The Rambling Disciple

Last week we looked at the heresy of Arianism; the belief that Jesus is not God. As we discussed this belief is prevalent in our culture today. They view Jesus as a man, even a great man, but that's it. We in the church have been very good about identifying and combating this heresy when it crops up in our congregations. However, there is another heresy we have let slip by. What is Gnosticism? Many Christians have heard of Gnosticism, but few actually know what it is. There is no easy way to explain Gnosticism. It was a complicated religion that arose in the late first and early second centuries. It was full of strange beliefs and tried to incorporate elements from many religions of the time, including Christianity. The main effect of Gnosticism on Christianity is spiritual dualism. Gnostics believed that there are two realities, the spiritual and the physical. The spiritual world, where God lives, is entirely good. The physical world is evil. The goal of the Gnostics was ...

The book of Joel is a very interesting book of the Bible. It seems like no one can ever agree over what this book is about. Some say it is about a locust plague while others claim it has to do with the invading Assyrians or Babylonians. The most famous passage in Joel is what is quoted in Acts 2 by Peter about the outpouring of the Spirit. Besides that passage many Christians couldn't quote a single line from this book. This issue here is that the book of Joel is dealing with something incredibly specific without giving very many details. While many scholars find this annoying others have found that this is quite intentional. The book of Joel was written as a response to a specific national tragedy to be used for future national tragedies. Background One problem we have with the book of Joel is that we don't really know anything about the background. We know the author is Joel, but we don't know anything about him. We also don't know precisely when the book was w...

As we continue our discussions on heresy we arrive now at the Arian controversy. Please note that this is not Arian in the sense of race or ethnicity (that would be aryan.) This is a heresy that cropped up in the early 300's and started with a man named Arius. This particular heresy quite possibly shaped the Christian faith more than any other before it. Arianism Then The Arians believed in the totality of Scripture, unlike the Marcionites we discussed last week. They believed that Jesus was the Messiah sent by God to save us from sin. They believed that God created all things and sustains all things. On the surface the Arians seem like normal Christians, but there is one big difference. The Arians didn't believe that Jesus was God. The Arians believed that Jesus was superior to humanity, but that he wasn't equal to the Father as God. They thought he was the first created thing; that God made Jesus before making everything else. Where did they get this idea? Well, ...

What would you do if God commanded you to marry someone to prove a point? Most of us probably wouldn't be OK with that. What if the person God commanded you to marry is best described as a whore? Then we really wouldn't be OK with that. In fact many of us would openly refuse. That's a crazy request! Well this is exactly what God commands of Hosea. It is a phenomenal circumstance designed to show the people of Israel just how they are treating God. Despite this most unusual command, Hosea obeys. This real world marriage gives us a look into how sin has affected our relationship with God. Background The book of Hosea was written by the prophet Hosea. He lived and wrote in the latter part of the eighth century BC (circa 750 BC - 710 BC). He lived in northern nation of Israel, and the book of Hosea was mostly intended for them.  While we primarily remember the story at the beginning of the book, it is important to realize that the majority of the book is prophetic po...

As we begin our discussion about some of the various heresies that began during the early Christian period, I think a good place to start is with someone we have already touched on before; Marcion (pronounced Mar-see-on).We talked briefly about this man and the ensuing heresy when we discussed the historical process of assembling the Bible, way back at the beginning of Historical Fridays. So let's take a closer look at Marcion and see what he taught, why it was wrong, and how his beliefs have found their way into our churches today. Marcion vs the Bible Marcion was a man who lived from about AD 85 to AD 160. Marcion had a problem with the Old Testament. As he read the Old Testament and the the documents that would officially become the New Testament, he had some trouble. Marcion looked at the "God of the Old Testament" and couldn't understand how this being was the same one described in the New Testament. Marcion's solution to this perceived issue was to ...

The book of Daniel is a somewhat peculiar book. We absolutely love the first six chapters. The stories of Daniel and the lion's den, Nebuchadnezzar's dream, and the writing on the wall among others are a staple of our Bible classes of all ages. These are stories we can open up and see clear messages in. Chapters seven through twelve, however, are a different story. We look at these chapters the same way many look at the book of Revelation; as a bunch of freaky dreams that are best ignored. The last half of the book is full of visions and signs that make us scratch our head. In truth the entire book, both the stories we love and the visions we don't, all revolve around the same theme. The book of Daniel has one message, and that is God's absolute sovereignty. Background The book of Daniel's authorship is an interesting question. The visions in chapter seven and onward are written in the first person, clearly by Daniel himself. The rest of the book, primarily...

Heresy is a word we don't like to hear in the present age. It brings up some unpleasant memories of what people in centuries past have done in the name of Christ. The word heresy invokes visions of the Spanish Inquisition, where so called Christians had others hunted down and tortured. It makes us think of the Crusades, where those bearing the name of Christ went to war over economics, power, and land all in the name of religion. In this day and age heresy is a bad word. We associate it with the suppression of thoughts and ideas. Our culture today prizes individual opinion above all else, so it naturally dislikes any notion of there being someone who is wrong. This attitude has made it into churches. We don't really like talking about the different opinions we have concerning various theological concepts or passages in the Bible. The problem with the word heresy is just that; it is simply a word. We have attached quite a bit of stigma to it that it may or may not deserve. T...

Judgment has come. The coming wrath of God that Jeremiah prophesied about swept through the land of Judah. Unfortunately very few listened to him. Now the people of Judah are a nation without a home. They are a people without an identity. They have no where left to turn. It is to this broken people that God sends Ezekiel. Ezekiel, like the rest of the nation, now lives in Babylon as a slave to King Nebuchadnezzar. The Jews, as they are now being called, live by a river outside the city. It is here that God gives Ezekiel an important message for Judah. They may have lost their land, their temple, and their freedom but they still have God. Background The book of Ezekiel was written by the prophet Ezekiel whilst the people of Judah were in exile in Babylon. The people of Judah were taken to Babylon in groups, with the final group being taken after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Ezekiel was taken in one of the earlier groups.  Ezekiel is one of the trickier prophe...

For us here in America, it is incredibly hard for us to empathize with the early Christians. We have never been rounded up and executed for our faith. We don't fear having to watch our children be burned alive just to make us renounce Christ. We are used to Christianity being socially acceptable. Many Christians today in other parts of the world still live in fear of persecution. Their situation mirrors the earlier Christians much better than ours does. So why is Christianity hated in some places and tolerated in others? Why do we in America have it so easy? The answer goes back to a man named Constantine. The Constantine Shift Before Constantine became Emperor of Rome in AD 306, Christians lived in constant fear of persecution. Christianity was illegal in the Roman Empire. Emperors had tried repeatedly to destroy this new religion. In spite of it all, Christianity was spreading.  To be a Christian was to be an outcast. You were seen as being unpatriotic for not worshipi...