1 Corinthians 8 (4)

Pray Psalm 96.5-7.
For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
But the LORD made the heavens.
Honor and majesty are before Him;
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.
Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
Give to the LORD glory and strength.

Sing Psalm 96.5-7.
(Mit Freuden Zart: All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above)
All other gods are idols vain; the LORD created heaven.
Splendor and strength with Him obtain; to Him be glory given!
All fam’lies, praise this mighty LORD! Give strength and glory to His Word;
exalt the LORD of heaven!

Read 1 Corinthians 8.1-6; meditate on verses 5, 6.

Preparation
1. What does Paul say about God the Father?

2. What does he say about God the Son?

Meditation
“All other gods are idols vain,” as the psalmist put it. And though they be many, still there is for us who believe one God the Father and one Lord Jesus Christ. We look no further than this God for our salvation and hope.

There are “many gods and many lords” because people will worship and serve something greater than themselves, whether imagined spiritual beings or tangible things and experiences. But these are only “so-called” gods, though they may not even be recognized as such by those who pursue them. Christians will not recognize such “gods” and “lords” at any level. All our hope and joy are in the one God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We have our very existence by God the Father, as does all the rest of creation. His will, His Spirit, His Word are the motive powers of the universe. We look nowhere else for the mercy and grace we require for all our times of need (Heb. 4.16). We are sustained in this life by the Lord Jesus Christ, Who upholds the cosmos and everything in it by His powerful Word (Heb. 1.3), and Who dwells within us by His Spirit. So we look only to Him for our life and hope.

The gods and lords of the unbelieving world come and go. Our Father, His Spirit, and the Lord Jesus Christ endure forever, and we belong to this God. Let this be the unifying power of all our faith and life.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
I used to find diagraming sentences extremely satisfying and helpful.
To pull apart the subject and verb, with their adverbial and adjectival helpers, with the prepositional phrases and objects dangling precariously on the paper was not only fun but became very useful and informative as to the meaning of the sentence.

Verse 6 is just begging to be diagramed—but since we cannot do that here—instead, let’s write it out in phrases that give it the impact and meaning it deserves.

“Yet for us
there is one God, the Father,
of Whom
are all things,
and we for Him;
and
one Lord Jesus Christ,
through Whom
are all things,
and
through Whom
we live” (1Cor. 8.6).

“Have we not all one Father?
Has not one God created us?” (Mal. 2.10)

“In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things were made through Him,
and without Him nothing was made that was made” (Jn. 1.1-3).

Jesus said to His disciples,
“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also;
and from now on you know Him and have seen Him” (Jn. 14.7).

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him” (Col. 1.15, 16).

God has spelled it all out clearly for us. He has diagramed His plan plainly.
He has made it very simple and user-friendly. He wants us to know and understand it.
There are many mysteries in Christianity, and that must be so, or we would not need faith.

Clearly there is One God, One Jesus, One Holy Spirit, and nothing more.
We are only to serve this Triune God. No other gods need apply for our attention.
“All other gods are idols vain…” Subject, verb, predicate nominative, and adjectives.
No danglers…just life.

For reflection
1. What would you say to someone who said to you, “There is no God”?

2. Only God can give us peace and joy. How do we keep from looking to things for that which only God can give?

3. Share your love for Jesus with a fellow believer today, to encourage your friend in Jesus’ love us.

One God made all, and has power over all. The one God, even the Father, signifies the Godhead as the sole object of all religious worship; and the Lord Jesus Christ denotes the person of Emmanuel, God manifest in the flesh, One with the Father, and with us; the appointed Mediator, and Lord of all; through whom we come to the Father, and through whom the Father sends all blessings to us, by the influence and working of the Holy Spirit. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on 1 Corinthians 8.5, 6

Pray Psalm 96.1-4, 11-13.
Praise God for His glory and salvation! Ask Him to show you His glory, as all creation praises His Name. Pray for grace to know, love, and serve Him gladly today.

Sing Psalm 96.1-4, 11-13.
(Mit Freuden Zart: All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above)
Sing to the LORD! O, bless His Name! All nations tell His glory!
Salvation’s tidings loud proclaim; let earth rehearse His story!
For God is greatly to be praised; His throne above all gods is raised!
Fear Him and sing His glory!

Let heaven sing with lusty voice; let earth and sea sing sweetly!
Let fields and trees in Him rejoice, for He is coming swiftly
to judge the world in righteousness, the peoples in His faithfulness.
He comes; exalt Him greatly!

T. M. and Susie Moore

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter, available by clicking here.