Series: Church, Government, and Society

Church, Government, and Society: The Early Church

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This entry is part 1 of 4 in the series Church, Government, and Society

The Importance of Church History There are two reasons it is important to know about Church history.  The first reason is so that the Church today can look to the authority of Church tradition to guide us.  Even if we are Protestants who believe in “sola scriptura,” we must recognize that the Bible itself is … Read more

From the Early Church to Christendom

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This entry is part 2 of 4 in the series Church, Government, and Society

A Great Apostasy? There is a popular belief among many Christians that in the early fourth century, with the conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity, the church suddenly committed a “Great Apostasy” by turning away from the Way of Jesus, making a grab for worldly political power, and embracing “Constantinianism.”  Usually this is … Read more

From Christendom to the Modern Church

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This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series Church, Government, and Society

The End of Christendom For many centuries, from the late Roman Empire, through the Middle Ages, and into the Modern period, the political, social, and ecclesial status quo in Western civilization was that of Christendom.  All of society was (supposedly) Christian.  “Christian” governments used coercion and violence to force everyone to be part of the … Read more

Where Should the Church Go From Here?

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This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series Church, Government, and Society

The past 2,000 years of Church history have been a long and winding road.  The early Church tried to do its best to live out the radically countercultural reality of Jesus’s Kingdom in the midst of a hostile culture.  But beginning in the fourth century, there was a dramatic transition to Christendom, in which Christianity … Read more