Jump Start # 228
1 Corinthians 10:10 “Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer.”
In this section of Corinthians, Paul reaches back to Old Testament history and reminds the brethren the way ancient Israel acted. Paul said, “Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things” (v. 6). He then identifies four things Israel did that the Christians should not do. The list includes:
- Do not be idolaters (7)
- Nor let us act immorally (8)
- Nor let us try the Lord (9)
- Nor grumble (10)
The ends this section by repeating, “Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (11).
The overall lesson is that we learn things from the Old Testament. We do not have to repeat the same mistakes and sins that Israel did. We learn from them. It’s not follow the leader, here.
Our verse today, “nor grumble, as some of them did” is a good one to keep in mind after a national day of Thanks. Grumbling and complaining are just the nature of some people. It seems like the older some get the more they complain. With complainers, nothing is ever right. The weather isn’t. Politics aren’t. The economy isn’t.
Today is known as “black Friday,” the official beginning of the Christmas shopping season. You may have been one who got up very early to hit the stores. But there is another “black Friday” that begins today…and that’s the season of grumbling. How easy and quickly we can forget that “thankful” spirit and return to a spirit of gloom and doom. I think our passage is indicating that Israel didn’t just grumble, they grumble against God—the ultimate ungrateful spirit!
Folks will complain when the feel that God hasn’t been fair to them or that their lives are not happy nor turned out the way they feel like they should have. Hard times, the sin of others, broken homes can make us be bitter toward God. Most often, if not all the time, it isn’t God’s fault. He isn’t in Heaven thinking of ways to make your life miserable. What kind of God is that? No, usually it’s the choices we make, or the choices of those around us, that makes our live a mess. We feel that God should have put a bubble around us to keep these things from happening, but He doesn’t. So we gripe. We complain. We grumble.
I’ve noticed something about complaining…it rarely changes things. Complain all you want about the weather, it doesn’t change it. Complaining kids just get on your nerves. Complaining doesn’t make you happier, brighten your day, or improve the mood of those around you. No, complaining is like a dark cloud that just makes everything dark.
The solution? Do not grumble. But more than that, be thankful. Continue to count your blessings—that just kills complaining. It also helps to remember the first “black Friday.” It had nothing to do with shopping or Christmas. It was the Friday that Jesus died upon the cross. The sky became dark, and our Lord gave up His spirit and died for our sins. That act, and his resurrection that followed, changed the world. And, it should change you!
You’ll hear a lot of grumbling this weekend. You be the thankful one! I saw a sign on a funeral directors desk years ago that said, “Everyday above ground is a good day!” How true!
Roger