“If any man speaks in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret” (1 Corinthians 14:27).

Now, here the Apostle Paul gives specific advice on public messages in tongues. Notice he doesn’t want the entire time together to be just messages in tongues, rather, he puts a limitation of two or three per meeting. Tongues should never be the centerpiece of a group meeting, unless, of course, the whole purpose is prayer. There are other spiritual gifts that should be exercised by various people when we all come together.

He also tells us that those gifts should operate “by course“, meaning one at a time. Wait for the interpretation of the first message before we race into the next.

And when there is a message, there should be only one interpretation per message. What would it accomplish if God brought forth through a believer a message in tongues, and two different people gave two different interpretations? That would not only be a confused God, but a confused body, as well.

And, it appears on the surface, the interpretation should be from someone other than the speaker; that would embrace teamwork. And any group that considers itself a body should also work as a team.

To allow these gifts to operate in a group, there needs to be reflective time as the group waits upon God to move. Let’s face it, in the 21st Century we’re just too rushed to wait upon God.

Tags: spiritual gifts