I Corinthians 10:1-13 * March 14, 2004 * Lent 3 * Pastor Pagels

In the name of Christ Jesus, dear friends:

On Friday I conducted an informal poll of my sophomore religion classes at Wisconsin Lutheran High School, and this was the question I asked them to consider: What is your favorite subject in school? Here are the results. Ranking number one in student preference was physical education. Biology finished a distant second. And it came as no surprise to me that only a handful of students picked my personal favorite, history.

Most high school students don’t get too excited about history. They claim that it’s boring. They say they don’t want to memorize a bunch of meaningless names and dates. They don’t see the point in learning about places they will never see and people they will never meet.

Phrases like “Those who don’t study the past are doomed to repeat it” and “You can’t know where you are going unless you know where you’ve been” were coined to change prevailing attitudes about history. Teachers work hard to convince their students that history is much more than the study of dead people. History is relevant. History is practical. History is important.

The apostle Paul was not a history professor, but he did cite examples from the past to teach the Christians in Corinth some valuable lessons. Even though Paul wrote these words two thousand ago, even though the events to which Paul refers took place almost three thousand five hundred years ago, this text remains relevant and practical and important for us.

And so this morning Professor Paul encourages twenty-first century Christians to…

PONDER THE PAST

I. If you think you have a unique situation

II. If you think you have everything under control

III. If you think you have more than you can handle

The lesson begins: “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. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ” (1-4).

In one sense the children of Israel were in a unique situation. Out of all the peoples in the world, God had chosen them to be his own. And this favored status brought along with it special blessings. First of all, the Israelites enjoyed divine protection. God used a pillar of cloud to separate them from the Egyptians. God parted the waters of the Read Sea to deliver them from the Egyptians.

After the initial threat had passed, the Lord didn’t leave his people to fend for themselves in the wilderness. He provided them with manna and quail. On more than one occasion he miraculously produced water from a rock.

The people to whom Paul was writing didn’t have the benefit of a cloudy pillar to protect them. The Corinthians never witnessed the parting of the Aegean Sea. The Corinthians didn’t expect God to drop food from the sky or make water flow from a rock. And we don’t either.

But we do have this in common. Along with the children of Israel, along with the Corinthian Christians, we are connected to Christ. We believe his Word. We trust his promises. He is the solid rock on which we stand, the foundation of our faith and the foundation of our lives. Or is he?

Paul continues: “Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them (that is, the Israelites); their bodies were scattered over the desert” (5). After the Lord delivered his people, after he sent ten plagues, after he parted the Red Sea, after he had displayed his power and his love in so many different ways, you might expect better from God’s people. You might expect total devotion. You might expect undying allegiance. You might expect lives dedicated to pleasing God. But God was not pleased with what he saw, and Paul highlights for us some of the reasons for his displeasure:

“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.’ We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. We should not test the Lord as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel” (7-10).

In spite of their favored status, in spite of their special blessings, the Israelites committed some pretty serious sins. Idolatry. Sexual immorality. Testing God. Rebellion against God-given authority. What makes this bad news even worse is that these sins didn’t die with them in the desert. The same kinds of sins were popping up in the church at Corinth, and just a little probing will show that the very same sins are alive and well among us.

We don’t set up golden calves in front of church, but we do set up personal idols in our hearts. We don’t engage in disgusting acts with temple prostitutes, but we do allow sinful sexual images to invade our homes and our minds. Maybe we don’t tell God that we detest what he provides for us, at least not in so many words, but when we constantly grumble and complain we are in effect telling God that we are not at all satisfied with his performance.

Paul carefully chose these examples from Israel’s history to remind the Corinthians, to remind us, that our sinful situation is not unique. “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come” (11). This is lesson #1. Listen to the warnings. Learn from the mistakes of others. Don’t let history repeat itself.

That’s easy to say, but it’s not so easy to do. As a general rule, people don’t like to admit their mistakes. We want to feel good about ourselves. We want to look good in the eyes of other people. At the very least, we want to give the impression that we have things under control. If this rings true, if this sounds the least bit familiar, ponder the past.

I think it’s safe to say that most people have pet sins. Some are greedy. Some are jealous. Some can’t control their tongues. Others can’t control their tempers. Because we are all sinful, we all have weaknesses. And I have heard sermons warning that the devil knows our weaknesses and that he will try to exploit them.

That is true enough, but the devil doesn’t stop there either. Besides tempting us to give in to our sinful flesh, Satan also encourages us to commit what I will call “shadow sins.” What is a shadow sin? It is not the sinful act. It is not the sin itself. It is the attempt to make excuses for that sin after the fact. Shadow sins are not as obvious, but they are just as dangerous.

Here is an example: “I know I have a problem with alcohol, but the doctor says it runs in my family. I don’t let it affect my work. I try to limit it to weekends mostly. And you know, the Bible does say that a little wine is good for the soul.”

How about another one: “I know that I have a bad temper, but I can’t help it. That is just the way God made me. Whenever I lose it, I always try to make up for it later. And as bad as I am, I can think of at least three people who are even worse.”

The devil’s favorite word is “but.” “I know what God says, but…” “I know that I’m not perfect, but...” “I know that I shouldn’t be doing what I’m doing, but…” And before we even realize it, the devil convinces us that we aren’t that bad, that we are good enough, that we are better than most, that we are on pretty solid footing just the way we are.

If you have ever tried to minimize sin, if you have ever found a way to rationalize your sinful behavior, if you have ever entertained the idea that you are doing okay on your own, listen carefully to Paul: “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall” (12).

The personality of the Passion we considered at our midweek Lenten services this past Wednesday was Peter. Peter was the leader of the disciples. Sure there were times when he got himself into trouble, but his heart was in the right place. And when he pledged his willingness to die with Jesus on Maundy Thursday, Peter undoubtedly thought that he was doing the right thing.

But there was a problem. Peter’s problem wasn’t overconfidence. It was the object of his confidence. He thought that he was standing firm. He thought that he could stand on his own. But when the questions started coming, when the accusations started flying, Peter fell. He fell hard. And if that could happen to someone who walked on water with Jesus, if that could happen to someone who lived with Jesus and learned from Jesus, it can certainly happen to you. This is lesson #2.

Sometimes the study of history can get a little depressing. So much of it has to do with war and death, with man’s inhumanity to inhumanity to man. This is where world history differs from salvation history. To the person who is weighed down by sin, to the person with nowhere else to turn, to Christians who believe that they have more than they can handle, Paul offers this advice: ponder the past.

“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” (13). Paul’s history lesson ends on a positive note. And he gives us a number of points to ponder.

First, “no temptation has seized you except what is common to man.” If you think you are all alone, if you think you are the only person in the world who is going through what you are going through, whatever it is, you are wrong. Other Christians have been in your shoes. Other Christians have survived. And you will too.

How can I be so sure? How can you be so sure? Because “God is faithful.” He knows exactly what you need. In fact, he has met your greatest need, and he did it within the framework of history. For thousands of years, God prepared the world for the coming of his Son. And then in a real time and in a real place, God’s divine plan took human form.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate. Jesus was sentenced to death under Roman law to redeem us from the curse of God’s law. Jesus died on a wooden cross for your sins and my sins and the sins of the whole world. And then he rose from the dead. In the span of three days, Jesus performed the single greatest act of love and the single greatest miracle in the history of the world.

But God’s faithfulness was not a one-time event. God’s faithfulness is an open-ended promise. Speaking to believers living in the post-resurrection era, speaking to people just like us, Paul says: “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.”

The devil is a powerful enemy, but God is a more powerful ally. He numbers the hairs on your heads. He knows your limits. He won’t always give you a way to escape from your problems, but he will give you the ability to endure them.

This is Paul’s third and final lesson: As we contemplate the salvation Jesus accomplished for us in the past, and as we anticipate the glory that awaits us in the future, God gives Christians the strength we need to live in the present.

The study of history is not just an academic exercise. It provides us with opportunities to see the handiwork of God. It gives us the confidence to meet the challenges of every new day. And as we ponder the words of Paul, as we ponder the past, there is doubt that history is His-story. Amen.