World History, Chapter 16: Edited 12/7/23.
Beware of False Teachers:
Genesis 11:7-8, God said, “Let us go down and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. So the LORD scattered them (the people) abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they (the people) went off to build the city.”
The secret of King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. The image of a man represents the progressive history of the powers of the world and would point out the limitations of men and nations.
Deuteronomy 32:8, “When the Most High (He who rules over the nations) divided to the nations their inheritance, and when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
And so the empires of Nebuchadnezzar, head of gold; Cyrus and Darius, arms and chest of silver; Alexander and Selucius, the belly and thighs of brass, and then the legs of iron would bring us to Rome. Under Roman rule the first three centuries of the young Christian Church brought considerable suffering, pain and death, yet the second century gave definition to the church, while Rome gave the world tyrants such as Caligula, Nero, Domitian, Diocletian, and eventually Constantine.
Some 20,000 Christians are thought to have died during Diocletian’s reign alone. The persecution of Christians would last until Constantine came to the throne in 313 A.D. He would eventually legalize Christianity, but, not until the fourth century would Theodosius 1 make Christianity the official religion of the Empire. During his reign, Constantine ordered the destruction of all pagan temples and also forbid Pagan sacrifices.
The lines of power were never in doubt; Constantine was the absolute source of authority. Like his father he was a successful general, leading the Roman Legions in the West. Because it was the emperor’s duty to enforce religious unity, he began to persecute those who disagreed with what was then called the true Christian faith. Therefore, if a person within, or without the church did not subscribe to the Universal (Catholic) thinking, they were perceived as a threat to the dominance and purity of the so called, “One true faith”. And because of this mindset, certain men would dedicate themselves to be the enforcers. This would eventually lead others to carry out their rampage of terror against anyone who dared disagree.
The Council of Nicaea in The Year 325 A.D:
Many of the bishops who attended the council had gone through some form of persecution at the hands of Rome; most had been jailed or tortured in the name of Jesus Christ, but Constantine brought an end to all this. The council brought clarity to the true nature of Jesus Christ, but would soon become the wedge that divided the Christian Church.
Arius was a Deacon of Alexandria Egypt, born 250 A.D. died 336 A.D. who gave rise to a theological doctrine known as Arianism. He maintained that Jesus, “The Son of God was not;” He stated that the Son of God could NOT be co-eternal, co-essential, and co-equal with the Father. He reasoned that it was inconsistent and impossible, since the Father, who begat, must be before the Son, who was begotten: the Son therefore, could not be absolutely eternal. This is a conclusion anyone would draw if their reasoning was without the influence and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Athanasius was the chief opponent of the Arian doctrine and affirmed that Jesus was God; but Arius said, “They are of God, of whom are all things,” and would admit only that Jesus was of like substance.
Eventually Arius was excommunicated as a heretic, and banished to Illyricu. But, after several years, he and his followers were called back to Rome. The emperor insisted on Arius being received back into communion with the church of Alexandria. The church leaders refused to receive him, and in 326 Arius died suddenly.
As the years passed, successive Emperors took opposing sides to this issue. The peace of the Catholic Church would be in turmoil for years to come; each side in their turn being excommunicated, fined, imprisoned, or banished depending on the emperor in power. As the Greek empire had become divided North and South, this represented as the two thighs of bronze; so also had the Roman Empire become divided as the two legs of iron, Rome in the West and Constantinople in the East. Eventually the doctrine of the trinity was accepted at Rome, and considered heresy at Constantinople, a Church divided from within. Rome fixed the doctrine of the Trinity, while the African and Eastern Churches, supported Arianism.
Before we go any further let’s clarify through the Scriptures the correct position concerning the person of Jesus Christ. I will use the King James Bible: The question, “Is Jesus Christ God?”
Matthew 1:23, quotes Isaiah 7:14, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which (is) interpreted, God with us.”
1 Timothy 3:16, “Great is the mystery (the hidden truth) of godliness (meaning the godhead): God (Jehovah) was manifest (showed himself openly) in the flesh (as Jesus the Christ).”
Hebrews 1:3, Jesus “Who being (is) the brightness of His (the Father’s) glory, and the express (exact) image of His (the Father’s) person, and (He, Jesus) upholding all things by the word (because He is the Word) of his power.”
Colossians 1:16, “For by him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and for him.”
Hebrews 1:2, the Father “Has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son (Jesus,) who He (the Father) has appointed heir of all things, and by whom also He made (created) the worlds.”
Revelation 1:8, Jesus said, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty (the title Almighty speaks of the Creator alone.)”
And you can examine John 1:1-2-3-14, and Isaiah 9:6-7.
So, when we consider the above a proper conclusion can be reached, Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be, “God manifest in the flesh” “the Almighty.” Therefore He is as Genesis 1:1, states, “the Creator of heaven and the earth.”
And like all false religions, the Arians were divided into various shades of thinking under their individual leaderships. From this came two distinctions, one being Arians, the other Semi-Arians. The Semi-Arians stripping the character of Jesus Christ into that of a mere creature, while the latter admitted everything except Jesus had absolute equality with the Father.
The teaching and the thinking of the Arian doctrine has been adopted by the cults such as the Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses, Muslims, etc. These are people that have listened to the doctrines of men and not those of God! People like Arius, Joseph Smith, Taze Russel, Mary Baker Eddy, and Mohammed etc.
These are as Jude 12 states, “Spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots.”
After the council in 325 A.D., the Universal (Catholic) Church would begin its rise to power, and also its gradual descent into darkness. They would develop their own systems; their own rituals; practices, endowing certain men with power and the authority that belonged to Jesus alone. It became a church of Pharisees, a religion of blind rituals, idol worship, and traditions. But not far into the future, the legs of iron (Rome) would become the two feet of “Iron and clay.”
The Romans had become one of the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world. It was the largest empire of the classical antiquity period, and one of the largest empires in world history. At its height under Trajan, it covered five million square kilometers and ruled over some 70 million people. The longevity and vast extent of the empire ensured the lasting influence of the Latin and Greek language, its culture, religion, inventions, architecture, philosophy and law.
By means of European expansionism through the Spanish, French, Portuguese, Dutch, Italians, Russians, Germans, British and the Belgian empires, Greco-Roman culture would spread on a worldwide scale, and play a significant role in the development of the modern world.
“The Last of the Roman Emperor’s was Romulus Augustus from 475 to 476 A.D. He was overthrown by Odoacer, leader of the barbarian mercenaries who had been hired to fight for Rome, but now fought against them. After his victories, he installed himself, King of Italy.
After the Roman Empire in the west had come to an end, the Eastern Empire ruled from Constantinople continued until 1453, that is until Mehmed II captured it. Yet the Catholic Church grew and spread to the uttermost parts of the earth.
Daniel 7:7, “I (Daniel) saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast (who yet opposes God to this very day), dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.”
Luke 21:24, “And Jerusalem shall be trodden (trampled) down by the Gentiles; until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.”
“Iron teeth:” figuratively in scripture iron represent spiritual barrenness; iron teeth represent destructive power. Down through the centuries, this 4th beast has been and continues to be the enemy of God’s people. And now we are witnesses to the brutality; destructions and murders of this beast who once knew Jesus Christ but have now fallen far from Him. With its iron teeth it tears, divides and disrupts the body of Christ, God’s holy word, and causing the nations to bleed.
Psalms 3:7, “Arise, O Jehovah; save me, O my God; for Thou wilt smite all mine enemies on the jaw; Thou wilt break the teeth of the wicked.” To break the teeth of the wicked is to destroy the falsities by which they destroy the truth.
Daniel 7:19, “I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse (different) from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails (claws) of brass, which devoured, brake in pieces and stamped the residue with his feet.”
This 4th beast has claws of brass that are used to scratch, tear and pull apart the life and land of the Jews; the truth; and the body of Christ.
As the Roman army spent more and more time suppressing their own citizens, it became easier for the Germans to defeat those guarding the frontiers. Between AD 406 and 419 the Romans lost a great deal of their empire to various German tribes.
Daniel 2:33, “His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.”
The Romans called the people who lived outside the Empire barbarians. The Romans had considerable difficulty in stopping these barbarians from entering their lands. And because of this, Rome was forced to increase the size of their army, which had grown to some 600,000 men. Of these, about 250,000 were stationed on Rome’s northern borders.
Enter the iron mixed with clay: The ankle of a man has three bones in each ankle, six in all. These six bones form the transition between the lower leg and the feet. There were also six major tribes that came down from the north who would over time over ran the Roman armies.
They were,
1. The Franks who conquered northern Gaul.
2. The Burgundians took eastern Gaul.
3. The Vandals who replaced the Romans in Hispania. The Romans were also having difficulty stopping,
4) The Saxons,
5) The Angles and,
6, The Jutes from overrunning Britain. In AD 410 Emperor Honorius warned the Romans in Britain that they could no longer rely on reinforcements being sent from other parts of the empire.
The Catholic Church was being prepared to become the new authority in Rome. And in the years to follow, Kings would bow to the Popes. The title of Emperor became defunct in Western Europe after the deposition of Romulus Augustulus; both the title and connection between Emperor and Church continued in the East until 1453 A.D, when it fell to the forces of the Ottomans.
Phil LaSpino www.seekfirstwisdom.com