This is the series I spoke about last week, the series on returning to (or discovering) intimacy with God. Since this is a fairly deep yet very important topic, I’ll be keeping the posts very short and to the point, that way one could use this series as a daily devotional for its duration. This post is merely the introduction, after today, each post will focus on a stage of maturity in the life of a believer. Within each stage is the potential for progression or for “getting stuck,” based on whether you embrace the truth about that stage or a lie. This will all make sense as I digress during the next few days. Now on to the introduction:

One of God’s provisions in creating us was the capacity for an intimate love relationship with Him. This required the gift of freedom. For love to be genuine, it must be freely given. That relationship is pictured for us in Adam and Eve’s relationship to God in the Garden of Eden.

However, as we all know, Adam and Eve sinned against God and thus fell, alienating the creation from God. The steps to reconciliation are pictured in a series of metaphors for the relationship God desires to have with us — one of true intimacy. Metaphors, or figures of speech, are used in Scripture to indicate one primary truth and should not be made to have meaning in all aspects of the metaphor. In other words, the metaphors I’ll be using to indicate stages are designed to be an aid to you in your spiritual journey — not a definitive guide or book of laws!

That’s all I’m going to say for today. Tomorrow we will identify the first stage, a potter and His clay. Stay tuned! (This will all make sense tomorrow, trust me).

As I know people are always interested, my sources for this series are the book “Sacred Romance” by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge, and Dr. Timothy Warner (direct conversations and teachings from the man himself, not from his book).

I’m re-evaluating my writing goals here. As of yet I’ve been trying to post at least every other day and typically I post daily M-F. This site rarely generates good discussion anymore it seems, such as the previous post wherein I ask readers if they would like to hear a series about returning to and finding intimacy with God. I haven’t gotten even one comment. This tells me one of three things:

1. Readers need more time (several days) in between posts in order to read them, since they likely only check the blog intermittently.
2. My readers do not leave comments, they assume others will do that.
3. Many readers have lost interest in this blog altogether and no longer read it.

If you fit into any of these categories, or into an entirely new category, let me know which and why. Don’t be afraid of offending me or offering suggestions — I’m open. There’s no point in wasting my time writing for an audience of one. This blog exists for you!

P.S. I know I do have some dedicated readers from my church family, and I am not referring to you. I am referring to my blogosphere readers, if there are any. However, I would love to hear your input as well as to what could make this blog better — including suggestions for changing my writing style, I am versatile.

I have found that the posts that do best on this site are less than five short paragraphs long, are heavily opinionated (versus research/factually-oriented), and involve brief and simple insights that require little thought or action on the part of the reader. I consider those posts to be “fluff,” but if that’s what people need to hear, I’ll do my best to bring truth home in that format….

Sorry for not posting in such a long time (only two days I suppose, but that seems like a long time to me). I’ve been playing drums at Camp LRCA’s High School Youth Camp all week in the evenings and haven’t had a chance to post.

I plan on beginning a series on intimacy with God next week or maybe even tomorrow. I would contend that a lot of people’s relationship with God is driven more by guilt manipulation than grace motivation (hat tip to Neil T. Anderson for those terms). When you pray, read the Word, and go to church regularly you likely feel as though your relationship with God is good, but when you miss a few days or weeks you question the relationship — perhaps you even question your salvation. When we do good things, we feel good about ourselves as Christians. But when we screw up, we feel like crap. The question is, when have you done enough good? How can you be sure you’ve been good enough to enter into heaven?

We’re going to talk about grace, faith, good deeds, and more in this series — in an attempt to help readers re-discover joy in their relationship with God, thus returning to (or discovering) true intimacy with God. We’ll be looking at various stages of growth in the Christian’s walk and how in each phase is the potential to move forward or get stuck. We’ll then discover how to get unstuck and press on towards the prize in Christ Jesus. If this sounds like a good idea to you, comment and let me know. If you often “beat yourself up” for not praying enough, reading the Bible enough, going to church, etc., this series is for you. If you often feel inadequate, or like you have no gifts/talents to contribute, or like you can never be good enough — this is for you. I’d love to hear some feedback before beginning the series!

I have to apologize to the readers. Both Tiffany and I have a tendency to be very critical of Christ followers (although many who we speak about are not truly believers). Going to church makes you no more a Christian than going to a garage makes you a mechanic.

I read a phenomenal post by Pastor Jay Winters over at jWinters.com. The post is entitled Heirloom Bibles and it talks about our practice of purchasing family bibles which do little more than record our marriages, birthdays, genealogies, and gather dust. But in that great article which you should read, Jay said something that really made me think and humbled me:

The state of Christianity is one that is generally cynical about how “Christian” Christians truly are anymore. Books like “UnChristian“, “Jesus, Save Us From Your Followers,” and a wide variety of other books have made it not only chic to assume that the church is filled to the brim with hypocrites, it has made the general assumption of Christians (even when they talk about themselves) one that is pretty lack luster.

I can understand where it comes from, and I don’t think it is 100% wrong to think that Christianity could use a refresher course in its own history and dogma. There are some days when I read the news and feel a little bit embarrassed to be a Christian… and a professional one that that rate.

Through Scripture, God reminds us that we’re not the first people to screw up His Word. We’re not the first ones to not listen. We’re not the first ones to assume that we know better than He does. This is old hat to the God who led sniveling whiny Israelites out of Egypt and into the promised land, and the God who asked three of His “best disciples” to simply not fall asleep one night while He was praying to which they passed out like narcoleptic 3 year olds.

Wow. How true. While I complain about the lack of sincerity and faith in the church, I may make some valid points, but am I speaking out of the heart of God — which loves all people and desires for them to repent? Granted, Jesus had some harsh words with religious folks of his day, and there is a place for that. But Jesus’ attitude towards them was one of love and frustration driven by hurt, not simple annoyance. Remember what Jesus said about the Holy City and its people in Luke 13:34 — “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” This is not a statement driven by irritation, but rather from frustration and hurt.

Lord help me to let my statements be driven by frustration and love for your Bride, the Church. Let me not allow it to be ‘chic to critique’ your followers. Amen.

Well for any church leader or passion-driven Christ follower, this is Tiffany to give you a must-read book suggestion. Growing True Disciples written by George Barna is the book for you. I must say, I haven’t read a book like this in a long time. It was hard to put it down.

Before I started reading this book for my Discipleship Ministries class through Liberty University, I was interested in learning more about discipleship, but had no idea where to start. There are so many “fluff” books out there, that I hate to waste my time with something that is not really on the right track.

For those of you that are not really familiar with author George Barna, let me give you a little bit of background. He is the president of Barna Research Group, Ltd., a marketing research firm located in Ventura, California. He has conducted research for hundreds of churches and parachurch ministries as well as Fortune 500 companies and nonprofit organizations. A best-selling author and frequent speaker at conferences around the world, Barna has taught at universities and seminaries and has served as a pastor at a large, multi-ethinic church. I know you may be asking “Why is Tiffany going on and on about the author?” But I will tell you that Barna has authored several popular Christian books that are based off of statistics, etc. In fact, you may already be familiar with his writings.

To get into the book a little more, I have to say that my entire perspective about what is going on in the American church today has not only done a 180 degree shift, but in many ways this book has confirmed things that I have seen over and over again throughout churches in my own community that I have visited or attended.

“In the original biblical texts, the term used for disciple refers to someone who is a learner or follower who serves as an apprentice under the tutelage of a master”(page 17). Immediately, Barna parallels the modern Christian to those that were called Jesus’ disciples. He posed the question, “How many believers do you know who get out of bed every morning asking what they can do to show and tell people about Jesus, to make those people disciples of the Lord, and act like true disciples themselves?” Not only can I really not confidently think of one person, I have to question myself whether or not I fit this category. As much as you may think that this could be construed as a legalistic way of thinking… I have to ask you, “Isn’t this what Jesus called HIS disciples to do?” If you disagree, I highly suggest you go back and re-read your New Testament again. I think that you may soon change your mind.

“Discipleship is not a program. It is not a ministry. It is a life-long commitment to a lifestyle.”

Let’s take a look at some of these statistics that Barna came up with:

• 60% of all Christians believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of its teaching (which means that 40% don’t believe that it is accurate
• 40% of all Christians believe that after He was crucified and died, Jesus Christ did not return to life physically (isn’t this a major part of the Gospel?)
• Only 62% of Christians believe that they are certain that God wants us, personally, to help the poor (this means that 38% of Christians think that we are not personally responsible for the poor)
• 51% of Christians believe that if a person is generally good or does enough good things for other during his or her life, he or she will earn a place in heaven (what was the purpose of Jesus dying)?
• 57% believe that the devil, or Satan, is not a living being but a symbol of evil (If there is no evil, maybe good doesn’t exist too? Perhaps God may not exist if Satan doesn’t exist)… hmmm

Did you know that less than half of all born-again adults (44%) are convinced that there is absolute moral truth. Do you now realize that the flip side of this (56%) of all born-again adults believe that there is no absolute moral truth? What is the point in saying you are born-again then? Born-again into what? Good question.

I could honestly keep going and going with some of these numbers. If these statistics haven’t made you somewhat nauseous and you call yourself born-again, I highly question whether or not you are born-again, and whether or not you have ever been properly discipled.

I also know that people are going to read my last statement and say “The nerve of her to say such a thing!” Unfortunately these numbers and the underlying truth is that WE as Christians are all failing to do what has been called of us, otherwise, maybe these outcomes wouldn’t be so depressing. Let’s remember friends that Jesus was very unpopular and those of us that decide to take a stand for the truth of the Word of the Scriptures may be very unpopular too. He promised that in the Gospels.

When the disciples asked Jesus what would be the sign of his coming, He answered them and said,

“Take heed that no one deceives you, for many will come in my name” (Matthew 25:3-4—paraphrased).

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20).

If we are not teaching all nations to observe all the Jesus has commanded are we really doing what we are called to as “Christians?” When the world culture has infiltrated itself into the church culture in such a way that we are afraid to offend others for the sake of the Gospel, are WE too much a part of our world culture? Where is the teaching of the Word of God in today’s American churches?

While this may not be the most faith-based topic, it’s one that is important to many people. Starbucks has announced that it will close at least 600 of its locations nationwide. Five of those hit home for folks here in the Region. Those five are:

1. Crown Point: 10761 Broadway
2. Portage: 6200 U.S. 6
3. Calumet City: 96 River Oaks Center
4. South Holland: 401 E. 162nd St
5. Chicago: 2347 W. 95th St

The Times says, “The Seattle-based company announced the closure plan on July 1, citing a faltering economy. The company said 70 percent of the stores slated for closure had opened after 2006.”

This was cross-posted at NWI Connect as well.

Someone mentioned that I should include the way to be saved on this blog. Simply put, Jesus is the way to be saved. Salvation is about a person, not a formula or step-by-step program. As much as people like to make it into a simple bulleted PowerPoint presentation, salvation really is much more than that.

Jesus is talking to a man named Nicodemus in John 3:3, and “Jesus declared, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’” When I first read that, I thought it was ludicrous. So did Nicodemus! Nicodemus replied, “‘How can a man be born when he is old? . . . . Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit’” (vs. 4-6).

OK, so that all sounds peachy, but how are we born again through the Holy Spirit? The first thing the bible makes clear is that we must realize that we are sinners, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). The next thing we need to understand is that because we are sinners, we are condemned to death, “for the wages of sin is death. . .” (Romans 6:23). This means eternal separation from God in a literal Hell. “. . . Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

But there is great news, “for God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God’s Son is Jesus! “God made Him who had no sin [Jesus] to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus had to shed His blood and die, “for the life of a creature is in the blood . . . [and] it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life” (Leviticus 17:11) “and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22).

“God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Although we may not understand how, our sins were laid on Jesus and He died in our place. He did this because of His great love for us!

God “commands all people everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30). Repentance is a change of mind that agrees with God that we are sinners, and also agrees with what Jesus did for us on the Cross. It literally means “to turn away from sin.” It’s the desire, intention, and action of doing a 180 degree turn.

In Acts 16:30-31, the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas, “‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved . . . .’”

In 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 Paul writes “I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you. . . . By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. . . . For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised [from the dead] on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared . . . to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time.”

Simply believe that Jesus bore your sin, died in your place, was buried, and then was resurrected by God. Understand that He did this out of His great love for you. “To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John 1:12-13). This is our spiritual birth that Jesus spoke of in John 3.

“If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. . . . ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Romans 10:9-13).

In Luke 18:13 the sinner prayed: “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” If you are reading this and truly desire salvation, please pray the prayer written below. Saying this prayer is simply a way of declaring to God that you are relying on Jesus Christ as your Savior. There are no “magical” words that result in salvation. It is only faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection that can save us. If you understand that you are a sinner and in need of salvation through Jesus Christ, here is a simple prayer you can pray to God:

“God, I know that I am a sinner. I know that I deserve death, which is the consequence of my sin. However, I am trusting in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I believe that His death and resurrection provided for my forgiveness. I trust in Jesus and Jesus alone as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you Lord, for saving me and forgiving me! YOUR LOVE IS AMAZING! Amen!”

If you just prayed that prayer and you meant it with all of your heart, welcome to the family of God — the body of Christ! Take comfort in knowing that “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14). I highly encourage you to find a Bible-believing church nearby you and begin fellowshipping with other believers! If you’re clueless as to what kind of church to attend I can give you some recommendations, but ultimately it’s where you’re being led by God.

Another very important thing that I would like to take this opportunity to tell you about is baptism. Consider these Scripture passages:

“In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead” (Colossians 2:11-12). When the brethren were “cut to the heart” following Peter’s message on the day of Pentecost, “Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. . . . [And] those who received his word were baptized’” (Acts 2:38, 41). “When they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women” (Acts 8:12). “As they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?’ . . . And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him” (Acts 8:36, 38). Obviously baptism was part of the instruction that Philip gave to the eunuch when he explained salvation to him, or else he would not have immediately recognized his need for it.

It is very important that you seek to be baptized soon because of the promises attached to it in the word of God, namely the forgiveness of sins and seal of the Holy Spirit. Don’t let this discourage you from committing to the faith you have just professed. Focus on getting to know the Lord through prayer and by reading His word. When you pray, simply talk to God as you would to a close friend. You are getting to know Him — ask Him to reveal Himself to you through His Word. You don’t have to pray any magical
way or learn any fancy prayers — you have the freedom to approach His throne of grace as His child! Simply come to Him in honesty and open your heart to Him — He loves you so much and can’t wait to hear from you!

I know this was lengthy, but it’s an important topic!

One of the most common forms of discipleship that I see across America is Sunday school. For at least the last 100 years this has been a staple of Western Christianity. Originally Sunday school was a family-oriented event, and then children and adults were separated more and more by an increasing generation gap. This cultural gap has gotten so wide that many churches now believe that in order to be relevant to a young generation they must have a youth program that incorporates video games, skate parks, punk and hip hop bands, young and energetic leaders, and spends as much time “playing” as it does teaching and studying God’s Word. Not that there is anything wrong with such activities, but the focus must remain on Jesus Christ – not on appealing to a godless culture. It doesn’t help that many parents view Sunday school as a glorified babysitting service, or even worse they expect the Sunday School teacher to raise their child with Christ-centered morality and knowledge with only one hour of their time each week. The children eventually will begin to value Sunday school only as much as their parents do. A junior high student is smart enough to realize that he or she is only being dumped off at church so that the parents can have a Sunday afternoon to themselves.

In an effort to appeal to youth, rather than finding relevant means to convey the timeless message of the Gospel, many churches have watered down the message in order to remove its offensiveness to their postmodern hearers. In doing so, they have created a generation of young adults who have abandoned the church for greener grass on Bourbon Street. The church allows the internet and television to disciple its flock more than the Word of God. This is even more apparent when we begin using secular music and pop culture icons as the theme of our programs rather than teaching about Biblical heroes of the faith.

But the problem runs much deeper than simply critiquing youth ministry. The focus of Sunday school has shifted from family-oriented to generation-specific ministry. While churches used to ensure that everyone received the same message and were equipped to discuss it at home with their families, now the children come home with noodle-necklaces and the parents have listened to another positive thinking message about living like Jesus. And you’ll be lucky if the youth learned anything other than the message that everything they like to do is wrong. God forbid we teach them godly alternatives…. The message of being bid to come and die has been replaced with an invitation to go and celebrate. Cheap grace abounds and church discipline has been scripted into a conflict resolution model that resolves nothing, but ensures that nobody’s feelings are hurt. After all, we wouldn’t want them to stop throwing their $20 in the plate once a month.

Before you think that I am simply pointing the finger, let me say that we must honestly identify the problem before a solution can be found. Too often we graze over the real issues and deal with surface-level symptoms so that we don’t “rock the boat.” Jesus rocked the boat. People don’t pick up rocks to kill someone who tickles their ears. Jesus didn’t mind if no one showed up for his sermons in the synagogues – He was happy teaching from a hillside. He didn’t worry about people discontinuing to follow Him if He upset them too much with a hard word – He spoke the truth in love. When the disciples thought they would drown while in the storm, Jesus replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26). He spoke this before mercifully calming the storm. Granted, He will never speak condemningly to us (Romans 8:1), but He chastens those He really loves (Proverbs 3:12; Hebrews 12:6).

There are many today who think that Sunday school, at least as it is currently practiced, should be abolished. They desire a return to a family-focused discipleship program that nourishes the whole family and encourages them to relate to one another, rather than nurturing an already profound generational gap between the adolescent and parent. Perhaps we wouldn’t see our youth disappear from church once they graduate high school if they had been formed as a family, rather than isolated into various generational agendas. A church’s discipleship program must know exactly where it is going by laying out clear, measurable, and attainable goals, and every single curriculum and program must somehow contribute to this larger agenda. The curriculum the children learn should be on the same page as what the adult is hearing, so that everyone can relate and apply the Word of God together in community, rather than segregated into spiritual cohorts. The older men and women will thus train the younger (Titus 2:4) rather than going on believing they have nothing to offer the youth since they can’t “relate.” This would be a good start. And youth in the process would learn that there is much more to life than popular culture and new technology. And maybe they would know Scripture rather than just cliches found on the back of Christian t-shirts.

This final point goes for adults and youth — how did service projects disappear in exchange for entertainment? If the church advertises rehabilitating homes in Gary people “need to pray about it, they don’t want too much on their plate.” But when a trip to Great America comes up, somehow kids get pulled out of school and money comes out of the woodwork, because “it’s a great opportunity – and it’s safe.” What are you going to pray about the service project, “Lord is it your will that I do your will?” Sorry to rant — I had a lot on my heart this evening.

This is part 3, the final post of a series on the origin of the New Testament. In the fourth century this is all basically brought to a conclusion. The testimony on the canon from Eusebius (the great church historian) is very important, but it doesn’t get us much further than that. He establishes three categories of books:

1. those that are universally acknowledged,
2. those that are disputed,
3. and those that are rejected.

The universal books are as follows: the four Gospels, Acts, fourteen letters of Paul, 1 John, 1 Peter, and Revelation. The disputed books are James, Jude, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John – however he points out that these books are “recognized by the majority.” The rejected books include the Shepherd of Hermas, the Epistle of Barnabas, and the Teachings of the Apostles (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 3.25).

More discussions on the canon continued. A notable one occurred between 1545 and 1546. This was the Council of Trent, an ecumenical council recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, which was held in Italy. Basically it was a big fight between Catholics and Protestants – but the important part for our discussion is that they discussed the canon of Scripture in its entirety. Both the Catholic Church and Luther largely agreed on the New Testament (but not on the Old, that is another topic). Luther cited church historians that I have already listed, pointing out that these books were never considered as undisputed Scripture. The Catholics adopted their canon in 1546 while Protestants (and modern Evangelical Christianity today) adopted the historically accepted 66 book canon.

In A.D. 367 Athanasius of Alexandria published a list of 27 books of the New Testament that were accepted in his time, and these are the same 27 that are recognized today. Immediately after his list of books, Athanasius adds: “These are the springs of salvation. . . . Let no one add anything to them or take anything away from them” (Athanasius, Festal Epistle 39).

I admittedly omitted a lot of information and many historians and sources, but what is listed here is intended to give you a basic grasp of the matter and to realize that the books we have in the New Testament today were being read in the early Christian churches and were held in high esteem by early Christians. Had I given a more definitive history this would have turned into a 20 part series or each post would have been several pages long. It is important to note that no church council made the canon of Scripture. The Bible owes its authority to no individual or group. The church does not control the canon, rather the canon controls the church. Although divine authority was attributed to the books later in the church’s history, the authority was not that of the church, but it was inherent in the books themselves. So basically, just like a kid identifies his or her mother, the church identified the books it regarded as having authority.

I hope you enjoyed this series and learned something new!

This is part 2 of a series on the origin of the New Testament. So as Martyr established, we know that the apostle’s letters were being read all over in Christian churches during the 2nd century. It only took a few more decades before substantial lists of the New Testament books began appearing. One of the early lists we have is called the Muratorian Fragment, which is named after L.A. Muratori, who first discovered the list and then published it in the eighteenth century. Part of this early list has been lost. The Gospel of Luke is the first one mentioned by name, but it is referred to as the “third Gospel,” indicating that Matthew and Mark were before it. Then followed John, Acts, thirteen letters of Paul, Jude, two letters of John (two were combined originally), and Revelation. The Muratorian Fragment also included two other books, however: the Wisdom of Solomon and the Apocalypse of Peter. The Fragment says however that “some of our people” do not want to have those books read in the church, indicating disputes about these texts early on. There are also some books that were rejected, such as the Shepherd of Hermas and several others.

In the 3rd century, Origen (who wrote numerous sermons and commentaries on practically everything Biblical – most of which did not survive) adds his witness on the New Testament canon. Eusebius, who wrote Ecclesiastical History about the year 340, gathered up a bunch of Origen’s statements regarding the canon (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 6.25. Conveniently assembled by Schneemelcher, New Testament Apocrypha, vol. 1, 52-60, and by Metzger, The Canon of the New Testament, 305-15). Anyways, Origen knows only four Gospels and puts them in this order: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. He also undoubtedly accepts Acts, the thirteen letters of Paul, 1 Peter, 1 John, Jude, and Revelation. Origen is hesitatant and raises some objections regarding Hebrews, James, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John. He himself quotes from Hebrews a lot, but mentions that some churches don’t accept it. He also mentions that it is disputed whether or not Peter wrote 2 Peter. Regarding 2 and 3 John, he says that John “has possibly also left a second and third epistle, but not all consider these to be genuine.” Even with these disputes, it is really cool (at least for a geek like me) to see how remarkably similar Origen’s list is with the Muratorian Canon.

Here’s where it gets interesting: Origen lists the canon differently elsewhere. In his Homilies on Joshua which was preserved only in a later Latin translation, after describing how the walls of Jericho fell, he compares the New Testament authors with the trumpets of Christ:

“So too our Lord Jesus Christ… sent his apostles as priests carrying well-wrought trumpets. First Matthew sounded the priestly trumpet in his Gospel. Mark also, and Luke, and John…. Peter moreover sounds with the two trumpets of his Epistles; James also and Jude… and John gives forth the trumpet sound through his Epistles and Revelation; and Luke while describing the deeds of the apostles [Acts]. Latest of all… [Paul] thundering on the fourteen trumpets of his Epistles, threw down, even to the very foundations, the walls of Jericho” (Metzger, The Canon of the New Testament, 139 – the full quotation is listed on this page along with a discussion on it).

There we have it – the same 27 books that we have in our New Testament today. We may wonder why he varies when he lists the canons, but it makes sense when you look at the many writings he has over a period of many years – it is not surprising that as he learns more, his views change over time. Either way, just take note that the New Testament of the third century is very much like ours today.

Look for part 3 tomorrow where we’ll move from the fourth century all the way into the 1500’s (briefly) and discuss the final church council that officially canonized the New Testament!