In what is usually considered the greeting to Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, one finds the basis upon which Paul will speak to this Church. In verse two Paul says, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:” There are several key points to consider here. First, Paul is addressing his letter to the “Church.” This is not simply a formal way of addressing a group of people as if Paul were saying “My fellow Americans.” Rather, Paul is highlighting who this group of people is; they are the Church. Paul uses a construct at this point to affirm the nature of the Corinthian believers as the “Church” (ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ τῇ οὔσῃ); or literally translated “the called out ones of God which you are.” The ontological import of Paul’s affirmation must not be overlooked; that is, Paul uses the Greek word “being” (οὔσῃ, present active participle) to demonstrate that the Corinthian believers are by nature ones called of God. This phrase is under translated in English by the use of the word “is” which looses the declarative thrust of the manuscript. The believers in Corinth, problems and all, are none-the-less the called and assemble people of God. Accordingly, Paul specifically expresses secondly that this group of people have been “sanctified” (ἡγιασμένοις, present passive participle); that is they have been set apart. Paul is speaking to the uniqueness of the Corinthian believers not in terms of manifestly different from other believers or other Churches but unique and manifestly different from the rest of those in the world. Thirdly, Paul declares that the Corinthian believers have been “called” (κλητοῖς); that is, they have been invited to undertake certain responsibilities which are the result of their new relationship with God. This calling unites the Corinthians with all other who have received the same call and who are by nature ones who call (ἐπικαλουμένοις, present middle participle) upon the name of the Lord. The error of most casual readers of scripture today is that in what is considered to be an introductory formula, Paul lays down the reason why the Corinthian Church must halt their wayward practices; they are called, they are set apart because they are the Church. In this simple but straight forward way, Paul declares the reality that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not divided nor does it bring division. Rather, it unifies all that are brought under its jurisdiction. In keeping with Paul’s admonition to live as one called by God through the Gospel, Paul appeals to the Church at Corinth to be unified under the banner of Christ. It has been reported to Paul that there are divisions within the Church itself. This could not be further from what Paul expects for this Church. In verse ten of the first chapter Paul says, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” Here, Paul does not level an authoritative charge for the believers of Corinth to agree or else. Rather he appeals to them as a brother in Christ, a fellow worker as it were. Paul’s appeal for unity is found in any other thing than the name of Christ Himself. It is the name of Christ that brings individuals from so varied a background into one body, one fellowship. Consequently, because the body of Christ is made up of numerous persons, there inevitably shall be a wide difference of opinion but Paul calls the Church to guard against the divisions that serve only to weaken and destroy the witness of the Christ’s Church. In Paul’s estimation the only possibility of this type of unity occurring is through the uniting power of the Gospel. At the end of verse ten Paul says, “…but that you be united…” “United” here is the Greek word κατηρτισμένοι, meaning to be made completely adequate or sufficient for some task. In the perfect active participial form what Paul is communicating is that the power of God through the Gospel which has saved all His children prepares not only the individual for his specific task but also makes that person sufficiently ready to engage in corporate fellowship with other believers in kingdom work. With this being the expected case, division within the Church may at best indicate an ignorance to who one truly is in Christ or at worse, the presence of those who only claim to be of Christ but who are in reality unregenerate.
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