But Strive for the Greater Gifts

Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a.

Last week, we saw that Paul was careful not to put one gift of the Spirit before another. He gave space to acts of service, not just to words from the mouth. But he understood that it’s natural to be impressed by some things. Some things cause our heads to turn. Our heads turn when there’s speaking in tongues or spectacular miracle healings. Maybe we don’t notice when a kind word of prayer with a friend changes that person’s life, or when a faithful therapist slowly brings an invalid back to community life. But in all of these, God is at work.

Today, Paul makes it clear with his thoughts about the body. The idea of status is human nature. It’s a fact. So we make a fuss about our face. There’s eye shadow and mascara to give honour to the eyes. There’s lipstick to enhance the line of our mouth. Jewellery can hang from our ears and our fingers. Eyes and mouths are important. But so is the body equipment that makes us fathers and mothers. The key to the next generation. We don’t put that on show, although it’s certainly important. It’s not logical, but that’s human nature.

We must overcome our human nature and value every servant role, every job that anyone might do to build up the body of God. As we saw last week, sometimes it can be good to have two or more roles. That helps us understand both that humble tasks have dignity and that high profile jobs have their trials.

But after all this, after telling us that every role is important – that everything has its place – Paul throws us a curve ball. What are his last words to us today? “But strive for the greater gifts”! (1 Cor 12:31a).

Which gifts did he think were greater? In verse 28 we see he makes a list, and the numbers do seem to be in order of importance. “God placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues” (1 Cor 28). It does seem that he’s saying that while different tongues are fine, they’re also the last thing you should really be hanging out for.

But it does still feel a bit awkward. What is this about striving? Isn’t a gift just a gift? Aren’t they just what God has chosen to grant us through grace? Isn’t it like our personality – our natural gifts are what God gave us, aren’t they? So a good speaker might be a good prophet, maybe.

Maybe. But maybe it’s not that simple. Moses wasn’t a great speaker to begin with, but God worked with him to overcome that. Aaron helped out at first, but in the end Moses led with strength.

Paul says “Strive for the greater gifts”, but we stop reading halfway through verse 31. He actually has a better thought. His next words are, “And yet I will show you the most excellent way”.

Peek into the next chapter of 1 Corinthians and you see where Paul is heading. There are qualities more fundamental than these gifts. Whether we name them gifts, fruits, or pillars of life in God, there are three that Paul names in Chapter 13: faith, hope and love.

Paul writes from experience. How did this man start, this great pastor who writes with such compassion? He started as a hater – he hated Christians and was happy to see them die. He was there when Stephen was stoned to death.

Faith, hope and love. Which is the greatest of these? The gifts of the tongue can sound ugly and the most powerful achiever appear offensive, without the thing that Saul the hater needed to become Paul the apostle. Paul moved from hate to the principle greater than any spiritual gift: love.