Summary 1 Corinthians 10:1-11
(Some references to Hebrews 3:1-19)
When the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years,
after they had been released from their captivity in Egypt, they all ate the
same spiritual food, and they all drank the same spiritual drink. For they
drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.
Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, so they were overthrown in
the wilderness. And why were they overthrown? Because they continued to sin
against the Lord, and they refused to obey him. So they did not enter into God’s
eternal rest because of their disobedience, because of their unbelief.
Now these things took place as examples for us, that we
might not desire evil as they did. So, we are not to be idolaters and revelers
and drunkards. And we must not be those who are engaging ourselves in any form
of sexual immorality. And we must not put Christ to the test, and we must not
grumble and complain against our Lord. For they were mostly all destroyed in
the wilderness. And these happened to them as examples to us, and they were
written down for our instruction and so we need to take this to heart.
For there are many professing Christians today who are being
fed the Word of God, who are attending weekly gatherings of what is called “church,”
and who are not without some knowledge of the truth of what God’s word teaches.
And some of them have lots of knowledge of what the Scriptures teach, and they
were or are still teachers of the Scriptures, and some of them are pastors of
congregations, too. But many of them are not adhering to what the Scriptures
teach, but they are engaged in regular evil, including in sexual immorality and
drunkenness and addiction to sin.
And it isn’t that most of them have not heard enough truth
to know that what they are doing is wrong. Well, in fact, the Scriptures teach
that God made himself known to all of humanity through the things that he
created. And so when humans suppress the truth about God so that they can do
what their evil hearts desire, then they are without excuse (Romans 1:18-32).
So no one has any excuse for living in habitual sin, but especially those
professing to know Jesus Christ and who have knowledge of his Word.
1 Corinthians 10:12-13 ESV
“Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
So, we should never get cocky about our relationships we
think we have with the Lord, or about our Bible knowledge, or get overconfident
about our own human ability to fight off Satan’s attacks against us. And we
should guard our hearts against thinking we are better than we are. Now, we can
examine our own lives, and we can say with Paul that we know we are living
righteously, if indeed we are, but we must be careful we don’t let that go to
our heads and think there is no way we would ever sin again. So, we are to take
heed if we think we stand, lest we fall. Take this one to heart.
Now verse 13 is in the context of this whole chapter talking
about the Israelites and how they disobeyed the Lord out of unbelief, and so
they ignored the Lord’s commandments, and so they sinned greatly against the
Lord, even though they had been warned. And it is in the context of what we are
being told here of how they are an example to us, and how the Lord has written
this down for us, for our instruction, so that we don’t desire evil as they did
and then not enter into God’s eternal rest.
So, the point of this is that we cannot make excuses for
sin. We can’t claim that we didn’t know or that we lacked strength, or that
somehow we got jumped through a side door and so we were defenseless, and so we
yielded to the sin and not to God. For no temptation has overtaken us that is
not common to man. And God is absolutely faithful, and he will not let us be
tempted beyond the power we have been given from above to fight off that
temptation. But we have to yield to that heavenly power.
But with the temptation, our Lord will also provide the way
of escape, that we may be able to endure it. But we have to take the way of
escape which he provided, which was first provided for us on the cross of
Christ. For in Jesus’ death on that cross, he who knew no sin became sin for us
that we might become the righteousness of God. For when Jesus died our sins
died with him, and when we believe in him we are crucified with him in death to
sin so that we will no longer be enslaved to sin but to God and to his
righteousness.
So, Jesus already conquered death and sin and hell. And
through faith in him we die with him to sin that we might live to him and to
his righteousness. And then he supplies us with the armor of God which we are
to put on daily to fight off the devil’s schemes against us. And he has given
us the Holy Spirit to indwell us and to empower us to live godly and holy lives
free from slavery to sin. So we are all without excuse if we willfully choose
to give in to the temptation to sin against our Lord.
And one more thing. This chapter serves as a warning to us
today to not be like most of the Israelites who wandered in the wilderness for
40 years. For most of them died in the wilderness, and they did not enter into
God’s eternal rest. They did not enter the kingdom of heaven due to their unbelief
which was evident by their disobedience. So please know that if sin is what you
practice, and if righteousness and obedience to the Lord are not what you
practice, you will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what faith
you profess you have with your lips.
Eternal
Father, Strong to Save
William Whiting
Eternal Father,
strong to save,
Whose arm does bind
the restless wave,
Who bids the mighty
ocean deep
Its own appointed
limits keep;
O hear us when we
cry to Thee
For those in peril
on the sea.
O Savior, whose
almighty word
The winds and waves
submissive heard,
Who walked upon the
foaming deep,
And calm amid the
rage did sleep;
O hear us when we
cry to Thee
For those in peril
on the sea.
O Holy Spirit, who
did brood
Upon the waters
dark and rude,
And bid their angry
tumult cease,
And give for wild
confusion peace;
O hear us when we
cry to Thee
For those in peril
on the sea.
O Trinity of love
and pow'r,
Your children
shield in danger's hour;
From rock and
tempest, fire, and foe,
Protect them where-so-e'er
they go;
Thus, evermore
shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of
praise from land and sea.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BrcQ9_sV3M
Caution: This link may
contain ads
No comments:
Post a Comment