Surprise! Church History is important

This post is a partial fulfillment of my course work for Church History.

I have been studying Church history for the last several months. Not because I wanted to, or thought I would find it interesting but because it is a required course for my theology degree. That may not be the most enticing way to begin a blog post about Church history but it is honest, this post will likely feel equal parts a confessional and an academic lesson.

I love the Word of God! I have studied it faithfully for the better part of 20 years. It is the source of Truth in my life and should be the center of every professing Christian. Its all you need to know (right?). Over the years when I have had conversations with Christians that drop names like Martin Luther or John Calvin, I'd roll my eyes at their pretentious academics. It seemed to me that these Christian intellectual elitists were nothing more than condescending Pharisees, using their talent for names and dates to appear more Christian than us mere laity. God is in the Bible, not the history books.

(At this point I need to acknowledge that I'm grateful the LORD saw fit to correct my arrogant ignorance instead of smiting me as I well deserved!)

So it was begrudgingly at best that I signed up for a two part Church history class. The first class, Pentecost to the Reformation, I found fascinating but not exactly earth shattering. Understanding how the early Church spread throughout the known world, how the Church fathers both fought and worked together to protect and understand the Bible and the movement of the Holy Spirit bringing Truth to light just as Jesus has promised was amazing.
I ended up really enjoying the class so I was slightly less grumpy about taking the second class, From the Reformation Through the 20th Century. I figured it'd at least me interesting.
It turns out I was wrong, this class wasn't interesting, it was convicting, and encouraging and deeply personal. From the very first lesson I felt like the LORD was introducing me to people who challenged me to love Him more and follow Him more fearlessly.

Pretty much everyone has heard of Martin Luther, he's that guy that put the Catholic Church on blast. Of course but it was never his intention to begin the Protestant movement. He loved the Church and the people he served, but he loved the God of the Bible more.
William Wilberforce was a godly man in the British Parliament in the 19th century. He fought for human rights on the basis of Scripture (Mangalwadi 1999, 83). He was paramount in the abolition of slavery in England, and allowing missionaries to legally enter into India.
William Carey, who was already doing mission work in India and a friend of Wilberforce, spent decades shining a light on the dark superstitions of the Hindus in India. He mourned as women were burned alive on the funeral pyres of their husbands, and small children married off to grown men (1999, 22). Together Wilberforce and Carey believed and lived out faith that only God can change hearts and changed hearts change culture.
Peter Cartwright was an evangelist on the western frontier at the time of the Second Great Awakening in the United States. He "preached in homes, barns and taverns" in order to reach people and had a quick wit that drew people in (Smeeton. 2015, 200). He took the Word of God to the people no matter where they were.
Even Billy Graham, who I'd previously never given more than a head nod in acknowledgement to, turned out to be quite the pioneer. At a time when liberal and conservative Churches were busy fighting with each other about doctrine and culture, Graham came along preaching the inerrant Word of God as the bedrock of unity and meeting social needs. His meetings were ecumenical and always included racial diversity. He took advantage of the most current technologies of the day, publications, radio and television, and traveled all over the world sharing the Gospel of Christ (Smeeton 1999, 251).

The Church hasn't always gotten it right, and the lessons learned from those mistakes should give us courage to do better.

Martin Luther was excommunicated for standing up for Truth against an institution that claimed to be established on Truth but was instead steeped in tradition and selfish ambition. Yet his bravery and obedience to God provides fuel as Churches continue to be called out for sin either masquerading as tradition or being hidden and ignored because of selfish ambition.
Wilberforce and Carey faced opposition and ridicule. Their Bible based view of human dignity stood in the face of economic growth on the backs of poor and enslaved labor. Treating all people with dignity and respect because we are all image-bearers of our Creator, should be the rallying cry of all Christians everywhere. The Church may have failed to pick up the mantel of equality during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s but we in the Church today have a great and glorious opportunity to right that wrong and speak Truth and freedom to the oppressed.

In my day to day life I don't see the LORD asking me to start a revolution, become a political activist or a missionary. Odds are good that my name won't be remembered generations after I die. No one will ever use my name in a sentence along side Luther, Carey or Graham, but their names are now tucked away in my heart along side my other heroes, Abraham, Jeremiah, John and Paul. They challenge me to daily abide in Christ, to trust Him with the big picture of history and to be brave and obedient in the simple life He has called me to.

So I apologize to all the gracious intellectuals, who were just trying to share with me their excitement about God's story. To my best friend who is actually a professor of Church History and loves all this stuff, I'm sorry for making fun of you (not always to your face). To my professors for having been an unenthusiastic fool, and to every person I have ever had the pleasure of sharing Scripture with. The Bible is the bedrock, the Truth on which we stand, but it is powerful to know your history and to know that we are part of His story.

I am fool, saved by a gracious God.