1 Corinthians 10:1-13
1 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors 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 drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness.
6 Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. 7 Do not become idolaters as some of them did; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play.” 8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. 9 We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by serpents. 10 And do not complain as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 11 These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. 12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. 13 No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.
12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall.
The Prince of Lies seems to be getting a real workout these days. His message is the same one that he used when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness. Unfortunately, we tend to fall for it where Jesus never did.
The temptation is simple, but also multifaceted. The tempter wants us to believe that we are self-sufficient, that we don’t need God. In this delusion, we believe that we can have power, strength, riches, fame, etc. if we just try hard enough. The true evil in this delusion is that it leads us into the assumption that those who are not powerful, strong, rich, etc. are doing something to deserve what’s happening to them. “Clearly they’re not trying hard enough…”
This unbridled hubris (pride) pulls us apart from God and each other. It pits us against each other in an insane battle for resources that we imagine to be scarce but, in reality, are given to everyone in abundance by God. It drives us into fits of insecurity that leave us trusting no one.
12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. And, when you’re ready to get off this crazed rollercoaster of imagined self-sufficiency, just let yourself fall into Jesus’ waiting arms.
Prayer: Lord God, I am nothing apart from You. Make me an instrument of your peace. AMEN