Take Heed, Lest You Fall1 Corinthians 9:1-14

CrossCulture

Is it ok to eat food that has been sacrificed to idol?

• You shouldn’t … for the sake of your weaker brothers

• You should be able to let go of the right for the sake of the gospel

• There is actually a reward

1 Corinthians 9:27

27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching

to others I myself should be disqualified.

Israel’s (and Our) Experiences

• They were all under the cloud (v1)• They passed through the sea (v1)• They were baptised into Moses (v2) • They ate the same spiritual food (v3) • They drank from the spiritual Rock

(v4)

1 Corinthians 10:5

5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were

overthrown in the wilderness.

Idol Worship

1 Corinthians 10:7 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.”

See Exodus 32

Sexual Immorality

1 Corinthians 10:8 8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day.

See Numbers 25:1-9

Putting God to the test OR Grumbling against God

1 Corinthians 10:9-10 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.

See Numbers 21:4-9

Numbers 21:5 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought

us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no

water, and we loathe this worthless food.”

How do we put Christ to the test?• By presuming on God’s patience towards

our sin.• Presuming that God would not do

anything against our sins.• And by presuming that God will always

give us what we want when we complain, nag, and grumble against Him.

Putting God to the test OR Grumbling against God

1 Corinthians 10:9-10 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.

Psalm 78:49

49  He [God] let loose on them his burning anger,

wrath, indignation, and distress, a company of destroying angels.

Numbers 14:11–12

11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?

12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them…

Numbers 14:36–37

36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land— 37 the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the LORD.

Exodus 20:20

20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may

not sin.”

“… the fundamental problem humans have is not sin, evil, or Satan. It’s God. God is offended at our sin, his anger is aroused, and his judgment (or “curse”) hangs over us. One day we sinners will have to face God on judgment day”

Martin Foord

1 Corinthians 10:11–12

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.

“How far can I exercise my freedom in Christ before it becomes sin?”

“How far can I push the boundary before I actually fall?”

1 Corinthians 10:12

12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

Overcoming Temptation

1 Corinthians 10:1313 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man…

Overcoming Temptation

1 Corinthians 10:1313 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,…

Overcoming Temptation

James 1:13–14 (ESV) 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.

Overcoming Temptation

1 Corinthians 10:1313 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.

“Too often, we say we are defeated by this or that sin. No, we are not defeated. We are simply disobedient. It might be good if we stop using the terms victory and defeat to describe our progress in holiness. Rather, we should use the terms obedience and disobedience. When I say I am defeated by some sin, I am unconsciously slipping out from under my responsibility. I am saying something outside of me has defeated me. But when I say I am disobedient, that places the responsibility for my sin squarely on me. We may in fact be defeated, but the reason we are defeated is because we have chosen to disobey.”

Jerry Bridges, The Pursuit of Holiness

Hebrews 4:11

11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the

same sort of disobedience.

Hebrews 4:15

15 … we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our

weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are,

yet without sin.

Hebrews 4:16

16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to

help in time of need.