In 1 Corinthians 13:10, Paul speaks about the spiritual gifts that would be nullified, or rendered inoperative, when adulthood arrives. We have seen that adulthood does not refer to the perfection that will soon be “in heaven.” It speaks of the phase of the ecclesia, which would grow from childhood to adulthood.
1 Corinthians 13
11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I thought as a child, I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away the things that were of a child.
Child vs. Man
Paul contrasts a child with a man. The man is the adult from verse 10. The giving of gifts, such as speaking in tongues and prophesying, in the early days of the ecclesia is compared to a childlike stage. A child speaks, thinks, and calculates like a child. There is nothing wrong with that, but it is a phase that will pass.
In the early stages of the ecclesia, it was in an immature stage. Speaking, thinking, and contemplating were like a child: partial. Speaking in tongues, prophesying, knowledge, etc., were partial expressions of God’s spirit, intended to guide the ecclesia through this stage.
In verse 10, we read: when maturity comes, what is in part will be done away. If we know that what was in part points to partial revelations of God’s word, then maturity is the moment when the word of God has come to fullness and is complete. Paul was the one to whom God had given the task of completing the Word.
Colossians 1
25 I became her (the ecclesia, verse 24) servant, according to the inheritance of God, which is given to me for you, to complete the Word of God.
bring to completion
The word rendered here as “complete” is translated in the (Revised) Statenvertaling as “fulfill,” just as prophecies are fulfilled and brought to completion. It was given to Paul to reveal the mystery that had been hidden for eons and generations (Col. 1:26). This mystery was unknown until then, and Paul was allowed to add this final part to the word of God. Much can be said about this mystery, but here it suffices to emphasize that it speaks of the period in which Israel was set aside and salvation went to the nations: Christ among you, nations (Col. 1:27)!
no longer necessary
Once these previously unknown truths were committed to writing, the word of God would be complete and the gifts would lose their function. They were simply no longer necessary, because their purpose had been accomplished. What meaning would they still have if God had given His fully revealed Word?
The purpose fulfilled
A lamp or candle provides light in the dark, but as soon as the sun rises and shines in its full splendor, such limited light-bearers become redundant. Similarly, scaffolding is essential during construction, but as soon as the house is finished, it is removed (cf. Eph. 2:19-22). They have served their purpose, but are no longer needed. The same thing happened with spiritual gifts.