One God, One Lord

Scripture Text 1 Corinthians 8:5-6

Intro: There are many religions coming into our nation on a daily basis. They are busy influencing our society with their false religions. We Christians must begin to stand up and speak up for Jesus as the only way to God through His salvation, and Heaven. John 14:6 (NKJV) ⁶ Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.  A person’s eternal destination depends on their hearing the truth.

I. There are many gods and lords. 1 Corinthians 8:5 (NKJV)  For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords),

   There have been many gods since the Apostle Paul’s day!

 a. There are 19 major world religions which are subdivided into a total of 270 large religious groups, and many smaller ones. There are five major religions. Hindus acknowledge multitudes of gods and goddesses. Buddhists say there is no deity, only enlightenment. New Age followers believe they are God. Muslims believe in a powerful but unknowable God. They do not believe Jesus is deity. It is true that people call out to many gods. There are gods of their own minds and imaginations, ideas, notions, and pleasures. There are gods of wood and stone. There are gods and lords of their own creation.

II. We Christians believe there is one knowable God. 1 Corinthians 8:6a (NKJV) ^6a yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; Deuteronomy 10:17 (NKJV) For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. Deut. 6:4 says “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.”

 a. He is called our Father in the O.T. (Deut. 32:6)  Isaiah 64:8 (NKJV) But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand.

 b. He is called Father in the N.T. Romans 8:15-16 (NKJV) ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father." ¹⁶ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

   1. All things are from Him. (Gen. 1:1) Romans 11:36 (NKJV)  For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

   2. We were created by Him and exist for Him. (Gen. 1:27) Pastor John Piper, says “The point of being created in the image of God is that human beings are destined to display God. That’s what images do.” We live for fellowship with Him. (1 John 1:3) We live to do everything for God’s glory. (1 Cor. 10:31)

III. There is one Lord, Jesus Christ. (V: 6b) 1 Corinthians 8:6b (NKJV) and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NKJV) ⁵ For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

  a. He is “King of kings” and Lord of lords.” (Rev.19:16)

  b. He is God and all things were created through Him. John 1:1-3 (NKJV) ¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In the beginning Jesus Christ the Son was the Word, the One who had always co-existed with God before the world was created. John was saying that "the Word," Jesus Christ is of the very nature and character of God the Father, but He is not the identical person of God the Father. Jesus was with God, He is a distinct person from God the Father, but He is of the very being, the essence, and (perfection) of God the Father.

  When a man sees Christ, he sees a distinct person, but he sees a person who is of the very substance, character and nature of God in all of His perfect being.

   V:3) All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made. Colossians 1:15(NKJV)  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

 Jesus Christ is above all things. The word "firstborn" does not mean that Jesus Christ was the first created being of the universe. It means priority, superiority, preeminence, supremacy over all created things. It means that He existed before all creation as the Supreme Being over the universe. All creation is His heritage. Col. 1: ¹⁶ 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. ¹⁷ And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

 c. We are given eternal life through Him. No other religion can personally know God as we Christians do. All roads to God must come through Jesus Christ, the narrow way.  

  John 14:6 (NKJV) Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Acts 4:12 (NKJV) Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

  1 John 5:11-13 (NKJV) ¹¹ And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. ¹² He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. ¹³ These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.                                                                                                 Invitation: Do you have the Son in your life? If you do not you don’t have eternal life either! You can have the Son in your life if you confess your sins to Jesus and ask Him to forgive you, and then invite Him into your life to take charge of you. Then you will personally know the one true God and you will have a home in Heaven when you pass from this earthly life.