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How Polycarp (And Others) Show The Early Use Of The New Testament

...alonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon James 1 Peter 1 John So that’s seventeen books referenced at the turn of the second century, but what about if we look even earlier? Before Ignatius, we have some fragments of texts preserved from Papias, the Bishop of Hierapolis, another friend of Polycarp and associate (and possible disciple) of John. In the few short bits of his letters which remain, that date from AD 70–155, we can find references and quotes to: Matthew John 1 Corinthians Only three New Testament books this time, but considering we are missing the vast majority of Papias’ massive five volume work, it’s no surprise the sam...

Women should be silent?

...1 Timothy 2:12 - "I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent." Here's an often tricky subject, depending on who you speak to about it. Before I begin, it should be noted here that these words ("woman" and "man") could also be translated as "wife" and "husband", which then changes the thrust of this command quite drastically. This verse, and others similar, are often taken by people to mean that it only applies in a church setting (ignoring the fact that we are the Church - 1 Cor 12:27; Rom 12:5). A little while ago when discussing this topic, an argument was put forth about the 'Woman at the Well' preaching to other...

Lent: Day 6 - Ignatius to the Magnesians

...Day Six: St. Ignatius of Antioch: Letter to the Magnesians (full text) Who: Ignatius converted at a young age and later became Bishop of Antioch. A friend of Polycarp and fellow disciple of John, there is a long standing tradition that Ignatius was the child that Jesus held in his arms and blessed in Mark 10:13-16 What: Ignatius urges the church to continue in unity, to honour their leadership and to avoid Judaizers who may try to bring false teaching. This letter also gives some valuable insight to early church hierarchy. Why: Ignatius wrote a series of letters to the churches in Asia Minor whilst en route to Rome to face martyrdom by wild beasts in the Col...

The Temptations of Jesus: Testing God

...Here we are at the final temptation that the devil directly attacks Jesus with (I say directly, because next week I’m going to look at the more subtle attacks and temptations we can face). Let’s begin with the text: Matthew 4:5-7 Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’    and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (...

Creedal Christians: Introduction

...-4; 10:9; 1 Timothy 3:16, 2 Timothy 2:8; and possibly the more well known one, in Philippians 2:6-11. I encourage you to look them up and read them all, as you’ll see that short, statement based clear expressions of doctrine and belief are intertwined with the Scriptures and life of the Church since the very start. Having more formalised versions just came out of an already existing practice and often had various reasons behind them being required. We’ll look more into those reasons as we carry on through this series and examine each creed in more detail. The creeds I’ll be covering in the coming weeks will be: The Apostles Creed The Nicene Creed The...

Creedal Christians: The Apostle's Creed

...cts 4:27; 1 Timothy 6:13   descended into the grave (Gk. hades), Acts 2:31; Ephesians 4:9; 1 Peter 3:18-20 on the third day rose again from the dead, on the third day rose again from the dead, Matthew 28:5-7; Mark 16:5-6; Luke 24:5-7; John 20:8-9; Acts 2:31; Ephesians 1:20 ascended into heaven, ascended to heaven, John 3:13; John 20:17; Mark 16:19; Acts 1:9; Ephesians 4:8,10 sits at the right hand of the Father, sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty, Matthew 26:64; Mark 12:36; Mark 14:62; Mark 16:19; Luke 20:41-43; Luke 22:69; Acts 2:25; Acts 2:33-34; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:2...