History of Christianity - Lesson 6
Don Noenoehitoe
1. Why did the early Christian church need to develop a system of governance?
By choosing the Apostles who were to become the leaders of the nascent Church, Christ Himself had laid the foundations for governing the Church.
With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Apostles - facing the exponential growth of the nascent Church - democratically formed, organized and headed the early Christian Church's formation and organization, e.g. the new office holders were chosen by the people and ordained by the Apostles.
An organized entity has to have some way to govern itself. As it grows and maturates, that entity's leadership has to devolve its functions and delegate to others in order to operate and govern the Church effectively. An orderly liturgy to guide public worship (1 Corinthians 14:40) is another reasonable by product of the Christian church as an organized entity. The Christian believer is part of both a scriptural organism and an organized entity.
2. What were the two branches of church offices called and what were their respective functions?
Church offices could be separated into two branches.
The first branch would be the charismatic offices (Greek: charisma, means "gift").
These office holders were chosen by Christ and given special spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12-14; Ephesians 4:11-12). They primarily gave inspirations.
The second branch would be the administrative offices. These office holders functioned primarily as administrators.
After the Apostles died, the elders assumed many of the spiritual responsibilities. The holders of administrative offices in the church were chosen by the congregation after prayer for the leading of the Holy Spirit and appointed by the Apostles.
3. How did the early church order its public worship? How did the early church relate to pagan Roman society?
The Apostles were concerned about having an orderly form of worship. The Apostle Paul exhorted the church at Corinth to worship in an orderly and dignified manner (1 Corinthians 14:40). Christ had already revealed what true worship is when He proclaimed that because God was Spirit, true worship was spiritual (John 4:24).
The early Church did not have an organized welfare mechanism, rather, each individual Church took on that responsibility.
Slavery was not prohibited, but the early Church views soon undermined slavery as to remind the Christian master and slave are both brethren in Christ.
This too was shown in Paul's diplomatic letter to Philemon.
The church demanded separation from the pagan practices of Roman society, but it did not forbid harmless mingling with their pagan neighbors in social situations. The Apostle Paul made provision for such social interaction as long as it did not compromise Christian principles (1 Corinthians 5:10; 10:20-33). Paul forcefully demanded total separation from any practice that was related to Pagan idolatry and immorality. These principles prevented early Christians from going to pagan theaters, stadiums, games, or temples.
The early church had both rich and poor, noble and non-noble. It was the strongest in the cities, stretched from Spain to India.
The early church's purity of life, love, and courage in the face of persecution had a tremendous impact on the surrounding pagan society.
It is no big surprise that just three centuries after Christ that the Roman emperor Constantine, having embraced the early church and became a Christian,
gave an official recognition to Christianity and personally called and presided over the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD.
1. Why did the early Christian church need to develop a system of governance?
By choosing the Apostles who were to become the leaders of the nascent Church, Christ Himself had laid the foundations for governing the Church.
With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Apostles - facing the exponential growth of the nascent Church - democratically formed, organized and headed the early Christian Church's formation and organization, e.g. the new office holders were chosen by the people and ordained by the Apostles.
An organized entity has to have some way to govern itself. As it grows and maturates, that entity's leadership has to devolve its functions and delegate to others in order to operate and govern the Church effectively. An orderly liturgy to guide public worship (1 Corinthians 14:40) is another reasonable by product of the Christian church as an organized entity. The Christian believer is part of both a scriptural organism and an organized entity.
2. What were the two branches of church offices called and what were their respective functions?
Church offices could be separated into two branches.
The first branch would be the charismatic offices (Greek: charisma, means "gift").
These office holders were chosen by Christ and given special spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12-14; Ephesians 4:11-12). They primarily gave inspirations.
The second branch would be the administrative offices. These office holders functioned primarily as administrators.
After the Apostles died, the elders assumed many of the spiritual responsibilities. The holders of administrative offices in the church were chosen by the congregation after prayer for the leading of the Holy Spirit and appointed by the Apostles.
3. How did the early church order its public worship? How did the early church relate to pagan Roman society?
The Apostles were concerned about having an orderly form of worship. The Apostle Paul exhorted the church at Corinth to worship in an orderly and dignified manner (1 Corinthians 14:40). Christ had already revealed what true worship is when He proclaimed that because God was Spirit, true worship was spiritual (John 4:24).
The early Church did not have an organized welfare mechanism, rather, each individual Church took on that responsibility.
Slavery was not prohibited, but the early Church views soon undermined slavery as to remind the Christian master and slave are both brethren in Christ.
This too was shown in Paul's diplomatic letter to Philemon.
The church demanded separation from the pagan practices of Roman society, but it did not forbid harmless mingling with their pagan neighbors in social situations. The Apostle Paul made provision for such social interaction as long as it did not compromise Christian principles (1 Corinthians 5:10; 10:20-33). Paul forcefully demanded total separation from any practice that was related to Pagan idolatry and immorality. These principles prevented early Christians from going to pagan theaters, stadiums, games, or temples.
The early church had both rich and poor, noble and non-noble. It was the strongest in the cities, stretched from Spain to India.
The early church's purity of life, love, and courage in the face of persecution had a tremendous impact on the surrounding pagan society.
It is no big surprise that just three centuries after Christ that the Roman emperor Constantine, having embraced the early church and became a Christian,
gave an official recognition to Christianity and personally called and presided over the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD.
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