July 22, 2016: Day 54 – I Corinthians 10

The next few days are going to be a little sketchy.  I’m sitting in the Philadelphia airport getting ready to head out to Italy for a week to perform a wedding and check in on the logistics for our mission trip in 2018.  I have no idea what my internet access is going to be like.  I’m going to try to publish my articles ahead of time using a feature on this blog which posts the articles that I have submitted on the dates that I choose.  Let’s see if that works.  If not, then this just might be the last post for a week.  Let’s hope not.  

In chapter 10 we absolutely have to focus on vs.13.  You have heard it before, but probably never in this context.  Paul in this chapter is addressing from the very beginning the journey that the people of God have embarked on.  From Moses and beyond God has been with the people.  We even find an early reference to the fact that our Savior, the Christ, the Son, the third person in the Trinity was present.  If you look at vs.4 you will see that spelled out.  Often we see God the Father as being present in the Old Testament, God the Son being present in the New Testament, and God the Holy Spirit being present now.  What this Scripture supports is that our one God is present in all modes at all times.  In these verses leading up to our main verse Paul again stresses the fact that God has been present and will continue to be present even if we turn our back on him.

In fact, he goes to state in our key verse, Paul tells us that God treats everyone equally.  Everyone undergoes trials and tribulations.  Whatever testing we may go through, it is not unusual or anything that other people have not experienced.  But what is most comforting is knowing that we will never be tested beyond our capacity to withstand.  The verse doesn’t end there, but we often do.  Not only will we never be tested beyond our strength but in each testing God will provide us a way out.  Did you hear that?  In each testing, there is a way out which is provided by our Creator uniquely for each one of us and our particular experience.  We need to think about that next time we call out and ask if we will be able to take whatever challenge we are facing in our life.  We need to look for the way out at that time and in that place that God uniquely provides for each one of us.  

I don’t want to avoid vs.23 because it does speak to the freedom we have in Christ.  But these verses should sound familiar because we already saw them in chapter 6:12.  It is an exact repeat, and I feel the same way now as I did back in chapter 6.  Look at it again if you like.