Prayer of Thanksgiving: Thank God for his steadfast love that endures forever and his mercy and grace.

Prayer of Supplication: Pray for God’s church to expand into places were it has rarely been heard and ask for safety for all of our missionaries that we support.

Bible reading and commentary:

Read: 1 Corinthians 14:26-40

In an effort to correct the disorder and dissensions accompanying the practice of prophecy and speaking in tongues in the Corinthian church, Paul gives detailed instructions regarding the priority and practice of prophecy, the role of women in public assemblies, and the crucial importance of preserving respectability and good order in Christian worship services.

Most scholars believe that the gift of prophecy is expressed primarily (or even entirely) through Christian preaching, where faithful gospel ministers explain the genuine sense of Scripture and apply its message to their congregations for their instruction and edification.

Compared to prophecy, the gift of foreign tongues is nearly useless in public worship, unless these languages (Hebrew and Greek) enhance faithful exposition of the biblical text.

Most interpreters find special significance in Paul’s requirement that prophets must defer to one another as well as submit to the judgment of others. It is clear that no church officer can demand unquestioning obedience; all Christians have the responsibility to judge right doctrine by the standard of God’s Word; all Christians are “priests” in the sight of God.

With that said, however, the magisterial reformers insist that only a select group of men, called by God and appointed by his church, are permitted to preach, administer the sacraments, and oversee discipline in the Christian church.

Likewise, women may not teach or preach in the Christian assembly; their God-given role requires them to submit to their husbands and instruct their children in God’s Word privately at home. There are also roles for women in the church to teach just not during worship service.

Concerns for God’s glory come to the forefront in this part of the chapter. Hearts shaped by the gospel will long to see nonbelievers convicted of sin and brought to worship God. Likewise, when we know God’s character we desire to honor him in our worship. This will express itself in humility as we defer to others; submit to their evaluation of our words, and sometimes remain silent – even when we have something worthwhile to say. When the Spirit is truly at work in us, we will bear the fruit of self-control, submitting our desires to God and to the authority and communication structures he has instituted, including apostolic preaching and the husband-wife relationship.

The patterns Paul describes are all reflections of Christ, in whom the Spirit’s power and God-honoring submission were perfectly combined.

Luther citing 1 Corinthians 14:34 – Undoubtedly some maintain that in 1 Corinthians 14, St. Paul gave anyone liberty to preach in the congregation, even to bark against the established preacher. What a fine model I imagine that would be, for anyone to have the right to interrupt a preacher and begin to argue with him! Soon another would join in and tell the other two to hush up. Perchance a drunk from the tavern would come in and join the trio calling on the third to be silent. At last the women too would claim the right of “sitting by,” telling the men to be silent. Then one woman silencing the other – oh what a beautiful holiday, auction, and carnival that would be! What pigsties could compare in goings-on with such churches?