This morning we are continuing through our series in 1 Corinthians and we are talking about idolatry. Isn’t that exciting?
The word “idolatry” sounds like something people did in ancient history but sometimes as followers of Jesus we can take our faith in Jesus and blend it with the worship of other gods.
This might sound confusing for us but we don’t tend to throw out Jesus 100% but sometimes we can just add to our worship of Jesus a worship of money, power, acceptance from our friends, and when we do that the bible calls it idolatry.
In addition, not only does the bible describe it idolatry we see that the God of Scripture is really bothered when we do try to worship Him and other things that He created, so that in our passage this morning we see God’s Word giving us a warning to be careful. Let’s look at 1 Corinthians, 10 verse 1:
1 Corinthians 10:1, “1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea.”
In chapters 8-10 we see the Apostle Paul is giving practical steps on how to engage the culture of his day as a follower of Jesus.
Last Sunday we used language of sync or separate. As a follower of Jesus, “Do we sync up with the values and idea of our culture or do we isolate and separate?”
At the end of 1 Corinthians 9 the Apostle Paul writes, “I do all things so that as many as possible might hear about Jesus.” Do you remember? To the Greek I lived like the Greeks, to the Jews I live like the Jews, so that I become all things to all people, so that I might save some.”
In our passage this morning it’s as if the Apostle Paul clarifies, “Yes, we do all things to reach people for Jesus but be careful” and then points the Corinthian church to Israel’s history in the Old Testament by writing “I do not want you to be unaware of our fathers.” You with me? Look at verses 2-4:
1 Corinthians 10:2-4, “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 were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.”
Okay, for those who aren’t as familiar with the Old Testament, you need to know these are references to Israel in the book of Exodus being rescued from captivity in Egypt.
Joseph leads Israel into Egypt, goes great until the Egyptians enslave Israel and for 400 years Israel lived under bondage and captivity until the Lord shows up!
Moses cries out, “Let my people go!” Israel walks through the parting of the Red Sea (baptized into Moses), the Lord provides food to eat, the Lord provides water to drink, and in verses 2-4 the Apostle Paul is drawing this connection between the Corinthian church and Israel.
Just as Israel was rescued from slavery and bondage, so we who are in Christ have been rescued from slavery and bondage through faith in Jesus.
Just as the presence of the Lord was with Israel, so is the presence of the Lord present with us who are in Christ and leading us. Just as the Lord provides food and drink for Israel, so the Lord provides for us food and drink through communion that is celebrated in Christ. You with me? Look at verse 5:
1 Corinthians 10:5, “5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness.”
Here’s the connection: The Lord moved powerfully in the life of Israel and there were still people in Israel who turned from the Lord.
In the same way, the Lord has moved powerfully in the life of the Corinthian church but that doesn’t mean we can hold our faith in Jesus lightly.
Just as Israel was in Egypt, surrounded by the Egyptian culture, influenced by Egyptian values we can’t underestimate how the Egyptian culture and values influence the Israelites in their day.
In the same way, the Corinthian church is layered in Corinthian culture and values. Remember the city of Corinth was exploding in growth.
They were a people of wealth, people of education, influenced by the Romans and the Greeks, as well as Eastern philosophy, so that Corinth was full of idols, temples and beliefs that was layered into everyday life.
It would have not been uncommon for a Corinthian Christian to be invited over for dinner at a co-worker’s house and the meat for the meal would have been meat that was sacrificed to Zeus, Apollo, or Athena earlier that day.
It would not have been uncommon for men to gather in the city center and engage in sexual activity with the prostitutes in the temple just like men gathering to play golf on a Saturday morning, so these are real men, women and children who have come to faith in Jesus, still living in their Corinthian culture and wrestling with what it looks like to be a follower of Jesus in their day, so that the Apostle Paul is writing, “We become all things to all people to win people to Christ….but be careful!” Look at verse 6:
1 Corinthians 10:6, “6 Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved.”
Don’t you know living in Egypt for 400 years had an influence on the Israelites of their day? That’s 20 generations of living and learning in the Egyptian culture, beliefs, and values?
If I hang out with someone from a different culture for like 10-minutes I start speaking in their accent. I start picking up their hand gestures. I start making fun of the United States, so that God’s Word is calling the follower of Jesus to go and make disciples, be in this world and not of this world, but don’t overlook the spiritual weight of what we are walking into. Look at verse 7:
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 stood up to play.”
Now, you have to remember the big picture of Exodus in the Old Testament. The people of Israel were dying in slavery. Moses shows up. Overthrows the Egyptian powers. Leads the people through the parting of the Red Sea. These are powerful moments!
In Exodus 32 Moses goes up to Mt. Saini to hear from the Lord and the people who are still buzzing from walking through the Red Sea start to say to themselves, “What’s taking Moses so long?” The people start to grumble. The people start to complain.
In the moment you would think that Aaron, Moses #2 guy, would stand strong, lift their eyes to wait on the Lord, remember the Lord, but the influences of the Egyptian beliefs and values are too great, so Aaron gives the people what they would have worshipped for 20 generations, idols, statues, mythical gods, and crafts together a golden calf where the people fall on their face in worship.
This phrase “sat down to eat and drink, rose up to play” is a euphemism for sexual immorality, so they aren’t just singing songs to a golden statue but they are doing what they had seen done generation after generation as they lead one another into idol worship. Look at verse 8:
1 Corinthians 10:8, “8 Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day.”
In verse 7 there is idolatry and in verse 8 there is immorality, so that even though the Lord rescued Israel, provided for Israel, led Israel, and blessed Israel we still see how easy it is for the people of Israel to turn from the Lord in idolatry and immorality, so that the holiness of God brings judgment on the people of Israel.
Sit in that for a moment. I know it’s not comfortable thinking of God’s judgment. I know we only want to see the God of Scripture has loving, gracious, merciful and kind and He is all those characteristics. He is so patient. Please don’t miss that in our passage this morning.
But there is still the holiness of God that must be held in tension and when God’s people turn to immorality and idolatry over and over and over and over then habitual sin cannot be tolerated by the holiness of God.
This is difficult for us to parallel today because none of us are worthy of worship but the Lord is worthy of worship, therefore, when we give our worship to someone or something else, it bothers Him.
Do you know those moments when you worked hard to accomplish something? It could be in academics, athletics, or in your career and then the recognition you deserve is given to another person? It’s offensive.
Now, if the holiness of God was waiting till humanity takes one misstep and then strikes us down with judgment, which He could but He doesn’t. He is so patient. Read the Old Testament. He is so kind but the holiness of God, the jealousy of God, cannot allow us to slam the door in His face over and over and over and over and over. Like a loving Father He must hold the line of His holiness. Look at verses 9-10:
1 Corinthians 10:9-10, “9 Nor let us try the Lord, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents. 10 Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer.”
In verse 7 there is idolatry, in verse 8 there is immorality, and in verse 9 there is testing of the Lord and in verse 10 there is grumbling, so that the people of Israel weren’t just turning from the Lord but they were condescending toward the Lord.
Seas were magically parting and they were saying, “Is that all you got?” Food was magically falling from heaven and the heart attitude of the people was, “Yeah, but it’s a little bland.” Water was springing forth from the rock and they were saying, “You don’t have any ice?”
Maybe we should give our affections to another and maybe we will get something better? So that at some point the holiness of God demands Him to say, “That’s enough.”
It’s possible we could read these stories in Exodus or Numbers and think to ourselves, “How could those people in Israel overlook the Lord’s provision and protection?” But we do the same thing, right?
We see the power of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. We receive the power of His Spirit, indwelling us with life and gifts. We see Him move in our life. We see His provision and protection, and yet how quickly turn to the beliefs and values of our day.
We think, “Maybe this career will make my life better? Maybe this relationship will fill up what’s missing in my life? Maybe these friends will make me feel important? Maybe this politician will make me feel safe?”
We don’t abandon the Lord completely but we blend our faith in Jesus with our faith in this world and God’s Word is crying out to our soul, “Be careful!” Look at verses 11-13:
1 Corinthians 10:11-13, “11 Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. 13 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.”
This is the lesson of our passage this morning. It’s great the Lord has blessed us with reconciliation by grace through faith in Jesus, indwelling of the Spirit, His provision and protection, moved in powerful ways, but let us not forget how easily we are influenced by the values and beliefs of our day.
Sometimes we assume because we have a church family in Austin, TX, we assume because we have studied the bible, we assume because we show up to worship on Sunday, because we have served the Lord in different areas of our life, we assume the Lord will just forgive us, the Lord will just overlook our idolatry, the Lord will just wink at our immorality, the Lord will just embrace our grumbling and complaining.
Yes, the Lord is patient, gracious and kind but at some point, He will allow the consequences of our decision to bear fruit in our life.
Are we going to stumble into sin? Absolutely. But there is no temptation that has overtaken us, so that we have to continue in sin. Jesus has come to rescue us from the bondage of sin. Before faith in Jesus we were in bondage to sin, we had to sin but now by grace through faith in Jesus, the chains have been broken.
Before faith in Jesus we couldn’t escape the temptation of sin. We were in darkness. We were spiritually dead but now through faith in Jesus the lights have been turned on. We can see the passage of escape, therefore, let us turn from sin as quickly as possible. What a huge encouragement! Look at verse 14:
1 Corinthians 10:14, “14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.”
Idolatry is simply worship. We were all made to worship, ultimately to worship the Lord, but if not the Lord, we will worship something or someone.
Many years ago, I was in Bogota Colombia, working to help train up pastors in villages around the city and one time I was talking to an older man and I asked, “Do you think you will ever want to live in the United States?”
The man said, “I’ve been to the United States but I can’t stomach the idolatry of the United States.” Which I thought was interesting because we don’t have golden calves of worship and there are statues of worship all over Colombia so I asked, “What do you mean?”
He said, “People in the United States worship food. There is every type of restaurant and it’s never enough. People in the United States worship celebrities. Every type of celebrity for every form of entertainment. People in the United States worship your homes. You have these huge homes for 2-3 people.” Therefore, God’s Word doesn’t call us to dabble in idolatry but flee from idolatry but turning to Jesus! Look at verses 15-17:
1 Corinthians 10:15-17, “15 I speak as to wise men; you judge what I say. 16 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? 17 Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread.”
In verses 15-17 the Apostle Paul moves from a parallel between Israel and the church to a parallel to communion and idolatry. Do you see it?
Communion is supernatural. In communion we share a meal with Jesus and with the body of Christ. Communion isn’t just an individual experience. Communion isn’t just a meal with our church family in north Austin. Communion is spiritual. Communion is supernatural. Look at verses 18-20:
1 Corinthians 10:18-20, “18 Look at the nation Israel; are not those who eat the sacrifices sharers in the altar? 19 What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 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 sharers in demons.”
Do you see the big picture of our passage this morning? In chapter 9 the Apostle Paul writes, “I do all things, I become all things to win people over to Jesus” and in verses 18-20 the Apostle Paul clarifies, “But be careful because when you eat that meat, you are taking part in demonic worship.”
Does that mean we need to be scared of these idols? In verse 20 the Apostle Paul writes, “No, there nothing.”
They are just ideas. They are just bits and pieces of wood. They are just golden calves but when we embrace those things, when we give our affections to those things, we are participating in worship and we are participating in demonic activity.
Just as communion with the body of Christ is supernatural, we can’t overlook that we are living in a supernatural world, weaving in and out of spiritual forces of darkness all the time and we don’t need to be afraid but we do need to be aware. Look at verses 21-22:
1 Corinthians 10:21-22, “21 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. 22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we?”
I remember when I first read these verses as a new follower of Jesus. I was two years into walking with Jesus. I was going to worship on Sunday morning and on Sunday night I was going to clubs in downtown Dallas to chase girls.
I was literally drinking from the cup of the Lord that morning and later that night drinking from the cup of demons and the Spirit of God said to me, “Michael, what are you doing?”
By God’s grace I turned from that area of my life and I wish I could tell you that was the only area of my life where that verse applies but the Spirit of God is still speaking into my life about areas of my life, layers of my heart, parts of my thinking that have been influence by the values and beliefs of the culture we live where the Spirit of God taps me on the soul and says, “Michael, what are you doing?” That’s the invitation of God’s Word this morning.