"For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; 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. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. 6 Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. 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.” 8 Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. 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. 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."
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Good Morning Beloved,
Welcome to worship, we're so glad you're here!
I have said many times, that in preparing the sermons for you, that they are often meant for me as much as they are all of you. In our continuing study of I Corinthians, there are several things that have just really "stuck" with me.
In preparing for our lesson for today, as I was reading and studying, I was becoming quite distracted by a few of them. So, today I'd like to share just a few of them with you…
There are many sayings used in our society today, that find their root, their original source in Scripture. And, I am fairly certain, that at some time or another, most of you have heard at least some of them.
"A drop in a Bucket" comes from Isaiah 40:15: "Behold, the nations are as a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales." This declares God’s sovereignty and power over the nations and would have meant a lot to a people that had been exiled to Babylon.
"Nothing but skin and bones" refers to someone who is emaciated because of sickness as first used in Job 19:20a: "My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh…"
"By the skin of your teeth," means to have a narrow escape. Job 19:20b: "And I have escaped by the skin of my teeth."
"Go the extra mile” is from the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus said in Matthew 5:41: "And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles."
"See the writing on the wall" is a way to say that something bad is about to happen in Daniel 5:5: "Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace…"
“Wash your hands of the matter” communicates that one no longer has responsibility and comes from Matthew 27:24: "So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.
In thinking about all of these, it brought to mind a conversation that I had with a pastor some years ago, it was one, that I will never forget. At the time, I had been reading the Scriptures, and came across a section on discipline in the church, and dealing with sin in the church. And as I read it, I had been already aware of Matthew chapter 18, where our Lord’s first instruction in the Bible to the church, is that if someone is in sin, you go to him and you confront the sin.
And, we all know that Scripture says if the person doesn’t repent, you go back and take two or three witnesses to confirm the response. And, if they still don’t repent, you tell it to the church. And if they still don’t repent, you treat them like an outsider, an outcast. You put them out of the church.
The apostle Paul follows that up by saying you can’t let them stay in the church because sin is like leaven and a little bit of leaven leavens everything. The apostle Paul later points out the fact that if there’s someone in the fellowship who is teaching falsely, admonish him two or three times and after that, you must put him out. You must put him out.
It really got me thinking. That in all my years, of being in church, I have never known of a church that did that. Not even one. Now, in the past, in ancient history, in the early church, yes. But in my lifetime, I have not known of or even heard of any church doing that. So, I began to ask questions about this issue of telling the church about sinning people. And, every time I asked the question, I was told pretty much the same answer. Every time, by every pastor, the same answer, "We don't do that. Today, you can’t do that!"
And, anyone who knows me well, knows that my curiosity gets the best of me, and so I of course asked, "Why not?" To which I was told, "Because you’ll empty the church. People just won’t tolerate that. They’ll flee! You just can’t be looking at people’s lives and making judgments about their sin. Moreover, you can't be confronting them about their sin, and in some cases making it public. They will run as fast as they can. You’ll empty out the place!"
So, I said, "But Scripture instructs us to do that, it’s not confusing, it’s not hard to interpret. It's not ambiguous. What then, are we supposed to do about what the Bible says?" Well, the answer seemed clear to me, the real answer, the answer no one wanted to actually say, is, "Do nothing!" We are somehow just supposed to ignore those commands of the Bible, skip over the offensive doctrine, to please the congregation. And, I take issue with that, I have a problem with it.
So, from the moment that I became a pastor, I decided, no matter how difficult a passage was to bring up, no matter how offensive it seems, and yes, there are some, but I am called to preach the Word of God. And that means all of it. So, I began to move in the direction of trying to teach the church, that we really need to do this. If it is in the Bible, if God felt that it was important enough to mention, we have to take it seriously. Therefore, I have to do this. And we need to do this. We are not authorized to pick and choose what we are willing to teach, in order to please men. We must please God. The reality is that obedience to the Word of God always brings the blessing of God, doesn’t it? The truth is, God's Word is the truth, and if the congregation are the people of God, if they are truly disciples of Jesus Christ, if they are obedient to His teachings, that should never empty a church.
So, that got me thinking. I began thinking about all of the common cultural sayings often used today, that are frequently quoted as coming from the Bible, but they do not… Allow me to just share a few of those with you as well.
"This too shall pass." From the time I was a small boy, I have heard this phrase as being Scriptural. However, this phrase is not from the Bible. In fact, it's earliest origin comes from Persian poets, and Jewish folklore. Though the Bible does express the same thought as this phrase, when relating the impermanence of things, it does not appear in the Scripture.
"To thine own self be true." This saying originates from Shakespeare and is not found in Scripture.
"Cleanliness is next to godliness." Sorry, moms, but again, this verse is also not in the Bible.
"Money is the root of all evil." Actually, we discussed this in a previous lesson, some time ago, that in I Timothy 6:10 it says, "The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…" It is the love of money that is the issue, not the money itself.
"God wants you to be healthy, wealthy and wise." While, this certainly sounds good to us Americans and is propagated from many pulpits and popularized by TV prosperity preachers, is not found in the Bible. We’ll tackle this one in another lesson.
God helps those who help themselves." Those of us who know God, know that actually, God helps those who cannot help themselves.
This one, I have intentionally saved for last, "God won’t give you more than you can handle."
This one is our topic today. In attempting to comfort those who are facing difficult challenges, and suffering, Christians can make the strangest claims. What do you say to someone whose life is falling apart?
If you have only a few precious moments with a person who’s lost a job, home, spouse, child, or all sense of purpose, what comfort do you give? We might tend to turn to conventional wisdom instead of Scripture and end up saying something like, ‘"Don’t worry, this wouldn’t happen in your life if God didn’t think you could bear it." The sufferer may object, head shaking and throw their hands up. So you insist, "Seriously, the Bible promises God won’t ever give you more than you can handle."
And, there it is. Well intended, conventional wisdom, now masquerading as biblical truth, is born How so? Because, you have just promised something that the Bible never says. In fact, Scripture doesn't even imply such a thing. And so it goes from there to the far ends of the earth.
Because this introduction has taken a little longer that usual, just in case you zone out or fall asleep during the rest of our time today, allow me to just give a summary of the sermon in one sentence: God will give you more than YOU can handle, but he will never give you more than HE can handle!
So, to be fair, most people who promise that God won’t give us more than we can handle mean well.
They mean well. Though some could argue that this idea comes from I Corinthians 10:13, because the words "temptation" and "trial" are actually the same Greek word: "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."
God does promise that He will provide a way out when we’re tempted, but He never says that He’ll shield us from trials or struggles. Actually, II Timothy 3:12 says, "Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted."
Let's bow our heads in prayer.
Heavenly Father,
We thank You for the grace that has been made available to us. That if we will confess our sins, You are faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We are so thankful, that You never withhold forgiveness from anyone who asks. And so, Lord, search our hearts, examine our ways, reveal to us any sin that remains that needs to be confessed, set aside, especially those sins that we’ve become all too comfortable with. May we happily repent and gladly release them and seek purification, by Your refining fire to make us clean in order that we might partake in a worthy way and bring down upon ourselves blessing and not judgment. We thank You for Your Holy Spirit, who gives us the wisdom and discernment we need to understand and apply what we are about to learn today from Your holy written Word.
We ask and pray this in Jesus' name
Amen
Let’s open our Bibles, to I Corinthians 10, where we will see that temptation is clearly in view. Follow along with me as I read today's passage to you, to get our hearts settled on it.
"For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. 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.” Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Nor let us try the Lord, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents. Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 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. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. 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."
And there it is, "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."
According to Genesis 4:7, sin stalks us: "Sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it." The Apostle Paul retells the history of God’s people and how they were prone to fall into sin. God was not delighted with their decisions. In verse 5 we read: "Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased, for they were laid low in the wilderness."
I believe, that verse 6 helps to show us why reading the Old Testament is good for us: "Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved."
The point here is, that we’re to learn to do right by looking at what the Israelites did wrong. History, regardless of how unpleasing it may be, is necessary for change.
There are four specific sins we’re to stay away from:
Idolatry. We see this in verse 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."
Sexual immorality. The Israelites committed idolatry, which often led them to immorality as seen in verses 8-9: "Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Nor let us try the Lord, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents."
Grumbling. Maybe you don’t struggle with idolatry or immorality, but it’s easy to become irritable and start grumbling, isn’t it? We see this in verse 10: "Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer."
Pride. At the core of sin is pride, where we think we know best. Paul puts it like this in verse 12:
"Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall."
These four types of temptation – idolatry, what we worship, immorality, how we use our bodies, grumbling, our words, and pride, our attitudes, are sins that God’s people have always struggled with. Not much has changed, as these temptations are still very much alive and well, even today.
So, let's again read verse 13, which says, "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."
Now, let’s consider it in light of the context: "No temptation — these four sins and even more— has overtaken you that is not common to man let’s consider your temptations are not unique or unusual – everyone faces them. God is faithful — you can count on His character; the first place to start is to focus on God’s faithfulness— and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability —with Christ in your life as you walk in the Spirit and do battle, you can handle the temptations—, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape —this word is very vivid, as it was used of an army that was totally surrounded and then suddenly they see and take an escape route—, so that you may be able to deal with it" — God will give us everything we need to tackle the temptation.
After carefully and prayerfully meditating on this verse, I jotted down three phrases that I believe can help us in dealing with temptation.
The first, Look out – In other words, be alert, watch for temptations and don’t be surprised when they come because no one is immune.
Second, Look up – place your focus on the faithfulness of God and count on His character. Not your temptation.
And third, Look around – look to find your escape route and don’t hesitate to use it! Immediately, if needed.
We’ve established that the context and text of 1 Corinthians 10:13 deals with temptation and God will give us a way out. If you’re still not convinced, listen to the verse that comes right after: “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.”
So let’s come back to the common quote: God won’t give you more than you can handle. This phrase is doctrinally deficient and dangerous for at least five reasons.
• It’s not true to life or to the testimony of Scripture. People often face way more than they can handle. Some of you are overwhelmed right now. I think of Joseph, Job and Jeremiah in the Old Testament and Peter, Paul and John in the New Testament.
This thinking brings God down to our level. We like the saying, "God will not give us more than we can handle" because it strikes us as fair and we like the idea that the scales are all in balance. But here are a couple questions that I'd like to encourage you to consider: How can God be limited by our limitations? Is His sovereignty to be curtailed by how much suffering I can handle? Unfortunately, when we’re overwhelmed and feeling out of sorts, it’s easy to conclude that God has somehow let us down. But understand this; We are never in position to evaluate the Almighty’s actions or weigh His will according to what we think is fair! Lest we never forget that He is the Potter and we are the clay.
This quote, however, elevates our abilities and strength. Since when are we called to be become a Super Hero?? Let’s all just be honest, and just admit that we do not have what it takes to handle life's trials on our own. This superficial and trite quote points people inward while the Bible points us Godward. Our greatest hindrance to living the victorious Christian life is our own self-reliance. Our greatest hindrance to living the victorious Christian life is our own self-reliance. To say, or even imply, that God won’t give us more than we can handle sounds more like modern cultural psychology or a well intended spiritual pep talk.
Beloved, this can often make us feel guilty when we struggle. I began to think how many times have I heard this in the world? It’s so discouraging to someone who is facing cancer, or any other serious illness. Of course we can't handle it! We're not equipped to handle it, and it just makes us feel guilty for not being OK. So, I want to tell you today, it's OK not to be Ok! Because, though we aren't equipped to handle such things, we serve an awesome God, Who is! Though, our circumstances may be too big for us, it's never too big for God!
However, this mindset, tends to steal our joy. When we begin to feel as though God has somehow let us down or that there’s something wrong with us, then how in the world can we put James 1:2-4 into practice:
"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
So, what do we do when faced with terrible crisis? When we are facing trials too big to overcome? Turn with me quickly to the book of II Corinthians, which, I believe, is Paul’s most personal and emotional letter. Here, Paul is being questioned because he was going through struggles and stresses. He started the church and now there are new teachers, who are suggesting that suffering is a sign of sin. By adopting the culture of Corinth, they are lifting up the brightest and the best and have concluded that God wouldn’t bring suffering to someone who is spiritually minded. In other words, it's your sin that has caused your suffering. Could this be?
Let’s consider just a few passages from II Corinthians that lay the foundation for a theology of suffering, something which is severely lacking in the modern American church today. As I have stated many times, before, context in crucial to understanding the Scripture. So often, people take one isolated verse, and attempt to build their case, without considering the surrounding text. We must allow Scripture to interpret Scripture.
II Corinthians 6:4-10: "but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God, in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in distresses, in beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger, in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love, in the word of truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; as unknown yet well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death, as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things."
Then II Corinthians 7:5: "For even when we came into Macedonia our flesh had no rest, but we were afflicted on every side: conflicts without, fears within."
And II Corinthians 11:23-29: "Are they servants of Christ?—I speak as if insane—I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern?"
Going back to II Corinthians chapter 1, the opening verses, the word "comfort" is used nine times! In verses 3-4, it says that God comforts us in our catastrophes so we can comfort others as they go through theirs: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
John 5:17 says "But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working." I believe it's so awesome that our Triune God is always at work, even in the midst of our woes, and sometimes, we get to see Him do His work!
The Apostle Paul was quite often overwhelmed according to II Corinthians 1:8-9: "For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead;"
I really love how he refers to them as "brothers," which is a reminder that all believers are part of the faith family.
So, let’s dig right into the despair that Paul describes…
The word "affliction" is used nine times in the letter and means, "to crush, press, squeeze and break." This could be part of what Paul referred to in I Corinthians 15:32, when he says, "If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." Or it could be what happened in Acts 19, Artemis, a silversmith who made shrines to false gods, and because he was threatened, rage and riots broke out as Paul was preaching.
They were "utterly burdened beyond our strength." The word "utterly" in Greek is "huperbole," from which we get hyperbole. It means to "an exaggerated extent and exceedingly off the charts." "Burdened beyond strength" was used of a ship that was so full of cargo that it was sinking.
Paul and his companions “despaired of life itself” or literally, "pressed out of measure beyond strength; to be at a complete loss without any resource or options." I wonder if Paul was thinking about Acts 14:19: "But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead."
They summarize how they felt in the beginning of II Corinthians 1 verse 9: "indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead;" The word "indeed" is like saying, "So, here’s the bottom line…" They saw themselves as dead men walking, like they had received an official death sentence.
It is my guess is that while some of us may feel some of these things, most of us have not gone through what Paul and his companions experienced. I love what comes next! All of this was way more than they could handle on their own: "but in God who raises the dead;" The Christian life not a journey from dependence to independence but is instead a process of moving from arrogant self-reliance to a deep, spiritual dependence on God for everything!
When we are miserable and out of resources we are made to rely on God. God’s purpose in our problems is to get us to trust Him! I resonate with the question asked by the psalmist in Psalm 121:1: "I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?"
And I love his answer found in verse 2: "My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth." We worship a God who raises the dead, which means He can do anything. Or as Paul wrote later in II Corinthians 4:7: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;"
Jeremiah 17:5 says, "Thus says the Lord, “Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
And makes flesh his strength, And whose heart turns away from the Lord." And verse 7 says, "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord And whose trust is the Lord"
Listen. God will give you more than you can handle so His resurrection power can be put on full display in your life! II Corinthians 4:17: "For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,"
One of the purposes of trials is to propel us to trust in God! To summarize.
Look for the way of escape when facing temptations.
Live to expect trials.
Lean in and express trust when facing trials.
Beloved, God will give you more than YOU can handle, but he will never give you more than HE can handle! Do you understand this? If so, let’s start saying this whole phrase and no longer tell people that God won’t give them more than they can handle. Are you with me?
God will give you more than you can handle so that you realize you can’t handle it on your own.
God will give us more than we can handle so that we will give Him the handle to steer our lives.
The key to the Christian life is not to be strong in our strength but to admit that we’re weak. We are weak! Apart from God, we have no strength on our own to handle the trials of this life.
God gives us tasks and tests and trials that are much bigger than us so that we give them to Him, and the give Him the glory as He works in our weaknesses.
I'd like you to just close your eyes, as I read to you II Corinthians 12:9-10. We don’t know what exactly Paul’s thorn in the flesh was, but we know that he asked God to get rid of it three different times. For reasons known only to Him, God didn’t take this trial and torment away. We know one result is that it kept Paul humble and trusting. Listen closely to these words and apply them to your own hurts today: "Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me."
In Closing....
Beloved, if you have listened to nothing else I've said here today, listen to this: It’s time to surrender to Jesus Christ. Give him your trials, your tears, your worries and your torment. Give the Lord your lament and your loss. Let Him bear your bitterness.
Now, here’s the good news. You do not have to handle everything that comes your way. Because, you can’t. But He can. Will you give it to Him right now? Won't you surrender to Him? Give Him all the stuff and give Him all of yourself.
I Peter 5:6-7: "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your care on Him, because He cares about you."
Psalm 61:1-3: "God, hear my cry; pay attention to my prayer. I call to You from the ends of the earth when my heart is without strength. Lead me to a rock that is high above me, for You have been a refuge for me, a strong tower in the face of the enemy."
Jude 1:24-25 – "Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless and with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen."
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Copyright © 2019-2020 All Rights Reserved