The secrets to the early church

This past Sunday night I shared with our church the biggest change of teaching direction that I have ever proposed in my thirty years of being a pastor. It is mainly connected with these Biblical commands:

I Peter 3:15-17 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.”

Colossians 2:8 "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ."

As I was preparing for this, my friend Barry Clingan shared with me these thoughts from J.P. Moreland in his book Kingdom Triangle.

Moreland summaries what he calls the "single most authoritative treatment of the spread of the gospel in the first four centuries” by Michael Green in his book Evangelism in the Early Church. Green highlights three factors central to the church's explosive success in her first four centuries:

1. The church's ability to engage in persuasive apologetics and out-think her critics;

2. The transformed character and biblical compassion of believers;

3. The manifest power of the Kingdom of God by the Spirit through healings, demonic deliverance, and prophetic ability clearly from another realm.

Reflect on those statements for a while. They are powerful and right on target.