“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.” - Acts 1:8
Today we will begin a 4 part overview of Christian history, with emphasis on the Baptist faith. These messages serve simply as an introduction to this vast and fascinating topic. You could devote your entire life to the study of this field - as many have. Though we will only scratch the surface, I believe it is important for us as Christians to have a basic understanding of our history. Knowing our past helps us to better face the future and meet the challenges of the present.
I. THE GOSPEL SPREADS (30-100 AD)
Christianity was founded by and is based upon the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus was crucified and resurrected from the grave sometime around 30 A.D. After appearing to many of His disciples over a period of 40 days, He ascended into Heaven. 10 days later, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell upon the apostles in Jerusalem. Peter began preaching the gospel to the crowds and some 3,000 people were saved. This occasion marked the official beginning of the Christian church.
The early disciples and new converts faced extreme pressure from the Jewish authorities who viewed their faith as a threat to Judaism and desired to crush it completely. Heavy persecution led many of the disciples to flee from Jerusalem, initially carrying the message of Christ across the region of Judea and into neighboring Samaria. Within a few decades, the gospel reached Syria, then Asia Minor, Macedonia, Greece, and Rome through the missionary travels of Paul and others. Christian churches were established in many cities - both large and small. The original disciples and their contemporaries strategically fanned out across the Roman Empire, proclaiming the name of Jesus in the Middle East, Western and Central Asia, Northern Africa, and all across the European continent.
At this time the Romans observed a polytheist, pagan religion that had been derived primarily from the Greeks. Their gods were very human and secular in nature. As Christianity continued to spread and take hold across the empire, the officials in Rome began to take notice and persecution against the early church intensified. Starting with Nero, many of the Roman emperors implemented sweeping and systematic persecutions against Christians. Many were imprisoned, tortured, and martyred for their faith. Despite these oppressive measures, the gospel continued to advance during the Apostolic Age and the Christian faith took root.
In addition to the original apostles and disciples, whose names are recorded in the Bible, historians recognize several other prominent Christians during this era. Most of them personally knew, worked alongside, and/or studied under the apostles. These include men such as Clement of Rome, Linus, and Polycarp.
II. HERESY CREEPS IN (100-325 AD)
Eventually it became clear that the advancement of Christianity could not be stopped, so many of its critics turned their attention to discrediting or distorting this new faith. With the original apostles having all died, the second and third generation Christians faced new challenges as they sought to maintain the fidelity of the early church to the teachings of Christ and the apostles. False teachers began cropping up in many churches promoting heresies, such as gnosticism, that perverted and sometimes contradicted the gospel message. These false teachers wrote and distributed many spurious letters and documents claiming them to be of equal standing with those of the original apostles. Some of the most well-known Christian apologists of this era, who boldly sought to defend the Christian faith even in the face of heavy persecution, included Irenaeus, Ignatius, and Justin Martyr.
Though religious denominations did not yet exist, major differences were beginning to develop within Christianity. The bishops (or pastors) of larger and more prominent churches began to claim and exercise regional authority over the numerous smaller congregations. The doctrine of baptismal regeneration was preached and became widely accepted among the churches. This naturally led to the practice of infant baptism which began during the early to mid second century. Within a few generations, the prevailing church had become filled with members who had been baptized involuntarily as babies but had no meaningful adult relationship with God. Those who spoke out against the growing impurity and unregenerate membership of the church were ostracized and/or excommunicated from it.
The persecution of Christians continued throughout the Roman Empire until the reign of Constantine the Great. On the verge of battle against a much larger foe, Constantine claimed to have seen a vision of Jesus, who subsequently led him to win a great victory which led to his emperorship. Perhaps out of genuine sincerity, or perhaps out of political expediency, Constantine showed sympathy for the Christian cause. As emperor, he issued the Edict of Milan in 313 A.D. allowing for the religious toleration of all faiths within the Roman Empire. Thus, the era of Roman oppression against the Christianity formally ended. Following Constantine’s lead, many people across the empire embraced the Christian church for the first time and subsequently converted to the faith.
III. A CHURCH EMERGES (325-500 AD)
During Constantine’s reign, a major controversy arose regarding the deity of Christ. The emperor summoned many of the empire’s leading bishops to convene and discuss this and other issues. This meeting, the Council of Nicea, was held in 325 A.D. and was the first of several such ecumenical councils that would take place over the coming centuries that sought to clarify and define theology and church administration. The council affirmed that Jesus was of the same divine nature and essence as God the Father. They formulated the Nicene Creed, which would later be edited and amended, formally codifying the church’s doctrinal stance on several basic issues of Christianity.
About 55 years later, in 380 A.D., Christianity was recognized as the official religion of the Roman Empire. Thus began the long and entangled relationship between the Church and the State. Exercising their newly acquired credibility, the prevailing church sought to universally apply its theology and practices across Christianity. To this end, a Latin translation of the Bible known as the Vulgate was produced to serve as the official text of the church. Liturgies were written to standardize the church’s worship. A new movement known as monasticism led many devout people to withdraw from society and live in seclusion as monks. Increasingly, Christians had become more preoccupied with debating and defining doctrinal beliefs than actually sharing the gospel with the lost. Some of the notable characters of this period include Augustine, Chrysostom, and Eusebius.
As the officially endorsed Catholic Church grew stronger and more organized through the fifth century, the western Roman Empire itself began to crumble. The European continent had been populated by several Germanic tribes who, along with the invading Huns, rebelled against and decimated much of the Roman military. Internal corruption and mounting economic pressures took their toll as well. While the eastern Roman Empire remained strong and intact (and became known as the Byzantine Empire), the western Roman Empire collapsed in 476 A.D. Still, the church remained and continued to thrive across Europe even after Rome’s demise.
CONCLUSION
During the first 500 years of church history, Roman Catholicism emerged as the prevailing form of Christianity and viewed itself as the one and only purveyor of truth. Unfortunately, it had greatly deviated and departed from many of the central teachings of Jesus and the original apostles. There were, however, groups of Christians in various places that stood opposed to the errors of the Catholic church. They were largely condemned and slandered. Though many were flawed in their theology to some extent, at least they maintained the New Testament doctrines of salvation by grace through faith alone, the autonomy of the local church, the priesthood of the believer, and individual religious liberty.
During this first phase of Christianity, the mission of the church devolved from declaring and demonstrating the gospel, to debating and defending the gospel, and finally to defining and dictating the gospel. By and large the church transitioned away from being an executive body, focused on simply performing the call and commands of Christ, and morphed into a legislative body, concerned with creating and prescribing rules and procedures to govern its own practices. Sadly, we still see evidence of this same misguided preoccupation today.
Today we will begin a 4 part overview of Christian history, with emphasis on the Baptist faith. These messages serve simply as an introduction to this vast and fascinating topic. You could devote your entire life to the study of this field - as many have. Though we will only scratch the surface, I believe it is important for us as Christians to have a basic understanding of our history. Knowing our past helps us to better face the future and meet the challenges of the present.
I. THE GOSPEL SPREADS (30-100 AD)
Christianity was founded by and is based upon the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus was crucified and resurrected from the grave sometime around 30 A.D. After appearing to many of His disciples over a period of 40 days, He ascended into Heaven. 10 days later, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell upon the apostles in Jerusalem. Peter began preaching the gospel to the crowds and some 3,000 people were saved. This occasion marked the official beginning of the Christian church.
The early disciples and new converts faced extreme pressure from the Jewish authorities who viewed their faith as a threat to Judaism and desired to crush it completely. Heavy persecution led many of the disciples to flee from Jerusalem, initially carrying the message of Christ across the region of Judea and into neighboring Samaria. Within a few decades, the gospel reached Syria, then Asia Minor, Macedonia, Greece, and Rome through the missionary travels of Paul and others. Christian churches were established in many cities - both large and small. The original disciples and their contemporaries strategically fanned out across the Roman Empire, proclaiming the name of Jesus in the Middle East, Western and Central Asia, Northern Africa, and all across the European continent.
At this time the Romans observed a polytheist, pagan religion that had been derived primarily from the Greeks. Their gods were very human and secular in nature. As Christianity continued to spread and take hold across the empire, the officials in Rome began to take notice and persecution against the early church intensified. Starting with Nero, many of the Roman emperors implemented sweeping and systematic persecutions against Christians. Many were imprisoned, tortured, and martyred for their faith. Despite these oppressive measures, the gospel continued to advance during the Apostolic Age and the Christian faith took root.
In addition to the original apostles and disciples, whose names are recorded in the Bible, historians recognize several other prominent Christians during this era. Most of them personally knew, worked alongside, and/or studied under the apostles. These include men such as Clement of Rome, Linus, and Polycarp.
II. HERESY CREEPS IN (100-325 AD)
Eventually it became clear that the advancement of Christianity could not be stopped, so many of its critics turned their attention to discrediting or distorting this new faith. With the original apostles having all died, the second and third generation Christians faced new challenges as they sought to maintain the fidelity of the early church to the teachings of Christ and the apostles. False teachers began cropping up in many churches promoting heresies, such as gnosticism, that perverted and sometimes contradicted the gospel message. These false teachers wrote and distributed many spurious letters and documents claiming them to be of equal standing with those of the original apostles. Some of the most well-known Christian apologists of this era, who boldly sought to defend the Christian faith even in the face of heavy persecution, included Irenaeus, Ignatius, and Justin Martyr.
Though religious denominations did not yet exist, major differences were beginning to develop within Christianity. The bishops (or pastors) of larger and more prominent churches began to claim and exercise regional authority over the numerous smaller congregations. The doctrine of baptismal regeneration was preached and became widely accepted among the churches. This naturally led to the practice of infant baptism which began during the early to mid second century. Within a few generations, the prevailing church had become filled with members who had been baptized involuntarily as babies but had no meaningful adult relationship with God. Those who spoke out against the growing impurity and unregenerate membership of the church were ostracized and/or excommunicated from it.
The persecution of Christians continued throughout the Roman Empire until the reign of Constantine the Great. On the verge of battle against a much larger foe, Constantine claimed to have seen a vision of Jesus, who subsequently led him to win a great victory which led to his emperorship. Perhaps out of genuine sincerity, or perhaps out of political expediency, Constantine showed sympathy for the Christian cause. As emperor, he issued the Edict of Milan in 313 A.D. allowing for the religious toleration of all faiths within the Roman Empire. Thus, the era of Roman oppression against the Christianity formally ended. Following Constantine’s lead, many people across the empire embraced the Christian church for the first time and subsequently converted to the faith.
III. A CHURCH EMERGES (325-500 AD)
During Constantine’s reign, a major controversy arose regarding the deity of Christ. The emperor summoned many of the empire’s leading bishops to convene and discuss this and other issues. This meeting, the Council of Nicea, was held in 325 A.D. and was the first of several such ecumenical councils that would take place over the coming centuries that sought to clarify and define theology and church administration. The council affirmed that Jesus was of the same divine nature and essence as God the Father. They formulated the Nicene Creed, which would later be edited and amended, formally codifying the church’s doctrinal stance on several basic issues of Christianity.
About 55 years later, in 380 A.D., Christianity was recognized as the official religion of the Roman Empire. Thus began the long and entangled relationship between the Church and the State. Exercising their newly acquired credibility, the prevailing church sought to universally apply its theology and practices across Christianity. To this end, a Latin translation of the Bible known as the Vulgate was produced to serve as the official text of the church. Liturgies were written to standardize the church’s worship. A new movement known as monasticism led many devout people to withdraw from society and live in seclusion as monks. Increasingly, Christians had become more preoccupied with debating and defining doctrinal beliefs than actually sharing the gospel with the lost. Some of the notable characters of this period include Augustine, Chrysostom, and Eusebius.
As the officially endorsed Catholic Church grew stronger and more organized through the fifth century, the western Roman Empire itself began to crumble. The European continent had been populated by several Germanic tribes who, along with the invading Huns, rebelled against and decimated much of the Roman military. Internal corruption and mounting economic pressures took their toll as well. While the eastern Roman Empire remained strong and intact (and became known as the Byzantine Empire), the western Roman Empire collapsed in 476 A.D. Still, the church remained and continued to thrive across Europe even after Rome’s demise.
CONCLUSION
During the first 500 years of church history, Roman Catholicism emerged as the prevailing form of Christianity and viewed itself as the one and only purveyor of truth. Unfortunately, it had greatly deviated and departed from many of the central teachings of Jesus and the original apostles. There were, however, groups of Christians in various places that stood opposed to the errors of the Catholic church. They were largely condemned and slandered. Though many were flawed in their theology to some extent, at least they maintained the New Testament doctrines of salvation by grace through faith alone, the autonomy of the local church, the priesthood of the believer, and individual religious liberty.
During this first phase of Christianity, the mission of the church devolved from declaring and demonstrating the gospel, to debating and defending the gospel, and finally to defining and dictating the gospel. By and large the church transitioned away from being an executive body, focused on simply performing the call and commands of Christ, and morphed into a legislative body, concerned with creating and prescribing rules and procedures to govern its own practices. Sadly, we still see evidence of this same misguided preoccupation today.