1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 10:1-13. Let’s go!
1 Corinthians 10:1-13 (NIV)
1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea.
2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
3 They all ate the same spiritual food
4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.
6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things 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 got up to indulge in pagan revelry.”
8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did–and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.
9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did–and were killed by snakes.
10 And do not grumble, as some of them did–and were killed by the destroying angel.
11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
On verses 1-11: Here Paul recalls the time when the Israelites, under Moses’ leadership, were escaping Egypt and wandering in the desert on their way to the promised land. Back then, the Israelites considered themselves to be God’s people and experienced incredible miracles from God. They “were all under the cloud” (v1), meaning that God led those Israelites by a pillar of cloud (Exodus 13:21). They “all passed through the sea” (v1), referring to how God amazingly led those Israelites through the Red Sea in Exodus 14:21-31. Paul compares these experiences that the Israelites had with the pillar of cloud and the Red Sea to a baptism (v3). They received special spiritual food (v3-4), which Paul attributes to Jesus Christ Himself, extrapolating that Jesus Christ Himself was with these Israelites during this time and was the source of the spiritual food and drank they consumed. Yet despite identifying themselves as God’s people and despite experiencing incredible miracles, these Israelites never made it to the promised land and God was not pleased with them (v5).
What can we learn from this? By citing these examples from ancient Israel, Paul is warning the Corinthian Christians, “You might call yourself a member of God’s people. You might have even had great spiritual experiences in the past. But if you set your heart on evil things the way these Israelites did (v6), if you worship idols the way these Israelites did (v7, see also Exodus 32:6), if you commit sexual immorality as these Israelites did (v8, see also Numbers 25), if you test the Lord as these Israelites did (Numbers 21:4-9), if you grumble as these Israelites did repeatedly (v10), you will still miss the best that God has for you.”
Here Paul does a masterful job of showing how we can apply the Old Testament stories about the Israelites as lessons and warnings for us today (v11).
1 Corinthians 10:12 (NIV)
12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!
On verse 12: Paul sums up his warnings from verses 1-11 with this statement in verse 12: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” (v12) In other words, just because you consider yourself to be among God’s people, just because you may have experienced God in powerful ways in the past does not exempt you from temptation or getting hurt and hurting others if you’re not careful. No matter how much of God you have experienced or how strong or stable you think you are spiritually, we must still be very careful not to fall into temptation.
1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV)
13 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.
On verse 13: After giving his warnings in verses 1-12, Paul follows up with this comforting and encouraging word in verse 13. What can we learn from this? You will never be tempted beyond what you can bear. In His faithfulness God always provides you with a way out when you are tempted. So don’t see sin as inevitable. You always have a choice not to sin. Because God is always with you and always provides a way out in temptation, you can always have victory over temptation.
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your promise in verse 13. Thank You that You will never let us go through any temptation that we cannot overcome by Your grace. Whenever I face a temptation that seems too great for me, may I stop and remember: it’s not too great. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Thank You that when I call on Jesus for help, You will surely help me. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
