God's discipline — Faves of Dave - Bible Study

1Cor. 10:1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Paul has been encouraging them to use their liberty in Christ in a discerning way that would edify other believers and not destroy their faith. As we begin chapter 10, Paul provides them with a historical example to warn them how they ought to conduct their lives. Some of these Corinthian believers think they know more than they really do. Paul tells them that he’s going to make them aware of a cold hard truth. Even though God had guided, delivered, and provided for the Israelites coming out of Egypt, he was not pleased with most of them. Why? How does this apply to the Corinthians or us?

Paul reminds them of the Exodus and how God had led them by a pillar of cloud that went before them. That guiding cloud led them to and through the sea that God parted for them to walk through on dry ground. It teaches us that when we follow God, he can and will overcome the obstacles. God can do the impossible. But he expects his children to have faith in following him.

Paul interprets this journey through the sea and being led by the cloud as a form of baptism. What is that all about? Baptism for Christians is an act of obedience to identify with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. We are identifying ourselves with Christ through that obedience. In the same way, the Israelites were identifying with God’s chosen leader, Moses, by following him, who was following God. That’s good.

Paul then says that all of these people ate the same spiritual food and drink. Their food and drink were supernaturally provided by God, and they partook of it. In fact, he reminds us where they got their water; from a rock. Then Paul says something strange, “the Rock was Christ.” What is this? Does he mean that the pre-incarnate Jesus became a literal rock? No. But he is indicating his belief that Jesus was the eternal Son of God who literally existed from eternity past. He is God, and he was with the Israelites, providing everything they needed. The actual rock from which they drank water only provided water because that was the will and blessing of God to the people. He not only provided what they needed in terms of physical sustenance. He did it in a miraculous way to show the Israelites (and indirectly us) what he is capable of doing and his willingness to bless them. It was evidence their God could be trusted in all things.

There was only one problem. They quickly forgot or ignored that lesson, and time after time, they complained and did not trust the LORD. God was “not pleased” with them, and most of that generation would die wandering in the wilderness.

If Paul wanted the Corinthian believers to be aware of this, then it seems reasonable that we should be aware of this. How should it impact us? At the very least, it should remind us that God provides for us, leads us, and delivers us out of our bondage to sin. He makes himself known through his work. We need to learn not to take God for granted and to constantly seek to follow his will.