READ | SERMON NOTES
Summary l The eating of meat sacrificed to idols was contentious in the Corinthian church. While such meat could be consumed if its origin was unknown, the apostle Paul absolutely forbade the consumption of such meat in the context of an idolatrous worship in a pagan temple.
The issue was not the food per se, but the context or circumstances of its consumption. The deeper issue was the idolatrous culture that existed in the Corinthian church. Paul sternly warned them not to be idolators. He reminded them of God’s fierce wrath against idolatry in the Old Testament accounts on the worship of the Golden Calf, the Plague of Shittim and the Bronze Snake. Paul urged the Corinthian Christians to pay heed to these warnings so as to avoid God’s wrath.
For some of us, the first two stories may not mean much because we do not pray to idols at home or participate in rituals in pagan temples. But does this warning only apply to Christians who practice idolatry outwardly? The story of the Bronze Snake suggests that idolatry is closer than we think. Here no pagan practices were involved, yet the Israelites had taken the idols into their hearts and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. (Ezek 14:3) The grim reminder is that the sin of idolatry is not just committed externally with physical idols, but also internally in our hearts. The bronze snake showed that humans can be enslaved to idols in our hearts. Although the Israelites had left Egypt, their hearts and minds were still influenced by pagan practices.
A common mistake is to think of idols as only the bad things or actions taken. Unexpectedly, the good things in life can also become the coveted idols in our hearts. The greater the benefits we receive from the things we cherish, the more we expect them to satisfy our deepest needs and hopes. Unawares, our hearts can start to enshrine them in the centre of our lives. (Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller)
It is a scary thought that the good things that we love can also distract us from God. It could be our career, material possessions, hobbies and even family and loved ones. While we enjoy the good things that God gave us, we may unknowingly place such a great value on them that we forget that God is the ultimate reason for, and through whom we exist and through whom all things come. If what we seek in life is more important to us than God himself, that pursuit has become an idol in our life.
The truth of the matter is that we all struggle with idolatry in our hearts. When we understand the difference between obeying the rules of outward conduct and setting our hearts on Christ as our peace and our life, we are on the road to freedom from the idols that control us.
As Christians, God has redeemed us from sin and saved us from hell’s fire. However, Paul warned that these spiritual privileges do not protect us from God’s judgement when we blatantly worship idols, either physically or in our hearts. Paul instructs Christians to flee from idolatry and get away from temptation. Our worship at the Lord’s supper is not to be tainted with participation or sharing in temple meals as that would be tantamount with sharing the table with demons. Let us not provoke the Lord to jealousy.
While all things are lawful, we need to consider if they will build up or tear down, if they benefit me or my neighbour, if they please me or glorify God, and if they help to win the lost to Jesus or turn them away? (Warren Wiersbe)
May Christ be glorified in and through what we do in His mighty name, now and forever more.
(Sermon notes by Denis Koh)
PONDER | REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- Read Exodus 32:1-6, Numbers 25:1-9 and Numbers 21:1-9 (10:7-11).
- Which of these stories challenge you? Why?
- “The sin of idolatry is not just committed externally with physical idols but also internally in our hearts.” (Ezekiel 14:3)
- How is the above statement true for you?
- “If anything you seek in life is more important to you than God himself, that pursuit has become an idol in your life.”
- What consumes your heart and occupies your mind more than God?
- What are you seeking that only God can give?
- How are you “fleeing” from the idols you have identified? (10:12-14)
- “Our privileges as God’s people do not protect us from His judgement when we fall into the sin of idolatry.” (10:1-6)
- What are your spiritual privileges as a Christian?
- How is the above statement a wake-up call for you?
- “God never let us be tempted beyond what we can bear. And because He is faithful and gracious, He always provide a way out for us.” (10:12-13)
- Share a personal experience.
- How is God faithful and gracious to you?
- How did God provide ways out of your temptations?
- Read 10:23-24, 31-33.
- Discuss the above principles for issues Christians struggle with, e.g. eating food offered to idols, participation in funeral rites, etc.
