Opening and Introduction
Tonight, we continue our sermon series on sharing our faith. In our text today, we heard about Christians in Corinth that struggled talking to visitors. They were having a hard time communicating the way they wanted to be heard.
The gift of tongues was practiced, but misunderstood, and visitors, didn’t relate with what they were seeing or hearing.
Corinth had some challenges with expressing their faith. We can have trouble talking to people too.
Tonight, we’re going to take a closer look at how the church in Corinth struggled with talking with visitors. We’ll also look at how those in our community might have difficulty understanding what we’re all about. Finally, we’re going to look at how we can talk to those people who are unfamiliar with our faith, and help them understand what we believe, and what it means to us.
Corinthian church struggle
Corinth was a bustling Greek seaport of about 700,000 people, to the West of the city of Athens. It was an important city, on a thin isthmus separating two water ways. The geography was much like the Panama cannel where goods could take a small land journey and save a lot of time.
It was well known for a temple dedicated to the Greek god Aphrodite, the goddess of love, beauty and fertility. And this contributed to the city’s reputation of being morally corrupt. It’s here that Paul planted a church. But it struggled with the culture and influence of society.
There was a synagogue in town, but no Christian church building where the congregation could meet regularly. Instead, people gathered together in each other’s homes and celebrated in more than one small house church.
Some visitors were showing up at the homes. Perhaps to explore what Christianity was all about. But they didn’t understand what they were witnessing.
They heard people speaking in tongues, in language that was not understandable. The visitors thought folks had gone crazy speaking gibberish.
There’s another famous use of tongues that happened a few years earlier. Crowds witnessed a miraculous event where the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles, and they began to speak in languages that were understood by the crowd. Acts records what the visitors heard:
“The multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?” (Acts 2:6-8, ESV)
We hear of the Apostles giving a sermon that was understood by everyone, in their native tongue. Speaking is about communicating a thought or idea. The event at Pentecost did that. But, that’s not the case in our text today. Instead, tongues became an obstacle for visitors.
The way that Corinth was speaking in tongues was not a means of convincing unbelievers to follow. It confused outsiders. It seems that the bizarre speech chased some people away.
Church language struggle
Today, we still have a problem talking to outsiders. We don’t use language that they always understand. Some of the words mean one thing to the church, and something else to those outside the church.
The world is a broken place with broken families, poverty, homelessness, rampant crime and abuse, the list goes on and on. People in our communities, that we might deal with on a recurring basis, may hide some of the pain and heart ache that they deal with. We all come from very different experiences. How well do we relate to people that are different from us?
LOVE is one example that might be hard for some to understand. Some think of love as physical relationships, short-term satisfaction, maybe even abuse, or a means to make money. It’s not a positive word used for strangers, or unknown people, or an unknown God.
How do you explain to someone what love is, if they’ve never experienced anything like it? The church uses the word in a different way, especially with the idea of loving your neighbor as yourself. Paul described love like this.
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-6, ESV)
Love may be a foreign term to some people, and the word itself might be an obstacle that people throw shields up to avoid. It may be a challenge to talk to them about how God loves them too.
FORGIVENESS can be another obstacle. Jesus told us to forgive one another, and to turn the other cheek when people take from us. The world would rather dwell in hatred, revenge, payback and grudges, and may not understand what forgiveness really is.
Peter asked Jesus how many times we should forgive those who hurt us.
“Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.” (Matthew 18:21-22, ESV)
The number seven is a significant number in the Bible. it’s the number of perfection and completion. Jesus upped the ante, and said that our forgiveness should have no end. That’s not a concept that the world can easily understand.
Then there’s the concept of SIN. This is a taboo subject even for some Christian churches. I’ve seen televangelist proclaiming that God wants us to be happy and rich, and never mention the word sin.
Let me be fair. No one likes to hear that they’re doing things the wrong way. No one wants to hear that God doesn’t approve of our behavior, and wants us to change. A lot of people enjoy their sinful lifestyle, and want to continue with what they’re doing.
It’s in our nature to listen for supportive language that affirms our way of behaving. We don’t like to have rules set on our conduct or anyone telling us how to live. The world doesn’t want to follow a set of rules.
Sin is a concept that the world rejects. The idea that there’s a higher power that sets a standard for us, is an uncomfortable idea for many.
With sin comes the idea that we’re not as good as we might think we are. Recognizing sin has us face the fact that we’ve made mistakes. And with that recognition, God wants us to be convicted that those errors are wrong, and that we should turn away from temptation, away from sin, away from those things that move us away from God.
Sin is a crucial concept, because if you don’t understand sin, you won’t recognize that you deserve punishment. If you don’t understand punishment, you won’t accept that you need to be rescued from something. If there’s nothing to be saved from, you don’t need a savior. The whole ministry of Jesus is built on saving us from sin.
The list of obstacles in the church doesn’t stop there: praying to a God you can’t see, phrases of being washing in blood & born again, eating Jesus body and blood, weird robes that pastors and others wear, and then there’s that instrument of torture and death that Christians wear around their necks called a cross. From an outsider’s viewpoint, we might as well wear an electric chair or a guillotine.
Many don’t understand, and might even be confused by what Christians believe. They might have a hard time with what they see, and hear. But it might not just be them. Those same concepts that outsiders might find confusing; we might struggle with too.
Communicating Better
The church has often struggled communicating with people. We still have a few challenges. Perhaps this is an opportunity to get better.
In the time we have remaining, I’d like to look at three ways we can improve how we talk with others about our faith, and perhaps improve how we talk with each other too.
First, relationships matter. If you really want to be accepted and listened to, it helps to have the other person get to know who you are, and learn that you really care about their well-being.
Paul wrote about building relationships in his letter to the Romans. He wrote:
“Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Outdo one another in showing honor.” (Romans 12:10, 12, CSB)
But the world isn’t about honoring one another.
P.T. Barnum, one of the most famous showmen in American history, is reported to have coined the phrase “there’s a sucker born every minute.” That phrase captures one aspect of human behavior. Some people like to take advantage of others.
Those that’ve learned this lesson are leery of any people that want to talk to them. Anyone here get calls from Social Security, Microsoft, or any company wanting to refund money you never paid? How about Verizon calling you on your cell phone to say your phone has been disconnected. There are a host of scammers looking to take your money as fast as you can earn it. That’s the world we live in.
In this climate, people may assume that you’re trying to pull one over on them and don’t want to talk to you. From their point of view, you could be another scammer looking to take advantage of them.
Getting people to know who you are, and that you really care, is something that takes time. Relationships don’t typically happen overnight. But, if you can get someone to understand that you’re not going to hurt them, that you’re trying to help, you’ve gained their ear, and they may open up and allow you to share your faith in a much more personal way. Relationships open doors to conversations.
Second, don’t be afraid of questions. Jesus asked His disciples some of the most important questions in the Bible, and many of these same questions still apply to us today. In one famous conversation, Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15, ESV)
If someone on the street asked you, who Jesus is, what would you say?
In one of our smaller books of the Bible, Jude wrote about questions. He wrote, “Have mercy on those who doubt.” (Jude 22, ESV)
If one person has a doubt, or is uncertain about something, chances are, there’s others that feel that same way. Even questions that some might consider silly, have value. Questions don’t just help the person asking, but help those around that are listening, and sometimes help the person who answers, as they think through the question.
Sometimes the questions are more important than answers. Questions can lead to answers that spark thoughts that otherwise wouldn’t have been explored. They also reveal what a person is thinking, and can help address concerns before they even ask the next question.
People grow in their faith by asking questions, and seeking answers to the concerns that on their hearts.
Third, be authentic with who you are, and what you believe.
Some people may fear saying that they don’t know something. They have two choices, either they can waste someone’s time by allowing others to think they know something they don’t, or they can be open and honest and gain an opportunity to ask someone else the question, and maybe learn something in the process.
Being authentic with who we are and what we believe is important for a conversation to continue. Ephesians tells us to be honest with our speech.
“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29, ESV)
Good, honest discussion, builds credibility and allows the conversation to move forward. People will listen to what you say if they trust you, and may be honestly interested in what you believe.
Part of being genuine is also accepting your limitations. Telling someone that “you don’t know,” can be useful to build up your trustworthiness. Be truthful, and gain a reputation for honesty, rather than an image of speaking nonsense, or worse yet, a name for saying something that’s not quite right. It’s hard to build a good reputation, but only takes a moment to lose it.
Conclusion
Corinth had a problem communicating with people. We may have that problem too. There are some around us that don’t understand our language that we use in church. Perhaps we can improve how we talk to outsiders and visitors.
Use the relationships that we have, and perhaps build new ones. Relish the questions, answer what you can, and seek answers when you can’t. Above all, be honest with who you are and build trust with those that we talk to.
