Common

In Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth he writes,

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. (1 Cor 10:13)

And we'll take that. No matter what we are enduring, we know it is "common to man" and God provides escape so we can endure it. I think, however, that there is a critical point here that we miss because we yank it out of context.

In the chapter Paul uses the example of the Jewish forefathers to urge believers not to stray. They experienced God's providential presence through the Red Sea and beyond, but they failed (1 Cor 10:1-5). "Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did." (1 Cor 10:6) How did they fail? They started with idolatry (1 Cor 10:7), went on to sexual immorality (1 Cor 10:8), put God to the test (1 Cor 10:9), and grumbled (1 Cor 10:10). "Therefore," Paul writes, "let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall." (1 Cor 10:12). That is, in light of the blessings they experienced from the hand of God followed by their descent into sin, don't you think you are safe with your blessings. Why? No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.

That puts a different light on it, doesn't it? Sure, whatever you're going through is common to all people, and that's nice to know. Sure, God provides a way of escape and that's good to know. But Paul isn't starting with a comforting word here; he's starting with a warning. "Take heed lest he fall." Why? Because that idolatry, sexual sin, testing God, and grumbling is common. We have an innate tendency to shrug off God's blessings in the middle of enjoying them and turn to another god. Any other god. Starting first with ourselves as god (Rom 1:25). That obviously leads to other things, but I think it's interesting that the first thing Paul lists is sexual immorality. In and out of the church these days, this seems to be the most common sin. And we defend it. Testing God is quite common. Now, there is a good test (Mal 3:10; Rom 12:2) and there is a bad test. Walking in faith and watching how God works is a good test. Pushing the envelope and daring God to respond is not. Ultimately, with another god and rampant sin and seeing if God will fail, we have to end up dissatisfied. So we grumble.

Why? Because these temptations are common to everyone. So we need to take heed. We think we're safe. We believe we're standing strong. We think we have a clear view of all the blessings that God has provided. We don't. "Therefore," Paul concludes, "avoid temptation." No, that's not what he says. He goes back to the core problem and offers God's core "way of escape." "Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry." (1 Cor 10:14)

We are blessed here in our nation. We are also complacent. When God violates our preferences, we tend to worship the creature rather than the Creator. And that leads us down the path we appear to be headed down. So I, with Paul, would urge us to take heed lest we fall and to flee idolatry in a culture that has embraced wholeheartedly just that -- idolatry. Instead, "Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Cor 10:31) Let's have that in common.