It is
interesting to note that, for approximately the last two thousand years, God
has benchmarked every five hundred years as both great reformation and
transformation in His Church as it hinges on the backdrop of the Roman Empire
and its influences. Around 4 B.C. the long-awaited Christ made His appearance
on the scene of human history. In 476 A.D. the last of the Roman Empire fell.
In 1054 A.D. the Great Schism occurred then, finally, in 1517 A.D. Martin
Luther ignited the Great Reformation. As we are coming up on the 500th
anniversary of the Reformation, I believe we are on the verge of experiencing
the final great event of Church history — the glorious appearing of our Great
God and Savior Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13).
1.
The Great Transformation Era.
2.
The Great Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire.
3.
The Great Schism.
4.
The Great Reformation.
5.
The Great & Glorious Appearing.
The Great Transformation Era
The first of
these four periods was the entrance of the incarnated Jesus into the timeline
of history. Jesus came to set free men and women who had been placed in bondage
for so long both by sin and the unrighteous teachings of the religious leaders.
These Jewish leaders had turned God’s Word and the temple practices into a
means by which to make great profit and to maintain political control. They
also hoarded the truth of God for themselves and made it even more difficult
for Gentiles to come and worship Jehovah. Both the religious leaders and the
people were in desperate need for a spiritual reformation. Yet for this to
happen, what they needed most was the Spirit of God to transform their lives
through the sacrifice of Jesus. Every instance in human history of revival and
restoration of God’s people is brought about by the power and initiative of God
the Father.
The Great Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire
When persecution
began to arise from the Jewish people and the Roman government towards the
Christians, God scattered His people to all corners of the known world. For a
long time, Christians endured horrible treatment. Yet, the time came in the
early 300’s A.D. when the power of the Gospel reached through to the heart of
the Roman Emperor Constantine who established Christianity as the religion of
the State. The pendulum then swung as the outcome of conversion to Christianity
went from persecution, loss of wealth and even the loss of life to an abundance
of social, political and economic advantages. This act of Constantine, though
possibly well intentioned, enticed people to convert even if they did not
believe in Christ so that they could receive the worldly benefits of being a
Christian.
It is easy to
see why so many unregenerate individuals would claim Christianity simply
because of the elevated status the title would bring. These false converts were
then placed in positions of authority throughout not just the government but
the Church as well. This caused true believers of God to be led astray into
both theological errors and sinful practices which began plaguing the Church. Yet,
God was still faithful. When Rome eventually fell in 476 A.D due to barbarian
invasions, God used this second period of time to establish and strengthen His
Church through suffering. Christianity was no longer politically and
economically pleasing in the eyes of the world thus the true heart of the
Gospel could be taught undefiled and uncorrupted. Not only that, but with the
incoming clusters of people groups due to the fall of Rome, history shows God’s
sovereign hand in using such uncertain times to reach them with the Gospel of
Christ.
The Great Schism
The third great
mark occurred in 1054 A.D. and is known as the Great Schism. This tumultuous
event was a major separation which concluded with the division of the Church
into two parts: the west and the east. This division was brought about through
theological disputes, cultural preferences and political idealism. However,
much of this separation was hinged upon regular Church practices, control over
sacraments and the authority of the Pope. With the refusal from the east to
accept the full sovereignty of the Pope and Rome over the entire Church body,
the Great Schism actually prepared the groundwork for the Roman Catholic Church
to experience the fourth period which is known as the Great Reformation.
The Great Reformation
In the early
1500’s, a monk named Martin Luther submitted his life to Christ and began
studying the Scriptures. As he grew in his understanding of God’s Word he
became increasingly convinced that the Catholic Church had lost its way. The
Spirit of God was giving this man and others the ability to see the love and
truth of God, both theologically and practically. Just as God listened to the
cries of His people when they were enslaved in Egypt and sent to them a
deliverer to free them from their bondage, He once again saw the spiritual
captivity of His people enslaved by the hopeless traditions of the Roman
Catholic Church and was moved to action. Each one of the great eras previously
mentioned was due to the faithfulness of God in the lives of His people in
bringing them out of great apostasy. This is why this last period is referred
to as the Great Reformation — because only the Great Jehovah can bring His
people out of great and terrible sin and perform a great transformation in
their lives. After all, the spiritual reformation of the Church is not brought
about by human initiative, but rather through divine appointment.
The Great & Glorious Appearing
Nearly five
hundred years later, the Church today is in desperate need for a new
Reformation. Today Churches are full of those who do not know their Bibles,
people who have forsaken Biblical morality and those who confuse the definition
of love. Five hundred years ago, there was a break in the Church because the
leadership felt they could interpret the Bible the way they felt it should
read. As in the days of Martin Luther, the Word of God once again is being
twisted and distorted not by skeptics, but by those who claim the way of life.
This corruption is not coming from outside, but from within. This internal
degradation occurred in the time of Christ, just before the fall of Rome,
during the Great Schism, throughout the Great Reformation and it is happening
today with the authority of the Scriptures challenged by the very ones who
claim to hold spiritual authority. Five hundred years after Luther’s
Ninety-Five Theses which led to the Great Reformation and a thriving Church,
the Church is now found struggling.
This brings us
to the time when I believe our generation will be eyewitnesses to the second
coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Biblical prophecy is making history,
scientific advancement is a growing reality and Christian apostasy is becoming
the norm. Everything the Scriptures have declared regarding the events of the
end times is being fulfilled before our very eyes and, if history repeats
itself through another wave of God’s great faithfulness as we approach this 500
year benchmark, you and I are about to see firsthand the glorious appearing of
our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ. Whether it will be His second coming or
not, we can be overwhelmingly confident that the impact of God reforming His
Church will result in global ramifications. Pray earnestly that the Father
would send His eternal Son back into the world for the salvation of His bride.
Are you ready?
