7/23

1 Corinthians 10:4-5

⁴And all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. ⁵Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Paul was warning the Corinthians to not become complacent in their walk with the Lord. He had used Israel in the wilderness centuries ago as an example of how people can see the Lord at work and be blessed by Him every day and yet displease Him with their life. Their journey through the Red Sea was a kind of baptism. They drank water that miraculously came from the Rock, which Paul tells us was Christ with them. But when the moment of testing came, they showed they really had no faith in God.

In spite of enjoying all the blessings of God and considering themselves children of God, the Israelites were idolaters. Some of them actually had idols from Egypt. When Israel heard the reports from the spies, they looked to themselves for salvation and not to God. It was evidence of their idolatry.

Paul is warning of a different kind of idolatry. When we think our salvation is up to us, our strength and wisdom are our idols. The church today can be just as idolatrous as Israel. We experience the blessings of God and the spiritual food and drink from His Word, but then we look to politicians to save us, or financial diversification, or any number of things. God alone can save us. When we put our faith in anything or anyone else, we become just like Israel at the border of the Promised Land, trusting in ourselves.

Consider: Am I placing my trust in anything or anyone other than the Lord?