The One Ring was forged by Sauron in the second age. Sauron says he is the Giver of Gifts, sort of like Satan in garden, he does give "gifts". Like the rings of power he made and gave to others, or helped others make, so he wd have influence on them. The One Ring then is fought for and stolen and taken and killed for from master to master, passed down through the ages.
The One Ring has power and corrupts others to hordeing it, and others to kill for it. Isildur says he deserves it as a wereguild when he decides not to throw in cracks of doom; lie, he really just wants it. Smeagol says it's a birthday present; lie, he really just wanted it. No one can do any good while holding the ring, no one can succeed with their designs while holding the ring, no one can even think or try to destroy the ring while holding it.
Until Frodo. Why? Bc he's a hobbit, yes. But also, bc he knows he received it as a birthday present, and it's not a lie, and was not taken by force but with Faramir-like disinterestedness. The manner of Bilbo's giving it away, as hard as it is for him, is a counterspell that reverses the power of the ring to work only its own ends. This is great motivation for all the choices we make in our lives, when trying to be better and resisting a force that compels us from deep in our mind wo our even noticing it (we think we've "put the ring on the mantel", but it's still in our pocket). This also explains why the ring is not able to throw itself off of Frodo (as it does Gollum and Isildur) so easily, and black riders come so close but miss It.
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