Elements 3.4: The New Birth

2 Timothy 3:1–17 KJV 1900

1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 8 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. 9 But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was. 10 But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, 11 Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. 14 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; 15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

PRE LESSON

In the first generation after the death of Jesus, the church experienced incredible growth.

Some scholars believe that in Jerusalem, a city of 80,000, as many as 48-60,000 people receiving the Baptism of the Holy Ghost and being baptised in Jesus name.

That Generation died off with John.

Timothy’s generation died off (although they could have been very similar in age).

At this point, 100ish years after the death of Jesus, apostasy set in.

Apostasy: departure from what one has been taught.

By the time 300 years had past, there was total chaos in the religious world.

No one new what they believed.

The church had become organized and the Roman Catholic church emerges.

Fighting over points of doctrine.

First Council of Nicaea takes place in AD 325 as they try to decide what they believed.

The Church looks nothing like what it looked like just a handful of generations before.

Over the next 600 years, they would hammer out the doctrines of the church.

The doctrine of the trinity would be developed over this time.

Baptismal formulas would be developed during this time.

Roman Emperor Constantine the Great ( Ad 306-AD 337) set all this up when he called the first Council of Nicaea.

He is reported in history as a man who had great influence on the formation of the church.

Is lauded as a man who help the church become what it is today...

And I am in agreement with that; he is the man who was influential in creating the apostate “church” today.

This man was a pagan for all his life.

Interjecting his pagan beliefs into the formation of doctrinal statements.

It was only after a lifetime of creating his own flavor of christianity that he would be baptized into the church he has created!

On his deathbed...

Over the next 600 years, as priests would study the bible, they would begin to contend with the churches statements of doctrine.

They would continue to fight over the centuries.

Finally in 787, they would meet again for a total of 7 times to hammer out and standardize all these issues.

From these final meetings these doctrines were established.

Doctrine of the Trinity

Term came about - three separate, coequals - Three in one -

Mat. 28:19 as a baptismal formula

Sprinkling as a method of baptism

(Just a few)

In the following centuries, problems continued.

In every group there are always those who are not content…

They want more. Refuse to accept what they are told on the surface.

Priest in training were taught to read and write and they begin to see things that were contrary to what the had been taught from childhood in the bible...

Began stages of reformation.

The Council of Nicaea would usher in the dark ages.

Religious reformation would shatter a 1,000 years of darkness with the light of truth.

It would happen in stages.

God would use the hunger of men to shine a little more light into the darkness of what the church had become.

When darkness is in the church, chaos rules the world!

Thus the Mid-Evil times or Dark ages.

REMEMBER: what you see in the physical is a representation of what is taking place in the spiritual!

God would use men like Martin Luther who in 1517 nail this 95 Thesis to the Door of the church in Wittenberg to combat the darkness.

Men like John Calvin, John Wycliffe, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, John Wesley, Spurgeon; who each would contribute to the light that was being shined into the darkness that had become the church.

Each of these men not having a full understanding of truth - but each being used to stir the hungry in the church toward revelation!

This is why we have so many denominations...

As men and woman began to hunger for what the bible told them rather than dogma preaching preachers, a group in Topeka Kansas began to pray

If the Word of God says that they spoke in tongues in Acts, then we can today!

Finally on January 1st, 1901 in a prayer service lead by Charles Fox Parham (a teacher Bethel Bible College), a lady named Agnes Ozman was filled with the Holy Ghost speaking in tongues just like the book of Acts.

What followed that was a systematic revelation over the next 10 years of what man had destroyed and perverted in the 600 years of the developing of the false doctrine that is followed by so many today!

In 1906, William Seymour (black preacher who had worked with Charles Parham in Topeka KS) arrived in Los Angeles and started preaching.

Kicked out of the first church he preached the Holy Ghost in.

Started a church on Bonnie Brae St.

Rented a building on Asuza Street…

By 1913 God had began to show R.E. McAlister thing in scripture that he had never seen.

When asked to conduct a baptismal service in Arroyo Secco California he would preach for the first time about Jesus Name baptism - just like they did in Acts.

Men like Howard Goss, Frank Ewart, GT Haywood began to preach this book of Acts revelation.

John G. Scheppe ran through the camp meeting shouting the revelation of Jesus Name.

Conclusion:

100 years after the death of Jesus, church is in turmoil

False doctrine perverts the gospel - birth of the Roman Catholic Church

Council of Nicaea standardizes false doctrine

Fall into Dark Ages socially and spiritually

Hungry men let in Light

Revelation happens in a systematic way

What do we do?

Insist on everything we do being defined not by tradition but by the Word of God!