Bible Reading Challenge #46

Prayer and Understanding

1 Corinthians 14:13–19

13 Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret.
14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful.
15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
16 Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying?
17 For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being built up.
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.
19 Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.

Blessed to Be a Blessing

This concept goes back to Genesis 12, where God calls Abram to:

“Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.”

The gifts of God are not for self-promotion but for the common good.
The Holy Spirit moves and works in the hearts and lives of believers so that the rest of the congregation and community may benefit. When God gives me comfort, I am then called to be a comforter. When God gives me finances, I am called to be generous. When God gives me talents or wisdom, I am called to use them to bless others.

Paul once again addresses the issue of hoarding gifts for personal gain. God didn’t bless you for your sake alone. God wants to bless you so that you can be a blessing!

There is a place for personal worship of God, but there is also value in public worship — just as there is a place for learning, praying, and encouraging.

We are knit together as believers, unified under the cross and sharing a common hope for eternity. May we be focused on the common good, not our own comfort.