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Well, Mark asked me right before class started if this was his only option, and I'm sorry to tell you it is. But the good news is, you know, I feel kinda like we've been doing some false advertising because we've been announcing over the last several weeks that Reagan would be teaching this class on church history on Wednesday nights. Surprise. He's not here. But he will be back next week, Lord willing.

And before he left, he put together some awesome slides and notes. So I have to give credit where credit is due, and we'll be working through his slides and notes tonight. So if you have any problem with anything, just save them for next week and take it up with Reagan. We'll do the best we can. Have you ever seen a tree planted too close to a house that grows and grows until the homeowner doesn't know what to do with it.

One of the greatest mistakes that amateur landscapers make is failure to anticipate how large a tree can grow from a very small sapling. Well, the kingdom of heaven, you might say, though it started with just a few poor and sinful people in some backwater province of the Roman Empire among the race who were virtually universally despised, but then, ironically, who despised this kingdom is somehow against all odds like that. This kingdom's king was a carpenter's son, born in a barn to a Jewish peasant woman, raised without wealth or formal education, ultimately killed by crucifixion. This kingdom's greatest ambassadors, a hotheaded, impetuous fisherman, and a violently arrogant tentmaker. But, oh, how this kingdom grew from such humble beginnings to change the course of the entire world.

Certainly, Western society is shaped by the growth and influence of Christianity in ways that both believers and non don't even realize or acknowledge. When you think about our morals, our value systems, our system of law, our societal norms, our holidays, our weekly rhythms, even our calendar and how we track history more broadly is shaped by the influence of Christianity. Think BC and AD. BC, of course, stands for before Christ, and A.D., anno domini, which in Latin means in the year of our lord. But in many academic scientists...

Scientific and publishing fields, the terms b c and a d have been replaced for obvious reasons by b c e and c e, which stands for before common era and common era. And we could call it BCE and CE all we want, but when did the common era begin? It's based on the birth of Christ. You know, what what event started this common era that the scientific community wants to use? It's the birth of Christ.

So even time itself and always was... It is and always was pointing us to Christ and his kingdom. A fellow by the name of Tom Holland is a nonbeliever but an honest historian. He says in the introduction to his book on church history, at a time when our values are proving to be not nearly as universal as some of us had assumed them to be, the need to recognize just how culturally contingent they are is more present... More pressing than ever.

To live in a western country is to live in a society still utterly saturated by Christian concepts and assumptions. This is no less true for Jews or Muslims than it is for Catholics or Protestants. Two thousand years on from the birth of Christ, it does not require a belief that he rose from the dead to be stamped by the formidable, indeed, the inescapable influence of Christianity. That was written by a nonbeliever. So believers and unbelievers alike are impacted by what we might dryly describe as church history, whether we realize and acknowledge it or not. But for the believers in this room, this is much more personal. The church began on Pentecost, and one day, two thousand years later, that kingdom would change the life of a boy in East Texas and most of you in this room as well. That's just... Ours is just one of billions of stories of the growth and reach of this kingdom.

The gospel's been called the heavenly contagion. A third century writer called the expansion of the church the flood tide of Christ, and that is predicated in and well represented by the parables in Matthew 13. If you may wanna turn there with me. Matthew 13. Specifically a set of three parables that span both believers and nonbelievers, both of whom are impacted by this kingdom.

So we're calling this class, tares among wheat, mustard seeds, and leaven, a study of church history. Read with me from Matthew 13 beginning in verse 24. The parable of the tares or the weeds in the ESV. He put another parable before them saying, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds, tares, among the wheat and went away.

So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds? And he said to them, an enemy has done this. So the servant said to him, then do you want us to go and gather them?

But he said no, lest in gathering the weeds, you root up the wheat along with them. Let them both grow together until the harvest. And at harvest time, I will tell the reapers, gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn. There's a message to the unbelievers here. There will be a coexist of good and evil until the proper time for judgment when they'll be separated by God.

God reaches out because he's loving. He waits because he's long suffering, but he condemns because he's just. The parable of the mustard seed is next. Verse 31. He put another parable before them saying, the kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field.

It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown, it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches. And then the parable of the leaven verse 33. He told them another parable. The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour till it was all leaven. So, again, to the unbelievers, the message of these parables is one of warning.

You can oppose this kingdom all you want to, but it will grow and expand into the hearts of men. This kingdom is spiritual, eternal, and inevitable. To the unbelievers, oppose it at your own peril because you won't be able to uproot it once it takes hold. But then in verse 36, the audience changes from that of the unbelievers, and the message becomes one of greater depth and understanding for believers. Let's begin reading in verse 36.

Then he left the crowds and went into the house, and his disciples came to him saying, explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field. He answered, the one who sows the good seed is the son of man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.

Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The son of man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all lawbreakers and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father. He who has ears, let him hear.

To the believers who hear this message, this message of the parable of the wheat and the tares, knowing that this kingdom, far from being universally accepted, will grow, nonetheless, amongst evil forces which will try mightily to destroy it to these believers, these three parables bring a message of hope and comfort. This is the kingdom of God, and it will grow and expand. And it's that growth that we'll try and survey, at least in part, in this class on church history. But a caveat we need to establish before we begin. After this past Sunday's lesson that Reagan preached on the church, we're gonna be forced to use church in a different nonbiblical way in this class.

So when we say church history, think of that as all those who claim to be Christians, whether they're written in the lamb's book of life or not. Reagan likes to quote Leon Manning, who used to say, greater Christendom is what we're considering. But we'll do our best to try and see these pockets of small people trying to live out simple Christianity, difficult though that may be because the truth of the matter is they, those pockets of... Small pockets of people who were trying to live out simple Christianity, they didn't usually write the history of the church, which brings us to our goals for the class. So we have six goals for this class this quarter, and the first one is see the history, but remember who wrote it.

There are lots of great sayings about history, but the one I wanna think about first is, quote, history is written by the victors. Right? We know that to be true. Or as comedian Norm MacDonald joked, it says here in this history book that, luckily, the good guys have won every single time. What are the odds?

And while this isn't always or universally true, when it comes to church history, much of that history has been lost because true Christians are victors eternally, but not usually physically. And those who were in power often in the so called church silenced the voices of those who disagreed. And in other cases, those voices weren't too concerned with preserving their legacy. Their concern was around serving Christ faithfully. Let's look at 1 Corinthians 1.

1 Corinthians 1:23. But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God stronger than men. For consider your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise according to the worldly standards.

Not many were powerful. Not many were of noble birth. And if we go back to Matthew 5 and just look at the words of Jesus in his sermon, beginning in verse 2, he opened his mouth and taught them saying, blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. This is who makes up the true kingdom of God. Though they, we are more than conquerors, as we're told in Romans 8, and overcomers in Revelations 2 and three, spiritually, they, we, are not usually, traditionally physical victors. Paul Earnhardt used to say, in the kingdom of God, nothing wins like losing, which brings up a question that is sometimes asked, especially from young people.

Maybe you've asked this yourself at some point in time. What about during the darkest times of Christianity when few knew the word or even had access to it? The church was all messed up and hypocritical and terroristic to even so called heretics. Were there any real New Testament Christians during that time? Reagan believes, I believe, there were, that there has always been a righteous remnant of the people of God.

But let's say, just for the sake of argument, that there were not. No true New Testament Christians, like one of those dystopian novels where all religion has been destroyed. Well, Christianity is not lost so long as the word of God can be found. Right? Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

Faith. That's the fruit of sowing God's word in your heart. Faith that is established and faith that's... That grows, it's beautifully described about the biblical metaphor of a seed, a seed that's intended to germinate in my heart and produce fruit in my life. A, favorite illustration of this is the 2,000 year old seeds that were found a few years ago in a clay jar on Masada in Israel.

2,000 year old seeds. They planted some, and it grew a species of date palm that had been extinct for over a thousand years. They call it creatively the Methuselah tree. And wouldn't you know it, after a few years, it produced dates. And they planted other seeds from other locations in Israel, some even older, that also grew plants and dates.

That's the power of a seed, even one long dormant, thousands of years. All it takes is one heart reading the word of God because this is living an active Christian seed, and when planted, it grows Christians both now until the end of time. 1 Peter 1:23 says, having been born again, not of corruptible seed, but incorruptible through the word of God which lives and abides forever. Well, as proven by the growth of the early church and other growth movements in history like the reformation, the word of God in the hands and minds of people is an unstoppable force. And so goal number two for this class is to see how quickly both Christianity and apostasy spread and expand.

On the positive side, you've got the mustard seed and leaven. The church goes from a small beginning to a mighty force in the world. Let's look in Acts 2. At the first preaching and establishment of the church at Pentecost, 3,000 souls were baptized. Verse 41 of chapter 2.

So those who received his word were baptized, and they were added that day about 3,000 souls. Very soon after, soon, the men alone numbered 5,000. Chapter 4 and verse 4. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about 5,000. Later, it was multitudes of believers, both men and women.

Chapter 5 verse 14. And more than ever and more than ever, believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women. And then the number of the disciples was multiplying, we're told. Chapter 6 verse 1. Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, Hellenist arose against the Hebrews because their wizards were being neglected in the daily distribution.

I suppose... Who's got a New King James version? What does it say? Six one? Yes.

Those days when the number of the disciples were multiplying. The New King James version says multiplying. ESV does not say multiplying, but the point is it says multiplying, not adding. Right? The number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly.

A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. Verse 7, the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. Within thirty years, Paul would write that the gospel had come to all the world, Colossians 1:6, and the hope of the gospel had been preached in all creation under heaven, Colossians 1:23. So the church experienced incredible growth, incredible impact, and that growth and impact on society would continue to expand in the centuries to come. So that's the positive side, the mustard seed and the leaven.

But on the negative side, you've got the poisonous seeds and the leaven of apostasy. Jesus and Paul both warned of coming apostasy. We see from the New Testament epistles that false teaching and teachers were already present in the New Testament churches within only months years of the beginning of the church. Judaism came from the Jews. This philosophy bound the Old Testament, circumcision in particular, upon Christians as a condition of salvation, and it was answered by Paul and others in Acts 15:1.

Some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, unless you're circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved. Galatians 1:6. Paul writes, I'm astonished that you're so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. Not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preach to you, let him be accursed.

As we've said before, so now I say again, if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. And in Galatians 5:1, for freedom, Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore. Do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Look.

I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he's obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law. You have fallen away from grace. For through the spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.

So Judaism came from the Jews. Gnosticism came from the Greeks. This philosophy claimed that special knowledge and ascetic practices were necessary for salvation, and this was answered by Paul in Colossians 2. Colossians 2:16. Therefore, let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.

These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the head from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. If with Christ, you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations like do not handle, do not taste, do not touch, referring to things that all perish as they're used according to human precepts and teachings. These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. So Judaism came from the Jews.

Gnosticism came from the Greeks. And in addition, you had sectarians. Read about that in 1 Corinthians 1. 1 Corinthians 1:10. I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree that there be no divisions among you, but that you'd be united in the same mind and in the same judgment.

For it's been reported to me by Chloe's people that there's quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, I follow Paul or I follow Apollos or I follow Cephas or I follow Christ. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?

I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. So you had sectarians. You had sensualists. From Philippians 3:18, we read, for many of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction.

Their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame with minds set on earthly things. You had materialists, deniers of the resurrection back in 1 Corinthians 15:12. Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there's no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.

We're even found to be misrepresenting God because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it's true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you're still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

And then there were other named apostates in the churches of Asia. We see in Revelations 2. Verse 14. But I have a few things against you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans down in verse 20 of the same chapter.

But I have this against you, he's writing to the church in Thyatira. I have this against you that you tolerate that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sick bed, and those who commit adultery with her, I'll throw into great tribulation unless they repent of her works. So if apostasy spread that quickly, we need to be very cautious and careful about applying any other history to our practices other than the writing of the apostles.

And, also, there are often immense consequences of what can seem at the time to be slight and inconsequential deviations from apostolic teaching. It leads to a place that the original innovators never intended, expected, or would have approved, And that's a pattern that'll continue throughout the centuries of the expansion of the church, which takes us to our next goal for the class, which is to see the patterns of restoration and to see the pendulum swings. It's been said those who ignore history are destined to repeat it. We've all heard that.

It's also been said all we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. Throughout history, there have been those who have sought not just to reform the church, but to restore it to the New Testament ideal. And this is not just a new idea in the Stone Campbell movement in America, and we'll try, through the course of the class to point these ideas out as we go. Secondly, a pattern we'll see over and over is a pendulum swing from one false idea or teaching or practice to its opposite, and that is just as wrong. Something is wrong.

So instead of going to a balanced truth, we swing to the opposite extreme. The easiest example of this is on the doctrine of faith and works in the reformation. Men like Martin Luther looked around them at the failed system of Catholicism, and they knew that one could not buy their way into heaven with indulgences or earn it by saying so many prayers or walking up the cathedral steps a thousand times. So they interpreted passages in the context of their biases, and they swung too far the other way. Instead of saying, there is nothing you can do to earn your salvation.

They said, there is nothing God can require you to do to accept your salvation. Well intended, but it created other problems. So our fourth goal for the class is we'll meet some flawed but interesting and often brave characters. Oftentimes, the, story of a time in history can be told through the story of someone who lived through that time, and an example of that is Martin Luther in the reformation. We can't talk about all the reformation, but we can tell it through the eyes of Luther.

Also, along the way, we'll see the courage and faith of the persecuted and the martyrs who were willing to pay the price for their faith. We will want to, in the course of the class, examine ourselves and our and our history. We're going to seek to see our own physical history and acknowledge the reality of that physical history while not being defined by it or beholden to it because, ultimately, ours is a spiritual heritage and a spiritual history seeking to be like the first century church. And so, finally, the sixth goal for the class will be to make practical application to history. We don't want this to be a merely intellectual exercise as we go through the class.

So what then? How does this study impact my life and my walk as a Christian? Doctrinally, morally, practically. Especially when we get to our history in the restoration movement, what really happened to divide us from the Christian church and even other churches of Christ, how does that impact what we believe and practice and stand for today? So if we're able to accomplish all six of these goals, through the course of the class, then we will have done well.

And may God bless us as he promised with growth and influence worthy of the greatest story ever told. And that's what I've got. Anybody have anything you wanna add? Got a couple of minutes left, but I'm done. Comments?

Questions? Alright. Well, I'm looking forward to the class. Hope you are too. Reagan will be back next week, and he can clean up anything I messed up tonight.

Thank y'all.