HoHum:
"It is significant that the gift of tongues is nowhere alluded to, hinted at or even found in the Apostolic Fathers."- Cleon L. Rogers. Why? Because they had been withdrawn!
WBTU:
Much of the debate about whether miraculous gifts have ceased or are still in operation centers around the interpretation of 1 Corinthians 13.
Thesis: Let’s have an in depth study of 1 Corinthians 13:8-13
For instances: I. Introduction to these verses.
This passage of Scripture occurs in the midst of a larger section from 1 Corinthians 12-14, a section in which Paul deals with the whole subject of spiritual gifts. Church in Corinth had many problems and Paul is dealing here with a controversy over the use of spiritual gifts, especially the gift of tongues.
In ch. 12 we learn that these Christians had decided that there was a definite order of importance in the “different kinds of gifts” (12:4), some were more important than others. Those who felt like they had more important gifts enjoyed a higher status in the church. For some reason they had concluded that the gift of tongues was the most important (chapter 14).
The main point of chapter 13 is to put all of the spiritual gifts into the proper perspective. All of the gifts are important and are not to be neglected. Within the list of gifts Paul puts prophecy as the most important if he has to choose, but overall there are other aspects of the Christian life that are far more important than any such gifts. These are the things they should have been concentrating on, and they need to focus on “the most excellent way” (12:31).
In chapter 13 Paul explains that this “most excellent way” is love. Instead of fighting over the importance of each gift, they should be focusing on loving one another. Without love, nothing else matters (13:1-3).
Carl Ketcherside was a man of great faith. He’s with the Lord now. Carl came out of the non-instrument church of Christ and eventually became disgusted with the legalistic attitudes. In fact, Carl was disgusted with all the legalism that existed in all churches! A man said to Carl one time, “By the way you talk, you’d think that love was the most important thing in the world.” Carl replied, “THANK GOD, YOU FINALLY GOT IT.” Read vs. 4- 8a
To make his point Paul compares love with three of the gifts: prophecy, knowledge and tongues. Why does he choose these 3? Because he wants to make a point that love is more important than even these gifts of supernatural knowledge.
How does he show that even these gifts are relatively less important than love? By asserting that such gifts will come to an end, while love (and faith and hope) will continue to exist in the church’s life until the second coming.
Paul’s is saying: Why are you getting so excited about things that are temporary? Why are you dividing the church over things that will pass away? “Follow the way of love” (14:1).
The Structure of 1 Corinthians 13:8-13
This section consists of two contrasts:
Between things that are temporary (vs. 8) and things that are permanent (vs. 13).
A. View vs. 9-12 as a parenthesis and now Read Vs. 8 and then vs. 13.
B. Why didn’t Paul just leave it at this? Well, Paul knew that in the minds of many Corinthians the gift of tongues was the heart and soul of their faith. Imagine there reaction to this info.
To address this concern Paul gives vs. 9-12
The reason these are temporary is because they are only “partial” or piecemeal; something “perfect” or complete will come to take their place.
A. Now read vs. 9-12.
The Corinthians did not want to hear this. Paul tells them that the very things they have made the centerpiece of their lives will be “done away” because they are only partial.
As an analogy, their individual episodes of miraculous tongues and prophesying were like single pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Something is coming, though, that will be like the entire puzzle with all its pieces put together; then we will see the entire picture. Won’t that better?
What is this coming thing that will take the place of tongues and other such gifts? Make a promise tonight, only one Greek word. Dr. Cottrell gives several in this section, but I’m only give you one. Teleion- vs. 10 NIV translates it as perfection. If we can just know what this teleion is, then we can know when tongues and the like will cease. Paul specifically says here, “When the teleion comes, the imperfect disappears.”
What is the teleion?
The word is an adjective, and modern translations call it the perfect or NIV perfection.
This is indeed one meaning of the word. Another meaning can be mature. Still another meaning is “complete.” The NIV does translate this word as “make complete” in several places like James 2:22 and 1 John 2:5.
Which of these best fits the context of 1 Corinthians 13:10? Despite the fact that many versions use “perfect,” the intended meaning is “complete.” Why? Because the teleion here is contrasted with things that are partial. Does it not make sense to contrast partial things with something that is complete? Even though most Bible versions use “perfect”, in our minds we must think the word “complete.”
We need to know that this word teleion is a neuter adjective. Adjectives modify nouns; but in this case no noun is given, so it must be treated as a noun. The gender in neuter, neither male or female in nature. Thus this must be read as “the complete thing” vs. the complete man.
Many when they see “When perfection comes” jump to the conclusion that this must be a reference to the second coming of Christ. After all, Jesus is the only “perfect one,” and he definitely is coming again! When this is tied with miraculous gifts, then tongues and other miraculous gifts, are viewed as continuing until the second coming.
When we understand that teleion is a neuter adjective, we see that it refers not to a person at all, but to a thing. If Jesus, then the word would have been masculine. The best translation is “when the complete thing comes.”
We know from something Paul says here that the teleion must be something that will come before the end of the age, before the second coming of Jesus. What is this that Paul tells us that lets us know he is not talking about the second coming? How do we know that the complete thing must come before the end times and not in connection with second coming?
Because of what Paul says in vs. 13. Here is declares that the teleion will come and the partial gifts will cease while faith, hope and love still abide or remain among God’s people. If hope is still present, then the teleion must come before Christ’s second coming, because once Christ comes, all that we are hoping for will become a reality, and hope itself will disappear.
As Paul explains in Romans 8:24, we hope only for things we do not yet see, for “Who hopes for what he already has?” Some would apply this reasoning to faith as well, since in one sense sight replaces faith (2 Corinthians 5:7: We live by faith, not by sight.) as well as hope.
The partial gifts must cease sometime during the church age.
The teleion is meant to replace some very specific gifts (vs. 8). Since the complete thing replaces the partial things, it must be something similar in nature to the latter and must serve the same general purpose as the latter. What is the nature of the gifts stated in vs. 8? Prophecy, supernatural knowledge, and tongues are all in the category of revealed knowledge. The complete thing must also be in the category of revealed knowledge. Yet it is something complete, as contrasted with these partial forms.
Okay, what is the teleion? It must be the completed NT. When the completed NT has come, piecemeal prophecies, tongues and knowledge will cease.
NT was completed near the end of the 1st century, with the last writing of the Apostle John. All the NT books were then in circulation. Thus we must conclude that these partial gifts- tongues, prophecy, and knowledge- have ceased.
Perfect knowledge
Had one man who said that when we all go to heaven we will have perfect knowledge or complete knowledge. Many things we could discuss in vs. 11 and 12 but just one thing at the end of vs. 12 that helped me.
The end of vs. 12 has been interpreted as a contrast between the knowledge we have now and the knowledge we will have in heaven. Only in heaven will we know fully if we accept that the teleion is talking about the second coming.
This is talking about two levels or two kinds of knowledge. Paul does not say we shall know God as fully as he knows us. What he is saying is that with the more complete knowledge from the NT, we shall know ourselves with more clarity (Look up James 1:23-25).
Full knowledge in that we will know perfectly as God knows is blaspheme. We will never know as much as God knows even with clearer knowledge in heaven. Such knowledge is impossible for created beings, which we will always be, even in heaven.
Vs. 12 is not speaking of a kind of end times knowledge that will be ours only when we are glorified. This verse is quite consistent with the meaning of teleion as the completed NT.
