The Danger of Overconfidence, Part 1 B

You know why the disqualified you know why some of those Caribbean's failed you know why simple truth is died because the edge of their liberty ran right up to its extremity and they got in the temptation at the pitfalls of Christian liberty now for most people the topic of Christian liberty comes down to a pair of simple questions. What can I do and what can I not do, but John's going to show you why you should instead focus on what sets you apart from the rest of the world and how to live in a way that points others to Christ. So turn your Bible or open the study Bible app on your mobile device to first Corinthians chapter 10 as John begins today's lesson. Let's look beginning with the five verses that begin the chapter.

The assets of liberty will call the assets of liberty and he begins with the things of the Israelites enjoyed because there are parallel to the Christian God has called the church as a witness in community.

We have been taken out of bondage and set free in the world to be of communicating community to share the truth.

The bill witnessing nation and the danger is that what happened to Israel what happened to some of us because what happened to some of them was this they died in the wilderness disqualified from being a part of that witnessing community because of sin, it doesn't mean they lost their salvation. They became useless and God had to get some more people to be the witnessing community that he wanted, so they were called as a national witness to receive, to preserve and to pass on the word of God and prepare the way for Messiah's coming. So each Israelite, in addition to his personal faith had that marvelous privilege of being a part of a nation that was God's witness nation. But when they all left. Believe me, they all work believers. They never have been. In fact, in Romans 96, Paul said not all Israel is really Israel that is not all racial Israel is true Israel by fate.

So the point of the passage, then listen is not loss of salvation that is not what it say and some people who want to make leaving Egypt synonymous with salvation got a whole bunch of people lose their salvation in the desert when they die and other people want to say no but Israel left the land and when they entered Canaan that was salvation will have a whole bunch up never entered Canaan, either as they died.

They don't push that allegory totally on this.

All we have here are people some of whom believed in some of them did not when they were Egypt, some of whom believe in the desert. Some of them did not.

But all of them became disqualified for service because whether they were where they were really saved Israelites are not.

They were unfaithful in their service and they fell in the sin. So here comes the whole group out in verse one just talk about that liberation.

Now this gets to be very touchy because many people have been confused by this verse and that's understandable. Let me give you what I think would be the understanding of it and there are others who would disagree with me and that's fine and I'll go ahead and defend my viewpoint and you can make your own judgment. Verse two and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea. Now that is strange. You have to admit that that's a very strange state. All were baptized.

Now, immediately when I say the word baptize without even asking. I know exactly what you all think about if any hourly or Presbyterian or Baptist, I know exactly immediately. The word baptism only means one thing to sprinkling or dunking people were maybe pouring and what we have done is what we do.

So often we get stuck on the simple we have a hard time getting past the symbol of the reality will let's look at another are some who say they were baptized is referring to their physical baptism when they went through the sea, they were baptized, and that's with the Baptist safeguards they were dumped when they were through the sea and the Presbytery say no, they actually went under the cloud, and it rained on them so they were sprinkled and that which is a great verse for conciliar rating since both of them were there, the Baptist Israelites were dumped in the sea and the Presbytery Israelites were sprinkled by the cloud. Well I hate to tell you this, but neither is true. You say what you mean.

It says they were baptized in the cloud and the sea. You're right. Let me remind you something they couldn't of been baptized in that seat because it was parted and they walked through on what dry lay somebodies as well.

Actually, the north part of the sea was very shallow in the accident wasn't any miracle they walked through in 6 inches of water in one of the kids that I can understand that, but how did Pharaoh's whole army drowned in 6 inches of water. So what what you have here as they go through on dry land, so that doesn't work, and secondly that is not a rain cloud. My friends, that is the Shekinah cloud. That's not full water is full of God's presence. It night it turned into what a pillar of fire and it would be tough to maintain itself as a rain cloud under those conditions so that is not what it is talking about is not talking about sprinkling or baptizing physically you say what is he talking about all right, let's get behind the act of involving the water and get to the symbol baptism and this is the this is the understanding that Paul would have in the Corinthians.

Baptism signifies to the Christian mind identification.

The real baptism that is most important in the life of a person is that he be baptized into Christ right baby baptized by the spirit of the body of Christ, and that means to be in union identified with Christ, we have been buried with him by baptism. When you believe level when you believed in Jesus Christ, you were baptized into Christ you died with him. You rose with him, you live in his life lives through you. Baptism simply means identification is union, is he that is joined to the Lord is what one spirit. When you are saved you are identified with Christ. Baptism is the symbol of that union baptism is the symbol of that identification. Water baptism, and that is precisely what you have here as Christians we are baptized spiritually into Christ in a unique and beautiful identification. We are one with him every other Christian is one with him.

So we are one with every other Christian all right he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit who is joined to the Lord. Every Christian so we you are one with him are one with everybody else's, one with him. So we are all identified together in a corporate community under the headship of Christ.

That's what baptism means we are all a body in baptism, the head is Christ we are all identified with each other. Christ is the leader that's precisely what he saying here in the act of coming out of Egypt and in the act of together. Although this all is five times all in verse 10, all in verse two, all in verse three, all in verse four, the it's twice in verse one, so you have all of them coming out all of them under the cloud, all of them through the sea. What is this me this means you have a corporate community as they all came together.

They all identified with Moses. They all thought his headship. They all thought his leadership. They all identified with him and that's precisely what he say entry into the churches by baptism of the Spirit entry into the assembly of the wilderness was by all coming through the sea, all being under the cloud, accepting Moses as the leader is the Christian except Christ is the head. They were in identification as a nation as a community as a fellowship as a believing witnessing group under the headship of Moses. That's what say so. They were all identified with Moses one corporate witnessing community and as baptism brings us under the leadership of Christ, so did participation in the great events of the Exodus bring them under the leadership of Moses.

Anybody want to go to say Moses I'm not going through that deal. I'm staying right here and he would've cut himself off from that corporate community that was under the leadership of Moses. That's the first thing God liberated them and then got identified them as a witnessing community is tantamount to the Christian being called by God to serve and united with the other believers who are the witnessing community in this age.

None of this is 1/3 blessing area verse three and all did eat the same spiritual food. Say what is spiritual food that's the first question I asked spiritual food does not mean that it's sort of ethereal and you can't really see it is not talking about the essence of it. It's talking about.

Notice, this the source of it. Spiritual food is food that is coming from the spirit of God. And when they were in the wilderness, who gave them their food God by his spirit. God delivered their food. They were sustained by manna. It is called spiritual food, not because it's essence the spiritual.

It was physical but because it source was spiritual. The spirit of God so they were all sustained. They were all given food and nourishment and that also is like the Corinthians and like Chris, we have received the sustenance. My God shall supply all your need. We are supplied by him.

He that eats this bread shall never hunger. He that drinks this water. So Jesus shall what never thirst. We are sustained so the parallel again. Is there they all at the same spiritual food verse four and all drank the same spiritual drink that is water that was provided from the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it came out of a rock. Sometimes there was a stream or a brook. Sometimes there was a well but in many ways God provided. Now the verbs in those two are imperfect verbs that doesn't mean their less-than-perfect. That means they do not know completion. The WordPerfect means completion so there without completion, which means anything in the imperfect tense as successive continuity.

They were continually being said there wasn't any completion was in the end to they were continually being given water by the spirit all through their wandering all through their life sustained by God to have a picture here of the believer who is called as a part of the corporate community identified by baptism into that corporate community and then sustained by God with all the resources necessary.

Now, that's it.

That's the assets of liberty pretty good position to be, but there's more. Verse four has a very interesting phrase that it is not easy to understand. They all drink the same spiritual drink. Now this, he adds this footnote and it would've been a lot easier on a lot of folks if we had just left it out because it's difficult but will do our best to show you what we think it means for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them and that rock was Christ. Now there been amazing explanations of this, but let's just get down to what really I think is the safest way to explain they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them and that rock was Christ in the first place.

What just rules me about that statement is it proves the preexistence of Jesus Christ right Christ is following Israel through the wilderness second. The rock is Christ, and the rock is God in the Old Testament, which makes Christ equal to God. Tremendous statement but look what its meaning, it what are they saying the rock to follow them. You know, the Jews had an interesting legend and I think that's where this comes from. It was a legend that was in existence till the time of Paul. This was what they thought the old Jewish legend said that originally, in Exodus 17 I think it is rare when God sent him to give you water out of the rock Moses takers your rod and strike the rock and he did and it just gushed out water and satisfied the thirst of it must've been a million or better people and so that rock according to the old Jewish legend took off from there and rolled behind Israel for the rest of the 40 years wherever they went. The rolling boulder was there just following along the main stop in the Rolling Rock would be there and whatever speaking or hitting gushed out water. The old Jewish legend that the Rolling Rock accompanied them for 40 years, always yielding its water. I think that Paul, in a sense is giving solution to that legend, which was very popular but he does something beautiful.

He uses a different word. The word for a boulder or a rock that could roll along would be the trusts masculine form of the now, but he doesn't use that word and that I think is a play on the legend uses pretrial which means a massive cliff and a massive cliff can't roll along behind the children of Israel what he says is this you think that Israel's water according to the legend. Some think that Israel's water was supplied by a rolling boulder but I'll tell you they were drinking from the spiritual rocky mask the rocky cliffs and that that followed. That was Christ. Listen.

He says you know what sustained Israel in the wilderness. It wasn't a rolling boulder. It was Christ. That's what he say it was the Messiah. So you mean the Messiah was identified with his people. Even before his death. Of course they were his people. Then supernatural rock that never allowed Israel to perish wasn't a rolling boulder. It was Christ himself accompanying his people through the wilderness and here you see what Paul is saying is luck. They had what you have had the sustaining presence of the Messiah was a well he Old Testament people in that indwelling spirit. You're right, they didn't but they had the sustaining presence of the Messiah in those days, he was often called the angel of what of the Lord, the angel of Jehovah, but he was there he was there sustaining his people. He was there caring for his people. He was there fulfilling his people's needs. Beautiful preexistent Christ was there and so he saying to the Corinthians, you have it to you.

Been set free as a witness in community you been identified in the community under the headship of Jesus Christ. You are all feeding on the same spiritual food in the same spirit given drink and you are being sustaining it all by Christ and they had those same privileges say what's the point Paul, the point is verse five. It comes like gushed like a shock but with many of them God was not well pleased, and they were overthrown in the wilderness. You see it.

What a shocker. All those recent liberated called as a witness in community sustained and guided sustained by God's provision guided by God's cloud. They all had an even Christ himself was giving them those benefits you notice verse five with many of them the literal Greek is most of them with most of them God was not well pleased. You say how many business of the entire generation that left Egypt. You know how many entered the promised land to Joshua and Caleb. That's all most of means most of Numbers 1416 says, because the Lord is not able to bring this people in the land which he swore to give under them.

Therefore, he slain them in the wilderness, and that's look at the word overthrown. It means strewn it means strewn all over everywhere. Their corpses were strewn all over the desert, but you what are you saying that they lost their salvation. That is the issue. Some of them were regenerated in personal faith and some of them were not, and there's no way that is the point. The point of the illustration is God called him to be a witness in community but because of sin, they were disqualified to establish that witnessing community.

They were set aside a whole new group went into that land of Canaan and the point is this.

They had everything they had all of the privileges and they were smog and they were self-sufficient and they were self-confident. They griped their way through the wilderness, and they abuse their liberty and they did just about what they wanted to do in their liberty always flirting on the thin edge and a fellow descendent, God let them all go and they died in the world.

Some of those Israelites will be in heaven because they really believers but they were disqualified. You can be a believer and be disqualified from service.

Listen even in the church according to second Timothy two. There are vessels unto honor and dishonor, right if you purge yourself you will be a vessel unto honor fit for what the Masters use God has to depend upon a minority of Christians to do his ministry because so many of them fail to be qualified, how many people like Israel, how many Christians do you know of who start out in the service of the Lord Jesus Christ and find themselves falling to temptation. They fall into sin, and they are disqualified from serving Christ. What are going to go to heaven to be regenerated because they had but they're useless and, in fact, according to first John five. Some of God just killed. Look at verse 30 at first minutes. 11 for this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. Many are dead. The Lord had to allow some of the Corinthians to be strewn in the desert. Some of the Corinthian corpses should have been living testimony to disqualification in the service of the Lord because of sin, and you know why they got disqualified. You know why some of those Corinthians failed. You know why some of those Corinthians died because they lived in the thin edge of their liberty. They ran their liberty right out to its extremity and they got into temptation. They couldn't handle fellow descendent were disqualified for service look at verse six and I'll just introduce point to get into the next the abuses of liberty verse six we saw the assets in the first five. The abuses begin in verse six and it says now these things were our example calls him tell you the story to be a two boy two point means model a type of pattern I want you to see an example here and the example is this. We should not lust after evil things as they lasted. There they were out there enjoying their liberty and it turned in the last numbers chapter 11. It's really incredible. They were out there, God was supplying every single thing they needed than verse four it says they said they wept and they said it will give us flesh to eat.

We want me were not vegetarians. We remember it is like the man a man a man a man. All we get verse six. Our soul is dried away nothing at all.

Besides his manna before our eyes reminded when I was little kid I used to go to some friends house and of the use they kicked me even to this day that I always said the same thing because this dear lady always gave me the same thing every time I go there for lunch. Oh, I stayed with them one whole summer every dated same thing and I was a little guy and I every time I see the Millie said the same thing hello John, remember when you used to say soup and sandwiches, soup and sandwiches. All we are have here is soup and sandwiches. But that's what they essentially were saying here always get his manna man Amanda Manning enough is enough. So verse five we remember the fish which we did in Egypt freely. The cucumbers and they're just there Muslim and the melons and the leaks in the onion and the garlic. I often thought was a diet of fish and cucumbers and leaks and onions and garlic in it to keep my distance from that many people it says in verse 34 you know what happened in God killed those that lusted you know it's so easy in the Christian life. When you take your liberty to its extremity to start looking back over the bank at what used to have in starting the lust after the old life. That's what he saying you Corinthians who are running your liberty right out to its limits are going to fail face the old patterns and be drawn to those old patterns and that's what happened to Israel, let it be an example that when you take your liberties and run them out of their extremes under that thin edge between what is your right to do and what is sin you going to get tempted to fall into old patterns of life thing that God redeemed you out of let that be a perpetual warning against indulgence of lust for the forbidden objects of the former life. Listen to Psalm 7827 he reigned flesh on them like Dustin feathered sounds like the sand of the sea. You know there's and we want we want flesh we want slavery did he game so much flesh.

He said he came down like dust. They bought grounded in feathered. Sounds like the sand of the sea, having the just got bombed out of heaven, and he let it fall everywhere and so they ate and got fat and he gave in their desire was this while their food was in their mouths the wrath of God came upon them, and slough the fattest and smoke down the chosen men of Israel, for all this. They sin still and believe not in his wondrous works.

Therefore, there are days that he consuming vanity in their years in trouble. You see what they did. They want to what they wanted, so he gave them what they wanted and then he took the fast of them and took their lives.

Why because he had a purge that kind of thing out of the witnessing community and that's just the reason some believers may die, go to view the Lord.

Same thing because they're more of a problem in the witnessing community that they are an asset the abusive liberty leads to a disqualification from ministry and can lead to death. What is a saying to us just this.

Beware of overconfidence.

Father, we know that as we see ourselves we been delivered freed called as a corporate testimony blessed sustained by the provision of God By Christ and yet how easily could we become disqualified by the abuse of our freedoms teaches self-control, teaches self-discipline, teaches to be willing to set aside what might be our right for the sake of another to winning and for the sake of our own set that we would not be put in the place of temptation. Thank you for speaking to us in Christ. That's John MacArthur, Chancellor of the Masters University in seminary on how you can glorify Christ by being set apart from the world and by avoiding the pitfalls of Christian liberty. That's the title of his current study on grace to you and John when it comes to this issue of Christian liberty.

I know you'd say believers can exercise their liberty the right way they can effectively navigate the gray areas if they have a finely tuned biblically informed conscience and with that in mind talk to us about the conscience both what it is and practically how can it be sharpened. Get a conscience is a God-given device that every human being has, it is to the spiritual part of man. What pain is to the physical part. Pain is a mechanism God-given mechanism that warns you when something is wrong with your body tells you stop doing that or you need to have someone take care of this. This is a problem.

This is an issue. While we don't like pain. None of us would want to be pain free. Or we could be dying and never know it. Pain is a gift from God.

The same thing is true in the spiritual realm, God is given us conscience conscience reacts to our spiritual condition.

But conscience is dependent on having the right standards. The law of God is written in the heart of every human being that law is the knowledge of right and wrong in a very basic way and every human being has that the conscience is the device that starts hurting us. If we go against what we know to be true.

Now the more that law are written in the heart is enriched and enhanced by the Bible, where you get the full revelation of God's law, the more fully informed. The conscience becomes so the more you know about the word of God, the more you know God's expectations. The more active and the more accurate your conscience becomes, you want a conscience that is highly sensitive to divine truth because it warns you when you're going down a deadly spiritual path. What a gift. I wrote a book on this called the vanishing conscience actually fears go send it to every congressman and senator in Washington just to try to waken them to the issues of morality in our nation. The vanishing conscience 250 pages reasonably priced. You can order one from Grace to you today. That's) and I love this book. It will help you in your daily battle with temptation and sin arming you with the tools you will need to keep your conscience clean pick up a copy of John's book titled the vanishing conscience when you get in touch today. It's available for $11 and shipping is free to order call toll-free 855 grace or visit our website TTY.org.

The title again.

The vanishing conscience pick up a copy today when you call 855 grace or shop online@tty.org course to make sure your conscience is sharp. You need to know and apply God's word to help with that. Let me encourage you to get our flagship resort MacArthur study Bible. It has introductions to each book of the Bible. Dozens of maps and charts and nearly 25,000 study notes from John study tools that will you align your thinking with God's word and see its power in your life to get the MacArthur study Bible available in the English standard new King James in new American Standard call us at 855 grace or visit our website TTY.org now for John MacArthur. I'm Phil Johnson. Thanks for making this broadcast part of your day and beer tomorrow when John continues to show you the pitfalls of Christian liberty with another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time. Grace to you