Seeking Transformation in Faithfulness

1 Corinthians 10:1–13 ESV

1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 6 Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. 7 Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” 8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. 9 We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, 10 nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. 11 Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. 12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. 13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

Introduction

The church in Corinth seems to always be in a perpetual state of turmoil. Paul wrote at least three letters to them two of which we have. Decades later Clement of Rome, who was bishop at the time, writes a letter to them in the late first century or early second century outlining many of the same problems that Paul dealt with years earlier.

Paul’s first letter builds off of what he wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:17-18

1 Corinthians 1:17–18 ESV

17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

He comes to them originally to preach about the power of the cross of Christ to save us and bring us together under the lordship of Jesus. Along the way, he answers questions that have been posed to him by a letter that has been sent by the Corinthians to him. Much of the letter is his answers to the various questions that are asked.

Chapters 8-11:1 is the answer to a question about whether or not they should eat meat that has been offered to idols. In Corinth, like many cities of the Roman empire, meat markets were stocked primarily through the sacrificed animals in the pagan temples. Paul uses this question to teach on Christian liberty. He makes clear in 1 Corinthians 8:4 that food offered to idols are not done to a real god because such gods do not exist. There is only one God. That being said, Paul wants to caution the Corinthians in their liberty to eat meat offered to idols because there may be those among them who are weak in their faith. Eating meat offered to idols may lead them away from the faith and back to idolatry. Paul’s advise is not eat meat offered to idols so that the more mature Christians do become a stumbling block to the newer Christians. He offers himself up as an example of what to do and what not to do in chapter 9.

So now, it is in chapter 10 that Paul places the Corinthians in the middle of historic faith as they try to manage what they are to do as the people of God and the body of Christ together. He uses the example of the Israelites as he connects them to why they should behave in a certain way toward those who are not as strong in their faith. The mature Corinthians need to be a model of faithfulness to the younger Christians as they struggle to navigate life in a pagan culture.

The struggles of the Corinthians are not unlike our own. We are in a pagan culture that is not dissimilar to their’s. Mature and young Christians alike are trying to navigate a post-Christian world where those who claim a biblical world view only account for about 6% of the American population. It is a hard at work, at school, and in life in general to hold onto a particular way of life that is so contrary to what the culture emphasizes. The question becomes the same for us as for the Corinthians, “how are we faithful to the gospel in this kind of environment?”

Today, we are going to examine what Paul calls the Corinthians and us to do in these times so that we can be faithful to God and seek transformation in our faithfulness to him.

1. Transformation happens through faithful worship. (vs. 1-5)

Paul opens the chapter by telling the mainly Gentile Corinthians that he does not want them to be ignorant of “our fathers.” He connects them to the Israelites as they are fleeing Egypt and into the wilderness by using the sacramental language of the church.

This connection begins with a reference to the cloud and the sea into which the Israelites were “baptized” into Moses. The reference to the sea is probably obvious to us as the crossing of the Red Sea to escape Pharaoh’s army. The cloud may or may not be as obvious to us. The cloud is the divine presence of God that with the Israelites as they went through the wilderness wanderings. The cloud was always present over the tabernacle and a sign that God was with them. Paul is probably referring specifically to Numbers 11:16-30 where the Presence of God in the cloud delegates the Holy Spirit to Moses and among the elders who begin to prophesy.

The second sacramental reference talks about the spiritual food and drink that the Israelites had throughout their time in the wilderness. The manna from heaven and the water from the rock both point to the bread and cup in the Eucharist. Not only did these give physical sustenance to the people but also spiritual. In fact, Paul points to a rabbinical teaching that the rock that Moses struck and water proceeded from it actually went with the Israelites in their journey. The Rock, Paul says, is Christ.

In verse 5, Paul says that even with these blessings, the Israelites continued to rebel, and God was not pleased with most of them to the point that only Caleb and Joshua from the first generation that came out of Egypt lived to go into the promise land. It is a reminder to the Corinthians that God’s blessings are presented to them in the form of worship by receiving the sacraments. Their faithfulness in the worship of God and focus on him is of great benefit to their spiritual lives.

Our worship is central to the transformation that takes place in our lives. Without continual worship together in community with one another, we are missing out on one of the most important aspects of the transformative power of the Spirit. The writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 10:24-25

Hebrews 10:24–25 ESV

24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

And when we worship, there is a certain way it should be done. Paul offers us a pattern as well as Luke in Acts.

1 Corinthians 14:26 ESV

26 What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.

Acts 2:42 ESV

42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Our gathering together is a work of grace among us. By neglecting to be together on a regular basis, we forfeit the Spirit working in us to renew us especially through the sacraments. The means of grace that are outlined by Wesley use worshiping together and the Lord’s Supper as two of the “usual channels of his grace”, the work of the Holy Spirit, is imparted to the believer.

2. We are called to be faithful in our holiness. (vs. 5-10)

Paul uses the examples of the wilderness episodes “that we might not desire evil as they did.” As stated earlier, this section is part of a longer section where Paul is talking about eating food that has been sacrificed to idols. Although more mature Christians may not have issue with this, his take is that it may lead younger and less mature Christians back to worshiping idols. In response, he quotes from Exodus 32:6

Exodus 32:6 ESV

6 And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

This is the scene in Exodus where the Israelites worshiped the golden calf while Moses was on the mountain receiving the law. As part of their “worship,” they indulged in sexual immorality as well. That is what it means when it says that they “rose up to play.”

He uses that to seguay into another episode where as many as 23,000 died as a result of the Israelites committing fornication with Moabite women in Numbers 25:1-18. In this scene, idolatry and cultic eating are involved. It says in Numbers 25:2

Numbers 25:2 ESV

2 These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.

The Corinthians are called upon to flee from the temptation of worshiping idols and falling into fornication by eating in the temples. They are called to holiness and righteousness.

By falling into the temptation that is offered by going to the pagan temples, they are putting Christ to the test. Using the wilderness generation again, Paul points to the incident in Numbers 21:4-9. The Israelites tested God over and over again, and he sent poisonous snakes among them. They were saved when Moses made a bronze snake and put it on a pole. When they looked to the bronze snake after begin bitten, they would live because it was a testimony of their reliance on God.

In all of the examples that are laid out by Paul, they tell us that the Israelites abandoned their covenant over and over again for the sake of idol worship and testing God. It was a denial of the holiness that God had called them to. We know that where the Israelites failed Christ succeeded. Paul calls upon the Corinthians to live in the example of Christ, not the Israelites. In Romans 8:9, he says,

Romans 8:9 ESV

9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

Because we have the Holy Spirit alive in us, there is a called to holiness and sanctification. For us as Wesleyans, we focus on not just the sanctifying grace found in Christ but also the perfecting grace found in him. In his sermon, “The Circumcision of the Heart,” Wesley says,

Sermons, on Several Occasions Sermon 17: The Circumcision of the Heart

In general we may observe, it is that habitual disposition of soul which, in the sacred writings, is termed holiness; and which directly implies, the being cleansed from sin, “from all filthiness both of flesh and spirit;” and, by consequence, the being endued with those virtues which were also in Christ Jesus; the being so “renewed in the spirit of our mind,” as to be “perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect.”

The call of the Christian is a life of holiness and living in the example of Christ. We are not perfect in and of ourselves. It is only through the work of Christ that it is possible.

3. God is faithful to us and leads us toward a holy life. (vs. 11-13)

As Paul has pushed he readers to live holy and righteous lives in the example of Christ, he ends this section with a word of encouragement to them and to us. “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to all humanity.” Everyone faces the same kinds of struggles no matter who they are because of our humanity. However, as followers of Christ, we have the power to endure it and overcome it through the power of God. God is faithful to us and will strengthen us to endure temptation and come out of it. God will help us if we seek his help.

1 John 2:4-6 says,

1 John 2:4–6 ESV

4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

When we rely on God and walk in his precepts God’s love is perfected in us. In temptation, God provides a way of escape through obedience to his commands. In doing so, we live in holiness and are brought into the perfection of his love in our lives. Wesley calls upon the Lord to “inflame our hearts with perfect love.” He goes on to say in his sermon on Christian Perfection,

Sermons, on Several Occasions Sermon 40: Christian Perfection

It remains, then, that Christians are saved in this world from all sin, from all unrighteousness; that they are now in such a sense perfect, as not to commit sin, and to be freed from evil thoughts and evil tempers.”

Our calling is one of holiness. It is God who does that work in us so as to be free from the power of sin. God will lead us out of temptation if we are obedient to him and follow his commands. All of us struggle with temptation everyday in various forms. Our sin, no matter how miniscule it may seem, leads us away from God and apart from him. However, in obedience to his commands through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can resist the temptation that is placed before us and turn to a life of holiness that leads us to perfection in love.

Conclusion

God’s plan for us is that we not live in the ways of the world but a life of faithfulness to him. This is only possible if we heed the examples of those who have come before us and learn from their mistakes. It is our calling to live a life that is holy and blameless. God does this work in our lives to lead us into sanctification and perfection. We may struggle with temptation, but that does not mean we must sin. It does not mean that we have to turn away from God’s precepts. In fact, it is quite the opposite. We can turn from sin and toward God. We can’t say like Flip Wilson used to say, “The devil made me do it.” We have a choice in our lives to be faithful or to turn toward sin. Through the power of the Spirit, we can choose to be faithful. As we grow in our faithfulness to God, we grow in the perfecting love of God.

Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3:18,

2 Peter 3:18 ESV

18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

We are constantly growing in our faith. Let us grow into the mature people of God that we are called to be and be faithful to the one who is always faithful to us.