3/11/07 - Lent 3 - 1 Cor. 10:1-13

BE CAREFUL THAT YOU DON'T FALL!
- Learn from the past
- Lean on the Lord

When you read through the history of the Israelites, are you ever surprised at how often they fell into sin? I am. Every time I read through the first few books of the Bible, I just can’t understand how they committed sin after sin after sin when they were constantly showered by God’s goodness. It seems like right after they would see a miraculous display of God’s love they would inevitably turn their backs on him just a few days later. Didn’t they listen? Didn’t they see? Didn’t they believe?
The congregation in the city of Corinth must have been thinking the same thing because the apostle Paul brings this very topic up in our sermon text for today: 1 Corinthians chapter 10. He mentions the sins of the Israelites because he wanted to tell that congregation - and this congregation - “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” He asks us to learn from the past and lean on the Lord. And so this is what we will focus on this morning: learning from the Israelite’s past and leaning on the Lord so that we are careful not to fall into the same sins. But to do this we must first come to the realization on how similar to the Israelites we actually are.
The Israelites were God’s chosen people. They received the full extent of God’s love and goodness. In fact, as it is recorded for us in Scripture, they were witnesses to some amazing acts of his divine power. They experienced firsthand the 10 mighty plagues in Egypt. They saw the Red Sea split in two. They ate heavenly bread called Manna for 40 years. They were fed quail that fell from the sky. They drank water that somehow flowed out of a rock. They were led by the Lord in a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. They say his glory on Mount Sinai and even heard God himself speak to them from the heavens. The Israelites were surrounded by the wonders of God every day - demonstrations of his protection and love for them in every aspect of their lives. And yet, they rebelled and complained and rejected the Lord time and time again.
But are we any different? We, too, are God’s chosen people. We, too, have received the full extent of his love and goodness. We, too, are witnesses to some amazing acts of his divine power. And although we might not physically see God perform miracles on our behalf, he has still protected us from evil. He has still given us more food and drink than we can possibly need. He has still led us in our spiritual lives with his presence. He has still talked to us and has shown us his glory in his clear and powerful Word. We are surrounded by the wonders of God every day - demonstrations of his protection and love for us in every aspect of our lives. And so let us not rebel or complain or reject the Lord as the Israelites did. Let us look at these examples that Paul lays out for us and learn from the Israelite’s mistakes.
In our text Paul mentions four sins the Israelites were guilty of that we need to watch out for: idolatry, adultery, testing, and complaining. And if the Holy Spirit thought these were important enough not only to have them recorded in the Old Testament, but to then bring them up again in the New Testament as warnings, we should pay careful attention to these stories, don’t you think?
The first example mentioned for us here is idolatry - and the story is the worshiping of the golden calf. Moses had led the Israelites to the foot of Mt. Sinai, the Lord had called him up onto the mountain, and even though the Israelites saw the power and glory of the Lord covering Mount Sinai, just 40 days later, as Moses was still up on the mountain, they ended up bowing down to an animal made out of melted jewelry. How could they possibly have done that? If we are to learn from this past example we need to know why they fell into the sin of idolatry in this situation… They fell because they didn’t see results. Moses had been up on that mountain for over a month. They didn’t know what had happened to him. They hadn’t seen any positive changes as they waited there in the desert. They weren’t sure if the Lord had abandoned them. And so they looked for stability from something else.
Don’t think it doesn’t happen to you. Let’s say you’re sick. And although it’s OK for you to take medicine and see doctors and try different remedies - don’t you start trusting in those things to take away the pain and help you through when you haven’t seen immediate results from your prayers to the Lord? Let’s say you have a hard time paying your bills. Although it’s OK to work overtime or refinance or tighten the budget - don’t you find yourself trusting in your own ability to fix the problem when you don’t see results from your prayers to the Lord? There are many different situations where the Lord is forced to take the backseat. Not intentionally. Not consciously. But when we don’t see immediate results from the Lord we tend to put our hope in the things he gives us instead of the Giver himself. That is idolatry. That is a sin against the very first commandment. Learn from the past and be careful that you don’t fall.
The second sin mentioned is the sin of adultery. And the story Paul points to is when the Israelites participated in sexually immoral acts with the Moabites. But that wasn’t all. After Moses chastised them for their actions, an Israelite man took a Moabite woman into his tent in front of everyone - and no one did anything about it. Even though they knew it was wrong, even after Moses had confronted them with that sin, no one said a word! Fortunately, Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, took a spear, went into the tent, and killed both of them. And if it wasn’t for Phinehas’ zeal for the Lord, the entire nation would be held accountable. Why? Because they didn’t speak up for the Lord. They did not point out the sin. They simply allowed it to happen.
Do you see how you can be guilty of adultery even without thinking or committing the actual sin? If you know of someone who sleeps with another person who is not his/her spouse, if you know of a couple living together before marriage, if you hear someone tell sexually crude jokes and you don’t say anything about it but simply allow it to happen - you are just as guilty! You are not standing up for the Lord! You are not taking the 6th Commandment seriously! Learn from the past and be careful that you don’t fall into this serious sin.
The third sin mentioned is when the Israelites tested the Lord’s power and ability to supply them with food and water and protection. Now, testing isn’t a sin we usually think we are guilty of committing, but think again. When you pray, do you ever put a time constraint on the Lord? I’ll admit I’ve been guilty of that in the past. “Lord, I need to find this today. I’m in big trouble if I don’t, OK? So, are you ready? OK, here we go. I need you to help me find it today. Amen.” Or maybe you’ve prayed something like, “Lord, this has to happen. You have to make this happen - it’s for the good of your kingdom, after all! And if it doesn’t happen before this specific time, it’s going to be too late. So do it as soon as possible. Amen.” Who are we to tell the Lord what he should do? Who are we to give him a deadline? Who are we to test his power and his knowledge and his love? Learn from the past and be careful that you don’t fall.
The final sin mentioned is the sin of complaining. And if you read through the first few books of the Old Testament you’ll find countless examples of the Israelites doing just that. Do I really need to bring up examples in our lives? Complaining is so common, it is so widespread, where would I start? We even hear people say, “Well, there’s always something to complain about.” We should never take complaining that lightly! The Lord didn’t! He took the lives of people that complained! Let us learn from the past and be careful never to fall into that temptation ever again! Because there is no reason to complain. But there is every reason to rejoice.
These are the four sins that Paul wants us to look out for and avoid. But isn’t it a little depressing to realize that these sins which we are to watch out for and avoid are sins that we are already guilty of committing? Paul uses examples from Old Testament history, but he could have just as easily used examples from my own life. And so I’m glad our text doesn’t stop at verse 12, but carries over into verse 13. Because in the last verse of our text there are three words that mean the world to sinners: “God is faithful.” God is faithful. That means that no matter how many sins you commit, they cannot outweigh God’s promises. He does not lie. He does not fail. If he says something it will always happen. This is something, too, we have learned from the past. And so when Jesus says, “Your sins are forgiven” (Mark 2:5), they are. When Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11), that is a fact. When Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25), that is a guarantee, an unbreakable promise from the Lord himself. God is faithful. And so no matter how many times we have fallen into those sins that the Israelites did, and no matter how many times you fall into other sins, and no matter how many times we will in the future, God is faithful. He has died for us. He has forgiven us. And he will bring us to life eternal because of his amazing love.
And his love also means that he will not only give us eternal blessings, but he will help us while we are still on this earth. Paul says, “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.” Paul does not want us to be overwhelmed by the sin that surrounds you every day. The Lord is right there by your side and he knows what you can handle and what you can’t. He will provide you with the strength and the perseverance to overcome any temptation. He will never leave you on your own. Because he cares for you. He wants you to succeed. He desperately wants to see you fight off these temptations by trusting in him. And he will help you do it. Because God is faithful.
I want you to realize that I’m speaking to you as mature Christians. As people who are grounded in Christ and what he has done for you. As people who want to do what the Lord commands. And so as mature Christians you know that we aren’t going to earn anything for ourselves by fighting off temptation. But we want to do it anyway, first of all to thank the Lord for what he has done for us, and secondly because we know that sin is serious. Falling into sin is dangerous. Because falling into a sin once leads to falling into the same sin again. We all sadly know that from experience.
And that’s why I want to encourage you to lean on the Lord when temptations come. And the only way that we can do this is to lean on his Word. Read about his forgiveness and salvation. Pay attention to those sins that you are to avoid. And be careful that you do not fall in the same way. But when you do, and you will, do not despair. Simply rely on your Lord, because he is faithful. He will hold you in his arms. He will wipe you clean. And he will say, “Don’t worry my child. I know you have sinned. But I know your Savior too. He has already spoken in your defense. You are forgiven. Come with me and see the place he has prepared just for you.” And the Lord not only will say this to you on Judgment Day, but he also says this to you every day - right here in his Word. So soak it in. Drink it up. And never stop filling yourself with this gospel until the Champion of the Gospel comes for the final time. On the day you will never have to worry about falling into temptation again. On the day you will lean on your Lord forever.
Amen.

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” - 1 Thess. 5:23