The Christian Church Through the Ages

The Christian Church Through the Ages a. The Church of the Old Testament God’s church stretches from Eden to Eden. Those who have obeyed God have been called by various names, such as “the sons of God,” “the seed of Abraham,” “the children of Israel,” “Christians.” They all have the same fundamental beliefs. The church of the Old Testament accepted the law of God as its rule of life. The Ten- Commandment law is unchangeable because it is an expression of God’s character, which is universal, eternal, unchangeable. Long before the commandments were given to Moses on Mount Sinai the people of God were keeping them. God said, “Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws ” (Genesis 26:5). God has had only one method of salvation, one standard of righteousness, all through the ages. We read in Psalm 105:8-11 that He made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the children of Israel “for an everlasting covenant.” God declares that the covenant was made forever, “the word which He commanded to a thousand generations.” It is not correct to say that in the Old Testament times people were under law and in New Testament times people were under grace. God has always maintained a harmony of law and grace. We are saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and when we have experienced this salvation and have entered into a saving relationship with Him, we delight to do His will. The members of the Old Testament church showed their faith in the plan of salvation by offering a sacrifice. By faith they accepted God’s plan, for the sacrifice was a symbol of the Lamb of God, who would take away the sins of the world. They became free men and women, new creatures through faith in the coming Messiah. The hope of the ages has always been the coming of the Lord. God instructed the church members in Old Testament times through prophets. Moses was the first writer whom God used to record permanent instructions for His church and to preserve the people’s experiences for future generations. These inspired writings were read to the congregations on the seventh-day Sabbath and on other special occasions. These writings are known to us as the Old Testament. b. The Church of the New Testament The church of the New Testament received its fundamental beliefs from the Old Testament church. It accepted the law of God as a rule of life. The Lord Jesus knew that some people would think that He came to replace the teachings of the Old Testament church and the law, so He said,“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill ” (Matthew 5:17). Like the Old Testament church, the New Testament church loved and cherished the law of God. Paul declared, “I delight in the law of God after the inward man” (Romans 7:22). The Church of the New Testament was privileged to have the Lord of glory come to them inhuman form. Unfortunately, the members of the church, even though they studied the Scriptures,were so bound by walls of tradition that they missed accepting Jesus as the Saviour of the world.The apostles continued to preach, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). The apostolic church was organized after the ascension of Christ, and James became the first general president. The church had a strong evangelistic program. In addition to the twelve, we read of Paul, perhaps the greatest evangelist of all time, and of Barnabas, Silas, John Mark, Apollos, Timothy and Titus. The deacons were also elected as officers of the early church. It seems that the headquarters of the early church was at Jerusalem, but the apostles and teachers were commissioned to go “into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Officers and members of the early Christian church wrote Gospels and Epistles, not only for the early church, but also for the Christian church in later centuries. Only a few weeks after their Lord ascended to heaven, the members of the New Testament church suffered persecution. The disciples were put in prison for preaching, and Stephen became the first martyr. As Christianity spread through the Roman Empire, the church came in contact with paganism, and the followers of Jesus were imprisoned, tortured and put to death. The darkest hours of persecution were from about A.D. 100 to 300. When the sword did not end the Christian church,the enemy of souls tried another method of attack. He attempted to make the church popular with the state and bring pagan rites and ceremonies into the Christian religion. Little by little false teachings filtered into the church. The simple faith was lost as Christians became wealthy and powerful in business and government. In 476 A.D. the barbarian tribes from the north overthrew the Roman Empire, and in the struggle that followed, the head of the church at Rome became known as the bishop. The Bible was not placed in the hands of the church members, partly because only handwritten copies were available in those times, but mainly because the leaders of the church were afraid to let the people study the Holy Scriptures lest they discover that some church doctrines– such as the immortality of the soul, the worship of the saints, purgatory and the observance of Sunday– were not taught by the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church of Rome states that it changed the day of worship from the seventh to the first day of the week. History and the Bible show that the observance of Sunday as a Christian institution came from paganism. Despite the compromise and apostasy that crept into the church, there was always a faithful remnant who had the faith of Jesus and kept the commandments of God. a. The Church of the Old Testament God’s church stretches from Eden to Eden. Those who have obeyed God have been called by various names, such as “the sons of God,” “the seed of Abraham,” “the children of Israel,” “Christians.” They all have the same fundamental beliefs. The church of the Old Testament accepted the law of God as its rule of life. The Ten- Commandment law is unchangeable because it is an expression of God’s character, which is universal, eternal, unchangeable. Long before the commandments were given to Moses on Mount Sinai the people of God were keeping them. God said, “Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws ” (Genesis 26:5). God has had only one method of salvation, one standard of righteousness, all through the ages. We read in Psalm 105:8-11 that He made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the children of Israel “for an everlasting covenant.” God declares that the covenant was made forever, “the word which He commanded to a thousand generations.” It is not correct to say that in the Old Testament times people were under law and in New Testament times people were under grace. God has always maintained a harmony of law and grace. We are saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and when we have experienced this salvation and have entered into a saving relationship with Him, we delight to do His will. The members of the Old Testament church showed their faith in the plan of salvation by offering a sacrifice. By faith they accepted God’s plan, for the sacrifice was a symbol of the Lamb of God, who would take away the sins of the world. They became free men and women, new creatures through faith in the coming Messiah. The hope of the ages has always been the coming of the Lord. God instructed the church members in Old Testament times through prophets. Moses was the first writer whom God used to record permanent instructions for His church and to preserve the people’s experiences for future generations. These inspired writings were read to the congregations on the seventh-day Sabbath and on other special occasions. These writings are known to us as the Old Testament. b. The Church of the New Testament The church of the New Testament received its fundamental beliefs from the Old Testament church. It accepted the law of God as a rule of life. The Lord Jesus knew that some people would think that He came to replace the teachings of the Old Testament church and the law, so He said,“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill ” (Matthew 5:17). Like the Old Testament church, the New Testament church loved and cherished the law of God. Paul declared, “I delight in the law of God after the inward man” (Romans 7:22). The Church of the New Testament was privileged to have the Lord of glory come to them inhuman form. Unfortunately, the members of the church, even though they studied the Scriptures,were so bound by walls of tradition that they missed accepting Jesus as the Saviour of the world.The apostles continued to preach, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). The apostolic church was organized after the ascension of Christ, and James became the first general president. The church had a strong evangelistic program. In addition to the twelve, we read of Paul, perhaps the greatest evangelist of all time, and of Barnabas, Silas, John Mark, Apollos, Timothy and Titus. The deacons were also elected as officers of the early church. It seems that the headquarters of the early church was at Jerusalem, but the apostles and teachers were commissioned to go “into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Officers and members of the early Christian church wrote Gospels and Epistles, not only for the early church, but also for the Christian church in later centuries. Only a few weeks after their Lord ascended to heaven, the members of the New Testament church suffered persecution. The disciples were put in prison for preaching, and Stephen became the first martyr. As Christianity spread through the Roman Empire, the church came in contact with paganism, and the followers of Jesus were imprisoned, tortured and put to death. The darkest hours of persecution were from about A.D. 100 to 300. When the sword did not end the Christian church,the enemy of souls tried another method of attack. He attempted to make the church popular with the state and bring pagan rites and ceremonies into the Christian religion. Little by little false teachings filtered into the church. The simple faith was lost as Christians became wealthy and powerful in business and government. In 476 A.D. the barbarian tribes from the north overthrew the Roman Empire, and in the struggle that followed, the head of the church at Rome became known as the bishop. The Bible was not placed in the hands of the church members, partly because only handwritten copies were available in those times, but mainly because the leaders of the church were afraid to let the people study the Holy Scriptures lest they discover that some church doctrines– such as the immortality of the soul, the worship of the saints, purgatory and the observance of Sunday– were not taught by the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church of Rome states that it changed the day of worship from the seventh to the first day of the week. History and the Bible show that the observance of Sunday as a Christian institution came from paganism. Despite the compromise and apostasy that crept into the church, there was always a faithful remnant who had the faith of Jesus and kept the commandments of God. [Extracted from the book Church Heritage]