1 Corinthians 10:11-14 Overcome the Wilderness!

1 Corinthians 10:11-14  These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.  So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!  No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.  And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.  Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.

Paul compares the wilderness experience with the life we live as Christians.  We face many temptations, many diversions, and find many other gods to serve, especially ones of our own interest.  He tells Christians that even though we have been freed from slavery by Christ's marvelous work, even though He has provided us a way to exist in this land of desolation, we must beware of the inclinations of the flesh: grumbling about our situation in life; serving the self first before God and others; indulging in fleshly pursuits such as promiscuous behavior, either in reality or in our thought life; pursuing other answers to our lives such as variant philosophies, ideologies or religions; defining life and its realities purely by what our physical senses perceive.  We know that the Jewish people's inclinations led them to grumble about not having water or the right kind of food.  Their inclinations led them to serve other gods as soon as they could not see Moses in their midst.  They allowed fleshly desires to lead them into sexual activity with prostitutes who served other gods.  They fell into fear because their senses told them that they would not survive in a harsh land of limited means.  God punished them as an example to us that He wants obedience from his children.  All of these temptations and inclinations are still with us in our Christian lives.  We are still going through the wilderness, and outside of Christ, it is a desolate land, without enough spiritual food to feed us, an environment that threatens our spiritual survival.  What are we to do with our present existence?  How are we to live?  Yes, the Promised Land is ahead, but how do we live in this present world?  Where do we find hope?  Certainly, the gospel has an answer for us.  As Peter wrote: In his great mercy he (God) has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.  In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  (1 Peter 1:3-7)

Today's scriptural focus is for all of us regardless of how long we have lived IN CHRIST.  We must be careful how we live, how we think, what we attach ourselves to, for our flesh is still with us.  No matter how many miracles you have seen or experienced, no matter how free you feel in the Lord, you must remember the words of the scriptures above.  All the Children of Israel experienced mighty miracles in the desert, yet a certain number of them failed to endure with God; they failed to be faithful to Him.  Paul's warning is, So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!  He is telling the Corinthians to keep their relationship with Christ up-to-date, and not to let this relationship with him depend upon such things as past spiritual interactions with Him or on the miracles that He previously performed in their lives.  He desires for them to be close to God regardless of the temptations that exist in the wilderness.  He knows the wilderness and that what it has to offer will not sustain the spiritual lives of the Corinthians.  He is asking them to have a life of faith, a life of believing in God regardless of the circumstances.  As we read in the word: Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.  (1Peter 4:12-13)  Sometimes our present circumstances look rather gloomy and desperate.  At times, the surrounding environment of the world might look better and more hopeful than our current spiritual existence.  We might believe if we just broadened our allegiance to include the ideas of others or tweaked our spiritual lives just a little toward our worldly desires, that we would be happier, more successful.  But Paul reminds them in his letter to the Corinthians that flesh leads to death while FAITH IN God IS LIFE FOREVER.

But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.  Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.  Paul concludes his warning about this wilderness experience by saying that God will provide a way out of your temptation if you flee from idolatry.  He tells them that believing and relying on anything other than God means destruction and death.  They must place their complete trust in God: serving and worshipping him alone, THE GIVER OF LIFE.  If they do so, they will experience his strength on life's journey.  If they fail to rely on him, thinking they can stand on their own reasoning and strength, his power will not rescue them.  Paul's teaching is important especially for those who minister the gospel to others because they need to depend upon God's strength.  Paul says, even though you have felt God's anointing and have seen his great works, you are capable of falling away from his divine will.  You cannot live a double-minded life.  You cannot trust in God while also trusting in your own lifestyle, abilities, or personal idols.  Your life has to be a life of complete trust and faith in God.  Others may put their trust in reasoning or in their senses or they may grumble that there is no water, no food, no way to exist out here in the desert.  They may say we must do something different; we must find answers other than just faith in God.  If we do not find other answers, we will die in this wilderness.  But Paul tells the Corinthians, Christians should run the race of life as winners, for it leads to eternal life.  Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?  Run in such a way as to get the prize.  Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.  (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)  Dear friends, your life must be hidden with Christ in God at all times.  You must rely on him alone.  You must be up-to-date in your spiritual walk, in step with the Holy Spirit.  Leaders, when there is no water, no food, you must believe that God will intervene and rescue a grumbling people.  Run in such a way as to get the prize, no matter how foolish you might look, be known as a man or woman of faith, God's faithful servant.