Paul’s Theological Thinking

Since we’ve been observing how Christians are to think theologically, rather than pragmatically, instrumentally, or from an anthropological starting point, here’s a summary of what we observed from last Sunday’s class. I have taken Paul’s words and indicated in brief, with what is in bold, the grand theological ideas on which he is basing his teaching as he demonstrates to the Corinthians why they should not be participants in cultic pagan sexual activity now that they are following Jesus. In these few verses he draws from what we know about God and his work (creation, redemption, lordship, incarnation, resurrection, union) to reason toward what is the appropriate conduct for disciples of Jesus in first century Corinth. Paul is reasoning from a theological meta-narrative. He is training the Corinthians not to be rule followers, but those who think and act theologically.

1 Corinthians 6:12-17

¹² All things are lawful for me, [Creation: God created all things to be good, so nothing is evil in itself] but not all things are profitable. [Redemption: Assumes God is moving us toward the original goodness of creation, but sober self-awareness reveals that not every good thing is helping us do that] All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything. [God is Lord: We should only have one master, God himself] ¹³ Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. [New Creation: In addressing the Corinthian euphemism of food and the stomach which seems to refer to sex, our present sexuality is not a part of the age to come] Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. [Incarnation: Christ coming in the flesh has redeemed our bodies, which are now for the Lord and the Lord for them, anticipating the new creation] ¹⁴ Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. [Resurrection: The beginning of the new age in Jesus’ resurrection means that we live in anticipation and preparation for the world to come] ¹⁵ Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! ¹⁶ Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” ¹⁷ But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. [Oneness: As followers of Jesus we have come into a oneness with God through Christ, which is to be mirrored and not contradicted by our human relationships]

This example of Paul’s theological thinking should be instructive for us. He does not counter the Corinthian sexual behavior by citing laws which forbid such activity. Instead, he draws on how our lives ought to be shaped by God’s nature, in which we have become participants, escaping “the corruption that is in the world by lust.” (2 Peter 1:4).