World War 3 is at Hand
While we wait for Iran's annihilation and its regime change to start World War 3, let's check our own Christian faith, doctrine and knowledge of Him and His words.
Glorious Apostolic Age
Jesus' disciples were persecuted initially by the Jewish leadership and then by the Romans for 300 years until Emperor Constantine, the first Christian Roman Emperor.
During the Apostolic age, the church flourished with sound doctrine taught by Jesus' disciples. They protected His truth by rejecting heresies of those new rich Pharisees converts.
The Holy Spirit inspired some of His disciples to pen the 4 Gospels and the 23 Epistles, recording the truth of Jesus' birth, divinity, commandments, words and teachings for our understanding, guidance and spiritual growth.
Earliest Christian Heresy
Acts 15:5 But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses."
Some covetous Pharisees (Luke 16:14-15) wanted the new Gentile converts to keep the Mosaic Law so that they too could follow the Law again.
As a Jew, he only needs to pay 10% of his income as tithes and the rest of the money is his to keep. As a Christian, he owns nothing, for all, 100% belongs to God, as he is only God's steward.
When they witnessed the disciples selling all they had and laid the money at the Apostles' feet they were worried.
Since then, various depraved rich and covetous Christians produced erred texts and false Gospels and epistles to deny the divinity of Jesus thereby demoting Jesus to be a creature rather than the Creator, Almighty God Himself.
These rebellious Christians only want Jesus' grace of salvation and the Holy Spirit's anointing, gifts and empowering but not Jesus' words. They kept the Mosaic Law for financial blessings.
Luke 24:44-45 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.
We thank God that after His resurrection, for forty days our Lord Jesus taught His disciples how the New Covenant of His blood replaced the Old Covenant.
The Council of Elders in Jerusalem, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, insisted that Christians must not keep the Law.
Paul's epistles are doctrines taught by the Lord Himself, they all complement His words. In line with the commands by the Council of Elders, some of Paul's writings specifically condemn the keeping of the Old Covenant such as Sabbath, Feasts, Jewish traditions, etc.
Heresies in Churches
Acts 20:29-30 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.
After the Apostolic Age, Satanic false Apostles (untransformed rich and powerful Pharisees and Scribes) in the leadership of churches defiled His church.
By the 2nd and 3rd Century A.D, the church faced many heresies including; Docetism, Adoptionism, Arianism and Gnosticism.
By the 4th Century A.D, there were about 50 false Gospels (Gospels of Thomas, Marcion, Mary Magdalene, Barnabas, etc.) and hundreds of false Epistles.
All these heresies denied the divinity of Jesus and the Triune Godhead, resulting in Jesus' words being treated as inferior to the Law of Moses.
Mat 5:11-12 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
As Jesus' apostles and disciples were recording the teachings of Jesus, these false Apostles and historians produced false, damaging and heretic records, books and epistles to discredit (say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake) our Lord Jesus, His faithful Apostles and later on, even Emperor Constantine.
