Read 1^st
Corinthians 10:1-5

Note the “For” at the very beginning of this chapter. This
indicates that this chapter is the author’s reason for believing the previous section. Go back and read the last part
of chapter 9 and the beginning of chapter 10 seamlessly together as if there
were no chapters divisions (for chapters are a later addition to the Bible that
we’re not in the original version. They were added to help with navigating the
Bibles contents.) Do this and see how the author’s thoughts look in their full
context.

The Israelites were protected by God, were ‘baptized’, ate
from the spiritual rock, saw many great miracles, but yet most of them never
really loved God first. How easy is it to play the part of a good little
Christian but never truly love and fear God? Don’t think about all the people
at church who are this person (because there is a lot of them), instead ask
yourself: Is this me? Am I this person?

Journaling

Read 1^st
Corinthians 10:6-10

The sentence in quotes in this section is from Exodus 32:6, adding to the
Moses imagery of the previous day’s section.

How do you feel about the overt display of Gods wrath
in this section? Do you struggle to understand how our God can be full of both
love and divine justice? I question the compassion of any Christian who has
never at least struggled with this. What part of it do you find difficult? Pray about that.
Furthermore, seek out Godly counsel and diligently study the scriptures
regarding this. God can give answers to those who are truly willing to seek him
with trusting patience.

Chew also on the nature of the cross regarding Gods wrath. Justice and mercy
were both done at the cross. As such, at the heart of Christianity is a deep
and wondrous paradox. Start chewing on this now, as you will likely be
wrestling with it the rest of your life.

Journaling

Read 1^st
Corinthians 10:11-13

“So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!”
This verse terrifies me. Every time I read it I have to take refuge again in
Christ’s grace, acknowledging that the only place I am save from peril and my
own sin is in his loving embrace. Chew on this verse. It should be a constant
reminder of two conflicting ideas, and how we have to make ourselves at home in
the middle of the tension between them. On the one hand, how easily we fall to sin. On the other, the
mighty hand of God to keep us safe in his warm embrace. Somehow we have to
uphold both in our pursuit of salvation. I don’t know how to do that. My own
human inability itself reaffirms the point. Only by turning to God can I get
anywhere, because I have no idea how to do this myself. Only in him am I safe.
What do you make of this verse?

God provides us a way out when we are tempted. What do
you do to turn to God in moments of temptation? Prayer? Bible reading? Going
for a walk and talking to him? What does this look like in your life? If I
don’t have a set pattern of turning to God in these moments I usually fall to
sin. What would it look like if you had a pattern? Try it out. Time and
perseverance can solidify these habits and protect us when we are weak and don’t have the strength to consciously make a stand. But these habits are
part of the subconscious walls we build up in the past to protect ourselves in
the future. Try it out.

Journaling

Read 1^st
Corinthians 10:14-22

Notice how the author constantly stresses that idols and
things sacrificed to them are nothing. This means the sin is based not on the
idol itself, but on one potential effect it can have on us and the community
around us. There are many things in our lives that in and of themselves are not
evil—and so we never get rebuked for having or indulging in them—but the way in
which we use them is sinful. For some this will be TV, money, video games, or food…for
others this may even be worship of your spouse; loving ones spouse more than
God. What has this looked like in your life in the past? Is your affection
today focused primarily on anything other than the creator of the universe?

One might ask: Are we not meant to love our families and
God’s children? Should we scorn existence like monks focusing only on the
almighty? Obviously we are meant to cherish what God has given us. The problem
is not these things, or even loving and enjoying them. Idolatry is loving them
before and instead of God. How does this delicate balance look in real life?

On the one hand, it is weird to think of God as jealous. On
the other hand, as we are the objects of his jealousy, his desire, how should
that affect us? What does that say about our identity as beings who are dearly
loved and sought after? How should we then act? Should we betray God’s love, or
respond to it in kind?

Journaling

Read 1^st
Corinthians 10:23-33

The quote in verse 26, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it” is
from Psalm 24:1.

To understand this section, we must understand the situation in the church of Corinth when this letter was written. In
the ancient world, people would sacrifice animals to the hundreds of ‘gods’
like Zeus or Athena, and then eat or sell the sacrificed meat for others to
eat. Many Christians would eat this meat that had been sacrificed, because they
knew that it meant nothing and that the tribal gods weren’t real. But for many
of the people in the Church, they had once been worshipers of these many gods
before they became Christians. Many of them would have been raised in the
traditions of Olympus and the worship of Roman
emperors as Gods. They would have eaten sacrificed meat and done it as an act
of worship to these many deities. Thus for these Christians, meat sacrificed to
idols was a slippery slope for them, a sinful way of thinking that they could
easily have slipped back into. For other Christians to willingly indulge in
these things while they were with their brothers and sisters who could not
handle such activities, would be sinful because their actions could cause their
fellow Christians to stumble. This is much like how many Christians who do not
disagree with an occasional alcoholic drink morally, still do not do it because
it could be a stumbling block for those who once had a drinking problem. What
ways do people in the church commonly do things that are morally ok for them,
but cause other people to stumble? How can we avoid this in our own lives?

What is the ultimate message of this 1 Corinthians section? How can we make
sure this is the message underlying our actions?

Journaling