In his first letter to the Corinthian church the apostle Paul wrote: "Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however, is not for unbelievers but for believers."  This seems clear enough, but notice what he wrote next:  "So if the whole church comes together and everyone speaks in tongues, and inquirers or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your mind? But if an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”  (1 Corinthians 14:22-25)

These words of the apostle Paul regarding the use of Spirit-given languages (“tongues”) and prophecy in the Church may seem completely contradictory.  Paul initially says that tongues are a sign to those who are unbelievers, and that prophecy is given for believers – for those in the Church (verse 22).  But then, in the following verses, Paul continues with an example in which he says that if an unbeliever comes to a church and hears people speaking in unintelligible speech the outsider will thinks that they are out of their minds. On the other hand, Paul says, if the unbeliever comes in and the church is prophesying then he or she will be convicted and will worship God.

The key to reconciling this seeming contradiction between the point Paul makes, and the example he gives, is found in understanding that Paul means tongues are a sign to unbelievers, not to their conviction and belief, but to confirm their unbelief. We see this in what he says in the verse directly before those we are looking at: “In the Law it is written: ‘With other tongues and through the lips of foreigners I will speak to this people, but even then they will not listen to me,’ says the Lord.” (verse 21). 

In other words, tongues are a sign to the unbelieving, not that they might believe, but that they are condemned in their unbelief in not turning to God so that they might understand.  Understood this way, there is in fact, no contradiction. Tongues are a (negative) sign to unbelievers, while prophecy – which Paul is stressing in this chapter is more important than tongues (verses 4–5; 19) – is a (positive) sign to believers. On the other hand, if unbeliever’s hear words they can understand (prophecy) they may be convicted and converted, Paul says. While tongues sometimes serve to strengthen unbelief, prophecy serves to strengthen belief.

The context of these verses makes this all clear. The Corinthians were misusing the gift of tongues so that there was no benefit to the church in their use. Tongues used this way – without interpretation (verses 13; 27–28) – were not of any use to believers or unbelievers alike.  Prophecy on the other hand, was helpful to those in the church because it conveyed the word of God to them, and even unbelievers, Paul reminds them, might be instructed and brought to faith by an intelligible message that convicted them of sin by revealing “the secrets of their hearts,” and helped them to see God's indwelling presence in the church (verses 24-5).

In this example, as in other parts of Paul’s writings, we must be aware that the apostle often appears to say one thing but then another as he looks at issues from different angles.  This is no different from us saying that someone is too short when it comes to playing basketball, but not short enough to be good at gymnastics (where being shorter and having a lower center of gravity is actually an advantage).   Paul has sometimes been called the most difficult of the apostles to understand (2 Peter 3:16) but we can better understand his writings by always keeping in mind the flexibility of his thinking.

More than any other New Testament book, the Third Gospel teaches us what it means to be humble.
 
Not surprisingly, humility is displayed in all the gospel accounts of the life of Jesus. For example, although we tend to think of Matthew as the gospel of kingship – the gospel that frequently alludes to the messianic kingly role of Christ – Matthew also records many examples of humility in the lives of Jesus and others. But none of the four gospels focuses as clearly on the humility of the Son of God and his teachings on the subject as does the book of Luke.

A Life of Humility

Luke alone describes the humble nature of the physical birth of Jesus – beginning with Mary’s affirmation of her humble state (Luke 1:48, 52), and the details of Jesus’ birth that underscore the relative poverty of his parents (Luke 2:24, etc.).  Like Matthew, Luke tells us that Jesus had no fixed home (Luke 9:58), but alone among the gospels Luke tells us that Jesus’ ministry was only possible because of the support of others who were better off (Luke 8:1–3). 

Luke alone records how Jesus was humbly subject to his earthly parents throughout his early years (Luke 2:51), and gives us dozens of details illustrating Jesus’ humble way of life – such as the fact that except on one occasion, he is pictured as traveling either by foot or by boat in an age when many – and certainly anyone due respect – traveled by horse or donkey. 

Luke also stresses how Jesus lived a life of spiritual humility, and this is frequently seen not only in what the evangelist tells us regarding Jesus’s words about himself (Luke 22:27; etc.), but also, for example, in the fact that although he was worthy of many titles and was called “the Son of God” by others, in Luke’s Gospel Jesus refers to himself as simply the “Son of Man.”

Humble interactions

Luke also carefully records details of Jesus’ interactions with others who expressed humility.   Perhaps the greatest example of this kind of reciprocal humility that is found in the Gospels is seen in the story of the centurion who implored Jesus to heal his servant. Only Matthew and Luke record this story (Matthew 8:5–13; Luke 7:1-10), but Luke’s additional details are informative.  In addition to the great humility of the Roman officer who declared “I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you” (Luke 7:6–7), this story also shows the humility of Jesus – not only in his willingness to go to the sick rather than having them brought to him, but also because Luke tells us the sick man was not an important servant, but simply a lowly slave (doulos). 

In similar ways, Luke provides us with many other examples of humility in action – some of them unexpected. For example, although we know Jesus came to serve (Matthew 20:28) Luke repeatedly shows us that his humility allowed him to be served by others. For example, the evangelist tells us that Jesus attended meals in the homes of others where he was served by the hosts (Luke 10:40–42; etc.), and he gives us the story of the woman who washed his feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair in an extreme act of service (Luke 7:36-50). In these examples, Luke teaches us that in our relationships with other people, there is a balance between the humility of serving and the humility of being willing to be served – supporting the needs of others and not being too proud to be supported in our own needs (Luke 4:38–39).

Teachings on Humility

Luke shows us that Jesus emphasized the defining character of his disciples was to be humility.  While Matthew records Jesus’ words “those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Matthew 23:12), Luke gives this same teaching not once, but twice (Luke 14:11; 18:14), showing its additional importance for Luke’s presentation of Jesus’ teaching.  

Some of Jesus’ most memorable teachings on humility are also recorded in Luke. Early in his Gospel, Luke tells how the disciples argued as to which of them would be the greatest, and how Jesus said “it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest” (Luke 9:46–50).  Importantly, Luke shows that late in Jesus’ ministry the disciples were still arguing in this way, and Jesus retaught them in even more detail. “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them … But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves … I am among you as one who serves” (Luke 22:24–27). 

Luke also records Jesus’ instruction to those who picked the places of honor at a banquet –  “all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Luke14:7–11). And to those who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector  to teach the same lesson: “all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Luke 18:9–14).

A Handbook of Humility

In both the teachings of Jesus that it records, and in examples drawn from Jesus’ ministry, the book of Luke focuses on humility more frequently than any other gospel – or any other book in the New Testament.  Many additional teachings on humility that Luke records do not mention humility directly, but show how this quality affects every aspect of our Christian lives. For example, in Luke 17, although the words “humble” and “humility” appear nowhere in the chapter, the concept underlies a great deal of what Luke tells us.

So it is worth remembering – it is to Luke that we should turn if we want a handbook of practical and applied humility, and we will also see much more of the message of his gospel if we remember that even when it is not obviously focusing on this quality, Luke is the gospel of humility. 
 
*This article is adapted from the author’s book, Lessons from Luke: Understanding More
of the Message of the Third Gospel. Download a free copy, here.