1 Cor 10:15 “I am speaking to thoughtful people. Consider*~ what I say.”
The test of a wise person is how he responds to correction and commands: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Prov 1:7).
In 1 Corinthians 10:15, Paul is addressing his readers as “thoughtful people,” which means those who are “prudent or wise.”
Paul is being very kind and using positive motivation to get his readers to apply the commands to their lives—-but is anyone listening? “Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! O Israel, if you will listen to Me!” (Psa 81:8).
In our text, Paul had just given the command to “flee from idolatry” (1 Cor 10:14). Idolatry is much more than praying to an idol. Whatever you center your life on (pleasure seeking, possessions, prestige, financial security, or success) becomes your chief desire, which is your god. It may not be wrong in itself, but if you love it more than you love Jesus, it is an idol, and it must go.
“Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt 6:21): beware that your treasure is not yourself! In one list of sins, Paul writes of a “covetous man, who is an idolater” (Eph 5:5; Col 3:5).
Materialism entraps modern Christians into subtle idolatry, just as Israel engrafted idolatry into their lives while remaining religious. They lived out the Frank Sinatra song “Doing it My Way.”
The command is to “immediately consider what I say”—-that is, to “judge or discriminate between what is good or evil,” not what we like or dislike.
According to Proverbs 15:5, “A fool despises his father’s instruction, but he who receives correction is prudent”; thus a fool is recognized by his refusal to listen to wisdom from authorities in his life.
Furthermore, “fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions” (Prov 18:2NLT).
A fool “trusts in his own heart” (Prov 28:26)—-that is, he trusts only in what he wants, regardless of what God says. A fool “will despise the wisest advice” (Prov 23:9NLT), primarily because it disagrees with what he wants. Even worse is “a man wise in his own eyes. There is more hope for a fool than for him” (Prov 26:12).
How people respond to the commands and advice of Scripture reveals their character. Do you appreciate correction? Do you always seek advice?
“Lord, it is not easy to be corrected or constantly exhorted by Your word and faithful servants, but I yearn for Your will to be done. I want to be like You so much that I beg You to keep giving me corrections and teachings from Your word.”