Maintaining Momentum
1 Corinthians 10:1-12
We have spent the past several weeks talking about how God desires that we not get bogged down in life regarding our hurts, habits and hang-ups. God's Word has a plan for us to get back on the road to recovery over those hurts, habits and hang-ups. We took the word, RECOVERY, to see the process that we need to go through.
R - Realize I'm not God: I admit I'm powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and my life is unmanageable.
E - Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover.
C - Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ's care and control.
O - Openly examine and confess my faults to God, to myself, and to someone I trust.
V - Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects.
E - Evaluate all my relationships, offer forgiveness to those who've hurt me and make amends for harm I've done to others except when to do so would harm them or others.
This morning we see the next letter in the process, R, and this can be called the maintenance step. As we get on this road to recovery and as some progress is being made, we need to understand that there will be some habits that we must establish if we are to remain on that road. I want you to understand that this road is not easy. It may very well be two steps forward and one step back. There can easily be a relapse into that hurt, habit or hang-up. The alcoholic goes back to drinking. The overeater gains the weight back. The gambler goes back to the casino. The workaholic fills up his schedule again. We tend to repeat the patterns of our past. It's very easy to slip back.
The letter R that we will flesh out in a few moments uncovers for us what is necessary for us to stay on the road to recovery. Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and gain the power to do it.
I want to direct your attention to an interesting discussion that Paul lays out before the Corinthian church - that he also regarded as carnal (they were in the midst of a relapse). We're going to focus on one verse (10:12), but you've got to understand what leads up to the admonition given by Paul. In chapter 9 Paul lays out for the Corinthians that he will do whatever it takes to reach people with the gospel of Christ. He will work diligently to find something in common with a person in order to lead them to Christ. But there is more to being a witness than just finding common ground. The life must also back up and support the witness, and that's what vv 24-27 are about. It's similar to what we've already discussed on the road to recovery. But in chapter 10, Paul wants to give us an example that is like a huge warning sign on this road to recovery.
1 Corinthians 10:1-12
10:1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea,
10:2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,
10:3 all ate the same spiritual food,
10:4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.
10:5 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for [their bodies] were scattered in the wilderness.
10:6 Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted.
10:7 And do not become idolaters as [were] some of them. As it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play."
10:8 Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell;
10:9 nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents;
10:10 nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
10:11 Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
10:12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.
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The Pattern of a relapse vv 1-5
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Success in life (and in recovery) are not a given. Paul tells the Corinthian believers of the Israelites that were alive in the time of the great deliverance from Egypt and in the trek to the Promised Land. And he makes a very sobering statement: they were all under the same cloud (divine guidance and protection)… passed through the same sea (divine deliverance)… all baptized into Moses (divine leadership)… ate the same spiritual meat and drank the same spiritual drink (divine provision and divine intervention)…."1 That is, the lot of the Israelites - some 2 ½ million people - no one had a more spiritual experience than the others. We see the result of their incredible encounters with Almighty God - with most of them (really all but two - Joshua and Caleb) God was not pleased and they died in the wilderness.
Friend, I want you to understand something extremely important. You can be involved in a church where God is doing some absolutely incredible things yet God still not be pleased with you. The reason is the difference between hanging around and personally believing. Divine privilege does not guarantee divine success.2
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Note the pattern of a relapse:
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Complacency. Can you see some of the Israelites getting complacent with the cloud? "Oh, it's just the promise of the presence of the Lord." Complacency is present when you start getting comfortable with short-term gains. You start saying, "I don't need any more help, my pain has been reduced, not eliminated but reduced, but I can live with reduced pain. So I don't need to go to the groups anymore. I don't need to work the steps anymore. I don't need a counselor or a "sponsor." Complacency. And it leads to,
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Confusion. The Israelites began to say that it wasn't really that bad living in Egypt. Besides, there was some pretty good food there. It happens now. "Maybe it wasn't really so bad after all, the problem really wasn't that bad, I can handle it myself." You start forgetting how bad it was. That's confusion, and it leads to,
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Compromise. Going back to the place of temptation; returning to the risky situation that got you in trouble in the first place, whether it's the bar, or the mall, or thirty-one flavors, or whatever. It's like a gambler that says, "Let's go to Vegas, we'll just see the shows." It's like one hooked on pornography buying Playboy because he only wants to read the articles.
And destruction awaits - falling short of God's intended desire for your life. Understand that the collapse is not the relapse. The catastrophe is not when the relapse happens; it started much earlier. The catastrophe is simply the result of the pattern that happened.
This brings up some interesting questions. Why do we fall back? Why do we, even when we know which way to go, when we know the right thing, why do we tend to go back on what we know is the right? Notice,
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The Probable Causes of a relapse vv 6-11
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The children of Israel did not immediately falter after having experienced such incredible blessings from God - but they faltered. In vv 6-11 Paul gives some examples of how the children of Israel sinned against God. Some commentators noted a downward trend in their acts - but regardless, one fact is certain; the children of Israel had a relapse in their commitment and it cost them.
Paul brings up five ways they faltered:
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They lusted after evil things. They longed for what they had in Egypt (Numbers 11:4-34). They lusted for that which was outside the will of God for them. This was the beginning of their defection.3
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They were idolaters (Exodus 32).
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They were immoral (Numbers 25:1-9). Spiritual defection always leads to moral defection.4
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They tempted Christ (Numbers 21:4-9). They challenged God to discipline them for their sin.
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They complained (Exodus 16:2; Numbers 14:37). That is, they totally rejected the leadership of the Lord.
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What are the most common causes of a relapse? Just as they were common in the days of Moses and in the days of Paul, so are they about the same today. Let me give you four main causes of relapsing into that hurt, habit or hang-up.
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Reverting to willpower. You start off trusting God, and Step 1 is I'm powerless to change, but Step 2 is God has the power; Step 3 is I'm giving it to God. And you let God make those changes in your life, but after a while you start thinking, "It's me that's doing this, I'm making the changes. It's my power." You have a few successes and suddenly think you're all powerful, all knowing and can handle everything. Resorting to good old willpower just doesn't work. Paul asked the Galatians (3:3), "Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?" Another translation reads like this, "How can you be so foolish? You began by God's Spirit; do you now want to finish on your own power?"
I'm getting ahead of myself but I want to make a statement here: thank God for the Paul's in your life - someone that will just tell it like it is. But even if you have a Paul in your life and you choose not to listen; God will let you take a tumble however often is needed (one time, three hundred times) until you realize you can't do it on your own.
The Lord gives a great word through Zechariah (4:6), "Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit says the Lord. You will succeed because of My Spirit." Only God has the power to take away those defects. If you go back to will power you're going to relapse. If you're thinking, "I'll just try harder," forget it. Another cause is,
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Ignoring one of the steps. We get in a hurry. We try to move through the steps too quickly. It's very tempting to want to skip last week's step on forgiving or making amends. And we may even settle for "partial" recovery. There's no such thing. It doesn't work that way. We must follow what the Bible has declared as principles for life. There's no quick fix. You didn't get into this mess overnight; you're not going to get out of it overnight. You need to do all the steps. Paul asked the Galatian church (Galatians 5:7), "You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?" If, in the Christian life you read a sign that says, "Shortcut to godliness," just know that it was the devil that put it there in order to trip you up. A third cause is,
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Trying to recover without support. "I'll just get well by myself, besides I got into all of this by myself." (That ought to be reason enough to get help!) "I don't need anybody else's help…. I'll listen to these sermons, I'm not going to go to counseling, I'm not going to go to Celebrate Recovery, I'm not going to go to Sunday School - I'll just get well on my own." Wrong. It doesn't work that way. Solomon wrote (Ecclesiastes 4:9, 12) "Two are better than one…. Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken."
You've got to understand something. You can't lick this problem alone. If you could have you would have. But you can't so you won't. When you're tempted and things are going bad, who are you going to call? That right there is more than reason enough for a church family. The writer of Hebrews said (10:25), Let us "not forsak[e] the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhort one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Again, there is no such thing as a quick fix. It's a long fix and you need others that will help you in that process. If you don't get support when the temptation comes and then you don't feel like doing the right thing, who's going to help you do the right thing? If you fall, who's there to help you?
We need each other. I can pretty well guarantee that as you have heard the testimonies over the past few weeks, there is probably at least one that you could relate to. And so could I. But I think there was probably a part of you that breathed a sigh when you realized that you weren't the only one with that hurt, habit or hang-up. There's hope! And there is! And that's why we need people around us - to remind us that there really is hope. There's a fourth cause,
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We become prideful. How easy it is to get overconfident and prideful and say, "I'm strong. I've got this hurt licked. I've got this habit licked. I've forgiven them, closed the door. It's OK." I want to remind you of Proverbs 16:18: "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." As I heard one man put it, "Stay humble or you'll stumble." Pride blinds us to our own weaknesses. It keeps us from seeking help. It prevents us from making amends to other people. It keeps us from doing all the steps fully. And one of the biggest problems with pride is that it causes us to blame other people for our own problems. We say, "It's not my problem."
Notice what Paul says here in verse 12. The secret of lasting recovery is to live with humility. It's the best protection for a relapse. Always live with the firm conviction that you don't have it all together but you're getting it together; not that you've arrived, but you're staying on the trail. I'm sure you've heard the old saying, "Never say never." There's a lot of truth in that. "Oh, my marriage would never fall apart." Watch out. "I'd never get addicted to anything." Watch out. "Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." It's true: an unguarded strength is a double weakness.
Well, how can we be guarded - in our strengths and weaknesses?
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The Prevention of a relapse v 12
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This is where the letter R, the seventh step comes into play. Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and his will for my life and gain the power to do it. Jesus, on the night that He was betrayed, the night that He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, gave some great words of advice that were not heeded by His disciples - and it cost them. He said (Mark 14:38), "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation, for the Spirit is willing but the body is weak." How true it is that the Spirit is willing, but our sinful flesh is so weak. Human nature will quickly relapse despite good intentions not to do so. It's human nature to let past problems revisit us, old hurts, and hang-ups come back to haunt us. So Jesus tells them that there must be some safeguards in their lives.
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What are the safeguards (the maintenance tools) that will prevent a relapse? There are three of them.
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Evaluation. Paul told the Corinthians to "take heed" lest they fall. How can we take heed? By evaluating areas of our lives. So, evaluate yourself:
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physically. Ask the question, "What is my body telling me?" Your body is a barometer of what's happening inside you. You have tense muscles? Guess what? You're under stress. You have a headache or a backache. What is it saying to you? Your body is a barometer, a warning light that maybe something is wrong, and so periodically you need to stop and say, "What is my body saying to me? Am I hungry? Am I tired? Am I fatigued? Am I stressed out?" Take some clues that maybe things are out of line.
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emotionally. Ask, "What am I feeling right now? Am I allowing my real feelings to surface? Or am I just pushing them down?" Pushing down your real feelings is like shaking up a Coke bottle and not taking the cap off; it's going to blow eventually. So, do a heart check. What is that?
H Am I hurting? If you are hurting and won't admit it and deal with it, it's going to mess up what you're doing.
E Am I exhausted?
A Am I angry?
R Do I resent anybody?
T Am I tense? anxious? fearful?
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relationally. Am I at peace with everyone? If you're not, that internal conflict is going to keep you back and hold you back from your recovery. There may be someone close by or far away that you have a conflict with. It will affect you. Do you realize you let some people live rent free in your mind? Aunt Bertha hurt you fifteen years ago and she lives a thousand miles away, and you wake up thinking about her. You're letting her live rent free in your mind. You're preoccupied with it. It's controlling you. You've got to let it go. Ask yourself, "Is there anybody living rent free in my mind? Am I holding on to a hurt?"
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spiritually. "Am I relying on God moment by moment?"
When you evaluate, look at the good and the bad. Ask what is good in your life as well. Celebrate any minor victory, no matter how small it is, on a daily basis. I like what Paul told the church at Galatia (6:4), "Let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another." Examine, evaluate your work.
But when do I do my evaluation? Good question. Think of it like cleaning a house (three possible ways):
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Spot check inventory. That is, evaluate along the way. If you have a spill in the kitchen, you usually don't wait till cleaning day to clean up. Do it right then. Some things don't need to wait. Evaluate right then. Ask yourself, "What is my body saying to me? What are my emotions saying? Am I tuned into God right now? Do I have any relational conflict?" As you see the areas of weakness, confess it right then. And at the same time, accept God's forgiveness. They go hand in hand.
Do this often. Think of it like taking out the garbage. You probably don't let it overflow onto the kitchen floor or just take it out once a month. When the garbage can gets full, take it out. Take out the spiritual garbage often. Don't let it linger because, like trash, it will stink up your life.
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Daily review. At the end of the day find a quiet spot and review your day, confess your failures, celebrate your victories, look at your day.
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Annual checkup. Most people probably do some kind of spring cleaning, even if it's done in the summer. Major cleaning takes place. For this type of evaluation, get away from the race and do that personal moral inventory that we talked about in step 4. Look at your life, see if it's in order and prioritize the things in your life. Husbands and wives, this would be a great help to your marriage as well as parenting your children. There must be evaluation, and there must also be,
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Meditation. What does it mean to meditate? It doesn't mean that you sit in a very uncomfortable position and hold your fingers together and make noises like a quiet air conditioner. To meditate means to dwell upon. In this point, it means to dwell upon our Lord and His Word. But you see, the major problem with most people is not in the meditation. We dwell upon a lot of things - but it's not things that are very helpful to us. Worry is simply dwelling upon the wrong thing. Bitterness is dwelling upon the wrong thing.
But there is a great need for dwelling upon the things of God rather than the things of the world. That old hymn we sing from time to time, "Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace." Friend, I want you to understand that Satan will fight this area of our lives more than anything else. If he can get us to cut short or not have a quiet time with the Lord, then everything else will be a cinch. And let me tell you that if you're going days between quiet times, it won't be long before you become a spiritual casualty. David wrote the value of meditating like this (Psalm 1:1-3), "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper."
When you read Scripture ask, "How can I apply this to me?" When you ask AND apply, you're like a tree planted by the river that is nourished regardless of the climate around. That is, there is a much less chance of relapse. Church Family, you will never be what God has called you to be apart from a daily intake and application of God's Word. Memorize God's Word. I've challenged the men that come on Thursday mornings to memorize Romans 8 with me. Again, if you know how to worry you know how to meditate. There's evaluation, meditation and,
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Supplication (prayer). Prayer is simply talking to God - and talk to Him about everything. One translation of Philippians 4:6 goes like this, "Pray about everything, worry about nothing." Do you have a financial need? Pray about it. Do you have a physical need? Pray about it. Do you have a relational need? Pray about it. A spiritual need? An emotional need? Pray about everything.
How do we pray? We can use what's called the Lord's Prayer (really the disciples' prayer) as a model. And by the way, the recovery steps are in that prayer. "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name." That's saying I realize I'm not God but You are-that's Steps 1 and 2. "May Your will be done, may Your kingdom come." That's Step 5. "Give us this day our daily bread." That's Step 3. "Forgive us our debts." That's Step 4. "As we forgive others." That's Step 6. "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." That's relapse, that's this step. You see, recovery is as old as the Lord's Prayer. Jesus Christ gave us the principles by which we can find full recovery.
Friend, I want you to understand that whoever you are, whatever your hurt, habit or hang-up, you matter greatly to Jesus. I'm pretty sure that there are some people here that just don't like themselves. You look in the mirror and you don't like what you see. You listen to yourself on tape, and you don't like what you hear. You look at what you do with your hands and you don't like it. And pretty much the conclusion you have of you is that you don't like you. Regardless of what you say about you, God deeply loves you. He really does have a wonderful plan for your life and He wants you to live life full of love for him, for yourself and for others. But it begins with realizing you need Him - you need a Savior. Only then can changes be made, a transformation be experienced, that will make the difference in your life. Surrender to Him today.