The first reason why Christians should study church history is that it helps Christians provide a more reasonable account of what we believe. Although Reformed theology came out of the Reformation, and in particular through the theological teaching of John Calvin (1509-1564), its roots go back to Augustine (345-430). That dogmatic decision is reflected in the church’s doctrinal beliefs and it demonstrates its crucial importance for Christianity. In fact, he believed it was possible for man not to sin, even without God’s help. {3} A belief considered as dogma is deemed to be essential to the gospel; rejecting it would entail apostasy and heresy. One night I began talking to a man about Christ and he quickly cut me off, “I am a Christian,” he exclaimed. Over the course of centuries it developed a highly sophisticated theology and an elaborate organizational structure headed by the papacy, the oldest continuing absolute monarchy in the world.. We, along with the Orthodox are the only Churches that stretch right back to Christ and the Apostles. Believers today have what is called “libertas fidelium” (“freedom of the faithful”). So Adam brought not only spiritual death, but also physical death upon himself. It has a history. James Detrich is a former research intern at Probe Ministries. Luther’s work is one of the most important documents, as it drew a line in the sand with Biblical faith and the Catholic Church. A study of church history will reveal that most “innovations” in theology (and sometimes in practice) are simply a re-packaging of old heresies that were rejected by the early church. The unregenerate, on the other hand, are non posse non peccare, the inability not to sin, which is the post-lapsarian state of Adam, and the condition of all those who are not regenerate. He argued against the belief that God’s foreknowledge of events was the cause of events, and held that the doctrines of repentance, baptism, and conversion depended on the existence of free will. To keep that from happening, we must study church history and find out what the precious jewels actually are that construct the beauty of the Bible. Once this heresy was confronted by men of faith such as Athanasius, it was defeated within a generation and didn’t surface again for many centuries. Arminians believe in unlimited atonement, which means that Christ died for all people, and those who trust in Christ will be saved. If I had only known of this rich tradition, if I had only known my church history, I would have been able to give a reasonable account of that hope that lies within me. 1. Augustine also taught that another result of the Fall was that now everyone would die a physical death (Romans 5:12). The reason why studying church history can show us what is important to the faith is because the Spirit has been at work guiding the church into truth. It is the same Spirit that was working in that early Christian community that is still at work today in the community of faith. In order to seek after God, a person’s nature must be changed, and it must be changed by God. It asks the question, What has always been crucially important to Christians in each stage of church history? This false view of who Christ is stems from a heresy called Arianism, which is attributed to Arius (250-336), and deals with Christology (the study of just exactly who Jesus is).1  Arius also taught that the relationship of the Persons of the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) was unequal, and the precise nature of the Son of God was that of Him being a subordinate being to God the Father. The Jesus of the Jehovah’s Witnesses is not God, but is Jehovah’s first created being (according to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, before coming to this Earth, Jesus was known as “Michael the Archangel”). The Catechism of the Catholic Church is not a mere collection of doctrines. He is there, just as Jesus said He would be. It also fully approved the views of Augustine. 12They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”). More specifically, it gives evidence that the Holy Spirit is working through and among His people, the church of God. Whereas the Council of Dort once stood up against such things, now the Dutch Church is unable to do anything about it. People all over are reading the Bible, but they are reading it in different ways. Before the Fall, Adam was able to not sin and able to sin. Each of us is responsible to know what the Scripture says and to live by it. 590 CE: Pope Gregory I initiates his papacy, during which the Catholic Church engages in widespread efforts to convert pagan peoples to Catholicism. 2001 W. Plano Parkway, Suite 2000 Pre-regeneration, we are as post-Fall Adam. We were indeed affected by the Fall, contrary to what Pelagius taught. What it all boils down to is the Church not standing up for the truths of God’s Word when heresy and false teachings rear their ugly heads; and in doing so, it has slowly but surely allowed error to not only enter the Church, but also to glory in it. Arius’s teaching that God the Son did not exist eternally, that Jesus was a divine being created by (and therefore inferior to) God the Father, means that there was a time in which Jesus did not exist. This task is developed from a historical viewpoint. This idea that “one must be born again” is not a fad or a new religious thought, but something that is in God’s Word. '”), and that man can cooperate with God’s grace even to the keeping of his faith through human effort. He is currently working on a Ph.D. in Early Church History from DTS. We were always sure that plenty of people would be there that needed our message. The result was that the Synod decided in favor of the “Dead Man” theory, stating that man, as seen throughout the entirety of Scripture, is born dead in sin and is a slave to sin. Among those within the society, only an astonishing 30% of them are evangelicals, or people who would have a more conservative interpretation of Scripture. For example, though the Church did not come together as an organized body to refute the universalistic teachings of Rob Bell, a wide variety of denominations, churches, para-church organizations, and, above all, individual Christians stood up against his error. Faith is not naturally within anyone -- it must be gifted to a person by God (Ephesians 2:8, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God."). But by our very nature we are sinners. The exact wording of the council’s conclusion is that Jesus is “of the same substance” with His Father. Also, John 6:65 says, "And He said, 'Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father. The word “tradition” actually means handing down something to another person.Scripture testifies to this meaning of Catholic Tradition as the normal mode of transmitting the Faith:This is the most basic meaning of Catholic Tradition: it is the true Faith itself, given to the Apostles by Christ and faithfully transmitted to each new generation. Through the ages, more poems, hymns, statues, icons, paintings, treatises, and sermons have been produced on one woman than any other in all human history. And the writings of these great men and women, can be helpful to us. “Great,” I replied. Armininans believe God looks into the future and sees who will believe in Him and then chooses those whom He foresees will have faith. Maybe you’ve asked, Is this really so important to my faith? Arminians believe people are affected by sin, but still have the ability to choose to be saved. This is what is fascinating about church history: it is a study of His Story. We do still sin though. Church history is the story of how the community reflects that invisible God. Many Catholics the world over have been bombarded with questions about the Catholic faith by other religious groups and sects. But concerning history. The question at hand:  How does Fallen Man come to salvation? The expansive ceilings, high walls, and stained glass leaves the impression that our faith, our Christian heritage, is not small but large. Disagreed on the church before the Fall, Adam ’ s intervention and grace Fallen. 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