1 Corinthians 12-14

New Life Version

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

12 Christian brothers, I want you to know about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. You need to understand the truth about this. ² You know that before you were Christians you were led to worship false gods. None of these gods could speak. ³ So I tell you that no one speaking by the help of the Holy Spirit can say that he hates Jesus. No one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the help of the Holy Spirit.

The Kinds of Gifts

⁴ There are different kinds of gifts. But it is the same Holy Spirit Who gives them. ⁵ There are different kinds of work to be done for Him. But the work is for the same Lord. ⁶ There are different ways of doing His work. But it is the same God who uses all these ways in all people. ⁷ The Holy Spirit works in each person in one way or another for the good of all. ⁸ One person is given the gift of teaching words of wisdom. Another person is given the gift of teaching what he has learned and knows. These gifts are by the same Holy Spirit. ⁹ One person receives the gift of faith. Another person receives the gifts of healing. These gifts are given by the same Holy Spirit. ¹⁰ One person is given the gift of doing powerful works. Another person is given the gift of speaking God’s Word. Another person is given the gift of telling the difference between the Holy Spirit and false spirits. Another person is given the gift of speaking in special sounds. Another person is given the gift of telling what these special sounds mean. ¹¹ But it is the same Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, Who does all these things. He gives to each person as He wants to give.

Our Body Is Like the Body of Christ

¹² Our own body has many parts. When all these many parts are put together, they are only one body. The body of Christ is like this. ¹³ It is the same way with us. Jews or those who are not Jews, men who are owned by someone or men who are free to do what they want to do, have all been baptized into the one body by the same Holy Spirit. We have all received the one Spirit.

¹⁴ The body is not one part, but many parts. ¹⁵ If the foot should say, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that would not stop it from being a part of the body. ¹⁶ If the ear should say, “I am not a part of the body because I am not an eye,” that would not stop it from being a part of the body. ¹⁷ If the whole body were an eye how would it hear? If the whole body were an ear, how would it smell? ¹⁸ But God has put all the parts into the body just as He wants to have them. ¹⁹ If all the parts were the same, it could not be a body. ²⁰ But now there are many parts, but one body.

²¹ The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you.” Or the head cannot say to the feet, “I do not need you.” ²² Some of the parts we think are weak and not important are very important. ²³ We take good care of and cover with clothes the parts of the body that look less important. The parts which do not look beautiful have an important work to do. ²⁴ The parts that can be seen do not need as much care. God has made the body so more care is given to the parts that need it most. ²⁵ This is so the body will not be divided into parts. All the parts care for each other. ²⁶ If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it. If one part is given special care, the other parts are happy.

The Body of Christ

²⁷ You are all a part of the body of Christ. ²⁸ God has chosen different ones in the church to do His work. First, there are missionaries. Second, there are preachers or those who speak for God. And third, there are teachers. He has also chosen those who do powerful works and those who have the gifts of healing. And He has chosen those who help others who are in need and those who are able to lead others in work and those who speak in special sounds. ²⁹ Are they all missionaries? No. Are they all preachers or those who speak for God? No. Do they all do powerful works? No. ³⁰ Do they all have the gifts of healing? No. Do they all speak in special sounds? No. Are they all able to tell what the special sounds mean? No. ³¹ But from your heart you should want the best gifts. Now I will show you even a better way.

Love—the Greatest of All

13 I may be able to speak the languages of men and even of angels, but if I do not have love, it will sound like noisy brass. ² If I have the gift of speaking God’s Word and if I understand all secrets, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I know all things and if I have the gift of faith so I can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give everything I have to feed poor people and if I give my body to be burned, but do not have love, it will not help me.

⁴ Love does not give up. Love is kind. Love is not jealous. Love does not put itself up as being important. Love has no pride. ⁵ Love does not do the wrong thing. Love never thinks of itself. Love does not get angry. Love does not remember the suffering that comes from being hurt by someone. ⁶ Love is not happy with sin. Love is happy with the truth. ⁷ Love takes everything that comes without giving up. Love believes all things. Love hopes for all things. Love keeps on in all things.

⁸ Love never comes to an end. The gift of speaking God’s Word will come to an end. The gift of speaking in special sounds will be stopped. The gift of understanding will come to an end. ⁹ For we only know a part now, and we speak only a part. ¹⁰ When everything is perfect, then we will not need these gifts that are not perfect.

¹¹ When I was a child, I spoke like a child. I thought like a child. I understood like a child. Now I am a man. I do not act like a child anymore. ¹² Now that which we see is as if we were looking in a broken mirror. But then we will see everything. Now I know only a part. But then I will know everything in a perfect way. That is how God knows me right now. ¹³ And now we have these three: faith and hope and love, but the greatest of these is love.

Speaking in Special Sounds Is Not the Greatest Gift

14 You should want to have this love. You should want the gifts of the Holy Spirit and most of all to be able to speak God’s Word. ² The man who speaks in special sounds speaks to God. He is not speaking to men. No one understands. He is speaking secret things through the power of the Holy Spirit. ³ The man who speaks God’s Word speaks to men. It helps them to learn and understand. It gives them comfort. ⁴ The man who speaks in special sounds receives strength. The man who speaks God’s Word gives strength to the church. ⁵ I wish all of you spoke in special sounds. But more than that, I wish all of you spoke God’s Word. The one who speaks God’s Word has a more important gift than the one who speaks in special sounds. But if he can tell what he is speaking, the church will be helped. ⁶ Christian brothers, if I come to you speaking in special sounds, what good is it to you? But if I tell you something God has shown me or something I have learned or what God’s Word says will happen in the future or teach you God’s Word, it will be for your good.

⁷ There are things on which people play music. If strange sounds are made on these, how will others know which one is played? ⁸ If a horn does not make a good sound, how will men know they are to get ready to fight? ⁹ It is the same if you speak to a person in special sounds. How will he know what you say? Your sounds will be lost in the air. ¹⁰ There are many languages in the world. All of them have meaning to the people who understand them. ¹¹ But if I do not understand the language someone uses to speak to me, the man who speaks is a stranger to me. I am a stranger to him. ¹² Since you want gifts from the Holy Spirit, ask for those that will build up the whole church. ¹³ So the man who speaks in special sounds should pray for the gift to be able to tell what they mean.

¹⁴ If I pray in special sounds, my spirit is doing the praying. My mind does not understand. ¹⁵ What should I do? I will pray with my spirit and I will pray with my mind also. I will sing with my spirit and I will sing with my mind also. ¹⁶ If you honor and give thanks to God with your spirit in sounds nobody understands, how can others honor and give thanks also if they do not know what you are saying? ¹⁷ You are honoring and giving thanks to God, but it is not helping other people.

¹⁸ I thank God that I speak in special sounds more than all of you. ¹⁹ But in a meeting of the church, it is better if I say five words that others can understand and be helped by than 10,000 words in special sounds.

²⁰ Christian brothers, do not be like children in your thinking. Be full-grown, but be like children in not knowing how to sin. ²¹ God says in the Holy Writings, “I will speak to My people. I will speak through men from other lands in other languages. Even then My people will not listen to Me.” ^{(A) 22} So then speaking in special sounds is for those who do not believe. It is not for those who believe. But speaking God’s Word is for those who believe. It is not for those who do not believe.

Church Meetings

²³ If some people who are not Christians come to your church meeting while all the people are speaking in special sounds, they will think you are crazy. ²⁴ But if a man who is not a Christian comes to your church meeting while you are all speaking God’s Word, he will understand that he is a sinner by what he hears. He will know he is guilty. ²⁵ The secrets of his heart will be brought into the open. He will get on his knees and worship God. He will say, “For sure, God is here with you!”

²⁶ What am I saying, Christian brothers? When you meet together for worship, some of you have a song to sing. Some of you want to teach and some have special words from God. Some of you speak in special sounds and some of you tell what they mean. Everything should be done to help those who are meeting together to grow strong as Christians. ²⁷ No more than two or three people should speak in special sounds. Only one should speak at a time. Someone must tell the meaning of the special sounds. ²⁸ If no one is there who can tell the meaning of the special sounds, he should not speak in the church. He should speak only to himself and to God. ²⁹ Two or three should speak God’s Word. The other people should listen and decide if they are speaking right. ³⁰ If someone sitting in the meeting gets some special word from God, the one who is speaking should stop. ³¹ All of you can speak God’s Word, but only one person at a time. In that way, all of you can learn and be helped. ³² Men who speak God’s Word are able to stop when they should. ³³ God does not want everyone speaking at the same time in church meetings. He wants peace. All the churches of God’s people worship this way.

³⁴ Women should not be allowed to speak in church meetings. They are to obey this teaching. The Law says this also. ³⁵ If they want to find out about something, they should ask their husbands at home. It is a shame for a woman to speak in a church meeting.

³⁶ Did the Word of God come from you Christians in the city of Corinth? Or are you the only people who received it? ³⁷ Some of you may think you have the gift of speaking God’s Word or some other gift from the Holy Spirit. If you do, you should know that what I am writing to you is what God has told us we must obey. ³⁸ If any man does not listen to this, have nothing to do with him.

³⁹ So then, my Christian brothers, you should want to speak God’s Word. Do not stop anyone from speaking in special sounds. ⁴⁰ All things should be done in the right way, one after the other.