Tag: Martyrdom
-
How the Early Church Leaders Died
The Early Church Father, Tertullian, notably quipped: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” The author of the Book of Hebrews urges us to consider such leaders, and their way of life, as encouragement to us to persevere in the faith in the face of our own particular difficulties, trials, and…
-
Jesus Freaks
Studying the Church at Smyrna, while working through a series from the 7 Churches in the Book of Revelation, reminded me that persecution of Christians is not just something that took place on the pages of ancient history. Persecution of Christians is an ever-present tragic reality. We are told by historians and scholars that more…
-
Suffering Saints
I have begun a series of messages at Walnut Hill Church from the Seven Letters to the Churches in Revelation. This past Sunday we looked at the Church at Smyrna, from Revelation 2.8-11. The Church at Smyrna is most intriguing for a couple reasons. First, the name Smyrna litterally means “City of Myrh”. If myrh sounds familiar…
