Chapter 23: Was God Changing the Rules? In the brief span of less than fifteen years, enormous changes had taken place in Christianity. The kingdom that had been not of this world was now closely linked with the kingdom that was of this world. How did such a complete reversal of values take place in such a short period of time? Why didn't the church leaders say something about it? The reason is that the leaders had convinced themselves that God was changing all the rules.
All those things that the Scriptures said about non-resistance, loving one's enemies, and not being of the world applied to a different time, a different paradigm. After all, it seemed to most Christians that God was truly blessing the church through Constantine. It appeared that He was the one ushering in these changes. Christians had prayed for an end to the persecution, and all this seemed to be an answer to their prayers. But was all of this really a blessing from God?
Or was it actually a test God was allowing Satan to bring against the church? How could the fourth-century Christians know? There was a fairly easy way the fourth-century church could know. All they had to do was to continue doing things the kingdom way. They simply needed not to deviate one iota from Christ's teachings. Jesus Christ is the same today, yesterday, and forever. Until He returns, there are not going to be any changes in the way His kingdom is run. And there won't be any changes in His laws.
If Constantine had been sent by God as a blessing, the church didn't have to compromise in any way. And it didn't have to water down its message. Christians just needed to stay loyal to the kingdom of God, and they would soon find out whether this emperor was a blessing or not. As I have mentioned, Constantine made various bishops and presbyters his counselors. This provided a perfect opportunity to test whether or not Constantine was being sent by God.
Those counselors merely had to give Constantine advice without compromise, and then wait and see what his response would be. If Constantine rejected godly counsel or was angered by it, then his program wasn't from God. Faithful men of God had always spoken straightforwardly to rulers. Look at the examples of Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. They weren't afraid to tell kings the truth from God. Or look at John the Baptist. The Jewish religious leaders had come to him and asked him what they should do.
John could have reasoned to himself, "God is really blessing my ministry. Look, now even the Jewish leaders want to come and hear me preach. Through their support and assistance, I'll be able to reach the whole Jewish nation." No, John didn't reason that way, did he? Rather, he reproved them for their sins, telling them, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance." John the Baptist was just as uncompromising with King Herod.
Herod viewed John as a genuine prophet of God. As king, Herod was in a position to render enormous assistance to John. But did John cater to Herod or compromise his message for Herod's sake? Not in the least.
The Scriptures tell us, "Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, for he had married her." Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." Therefore, Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. John could have materially prospered as a prophet with the king's support.
But silence would have implied approval, and it would have misled Herod and Herodias. By speaking up, John gave Herod the opportunity to repent. Herod viewed John as a just and holy man. If he truly wanted to serve God, Herod would have heeded John's words, but Herod wasn't willing to carry his cross, and in the end, he became the unwilling murderer of John. Our king set the example for us himself.
When the rich young ruler came to Jesus, he respectfully listened to the man's testimony, and then Jesus told him, "You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven and come follow me." As a result, Jesus lost the young ruler as a disciple. The Christian leaders in Constantine's day could have done the same thing. They could have told Constantine to divest himself of his wealth and power.
They could have reminded him of Jesus' words to the rich young ruler. They could have told him to love his enemies and do good to them, but they didn't. Although most people think of Constantine as the first Christian emperor, there was actually a prior Roman emperor who had apparently professed Christianity. His name was Philip the Arabian, and he ruled for a brief span in the century before Constantine. Philip had married a Christian woman, and he believed that Christianity was the true religion.
Eusebius tells us, "After six years as Roman emperor, Gordian died, and Philip succeeded him. Word has it that he was a Christian and wanted to join with believers in the prayers of the church on the day of the last Paschal Vigil. But the bishop of the time would not let him enter until he confessed publicly and joined those who were judged sinful and were occupying the place in the church for penitents. Otherwise, had he not done so, he would never have been received due to the many charges against him.
It is said that he readily obeyed, showing by his actions how genuinely and piously disposed he was toward the fear of God." The bishops in Constantine's day could have done the same thing. They could have uncompromisingly called Constantine to repentance. Then they would have found out just how genuine his beliefs were. There are several warning signs that may indicate a person is undergoing or is about to undergo a heart attack.
Some of these signs are uncomfortable pressure or pain in the chest, pain in the left arm, and shortness of breath. Ignoring these warning signs often costs people their lives. Similarly, the Christians of Constantine's day ignored the warning signs that Jesus had given concerning the kingdom. "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets. 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." It's human nature to feel we're on the right track when we are popular and people speak well of us. But it's not that way in the kingdom. Something is wrong when the world speaks well of us and wants to be our friend. Sadly, the fourth-century Christians seem to have totally forgotten Jesus' warning.