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Today we will continue to consider stumbling in our Christian walk, we will think a little about what it looks like and how it happens.
Please turn to 1 Corinthians 10:1-14 (pg 957 in the pew Bible) Stumbling/Falling – Getting off track with Jesus, growing cold in our relationship with Jesus, going nowhere in our walk with Jesus. A stumble or fall in the physical sense can happen suddenly; it can take us by surprise. In our walk with Jesus the possibility of stumbling or falling is real and we need to be purposeful and paying attention. Remember the branch taken from the vine; it withers when separated from the vine, the source of life. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall! (warning of real danger) Deuteronomy 5:32-33 - You shall be careful therefore to do as the LORD your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. 33 You shall walk in all the way that the LORD your God has commanded you, that you may live, and that it may go well with you. 1 Corinthians 10:13 - 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. Our succumbing to temptation is no one’s fault but our own. It is not God’s fault… He has warned us and equipped us. God promises to provide a way of escape… we do not need to fall. Hebrews 12:1- let us also lay aside every weight, and sin, which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us 1 Corinthians 10:5 - Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. God saved them but they turned to other things, specifically the pagan culture around them, which became an idol to them. God does not blame the culture but rather His people who turned from him. 1 Corinthians 10:14 - Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. The sin that clings closely and the temptations of the world may cause us to stumble and fall, to become stagnant or to give up. But this should not and will not happen if we stay the course knowing that God has provided all that we need to persevere. How is your walk with the Lord today? Is he the master of your life or have you knowingly or unknowingly turned aside to one or more idols? The best life for us is one of complete surrender to God. This week ask God to help you identify and flee any idols or temptations in your life and return to being the “living sacrifice” God calls us to be.
Verne
11/14/2013 04:35:13 am
When we started adult Sunday school this fall, Jim asked that we write down some items of interest to us that we might include in study this year. I submitted that possibly there are dangers involved with going into the world as a witness. The theme of our sermons at that time were coming from the book of John. In John 15:16 it states we should go and bear or bring forth fruit. You have to go out into the world or wilderness to be able to encounter the people that need to see the changes in you and your life, to hear your story or to benefit in any way from knowing the new you. (too much you/me) It's all God's doing of course. How about this. God can not use us to do his will by speaking through us or using us as an example to the people he wants to reach, if we just stay in our own safe (safer) little world and don't venture out. When we do however, we encounter more temptations and influences that we have to deal with. The threat is there that we can allow some of these influences to creep into our lives and become things we accept and even live for. They can become idolatrous in nature. This weeks sermon scripture leaflet included 1 Corinthians 10:13 which really got my attention and I have been going back to it and thinking about it all week. In it it says God will not let us be tempted beyond our ability to deal with it and he will provide us with the ability to escape from it so that we will be able to ENDURE or BEAR it. It does not say God will shield us from temptation or remove it from our lives. So I think God expects we will encounter and experience temptations while serving him and that in doing so this becomes a test so to speak. The term Christian soldier comes to mind.
Kathy
11/14/2013 06:11:05 am
I really appreciated Verne's thoughts about escaping temptations with God's provision. In my life the temptations that I have stumbled on, are not because God hasn't made a path out of them...but that I have chosen to do my own thing. I am thankful for God's patience and grace in my life. Thanks Verne for your thoughts. Comments are closed.
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