Title: Dead In The Desert / Topic: The Heart

Today’s Reading: Joshua 21; Joshua 22; Psalm 47; 1 Corinthians 10

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:1-6
1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptized 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 over the desert. 6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.

Observation: The story of the Israelites in the wilderness always amazes me! Here are people who have been freed from slavery at the hand of the most powerful empire on earth. They have been delivered by God having walked through the middle of the Red Sea and have witnessed the army of Egypt destroyed as the seas came crashing in on them. They have the pillar of cloud by night and the pillar of fire by day. They have seen God’s presence on Mount Sinai as fire, smoke, and lightning. They have eaten manna that God provided six days a week (with a break on the sabbath). And yet, most of them were insufferable: complaining, grumbling, rebelling again and again and again. Here, Paul writes to the Corinthians and makes this same point. The Israelites were full participants in the spiritual miracle provision of God. They were baptized (vs. 2) and participated in a type of “communion” by eating the bread and drinking the cup. The drink they received was like the cup of communion in that it even flowed from Christ Himself as Paul says He was the rock from which God supplied their water (vs. 4). (By the way, this is the definition of the word “fountainhead”: a stream that flows from out of a rock.) But the truly sobering fact is that even though they had fully participated in all these spiritual wonders and provisions by God, they were not right with God. And most of them, because they didn’t please God, ended up dead in the desert.

Application: Paul is calling us to serious thinking — for you and me to consider carefully our walk before God. Don’t be casual about it. If these people who had experienced all those wonders and blessings could end up apart from God, we better not take God’s blessing for granted! Notice the conclusion that Paul delivers: “Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.” (vs. 6). So there it is. Don’t set your heart on evil things. As I think about what they did and the warning of danger that Paul gives, the most evil thing that one can set his heart on is self — prideful self. Those who ended up dead were selfish, prideful, and rebellious grumblers and complainers who always found fault with everything. They were instant in their criticisms and complaints and very vocal about it all. They found others who, like them, saw the flaw in every situation and they banded together to resist the leaders. But it all was rooted in pride and self-centeredness. So I must work to not set my heart on me and my own interests. I must set my heart on God and His Kingdom. There is an acrostic that I remember from Sunday School as a kid. It spelled JOY and it was Jesus - Others - You. Put Jesus first. Then think of others. And put yourself last. That makes sense to me. And it works not only to bring joy to me, but also to God Who will look upon such a life with a smile and great blessing.

Prayer: Father, I want my life to be pleasing to You. I want to follow You and Your ways and turn away from self-centeredness and self-determination. My pride is strong and ugly. I renounce it now and ask You to help me to crucify my sinful nature and to walk in the power of Your Spirit. May my life be an example of Your blessing. Thank You for the lessons of those who lived apart from You and may I pay attention to them. I am not my own — I belong to You and I thank You for paying the price to redeem me. May I always live for You.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.