In Paul's view, there are Jews, there are Gentiles, and then there are those who belong to Jesus – those who are Christians.
The thing that characterizes all Gentiles is idolatry. That’s the effect of Paul’s phrase, “however you were led.” “however you were led” – you were led astray to mute idols. It may have been the overwhelming force of the tradition of the Roman gods. It may have been the persuasive power of Greek philosophy. It may have been the alluring rituals of eastern mystery religions.
But what all Gentiles have in common is mute idols – gods that do not speak.
Jews have the Law. Gentiles have mute idols.
Christians have the gospel – the good news that Jesus has come to redeem us from the curse of the Law – the good news that Jesus has come to redeem us from mute idols!
But in Corinth, the divisions in the church are making it harder to figure out who is a Christian. We know that some of them were oriented around personalities (I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, I am of Cephas, I am of Christ); we know that others were about sexual practices and business ethics (one man was sleeping with his father’s wife; others were going to law against each other); we know that there were divisions about whether you could eat food sacrificed to idols (Paul spent chapters 8-10 working through the principles for this).
Apparently these divisions also involved questions about how the Holy Spirit works in the church....
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