This is the time of year when we as believers begin to think about Christ’s advent in a more concentrated way. The Scriptures we’ve read and songs we’ve sung reflect this as they’ve focused on this theme. But now, we come to our sermon text in which we’re going to focus on idolatry and specifically issues in the first century about how believers were to respond to idolatrous practices in their own day. How much could they connect themselves to pagan practices? Was it okay to eat meat sacrificed to an idol? Was it okay to go down to the temple and be part of the religious services there, since believers knew, after all, that idols are really nothing and the god the idol represents really is non-existent? These were some of the questions being asked that Paul sets out to answer in 8:1-11:1 of this letter to the Corinthians.
But perhaps you’re asking just how these two things fit together. What has advent season and celebrating Christ’s birth to do with discussions of idolatry and how closely Christians can wed themselves to pagan practices like those facing the Corinthians in the first century? And the answer may be that these two things are more closely related in the history of the church than we think.
Through the first three centuries of the church, it seems, believers did not celebrate the birth of Christ. Some thought it entirely unnecessary for the church to celebrate and others even argued it inappropriate. However, it seems that ultimately the church decided to take certain holidays that were celebrated among unbelievers and baptize them as a means of missional connection. One historian writes of believers “baptizing” certain cultural practices,
“A most striking example of this is the introduction of Christmas into the Church’s calendar. It was typical of the fusion of formerly pagan customs with Christian celebrations. . . . December 25 (in the West) and January 6 (in the East) were popular holidays in honor of the birth . . . of the sun. Eastertime roughly coincided with spring fertility rights. When the church wanted to win the masses in the fourth century, it was good psychology to transform the pagan feast days into Christian festivities. The Christian acceptance of the ancient pagan lore of the new converts explains the many otherwise illogical customs associated with the Christian holy days, such as Easter eggs and bunnies.” Then he adds, “Not only harmless pagan traditions found their way into the Church. Some pagan ideas were irreconcilable with Christian teaching and values, giving the church a hard struggle.”1
So, what does Christmas have to do with a discussion of meat sacrificed to idols? Perhaps more than we think. Now, I don’t bring this connection up so that we might all get rid of our Christmas trees, stop giving presents, or stop letting our children paint eggs because these practices were probably part of pagan practice. For the record, we put up our tree on Thursday, plan on giving our children presents on Christmas day, and if they sit around the table quietly painting, then I don’t really care what food they’re painting. But I do find it interesting that if we could go back to some years in the fourth century, as the calendar approached December 25, I think a lot of believers would have been sitting down, discussing what pagan practices were off-limits and which are acceptable, just like Paul was discussing with the Corinthians in the first century in 1 Corinthians 8:1-11:1. Maybe we’re standing more in the tradition of the church this morning than we first thought.
And like those in the fourth century, the first century, and every century since, it is good for us to give thought to areas of acceptance we have in our lives because others practice those same things that may be nothing less than idolatrous practices. You see, we in West Tennessee in 2014 don’t feel the struggle that the Corinthians did regarding this issue of eating meat sacrificed to idols. I guess you could say that animal sacrifice has really fallen on hard times. But there are a number of other practices that could well be sinful that we readily accept and are blind to their wickedness because it’s so common around us. That’s what I want us to look at this morning.
But first, I want to make some preliminary notes about sin and fighting sin in general before we discuss the specific sin of idolatry. I want to do that both because I think it makes sense to approach the topic this way but more importantly because this is the way that Paul writes in 10:1-22. Therefore, let me first give some exhortations regarding sin and fighting sin. First,
This, I think, is the point of verses 1-6, and I’ll show you that here shortly. But let’s first ask why Paul is moving to this point. After all, in chapter 8, he had argued for the Corinthians to consider their brothers and filter all things through love when making decisions. Then in chapter 9 he put forth himself as an example, showing his desire to see others know Christ, the church edified, and Christ honored to the point that he gladly laid aside anything that might stand in the way of this objective. That is, he lived in a very intentional way. So, why start chapter 10 by showing that nothing in our past means we can be lax in fighting sin? Well, I think the answer is in how he ends chapter 9.
If you’ll remember from last week, one of the things Paul showed is that living with a desire to win others to Christ, edify the church, and exalt the Lord Jesus Christ is simply basic to being a Christian. Therefore, he fought against anything that might keep him from being characterized in this way. He recognized that if he found himself not characterized by a desire to see others know Christ, the church edified, and Christ exalted, then he couldn’t claim to be a believer. Therefore, he noted in 9:27, “But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
Now, some of the Corinthians (and perhaps some of us) may be tempted to respond to Paul’s statement there and say, “C’mon, brother, don’t you think that’s a little extreme?” I mean, he’s arguing that he’s disciplining himself so that he might make sure that he’s never characterized by those characteristics that characterize someone on their way to hell. And the thought might be, “Paul, don’t worry about that. We know you’ll never be given over and consumed by those kinds of selfish motives, self-consumption, and lack of love.” But if that’s our thinking, Paul answers in 10:1-6. And he answers by pointing out all the experiences that Israel had in the Lord’s mercy and grace and yet what happened to them.
He writes in 10:1-5, “For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.”
You see, Paul anticipates the Corinthians saying something like, “We don’t have to worry about sin overtaking us, Paul. I’ve been baptized. I’ve taken of the Lord’s Supper. I’ve seen the Lord answer prayers. I’ve seen the Lord’s miraculous provision in my life.” And Paul says, if there’s anyone who might be able to look at the evidence of grace in their past, it would be Israel. They too experienced a kind of baptism as they passed through the sea. They too ate spiritual food as they ate manna from heaven. They too saw miraculous provision as the Lord gave them water from a rock (I think here the basic idea is that it wasn’t some amazing rock but Christ himself was providing for them). Yet, ultimately what happened to them? They faced the judgment of God, the Lord was not pleased with them, and their bodies were strewn all over the desert. And then Paul adds in verse 6, “Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did.”
Paul is saying, “Don’t look at any past experience you’ve had – whether it’s your baptism, your taking the Lord’s supper, your seeing the Lord’s miraculous provision, or your seeing the Lord’s rich grace to you – as any reason why you think you can be lax in fighting sin.” You can’t. Paul is saying, “What I’m telling you (in 9:27) that I do, in disciplining myself to fight sin, you need to do as well.” And that’s what we need to hear as well. Nothing in our past in any way should suggest that we can ever be lax in fighting against sin. Now, let me ratchet that up a bit in giving a second exhortation:
In verses 7-10 Paul notes a repeated pattern of how the Israelites gave themselves over to sin and the judgment they faced. He writes, “Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.’ We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer.”
Paul is saying, “Read Israel’s history. They gave themselves over to idolatry, sexual immorality, testing Christ, and grumbling, and what happened in those cases? They all faced God’s terrible judgment.” Therefore, Paul says, “Do not be idolaters. . . . We must not indulge in sexual immorality. . . . We must not put Christ to the test . . . nor grumble.” We must not do these things lest we find ourselves facing God’s judgment. Again, he notes in verses 11-12, as he did in verse 6, “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.”
That is, don’t think for one second that you can be lax in your fight against sin, and then fight sin like it’s trying to pull you into hell – because it is! That’s the lesson of pointing to Israel facing judgment in verses 7-10. They gave themselves over to sin, and they faced God’s judgment. Paul is not exaggerating for the sake of effect when he says in 9:27 that he disciplines himself so that he might not be disqualified (that is, disqualified from having eternal life). He’s realizing the hardening, powerful effect of sin in your life. So, he’s encouraging the Corinthians to see sin as it is – something trying to pull you into hell – and fight it accordingly.
And we need to do the same. Don’t mess around with sin. Don’t tolerate areas of sin in your life. Don’t ever say, “Well, others are doing it too.” Most of the Israelites faced judgment. They could have looked around and said, “Everyone else is doing it too.” But most everyone faced God’s judgment as well. So, let us discipline ourselves and fight against sin as that which is trying to pull us into hell.
But now, there may be some of you who are getting nervous with that language and are thinking, “But won’t God preserve me to the end if indeed he’s saved me?” And that answer is, “Yes.” And Paul addresses that in verse 13. There, we see another exhortation, namely,
Paul writes in verse 13, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” What Paul is saying here is that God won’t give you over. He won’t let you go. He’ll not allow temptation too great for you to come into your life, but he’ll preserve you, giving you a way of escape from sin.
That is, Paul doesn’t say what he’s said in verses 1-12 because he wants us all walking around fearful of facing God’s judgment. The Lord reminds us of his preserving grace throughout the Scriptures so that we might not walk around in fear of condemnation. And he doesn’t want you to be anxious, sitting where you are right now, wondering what sin might overtake you ten years down the road. Don’t give in to that anxiety, if you’re tempted with it this morning. Rather, trust in the Lord right now, and trust that he’ll preserve those who trust in him.
However, he doesn’t want us to think that the comfort we can have in the Lord’s preserving grace means we don’t need to take great measures to fight against sin. We absolutely do. That’s what he wants us to see in the first 12 verses. And there is an occasion where I think he does want us to be fearful.
If one of the Corinthians is thinking, “I hear what Paul says but I don’t care about my brother; I want to eat meat,” Paul would say, “You need to fear that you might not know the Lord. You need to repent.” And if any of us have hearts that don’t care about our brothers, the lost coming to Christ, or Christ being honored in our lives, then, yes, we should fear for our souls and repent. But if your faith is in Christ, your desire is to please him, and you love his people, then rest in his grace to preserve you through whatever temptation may come your way. Rest in the promise of verse 13.
And as you rest in the Lord’s preserving grace to keep you strong through temptation, work hard to discipline yourself in the fight against sin and . . .
This is the emphasis in verses 14-22. Paul says it right out of the gate in this section: “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.” Now, Paul has started discussing this issue of eating meat that has been sacrificed to idols by telling them not to do so down in the temple lest their weaker brother sees them and is tempted to eat as well, violating his conscience. But Paul is now going to show us in verses 15-22 that this isn’t the only reason they should avoid eating meat at the temple. They should avoid it because if they are down there during a religious service to the idol or perhaps any meal where the people ask for the pagan deity to bless them and their food as they eat unto him, they are committing idolatry.
Now, Paul will explain in verses 15-22. First, he notes in verse 15 that what he is about to say is sensible, and they should be able to follow. He writes, “I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say.” Then, he points to two examples that are bigger than just eating food. The first is the Lord’s Supper. He writes in verses 16-17, “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.”
So, he is asking them to consider when they partake of communion, or the Lord’s Supper. We eat the bread and drink from the cup, which symbolize the body and blood of the Lord, respectively. However, we’re not just eating some bread and drinking some juice, are we? We’re making a statement that we are united in purpose with Christ. We’re making a statement that we are trusting in Christ’s blessing on us because of his broken body and shed blood. We’re showing through our eating of one bread (which I don’t think requires one gigantic loaf if a great number of believers celebrate the Lord’s Supper together), that we who are taking the Lord’s Supper together are united in purpose and hope together in Christ for blessing. There’s more there than just eating bread and drinking juice. It’s why we warn unbelievers against taking the meal with us eat Sunday. It’s not because there’s something inherent in the wafer or grape juice that could hurt them. It’s because we’re saying something about our union with Christ and one another when we eat – something that is not true for them.
And Paul also asks them to consider the sacrificial altar in the Old Testament. He says in verse 18, “Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar?” That is, when the sacrifice was offered on the altar under the Old Covenant, and the people ate of the sacrifice, were they simply saying, “Oh, my eating is just because I’m hungry”? Of course not. They ate as a reflection that their hope for the Lord’s blessing was in his being pleased with this sacrifice as an atoning act of worship. It was a means of fellowshipping with the Lord himself.
Now, Paul is going to note the same thing when they go down to the temple and eat what they know has been sacrificed to an idol. But first he wants to clear up something. He says in verse 19, “What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?” His answer is no, as we see in verse 20. That is, it’s not wrong to eat meat in the temple that we know has been sacrificed to an idol because that idol is real or because there’s something now corrupt with the meat itself. Rather, he says in verse 20, “No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons.”
That is, just as there’s a reason why we warn unbelievers from participating in the Lord’s Supper – because we’re stating something of our hope and fellowshipping with our Lord and his people in this act of worship, those pagans down at the temple are doing something similar. Now, yes, the god they’re supposedly worshiping doesn’t exist, but it doesn’t mean there’s nothing spiritual going on there. It is demonic. The enemy’s demonic influence is holding sway over their unrepentant hearts and minds, and it is a demonic activity. And the Corinthians need to be no part of that. That doesn’t fit with their profession of faith in Christ.
As Paul says in verse 21, “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.” Fellowshipping with Christ and fellowshipping with demons are two irreconcilable acts. And if their claim is, “But we’re strong. It doesn’t affect us to be down their eating that sacrificed meat with the pagans,” Paul’s response is, “Let’s see how strong you are when you face the Lord in judgment, then. That’s what I think he’s saying in verse 22 when he says, “Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?”
Now, with us, the Corinthians’ particular form of idolatry isn’t our temptation. I know of no temples in Jackson where animals are sacrificed where we might be tempted to go eat with them and be part of that. I don’t think there’s a temptation to fellowship with demons in that act. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t have areas where we need to hear and apply this word.
Take our entertainment industry, for example. Can there be any argument that watching sexually explicit movies or television is okay for the believer? I don’t think so. And yet, perhaps a number of us this morning want to hold on to those things in light of the fact that so many in our surroundings partake of the same things. And if so, it sounds to me a lot like the situation in Corinth. And I think the answer is the same.
That is, when we watch and are entertained by such things when Paul says in Ephesians 5:3, “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as if proper among saints,” don’t you think we’re violating the Lord’s command? I mean, can we obey Ephesians 5:3 and then find ourselves entertained by explicit sexual immorality in our entertainment? And don’t miss that this area of rebellion against the Lord in our society is nothing less than demonic, for they are following the prince of the power of the air, as Ephesians 2 says, in their varying forms of rebellion against the Lord. Therefore, have nothing to do with that. Flee that idolatry.
And I know that’s not that entertainment isn’t the only issue. We can idolize most anything. Nor do I want to get into drawing regulations on what television shows and movies are acceptable and which are not. There is certainly difficulty here. But there are other areas where our only difficulty is that we don’t want to let go of our sinful idolatry. And if our answer is to say, “Well, I’m strong, it doesn’t affect me,” I think Paul would say that we’ll see how strong we are when we face God in judgment.
Therefore, let us this morning, realize that we can’t be lax in our fight against sin but need to fight it like it’s trying to pull us into hell. And let us flee idolatry, disciplining ourselves to run from sin and pray ourselves away from the clutches of sinful idolatry in our hearts. And let us do this, as believers in Christ who lived, died, and was raised for us, not so that we might merit God’s favor, for that is impossible to merit God’s favor based on our works. Let us discipline ourselves as believers and fight for holiness because the one who merited God’s favor on our behalf through his life, death, and resurrection, has told us that he’s give us the grace to overcome in light of whatever temptations come our way. He’s give us the grace to obey, so let our response be to obey him. May that be our declaration as we now come to the table. Amen.