1 Corinthians 1:1.2.3.

We are called according to God’s purposes not our own. 

Help us to be sanctified in Your will. In everything we do may it be done through and in the salvation You provided inJesus Christ. Our faith pleases You…Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In the unity of the Holy Spirit we can accomplish Your will for our life.

 May the peace of God reign in our hearts!

Paul’s appointment to the office of apostle was God’s decision, not a person’s or group’s. Paul doesn’t need the affirmation of the Corinthians because God chose him. Sanctification is the process of a believer becoming more like Christ in thought and action.

The Greek word used here, ekklēsia, refers to a gathering of people, not a building; here, it references the gathering of Christ followers in Corinth. Faithlife Bible.

Corinth was a metropolitan city on the Mediterranean Sea with a population consisting of between 150,000 and 300,000 Roman citizens and approximately 460,000 slaves. Jewish people may have been some of the first settlers. The city contained many freed people who often became criminals because they were unable to work legitimate jobs; these may have represented the poor that Paul mentions. In the first century ad, when Paul wrote his letter, Corinth was known for its banking industry and incredible wealth. Shrines to deities of Greek, Roman, and even Egyptian gods have been discovered, and cult prostitution was common. The biannual Isthmian athletic games were held at Corinth, which made it a travel destination; these games also involved a celebration of the god Poseidon.

Paul’s words of introduction are more than simple words of greeting. The first few verses introduce the themes of his letter. Thus in his greeting, Paul introduces his apostolic authority, the sanctification of his readers, and the unity of all believers, all major themes of the letter and concerns for the Corinthian believers.

The Corinthian church greatly valued human wisdom. This misplaced emphasis had caused some in the church to challenge Paul’s authority. They forgot that Jesus Christ Himself had called him to his ministry as an apostle of Jesus Christ where Paul uses the same title.

The work of Jesus Christ makes a believer holy forever in God’s eyes. But in everyday living, sanctification involves small, daily changes. This is why Paul could call the Corinthian believers to become saints, even though the problems in their church testified that they were far from the goal of holiness. NKJ Bible

1 Corinthians 1:1–3 (NKJV)

1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

² To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 1:7 (NKJV)

⁷ To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 1:1 (NKJV)

1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God

Romans 3:22 (NKJV)

²² even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;