The Gospel Age
By Gordon Coulson
The Gospel age began with the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River and the subsequent launching of his preaching ministry: “Jesus began to preach and say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”(Matthew 4:17). Those who responded favorably to his message became his disciples; they in turn were sent out to proclaim the same gospel of the approaching kingdom (Matthew 10:7; Luke 10:9).
Jesus trained his disciples well, but a fuller understanding and deeper spiritual appreciation of his words would come later when they too received God’s holy spirit (John 14:26). But before that could occur, Jesus first had to submit to a humiliating, painful, and unjust execution as a sacrifice for sins. This he did willingly in obedience to his God and Father.
At Pentecost, the disciples were gathered together as was their custom. Jesus was no longer with them physically, having ascended to heaven after his resurrection. Before he left he commanded them to wait in Jerusalem for what the Father had promised (Acts 1:4,5). One of the great events in God’s purpose was about to occur, but the disciples had no warning. Suddenly they heard a noise like a rushing wind, and tongues of fire appeared, one over each disciple (Acts 2:1-4). They were baptized in the holy spirit just as Jesus had said.
They proceeded to boldly declare the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus, led by Peter’s spirited sermon to the crowd (Acts 2:14-36). They were obeying Jesus’ command to make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:19). On that Pentecostal day about three thousand were baptized (Acts 2:41). Witnessing and disciple-making were key activities of Christians recounted throughout the book of Acts and, by the power of the holy spirit, it was done with boldness. This was one of God’s primary methods of informing the world of his purposes and inviting them to partake in them. So Christians continued preaching, teaching, and baptizing throughout the Gospel age, down to our day, in obedience to Christ’s command.
With the baptism of the holy spirit came a new dimension in Christian experience. Paul, after his Damascus road conversion, could say, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). God is forming believers as a potter forms the clay, working and molding our hearts and minds by his spirit and his word, and by experiences (Jeremiah 18:6). From henceforth, true worshippers of Jehovah would be governed by the Law of Christ based on love and grace, not the Law of Moses. And this new dispensation would be brought about by the holy spirit in their hearts (Jeremiah 31:31), not by writings on tablets of stone. Christians receive God’s spirit and cry out, “Abba, Father,” submitting themselves to the adoption as spiritual sons and daughters into God’s family (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6). They receive a “heavenly calling,” a “holy calling,” and henceforth walk in the “narrow way” (2 Timothy 1:9; Hebrews 3:1; Matthew 7:13,14).
Speaking of his time, Paul wrote: “The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the holy spirit” (Romans 14:17). “He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13). John tells us that, “He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father (Revelation 1:6). So we see that the kingdom of God was inaugurated at Pentecost, in the sense that prospective members were called and chosen, anointed with the holy spirit, and put under the authority of the king Christ Jesus who is sitting at the right hand of God in heaven.
But the consummation of the kingdom would have to wait for their Lord’s return in glory (Daniel 2:44; Revelation 11:15). At that time Christ, along with his “bride”—faithful Christians—would rule over the nations and begin the process of redeeming mankind (Revelation 22:17, Daniel 7:27, Psalms 2:1-12). But these prospective members of the kingdom would have to stay faithful until the end (Revelation 17:14). Faithfulness includes loving obedience to Christ, and laying down all of one’s worldly ambitions and desires to serve God with one’s entire heart, mind, and soul (Matthew 10:38). True faith leads to action (James 2:18), and so true Christians would be identified by their Godly example in a wicked world.
After the Apostles
Jesus did not intend for his movement to die out before he returned. He left his apostles to carry on the work of preaching, teaching, and disciple-making. The apostles were also responsible for the development of the New Testament writings, although it would be a number of years after their death before the canon was confirmed.
The apostles saw the need for continuity: “The things which you have heard from me [Paul] in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2). Christianity, up until the end of the third century or so, remained remarkably true to the apostolic principles of separation from the world and loyalty to God’s kingdom. The historian Edward Gibbon writes:
“The Christians were not less averse to the business than to the pleasures of this world. The defense of our persons and property they knew not how to reconcile with the patient doctrine which enjoined an unlimited forgiveness of past injuries, and commanded them to invite the repetition of fresh insults. Their simplicity was offended by the use of oaths, by the pomp of magistracy, and by the active contention of public life, nor could their human ignorance be convinced, that it was lawful on any occasion to shed the blood of our fellow-creatures, either by the sword of justice, or by that of war; even though their criminal or hostile attempts should threaten the peace and safety of the whole community.”--The Christians and the Fall of Rome, p. 49
Christians were generally united in their understanding of the consummation of the kingdom at Christ’s glorious return. Gibbon writes on p. 29:
“The ancient and popular doctrine of the Millenium was intimately connected with the second coming of Christ. As the work of creation had been finished in six days, their duration in their present state, according to a tradition which was attributed to the prophet Elijah, was fixed to six thousand years. By the same analogy it was inferred, that this long period of labour and contention, which was now almost elapsed, would be succeeded by a joyful Sabbath of a thousand years; and that Christ, with the triumphant band of the saints and the elect who had escaped death, or who had been miraculously revived, would reign upon earth till the time appointed for the last and general resurrection. So pleasing was this hope to the mind of believers, that the New Jerusalem, the seat of this blissful kingdom, was quickly adorned with all the gayest colours of the imagination.”
Sadly, however, the seeds of corruption had already been sown earlier, during the apostles’ time. Paul speaks of certain false apostles that had slipped into the Corinthian congregation (2 Corinthians 11:13). John says that many antichrists (those in opposition to Christ) had already appeared (1 John 2:18). With the death of the apostles, these antichristian elements were given much more freedom to grow and corrupt the Christian congregations, resulting in a plethora of doctrinal variations and practices. Yet true Christians would continue to be recognized by their fruits (1 Corinthians 11:19; Matthew 7:16-20; John 13:35). True Christians and false Christians would co-exist until Jesus returned in judgment. At that time he would separate the wheat from the tares (Matthew 13:24-30).
According to the apostolic model, congregations were to operate independently, led by a group of spiritually mature men (the elders) in submission to Christ as head. This model ensured that as long as the leadership remained true to Christ, the congregation would thrive spiritually. If an elder became corrupt, he could be removed by other spiritually mature members. There was no single point that Satan could attack to corrupt all the congregations—he would have to take on all of them at once, an extremely difficult task. But this was about to change.
Ambitious men tended to gravitate toward leadership roles in the congregations. In time, instead of a group of elders leading a congregation, a single man, known as a bishop, began asserting authority. Later, bishops formed councils known as synods to decide doctrinal or governance matters between or within congregations. Authority was imperceptibly moving from congregations and their elders to a hierarchy of bishops. The clergy-laity distinction was soon instituted.
The language and tone changed as well. Bishops began commanding and ordering their fellow Christians rather than exhorting and serving them. Bishops jockeyed for power and recognition. The prestige of a bishop depended on the city which he oversaw. Rome would eventually emerge as the preeminent city in the West, and Constantinople in the East. Beginning with the emperor Constantine, the corrupted church joined with governments in a church-state union, supporting their wars and using the sword of the state to persecute fellow Christians who did not bow to the church’s authority. The corruption of Christianity was now complete.
But true Christianity would not die completely. Jesus said he would be with his disciples always, until the end of the age (Matthew 28:20).
Bright Lights during a Dark Time
Corrupt Christianity is identified by its fruits, both behavioral and doctrinal. The teachings of hellfire, immortal soul, and the Trinity were incorporated into official church doctrine, while the hope of the kingdom and the millennial reign of Christ faded away. Eternal hellfire slandered God’s good name, portraying him as a sadist. The immortal soul doctrine denied the resurrection from the sleep of death--the biblical hope of the faithful. The Trinity confounded the person and identity of God the Father and his relationship to his son Jesus. Those that opposed these doctrines or Church authority were viciously persecuted. Even during these dark times however, there arose individuals and movements that would shine their lights as beacons of hope to the world. The following is a brief survey of those that kept the faith as well as some who did not.
Arius was a humble priest of the early fourth century. According to Rubenstein’s When Jesus Became God, p. 53, “He was greatly admired for his personal purity as well as for his preaching and was a particular favorite of the sailors, dockworkers and young women who flocked to his church.” But persecution soon ensued. In his letter to the Church historian Eusebius, Arius said that, “the bishop greatly wastes and persecutes us, and leaves no stone unturned against us. He has driven us out of the city as atheists … We are persecuted, because we say that the Son has a beginning, but that God is without beginning.”[1]
Arius’ controversy came to a head with the bishop Athanasius. Rubenstein, on page 62-63 reports that Athanasius was “a small, red-headed man, almost childlike in size, but those who considered him insignificant or manipulable soon learned to regret their error … [he was] quite prepared to use the violent methods of the streets, when necessary, to accomplish worthwhile goals.” Arius’ controversy came to a head with the bishop Athanasius. The emperor Constantine presided over the disputation in 325 C.E., and the resulting unscriptural Nicene Creed is still accepted by most mainstream denominations today. Non-trinitarianism, in general, remains a ‘heresy’. Although Arian theology continued to survive after Nicaea, especially in the Eastern Empire, it was eventually overcome by trinitarianism.
Peter Waldo, or Valdez, was a wealthy merchant of Lyon in the twelfth century. After his conversion to Christianity, he was determined to use the remainder of his life in the Lord's service. He provided his wife with an adequate income and gave the rest of his estate to the poor. Referring to his lost wealth, he said: "Friends, fellow townsmen, I am not out of my mind, as you may think. Rather, I am avenging myself upon these enemies of my life who have enslaved me, so that I cared more for gold pieces than for God and served the creature more than the Creator."
He hired two priests to translate the New Testament into the common language, as well as parts of the Old. He taught in the streets and wherever he could find a listening ear; he lived by begging. He sent his followers out in pairs, into villages and market places, to teach and explain the Scriptures. They were known as the "Shooed." They referred to themselves as the Poor Ones, or the Poor in Spirit. The Waldensians, as they later came to be known, were viciously persecuted by the Roman Catholic Inquisition and many died in the flames.
The accounts of John Wycliffe (1328-1384), John Huss (1371-1415), and William Tyndale (1494-1536) are well known. These men, after receiving enlightenment from God, devoted their lives to teaching the common people about the Gospel—even translating all or parts of the bible into the vernacular--and felt the wrath of the Roman church as a consequence. Huss and Tyndale were burned at the stake. Wycliffe died preaching, but his bones were later dug up and burned anyway by the vindictive Church.
The Anabaptist movement began in 1521 when a small group of believers in Switzerland were secretly re-baptized as adults. This was in direct violation of the Zurich Protestant Church’s command regarding infant baptism, and was considered a capital offense. Besides the baptism of mature believers, Anabaptists practiced separation of church and state, religious tolerance, the priesthood of all believers, the authority of Scripture, and neutrality in war. They were viciously persecuted by both Catholics and Protestants.
The Polish Brethren (1552-1658) were influenced by the Anabaptists, the Moravian Brethren, and the Italian Socinians. They remained separate from both the Catholic and Protestant churches. They were non-trinitarian and rejected the Catholic and Protestant teachings of eternal hellfire. They were also pacifists--carrying wooden swords in protest, instead of the obligatory szablas, a saber-like weapon. They believed in church-state separation, they declined political office, and were against the death penalty. They believed in the equality and brotherhood of all people. These were revolutionary ideas for that time. In fact, many of the ideas of modern democracy and human rights can be traced from the Polish Brethren to the Unitarians in England and finally to the Constitution of the United States (see http://www.socinian.org/polish_socinians.html).
During the counter-reformation, the Roman Catholic Jesuits, through propaganda and intrigue, were able to turn the Polish government against Protestants in general, and the Polish Brethren in particular. The Brethren were persecuted and hounded, and were finally expelled from Poland in July of 1658.
Zwingli, Calvin, and Luther are often considered bright Reformation lights. It is true that they made some advances in biblical understanding compared to the dark ages of Papal domination. Yet when we look at their behavior--their fruits, as it were--we discern another spirit entirely.
Ulrich Zwingli led the Protestant church in Zurich in the early sixteenth century, which was in league with the State. He violently persecuted the Anabaptists, burning many of the men at the stake and drowning their women in a cynical mockery of their desire for a believer’s baptism. Zwingli met his end in battle against the Catholic armies in October, 1531. Jesus’ words are most fitting: “All those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword” (Matthew 26:52).
Luther despised the Anabaptists and Protestants who disagreed with his theology: “I shall challenge them to fight; and I shall trample them all underfoot.”[2] He hated the Catholic Church and wrote in June, 1520: “If we punish thieves with the yoke, highwaymen with the sword, and heretics with fire... Why do we not rather assault them [Catholics] with arms and wash our hands in their blood?”[3] During the Peasant Revolt of 1524, Luther said that, “These times are so extraordinary that a prince can win heaven more easily by bloodshed than by prayer,” and, “You cannot meet a rebel with reason: your best answer is to punch him in the face until he has a bloody nose.” The German princes gladly followed Luther’s advice and the result was a violent slaughter of 100,000 peasants.[4] Although the state has the right to bear the sword to keep order (Romans 13:4), it is hardly the Christian’s role to cheer it on! (John 18:36)
Luther was also an anti-Semite. In 1543, in his pamphlet On the Jews and Their Lies, he recommended that synagogues be set on fire, property seized, and the Jews sent into forced labor or expelled. He further writes that, “We are at fault in not slaying them.” This was a sinister foreshadow of the Nazi horror to come, and Luther’s influence has been noted by historians.[5]
Despite his good work on the doctrine of salvation by grace and his opposition to false Catholic teachings, Luther, at least in his later career, is extremely disappointing in the realm of personal morality and behavior—the identifying fruits Jesus told us to look for (Matthew 7:15-23; John 13:35).
John Calvin, also in league with the state, ruled Geneva with an iron fist. Michael Servetus, a brilliant scholar and physician, had published several works, including a refutation of the Trinity, which infuriated Calvin. In August of 1553 Servetus was arrested in Geneva and tried for heresy. Calvin advised the prosecution, even appearing in person at the trial on several occasions in the role of prosecutor. Servetus was found guilty of preaching non-trinitarianism and anti-infant baptism. He was burned at the stake slowly, and suffered horribly. Rather than feeling any remorse, Calvin wrote several acrimonious articles justifying his actions.
“You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:17). Regarding Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin, the clear lesson is this: those who persecute Christians cannot themselves be Christians—even if their doctrine appears sound! Sadly, Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli were no different than the Roman Church in their intolerance and persecution of others. Their big mistakes were to partner with the temporal powers, which always lead to corruption of the church, and their arrogance in thinking that only they have the truth. Of course they couldn’t even agree among themselves exactly what that truth was, but they were quick to impose it on others.
During this period of the Gospel age true Christians practiced believer’s baptism, authority of Scripture, religious tolerance, separation of church and state, and neutrality in war. More importantly, they were examples of true Christian love in the world--shining as beacons, living the life of the kingdom despite this wicked world. Conversely, false Christians are identified by intolerance and violence, unholy church-state union, support for war, and God-dishonoring doctrines. They are more concerned with power and theology than living as Jesus Christ and his apostles did. They are quick to condemn but slow to love.
The Narrow Way—For How Long?
The true Christian walk begins with repentance, then the laying down of one’s entire life at the feet of our Savior, water baptism, and the new birth by God’s word and his holy spirit, without which, we cannot see the kingdom (James 1:18; John 3:3). It is known as the “narrow way,” a “heavenly calling,” or a “holy calling” (Hebrews 3:1; Matthew 7:13,14; 2 Timothy 1:9). These have the prospect of serving with Christ in the kingdom as priests and kings under his headship (Luke 22:30; Revelation 1:6; 5:10). But they must remain faithful to the end if they are to receive their reward (Matthew 24:13; Revelation 17:14). They are collectively known as the Bride of Christ, his true Church (2 Corinthians 11:2; Revelation 3:12; 21:2). Their task is to assist Christ in the redemption of mankind (Revelation 22:17) and the reconciliation of all things to God the Father (1 Corinthians 15:27,28). This “narrow way” began at Pentecost. But for how long will it remain open? Is God still calling prospective kingdom heirs today?
Some would say no, based on various chronological schemes. However, an honest appraisal of the many failed historical predictions based on chronologies should, at a minimum, prescribe caution. We should look to clear Scriptural teachings. In 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, Paul says,
“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.”
We note several things from this passage. There will be faithful disciples on earth when Jesus descends from heaven. Dead Christians are first resurrected. Those that are alive at that time, are then caught up together with the resurrected Christians. They do not die, but are changed, in the “twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor 15:52). Since no Christians living today or in the past have been caught up in clouds to meet the Lord, or have been miraculously changed, putting on the new, glorious and immortal body (1 Cor 15:42-44), we must conclude that this event is future (also see Dan 12:1-3) and that the Gospel Age has not ended.
Jesus said that, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). He also commanded us to continue preaching until the end (Matthew 28:19,20). Since the end has not yet come, the gospel must still be preached—otherwise we disobey Christ. If the gospel is still being preached, and the gospel is a call to the kingdom, the kingdom hope must still be open. Otherwise, either Christ is mistaken in commanding us to preach, or we are to cruelly preach to those who cannot respond, because the calling is closed. Obviously both alternatives are absurd. The “narrow way” must still be open.
Revelation chapter seven presents a prophetic picture of the gathering of the true Church prior to God’s judgments being poured out on the earth. Four angels are told not to harm the earth or the sea until the “bond-servants of God are sealed in their forehead”-- a clear reference to Christians being sealed by holy spirit. Twelve thousand from each of the symbolic twelve tribes are then sealed, totaling 144,000 (compare Revelation 14:1). Since the angels were told not to harm the earth or sea until the 144,000 are sealed, and since God’s judgments have not yet been unleashed, it is clear the 144,000 have not been completely sealed. The call to the kingdom must still be open.
Another line of evidence is personal experience. We all know individuals who demonstrate the fruits of the spirit to a high degree, who lay their lives down in sacrificial devotion to God, who fearlessly preach biblical truth, who have separated themselves spiritually from the world, who clearly have the love of God and his Christ in their hearts, and who hope to rule with Christ in the coming kingdom. They have the witness of God’s spirit that they are his child by adoption (Romans 8:16). This is very good evidence that the “narrow way” is still open.
The course of wisdom, then, is to obey Christ and continue to preach, teach, and make disciples. We should not judge others as to their faith—that is a personal matter between them and their God. And certainly, we should not shut the door to Christ based on unreliable chronological interpretations.
Lessons Learned
Jesus and his apostles left us a body of teaching and a pattern of worship approved by God. The closer we come to this ideal in our own congregations, the better. True Christians throughout history had certain attributes we should try to emulate. They were tolerant. They stayed out of war and politics. They held Christ as central and the Bible as authoritative. They never coerced anyone to believe something nor did they reject anyone for holding non-essential beliefs that differed from theirs. They were known as loving, peaceful, helpful people—they lived the life of Christ despite being persecuted by the world and false brethren.
Claiming to be a Christian does not necessarily make one a Christian, even if the doctrine appears sound. Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin all had, to one extent or another, “good doctrine,” but their actions revealed what was in their heart. One cannot be a Christian if he persecutes other Christians or condones violence directed against them. We see that the corruption of Christianity happened quietly, almost imperceptibly. We must guard against following the teachings of men rather than the teachings of Christ. We must constantly be on the alert lest ambition or lust for power enters our hearts and we fall into sin. We do not want to be found beating our fellow slaves when the master returns (Luke 12:45,46).
The need for tolerance is so important. Christians today are quick to divide over minor doctrinal matters, and this is a travesty. The body of Christ should not be divided (1 Corinthians 1:10-13). In humility we need to remember Paul’s words: “Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. Later we will see him face to face. We don’t know everything, but then we will, just as God completely understands us. For now there are faith, hope, and love. But of these three, the greatest is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:12,13, Contemporary English Version).
[1] http://ecole.evansville.edu/arians/arius1.htm
[2] Dave Armstrong, The Protestant Inquisition, http://ic.net/~erasmus/RAZ247.HTM
[3] Dave Armstrong, Martin Luther's Violent, Inflammatory Rhetoric and its
Relationship to the German Peasants' Revolt (1524-1525),
http://ic.net/~erasmus/RAZ503.HTM
[4] Paul Johnson, A History of Christianity, p. 283
[5] Wikipedia, Martin Luther and the Jews, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_and_the_Jews. Also see William Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, p. 91 & p. 236 and Paul Johnson, A History of the Jews, p. 242.