Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes,
To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

As we begin the study of Corinthians, I think a little bit of historical context is helpful.

After Paul had brought the gospel to Macedonia (Northern Greece), due to a threat he had to flee to Achaia (Southern Greece). It was here that he visited Corinth, a town of wealth, which was a commercial center in the area. Many people became followers of Jesus there and he stayed for a year and a half to model for them the ways of Jesus and to teach them to be obedient.

After he left, they wrote Paul with some critical questions about following Jesus. They had adopted some of the common Greek beliefs of the time, such as that the physical body was bad and needed to be separated from the spirit, as a part of their faith in Jesus. A few more of these were: the lack of importance of marriage, whether or not they should attend ceremonies of pagan gods, and even the validity of the resurrection of Jesus.

So as we study this book, we have the fun opportunity to try and read his answers and ponder what their questions might have been, as this document was lost over time. It also has some interesting parallels to our current culture in the United States. Maybe the questions asked over 2,000 years ago are not that much different from the questions asked today?

Paul starts this book by listing out his position in the church, not for some accolades or praise, but to clarify that he was called directly by Jesus.

He addresses those he is speaking to as “those sanctified by Christ Jesus“. Sanctified is another way of saying purified and set apart for a holy purpose. He wants his readers to understand that God has a plan for them, and that plan involves them remaining holy and pure so that God can work through them.

He also mentions that as a church we are united with brothers and sisters around the globe. There is no racial division in the church of Jesus.

These are two themes that Paul addresses later in the book, but he prefaces here to plant a seed in the minds of his readers

What good focal points for us today: unity in the church and sanctification in our personal walk with God.

Lord, thank you for this book that was written so long ago. Thank you for Paul’s ministry to the Corinthians, how much you love them and invested in them. Help me to be “on mission” in my life. Teach me to love you more each day.