According to the Scriptures

Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.           I Corinthians 15:1-4

 

In this passage, Paul speaks of the gospel on which we have taken our stand. The first thing he addresses about the gospel is its foundation, i.e. the Biblical revelations concerning the person and life of Jesus Christ. The facts are these: 1) Christ died for our sins, 2) Christ was buried, and 3) Christ rose from the dead. Each of these facts was prophesied in the Old Testament (Is. 53:5-6, Ps. 16:8-11).

 

Every Christian saved throughout history has believed and received these tenants of our faith. This is an awesome reality to reflect upon. Christianity was not founded upon one man’s vision or on one single manuscript. On the contrary, the reality of Jesus Christ has been revealed to mankind throughout human history as evidenced by the multiple authors and books compiled in the Old and New Testaments.

 

In his letter to Timothy, Paul confirms the authority of the Bible.

 

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.                    

II Timothy 3:16

 

It is to this sacred Scripture and the gospel it reveals that we must hold firmly and not waver. As the old hymn says,

 

On Christ the solid rock I stand

All other ground is sinking sand

All other ground is sinking sand

 

The Solid Rock by William B. Bradbury

Discerning Good Leadership

If anyone thinks they are a prophet or otherwise gifted by the Spirit, let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command.  But if anyone ignores this, they will themselves be ignored. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.  But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.

I Corinthians 14:37-40

 

One of the gifts given to the church by the Holy Spirit is discernment. This gift is especially helpful to identify the things of God in contrast to the things of the devil. Discernment aids us in different ways, one of which Paul discusses in these verses - determining whether our leaders are guiding us in the right ways of God or are leading us astray and away from the will of God.

 

The Apostle John also warns us of the importance of discernment in connection to spiritual leaders.

 

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

I John 4:1-6

 

John gives us tests to determine if someone is a good leader. The first test is this: do they teach the dual nature of Christ as both human and divine? If a leader's teaching in any way sows doubt about the character of Jesus Christ, then the source of the guidance is questionable.

 

The next test John gives us asks, “Do godly Christians respond to their teaching?” A believer who has a personal relationship with God will feel a resonance in their spirit when they hear true, biblical teaching. Consequently, they will sense a catch in their spirit when they hear false doctrine.

 

John then gives us a third test of a good spiritual leader: how does the world respond to them? If a spiritual leader is widely popular in secular settings, it doesn't necessarily mean they are a false prophet. One must weigh their teaching against Scripture and pray for the Holy Spirit to bring any falsehood to light.

 

John's encouragement is to trust that “He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world.” Jesus himself said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27). Take time to tune your ear to the voice of the Good Shepherd and trust in leaders that sound like Him.

When Women Speak

In all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. Did the word of God originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached?                                                                    I Corinthians 14:34-35

 

The role of women in the church has been a long debated topic in the church throughout the generations. In this passage, Paul uses what appears in some of our English versions to be strong language to put women in their place. However, when we look at the original Greek meanings of two key words in these verses we see a bit of a different picture.

 

The Greek word translated as silence in verse 34 is sigaō. Based on the Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, the meaning of this word can be “to keep close (secret), to hold peace.” It is no secret that women can sometimes be really bad at keeping secrets. Gossip is one of the most dangerous habits a Christian woman can engage in. Yet nearly every church seems to have no shortage of busybodies who seem to relish discussing every aspect of other people’s lives and sometimes destroying the reputations of other Christians. Gossip can bring shame to the Gospel, and anything that brings shame to our Lord and His Church is to be avoided.

 

Yet Paul’s mention of “shame” in verse 35 has a deeper meaning as well. The Greek word used for shame in this verse is aischrŏn, which can mean “indecorum”. In the context of this chapter wherein Paul is dealing with the topic of orderly worship, this section implies that the women in the Corinthian church were not conducting themselves in a peaceful way. Throughout his writings, Paul often spoke of the behavior of women in the church and one common exhortation he had for women was self-control (I Tim. 2:9-15; Titus 2:3-5).

 

The Apostle Peter also speaks to women about the gentle and quiet spirit that is very precious in God’s sight. He says it is the hidden person of the woman’s heart that makes her beauty imperishable (I Peter 3:1-6). The virtuous woman described in Proverbs 31 opens her mouth with wisdom and teaches kindness (Prov. 31:26).

 

When Christina women act in these righteous ways, their voice in the church builds the Kingdom of God rather than bringing shame to it. Women who hold the peace bring order, compassion and love to the family of God.

 

I love the way The Message version of the Bible translates these verses.

 

Wives must not disrupt worship, talking when they should be listening, asking questions that could more appropriately be asked of their husbands at home. God’s Book of the law guides our manners and customers here. Wives have no license to use the time of worship for unwarranted speaking. Do you – both woman and men – imagine that you’re a sacred oracle determining what’s right and wrong? Do you think everything revolves around you?                                 I Corinthians 14:33b-36

 

So ladies, we don’t need to be silent in church as long as we follow Paul’s encouragement from Philippians to let our thoughts and speech be fixed on “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable” (Phil. 4:8).