City Life Starter

I. The Word: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

“I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness.

Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play.” Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Nor let us try the Lord, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents. Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

By Heather Mattingly

These 3 chapters of 1 Corinthians 8-10 seem to cover a lot of different themes, but there is actually an underlying theme through all of these chapters: the boundaries of freedom. This seems to be a contradiction in terms. How can “boundaries” and “freedom” coexist? Paul is trying to teach, through these illustrations, that freedom is not the right to do whatever you want to, freedom is the right to do whatever you should do.

The examples Paul uses in the above verses seem…not very relevant. A spiritual rock? 23,000 people dying from committing sexual immorality? Being destroyed by serpents? What on earth do these things mean? And why is Paul choosing to talk about them here? Let’s dive into these verses together today:

“I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; (1 Cor 10:1)
This refers to God’s miraculous saving work of delivering the Israelites out of Egypt and parting the Red Sea, then guiding the Israelites through the wilderness using a cloud covering during the day and a pillar of fire by night (Ex. 13:21 – 14:31). The Corinthians (and us today) experienced the same miraculous deliverance as the ancient Israelites did when the Lord delivered them from their own bondage to sin and death.

“and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.” (1 Cor 10:2-3).
Just like Christians are delivered from bondage (death) and baptized in water into a new birth and a new life (giving a visible symbol to an invisible reality), so the ancient Israelites also were delivered from bondage and baptized in water into a new birth and a new life through the crossing of the Red Sea with God’s cloud protecting them from the enemy – the Egyptian army (Ex. 14:19-22). God not only delivered them, but also provided for them practically along their way in the wilderness by giving them food and drink (Ex. 16:35 & 17:6). He did the same for the Corinthians, and does the same for you in your life today.

Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. (1 Cor. 10:4)
Paul is illustrating to the Corinthian Church the dangers of believing that freedom in Christ gives free license to do whatever you want without consequences. There is an understandable tendency to think along these lines: “oh, if only I had physically walked with Jesus, or physically walked through the Red Sea with the Israelites, and/or actually seen God’s guiding cloud during the day or His pillar of fire by night in the wilderness, then I would believe! There would be no more doubt in my heart, and THEN I would obey with all my heart!” It doesn’t work this way. Obedience must come first; all we have is now. Even our ancestors of the faith, who saw with their physical eyes the miracles God did at the Red Sea, then in the wilderness, the destruction of the Egyptian army, the cloud by day, pillar of fire by night, the manna from heaven, and the water from the rock…..they still didn’t believe! And God allowed their entire generation – except for two, Joshua and Caleb – to die in the wilderness before going into the Promised Land. Paul’s message to the Corinthians and to us today is the same: freedom is not the license to obey when you feel like it and when the circumstances are to your liking. Freedom is a privilege to obey at all times in all circumstances. It is dangerous to think that when your circumstances are just so, then you will obey God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Do you remember what God saved you from? And how God saved you? What a miracle that was? Make your choice whether or not to believe! And then, immediately DO. Delayed obedience is disobedience.

“Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved.” (1 Cor 10:6)
These same Israelites, our ancestors, saw these amazing miracles with their physical eyes and still missed the mark and gave in to their own fleshly desires! The Corinthians were no different: the Corinthians were having difficulty doing what was right versus what they wanted (because, technically, they are free from the law). And we are no different today. We are free from the law to be bondservants of Christ (1 Cor. 7:22). It is quite tempting to think, “well! I’m more sophisticated than that. In fact, if I had been in that Red Sea generation and seen all those amazing things, I would not have fallen into temptation, for I know better than the Israelites or the Corinthians!” This is a dangerous thought.

Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play.” (1 Cor. 10:7)
The “idolator” story refers to when Moses went up on Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments, and while he was on top of the mountain, the Israelites were at the bottom of the mountain building and worshiping a golden calf that was made with their own jewelry (Ex. 32:1-6). The Corinthians were also struggling with many idols in their own city. How were the Christians to treat the idols, or, for example, going to a friend’s party where an idol was worshiped? Did they not go? Do they go and not partake? And just be a light there? What if there are new believers at these social gatherings watching them to learn how to behave? (Hmmm…this sounds a lot like trying to figure out whether or not to go to a club or bar or something like that today, doesn’t it? All of a sudden, these ‘outdated’ examples seem quite relevant to our culture today.).

“ Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day.” (1 Cor 10:8)
The “act immorally” story refers to when the Israelites fell into sexual immorality with the Midianites, and thousands died in one day (Numbers 25:9). The Corinthians were struggling a lot with sex, which Paul has addressed quite a few times in this letter already. Again, he’s trying to verify that just because you are free in Christ does not mean there are no consequences to your choices. Your body is not your own; you are not your own. You are bought with a price! (1 Cor 6:19-20)

Nor let us try the Lord, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents. Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer.” (1 Cor 10:9-10)
This is another story from the Old Testament (Num 12:4-9) where the people “tried” or “tested” the Lord because they wanted something else than what He had given them – specifically a type of food that God did not give to them which they wanted – so God sent serpents to express His displeasure. Think of a child, whom you lovingly care for and feed, throwing a huge fit accusing you of not caring for them at all because you are not giving them what they want. As a parent, how would you react? You would be patient, but eventually, a line would be crossed, and consequences would be paid. That’s exactly what happened in this situation. And the Corinthians were no different: playing with boundaries, “how far can I go? I know I should do the right thing, but everyone else is doing this popular thing, and Jesus did not say specifically that _____ situation is illegal.” Again, this sounds eerily familiar to our dialogue about many boundaries today (sex outside of marriage, stealing materials from the office, honesty on tax returns, etc…).

I don’t know about you, but the term “destroyed by the destroyer” terrifies me the most. If we keep “grumbling,” and being discontent in our hearts, and pushing our boundaries, God will eventually release us lovingly from His protective wing, thereby freeing us to do what we think we want to do. And then we are left out in the open, without His protection. How terrifying. Especially, since the Bible says, “your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

“Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” (1 Cor. 10:9-11)
The Israelites struggled with the same issues that the Corinthians did, and that we do today. The details might be different, but the struggle is the same: the fight against the flesh and the culture of the world to rise up and actually DO what you know is the right thing to do. Note that in every one of these Old Testament examples Paul uses is that the battle is not just to know what is right in your heart, but to do what is right with your body and actions. This fight is the same today, 2,000 years later.

Be careful with your freedom. It is a gift, not an entitlement. Jesus had this same freedom, and how did He use it? The Bible says that “Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you may follow in His footsteps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Ouch. There is nothing in that verse that says Jesus did what He wanted when He wanted to. Jesus said multiple times that He came “not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” (John 6:38; John 4:34; Luke 22:42; John 5:30). Jesus is our model; whose will do you want to accomplish today? His or yours?

PRAYER:

“Father, You sent Your Son, Jesus, to suffer and die for me, for me! Because You couldn’t stand the idea of spending eternity without me with You. Please burn this Truth deep into my heart to cause me to fall more in love with You. I want more of You; I repent of pushing my boundaries and trying to get away with what I want versus what You want for me. I trust You. I will honor Your boundaries in the area of _________ in my life today. Let Your will be done, and not my own. Please fill me again right now, Holy Spirit, and empower me to know Your will and to do Your will today. Amen.”