1 Cor 10 – Studies

For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each chapter is divided into a number of studies and each study or passage has a simple four-Part, verse-by-verse approach, to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: 1 Cor 10:1-6

1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. 6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.

A. Find Out:    

1. Who does Paul now refer to? v.1
2. What does he say happened to them? v.2
3. What does he say they did? v.3,4a
4. How does he say they did that? v.4b
5. Yet how did God feel about them? v.5
6. How are we to see these things? v.6

B. Think:

1. How had the early Jews known the miraculous?
2. Yet how does it seem that that had not helped many of them?
3. How do you think Paul is warning the Corinthians?

C. Comment:

As we continue these studies on through 1 Corinthians we now see Paul bringing a warning to them. Previously he has majored on not claiming their rights of freedom but now he seems to feel he has to counter what may be a sense of false security. In what follows later in the letter it is clear that this was a church that knew the power of God moving in spiritual gifts and it may be that they had felt that because they had this power they were immune from failure and correction.

Not so, implies Paul. He reminds them of what happened to Israel when they came out of Egypt. They were a) miraculously led by God who provided a cloud for them to follow by day and a pillar of fire by night (Ex 13:21), and b) miraculously led through the Red Sea (Ex 14:21-), c) united with Moses (“baptized into” means that here), and d) as they travelled they had a sense of God’s presence going with them. Rabbinic tradition said that the rock of Num 20:1-11 followed them and provided water for them, but Paul says it was Christ’s presence that provided life for them. Nevertheless unbelief and disobedience occurred again and again and most of the generation who came out of Egypt died in the wilderness. The warning is clear. Divine supernatural blessing will not cover up sinful disobedience!

D. Application:

1. Gifts of the Spirit don’t indicate spirituality, just God’s grace.
2. Blessing from God doesn’t indicate our obedience always. Beware.

Passage: 1 Cor 10:7-13

7 Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: ‘The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.’ 8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did – and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. 9 We should not test Christ, as some of them did – and were killed by snakes. 10 And do not grumble, as some of them did – and were killed by the destroying angel.

11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

A. Find Out:

1. What specific thing does Paul warn against first? v.7
2. What is the next thing he warns against? v.8
3. What were the third & fourth things he warned against? v.9,10
4. Why were these things written down? v.11
5. So what warning comes to us? v.12
6. What should we remember? v.13

B. Think:

1. Read Ex 32:6,35, Num 25:1,8,9, Num 21:4-6, Num 16:41-49
2. Of what were each of those examples?
3. What positive help is given in today’s readings?

C. Comment:

Paul has just warned against us setting our hearts on evil things, having just referred to the Israelites as an example. Now he takes Israel’s time in the wilderness as a warning and spells it out in more detail. Israel had sinned in a number of ways and when they sinned the judgement of God came on them and people died. There had been idolatry, sexual immorality, rebellion, and grumbling, things which the church is still prone to.

Why? Because these are just ordinary, everyday temptations, things that we all have to resist. Those specific examples of Israel were no worse because it was Israel. We are still tempted by them today and they still can have the same consequences. Yet Paul is very positive about how we deal with them: they are just temptations and (implied) you don’t have to give way to them because God won’t let anything be put before you that you can’t cope with and He will always provide a way for you to cope with it.

This passage is very powerful in the way it so clearly shows us basics of the Christian life: sin destroys, but sin is only a temptation given way to, and God will always provide a way to beat the temptation, so we don’t have to sin and we don’t have to be destroyed (Rom 6:2,18)

D. Application:

1. Wilful sinning brings the wrath of God.
2. Sin that is confessed and forsaken is forgiven and removed.

Passage: 1 Cor 10:14-22

14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.

18 Consider the people of Israel: do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? 19 Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. 22 Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

A. Find Out:

1. What is Paul now referring back to? v.14
2. What does he say we do at “Communion”? v.16
3. What does the one loaf say to us? v.17
4. What does he say about pagan sacrifices? v.20
5. So what does Paul conclude? v.21
6. What does he warn against? v.22

B. Think:

1. How does Paul extol the “Lord’s Supper” or “Communion”?
2. How does he say not to worry about idols?
3. Yet what conclusion does he draw and why?

C. Comment:

At this point we find Paul blending together three of the themes that he has been dealing with so far.

The first theme is that of Christian conscience, of participating in idol worship food. He compares it to eating the Lord’s Supper and says that they are two completely opposing meals. One is in reference to God and the other in reference to the enemy. Look, he says, the food or the idol really mean nothing, they are merely outward signs of the reality behind them, so you don’t need to get upset about them. Having said that, he continues, it is an association with the enemy, so don’t have anything to do with it when you are aware that is what it is.

The second theme is that of Christian freedom, which has really just been covered by what we’ve just said. You can do it and not be bothered about the idol or the food but, frankly, it’s just simply better that you don’t do it!

The third theme was that original one of Christian unity. While he mentions the Lord’s Supper he tells us that the one loaf reminds us that we are really all one. The low-key implication backs up what he has said before: there is no room for division here.

D. Application:

1. If we are strong in the Lord we don’t need to worry about externals related to the enemy, but we would do better to avoid them.
2. We are one in Christ. May there be no division.

Passage: 1 Cor 10:23-33

23 ‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say – but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’– but not everything is constructive. 24 No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.

25 Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, 26 for, ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.’

27 If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience. 28 But if someone says to you, ‘This has been offered in sacrifice,’ then do not eat it, both for the sake of the one who told you and for the sake of conscience. 29 I am referring to the other person’s conscience, not yours. For why is my freedom being judged by another’s conscience? 30 If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for?

31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 32 Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God – 33 even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

A. Find Out:

1. What overall principle does Paul reiterate? v.23
2. How does that go beyond yourself? v.24
3. How should one consider purchased food and why? v.25,26
4. How should one view eating with an unbeliever? v.27
5. What check may occur? v.28-30
6. So how does Paul summarise all this? v.31,32

B. Think:

1. How may a Christian’s freedom be limited?
2. How was this applying, do you think, to the Corinthians?
3. How might it apply to us today?

C. Comment:

This is very much a summary passage where Paul brings together the matters of a Christian’s freedom and the problem the Corinthians had raised about eating meat offered to idols.

Whereas that particular problem is not one that affects us today, the principles being taught by Paul still do apply. First of all he is very positive. You can eat what you want. All food is provided by God, so receive it thankfully. Notice all food, Paul was not a vegetarian, and the Jews generally were not vegetarians. God has not put restrictions on the type of food we may eat. Having said that there is a possible restriction on the Christian’s freedom, and that is to do with the conscience of another.

If a younger, weaker Christian has a problem with eating particular foods then we, the more mature, stronger Christian should have the grace not to upset them. If the younger, weaker Christian has a problem with drinking alcohol, then we the stronger, mature Christian should have the grace not to make that a stumbling block to them. This is particularly true in respect of alcohol where the other Christian, is one who has had a problem in the past with alcohol. Our freedom should not cause them to fall back into a bondage

D. Application:

1. All food and drink is a gift from God.
2. Yet we are not to abuse that gift by having it in excess, and we may need to refrain for the sake of a weaker brother or sister.