10 marks of the early church
| February 15th, 2007I came across David Fairchild’s blog today from another blog (which one it was, I’m not sure…probably Goodmanson.com) to read his post on The Truncated Cross and Emerging Reductionism, where he shared his thoughts about sitting down and talking with 4 of the 5 emerging church leaders in Mark Driscoll’s new book Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches. This was my first visit to David’s blog and I thoroughly enjoyed what he shared about his conversations with these church leaders.
After finishing that post, I took a look around at the rest of his posts and one quickly caught my eye: 10 Marks of the Early Church. I’ve read a number of books on the early church, including books written by the Ante-Nicene fathers, but I don’t think I’ve come across a better summary than this. Here they are:
1- They refused to attend blood thirsty entertainment. They wouldnt go to gladiatorial events because they believed it defiled humans who were created in the image of God. This made them appear to be anti-social. Tertullian and Augustine both write about these events in a negative light.
2- They did not serve in the military to support Caesars wars of conquest, which made them appear weak.
3- They were against abortion and infanticide. In this culture, both were considered acceptable. To throw your baby out on the dung heap if you didnt want it was not taboo.
4- They empowered women by showing their value and dignity in places of learning and service which had previously been exclusively for men. Christians held women in high regard and treasured them rather than viewing them as just a step above expendable children and servants.
5- They were against sex outside of marriage. This fidelity was considered odd and against culture. Sex was viewed as nothing more than a desire like eating or sleeping. Christians held a high view of the bed and kept it pure and would not engage in sex outside of marriage.
6- They were against homosexual relationships. This was odd in a time when same sex practice was not frowned upon.
7- They were exceptionally generous with their resources. They shared what they had with one another and welcomed others in with a hospitality that was unparalleled.
8- They were radically for the poor. In a time when the poor and downtrodden were viewed as getting what they deserved, they were aggressively committed to loving and serving people in the margins of society.
9- They mixed races and social classes in ways that were unseen in their gatherings, and for it they were considered scandalous.
10- They believed only Christ was the way to salvation. This was in a time when everyone had a god and could believe something entirely different and it was totally acceptable to be polytheists and pluralistic. Christians dared claim that Jesus was the only way and refused to bend to other gods.
What would this city/state/nation look like if our churches were marked by these characteristics?
