Some fellow named Tom Faulkner wrote this in a discussion......wise... ...... To totally plagiarize from the discussion two days ago, Joe Vusich answered, awesomely I might add, with this: Joe Vusich Shon Rajukutty: That which is perfect- isnt it talking about Christ? Or is it about the bible. The perfect in 1 Cor. 13 refers to the complete, mature revelation of God, not Christ. I believe this is clear, and here is why. In verse 13:12, Paul uses the analogy of a mirror. When a person looks into a mirror, he sees himself face to face. Paul uses this analogy to illustrate to the Corinthians that they now saw (using the spiritual gifts of tongues, prophecy, and knowledge) in a mirror dimly. In other words, apart the perfect, i.e., completed or mature revelation, the Christians in Corinth possessed a dim understanding of God and themselves, just like the use of a poor quality mirror makes it difficult to see ones face clearly. The Corinthian Christians knew in part, in incompleteness, with lack of clarity. But THEN (later, when the completed revelation comes) Paul says the Corinthians would see in the mirror more clearly; i.e, face to face, with far greater perception and clarity, just as a high quality mirror gives a person a clearer and more complete sight of his face than a poor one can. In verse 8, Paul states that the spiritual gifts of prophecy, tongues, and knowledge -- gifts which were childish in that they served the church in their infancy, and gifts which were partial in that they communicated only part of Gods will, and permitted the early Christians to understand Gods overall purpose and plan only dimly -- Paul states that those gifts will be done away...will cease...will be done away. That which provides *partial* revelation will cease, and that which is *perfect* (i.e., not morally perfect, but *complete*) will thereafter be the source of a far clearer and more comprehensive understanding of God and His will (which by analogy would allow the Corinthians to look in the mirror and see a more perfect reflection of themselves, i.e., see themselves face to face). Therefore, the Corinthians were not to boast in childish, incomplete revelatory gifts that would soon pass away, but were instead to pursue love, which will never cease because its eternal. Thus 1 Cor. 13:8-13 argues strongly that the gifts of tongues, prophecy, and knowledge have ended, for the church now has the mature and perfect revelation of God, the completed Bible. No other knowledge about God and our Savior is gained apart from that perfect Word. If we believe Pauls teaching and predictions about the aforementioned gifts (that they are by nature childish, incomplete, and passing away), and we believe that the completed revelation of God is the Bible, we must conclude that the early revelatory gifts of tongues, prophecy, and knowledge have ceased. The fact that this was indeed the testimony of the early and historic church (that those gifts ceased to be part of the churchs experience very soon after the age of the apostles ended) seals the deal. When Paul later wrote, Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues (1 Cor. 14:39), the application of the verse is mitigated by the prediction Paul had just made that the spiritual gifts of prophecy and tongues will be done away...will cease (1 Cor. 13:8). As long as the spiritual gifts of prophecy and tongues (and knowledge) continued to operate, they were not to be forbidden. But when the complete thing comes, the Corinthians understood that those gifts would discontinue, since they were by nature incomplete and childish, and superceded by what is complete and mature (the canon). This is exactly what happened in the early church --the church put away the childish revelatory gifts of tongues, knowledge, and prophecy in favor of the completed canon, and the superior, reliable, and comprehensive knowledge it provides. As for the contention that the revelatory gifts will continue until Christs return, that argument is actually quite weak and unsupported by the context. Jesus is not mentioned in 1 Cor. 13. Neither are His 2nd coming or heaven directly referenced. Paul is talking about knowing Gods Word incompletely (via the childish revelatory gifts of tongues, knowledge, and prophecy) vs the coming time when Christians will know Gods Word completely (telios = perfect, which references completion/maturity, not moral perfection or absolute perfection). Paul is saying that the church will go from a childish stage (with the three revelatory gifts providing incomplete knowledge) to a perfect, i.e., mature stage (where knowledge will be known completely). The church was in its infancy when Paul wrote 1 Cor. (the revelatory gifts were still in play), but Paul said a time was coming when the church would reach maturity and put away those childish things in favor of knowledge that is complete, mature. And that time came when the apostles passed from the scene and left us Gods complete, infallible, enscripturated
Posted on: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 01:56:03 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015