SHOULD WE BE GRUMBLING or COMPLAINING?

1 Corinthians 10:10 NIV (10) And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel.

A dictionary defines the word grumble as “expressing a complaint in a bad-tempered way”.

I think all of us know what it means to grumble, or complain.  We do it everyday.  When things don’t go our way, or when we don’t like how we are being treated, we grumble, we complain.  And what really defines grumbling or complaining is the way we do it, and the words that we use. What we don't realize, as Christians, is how God detests grumbling.

The full passage of 1 Corinthians 10:10 was in reference to the Israelites, and how they were examples for us how NOT to live.

1 Corinthians 10:1-11 NIV (1) For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. (2) They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. (3) They all ate the same spiritual food (4) and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (5) Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. (6) Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. (7) Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry." (8) We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did--and in one day twenty- three thousand of them died. (9) We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes. (10) And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel. (11) These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.

God was not pleased with most of them.  What was it that God wasn't pleased with them, and should be an example to us today?  Idolatry, sexual immorality, testing the Lord.  And then verse 10 - "and do not grumble".

I believe we all know what it means to grumble, or complain!  We do it everyday!  We see it everyday in the world.  And it has never been so magnified than today.  We read it, watch it, in the news.  The news media like to focus on grumbling and complaining.  After a disaster they will report on the rescue efforts done to save people, but they will also show people complaining about how slow relief is coming, or what the government is doing.  During this pandemic there are so many lives that are being saved, so many good things happening around us, but the news will magnify the complaints of people – not that they don’t have valid reason to do it, my point is that what is magnified is the grumbling.

Social media has given every person today a platform to complain and grumble about everything and anything under the sun.  We post all our grumblings and murmurings, sharing it with everybody.  Sadly, even Christians are part of the scene.  Should we be grumbling and complaining?

Complaining and arguing has been with man from the beginning.

Genesis 4:3-5 NIV In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. (4) But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, (5) but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

The text doesn’t say that Cain was grumbling or complaining, but you can imagine, in his anger, what he was thinking, or even saying.

 It doesn’t become any clearer with the Israelites, as they were travelling to the promised land.

Exodus 15:22-24 NIV Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. (23) When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) (24) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?"

 In verses 1-21 Moses had just sang a song about God’s deliverance of His people, parting the red sea.  The Israelites had just left Egypt, and were on their way to the promised land.

But the moment they lacked water they began to grumble.

When they lacked food, they grumbled:

Exodus 16:2 NIV In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.

When they were thirsty again, they grumbled:

Exodus 17:3 NIV But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?"

 When they scouted the promised land they were about to enter, and so that it was very fertile, but also saw that the people who were living there were powerful and had to be driven away, they grumbled:

Numbers 14:2 NIV All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert!

Even after the Lord had disciplined His people because of their sin, they grumbled:

Numbers 16:41 NIV The next day the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. "You have killed the LORD's people," they said.

 

Again, and again, and again…they grumbled.

They did not take to heart what God had done, what He was doing, and where He was taking them.  All they saw was their own need, their own situation.

 Basically, this is why we grumble and complain, isn’t it?

Instead of seeing what our God has done, what He is doing, and where He is taking us, we focus on what we are going through, what we don’t have, what we want to have – and we grumble and complain.

In what we call the "sermon on the mount", when Jesus was teaching His disciples, He told them:

Matthew 6:31-34 NIV So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' (32) For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. (33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (34) Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Notice how this is so related to the grumblings of the Israelites? What were the Israelites grumbling about?  What they would eat, what they would drink.

And even if they did not grumble about what they were wearing, it is evident that even if they wandered in the desert for forty years, their clothes did not wear out!

Deuteronomy 8:2-4 NIV Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. (3) He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. (4) Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.

They grumbled because they failed to see that it was God who was sustaining them, protecting them, providing for them, as they wandered in the desert.

Now, Jesus teaches His disciples not to do the same things.

(31) So do not worry, SAYING, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'

When we say these things, we are grumbling, complaining.  What we don’t realize is that we are grumbling against our God.

(32) For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. (33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The first thing Jesus shows is how this is the life of pagans, who do not believe in God.  They run after these things. That's why all they do is grumble and complain when they are not able to have these things in their life.

We do not grumble or complain about what to eat or drink or wear because these are not the things we are running after!  Christians run after something greater, more fulfilling.

We run after God our Father, who knows what we need.  He knows, and so, we trust Him.  And if we just ask Him to open our eyes, everything we need is right in front of us.  It may not be as much as our neighbor has, but He provides.  So why grumble?

 We do not grumble or complain, because we seek His kingdom and His righteousness.

(33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

This is what we run after.  We seek Him, life under His reign, and the righteous life that He is worthy of.

And when we seek Him FIRST, then everything we need – what we will eat, drink or wear, He gives, provides for us.  So, why grumble?

So, before you allow the media to influence your thinking, before you are tempted to post your grumbling and complaining about life, step back and think - is this the life God wants you to be living?  Are these the words God wants you to be expressing to everyone?  Or is there something else that we need to be testifying to this world full of grumbling and complaining?

Philippians 2:14-16 NIV (14) Do everything without complaining or arguing, (15) so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe (16) as you hold out the word of life--

Simple Ones Loving Their Simple Ways

Proverbs 1:20-22 NIV Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares; (21) at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech: (22) How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge? 

Have you ever wondered who are the “simple ones” who love their “simple ways” being referred to here?  The NASB version translates it as “naïve ones”, being “simple minded”.  The contrast is seen when you read it together with verse 20-21.  Here wisdom is personified, described as a person who is calling aloud in the street, raising her voice, and crying out.  The "simple ones" who love their "simple ways" are those who do not heed the voice of wisdom, who do not hear her cry.

Let’s  set the foundation first.  How does Solomon describe “wisdom”?  There are so many sources of "wisdom" in the world, it is important for Christians to know the source of our wisdom.  In Proverbs 1:7 Solomon writes "the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction".

Wisdom, for God’s people, is founded in the fear of the Lord.  The teachings and sayings that Solomon compiles for us in this book are not just wise sayings that we are to try and follow.  Without the fear of the Lord, all these sayings become useless, and simply become “life tips” we should try and follow.  To walk in wisdom is to walk with the fear of the Lord, therefore desiring to know His will and His ways.  We literally become afraid to walk apart from His ways and His Word.

This is the wisdom that Solomon speaks of here, and in the whole book of Proverbs.  In chapter 1 he continues by personifying “wisdom”, describing it as if it was a person.  So, he describes wisdom as “calling aloud in the street, raising her voice, crying out!”.

In other words, the wisdom of God is not hidden, it is not a mystery, to those who fear God and who seek to know His will and His ways.  It is right in front of us.  For Israel it was the “law and the prophets”.  For us today we are blessed to have the Bible, God’s Word compiled in 66 books.

So, who are the simple minded who love their simple ways?

The simple minded are those who do not heed the cry of wisdom, who do not listen to what God has to say.  They are “simple minded” because they just want to make life simple, not complicated, no need to pray or seek for God's wisdom and will.  They walk in this life naïve, not realizing that walking apart from God’s wisdom is folly, it is foolish, and it has its consequences.  For Filipinos it’s living life with the “bahala na” attitude.  We just face life, live as we want, without seeking God and the knowledge of His ways.

Solomon continues and writes:

Proverbs 1:23-31 NIV (23) If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you. (24) But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand, (25) since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke, (26) I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you-- (27) when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you. 

Wisdom rebukes, pours out its heart and makes its thoughts known to us.  And when we reject it, do not give heed to it, ignore its advice, what happens?  Wisdom laughs at our disaster, mocks us when calamity overtakes us.

Again, this is wisdom personified.  This is not talking about God laughing at us or mocking us when we reject wisdom.  This is “wisdom” laughing at us.

Have you ever walked apart from God’s will, and then afterwards, when facing the consequences of your action, feel as if you should have obeyed God?  You knew the right thing to do, as God and His Word reveals, and yet went the opposite way.  Our usual response is “I should have followed, obeyed, God”.  There it is – it sounds like wisdom saying “I told you so…”.

And, have you ever been in a situation where, as you are facing the consequences of your action, and then begin to cry out to God for help, for wisdom, you cannot find it?  Look what Solomon wrote:

(28) Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me. (29) Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD, (30) since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke, (31) they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.

When we walk away from God’s wisdom, we will eat the fruit of its ways.  If we choose not to walk in the knowledge of God’s will or without the fear of the Lord, we will see its consequences.

There are so many people who ask for God’s blessing, who ask their pastors to pray for blessing, and yet make no effort at all to walk in His ways.  Those are the “simple minded”, who walk naïve of God’s ways and of the truth that walking apart from God’s wisdom has its consequences.

Walking with God is not just about walking with God’s blessings.  It is walking in God’s ways, in His wisdom.  This is the life that God blesses.

But are we even capable of doing that?  Our sinful heart tells us that we have our own wisdom to trust in, that we gained from our education, our experience.  Our self-centeredness naturally moves us to trust in ourselves, our own judgment.  We do not naturally seek God, or His wisdom.  They seem so far and illogical, not applicable to everyday life.

But this is why we need a new heart.  This is why we need a Savior who will cleanse us from this sinful heart, forgive us of our sins, and give us a heart that knows Him, seeks Him, and treasures His wisdom.

This is why Christ Jesus came.  He was the sacrifice that reconciled us to God.  This is why we need Him so much.  Then, and only then, can we truly say that we have a heart that fears the Lord, that seeks His wisdom and knowledge, that we need for our everyday life.

With the new heart that God gives us, we need to step back, take time to seek God and His Word, pray for His will, so that we live life with the wisdom and knowledge of how He wants us to live.  Yes, it does take effort, and it does take time.  But walking in God’s wisdom has the blessing of God.  Isn’t this what we desire to see in our life?  It's not just about seeing God bless us, but seeing the blessing of living according to the wisdom and knowledge of God and His ways.