We'll never get this right until we get a bigger question right: why we gather at all! Thankfully 1 Corinthians 14 makes that purpose clear. In the exercising of spiritual gifts when we gather, there is one overriding purpose: that the church would be 'edified' (built up).
Paul states this purpose several times -
- In 14:2-5, in the gathering he prefers the edification of the church to the edification of the individual believer.
- In 14:12 he urges the Corinthians to 'excel in gifts that build up the church'.
- In 14:17 he wants 'the other man to be edified' rather than simply have an individual believer give thanks.
- He sums it up in 14:26, 'What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.'
How might our singing build up the church?
Singing great songs with a great band in a great crowd can sometimes feel very encouraging. But what if the crowd is small, the singing is thin, and the music is off key? 1 Corinthians 14 gives a bigger and better answer that works whether we're in a crowd of 10,000 or a crowd of 10. It says the church is edified as the word of Christ is heard clearly and understood.
Paul emphasises intelligibility several times.
- In 14:9 he asks, 'Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying?'
- In 14:13 he urges people to pray for their 'speaking in tongues' to be interpreted.
- In 14:19 he says, 'I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.'
If the church is built up as his word is heard and understood, then we need to make sure that our singing (just as much as our praying and our preaching) serves that process.
What does this mean for what we sing and how we sing it?
1 Corinthians 14 encourages us to prioritise.
First, all sorts of activities done in all sorts of ways may be spiritually beneficial, but we're to set some of them aside or do them in better ways when the church gathers. So while we might enjoy listening to all sorts of Christian songs when we're alone, when we gather we'll prioritise particular songs in which his word is heard and understood so that the church is built up.
Second, we're to prioritise other people's spiritual welfare over our own. In 14:16-17, Paul rebukes the worshipper who is lost in an ecstatic moment but is ignoring his or her fellow worshipper. 'You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified!' So we'll want to sing the sorts of songs that will help them (and in a way that will help them) rather than the sorts of songs that will help us. This approach embodies the other-person-centredness of Christ himself. And while it may be counter-intuitive, it works. Instead of having 100 worshippers in a room each seeking their own moments of private communion with God, for each person you have 99 others seeking that person's spiritual welfare. If we were to take this seriously, the impact could be dramatic!
