›I Corinthians 8:4-6
›One God One Lord
4 Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” 5 For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— 6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
(I Corinthians 8:4-6, ESV)
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›Main Point
› There is one God
› There is no other Being who is worthy to be called God
› This does not mean there are no other spiritual entities
› Nor does it mean that if there were none that they would have no impact in the world as the belief in them has an impact by definition
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›Application Points
›One God One Lord
– The point has direct ramifications for what we believe and how we live
– Christianity is a monotheistic belief
– “Mono” means “One” “Theist” means “God”
– We are not like other beliefs that have many gods
– Ra was the Egyptian sun god
– Zeus was the head of the Greek pantheon
– Venus was the Roman goddess of fertility and love
– We find the same thing occurring in Hinduism
– Vishnu the lord and sustainer of life
– Genesha the lord of success and wealth
– Shiva the goddess of death and destruction
– In Hinduism there are 33 specific lords/gods/goddess and upward to 330 million in total
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›Application Points
›One God One Lord (2)
– This makes sense in a polytheistic understanding
– “Poly” means “Many” “Theist” means again “God”
– Each of these gods has knowledge and power to have an effect on their realm
– Hinduism itself has over a billion believers worldwide
– Such pagan beliefs are still far more common than we would think
– On the other side of the aisle are those who do not believe in any gods at all
– A “No” Theist “God”
– In the past we could say that we had to be prepared for atheists moreso than polytheists
– With the rise of postmodernism there has been an increase of both Atheism and Polytheism
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›Application Points
›One God One Lord (3)
– As Christians we need to be aware of the various beliefs around us
– When we take the three main groups of atheism, monotheism, and polytheism which one makes the most sense of the world around us?
– If atheism is true then there is no such thing as a greater power
– We have no purpose, no meaning
– Such a view only leads to despair
– It does seem as though we are designed for a purpose
– Why is it that the majority of humans throughout history have not been atheists?
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›Application Points
›One God One Lord (4)
– When we consider this great existence, the design, the morality, our minds, our souls, our hearts, our intelligence, when we consider all the evidence it seems to point to something other than ourselves
– What about polytheism?
– Is it possible our existence stems from these beings?
– We notice that they are so connected to creation that they are not different from it
– What happens if the sun stopped existing? Rah ceases to exist
– They are not necessary, eternal, all powerful, all knowing
– Our purpose for such beings is to be their inferiors forever
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›Application Points
›One God One Lord (5)
– Paul is then right to say that even if these beings exist they are not God by many means
– They are not worthy to be called God
– This leads to Monotheism
– One Being who is necessary, the first cause, greatest, all knowing, all powerful, all present, all good, a Being who is above all others
– We believe He has revealed Himself through the natural order, through the Scriptures, and through Jesus Christ
– That Paul specifies there is only one Lord Jesus should cause us to reflect on the mystery cults and religions
– They claimed to have “special knowledge”
– They would claim to have the light, the truth, in this world
›Application Points
›One God One Lord (6)
– They had their supposed “lord” who gave them this knowledge, so do we in Christ Jesus who is our Lord
– It is through Christ we attain this special knowledge, redemption and sanctification
– Of finding our purpose, our meaning, in that we belong to God
– With Jesus all are invited to partake and understand this knowledge which is given
– It is not secretive; it is wide open for all who desire to seek and find the truth
– There are so many interesting things in the book of Exodus
– God shows He is more powerful than Pharaoh, his magicians, and the gods of Egypt
– None of their gods were able to withstand the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders? 12 You stretched out your right hand; the earth swallowed them.”
(Exodus 15:11-12, ESV)
›Application Points
›One God One Lord (7)
– All we ever encounter with the ancients gods of old are their stories
– This God, however, we do encounter
– This great God who knows and loves us
– It is safe to say that our foundation is secure
– He is unlike any of the other gods that have been or will be
– He is eternal, steadfast, filled with wrath and love
– Paul has given us the foundation for our lives
– We recognize the truth of the whole
– It is because we have our Lord Jesus we find our purpose to glorify this God who redeems
– That we would see through the deceptions
– Let us hold fast to the Truth that there is One God and One Lord and through them we find our meaning, purpose and value in this world
›Application Points
› The Gospel of Christ
– Origins
– Fall
– Redemption
– Glorification
