The Early Persecution Of The Church

From The Christian Reader:

Early Persecution of the Church


by D.P. Brooks



During the early Christian period, prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, the Roman authorities regarded Christians as a branch of the Jewish faith. Rome was very tolerant of the religions of subject people and took no interest in their worship unless it threatened the tranquility of the state. Christianity was treated as a legal religion, since it was taken as a part of the legal Jewish religion. In his contacts with the authorities, Paul declared that Christianity was the truest form of the ancient faith of Israel. But even the Jewish faith was considered a dangerous and fanatical religion because it was associated with a fierce nationalism. Jews were expelled from Rome about A.D. 50, possibly because of conflicts between them and Christians.



Since Rome was so tolerant of religions, why did Christianity run into so much trouble with the Empire? The answer is to be found in the efforts of the emperors to cultivate loyalty throughout the Empire. Most of the people of the day were polytheists, worshiping many gods. Also, pagan people sometimes felt that powerful rulers were akin to the gods, if they were not actually divine. Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, because they seemed invincible, were deified. People ascribed deity to some of the emperors during their lifetime. Some of the emperors treated such reverence with a rather detached coolness. But the doctrine grew and came to be good politics, since it furnished a rallying point for building unity. When Domitian became emperor in A.D. 81, he seriously undertook to have himself treated as a divine person. Statues were set up throughout the Empire, and citizens were expected to burn incense before them and repeat the formula, “Caesar is Lord.”



Christians had already developed an odious reputation during the days of the mad emperor Nero. Seeking a scapegoat for the disastrous fires that destroyed so much of Rome, he blamed the Christians. Their separateness and their refusal to recognize any gods but one had caused people to look upon them as a subversive and hateful group. It is thought that both Paul and Peter died in the Neronic persecution.



But it was during the reign of Domitian that the position of the Christians became desperate. They could not in good conscience worship the emperor, not even with tongue in cheek. “Christ is Lord,” they declared, and there could be none other. Their refusal to participate in the formal worship of the emperor was not, for the Romans, a religious question; it was, rather, a political matter. Such refusal could be compared to a person in our society who refuses to salute the flag. As the word spread that Christians would not worship the emperor, they were increasingly labeled as subversives, a threat to the public welfare.



The Epistle of 1 Peter evidently was written just as the persecution of Rome began to pose a serious threat to Christians, probably during the reign of Nero. How were Christians to react in the face of hostility from the government? [See 2 Peter 3:11-18.] Jesus had taught them to obey the laws: “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21). Paul had taken the same position. asking that Christians obey the civil authorities as the representatives of God’s authority. Paul has used his Roman citizenship to good advantage and had taken pains to avoid any semblance of being a subversive. The Roman authorities had been tolerant, but what should the Christians do if the might of the Empire was turned against them? First Peter was written to help the Christians answer this question.



Peter interprets their suffering as God’s way of testing their faith: “For a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7). “Maintain good conduct among the Gentiles, so that in case they speak against you as wrongdoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation” (2:12). This evidently reflects the false charges being made against Christians.



Peter is emphatic in his instructions to the believers in relation to the Roman government: “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing right you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (vv. 13-15).



Peter reminded the Christians that they followed one who knew the meaning of suffering: “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same thought” (4:1). Since they followed a crucified Lord, they should expect suffering: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings” (vv. 12-13).



Not only were the believers to expect suffering, they were to accept it in the confidence that God would take care of them: “Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will do right and entrust their souls to a faithful creator” (v. 19). God would not be indifferent to their suffering: “After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, and strengthen you” (5:10).



In the main, the Christians followed this advice. They refused to fight back against the power of Rome and accepted imprisonment or martyrdom rather than renounce their faith in Christ…



The Epistle to the Hebrews likewise reflects a community under assault. It refers to the “former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion on the prisoners, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one” (10:32-34).



Hebrews reminds Christians of their Lord’s example: “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood” (12:3-4). Again it calls on them to “remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them; and those who are ill-treated, since you also are in the body” (13:3).



Like the writer of 1 Peter, the author of Hebrews encourages Christians to be prepared to suffer for Christ’s sake, accepting it as God’s discipline: “God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?” (12:7). In Hebrews, as in 1 Peter, Christians are expected to be obedient citizens, accepting whatever sufferings may come. They are to trust God to use their sufferings to refine their character and to advance his kingdom…



This brief survey of the major controversies that lie in the background of the New Testament can alert us to the importance of seeing more than the words of the Scriptures. We must see behind the words the human situations that provoked the writing of the words; and we must interpret the writings in the light of the situation in which they were born. The context is an essential part of the biblical story.



(From D.P. Brooks, The Bible—How to Understand and Teach It [Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1969], 72–78.)