1 Corinthians 14:37 If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 38 But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant. 39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.
According to the Bible, any man who claims he is a prophet, or a spiritual man will acknowledge the things Paul has said in this chapter to be absolute truth: “the commandments of the Lord.” This ought to settle any question that people may have regarding the confusion of speaking in tongues as displayed in the modern-day Charismatic. It does not matter what these people are doing to try to explain away the verses, there are some things for certain. It is certain when a man speaks in tongues, an unknown tongue with no interpreter, nobody is edified. Therefore, he ought to keep his mouth shut. That’s clear. It is clear that women are not to speak in tongues in the local assembly. That is clear. It is clear that if anybody does speak in tongues it is never to be by more than three. That’s clear. If a man says five words you can understand, he has done more for the Body of Christ than someone who says ten thousand words that you can’t understand. That is clear. And those are the commandments of God.
If a person won’t accept that, it is because he has no regard for the Word of God, like most Christians don’t. Unsaved people don’t believe the Word of God anymore, but the reason they don’t is that they are living in a society where Christians don’t believe it either. If the saved people don’t believe it, do you think the unsaved are going to believe it? An unsaved man goes to Sunday school, and the teacher gets up there with the Sunday school quarterly, and every other word he says is, “This shouldn’t be in the Bible,” and “This verse shouldn’t be there,” and “A better version is…” The unsaved guy sits there, and he can’t figure out what is going on.
Infidelity doesn’t spread from the unsaved people. It spreads from Christians. Make sure you believe something. Or if you don’t believe it, don’t profess to believe it. If you profess to believe it, believe it! If you quit believing it, tell us.
“But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.” That’s the summary. If a man is going to argue about it and not believe it, just leave the stupid ignoramus alone. Let him go on in his stupidity. It’s not saying to let him mess up one of your church meetings. Try your best to give the idiot the truth, and if he rejects it, just leave him alone. Look at verse thirty-seven. If a man rejects “the commandments of the Lord” after you have given it to him that is all you can do with him. Let him go.
In the Bible, there are different types of unbelief. An infidel is someone who doesn’t believe the Bible at all. All infidels are unsaved. You can show compassion on them and try to witness to them as long as they will listen and consider what you say. The moment they interfere with someone else getting saved, though, you come down hard on them.[1] An apostate is someone who professes to believe the Bible but does not. That person can be saved or lost—I have no respect for an apostate at all because they are the most dangerous of the bunch. A heretic is someone who misuses the Scripture to teach something that isn’t so. If you try to straighten out a heretic on his doctrine you are only obligated to try twice. After you try twice don’t waste any more time with them. Let them go. If he won’t listen to sound doctrine, break fellowship with him. If he doesn’t obey “the commandments of the Lord” then we should follow what is prescribed in Romans 16:17-18, “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” That’s the Charismatic. If a man rejects the commandments of God, we should get away from him. If our paths cross and have to cross we should deal with them, but don’t go looking for them. But also realize, if you avoid everybody after a while it is going to get kind of lonely.
We hate to say it, brethren, but that is what God has called men to do if He has called them to preach. The loneliest man in the world is a Bible-believing preacher. He will have his own congregation, but as far as fellowship with other preachers goes, he is not going to have much. While he believes the book, so called “Christian colleges” are turning out 8,000 preachers a year that do not believe the Book. And they are going out entrenched in fellowship. They have one clique over on one side and a clique over here and another over there, and all of them will be attacking and changing the Bible, denying the Bible, and using other versions. They will do the best they can to mess up a Bible Believers church and work. They really will. The best advice is to avoid them.
Most “Christian” or “State” college preachers are going to hate a Bible believing preachers guts because a Bible Believer has courage and determination to learn what they could have learned if they had enough guts to do it. They know when a Bible Believer finishes institute classes he will know something they don’t know but could have gotten.
“Wherefore, brethren, covet to…” speak in tongues? No. One more time Paul tells us not to desire tongues. “Covet to prophesy.” Learn how to tell the future. Learn about the future from the Word of God. Be able to tell folks what is going to happen. Tell them what is going to happen if they die without Christ. Tell them what is going to happen if they die with Christ. Tell them what is going to take place on earth in the next twenty to forty years. Tell them about eternity. That’s what you should learn; not this other junk.
“And forbid not to speak with tongues.” The Bible tells the whole truth, and the truth is: in that church where they had the signs, if they exercised them properly they were allowed to do it.
[1] Acts 13:8-12 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. 9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, 10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.
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