On July 3, 2008 the State of Colorado has banned publishing the Bible under Section 8, 24-34-701 Revised Statutes prohibiting the publishing of “discriminative matter” as well as the issue and distribution, etc of such matter.  The passages in the Bible dealing with sodomy and homosexual relations were deemed unsuitable for publishing due to their critical stance against homosexuality.  

California’s Proposition 8 ratified by over a 52% majority of voters, that states that marriage is only between a woman and a man, has come under increasing attack recently by it’s opponents.  Churches that support Prop 8 across the state have been vandalized and death threats have been made against the Pastor and the Mayor of Fresno.  A propaganda campaign has been waged against the Prop 8 folks by the ant -Prop 8’ers, publishing their names from donor’s lists, causing many to lose their jobs or suffer other consequences.

 From the moment that Jesus arrived, the world has not been the same since. When the wise men followed the star to find the baby Jesus to worship him with expensive gifts for his kingly presence (for his name was to be Emmanuel which means “God with us”).  King Herod heard the news and was disturbed. He declared that all male children under age two should be slain.

 King Herod’s fears were not unfounded. Jesus was the predicted power to come. The little baby that lay in the cradle defeated the Roman Empire 476 years later when the empire, exhausted, strained by civil wars within and morally decayed left open it’s western front and fell to barbarian attacks from the Germanic tribes led by Odoacer. 

By the time of the fall of Rome the bloodthirsty, decadent empire witnessed no less than 10 periods of Christian Persecution. It caved from within and the outside dealt the finishing blow.  

The worst occurred during the first century under Emperors Nero, Caligula and Domitian. The beast of Revelations is thought to represent the Roman Empire and the persecution of Christians and Jews that occurred under its rule.  

During the First Century after Jesus death, nearly every single one of the apostles were hunted down, imprisoned, crucified, burned at the stake or tortured. Their followers were often taken to the arenas and wrapped in animal skins and offered to wild beasts to tear apart for the entertainment of the Roman mobs. The blood soaked arenas were covered with sand, and the process started all over again.

Christians were paraded in chains as slaves of the for the Emperor to show off.  Emperor Nero had them covered in pitch and lit on fire as human torches in his gardens at night for all of Rome to see. Emperor Domitian who ruled from 81 – 96 A.D. enacted a return to emperor worship, and made citizens swear their allegiance to the throne. Those who refused were put to death. 

In 35 A.D., by Senatorial decree Christianity was declared a “strana et illicita” religion, an outlawed religion at odds with national character, un-patriotic and secretive.  Christians were forbidden to be buried within the city limits of Rome, and were sent to be interred in 90 acres of catacombs underground, over 20 meter deep, and 12 miles long, located along Appian Way.

The Age of Martyrs ended in 313 with the Edict of Milan issued by Emperor Constantine who gave freedom of worship to the Christian church. He also converted to Christianity on his deathbed. Most historians suggest Christianity eventually weakened and replaced Emperor Worship, and became institutionalized once it was legal.

Just as we entered death through the sin of Adam, so we enter life through the birth of Christ. Life, not through our natural birth, but through our second birth from above, through the waters of holy baptism in Christ and our adoption by the Almighty and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.