Quote:
Originally Posted by Boxjobox
Ohio, I can’t respond to something I don’t understand. What is out of context? Unbelieving ( and apparently some believing Corinthians) had many gods and many lords. Paul says to us there is but one God, the Father, and one Lord, Jesus Christ. Paul continuously preaches and teaches that God made Jesus Lord. This shouldn’t be a mystery or a point of contention, but should be our profession.
I realize there is a problem accepting that both Paul and Jesus tell us there is only one true God, the Father. It’s not what is professed in Christiandom today. I don’t hear you, or others talking in terms of “the God of our Lord Jesus. That should also be our vocabulary.
What am I taking out of context?
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Ok, I'll spell it out. The idolatrous city of Corinth had much daily talk about their many gods and many lords. These were all unseen gods and lords, to be worshiped by the pagans with their priests, who offered sacrifices to them. In fact all foods were sacrificed to these gods and lords. Many of these had statues too. Many of the Corinthians had their own favorite god and lord. This pagan culture, with these pagan gods and lords, with these pagan sacrifices and practices were all counterfeits of the real "thing," the reality who is Christ, worshiped by the saints.
Paul used this as background to compare. He provided a parallel and a contrast. To us there is one God. To us there is one Lord. Paul's emphasis here was on "one." One God. One Lord. Then he added some description. He could have called God the Creator, like he did in Athens. He could have called Jesus the promised Messiah, like he usually did with a Jewish audience. He could have said, "Lord of lords and God of gods."