EXPLORE IT - 1 Corinthians 10:11-12

1 Corinthians 10:11-12  These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.  ¹² So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!

“That will never happen to me;” a statement most of us have said at one time or another when we find out someone we know has fallen into sin.  Maybe we learn someone is struggling with a substance abuse issue or is having an affair.  Maybe someone we know made some choices and is now having to file for bankruptcy.  We show concern, offer a listening ear, but in the back of our minds we’re thinking, “That will never happen to me.”

We think we are strong.  We think we are disciplined.  We know we would never make those mistakes.  The reality is that we all deal with temptation.  The challenge is realizing what tempts you may not tempt me.  Satan knows our weaknesses, he knows how to push our buttons, and he is clever in drawing us off God’s path one inch at a time.  From Genesis 3 when the serpent tempted Eve to eat from the Tree of Life through Revelation 12:9 where Satan is labeled as the one, “who leads the whole world astray,” Scripture is filled with stories of people who thought they were standing firm and eventually fell in one way or another. 

From King David, a man God labeled, “a man after his (God’s) own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14) who then had an affair with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11) to the Apostle Peter who declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you,” (Matthew 26:35) and then Peter denies Jesus three times (Matthew 26:75), Scripture tells stories again and again that should warn us to be humble.  We must humbly remain in God’s presence, seeking His guidance, asking for Him to reveal anything in us that is not of Him, show us any area in our life where we are letting temptation rear its ugly head so that we might build a fence around ourselves in order to keep the sin our of our lives.

In our passage this week, Paul continues to encourage us to not be arrogant in believing we are invincible to sin, but reminds us that we must always be on the alert.  1 Peter 5:8 tells us, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”  Continue to keep your eyes open and never assume “That will never happen to me.”

Blessings,
Pastor Amy