This is Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the History of Christianity Podcast #170, titled, “Beyond the Borders of the Empire (Part 1).”
When I became a believer in Jesus Christ, I somehow had the false idea that Christianity began when I got saved. I had no concept of the hundreds of years of history that Christianity had gone through since the time of Jesus Christ over 2,000 years ago. I have found that many believers, young and old, have the same false idea. The purpose of this broadcast is to dispel this notion by sharing with listeners the history of Christianity from the ministry of Jesus Christ all the way up until the present day in an easy-to-understand format. You don’t have to worry: this is not a lecture. This is a look at the basic facts and figures of Christian history that every believer and every person needs to be aware of.
Our Scripture for today is Acts 11:25-26 which reads: “Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.”
Our History of Christianity quote today is from Abgarus [AB-GAH-RUS], king of Edessa [ED-ES-SA] (purportedly in a letter to Jesus). He said: “Abgarus, King of Edessa, greetings to Jesus, the good Savior who has appeared in Jerusalem: I have heard of you and the many cures that you effect with no help of medicines or herbs. . . . I have also heard that the Jews conspire against you and seek to do you harm. Please know that, although small, my city is noble, and suffices for the two of us.”
Today, in the History of Christianity, we are looking at “Beyond the Borders of the Empire (Part 1)” from Dr. Justo L. Gonzalez’s fine book, The Story of Christianity (Volume 1).
Up until this point our attention has centered on the history of Christianity within the borders of the Roman Empire. There is ample reason for this, for Christianity was born within that empire, and most of today’s Christians—Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox—trace their heritage to the early development of the church within those borders. However, it is important to remember that this is not the whole story, for while Christianity was developing within the Roman Empire it was also taking root in lands beyond the reach of Roman rule. Among the Germanic “barbarians” of the north, Christianity gained a foothold long before the barbarians themselves broke into the Roman Empire. But the most impressive expansion was toward the east, and there are Christians in the twenty-first century who trace their origins to those early churches beyond the Eastern borders of the empire. In the eastern reaches of the Roman Empire, and beyond toward the east, Syriac was the language most commonly used for trade and international communication, and it provided the channel for the expansion of Christianity. This language was closely akin to the Aramaic spoken in Palestine and by Jews in the Eastern Diaspora. Long before the advent of Christianity, most Jews had ceased speaking Hebrew, and many could not even understand the reading of scripture in the synagogue. Thus, the practice arose of translating the sacred text into Aramaic, at first orally, and then in written form—in documents known as Targums [TAR-GUMS]. This practice, which paralleled the rise of Christianity, provided early Aramaic-speaking Christians with ready-made versions of at least part of the Hebrew scripture, much as the Septuagint provided Greek-speaking Christians with a similar instrument. At some point around the second century, a Syriac translation of both the Old and New Testaments appeared, and came to be known as the Peshitta [PUH-SHEE-TUH]—(peshitta [PUH-SHEE-TUH] means “simple”), which thus reminds us of Vulgate, which has a similar meaning. At least part of the Old Testament was quite possibly the work of Jewish translators, but it is clear Christians—most likely Jewish Christians—played an important role in the process of translation. Tatian [TAY-SHUN]—the disciple of Justin Martyr who has already been mentioned as one of the early apologists—had attempted to harmonize the four Gospels into a single one, taking some elements from each, and leaving out others. This edited compilation of the four Gospels was known as the Diatessaron [DY-AH-TESS-UH-ROHN]—meaning “according to the four”—and was the subject of much controversy among Syriac-speaking Christians, for some preferred it to the four canonical Gospels and others rejected it altogether—a controversy that was not quickly resolved, for the Diatessaron [DY-AH-TESS-UH-ROHN] was still read in some Syriac churches as late as the seventh century.
From a very early date, Christianity spread eastward following the lines of Syriac trade and culture. Its most notable early success was in the city of Edessa [ED-ES-SA]—in the eastern reaches of what is now Turkey. This city became Christian, apparently during the rule of King Abgarus IX [AB-GAH-RUS 9] (179–216), long before the Roman Empire embraced Christianity, and thus seems to have been the earliest Christian state. Soon the legend arose that the conversion of Edessa [ED-ES-SA] had taken place much earlier, during Jesus’s lifetime, and that King Abgarus V [AB-GAH-RUS 10], who suffered from leprosy, had sent a letter to Jesus asking that he come and cure his leprosy. Instead of coming personally, Jesus sent Thaddeus, his disciple, with a letter to Abgarus [AB-GAH-RUS]. The latter was cured, embraced Christianity, and urged his subjects to do likewise. The legend probably dates from the time of Abgarus IX [AB-GAH-RUS 9], for the words of Jesus quoted in the correspondence are taken from Tatian’s [TAY-SHUN’s] Diatessaron [DY-AH-TESS-UH-ROHN]. At any rate, by the fourth century the legend was well-established, for Eusebius [YOU-SEE-BEE-US] of Caesarea mentions it and quotes from the letters in question. The letter supposedly written by Jesus soon became a popular talisman. Translated into Greek, Latin, Arabic, Copt, and Slavonic, people would carry it into battle, or during epidemics, as a talisman to save them from injury or disease. At any rate, long before the conversion of Constantine the kings of Edessa [ED-ES-SA], and most of their subjects, were Christian.
In the nearby region of Adiabene [AH-DI-AH-BENE] there appears to have been a Christian community quite early in the second century. The royal family that ruled there had been converted to Judaism during the reign of Emperor Claudius (41–54), and most of the area had embraced that faith. Apparently a number of these Jews became Christians, for there is evidence of a Christian community there early in the second century.
Next time, we will continue looking at “Beyond the Borders of the Empire.”
Let’s pray.
—PRAYER—
Dear friend, simply knowing the facts about Christian history without knowing the One on Whom this faith is based will do you no good. If you do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, may I encourage you to get to know Him today. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can be a part of the church in this life and in the life to come. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will. Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Until next time, remember that history is truly His story.
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