By: Obed Pineda
“Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, ‘Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.’” (Acts 18:9-10)
If one were to be standing in the Acropolis of Athens and turned west, the enormous natural citadel of Corinth would come into view, sitting only forty-five miles away from the ancient Grecian city. Atop the 1,880 foot summit of the monolithic rock (also known as the Acrocorinth) the temple of Aphrodite had its home. It was not uncommon to build the temple of a city’s patron god upon the highest point of the city, since this provided the comfort that their god would oversee the entire city and protect it from all possible threats. Providing her guardians with an incredible vantage point of the Saronic Gulf to the east and the Gulf of Corinth to the west, it is no wonder why it often became southern Greece’s last line of defense against enemies trying to enter through the Peloponnese peninsula. Indeed, whoever controlled the Isthmus of Corinth had a vital advantage against any foe. Recognizing its great military worth, Julius Caesar made it into a Roman colony around 44 B.C., and only a short time later Augustus Caesar would appoint it as the capital of the province of Achaia. Historians agree that Julius Caesar had resuscitated the ancient city back to life by repopulating it with the freedman class of Rome. These were men and women who had been legally freed from their slavery and were allowed by Rome to become plebeian citizens (i.e. “commoners” or a “common person”). Due to being released from bondage, they could not belong to the aristocracy of Rome, but they were now also slightly higher than a slave. This, however, presented a problem for Rome in the form of overpopulation because a large part of the society was composed of slaves; former and current. Thus, allocating Corinth to this numerous class of freedman was a brilliant strategic move by Julius Caesar that benefited all parties involved. What transpired as a result of this was a socioeconomic boom that made Corinth very attractive and opened its doors to the entire world (cf. Acts 18:1-8, 1st Corinthians 9:19-23). Under Roman rule, Corinth quickly became richly diversified with a conglomerate of cultures, customs, backgrounds, and religious beliefs. It was into this ancient melting pot that Paul entered, when he arrived to Corinth approximately in the winter of 50 – 51 A.D. Biblical scholars agree on this time frame because Luke pens that Paul “continued there a year and six months, teaching the Word of God among them. When Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him to the judgment seat” (Acts 18:11-12). This date is substantiated by a letter that was unearthed by archaeologists in 1905, written by Roman Emperor Claudius and addressed to Lucius Junius Gallio, proconsul of Achaia. This letter is believed to have been written around 52 A.D., with Gallio’s proconsulship dated by historians to have been in 51 A.D. Based on these two historical pieces of evidence, it is estimated that Paul’s arrival to Corinth from Athens happened around the winter of 50 or 51 A.D. This information also confirms that Paul found a very prosperous and diversified metropolis in the first century, where he would establish an extraordinary congregation that was “enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift” (1st Corinthians 1:5-7a). Thus, it comes as no surprise that their egos were in dire need of being deflated by the apostle with his first epistle, since in it he addresses an array of different issues that needed to be corrected. It is wise to notice the number of times the apostle states, “your glorying is not good,” in several different ways (1st Corinthians 5:6a, cf. 1:26-31, 3:18-23, 6:5-11, 8:1-3, 11:17-22, 15:31-34). Understanding that intelligence not restrained by godly love is a recipe for eternal disaster (cf. 1st Corinthians 8:1), the apostle Paul brings to their memory from whence they came, espousing, “for behold your calling, brethren, that there are not many wise according to the flesh, not many powerful, not many high-born” (1st Corinthians 1:26, ASV). Remember that Julius Caesar had declared that Corinth was to be repopulated with the freedman class of Rome; not the nobility. Ergo, Paul was reminding them that many of them had come from slavery, something many of them were very likely embarrassed about since it was the lowest class of society during the first century. Furthermore, it was very likely that the majority of them fell into slavery because of unwise decisions they had previously made in life (e.g. high debt they later could not repay, violating certain laws where enslavement was the punishment, etc.). It is also essential to comprehend that Paul wisely puts into perspective that a Christian’s previous condition (outside of Christ) was one of spiritual bondage, for the Master affirms, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34). However, the apostle’s purpose is to demonstrate that our salvation is not contingent on our earthly possessions, abilities, achievements, or anything we think we may have to offer, but of the omnibenevolent God who placed us “in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God – and righteousness and sanctification and redemption – that, as it is written, ‘He who glories, let him glory in the Lord’” (1st Corinthians 1:30-31). This gorgeous revelation of God’s complete salvation provided to mankind, unveils why man is unable to attain salvation on his own without Divine intervention. The apostle’s inspired words echo the Master’s first beatitude professing, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Keep in mind that the Savior is not only speaking about being humble and contrite, but also about being fully reliant on Him (as exemplified by Father Abraham in offering up his only son, Isaac, cf. Genesis 22:7-8, Hebrews 11:17-19). Although it is vital to continue to grow spiritually, and it is wonderful to be blessed to witness that personal growth happening in our own lives, let us not lose sight that “We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do” (Luke 17:10b).