The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Corinthians — Section 335

and by the light they cast upon the position and the hopes of the Christian. Heaven may seem to us" the laud which is very far off;" yet faith can bring it noar and make it ours even now. "E'en now by faith I see th<'e, E'en now thy woll~ discern, To thee my thoughts are kindled, And strive and pant and yearn." T. Ver. 9.-'1 empting Christ. \Vhether we read here "the Lord," or " Christ " the meaning is the same. The relation of Israel to Jehovah was parallel, was identical with the relation of Christians to their Lord Christ. If we are loyal to our King Jesus' then we are in the position of the Hebrews when they reverenced and served the Lord their Goel; if we are traitors to him whom we call Master and Lord, then we stand in the same condemnation as rebellious Israel. The language of the apostle implies that there is danger lest we presumptuously test, by our unbelief, ingratitude, and rebellion, the forbearance and the grace of him whose we profess to be, whom we profess to serve. I. THE w AYS IN WHICH WE ARE IN DANGER OF TEMPTING CHRIST. 1. Some hearers of the gospel tempt the Lord by neglecting his gospel as unimportant and unnecessary. 2. Some by deferring that adhesion and devotion to Christ which his authority and circumstances require. 3. Some Christians tempt the Lord by their lonaings for the sins from which he came and died to deliver them. As the Israelites l~sted for the flesh-pots of Egy'.it, so it is to be feared there are Christians who cast a longing eye upon the sinful and worldly pleasures from which they should be delivered. 4. Some- by their ingratitude, murmuring, and rebelliousness. As at Corinth there were those who were dissatisfied with the simplicity of the gospel, those who resisted the authority of tbe apostle, those who had little sympathy with the Christian spirit of self-denial; so in the Church are there not a few whose temper and conduct are such as to put to- the utmost trial the long-suffering and forbearance of the Lord. II. 'J'HE REASO~S TO BE FOUND IN CHRIST HIMSELF WHY HIS PEOPLE SHOULD NO'l'" TEMPT HIM. 1. They are bound to honour and obey him as the Son of God. 2. They are bound to acknowledge his claims upon their gratitude, love, and service. 3. They rnay well be affected by the touching spectacle of his patience and long-suffering. Has he not "borne with their manners in the wilderness"? Can they any longer subject Lim to a trial so unjust and so cruel? 111. THE BEASO:KS RELATl:KG TO THEMSELVES WHY C1m1sT's PEOPLE SHOULD NOT" TEMPT HIM. 1. Continuance in unbelief and rebellion will certainly harden the heart, and unfit and indispose for his ~ervice. 2. 'l'he blessed and. sacred opportunity \,·hich life affords for grateful consecration and obedience will pass by unimproved. 3. An example of the kind deprecated will tend to embolden others to persevere in. irreligion and in iniquity. 4. It must not be forgotten that, although Christ is a Saviour,. he is also a Jucl<Te, His forbearance will not last for ever. Where he cannot acquit,. lie must and will condemn. Men may try Obrist too long and too far. Sentence may be deferred, but it will be pronounced and it will be executed. After all, it is not so much the case that we are testing and trying Christ, as that he is testing and trying us. Now is the time of our probation. How do we endure when he puts us to the proof?-T. Ver. 10.-" Neither murmur ye." Many were the occasions upon which Israel in, 1.he wilderness murmured against their God. They murmured against the manna and longed for flesh; against the authority and appointments of Moses and Aaron; against the reports which the spies brought concerning the land of Canaan; ~ga)nst the- difficulties which beset them and the foes who encountered them upon their Journey. No wonder that their gracious and forbearing Huler exclaimed, "Forty years long was I grieved with this generation." The conduct of the chosen people in this respect is by the apostle brought under the notice of the Corinthian Christians as recorded for their advantage, to serve as a warning and a corrective to themselves. And there is no congregation in which there are not those who stand in especial need of the inspired admonition," Neither murmur ye." I. HUMAN LIFE >.DOUNDS WITH OPPORTUNITIES AND TEMPTATIONS TO MURMUil. l. There are such as arc common to the human lot. There may be mentioned among:  cH. x. 1-33.J THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. 839