More Lessons from the Wilderness - 1 Cor. 10:1-13

Introduction  The Corinthians thought they had arrived in their spiritual walk. They thought it was time to relax and congratulate each other. They were convinced that they were so strong in their faith the world, the flesh, and the Devil no longer posed a threat to them. It seems like they were relying on all their experiences as Christians. It seems that their thinking went like this: "I have been baptized; I regularly partake of the Lord's Table; I speak in tongues and prophesy. This means that I have reached a point in my spiritual life in which I can now coast the rest of the way because heaven is guaranteed for me."  This attitude led them to think that holiness of life was not important and that they were above any of the struggles of life in this world. So, Paul points them back to their forefathers in the wilderness. They too had experienced wonderful things. Yet, they did not see God through those blessings. Instead, they disregarded the God who gave them those blessings.  Paul warns them how dangerous this attitude is!  I. Thinking That You Have Spiritually Arrived Is Extremely Dangerous  A. Thinking that you have arrived because you have been baptized, partake in the Lord's Supper, or any other experience leads to idolatry; so, don't do it, 7.  B. Thinking that you have arrived because you have been baptized, partake in the Lord's Supper, or any other experience leads to sexually immorality; so, don't do it, 8.  C. Thinking that you have arrived because you have been baptized, partake in the Lord's Supper, or any other experience leads to testing Christ; so, don't do it, 9.  D. Thinking that you have arrived because you have been baptized, partake in the Lord's Supper, or any other experience leads to complaining against God and his leaders; so, don't do it, 10.  II. Don't Be Deceived, You Have not Arrived, 12.  A. Verse 12 is the culmination of Paul's argument.  B. None of us has arrived.  C. Spiritual pride is deadly and nowhere is spiritual pride demonstrated more clearly than in the refusal of living a holy life while at the same time complaining that God hasn't given us all we think we are entitled to.  D. So be careful lest you fall.  E. How do we do that?  1. By considering our sins.  2. By considering the cost to God of forgiving our sins.  3. By having a healthy distrust of our capability to deal with the struggles of life.  4. By daily communion with Christ through prayer and reading of the Bible.  5. By weekly communion with Christ through the preaching of the Word and sacraments.  6. By being part of the communion of the saints.  Conclusion  Paul brings the Corinthians and us to the brink of despair. How can we do it? How can we persevere to end? But before despair sets in, he adds verse 13. It is God who preserves us. It is his grace that brings us to the end. Sanctification, the living of a holy life, is the work of God's free grace in which he works in us. Praise the Lord for that!  http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2013/08/more-lessons-from-wilderness-1-cor-101.html

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