Flee Idolatry (6/28/2026)

Final in a series of studies of 1 Corinthians 10:12-14

¹²“Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. ^13“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. ¹⁴“Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry” (1 Corinthians 10:12-14).

Having introduced the subject of idolatry to the Corinthians earlier in this book, Paul now revisits the subject as he is warning them to be careful not to give in to temptations. Concerning the subject of idolatry, Paul says they are not just to avoid it, but they are to flee from it aggressively.

On a primary level, idolatry is the worship of idols, but the scriptures that deal with the subject in the Old and New Testaments have more in mind than just the physical idols that were a stumbling block to Israel.

While we are not as tempted to fall down before gods of stone as they were, we are tempted to succumb to weaknesses of the flesh; and, as well, we can allow activities that are not wrong in themselves become wrong if they become an obsession or if they take over too much of our time and devotion.

Consequently, this teaching applies to Christians today as much as it did to early Christians: God and the Cause of Christ are to have top priority in our lives. When we allow other things to take over our lives, those things become an idol to us—and we are committing idolatry.