 --> 00:36:20.440 true God and they'll declare that 00:36:20.440 --> 00:36:21.800 God is really among you. 00:36:21.800 --> 00:36:24.780 What a difference. 00:36:26.460 --> 00:36:28.200 Instead of declaring that Christians 00:36:28.200 --> 00:36:31.480 are out of their minds, people will 00:36:31.480 --> 00:36:33.519 come and declare that God is really 00:36:33.519 --> 00:36:34.420 among you. 00:36:36.160 --> 00:36:38.700 That the God that we hunger and thirst 00:36:38.700 --> 00:36:43.880 for is found, not in some experience, 00:36:43.960 --> 00:36:46.560 but right here in the gathered church. 00:36:46.559 --> 00:36:51.380 Again, this is probably what Paul means 00:36:51.380 --> 00:36:53.219 in that confusing verse in verse 22 00:36:53.219 --> 00:36:55.599 by saying that prophecy is a sign for 00:36:55.599 --> 00:36:55.980 believers. 00:36:56.159 --> 00:36:58.039 Unlike tongues, prophecy on the other 00:36:58.039 --> 00:37:00.299 hand serves as a positive sign that 00:37:00.299 --> 00:37:02.179 God has restored believers from their 00:37:02.179 --> 00:37:04.340 exile and sin and again dwells in 00:37:04.340 --> 00:37:04.860 their midst. 00:37:06.139 --> 00:37:08.159 A blessing that even unbelievers come 00:37:08.159 --> 00:37:09.420 to recognize and declare. 00:37:09.420 --> 00:37:13.680 And so if we were to sum it up, we 00:37:13.680 --> 00:37:15.079 need to say that intelligible worship 00:37:15.079 --> 00:37:17.039 is critical for our mission as a 00:37:17.039 --> 00:37:17.380 church. 00:37:17.760 --> 00:37:19.519 If we want unbelievers to come to know 00:37:19.519 --> 00:37:21.300 God and worship him, then our worship 00:37:21.300 --> 00:37:22.880 has to be a message that people can 00:37:22.880 --> 00:37:23.840 understand. 00:37:24.200 --> 00:37:27.159 After all, friends, isn't it true that 00:37:27.159 --> 00:37:28.780 it's the message of Christianity that 00:37:28.780 --> 00:37:30.180 sets it apart from everything else? 00:37:33.960 --> 00:37:35.079 You know, it's interesting that in 00:37:35.079 --> 00:37:37.539 verse 23, this expression, out of your 00:37:37.539 --> 00:37:40.139 minds, which could mean just that these 00:37:40.139 --> 00:37:44.000 people are crazy, could also be used as 00:37:44.000 --> 00:37:47.779 an expression describing ecstatic pagan 00:37:47.779 --> 00:37:49.320 worship in the first century. 00:37:50.719 --> 00:37:52.460 When the cults gathered together, they 00:37:52.460 --> 00:37:56.039 would sort of have these experiences and 00:37:56.039 --> 00:37:58.500 they would be out of their minds as the 00:37:58.500 --> 00:38:00.519 sort of whatever, the gods descended 00:38:00.519 --> 00:38:02.219 amongst them and they started to do 00:38:02.219 --> 00:38:02.759 their thing. 00:38:05.559 --> 00:38:07.219 In other words, Paul could be saying, 00:38:07.219 --> 00:38:10.299 look, if unbelievers show up and you're 00:38:10.299 --> 00:38:11.939 all speaking in unknown tongues in 00:38:11.939 --> 00:38:14.899 ecstatic, disorderly ways, unbelievers 00:38:14.899 --> 00:38:16.659 are just going to think that Christianity 00:38:16.659 --> 00:38:20.639 is just one more religious option on 00:38:20.639 --> 00:38:23.359 offer in the pluralistic market just like 00:38:23.359 --> 00:38:24.019 all the rest. 00:38:24.819 --> 00:38:26.299 They're not going to see anything 00:38:26.299 --> 00:38:26.819 different. 00:38:28.879 --> 00:38:30.519 And friends, that can be true of us today 00:38:30.519 --> 00:38:30.879 too. 00:38:30.880 --> 00:38:36.880 If we downplay the content of Christianity 00:38:36.880 --> 00:38:41.059 and in our worship make it seem like just one 00:38:41.059 --> 00:38:44.820 more option to make you feel good and live life in a 00:38:44.820 --> 00:38:48.800 more balanced way and find more inner peace. 00:38:50.400 --> 00:38:53.740 In other words, if we emphasize the experience over the 00:38:53.740 --> 00:38:58.800 message, then friends, what we're doing on Sunday mornings is just 00:38:58.800 --> 00:39:02.700 going to seem like any other spiritual option among all the 00:39:02.700 --> 00:39:03.960 rest that people can find. 00:39:05.960 --> 00:39:10.019 After all, every religion, every spirituality promises peace, 00:39:10.120 --> 00:39:10.539 doesn't it? 00:39:11.820 --> 00:39:15.300 Every spirituality offers a more well-adjusted approach to life. 00:39:15.300 --> 00:39:19.160 And some of them, if you devote yourselves to it, might actually 00:39:19.160 --> 00:39:20.280 give you a little bit of that. 00:39:23.600 --> 00:39:25.980 But friends, that's not the center of what Christianity is all 00:39:25.980 --> 00:39:26.260 about. 00:39:27.800 --> 00:39:31.740 First and foremost, Christianity is not a method for making your 00:39:31.740 --> 00:39:33.680 life more calm and giving you inner peace. 00:39:36.460 --> 00:39:37.440 It'll get you there. 00:39:38.519 --> 00:39:41.600 But before any of those things, Christianity is not a method. 00:39:41.599 --> 00:39:42.880 It's a message. 00:39:43.759 --> 00:39:45.039 It's news. 00:39:46.259 --> 00:39:51.460 It's an intelligible message with content and concrete shape about 00:39:51.460 --> 00:39:54.039 what God has done for us. 00:39:54.119 --> 00:39:57.739 It's something utterly and completely objective. 00:40:02.759 --> 00:40:06.079 The reason we're all looking for inner peace and calm is because we 00:40:06.079 --> 00:40:07.699 know that something isn't quite right. 00:40:07.699 --> 00:40:11.679 We don't feel comfortable in our own skin, do we? 00:40:16.339 --> 00:40:16.899 Exactly. 00:40:20.799 --> 00:40:22.639 We feel out of control, don't we? 00:40:23.779 --> 00:40:30.279 If we sit still long enough to actually listen to our life, we feel like 00:40:30.279 --> 00:40:32.679 we're almost going off the rails. 00:40:35.079 --> 00:40:35.639 Why? 00:40:35.639 --> 00:40:40.319 Why do we feel so out of joint in this beautiful world? 00:40:43.559 --> 00:40:52.659 Friends, the reality is, the secret of your heart is that you're alienated from 00:40:52.659 --> 00:40:53.739 the God who made you. 00:40:56.420 --> 00:41:00.219 That there's a fundamental spiritual problem in your life. 00:41:00.219 --> 00:41:05.799 That the vertical axis that you were created to have with God has been broken and now all 00:41:05.799 --> 00:41:07.839 of the horizontal things have gone to smash. 00:41:10.919 --> 00:41:14.279 We're in exile from God because of our sin. 00:41:14.419 --> 00:41:15.239 That's what's wrong. 00:41:15.239 --> 00:41:27.479 But the content, the message of Christianity is that God himself has gone into that dark exile 00:41:27.479 --> 00:41:33.759 and that mess and he's paid for our sins and he's brought us home. 00:41:33.760 --> 00:41:43.480 And that, friends, gives us a peace with God that is lasting and real and true. 00:41:44.760 --> 00:41:52.140 And no matter how crazy your life is on the outside, it's firm and secure because Christ did it. 00:41:52.139 --> 00:41:58.179 In a minute, we're going to take the Lord's Supper. 00:41:59.599 --> 00:42:06.920 And the Lord's Supper is a sign, it's an act, it's a practice that Jesus himself instituted in the church 00:42:06.920 --> 00:42:12.199 in order to make that message of what he's done all the more intelligible to us. 00:42:12.199 --> 00:42:21.679 Jesus was a very good teacher and he knew that sometimes we needed things we could hold and see and smell to drive the point home. 00:42:24.179 --> 00:42:30.919 This is broken bread and a poured out cup signifying the broken body of Christ for our sins 00:42:30.919 --> 00:42:35.980 and his spilled blood poured out for our forgiveness. 00:42:35.980 --> 00:42:47.420 But at the same time, at the same time as this meal speaks of Christ's death, it's also just that, a fellowship meal. 00:42:48.480 --> 00:42:56.760 To tell us that because of what Jesus has done, we're now welcome at God's table and we're welcoming God's kingdom. 00:42:57.599 --> 00:43:01.400 Not as strangers or foreigners or outsiders. 00:43:01.400 --> 00:43:06.579 But through Jesus, God welcomes us as friends. 00:43:08.119 --> 00:43:12.800 And even more than that, God makes us his daughters and his sons. 00:43:13.139 --> 00:43:16.320 We become his family around this table. 00:43:16.579 --> 00:43:17.500 That's what we're saying. 00:43:17.619 --> 00:43:18.720 That's what we're signifying. 00:43:21.660 --> 00:43:27.220 So in a moment, we're going to ask some folks to come up and we're going to help pass this out, the bread and the cup. 00:43:27.219 --> 00:43:31.759 And it's actually a moment for all of us this morning to respond to the message of the gospel. 00:43:32.579 --> 00:43:40.219 If you're already a Christian, if you've admitted that your sins deserve death, if you've believed that Christ died in your place and rose again, 00:43:40.279 --> 00:43:47.179 and if you've committed your life to him as Savior and Lord, then you can take this bread and this cup in humility and joy for what he's done for you. 00:43:47.239 --> 00:43:51.159 And you can remember that your sins are forgiven and you're a part of God's family now. 00:43:51.159 --> 00:44:02.779 Let me say as well that if you're trusting in Christ and you've not been baptized, maybe that's you and you're already taking communion because you can say, yeah, I put my trust in Jesus. 00:44:03.599 --> 00:44:09.799 If you've not actually been baptized, let me exhort you today to decide to pursue baptism. 00:44:10.019 --> 00:44:17.359 Talk to me after the service and we can talk about next steps to becoming a public follower of Jesus through the ordinance of baptism. 00:44:17.360 --> 00:44:28.980 Lastly, let me just say as we come to the table that if you're not a Christian, then this is the moment for you to decide what you're going to do with this intelligible message of Christianity. 00:44:31.780 --> 00:44:41.300 If you're here and you're not a Christian, instead of taking the bread and the cup, use this time to pray and ask God what next steps look like for you. 00:44:41.300 --> 00:44:47.120 Maybe you're still not exactly sure what it is Christians believe. 00:44:47.240 --> 00:44:51.400 You need some more content because it's still really new to you and you have some holes you want to get filled in. 00:44:54.160 --> 00:45:02.360 Or maybe you actually have some questions and doubts about what it is Christians actually believe and you want to get some clarifying sort of conversations going on. 00:45:03.620 --> 00:45:05.960 Friend, if that's you, let me encourage you to talk to the friend that you came with. 00:45:06.060 --> 00:45:07.180 Come grab me after the service. 00:45:07.280 --> 00:45:09.080 I'd love to talk to you more about that. 00:45:09.079 --> 00:45:15.840 And we can point you in the direction of some good resources to help you on your spiritual journey and figure out where you stand with Christianity. 00:45:18.639 --> 00:45:24.579 But perhaps this morning you're ready to not just explore Christianity but to place your trust in Christ. 00:45:27.179 --> 00:45:31.840 To actually open up your heart before God like this text says. 00:45:33.840 --> 00:45:38.019 And place your trust in Jesus Christ as the one true God who rescued you from your sins. 00:45:39.079 --> 00:45:43.799 If that's you, then let me encourage you with these words of Jesus. 00:45:43.940 --> 00:45:46.259 Jesus said, behold, I stand at the door and knock. 00:45:47.259 --> 00:45:54.079 If anyone hears my voice and opens a door, I will come into him and eat with him and he with me. 00:45:56.119 --> 00:45:57.980 Friends, you can take hold of that promise this morning. 00:45:58.639 --> 00:45:59.380 Let's pray together. 00:45:59.380 --> 00:45:59.420 Let's pray together. 00:45:59.420 --> 00:46:29.400 Let's pray together.