Taught 9/13/2009
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Finishing well
Open your Bible to…
1Cor. 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
Pray
Intro
√ Finishing well
The closing verse of chapter 9 ties together Paul’s exhortation there with his admonition to the Corinthians in chapter 10 to run their spiritual race well lest they be disqualified.
By “disqualified” Paul isn’t suggesting that his friends at Corinth might lose their salvation!
Rather, in context with the whole of his letter he is calling them to change the way they are living lest God have to implement His discipline in their lives.
Ex. Moses
His disobedience didn’t result in the loss of his relationship with the Lord, but it did disqualify him from entering the Promised Land!
In much the same way the Corinthians’ were in danger of being disqualified by their stubborn refusal to repent of their sins.
They wouldn’t lose their salvation but if they did not heed Paul’s admonitions they would almost certainly come under the discipline of the Lord that could include an early departure from this life just as the rebellious generation of the Exodus died in the desert short of the finish line.
Just as Paul had warned earlier of the man in the church that was involved in sexual immorality….
“deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh (death!), that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” ~ 1 Cor. 5:5
So, in this next section Paul calls his friends at Corinth to consider the example of the Israelites during the Exodus as a strong warning that God will discipline His people if they aren’t running according to His rules!
Ap. Disqualified
I have a file in my office labeled “Fallen”.
It contains newspaper clippings and articles from the Internet regarding men and woman of God who have been disqualified by their sins.
Many are prominent people whose names are well known in the Christian community.
Others are people not known outside of their town or city but are just as important to the work of God and are in my file because they are friends of mine.
What they have in common is that each came under the discipline of the Lord because they wrongly believed that their freedom in Christ somehow protected them from the unpleasant consequence of sinful activity.
I keep that file for two reasons…
As a teaching tool to warn young men and woman who believe they are called to serve the Lord about the deception of sin.
And as a personal warning to keep me from being seduced by the whispers of the Devil who would suggest that God’s grace is a license to sin.
Each of us has been called to run a spiritual race…
…the apostle Paul’s instructions here would encourage you to run according to the rules so that you will not be disqualified and that you might finish your race well!
God’s Blessings (vs. 1-5)
1Cor. 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea,
1Cor. 10:2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,
1Cor. 10:3 all ate the same spiritual food,
1Cor. 10:4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.
1Cor. 10:5 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
√ God’s blessing
Paul was concerned that his smug friends at Corinth might disregard all of his warnings because they didn’t really believe that God would discipline them.
After all they were presently enjoying many of God’s blessings despite the trouble in the church and the general level of disobedience among the members.
Why then change behavior when God was blessing them?
So, by way of example Paul calls their attention to another group of people who were also greatly blessed of God…
…and yet came to experience the harsh discipline of the Lord because of their continued disobedience.
That was the people of the Exodus.
The people of God who were delivered from Egypt and led by Moses through the Wilderness.
Paul points out that the whole generation of the Exodus saw and experienced first hand the supernatural works of God!
A people especially blessed to be the recipients of God’s favor.
He lists five supernatural ways in which they were blessed…
Guided by God ~ vs. 1
During their entire journey out of Egypt and through the wilderness God guided His people by a cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night (ref. Exodus 13:21).
Protected by God ~ vs. 1
God fought for His people and stood between them and Pharaoh’s army so that no harm came to them (ref. Exodus 14:19-20).
Delivered by God ~ vs. 1
God delivered them from Pharaoh and his army by making a way for Israel through the Sea (ref. Exodus 14).
Baptized by God ~ vs. 2
Paul tells us that the Children of Israel were…
“baptized into Moses” ~ vs. 2
That is, they were united together under the leadership of the man selected by God and put their trust in him (ref. Exodus 14:31).
Fed by God ~ vs. 3
God provided food and drink for His people during the 40 years they wandered through the wilderness even allowing them to eat bread from Heaven! (ref. Exodus 16:4 & 15; 17:6-7 & 20:1-13).
So, the people of the Exodus were especially blessed by God…
…just as the Corinthians were especially blessed in Christ.
√ Seeing isn’t believing
Paul’s point is that seeing and experiencing these supernatural wonders did not guarantee spiritual success!
In fact, all but two of that entire generation failed to finish the race that God put before them!
Rather they came under the harsh discipline of the Lord because of their continual disobedience, thus Paul writes in vs. 5…
“But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.”
Of the hundreds of thousands of people who were delivered from Egypt and saw the mighty works of God…
…only Joshua and Caleb entered the Promised Land.
The rest including Moses died in the desert because they were disqualified by their disobedience from entering the Promised Land.
A sober reminder that God is serious about the holiness of His people!
√ Corinth’s blessings
Like the people of the Exodus the believers in Corinth had been greatly blessed by God! They too had been…
Guided by God
Protected by God
Delivered by God
Baptized by God
Fed by God
In view of these and the many other special favors of God granted to them ought they not respond by faithfully following Jesus with a life of joyful obedience?
Ap. Seeing isn’t always believing
Just a quick note to call your attention to the fact that contrary to popular thought seeing doesn’t always mean believing!
It’s not that the people of the Exodus didn’t believe in God…
…they believed He existed and knew of His power and glory.
But that belief didn’t produce faith and obedience in their lives, rather they were more like the fallen angles of whom James writers…
“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” ~ James 2:19
Paul’s point to the Christians at Corinth was that they should not misinterpret their blessed position in Christ to mean that God would not also discipline them if they refused to repent!
Ap. Be careful!
There are some strange doctrines out there that misinterpret God’s grace as a free pass to sin with impunity.
Don’t be fooled!
God desires your holiness as Peter wrote…
“but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.” ~ 1 Peter 1:15
God is patient when we step out in disobedience but as Paul illustrated from the Old Testament God will implement harsh discipline if we ignore the gentle rebuke of His Spirit.
Ex. Ananias & Sapphira
A New Testament warning!
Israel’s Failures (vs. 6-11)
1Cor. 10:6 Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted.
1Cor. 10:7 And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.”
1Cor. 10:8 Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell;
1Cor. 10:9 nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents;
1Cor. 10:10 nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
1Cor. 10:11 Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
√ Israel’s failures
In these verses Paul contrasts the 5 blessings that the people of the Exodus enjoyed with 5 sins they committed during their journey through the Wilderness.
His point is to show the moral and spiritual failure of this group of blessed people…
…and by example to warn the Corinthian Christians who had also failed in these same areas of sin!
That just as God disciplined the people of the Exodus for their sin so He would discipline those Christians at Corinth who continued in their sin.
1) Lust ~ vs. 6
There are a number of instances in which the people of the Exodus were driven by their lust but the example Paul seems to be thinking of is found in Numbers 11.
The people were tired of manna so they cried out for meat!
God sent a massive flock of quail that descended all around the camp of the Jews.
They gorged themselves with meat to satisfy their lust but no sooner had they tasted it then God’s judgment fell upon them and many died.
The Hebrews named the place Kibroth Hattaavah…
…“Graves of craving (lusting)”
2) Idolatry ~ vs. 7
Many of the Jews who left Egypt never did seem to break free of the idolatry they learned from the Egyptians but the most contemptible example was the Golden Calf that Aaron made saying to the people…
“This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!” ~ Exodus 32:4
What a slap in the face of God to be remade into the image of a dumb cow!
3) Immorality ~ vs. 8
The incident to which Paul is referring is found in Numbers 25 where the Israelites accepted the invitation of the Moabites to participate in their pagan worship, which involved ritualistic sex with the woman of Moab.
What’s worse is that their sin came on the heels of God’s special intervention to protect them from the curses of Balaam!
So, God brought judgment upon those in the camp who had sinned and over 20,000 died in one day!
4) Tempted ~ vs. 9
Here Paul reminds his friends at Corinth of the time during the Exodus when the people called into question the goodness of God to bring them safely to the Promised Land…
…the account is recorded in Numbers 21…
“And the people spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.” ~ Num. 21:5
Wow!
Calling the bread of Angels “worthless”!
In response to their testing God sent “fiery serpents” or “vipers” to kill many of the people…
…sort a reminder that it was Him alone who kept them safe from the many dangers in the wilderness.
5) Complaining ~ vs., 10
It’s hard to find a time when they weren’t complaining!
They started almost as soon as Moses and Aaron first showed up to free them from Pharaoh!
But, the example where we find the most frightening example of God’s judgment is in the rebellion of Korah against God’s choice of Moses to lead His people.
Korah’s compliant…
“You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?”
Num. 16:3
By his murmuring and complaining he had led astray some 250 leaders of the community of Israel!
So God brought a swift and terrifying judgment upon them, their families, and all their possessions by opening the ground beneath them and swallowing them alive!
In so doing God demonstrated to the rest of the congregation His choice of servant-leaders…
…that is, Moses was His man.
√ Corinth’s failures
If you’ve been with us for our study of the Corinthian letter then you know that the believers there were guilty of all the same sins!
They were driven by their lust as evidenced by the widespread practice of sexual immorality in the church.
There were some who had verbally committed their lives to Jesus but who were still engaged in pagan rituals.
They embraced and even encouraged such gross sexual immorality that even the unsaved were shocked by their behavior.
They tempted the Lord by their flippant conduct at the Lord’s Supper.
And as we’ve seen since the opening chapter there were many who murmured against God’s servant Paul who had led the Corinthians out of bondage to Satan.
The obvious warning then is that since they were guilty of all the same sins for which God brought deadly discipline upon the people of the Exodus…
…then they ought to with fear and trembling humble their proud lives before the Lord and seek His mercy and forgiveness less they experience the same discipline!
Ap. Deadly discipline
I’m happy to report that in my 33 years as a Christian that it is rare that I’ve seen the Lord implement this kind of discipline…
Most of the time God is so gracious with us!
He withholds His judgment and lets us run like Jonah or the Prodigal Son without serious consequence because He knows that by His goodness we will be drawn to repentance.
However, while it is rare that I’ve seen God’s harsh discipline meted out to His children I have seen it.
I buried a friend who abandoned his family to pursue his drug addiction after God had delivered him of it.
I buried another friend who relabeled his drug addiction as “self-medication”.
Another friend of mine is sitting in prison today because he walked away from God’s blessings and thought the world had more to offer.
And a number of my friends are no longer in full time ministry today because they bought the Devil’s lie that God wouldn’t bust them for their sin because they were so anointed and blessed.
Tuck this into your heart and never forget it…
God is longsuffering and merciful.
He holds out His hands all day long to the disobedient ready to receive and forgive those who come to Him in repentance.
But, He is also a Holy God who will not allow even His children to abuse His grace and is fully capable and willing to bring harsh discipline into our lives if that’s what it will take to keep us from sinning and discrediting His Name and His Church.
Remember what C.S. Lewis wrote about Aslan…
“He isn’t safe, but He is good”
Like the Great Lion who is a type of Christ, God is warm and fuzzy to those who embrace Him…
…but He’s got teeth and claws hidden under that soft fur and if needed He will use them to free us from our sin.
Final Admonition (vs. 12-13)
1Cor. 10:12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.
1Cor. 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
√ Final admonition
In these last two verses Paul brings home the application of the example of the people of the Exodus…
“Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” ~ vs. 12
That is, Paul called the Corinthians to stop and consider there ways!
For while they may have thought themselves safe from any disciplinary action by God because of the blessings they’d experienced…
…Paul tells them that they are wrong, maybe even dead wrong!
That even though they were presently standing that in a moment, in a heart beat, they could fall victim to God’s hand of discipline and be disqualified from finishing the race.
Ex. Ben Johnson
Canadian sprinter beat Carl Lewis of the USA in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea.
But was disqualified and lost the gold medal when it was discovered that he’d been using steroids.
Like many other athletes using performance-enhancing drugs he thought that he could use them forever without getting caught.
Why? Because he hadn’t been caught before and was being “blessed” with winning performances.
He wrongly believed he continue cheating without being caught or experiencing any unpleasant consequences.
Ben Johnson isn’t remembered as a great champion, but as a cheater who was disqualified from the race.
√ Help in time of need
Additionally, Paul reminds them in vs. 13 that they aren’t facing any temptation that is unique or different from what every other person faces.
What they face is no different than what Paul and every other person on the planet face.
More than that God always provides a means of escaping that temptation so that they are without excuse for their sin.
Close
√ Finishing well
We all start this life disqualified!
We’re born sinners and set on the wrong track running in the wrong direction!
But God, through the gift of Salvation transforms us into saints, places us on the right track, and points us toward the finish line.
How well we run and finish is up to us.
God’s provided all the training, spiritual nourishment, strength, endurance, and encouragement we need to finish well.
It’s up to you whether or not to run in His power. May you chose to follow Paul’s example so that at the end your days you can say…
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” ~ 2 Tim. 4:7