Big Idea: Paul introduces himself as a fellow Christ follower and reminds his Corinthian friends that calling Christ Lord should generate life patterns that reflect such a relationship to Christ.

Understanding the Text

If anything strikes someone who begins reading 1 Corinthians, it is how Paul packs content into every word from the outset. When we realize how well he knows the Corinthian congregation even on a personal level and recognize that this is at least his second letter to the church (5:9), it is quite remarkable that even his opening “hello” reads like a thoughtful theological reflection. Not only does he broadly follow the conventions for a traditional Greco-Roman letter opening;1he subtly introduces the major perspectives that will guide his discussion in the coming sections …