Worship Format?

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Group meeting October 23 to study 1 Corinthians 14:26-40.  This latter half of the chapter gets at practical application of what Paul has written so far on the topic of gifts in worship.  What he describes in worship is pretty different that what we experience.  We're not in a position to change how our church worships, but we can change how we participate within our format.  Be thinking about that.

Read through these verses a few times, look for things that don't seem to fit, questions you have about how Paul phrases things, and so on.  Try and get a sense of how this application he follows 'edifies' or 'builds up' the church.  Consider how he applies 'love' described in chapter 13 to his application.

Once you've gone through a few times, go back through with the questions below (they're from the previous study sheet).

• In verses 26 through 33 Paul describes a way to all gifts to be utilized in church in an orderly manner.  What do you think such a church service would look like?  How would you feel in such a service?  Could you see such a practice in our church?  What would that look like, and how would you feel about that?
• In verse 29, what do you think it means that 'the others pass judgement' on the prophesy? What do you think that would look like in a 'worship' setting?
• You've probably heard verse 33 quoted a lot, but considering the context, does it really mean that "God always follows logical rules" or something to that effect?
• In verses 34 and 35, what is the setting?  What elements in common with the rest of the chapter do you see?
• Read back through 1 Corinthians 11:1-16; how does that make sense if this is the rule?
• How do you make sense of the tone of verses 34 and 35, with the tone of chapter 7, and 11:1-16?
•  Read verses 33 through 40 but skip 34 and 35.  Does it read consistent to you?  Now read it again with 34 and 35 back in there, does it make more or less sense?
• Trying reading the same passage (33-40) only put verse 34 and 35 after verse 40.  Does that make more or less sense to you?
• So, what makes more sense in this reading, leaving 34 and 35 where there are, putting them after 40, or leaving them out?  Verses 34 and 35 occur in every manuscript and ancient reference we have to this passage, sometimes at the end (after 40) and sometimes where we find them here.  What do you think about these verses within this argument about gifts and practice in worship?
• Paul calls on the church in Corinth to essentially 'fall in line' with the other churches.  How does that affect your consideration of such varied practice in churches today?
• Paul calls on prophets to evaluate his directive.  How does his 'call' sound to you?  Do you think he is really seeking their 'validation'?
• Consider verse 39 in light of the rest of the chapter.  What indication do you see that this particular verse is only for that historical context?  Consider the wider considerations if this verse is only for this historical context.  What else would remain there and not be for us today?
• In verse 40, what connection do you believe there is for Paul between order in worship, and 'edifying' and 'building up of' the church?

Be sure to jot down your questions and bring them.  They're important for us understanding this passage  better.  We all need various perspectives on this to get a better picture of what God is revealing to us.

Moving fron Son-Powered to Wind-Powered Lives

This is the study page for this Thursday, August 23 (possibly).  We will be looking over Acts 2, which may take us more than a week.

As you read Acts 2, look for things that are out of place, or unexpected in a familiar story.  Ask yourself questions, and write them down to share Thursday.  Once through it, go back over it, prayerfully considering what might be God's point for inspiring this story (don't assume), the role of His Spirit in these events, and then what is the central event on which the others turn.  Then, on your third time through, consider the questions below.

• What does Pentecost celebrate (there's a link, but also look in any resources you have as well)?
• What senses (of the 5) are used to describe the Holy Spirit's arrival?
• Look up the word "filled" in Strong's (G4130).  What does it add to the English word, "filled"?
• What connection do you see between verses 4 and 5 if any?  Or is 5 just a transition?
• What does the assembled crowd tell you about the "sensory" details of the event?
• There is one popular area of the Mediterranean Sea missing in this list of peoples.  Which one?
• Two words are used in verse 7 for the "feelings" of the crowd, "amazed" (G1839) and "astonished" (G2296). How are they different, and what do you imagine the crowd doing?
• How did they know they were all Galileans? So what if they are?
• In verse 12 there are two others (or one different), "amazed" (G1839 again) and "perplexed" (G1280). How is this different from "astonished"?
• The term "new wine" is the translation of this word (G1098).  What seems odd about this suggestion?
• Look up Joel 2.  What is this chapter about?  Is that what's happening here?  How is it similar?
• What is the core claim of Peter about Jesus in verses 22-24?
•  Look up Psalm 16:8-11.  How does the meaning of the Psalm change if it's applied to Jesus?  What does that mean for its application in David's day?
• Peter makes a good case for not applying it to David.  How would the people of Israel understood it?
• The people respond with, "What do we do?"  What is Peter's answer?  Is that enough?
• What is church like in verses 42-47?  What's the core quality they have?
• What would it be like for our church to be like this?  What stops us?

That should do for now.  Remember to bring your questions.  Pray for each other this week.  Pray especially for Lyndsay.  She will be really busy preparing for Sunday because it's going to be all music all the time (except for Communion); very tiring, both preparing and performing.

I look forward to seeing you all Thursday!