Revering the Word
1 Cor. 10 Be in the world to win the world, but do not be of the world.
Good morning everyone. This morning we are in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and the title again not inspired but I think a good title for this section is it's called avoid Israel's mistakes and Paul is gonna take them on a little bit of a journey of some of the problems that took place in Old Testament Israel and really share with them that they border on some of those same heirs as they are in Corinth and they were prone to idolatry prone to sexual immorality and Paul's wanting them to honor the Lord and live for Him and let's take this chapter in. Freddie not want you to be unaware brother in 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 he doesn't mean a literal baptism there but you know they crossed the sea in order to get into the desert when they escaped Egypt and the point that he's making is that all of Israel though initially they followed Moses and God provided for them spiritually as we'll see in the desert ultimately the spiritual one that we're looking for is now Jesus Christ let's keep going I were baptizing to Moses in the cloud and in the sea and all ate the same spiritual food you know the manna and the quail and all ate from the same spiritual drink the water that came up from the rock in the Old Testament for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them and the rock was Christ and what the Bible all points to is Jesus Christ and the fact that he came that he was the Messiah that he was the one who died for our sins and the one that he is coming again hallelujah nevertheless with most of them now he's talking about Israel God was not well pleased for they were laid low in the wilderness and there are a lot of problems that took place in those 40 four years that Israel was in the desert he's gonna remind them of some of them now but what he's gonna say is now these things happened as examples for us so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved you know Israel and the mistakes they made we can use them as examples so that we don't do the same thing they did do not be idolatrous as some of them were as it is written the people sat down to eat and drink and stood up to play and that's a passage taking us back to the fact that they made that golden calf and worshiped it and were dancing around it and you know they were worshipping a false God and and you know we're not to do that in the Old Testament we're not to do that today it's important to note that in Corinth there was a temple to a love goddess it could call it a sex goddess Aphrodite and you know there was much sexual immorality and temple worship that took place in Corinth and you know Paul's trying to help them come out of that and worship Jesus and him alone and turn away from the immoral practices of the people around them now let us act nor let us act immorally as some of them did and 23,000 fell in one day and he's referring to you know you might recall if you've been going through this journey with us in the book of numbers still in the desert day the Israelites were fooled by a bale of pure and ended up taking the Moabites as wives and sexual immorality and worship the gods of the people around them while they were in the desert don't do that he's saying 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 and you know they complained they they wanted to go back to Egypt they didn't want to have Moses be their leader you know a lot of problems in the desert now these things happened to them as an example and they were written for our instruction upon whom the end of the ages have come that's really an interesting expression there and the ends of the ages have come so Jesus Christ has come but he's the one that's going to be around at the ends of the ages and I think it's really interesting to see in those who went through our journey of eschatology through the book of Revelation recently we did that at our church and you know you'll see these phrases in the Bible but a lot of times I think people look past them you'll see you'll see phrases like the heavenly places and ages to come and a lot of times people just think of you know life here on earth and then you die and you go to heaven and like that's it but actually there's heavenly places and ages to come you know there's the tribulation there's the millennial reign there's the new heaven and the new earth there's heavenly places and ages to come but Jesus is at the heart of them all and he's the one who has come at the end the end of the ages have come so that's interesting and I think it's important to know that we have changes coming in our future it's not all just one thing there's a lot to look forward to therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall and you know none of us should be so prideful to think that we can't get off track and hooked up in doing false things look at the Israelites did all the time and as a as a people we can become wayward and we have to take heed and not be in pride and watch our behavior and watch what we're doing so that we don't slide into immoral or ungodly behavior now praise God God is there to help so listen to what it says here no temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man and God is faithful who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also so that you will be able to endure it and it is true that with God's help we are able to endure and escape any temptation but God is there helping the question is is are we turning to him so this is not a promise that we will never do anything wrong what it's saying is you have God to help you to give you the power and strength to recognize temptation and turn away from it and he is there to help you and empower you to say no to what's evil and to say yes to what is good but if you ignore God you're gonna you could ignore that help that he is able to give you and you could find yourself turning away from the living God and doing things that you shouldn't and being engaged in sin but he is there to help turn to him for the help that he desires to give us therefore my beloved flee from idolatry and you know see there's our part we need to flee we need to recognize idolatrous things and things that are not of God things that are evil and we need to flee run run from them I speak as to wise men you judge what I say is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ now what that is referring to is communion and the word they're sharing you know that sometimes there's just not a good English word to to give one word for what's meant in this case in Greek in the in the New Testament but the word there is Koine Nia and it's an intimate sharing a joint participation it is actually even a word for sexual intimacy and I don't want you to take that too far to think communion sexual intimacy that's not what I'm saying but I'm trying to let you know that it's saying that in communion there is a divine sharing a a joint participation in we're partaking and having felt it's the same word for fellowship by the way a close fellowship with the Lord and and that's what communion is supposed to be and what what he's gonna get into here is that there's then false worship pagan worship idol worship sometimes taking place around the same time that they're sharing in the body and the blood of Christ and he's like that shouldn't be verse 17 since there is one bread and we who are many are one body now a lot of times they would break a piece of a loaf of bread and they'd all take from the same loaf and that's and that would kind of be symbolic that they're one in Christ for we all partake of the one bread look at the nation of Israel are not those who eat the sacrifices shares in the altar what do I mean then that a thing sacrificed to idols is anything or that an idol is anything oh shoot lost my page give me a sec all right he's getting into idols because as I mentioned there were idol worship in conjunction with communion or in the same proximity and he wants to be able to say as he said several times the apostle Paul that well idols really aren't real anyways and the food sacrifice to them it doesn't change anything because idols are just false anyway so it doesn't really matter but yet he doesn't want their freedom to be able to eat anything to also mean that they are just irreverent about idol worship that they don't even care that it's going on because idols are nothing anyways but he's saying you know what it can really hinder the church and the Christian gospel because we're not supposed to be look at Israel this is what God got it mad about when they entertained and false worship so we have to still be careful to not be endorsing or be a part of worshiping anything but Jesus Christ alone so it's a it's a kind of a double thing he's saying here what do I mean then that a thing sacrificed to idols is anything or that an idol is anything question mark no but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God and I do not want you to become shares in demons you cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons or do we provoke the Lord jealousy we are not stronger than he are we and he's making the case here that don't be involved in any kind of pagan worship don't be even in the proximity of it that that's God took severe punishment out on Israel we're supposed to learn from them to not be engaged in any kind of fall false worship now he's gonna get into the freedom again in verse 23 all things are lawful but not all things are profitable all things are lawful but not all things edify let no one seek his own good but that of his neighbor eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscious sake so he's he's getting again back to it there's lots of false worship taking place in Corinth and sometimes there's meat and it's being sold in the market and we might not know well you know was this meat sacrificed to an idol and he's saying if that doesn't really matter if you don't know that it was you don't know for sure that it was sacrificed to an idol don't worry about it just eat it because it doesn't change the meat anyways but he's also gonna say if if if you know something was part of idol worship or you you just need to steer clear of that because we're gonna hinder the name of the church your name the name of Christ by being involved in anything that's false that way so it's interesting he's saying you have both the freedom but also if you're aware of falseness steer away from it all right so eat anything that is sold in the market without asking questions for conscious sake for all the earth is the Lord's and all it contains if one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscious sake so you don't even have to ask you don't have to say well you know was this sacrificed to an idol you don't need to even know or pay attention however if it was but if anyone says to you this meat sacrifice to idols do not eat it for the sake of the one who informed you and for conscious sake so if you know something is engaging in false worship don't be a part of it flee get away from it don't be a part of it but you don't have to if you don't know if you're unaware you can partake of meat and not be concerned about it because it doesn't matter because it's not really there's no real false God anyways I'm kind of repeating myself as the apostle Paul is be understand if you if you are aware that there is some kind of pagan false worship run from it don't be a part of it if you're not aware then you're free and just don't worry about it I mean not your own conscious but the other man's for why is my freedom judged by another's conscious so again he's saying you know what although it really wouldn't matter because you're free and idols are false other people may see you if you're aware and they're aware that something is part of false worship and it can hinder other people and hinder the gospel so if you are aware there's a problem it's better to be safe and not be a part of it if I partake with thinkfulness why am I slandered considering that which I give thanks what then you eat or drink or whatever you do do all for the glory of God now that let's just pause there for a moment that's really what it comes down to is whether then you eat or drink or whatever you do do it all for the glory of God and I think it's a good thing to ask ourselves is the situation that I'm in or what I'm doing am I giving glory to God am I being an example of what a man or woman of God is and we should be wanting to honor God in all that we do so if you're a part of something that's dishonoring the name of God or dishonoring your faith then don't do it but if you are in your freedom you can do it and it's not bringing dishonor to God but being honest about that honest evaluation have a spiritual you know discernment from the Lord as to what you're doing is it is if you can give God glory doing it or not and it's not then avoid it verse 32 give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God so again he keeps he keeps kind of doing the same thing where he says we're free but make sure you're giving glory to God we're free but don't do something that's gonna give offense to Jews to Greeks or to the church like don't do something that's gonna hinder the Christian name although you're free verse 33 just as I also please all men and all things not seeking my own profit but the profit of many so that they may be saved and I think that's a good a good way to say it you know we want other people to come to know the gospel we're here to represent Jesus we're his ambassadors we we want to win people to Jesus and is what you're engaging in and your behavior going to help people come to Christ and I think you know sometimes in our freedom some of you might know that know me well I don't know if I've talked about it much on this podcast but I'm a golfer I'm gonna have a golfer and I enjoy that in fact today's a Saturday and when I get done with this podcast I am going golfing and two of the guys that well no today only one of the guys that I'm playing with goes to our church and we're gonna have two four since there's gonna be eight of us and most the other guys don't go to church and I want to be an example and a light to those men and golf is one of my ways that I'm involved in the world you know because otherwise I'd just be with Christians all the time I'd just be preaching the word and doing Bible study and stuff like that but one of the areas that I am engaged with people who are unbelievers is in the game of golf I actually had a party at my home so people from our church served at it where I invited everyone over we even had live music and I put on a bunch of food a bunch of my golf buddies and then I shared a testimony in about about the Bible and tried to encourage people to take a step in seeking God and reading the word so I try to use my you know these secular areas where I meet people who don't believe as an opportunity for them to come to know the Lord so I have to ask myself you know sometimes when I'm with them we're not worshiping false things but sometimes I want to be somewhat normal in their midst right I want to be able to just have fun with them and be like you know what he's a normal guy but yet he believes in Jesus and and so you know there's a there's a you know I'll give you another example there's a golf trip that I I go on and I have gone on at twice with these guys and it's up north and there's a couple of really nice golf courses up there and we'll go for a couple days and you know play golf and stuff like that well it's at a casino and the casino has a golf course now I don't gamble and the first time I did this event I didn't even stay with them I stayed in my own hotel because I just didn't want to stay in the casino but my buddy who goes to our church he is doesn't gamble at all and he's a he's a good guy good example he's growing and following Christ it's it's awesome so this year I stayed with him and I stayed in her room you know in the hotel where the casino is and didn't put one dime in the in the casino and neither did he neither one of us did it all so it's interesting right I was able to be with men who a lot of things we don't line up in but I was able to to show them listen I don't need to gamble I don't need to be a part of that stuff I can maintain my Christian testimony and yet be with you now that's the first time that I I've stayed in a in a building where there was a casino but I mean the problems that I had with gambling was 20 you know 24 years ago so I've built up a lot of spiritual muscles since then but if it ever became you know too much of a temptation for me I would just not stay there again but anyways what's my point my point is is that we are sometimes in the world to win the world we want to save people and by being around people who don't know Jesus we have an opportunity to be an example and to win some but we have to ask ourselves when we're doing these things are we being morphed into their image or can we maintain our witness for Christ and Lord willing be a positive influence on them and if you end up bending too much to become like the world you might need to to get strong and possibly stay away then from the secular world for a while so that you are strong in Christ but Lord willing we fan our faith in the flame we be with men and women of God and that when we're around people who are secular then that we can be a good example and begin to win some and this is the battle for the current Corinthians even Paul you know being in a Corinth an area of sexual morality and false worship and yet trying to maintain a witness for Christ and through the power of His Holy Spirit and through being steadfast in our devotion like we are doing right now being together in the Word we can do it and we can win some people to Christ hallelujah let's do that well together let's say strong in the Lord let's not get involved in false things and let's be an influence positively on this world that desperately needs Jesus God bless you all