Church History: What’s in It for You?

By Ethel Herr

Church history, the record of God’s interaction with His people through the ages,
teaches invaluable lessons on the nature of God and the nature of man.

God has always used history as a tool for revealing Himself. He knew that His
people in each generation would lose their identity if they had no knowledge of His
relationship with them in the past. So, in the law, He gave the people of Israel specific
instructions for teaching their children that He was the faithful God of Israel. They were
to tell them the stories of the Exodus and wilderness wanderings and to build monuments
and celebrate rituals He designed to illustrate these historical events.
Later, He inspired His prophets with a perpetual call to repent, based on historical
recall: “Thus saith the Lord . . . Look back at what I’ve done for you . . . Remember Me .
. . Learn from your fathers’ errors. . . .” Jesus used history to identify Himself as their
promised Messiah.
Finally, when the Apostle Paul addressed difficult contemporary problems in the
Corinthian Church, he grabbed these new believers by the hand and led them on a
journey into their spiritual roots in Jewish history. In I Corinthians 10 and 11, he left for
the Church illustrations of five ways that a study of the history of God’s people can equip
us to deal with life’s challenges and stimulate personal growth.

Insight into Today

First, learning about the past helps us to understand the present (I Corinthians
10:1-10). “Now these things occurred as examples” (v. 6). It is much easier to detect evil
in the actions of another person in another time and another place. Distance reduces
emotional involvement and increased our objectivity.
Paul began with a remote time. He reminded the Corinthians of the sins of the
Israelites: They set their hearts on evil things, they were idolaters, the committed sexual
immorality, they tested the Lord, they grumbled (vv. 6-10). Then, lest the Corinthians
feel smug about their superior righteousness, Paul warned them: Don’t you set your
hearts on evil things; don’t you be idolaters; don’t you commit sexual immorality; don’t
you test the Lord; don’t you grumble.
If he were writing today to the Church of San Francisco or New York, he would
probably draw further examples from apostolic Carthage, medieval Rome, Reformation
Germany, colonial Boston. Then he would point the finger at our twentieth-century
evils—misplaced priorities, materialism, relaxed morals, worry, insensitivity.
Looking back helps us to understand where today’s trends come from. Each of us
is the product of a long line of circumstances, human achievements, opinions, and
movements. We have not only genetic roots but also intellectual, social, and spiritual
roots that link us with every era of history. Likewise, twentieth century society and
churches are rooted in the past. All modern philosophies, moral values, and thinking
patterns are simply old trends sporting new colors, tailored to fit a new generation. When
we study our roots, we open our minds and hearts, as C.S. Lewis once wrote, to the
“clean sea-breezes of the centuries”1 and see ourselves and our times more clearly.
Help for Modern Problems
Second, Church history has a tremendous capacity to help us deal with problems
(I Corinthians 10:11-13). “These things happened to then as examples and were written
down as warnings for us” (v.11).
We often try to solve life’s problems by applying a set of handy theological
maxims: “Jesus saves and satisfies,” “trust and obey,” “let go and let God.” While each of
these maxims may be biblically sound and practical, if we apply them automatically to
complex issues they will keep us from coming to grips with the deep, underlying
problems at the heart of our struggles.
By contrast, “History is truth teaching by example.”2 We learn to apply abstract
truth more readily when we meet it in a story. The examples of Church history take our
doctrinal statements, clothe them in flesh and blood and emotions, and give them
purpose.
Defense against Complacency. Paul told the Corinthians that the examples of
history would equip them with two indispensable tools for dealing with daily problems
First, it gave them a defense against becoming too self-satisfied. “So, if you think you are
standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall” (v.12).
Studying history jolted me out of complacency. I was startled to learn that Martin
Luther, a man mightily used by God, was so far from perfect. I was shocked when I read
the writing of well-respected Reformation church leaders who each accused the others of
being atheists because they didn’t see God in exactly the “right light.” If these people had
problems, how much more should I daily open my life to God’s scrutiny?
Many a church has started with a pure fire of devotion to Jesus Christ and His
honor, only to get sidetracked by some obscure issue and begin to make compromises.
With the passing of generations, greater compromises follow. An eventual blurring of
God’s purposes has completely changed the courses of whole church groups.
When we look at these examples, we cannot face our church problems
complacently. They show us that the full impact of our actions may not be felt for many
years. Studying the graphic illustrations of history helps us avoid disaster by determining
the long-term effect of proposed quick-fix solutions.
Defense against Temptation. In addition, a study of history convinces me that I
am not alone in my tendency to be tempted to sin. “No temptation has seized you except
what is common to man” (I Corinthians 10:13). It also assures me that God is faithful to
rescue all who cast themselves on His mercy and strength. “And God is faithful; he will
not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.”
Further, history models God-honoring solutions to problems: “He will also
provide a way out.” The revival begun in Korea [seventy] years ago burns brightly yet.
Many contemporary church leaders visit and study this spiritual phenomenon in search of
clues for solving the problems of their own churches.
Hoping to gain some insight into the thinking patterns of the seventeenth-century
European Calvinists, I picked up a little book entitled Use and Non-Use of the Organ in
Churches of the United Netherlands. I did not expect to be edified, only informed. But
this unconventional little book held a surprise for me. I discovered that the reasons for
concern in the seventeenth century were very appropriate for today. The author boiled the
whole controversy down to a consideration of the function of music in the church. Was it
to provide a forum for display of talent? Or was it to offer worship to the God of the
universe? Reading this seventeenth-century document has influenced my whole
approach to the music ministry in my own church.
Finally, we can find stability to resist temptation in a base of reference that does
not constantly fluctuate with the winds of change in a world hostile to God. History binds
us together and relates us to the headship of Christ in His body. A modern historian
writes,

Loss of history indicates always the decay of the people. A people without history
is a people without character, without soul. They have then no Fatherland in
which to be rooted and to which to be attached. . . . Both country and people
become a spiritual wilderness, an empty room, where demons hover about, a
refuge for anarchists and criminals. 3

Our western cosmopolitan civilizations have grown up out of a vast,

indistinguishable underground network of intertwined “Fatherland roots.” Today, more
than at any other time, we need desperately the strong, binding, “Fatherland” influence of
a solid sense of Christian roots as revealed in Scripture and exemplified in Church
history.

A Guard Against False Teaching

Third, studying Church history prepares us to discern false doctrine. The
Corinthian believers were trying to determine what to do about meat offered to idols. In I
Corinthians 10:14, Paul put his finger on the heart of the problem that they perceived to
be one of simple personal liberty. “Flee from idolatry,” he wrote. The Communion
ordinance was an outward act of worship of the true and living God. A history lesson
showed how Israel’s sacrifices, too, were acts of worship to the same God. By contrast,
the “sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons. . . .You cannot drink the cup of the Lord
and the cup of demons too” (vv.20-21).
The object of man’s worship has always been the core issue in false religions—in
Corinth, in Ur, in Rome, in Miami. Often these come to us as such subtle imitations that
we need special wisdom in discerning truth from error. We know that now, as in
apostolic days, “many false prophets are gone out into the world” (I John 4:1). If we do
not know our Scriptures or our history, we may be swept away by these convincing
counterfeits.

A Guide to Spiritual Growth

Fourth, studying Church history helps us grow in our relationship to the Lord and
to one another (I Corinthians 10:23-11:1). “Everything is permissible,” the Corinthians
had said. As long as they were not worshipping the demons, their consciences were clear,
so now they thought they could do what they liked. Paul reminded them that the issue
went deeper than their own consciences. “Not everything is beneficial,” he countered.
“Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others” (vv.23-24) and “the glory of
God” (v.31).
To support his argument, he pointed them to the historical example of Jesus
Christ. “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ”(11:1). He brought them
face to face with the One who emptied Himself of every right He possessed in order to
redeem others who were weak and unable to help themselves
Just as considering Christ’s example helped Paul to form godly attributes and
priorities, historical study has broadened my perspective and clarified many issues. It has
shown them to me from more than the circumscribed, narrow point of view I grew up
with.
Until I married into the military, my religious life was loaded with fringe
doctrines I had been taught to regard as marks of orthodoxy. When my husband and I
began working in military chapel programs, we made an amazing discovery. Many of our
co-workers were as orthodox as the Bible on basic issues of faith and salvation. Yet they
disagreed with us on prophecy, definitions of worldliness, modes of baptism.
God provided a wise chaplain’s wife who guided me past the prejudicial blind
spots of my heart to see the historical, extra-biblical origins of some of our confident
orthodox positions. She challenged my viewpoints and taught me how to distinguish
absolutes from negotiables. This freed me to dig deeper into history, where I was able to
crystallize my thinking, stabilize my roots, and deepen my commitments to the things
that count. Only in this historical approach to life have I been able to hope for some sort
of mature balance in thinking, believing, and living. Lacking this balance I had spent a
good many years falling off the log at one end or the other.

Headed For the Future

Finally, history prepares us for the future (I Corinthians 11:23-34). The
Corinthians were so involved in their here and now that they lost sight of history’s
examples. This was especially evident in the way they used their celebration of the
Lord’s Table to promote petty, selfish goals. To counter this problem, Paul recited
another history lesson, recalling the night Jesus instituted this sacred meal. He concluded
with Jesus’ words for all future generations: “‘Do this, whenever you drink it, in
remembrance of me.’ For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim
the Lord’s death until he comes” (vv. 25-26). They had to look back to look forward.
They had to do both before they could handle the present responsibly (vv. 27-34).

The Yestermorrow Christian

History will go on until God Himself steps in and brings it to a glorious
culmination in eternity. Only when we know how the discussion began and how it has
progressed can we learn to function as intelligent citizens of the future.
In I Corinthians 10-11, God is calling us to “move from yesterday to
tomorrow—Yestermorrow.”4 Of all people, Christians should be most eager to gain a
“yestermorrow” mentality, for our roots are deep and rich and our prospects
indescribably exciting.
As “yestermorrow” Christians, we gain a balanced view of the extent and limits of
our responsibilities. History frees us to see that we are not personally responsible to cure
all the ills of our society—not even of our families. Some things we must tackle with
confidence in the God of history. Others we must turn over to others, again trusting God
to superintend. A host of other things we must wait for, pray for, trust God for while we
maintain a hands-off stance.
 More important, the “yestermorrow” Christian can face each day, even the specter
of future disaster, with intelligent confidence rather than panic. Jesus told His disciples,
“I will be with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). Even so, at
times we feel alone, cut off from support in dark moments of our ever-present now. Then
we find immeasurable comfort in the accounts of suffering Christians who displayed
courageous faith in every age of Church history. They were sustained by the certain
immanence of His promised Second Coming. We remember that our plight is not unique.
We, too, are sustained to face the future and the present.
If our goal is to study to know Jesus Christ better, why should we spend time
studying Church history? Church history is the record of God relating to man through
Jesus Christ. When we approach it from this perspective, something wonderful happens
to us. We learn to know Jesus Christ better. For such study frees us to look beyond the
gloom and pain and confusion of this life to the glory and comfort and clarity of our
eternal, “yestermorrow” God.

Notes:
1. C.S. Lewis, “On the Reading of Old Books,” God in the Dock: Essays on Theology
and Ethics (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970), p. 202.
2. E.M. Bounds, The Possibilities of Prayer (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1970), p. 68.
3. W. Aalders, “Laatste Woorden Willem I Waren van Grote Betekenisl,” trans Ethel
Herr, Reformatisch Dagblad, 29 Mei, 1984, p.7.
4. Kurt W. Marek, Yestermorrow: Notes on Man’s Progress, trans, Ralph Manheim
(Westminster, Md.: Alfred A. Knopf, 1961).

© 1987 by Ethel Herr, author of Lord Show Me Your Glory.

Used by permission of the author.