"I Will Build My Church"
As the First Century Was Coming to a close All of the Original Apostles were Gone but For St. John and He Found Himself under Houses Arrest on the Island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea off the Coast of Asia Minor. It is here on Patmos that St. John Encounters the Risen Jesus and Gives His Church a Word for the Church in All Ages.
Who Will You Worship?
By the end of the first century
of the Church, all of the original twelve Apostles of Jesus had been martyred,
only St. John remained and he was now confined to the Island of Patmos for
preaching about Jesus.
Under Emperor Nero there was a
persecution that had ended the Apostolic ministries of both the principal
Church leaders St. Peter and St. Paul in Rome during the mid-60's AD.
Tradition cites that St. Peter
was crucified upon an upside down cross with St. Peter stating that he was
"unworthy" to die as Jesus did. St. Paul, however
being a Roman citizen was beheaded on or near the Appian Way around 64-65 AD.
The Christian Church had faced many
adversities over the years both from without and within. There was persecution
from Rome, from Jews, from Gnostic teachers within the Church, from ambitious power-driven
clergy, disruptive lay members and Judaizes and even threats of civil war and
political power playing within the Empire itself.
The Church by the 80s-90s AD was
very different than that of earlier years when most of its members were Jewish
and living under the tenets of the Old Covenant. By late 70s AD the Church
had moved out it's incubator of Palestine and was spreading out across the
Roman world as far as Spain in the west and Babylon in the east and north to
the Britain.
As the first century was coming to an
end Emperor Caesar Domitianus Augustus Germanicus 81-96 AD, declared himself to
be the earthly embodiment of the sun god Apollo. Domitian demanded to be
worshiped as a god not just venerated as the embodiment of the Roman
Empire.
This frames the great question to all
humanity, and not just of the close of the first century, but for all
people in all time and eternity, "who will you worship?", the world
system embodied in Caesar or "the Kingdom of God embodied in Jesus?".
Jerusalem Diminished
As the Church expanded outward
and away from Jerusalem which had at first
served as its center. Jerusalem began to hold a place of lesser importance to
the greater body of the Christian movement, and the Church which was at
Jerusalem its influence had lessened as well to the greater body of the Church.
The Jerusalem Church even when St.
Peter and St. Paul were still alive had been pastored by St. James who is
generally accepted to have been the brother of Jesus. St. James, we see as
having had a substantial role in the Council of Jerusalem after the conversion
of the Gentiles in Acts:15.
After the death of St. James around 62
AD another man named Simeon who may have been a relative of Jesus and St.
James became the primary leader of the Jerusalem Congregation.
After the ordination of Simeon to lead the Church in Jerusalem the Church then relocated to a small secluded town called Pella across the Jordan Rive to the north east of Jerusalem, whether it was done to protect Simeon personally due to being a relative of both Jesus and St. James from Roman scrutiny, or as some as attribute to the advancing armies of Rome around 69-70 AD and or the turbulence caused by Jewish Zealots.
Ultimately Simeon himself would be
arrested and killed as well by the Roman authorities, it may have been due to
Simeon's relationship to Jesus and his Davidic linage.
The Roman armies under the Roman
General and future Emperor Titus lay siege to the city of
Jerusalem during the Jewish Wars in 70 AD. According to Jewish
historian Titus Flavius Josephus also known as Joseph ben
Matityahu, there had been a voice heard in the Temple which
said "let us remove from hence".
Some attribute the Church's removal
east to Pella across the Jordan River as a direct result of this
disembodied voice admonishing believers to flee from the city to a safer
place.
In 70 AD the city of Jerusalem was over
run, the Temple burned and many Jews who had risen up against Roman
Rule were execute or carried away as slaves. This would have reflected and
fulfilled the words of Jesus found in the Olivet Prophecy in Matt: 24: Luke:21: and Mark:13, that Jerusalem would be under distress and
occupied by armies of the Gentiles and the Temple destroyed.
The Jerusalem Church would find
that its influence was substantially diminished in the greater body of the
Church as a whole. Its character was still largely Jewish, yet
the Church was rejected by the Jews and was growing alienated toward and from
the Gentile Congregations. The Jerusalem Church was becoming increasingly
isolated.
In the early 130s AD a few
Jewish members of the Congregation returned from Pella to Jerusalem; the
Jerusalem Church were few in number and slowly became a backwater Church among
the whole of the Christian Church. It was without influence and nearly forgotten
as they went their way into obscurity.
Persecution(s)
From that day of Pentecost 33 AD when
the Holy Spirit manifested Himself in the lives of the followers of Jesus
there had been persecution. At first, it came from the religious establishment
of the Jews then it arose from Rome.
"While Gallio was proconsul of
Achaia, the Jews of Corinth made a united attack on Paul and brought him to the
place of judgment. “This man,” they charged, “is persuading the people to
worship God in ways contrary to the law.” Just as Paul was about to speak,
Gallio said to them, “If you Jews were making a complaint about some
misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to
you. But since it involves
questions about words and names and your own law—settle the matter yourselves.
I will not be a judge of such things.” So he drove them off. Then the
crowd there turned on Sosthenes the synagogue leader and beat him in front of
the proconsul; and Gallio showed no concern whatever."(12-17)
Rome wanted order in the Empire and as
little expense as possible. They had no real inclination to become
enmeshed in the religious debates of the Jews. But if a religious clashes became
out of hand Rome would then act to restore order.
In 51 AD during the reign of Emperor
Claudius contention became so heated between Christians and Jews that the Jews
rioted in in the streets of Rome. Claudius acted by expelling the Jews from the
city. St. Luke cites this in Acts: 18:2
The Roman historian Suetonius records
that this expulsion was due to the Jews having a violent reaction. Suetonius
wrote that it was "because of Chrestus"
that the Jews rioted. It is understood by historians that "Chrestus" is a reference to Christ and the Jews
were opposing the Gospel message about Jesus.
It is well documented regarding the
cruel persecution under Nero and his turning the martyrdom of the
followers of Jesus into dramatic events. Nero would have Christians dressed in
animal skins and having them torn asunder by hungry dogs. Many believers were crucified,
or were being used as living torches for Nero's social gatherings and his
amusement during his private spectacles.
The Roman historian Tacitus in his Annals records the Roman view of
Christians that they were "heaters of all humankind”.
In the Roman mind seeing that Christians
worshiped at no idol of their God, but rather, proclaiming that the God
whom they worshiped was unseen and that no idol could possible represent so
great a God, the Romans regarded Christians as atheist.
Under Vespasian, and even under the
rule of his son Titus who would be his successor, Christians were left largely
alone until Domitian became Emperor. Domitian not only would persecute
Christians he would enact penalties upon the Jews as well.
Domitian had required that the Temple
tax that the Jews had previously paid to the Temple at Jerusalem should now go
to the Imperil government, seeing that Temple was no longer standing having
been razed in 70 AD.
St. John the Apostle, who had become
the Church's primary leader at this time, had been ministering out of the city
of Ephesus in Asia Minor until he was arrested and confined to Patmos for
preaching Jesus.
Domitian's reign was the historical
backdrop for St. John's writing of the Book of the Revelation. St. John was the
last of the original disciples of Jesus, it had become evident to St. John that
Jesus was probable not going to return during his life time.
St. John was moved in his pastoral
heart by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to leave the Church in his
day, and down through the ages and until the culmination of this world,
something to lift their eyes above and beyond the strife and difficulties that
they may face in this world.
St. John wrote the Book of Revelation to
speak to all Christians in all ages to look to Jesus and know that in the end
victory is theirs, and all that Jesus has come for us to have will be given,
and to know that God is faithful and just.
Over time Domitian became viewed as a
Tyrant by many in Rome which fueled a conspiracy against him which resulted in
his assassination as he was in the palace in 96 AD. With Domitian's death
another reprieve came for Christians as the first century came to a close.
To be continued
Benediction: May we each and all
look ever to our Lord Jesus regardless what takes place in our live or the world
at large, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.
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Rev. Todd Crouch, Norman, Oklahoma
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