1 Corinthians 8:6, a Pioneer Favorite - Gary Hullquist

1 Corinthians 8:6 was a favorite text among the early Adventism authors. At least 27 times this text was quoted during the life time of Ellen White in our publications. Amazingly, she never once did. However, the closely related passage, John 17:3 which also makes clear distinction between God the Father and Jesus Christ His Son, was liberally included in well over 200 of her printed articles and letters.

1 Corinthians 8:6 is the notable Pauline statement that formed the basis of the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed and the first two Fundamental Principles of the Seventh-day Adventist believers published in 1872 as a pamphlet and in 1874 in the Signs of the Times.  A plot of the dates (1845, 1854, 1860, 1862, 1866 x2, 1872, 1881, 1882 x2, 1883 x2, 1888, 1889 x2, 1890 x2, 1893, 1895, 1896, 1897 x2, 1898 x4, 1900, 1901, 1902)  in which this text appeared in SDA publications demonstrates a concentrated distribution about leading up to and then following the historic 1888 General Conference.

Excerpts from these are listed below for your benefit and appreciation of the pervasive use of this Scripture during this time period.

Thomas Motherwell Preble, The Two Adams, 1845? P. 21:

But, is the Son of God, the same personal identity or sameness of being with the Father? The apostle says: "I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God." (1 Cor. 11:3.) God, then, is the head of Christ, his Son; as the man is the head of the woman. Hence, the apostle again says: "But to us there is but one God the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. (1 Cor. 8:6.) Mark this! "One God the Father" and "One Lord Jesus Christ."

James M. Stephenson, The Atonement, 1854 p. 187,188; Review & Herald Dec 5, 1854:

"Although the Son of God. . . is honored with appropriate titles of dignity and glory, he is distinguished from 'the only true God,' by the following titles of supremacy which belong to the 'invisible God' alone.

Jehovah, Whose name alone is Jehovah. Ps. lxxxiii, 18.
The eternal God. Deut. xxxiii, 27.
Most high God. Mark v, 7; Dan. v, 18.
God alone. Ps. lxxxvi, 10; Isa. xxxvii, 16.
Lord alone. Neh. ix, 6.
God of heaven. Dan. ii, 44.
Besides me there is no God. Isa. xliv, 6.
Who only hath immortality. 1 Tim. vi, 16.
The only true God. John xvii, 3.
The King eternal, immortal, invisible. 1 Tim i, 17.
The only wise God. 1 Tim. i, 17.
Lord, God Omnipotent. Rev. xix, 6.
Blessed and only Potentate. 1 Tim. vi, 15.
One God and Father of all. Eph. iv, 6.
The only Lord God. Jude 4.
There is but one God, the Father. 1 Cor. viii, 6.
The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Cor. xi, 31."

John Nevell Andrews, The Sabbatic Insitution, and the Two Laws p. 24; Review & Herald May 29, 1860:

“THERE is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things.” 1Cor.8:6. From him all beings derive their existence.

James White, Review & Herald, July 29, 1862:

The Eld. said he would prove that no man could be a Christian and keep the first commandment. And how do you suppose he undertook to do it? He tried to show that we have two Gods in the gospel dispensation, therefore the first commandment was done away by the coming of Christ; for since that time we have had two Gods. I then quoted Paul, 1Cor.viii,4-6, "We know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one; for though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, as there be gods many and lords many; but to us there is but one God the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." This silenced his battery in that direction.

Uriah Smith, Review & Herald, March 13, 1866:

Said Jesus "Ye call me Master and Lord; and ye say well; for so I am." And, "One is your Master, even Christ." Paul said, "there is but one God, the Father," "and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things." Also, that the Holy Ghost instructs to call him Lord. 1 Cor. xii, 3. The title of "Lord," is frequently given to "Jesus Christ" in the Scriptures.”

J. Matteson “Sermon, Number Three. The Name ‘Jesus’” Review & Herald, April 10, 1866:

Let us consider, 1. The person to whom the name Jesus is applied…

1. The person to whom applied. On this we find many conflicting opinions among men. But the word of the Lord is clear and definite on this subject as well as all other subjects. It is generally and justly applied to the son of Mary, born at Bethlehem. But who is he? Is he only the son of Mary? Is he not also the only begotten Son of the living God? Did he exist before this world? Is he co-equal with the Father? Let us hear the inspired testimony. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . . He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. . . . And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. . . . John bare witness of him, . . . he was before me." John i. And the Saviour himself testifies, "Before Abraham was, I am." John viii, 58. Yet he is not the self-existing, only true God, but here the Son of God. and it has pleased the Father to bestow upon him all power, glory, wisdom and excellency, and to send him to this lower world to redeem his fallen creatures, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. "All power is given unto me in Heaven and in earth." Matt. xxviii. "Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature. For by him were all things created, . . . and he is before all things. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." Col. i. "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." John xvii. This may easily be harmonized with the oneness of the Father and the Son, for this unity is not in person, but in purpose and action. This is most decidedly proved in verse 22, "That they may be one, even as we are one." "There is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things; and one Lord, Jesus Christ." 1 Cor. viii. "There is, one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." 1 Tim. ii. Christ is truly God, for he is born of God; and truly man, for he is born of man. "Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. . . . And again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith, let all the angels of God worship him. . . . Unto the Son he saith, Thy throne O God, is, forever and ever. . . . God, even thy God, hath anointed thee." Heb. i.

Joseph Harvey Waggoner, A Written Discussion …Upon the Sabbath, 1872 p. 115:

The heathens, says Paul, have 'gods many' and 'lords many' but to us there is only "One God-the Father-of whom, etc. One Lord-Jesus Christ-by whom, etc. It is not a decision between two or more rival 'Lord Jesus Christ,' as any other construction would make it, but between several alledged 'Lords,' in which 'Jesus Christ,' as an appositive, is definitive of the 'one only Lord' in whose favor the decision falls, as 'the Father' is definitive of the 'one only God.'

A.T. Jones , The American Sentinel, December 1888 p. 89; 1891 p. 297:

We believe in one God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We believe in Jesus Christ as the Word of God, who is God, by whom "were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers," who is before all things, and by whom all things consist; by whom alone there is salvation; and who "is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him." We believe in the Holy Spirit as the one who convinces the world of sin and of righteousness, and of judgment; and as the Comforter and the Guide into all truth, of all who believe in Jesus. We believe that "except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God," either here or hereafter; and that in order to this new birth, men must be "justified by faith without the deeds of the law." We believe that it is by the obedience of Christ alone that men are made righteous; that this righteousness is the gift of God; that it is received by faith and kept by faith; and that there is no righteousness that will avail for any man, except this "righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe; for there is no difference; for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." We believe the Bible to be the word of God.

E.J. Waggoner, Signs of the Times, Oct 5, 1882; Nov 25, 1889:

Turning to consider this law, upon the observance of which our eternal destiny depends, we find that the Sabbath commandment is the most honored of them all. The fourth commandment is the one chosen to make known to men who the maker of the law is. It is true that three other commandments contain the word "God," but there is nothing in them to designate who is referred to. "There be gods many and lords many, but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things." 1 Cor. 8:5, 6.

Signs of the Times Aug 2, 1883;  The Honor Due to God, 1889 p. 2:

“Why should we serve Jehovah, rather than the gods which the heathen worship? Because God created us and all things that we enjoy, and they did not. Paul says: "There be gods many and lords many, but to us there is but one God, the father, of whom are all things, and we are in him." 1 Cor. 8:5, 6”

Bible Echo and Signs of the Times, Feb 1, 1890:

‘"There be gods many and lords many, but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things." 1 Cor. 8:5, 6. The fourth commandment expressly declares that this only true God, the Creator of heaven and earth, is its author.”

Christ and His Righteousness, 1890 p. 19; The Present Truth, Jan 9, 1896:

A word of caution may be necessary here. Let no one imagine that we would exalt Christ at the expense of the Father or would ignore the Father. That cannot be, for their interests are one. We honor the Father in honoring the Son. We are mindful of Paul's words, that "to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him" (1 Cor. 8:6); just as we have already quoted, that it was by Him that God made the worlds. All things proceed ultimately from God, the Father; even Christ Himself proceeded and came forth from the Father, but it has pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell, and that He should be the direct, immediate Agent in every act of creation.

W.W.Prescott,  Christ and the Sabbath, 1893 p. 8:

God was manifested to the world in Jesus Christ. And it is true that from the beginning every manifestation of God to this world has been through Jesus Christ. "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." 1 Cor. 8:6. The Revised Version reads: "One Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him.

General Conference Bulletin, Feb 24, 1895 p. 318  “The Word of God”:

Let us now consider further how the word was given. It is the word of God proceeding forth and coming from God, just as Jesus Christ, the living Word, proceeded forth and came from God. But it came to us through Jesus Christ by the ministration of the Spirit. Let us read two or three scriptures; first, in 1Cor.8:6: "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom [through whom, Revised Version] are all things, and we by him." And so Christ's statement as recorded in Matt.11:27: "All things are delivered unto me of my Father." John's gospel, 3:35, says: "The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand." That is, all that God has done in this world in any way since the entrance of sin, he has done through Jesus Christ. So we have received the word of God through Jesus Christ, just as at Sinai the Father and the Son with the retinue of angels were there, but the Father spoke the word through the Son; and it was the same Jesus Christ who spoke the law in Mount Sinai that spoke the same law on the mount when he was here in the flesh, which is called the sermon on the mount. It was the same Jesus Christ; in one case in his divinity, with wonderful outward exhibition of power and glory; in the other case in the flesh, but the same Jesus Christ speaking from a mount in both places and speaking the same principles in both cases. So it has been through Jesus Christ that everything has come to us from God, and the Spirit has been the agency which he has used in giving us this word. So while it is indeed and in truth the word of God, Jesus Christ spoke the word. Jesus Christ gave the word. It was the Spirit of Christ in the prophets which testified beforehand of the sufferings and the glory.

Now that Spirit by which he gave the word is the actual representative of Jesus Christ. Let us read some scriptures upon that point. Read from John's gospel, fourteenth chapter, sixteenth verse and onward:-

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever: even the spirit of truth [From the twenty-sixth verse we learn that the Comforter is the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Spirit.]; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him: for he dwelleth with you ["Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."], and shall be in you. ["Which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."] I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more: but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? [How is it possible that we shall see you, and the world not see you?] Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Now read 1John 3:24: "Hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us." That is the way we know that he is in us. So in the fourth chapter, thirteenth verse: "Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit." So that may be used as a comment upon the twentieth verse of the fourteenth chapter of John: "At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you." How? - By his representative, the Spirit. I will not take time to comment further upon those scriptures. You can see that the thought in them is that he would come to them, and they should see him, because of his giving them the Spirit; and on the day of Pentecost this scripture was fulfilled, and has been fulfilled and is now fulfilling in the same way. He is with us: "Lo, I am with you alway." His presence is not a sort of figment, or notion, but it is a reality. Every Christian ought to believe in the real presence.

Now as a comment further upon that same idea, I will read in "Steps to Christ," page 84:-

And Pentecost brought them the presence of the Comforter, of whom Christ had said, "He shall be in you." And he had further said: "It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you." Henceforth, through the Spirit, Christ was to abide continually in the hearts of his children. Their union with him was closer than when he was personally with them. The light, and love, and power of the indwelling Christ shone out through them, so that men, beholding, marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

I will also read a word from a recent Testimony commenting upon this same idea: "If we open the door to Jesus, he will come in and abide with us. Our strength will always be reinforced by his actual representative, the Holy Spirit." "By his actual representative, the Holy Spirit"; then the Spirit which gave the word was the actual representative of Jesus, and the spirit which abides in the word is the actual representative of Jesus. That is, Jesus gave the word, and Jesus abides in the word; and it is altogether the word of Jesus. Yet it is none the less the word of God; but as being given to us through Jesus Christ, and by the ministration of that spirit, it becomes the word of Jesus.

Now, further as to the characteristics of that word. In the epistle to Titus, first chapter, verses one and two, we read:-

Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.

The thought that I want from that text is that God cannot lie. The same thought is brought out in Heb.6:17,18:-

Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us.

It is impossible for God to lie. God cannot lie. Everything depends upon his word; and being a God of truth, and Jesus Christ the truth, the spirit, the spirit of truth, God cannot lie. That is to say, God is infallible, and God's word therefore is an infallible word. He cannot lie. But that word is also the word of Jesus Christ, and he, equally with the Father, is infallible. So this word is the infallible word of the infallible God, given to us through the infallible Son, Jesus Christ. Observe the force of that statement. It is the infallible word; it cannot be wrong. It is more than that, it is the true word. One of you may speak a word that is true, but you are not infallible. You may lie, but God cannot lie; and he who cannot lie is the infallible one, and the word of one who cannot lie is an infallible word.

AT Jones, The Bible Echo and Signs of the Times, Sept 20, 1897

“How the Catholic Creed was Made. The Council of Nice” (Jones is here merely quoting the wording of the creed. But notice how it incorporates 1Cor 8:6):

We believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of all things both visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father, only begotten, that is to say, of the substance of the Father, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made, both things in heaven and things in earth; who for us man, and for our salvation, came down, and was made flesh, and was made men, suffered, and rose again on the third day went up into the heavens, and is to come again to judge the quick and dead. And in the Holy Ghost.

Clinton De W. Sharp, Review and Herald Nov 9, 1897 “The Son of God with Power” (excerpts):

“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” John 12:32.

The nominal church professes to life up Jesus Christ; but she fails to lift him up from the earth.  He is held before the world only as the Son of Man, not as “the Lord from heaven” (1Cor. 15:47, “the Son of God with power.”

...

Since Jesus Christ is “declared to be the Son of God with power,” what manner of power shall it be—creative power or redemptive power?  You will say, “Redemptive power is creative power;” and to prove your words quote, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.” 2 Cor. 5:17...

What is the first recorded manifestation of creative power?  You answer, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Yes. Was Jesus Christ present at the creation? Don’t know? What does God say? Turn to John 1.  In the first verse we read: “In the beginning was the Word.”  God says the Word was in the beginning. Don’t know who the Word was?  “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.” Verse 14.  Who was the only begotten of the Father?  “He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:18.  “Son of God”?—Yes; Jesus Christ.

Well, then, in the beginning was Jesus Christ...”In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word [Jesus Christ] was with God [the Father].” That is tangible, is it not?  “And the Word was God.” Was God.  Can we understand that?  Let us consult the Word.  In Isa. 9:6, speaking of the birth of Christ, God says, “And his name shall be called...The mighty God,...”  It was prophesied that Christ’s name should be called “God.”  Was this prophecy ever fulfilled? Paul tells us (Titus 1:1-3) that the word of truth was committed unto him, “according to the commandment of God our Saviour.” Who is God our Saviour?—He is Jesus Christ.

But you say, “Are you sure?”—Verily, we are sure. Let us turn to the first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Hebrews; there Paul is seeking to show Christ as the Son of God with power, and his exalted position above the angels.  He says: “For unto which of the angels said he [God] at any time, Thou art my Son?...Of the angels he saith...Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister...?  “But unto the Son he said,” notice now!  “but unto the Son he said, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever.” So we find that Christ “was made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they,” even the name of God.

“His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” How did it happen that Christ came by the name of “God”?—In the same way that you come by your father’s name—he inherited it.

Now we can understand John 1:1: “In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word [Jesus Christ] was with God [the Father], and the Word [Jesus Christ] was God [God the Son].”  Did he have anything to do with the works of creation? The Bible says he did. ...

Some one may say, You claim that all things were created by Jesus Christ; but in Gen. 1:26 we read, “And God said, Let us make man.” What do you do with “us”?  Well, how is it that the New York Central railroad officials build a station? You say, “The company furnishes the power and materials, and has the station erected by some contractor, according to its plans.” Yes, that is the way it is done. So God “hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the world.” Heb. 1:1,2.

God the Father furnished the power. Christ himself afterward said (Matt. 28:18), “All power is given unto me.” The power was given to Christ by his Father; but all things were created, all things were brought into existence, by Jesus Christ; he spoke the word that created all. Eph. 3:9 says, “God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.”  Therefore, “To us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.” 1 Cor. 8:6.

E.J. Waggoner, the Present Truth, June 16, 1898, p. 372;  American Sentinel, July 14, 1898  p. 421; Three Sabbaths, 1898 p. 1:

One can in truth speak of sabbaths in the plural only as one can speak of many gods. "There is no god but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth; as there are gods many and lords many; yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we through Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him." 1 Cor. 8:5, 6. So, though there be various sabbaths, so-called, there is but one true Sabbath, the Sabbath of the Lord.

The Present Truth, July 21, 1898, p. 452:

So they "worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator." Not only so, but the ancients, in their limited idea of God, thinking that He could do but one thing, made every different work, and every different manifestation of energy, a different god. They had a god of the heavens, and a god of the earth; a god of the winds, and a god of the waves; gods for trees, and gods working different things in men; but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him." 1 Cor. viii. 6.

W.W.Prescott, The Present Truth vol. 16, March 29, 1900:

The Gospel of the kingdom, preached in all the world, is to make known the truth that "no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth; as there are gods many, and lords many; yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him.

E.J. Waggoner, The Present Truth, March 14, 1901, p. 163:

“There is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." 1 Cor. viii. 4-6. Therefore it is that we are to love the Lord "with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our might." Deut. vi. 4, 5.

The Present Truth, June 12, 1902 p. 372:

It is necessary for God to give His life to us, because we have no life in ourselves. "In Him we live, and move, and have our being," "for we are His offspring." "There is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things." 1 Cor. viii. 6. "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth [born], or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting Thou art God." Ps. xc. 1, 2. There is not a created thing in the universe that is not the product of the life of God, and that is not kept in existence by the continued gift of His life. The invisible things of God, even His everlasting power and Divinity, are to be perceived through the things that are made, and had been thus clearly manifested ever since the creation. Rom. i. 20. "Of him, and through Him, and to Him are all things." Rom. xi. 36. "There is one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all." Eph. iv. 6, R.V.

A.T. Jones, The Medical Missionary, Jan 20, 1909:

"That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ…”

By this Scripture it is plain that Christian fellowship is not primarily fellowship with one another; but fellowship with the Father and with the Son; and then fellowship with one another as the consequence of this fellowship with the Father and the Son…

All who are of this true, this divine, unity are one. They do not have to feel around to see whether it is so. It is so already, and they know it; they know it by the Spirit of Him in whom alone the unity is found. And among all these "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus"; "there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free; but Christ is all, and in all;" and "the one God the Father of all is over and through all and in you all;" with "the Son also himself subject" unto God even the Father, "that God may be all in all." 1 Cor. 15:28.

These last two were found within the Spirit of Prophecy CD-ROM Pioneer’s Edition. They are beyond the lifetime of Ellen White but demonstrate that this text remained a favorite among those who lived contemporaneously with the Messenger of the Lord.

W.W.Prescott, Signs of the Times, March 4, 1930

“Christianity could not be treated by the Roman authorities as one of its recognized religions, since its supporters could not concede this deification of the emperor, but on the contrary affirmed that "to us there is one God, the Father, . . . and one Lord, Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 8:6. The apostle Paul declared, "We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord." 2 Corinthians 4:5.”

“It shows that the church of the first century unequivocally accepted in full measure the deity of Jesus Christ. . . .”

The Spade and the Bible, 1932 p. 195

Because in its very nature Christianity was different from every form of heathenism in that it was an exclusive religion. This characteristic mark of Christianity is clearly stated by the apostle Paul: "We know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth; as there are gods many, and lords many; yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him." 1 Cor. 8:4-6.

Let's not overlook 1Corinthians 8:7,

"Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge"