Tertullian was born into a pagan family in Carthage (modern day Tunisia) sometime around the middle of the 2nd century. He received an excellent classical education, which is evidence of a privileged upbringing. He converted to Christianity sometime before 196AD and became one of the most prolific Christian writers of his time.

This time we are going to look at Bunyan as he wrestled with doubt and assurance that he was forgiven and was secure in God’s hands. His brokenness over his sin is only finally resolved when he rests on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Assurance is one of the biggest struggles which many Christians have and the thought of our sin being too great for God to ever forgive can cause great anxiety for even those with the strongest faith. Bunyan shows that our assurance is not in what we do but what Christ has done; it is not by works but by grace alone that we are saved.

It’s 7 March 203 AD and a small group of Christians are led into the Amphitheatre in Carthage, in the Roman Province of Africa (modern day Tunisia). They look unusually  composed for people about to meet their death. It is the 14th birthday of Geta, the younger son of the Emperor Septimius Severus and these Christians will be part of the entertainment for the 35,000 strong crowd. This macabre spectacle will see this small group of men and women being left at the mercy of wild animals. None will survive this gruesome execution.

The Webster Dictionary defines idolatry as “the worship of idols or excessive devotion to, or reverence for some person or thing.” God forbids idolatry, ‘you shall have no other gods before me’ Exodus 20:3

Many consider Irenaeus to be the most important figure in the church in the 2nd century AD. In an era where we have few written sources, Irenaeus is an articulate voice. He gives us great insight into the development of the early church and the main challenges Christians faced. 

According to tradition, Polycarp was a disciple of the Apostle John in Ephesus. He would later be ordained as a minister of the Gospel and become bishop of Smyrna (modern day Turkey). Polycarp wasn’t just active in Smyrna; he also wrote letters to other churches to exhort and encourage them, such as his Epistle (letter) to the Philippians. However, Polycarp is best known for his martyrdom.

If we were to survey the Christian church in the United Kingdom and Ireland asking, ‘What is a covenant?’ we would likely get many different responses. If we were to ask a further question ‘What is Covenanting?’ we might be met with perplexed facial expressions. In the increasingly biblically illiterate West, explaining biblical concepts can be challenging, even to Christians who have grown up in the church.

How should we best respond to attacks on our faith? How do we react when millennia old moral and cultural norms are challenged or even legislated against? Since the beginning, Christianity has faced hostility and cultural despisers, no more so than in the early church when Christians were universally despised. They were considered unpatriotic, atheists, even cannibals. You would be hard pressed to find a more marginal, despised group in the Roman Empire than Christians.

John Bunyan (1628-1688) the 17th century Puritan is probably best known to us for being the author of the classic Christian allegory Pilgrim’s Progress. However, what many people don’t know is that Bunyan also wrote a spiritual autobiography (while serving 12 years in prison for preaching the gospel) called ‘Grace Abounding To The Chief of Sinners’ (the shortened title!). He starts his book by looking back on his life before he was a believer and drawing the line of God’s providential grace through his story.

Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) is considered by many to be the greatest Christian theologian the Church has been given by God. His teaching and writing was foundational to the trajectory of the church, not only in his own day, but through the Middle Ages, especially during the Reformation and to the present day.