25 Take Heed Lest You Fall: Is Going to Church Enough? (1 Corinthians 10:1-12)

Krisan Marotta: Welcome to the Wednesday in the Word Podcast. I'm Krisan Marotta, and this is my podcast about what the Bible means and how we know. Today we're studying 1 Corinthians chapter 10, verses 1 through 12, and this is the 25th talk in our series on 1 Corinthians. Lecture notes for today's talk are on the link below the podcast, or you can find them on the website. Just go to wednesdayintheword.com slash 1 Corinthians 2.5. And if you haven't been to the website before, I encourage you to take a look. There is no charge, no spam, no ads, and only Bible study. Thanks for joining me today. Well, we are starting 1 Corinthians chapter 10 today, and we are starting the conclusion of a section that began in chapter 8. Chapters 8 through 10 form one unit of Paul's thought in this letter. The church in Corinth is arguing over the issue of whether it's okay for believers to eat meat that was sacrificed to idols. One group insists that they have the right to eat this meat. They say there's nothing wrong with it because the idols are fake and the meat is just meat. The other group argues that eating the meat is a form of participating in idolatry and therefore we should avoid it. Well in chapter eight, Paul said it is okay to eat the meat. The meat eating group is right in that there is only one God, the idols are not real, and the meat is just meat. But he argued, if eating meat sacrificed to idols would cause someone else to stumble, then they should avoid it out of love for their neighbors, and they should stop putting pressure on immature believers to do something that they believe is wrong. Then in chapter nine, Paul used his own situation as an example. He argued that as an apostle, he has the right to take support from those he preaches to. It is right and appropriate for the one who works to benefit from his labor. But whenever taking money might hinder his ability to communicate the gospel, Paul declined to take it. So if taking money would open him to the charge that he was profiting from the gospel somehow or would give someone cause to dismiss him as only after the money, then he refused payment. And when he was in Corinth, he worked. He declined to take support from the Corinthians for their sake so that they would more easily hear the gospel. And he wants the Corinthians to exercise their freedom to eat meat in the same way. If their eating meat causes someone else to stumble or hinders their understanding of the gospel in some way, then they should refrain from eating the meat. But Paul also tells us in chapter nine that he declines support for his own sake as well. The way he used his freedom was an opportunity to show that the gospel really means something to him. His free choice to work instead of taking support showed that he valued the gospel more than money. The gospel was so important to him that he would preach it even when it cost him to do so. So it was more important for him that he believed the gospel is true and not just preach it out of compulsion. So Paul has been arguing that Christian freedoms are not absolute. The right to do something can be overshadowed by other issues. First, it can be overshadowed by love for my brother. It would be unloving for me to be a stumbling block for someone else, and so I might want to curtail my freedoms or limit them so as not to cause someone else to stumble. Second, I have to remember that knowing and understanding the gospel is not enough. I myself have to believe it. I have to stake my life on it and make choices in keeping with the faith I claim to believe. The way I live my life is a reflection of what I believe, what I value, and what I think to be true. Chapter ten is going to expand on this second point that we have to live out the faith we claim to believe. It's not enough to say that we believe the gospel. Our lifestyle, our choices, our values, our speech, our actions, all of that must reflect our belief. And that's the issue Paul's going to focus on. At the end of chapter nine, Paul compared the Christian life to running a race. You have to finish the race to get the prize. Entering the race is not enough. You have to cross the finish line. Some are going to make it and some are not. And just like athletes make choices to help them reach their goal of finishing the race, so we believers make choices that reflect our faith as it grows and matures. So that brings us to chapter ten. But before we look at the chapter itself, I want to give you an analogy that I hope will make clear how chapter 10 fits into the argument. And I learned this analogy from one of my mentors, and I've tweaked it a bit for the podcast. Imagine that as a Christian, Joe feels the freedom to watch some R-rated movies. But his friend Bob is convinced that watching an R-rated movie is morally wrong, disobedient to God, and sets a bad example for others. So Joe thinks Bob is wrong and kind of old fashioned, while Joe sees himself as more mature, with it, and sophisticated, and Joe wants to convince Bob that he's wrong. Joe begins to put pressure on Bob to watch R-rated movies with him. After all, how can Bob judge something he has never seen? And lots of people in the church watch R-rated movies and they're just fine. Joe treats Bob as a little naive and ignorant while portraying himself as knowledgeable and sophisticated. He insists that Bob just doesn't understand our true freedoms in Christ. He can talk circles around Bob's objections, and he presents a very polished picture of sophistication. Through his words and his attitude and his pressure, Joe creates an environment where Bob concludes that if he wants to continue to be Joe's friend, he really is going to have to watch an R-rated movie with him, even though he thinks it would be disobedient to God. Let's assume that Joe genuinely believes we have the freedom to watch R movies, and he can articulate the reasons why he believes this is true. And for the sake of this analogy, let's assume Joe's right. Whether watching R rated movies is in fact a freedom we have is beside the point I want to make. Just grant me that for the sake of this analogy it's okay to watch some R rated movies. Here then is our situation. Joe has this knowledge of what is true. Joe says we have the freedom to watch some R rated movies, and he's right. Bob, on the other hand, is convinced that we do not have that freedom, and he believes that watching such movies is disobedient to God. Joe is chiding and pressuring Bob to take an action that Bob believes is evil. But there's more going on here. Joe likes the thrill of doing edgy, provocative stuff. Joe likes the shock value of breaking Christian stereotypes, and he wants to be seen as with it and hip and cool. He likes knowing where the line is and skating right up to the edge of it. And nobody knows this, but Joe sometimes finds himself watching the occasional X-rated movie. And sometimes on occasion, Joe secretly indulges in watching pornography. Now Joe knows that's wrong, but this is the way he wants to live. He just wants to indulge himself in the way he wants to indulge himself. So for Joe, this issue is not just about freedom. He has a personal agenda. He wants the world to be the kind of place where you can watch R rated movies. He likes the edgy thrill of going to movies that push the envelope. And even more, he wants the world to be the kind of place where he can watch X-rated movies if he feels so inclined. He wants to be able to indulge himself in the way he wants to indulge himself. So he's glad that his theology tells him R-rated movies are okay because he wants to indulge in exactly that kind of self-gratification. In fact, he wants the gratification so much he indulges in X-rated movies even when he knows watching them is wrong. It's important to understand all the different levels in my analogy. It is intentionally complex. First, there is this harmful pressure that Joe is putting on Bob to do something Bob believes is wrong. Joe is disregarding the impact of his actions on Bob, and it is unloving and unwise for Joe to do that. Second, Joe's priorities are wrong. He's acting as if the freedom to watch a movie is more important than loving his brother and submitting to the dictates of conscience. It is more important to Joe that he convinces Bob to go along with him than that Bob remained faithful to his beliefs about God. Joe is putting the momentary pleasure of a movie over loving his neighbor and obeying the gospel. And finally, there's this third element that Joe is crossing a line he knows is wrong. And when he crosses that line, the issue is no longer about freedom. Now it's just selfish sin that ignores what God says is right or wrong. So we have these levels, how Joe is affecting Bob, what Joe's actions reveal about him and his faith, and this test that Joe is facing to see if he really wants to follow what God says is true or not, or if he's willing to just do something that he knows is wrong. And I think all these levels are analogous to the situation in Corinth. On one level, the issue is about freedom, and Paul has said, yes, you Corinthians have the freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols. God thinks that is an okay thing to do. But Paul recognizes that something deeper is going on in this dispute. There is this other level of how the meat eating group is treating the abstaining group. They're pressuring the abstaining group to do something that that group thinks is evil, and that says something about their maturity of faith or their lack of it. And Paul has told the meat eating group that it is unloving and unfaithful of them to value the desire to eat the meat over the importance of the gospel and loving their neighbor. But as we'll see in chapter ten, the issue goes one level deeper for the Corinthians. Some of them are emphasizing their freedoms to eat meat sacrificed to idols because they're soft on idolatry. It's not just that they want to eat the meat. They like the thrill of being edgy. They may even find it comforting and reassuring to be involved with idols in some way. It's a piece of their former way of life and it feels safe. Plus they can see themselves as hip and sophisticated to eat in the temple and flirt with idolatry. And then there's this third level that they may be exploiting their freedoms so that they can indulge themselves in things they really shouldn't be indulging in. They're using their freedom as a covering for sin. And so Paul is going to give them a warning in chapter ten, take heed lest you fall. He's going to challenge them on this third level, how they're exploiting their freedoms to cover their idolatry. And the question he's posing to them is, are you dabbling in idolatry because ultimately you don't really take God seriously and you don't really want to obey him? Or are you going to say, I'm not going to eat the meat because I want to follow God and I want to be one of his children? So he's going to hit hard on this issue of idolatry in chapter 10 and warn them that just because they're part of the Corinthian church, it doesn't mean God is pleased with them. Paul's going to hit hard on this issue of idolatry in chapter 10. So before we look at the chapter, let's make sure we understand what idolatry is. What are the Corinthians flirting with that Paul is so concerned about? When we hear the word idolatry, we tend to think of people worshiping statues. And we know you're supposed to worship God alone, but instead you're worshiping this other being represented by this gold statue or this idol. And you need to put the right deity at the head of your religion, and if you put the wrong deity there, then you have the wrong religion. And furthermore, we think it's wrong to think that the statue itself represents God. It's wrong to think that God could be captured in a wooden figure or a gold statue. So when we think of idolatry today, we think of someone who has the wrong religion and foolishly believes that a statue made by human hands is a real God. But I don't think that's the heart of the problem that Paul's addressing. Let me see if I can explain what I think is going on here with this issue of idolatry. We humans have had this big problem ever since we got kicked out of the garden. We experience the world around us, but we no longer have direct experience with the Creator. God is the source of all life and all blessings, and He is invisible and intangible to us. So Christianity calls us to follow, to obey, to believe and trust and worship a being that we cannot see. And there's a reason we can't see him. He's beyond us. He's not one of the things in our world. He created this world, and this world could disappear, but he wouldn't. He's outside of it. And yet to us, the world seems more real than God. We can see and touch the world. Given all that, it's very tempting to replace an intangible invisible God with something tangible and visible. Because I have real problems in the real world. I want my religion to be practical. I want it to solve my very real tangible problems. I want things like health and prosperity, peace, contentment, I want long life and good friends and a happy family. And God can seem very distant compared to my immediate needs and the problems in this life. A statue or an idol can make God appear more real and tangible to me. I may know that God's not really in the statue, but the statue is touchable, it's visible, I can understand it, and I'm tempted to believe I can manipulate it and relate to it because it's part of this world that I see and understand. Idolatry then is a flavor of worldliness. I start thinking this world is what it's all about, and I want a God that I can see and manipulate who's going to solve the problems I have in this world because I start believing what's really important is what I see and experience in the world around me right now, not this invisible, intangible, far away God. Well to believe in Jesus, to become a Christian is to turn that idea around. The fact is God is the most real being. His salvation is the most valuable thing in the universe and nothing in this world compares to it. Nothing in this world is going to solve my real problems. In fact, the problems of this world are just not important when compared to my eternal destiny. Nothing I might want in this world is as important as that which God has promised and said to be true. And when I say Jesus is Lord, I'm buying into that idea. To live as a believer is to live believing and knowing that this world is not all there is. There is a bigger and better promise coming. I have a hope of the glory of God and an inheritance in the kingdom of heaven. I can't see it yet, but that's what I want my life to be about. Idolatry is the opposite of faith. It's this idea that this world is where life is to be found as opposed to finding life in the Creator God. Okay, now we're ready for chapter ten. Now remember, we're coming out of chapter nine where Paul just finished talking about running the race and finishing the race. Disciplining your life like an athlete such that you finish the race and win the prize. And Paul has said that he himself must finish the race. He has to embrace the gospel that he preaches. He himself doesn't want to be disqualified. And that's the theme he's continuing, this idea that you could be involved in religion but not really be a partaker of it. And he's going to look at the example of the Israelites in the wilderness to make that point. So I'm going to start with First Corinthians ten, verse one and read through verse four. For 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. He's talking about the generation of Israelites that Moses led out of Egypt, who crossed the Red Sea and followed God in the desert. God appeared to them as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. And his point here is they all experienced the same miracles. They all crossed over the Red Sea on dry ground. They all experienced the miracle of God appearing to them in the form of a cloud. The cloud represented the presence of God. They followed it, and it settled in the tabernacle with them when they camped. And his emphasis is all of them saw this. All of them experienced these miracles. All of them passed through the Red Sea. The entire generation went through on dry ground and they were all led by the cloud. But that doesn't mean God was pleased with all of them. In ten two, he says they were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They weren't literally baptized. If you go back and read the account in Exodus, they stayed dry as they crossed the Red Sea. The idea here is he's using baptism as a kind of initiation. They heard Moses, they followed Moses out of Egypt, they followed him across on dry ground through the Red Sea, they followed him in the desert. These are the people God made promises to through Moses. Moses was the instrument by which those promises were made. So by going with Moses through the Red Sea and the Sinai, they became followers of Moses in that sense. They were baptized into Moses. They were initiated into his tribe. They became the group that would inherit the promised land and the law. And Paul's emphasis was all of them saw this, all of them heard this, all of them participated. The entire generation was part of this group of Moses people. In 10 3, he says they all ate the same spiritual food. He's talking here about the manna and the quails and the way God miraculously fed them while they were in the desert. I think by spiritual he means supernatural in this context. They ate the same supernatural food. This was unexpected. It was sent from God. It was not ordinary. This is supernatural food that God provided as part of his promise to take care of them, and all of them ate it. Then in 10 four, and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them, and the rock was Christ. He's talking about two similar events here. In both cases, the people were in a place without water and they were thirsty. And they start complaining that God just brought them out there to the wilderness to die, and they want to go back to Egypt. And in both cases, Moses strikes a rock and water comes out of it, and they are rescued from their thirst. So again, I think he's using spiritual here in the sense of supernatural. It's not ordinary. In both cases, you have Moses splitting a rock and water coming forth. And the emphasis is they all drank it. They all saw it, they all drank the water. Now, what does he mean by a spiritual rock which followed them, which is Christ? He's not speaking literally. Jesus did not appear in a rock that rolled along the desert with them. I think the idea here is that the water that flowed from the rock followed their path. The rock itself didn't literally follow them. There were two rocks in two different locations, but in each case the event was accompanied by a rock, and each rock gave forth water, and then the water followed their path so that they could drink from it. The phrase which is Christ is pointing to the analogy he's making. Just as all the people in the desert were delivered from death by the water that God miraculously provided for them from the rock, likewise all of us are delivered from death by Christ. The analogy to us is Christ. The rock was to them what Christ is to us. Christ is the rock from which we received the drink which gives us life in an analogous way. Now he may have communion in mind here because he uses this language of supernatural food and drink and baptism, and the Israelites have partaken of these rituals and events which marked them as followers of Moses. Similarly, when we become Christians, one of the marks of coming to faith is this spiritual food or drink of communion and being baptized into Christ. And the Corinthians have outwardly participated in the things of Christ, like communion and baptism, just like the Israelites had outwardly participated in the things of Moses, like crossing the Red Sea, eating the manna, following the quail, and getting water from the rock. The analogy he wants to make is you Corinthians are in the same spot. You've been baptized into Christ. You eat the same food and you drink the same drink. You are all part of the community, but that doesn't guarantee you salvation. You need to choose to follow God. Because we see this with the Israelites, let's go on. I'm gonna read chapter ten starting in verse five and go through verse twelve. 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. Look at ten five again. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well pleased, for they were laid low in the wilderness. This is the key point that he wants to make. Israel was a tribe, they were a group. Everyone participated. Everyone saw the miracles and followed Moses and ate the food and drank the water. They were all part of the community and the group. But was being part of the group enough? No. Was God pleased with them because they were part of the tribe? No, in fact, God was not pleased with most of them, and most of them died in the wilderness and never set foot on the promised land. Yes, God made promises to the tribe, God made promises to the nation, but each individual stood or fell based on his own faith or lack thereof. Each individual has to make a choice to follow God. Being part of the community or part of the tribe or part of the church is not enough. And most of that first generation chose not to follow God. Now some argue that no, this generation was in fact believers, God was not judging them, he was disciplining them, and we will see them all in heaven. But I don't think that fits the evidence of the text. It just doesn't fit with the stories in Exodus to me, and it doesn't fit with Paul's point here in Corinthians. I think his point is even though they identified themselves as part of the people of God, in reality they were rebelling against God. And he's warning the Corinthians not to be like them, not to assume that God is pleased with them because they go to the Corinthian church. And this fact that they're flirting with idolatry is a big red flag that maybe even though they're part of the church, they aren't really following God. In 10 6, Paul says, Now these things happened as examples for us so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. He's saying these things happened as examples. What happened to Israel is in part meant to be an object lesson for the people of God. We're supposed to learn from it. This particular tribe of people represents humanity. Now God could have picked any people group and we would all have done the same thing because that's the kind of people we are. This is humanity, this is what we're like. They represent us because they are us. We are just like them. We may be a different race, different gender, different skin color, live in a different generation, but we share the same human nature. So they are examples for us. And then in ten six when he says so that we would not crave evil things as they also crave. I think he's setting up his next four examples, and he's going to go on to explain what he means by these examples. So in ten seven, 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. This is a quote from the story about the golden calf. Moses went up to the mountain to get the law from God, and the people decide, you know, he's been gone a little too long. So they take matters into their own hands, and they make an idol of a golden calf, and they worship it as God. So this is Exodus thirty two. I'm gonna read starting in verse four and going through six, the he is Aaron in this verse. He took this from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf, and they said, This is your God, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt. Now when Aaron saw this he built an altar before it, and Aaron made a proclamation and said, Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord. So the next day they rose early and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink and rose up to play. Now I'm not sure that they are in fact replacing God with a calf, so much as they are making something to represent him. They want a tangible, visible God that they can control and understand and manipulate blessings from, and so they say this golden statue will do, this is our God. Now ten eight, nor let us act immorally as some of them did, and twenty three thousand fell in one day. Here he's referring to a story from Numbers twenty five, and I'm gonna read twenty five verse one through verse four. Now while Israel remained at Shatim, the people began to play the harlot with the daughters of Moab, for they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel joined themselves to Baal of Paor, and the Lord was angry against Israel. The Lord said to Moses, Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel. Now the immorality here is in the context of idolatry. It's not just sexual immorality, although that was probably involved in the worship of Baal, but it's the immorality of turning to other gods. They turned away and started worshiping other gods. Ten nine is also from Numbers, nor let us try the Lord as some of them did and were destroyed by the serpents. Paul's referring here to a story from Numbers twenty-one. I'm going to start in verse four and read through six. Then they set out from Mount Horeb by way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom, and the people became impatient because of the journey. The people spoke against God and Moses, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there's no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food. The Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people so that many people of Israel died. Now Paul uses the language, let us not try the Lord as these people did and were destroyed by serpent, or it could be translated, let us not put the Lord to the test. And this is a very important concept that comes up frequently in the Exodus story and in the New Testament authors. To figure out what he means by testing the Lord or trying the Lord, I want to back up to Numbers twenty one verse one, because this episode that I just read follows on the heels of a great victory. So look at Numbers twenty one through three. When the Canaanite, the king of Erad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming by way of the Ethereum, then he fought against Israel and took some of them captive. So Israel made a vow to the Lord and said, If you will indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. The Lord heard the voice of Israel and delivered up the Canaanites, then they utterly destroyed them in their cities. Thus the name of the place was called Horma. God had just delivered them from the king of Arad. He utterly destroyed their cities, he gave the Israelites victory. They asked, he answered, and everything was great, and now life gets a little hard and the people get impatient and they start grumbling. Rather than saying, Hey, you know, God just was faithful and delivered us from this evil king when we asked him, and so I bet if we ask him now he will feed us and give us good food and water. Instead, in numbers twenty one, four, then they sent out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom, and the people became impatient because of the journey, and the people spoke against God and Moses and said, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there's no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food. They have just been given direct, tangible evidence that God is taking care of them. He just delivered them from this king, and now they're questioning that very fact. So what putting God to the test means is demanding proof that God will take care of you when He has already given you ample proof. So instead of looking at the evidence you already have, which is more than enough, you demand more proof. That's putting God to the test. To try the Lord is to demand that God prove himself all over again. It's this attitude of I have a right to be upset with you, God, because look at where I am, look at the hardships I face. You promised to take care of me, and now just look at the mess I'm in. Prove that you love me and that you are in fact capable of taking care of me because you know I just don't believe it. If you want me to follow you again, then you have to solve this problem I have because really, you know, there's just no reason I should be reasonably expected to follow a God who takes me someplace where there's no food and no water. That's the idea. The idea of putting God to the test is God has already demonstrated his faithfulness to them. He has done great things in their lives over and over and over again. But then the next time life gets tough, rather than saying, you know, I think we should stop and pray to God because remember how faithful he's been up to this point? Instead of doing that, they say, Why did you do this to me? We don't have to listen to you anymore. You have to prove to us that you really love us and you're really taking care of us. And that's what it means to try the Lord, and that's what Paul's warning against. Then that last example he mentions in 1010, nor grumble as some of them did and were destroyed by the destroyer. Paul could be referring to several events from the wilderness stories, and he could have all of them in mind, but one in particular that I think he might be talking about is the one that occurs when they were on the border of the promised land and they send in the spies. So they send spies into the promised land and the spies report back and the people say, Ooh, we don't want to go in there. That looks too hard, and only Joshua and Caleb say, No, no, we should absolutely go in, God will give us victory. So this is Numbers fourteen verses one through four. Then all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night, and all the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, Would that we had died in the land of Egypt, or that we had died in this wilderness? Why is the Lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt? So they said to one another, Let's appoint a leader and return to Egypt. In many ways, I think this story is the culmination of the lack of faith we see in this generation of Israelites. They've been led by God, they've been blessed by God, He has miraculously taken care of them over and over again, and now they're on the border of the promised land, and the spires report back and they say, No, no, that's just too hard. We could never beat these armies and these people, and they cry and they weep before the Lord, and they say it's better, let's just kill Moses and Aaron and go back to Egypt. Joshua and Caleb tried to persuade them to go into the promised land, but picking up the story in verse ten, but all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then the glory of the Lord appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel. The Lord said to Moses, How long will this people spurn me? And how long will they not believe in me despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst? And then skipping down to verse twenty two, surely all the men who have seen my glory and my signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not listened to my voice, shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of them who spurn me see it, but my servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and followed me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it. Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel which they are making against me. Say to them, As I live, says the Lord, just as you have spoken in my hearing, so I will surely do to you. Your corpses will fall in this wilderness, even all your numbered men according to your complete number from twenty years old and upward who have grumbled against me. So they say, Let's just kill Moses and go back to Egypt, and God says ten times you failed to trust me when times got tough, ten times you put me to the test, you had ample evidence that I am your God, that I am caring for you, that I will provide for you, and ten times you asked for more proof and refused to believe, so you will die in the wilderness. And from this generation only Caleb and Joshua go into the promised land. So those are Paul's four examples from the Israelites in the wilderness, and then in first Corinthians ten, eleven and twelve he concludes, 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. So what's his point with all those examples? His point is that being part of the tribe does not guarantee that God is pleased with you. Each individual has to choose faith and choose to follow God. It's not enough to be part of the group. So he's saying learn from the lesson of the Israelites and make the right choice. This was an example for us. These stories were written down so that we might learn from them and not make the same mistake. We're in the last age of history. The next big event is going to be the second coming. So we have the benefit of living on the other side of the cross. We see more clearly than any previous generation what God is doing and how he is bringing about salvation. We have the words and life and teaching of Jesus. We know what's at stake. Take heed and choose wisely. Now remember, he's talking to people who are flirting with idolatry. He's talking to people who have demonstrated their lack of interest in the things of God. So they are like my analogy. They're flirting with idolatry, eating in the temples, maybe eating in the temples because they really kind of like this idle thing and being hip and cool and with it and part of the pagan community. And he's soberly warning them just because you're part of the Corinthian church doesn't mean that God is pleased with you. You have to decide what you believe. You have to decide who you're going to follow and who you're going to trust and how you're going to live. And you who are arrogantly parading your freedom, stop and examine yourself. The one who thinks he has it all together is in the most danger of falling because it appears you have forgotten who God is and what he's done for you, and that you need his salvation. So, in conclusion, I think there are two equally wrong ways of understanding this passage. The first mistake is to think that salvation is not at stake. Some argue that salvation was not at stake for the Israelites in the wilderness. Rather, they were just being disciplined. And they argue that salvation is not at stake for the Corinthians either. They go to church, they've been baptized, they take communion, so they're good. And they say Paul's just warning them not to mess up and miss out on some of the blessings in this life. They won't get all the prosperity in this life because they messed up, and that's what Paul's warning against. But I don't think that's what's going on here. I don't think that is what Paul's doing. His whole point is that most of the Israelites didn't make it. They died in the wilderness and never entered the promised land. They are the classic example of being part of the tribe. They all saw the miracles, they ate the manna, they drank the water from the rock, they followed the cloud, they passed through the Red Sea. So they all participated, but God was not pleased with them. When they faced a choice to follow God or not, they grumbled and complained and put God to the test and God judged them. So Paul's warning is being part of the group is not enough. You have to make a real decision to embrace the truth yourself. And the Corinthians' attitude toward idolatry is a big red flag. Paul's warning them through these examples, stop and think about what you're doing. This is serious. The second mistake, I think, is to conclude that this passage means you can lose your salvation. To think that, oh, these people were doing fine, but then they messed up and now they're out. That's not what Paul is saying either, because the picture we see in his examples is not one of belief that turns to unbelief. He paints a picture of unbelief that never believed and refuses to believe despite the evidence. So they never actually believed and embraced the truth. The contrast is between being part of the group, going through the motions, and being part of the tribe, but never individually choosing to believe and follow God. So we don't see the Israelites doing fine and then losing it. They never believe. They keep putting God to the test over and over again, and never once do we see them reacting with trust and obedience. And if we examine Paul's other letters, we can see that he believes that our faith can be tested and shown through the test to be genuine. God deliberately puts us in situations that test the reality of our faith. And those tests benefit us in a couple of ways. One, it gives us tangible, visible evidence that our faith is in fact real. And second, we grow in maturity and wisdom. And Paul is very clear that once God has given you the gift of saving faith, he will not take it away. Going through trials and coming out with your faith intact is evidence that you have real faith. Now remember, the test is not whether I'm sinful or not. The test is not whether I can be obedient or not. That test is over and I failed. The test is whether or not I believe. So the test is who am I counting on? What do I believe to be true? Where do I think I will find life and blessings? When it costs me, am I going to choose to follow God or am I going to choose to go my own way? And Paul is saying, take heed lest you fall. You who think you're doing okay, make sure you understand what's at stake here and choose life. You've been listening to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. My mission is to teach you both what the Bible means and how we know. I pray that this podcast has blessed you, and if it has, please share it with a friend. And if you have a moment, leave a positive rating on Apple Podcasts. It really does help others find the podcast more easily. If you'd like to find out more or hear previous episodes, please go to wednesdayintheword.com. Our theme music is graciously provided by my friend and favorite musician Reggie Coach. You can find his music on heartfeltmusic.org. Thank you for joining me today. I'm Krisan Marotta, and I'll see you next week at Wednesday in the Word.