Jesus is coming. . .soon! Are you ready?

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Jesus is coming. . .soon! Are you ready?
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Putting It All Together
Gnostic influence
The so-called Fathers studied the works of pagan
philosophers far more than they did those of the
apostles. They affected to be philosophers
themselves and while they did indeed make a show
of combating paganism . . .
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Putting It All Together
Gnostic influence
. . . the weapons they used were drawn from
pagan philosophy more frequently than from the
Bible. And even when they quoted from the Bible,
their pagan . . .
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Putting It All Together
Gnostic influence
. . . notions warped their interpretation. So in
their encounters with paganism, we have for the
most part nothing but one form of paganism
arrayed against another form of paganism.
E.J. WaggonerFathers of the Catholic Church, p.
62 (1888)
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Putting It All Together
Gnostic influence
Sabbath associated with darkness and evil
creation
Sabbath truth destroyed
Sabbath-keepers associated with political
revolution and social instability
Political pressure
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Putting It All Together
Under Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305),
persecution of Christians who were
Sabbath-keepers was increased beginning on Feb.
23 in A.D. 303 (festal day of their god
Terminus) it lasted for ten years as was
foretold by Christ in the message to the second
church in Rev. 28-11.
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Putting It All Together
And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna
write These things saith the First and the Last,
which was dead, and is alive I know thy works,
and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich)
and I know the blasphemy of them which say they
are Jews, and are not . . .
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Putting It All Together
. . . but are the synagogue of Satan. Fear none
of those things which thou shalt suffer behold,
the devil shall cast some of you into prison,
that ye may be tried and ye shall have
tribulation ten days be thou faithful unto
death, and I will give thee a crown of life. . .
.
Revelation 28-11
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Roman Tetrarchy A.D. 293-313
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Conversion of Constantine
On the evening of October 27, 312with the armies
preparing for battle, Constantine had a vision
which led him to believe that he was fighting
under the protection of the Christian God.
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Conversion of Constantine
Edict of Milan A.D. 313 gave tolerationto the
Christian religion
Battle of Milvian Bridge
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Conversion of Constantine
Milvian Bridge across the Tiber River
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Conversion of Constantine
Edict of Milan A.D. 313 gave tolerationto the
Christian religion
Battle of Milvian Bridge
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The Column of Constantine was dedicated on May
11, 330 AD, with a mix of Christian and pagan
ceremonies.
Conversion of Constantine?
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Conversion of Constantine
First Sunday law enactedby Constantine in A.D.
321
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Sunday as Civil Law
The emperor Constantine after his conversion to
Christianity, made the observance of Sunday a
civil duty, and the law which commanded it is
found in the Roman code.
The United States Catholic MagazineIndex to vol.
4, p. 233, 1845
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Conversion of Constantine
By his civil legislation, he made Sunday a rest
day. His famous Sunday law of March 7, 321,
reads On the venerable
Day of the Sun let the magistrates and people
residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be
closed. . . . This was the first in a series of
steps taken by Constantine and by later
Christian emperors in regulating Sunday
observance. . . .
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Conversion of Constantine
. . .It is obvious that this first Sunday law
was not particularly Christian in orientation. We
may note the pagan designation
venerable Day of the Sun. Also, it is evident
that Constantine did not base his Sunday law on
the regulations of the Decalogue, for he exempted
agricultural worka type of work strictly
prohibited in Exodus 208-11.
Kenneth A. StrandThe Sabbath in Scripture and
History, p. 328
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Passover Controversy
From Rome there came now another addition to the
sun-worshipping apostasy. The first Christians
being mostly Jews, continued to celebrate the
Passover in remembrance of the death of Christ,
the true Passover. Accordingly, the celebration
was always on the Passover daythe fourteenth of
the first month. . . .
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Passover Controversy
. . .Rome, however, and from her all the West,
adopted the day of the sun as the day of this
celebration . . . The rule of Rome was that the
celebration must always be on a Sunday the
Sunday nearest to the fourteenth of the first
month of the Jewish year.
A.T. JonesThe Great Empires of Prophecyp. 383
(1898)
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Passover Controversy
. . .We know not precisely when this began, but
it was practiced in Rome as early as the time of
Sixtus I, who was bishop of Rome A.D. 119-128.
A.T. JonesThe Great Empires of Prophecyp. 383
(1898)
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Papal Pride
Victor, who was bishop at Rome from A.D. 192-202,
proposed to command everyone everywhere to
conform to the practices of Rome. Because the
eastern prelates refused to follow him, he
pronounced them unworthy of the name of brethren
and excluded them from all fellowship with the
church of Rome.
A.T. JonesThe Great Empires of Prophecyp. 384
(1898)
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Ecumenical Councils
Nicaea (325) fixed the Easter date repudiated
Arianism Council of Constantinople (381)
declared that Christ is born of the Father
before all time Council of Ephesus (431)
Virgin Mary declared the Mother of God
repudiated Pelagianism Council of Chalcedon (451)
Chalcedonian Creed, which described the
hypostatic union of the two natures of Christ,
human and divine
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Legacy of Paganism?
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Dangerous Christians?
Though the Romans gave an unlimited toleration
to all religions which had nothing in their
tenets dangerous to the commonwealth, yet they
would not permit that of their ancestors . . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . . which was established by the laws of the
state, to be turned into derision, nor the people
to be drawn away from their attachment to it.
These, however, were the two things which those
Christians were charged with . . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . .They dared to ridicule the absurdities of
the pagan superstition, and they were ardent and
assiduous in gaining proselytes to the truth. Nor
did they only attack the religion of Rome. . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . . but also all the different shapes and
forms under which superstition appeared in the
various countries where they exercised their
ministry. From hence the Romans concluded, that
the Christian sect. . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . . was not only unsupportably daring and
arrogant, but moreover, an enemy to the public
tranquility, working in every way to excite
civil wars and commotions in the empire.
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Dangerous Christians?
Another circumstance that irritated the Romans
against the Christians, was the simplicity of
their worship, which resembled in nothing the
sacred rites of any other people. . . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . .The Christians had neither sacrifices, nor
temples, nor images, nor oracles, nor sacerdotal
orders and this was sufficient to bring upon
them the reproaches of an ignorant multitude. . .
.
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Dangerous Christians?
. . . who imagined that there could not be a
religion without these. Thus they were looked
upon as some sort of atheists and by the Roman
laws, those who were chargeable with atheism were
declared the pests of human society.
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Dangerous Christians?
The Christians were pronounced atheists
because they were destitute of temples, altars,
victims, priests, and all thepomp. . . .To
silence this accusation, the Christian doctors
of Alexandria and Rome thought it necessary to
introduce . . .
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Dangerous Christians?
. . . some external rites, which would strike
the senses of the people, so that they could
maintain that they did possess all those things
of which Christians were charged with being
destitute.
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1693 1755
John Lawrence MosheimEcclesiastical
HistoryCentury II, part ii, chap. iv (1790)
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Compromise for Peace
Such was the tendency of the times fourth
century to adulterate Christianity with the
spirit of paganism, partly to conciliate the
prejudices of the worldly converts, partly in the
hope of securing its more rapid spread. . . .
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Compromise for Peace
. . .There is a solemnity in the truthful
accusation which Faustus makes to Augustine You
have substituted your agape feast for the
sacrifices of the pagans for their idols your
martyrs. . . .
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Compromise for Peace
. . . Nothing distinguishes you from the pagans
except that you hold your assemblies apart from
them.
John William DraperHistory of the Intellectual
Development of Europepp. 309, 310, 1876
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Legacy of Paganism?
2 Thess. 23-8 Let no man deceive you by any
means for that day shall not come, except there
come a falling away first, and that man of sin be
revealed, the son of perdition . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . who opposeth and exalteth himself above
all that is called God, or that is worshipped so
that he as God sitteth in the temple of God,
shewing himself that he is God. . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with
you, I told you these things? And now ye know
what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his
time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already
work . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . .only he who now letteth will let, until he
be taken out of the way. And then shall that
Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume
with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy
with the brightness of His coming.
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Legacy of Paganism?
2 Thess. 23-8 Let no man deceive you by any
means for that day shall not come, except there
come a falling away first, and that man of sin be
revealed, the son of perdition . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . who opposeth and exalteth himself above
all that is called God, or that is worshipped so
that he as God sitteth in the temple of God,
shewing himself that he is God. . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with
you, I told you these things? And now ye know
what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his
time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already
work . . .
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . .only he who now letteth will let, until he
be taken out of the way. And then shall that
Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume
with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy
with the brightness of His coming.
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . for the secret of the lawlessness doth
already work, only he who is keeping down now
will hinder till he may be out of the
way. Youngs Literal Translation
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Legacy of Paganism?
. . . until the one who now restrains it is
removed. New Revised Standard Version
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Legacy of Paganism?
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a
beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads
and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and
upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
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Legacy of Paganism?
Blasphemously arrogating the attributes
belonging to God alone a characteristic of the
little horn in Daniel 78, 20, 21 and 2 Thess.
24. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
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Legacy of Paganism?
And there was given unto him a mouth speaking
great things and blasphemies and power was given
unto him to continue forty and two months.
Rev. 135
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Legacy of Paganism?
And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against
God, to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle,
and them that dwell in heaven. Rev. 136
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Legacy of Paganism?
opposes and exalts himself above all that is
called God he, as God, sits in the temple or
place of God showing claiming himself that
he is God
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The RevelationofJesus Christ