I have been reading some of the Church Fathers again
recently, and I like how Justin Martyr made his case for the truth of
Christianity. In one particular document he argues that the Greeks would not be
abandoning their ancestors by following the teachings of the gospels and Old
Testament prophets, because it is clear from their own prophets and
philosophers that they drew some of their ideas from the Old Testament
teachings, and that these teachings therefore predate their own ancient ideas. This can
be observed in different ways in Greek mythology, though it is also possible that
they had similar ideas because they drew them from a more ancient common
connection going back to the Tower of Babel. However, it is still interesting
how Justin seeks to present his argument in a way that would cause the Greeks
to really think.
Another way he makes this argument is by demonstrating that the you can
see from the writings of the Greeks that they once held to the same ideas as
the Bible, but had wandered from this truth. He writes in one tract,
“Chapter II.—Testimonies to
the unity of God.
First, then, Æschylus,[2597]
in expounding the arrangement of his work,[2598] expressed himself also as
follows respecting the only God:—
“Afar from mortals place the
holy God, Nor ever think that He, like to thyself, In fleshly robes is clad;
for all unknown Is the great God to such a worm as thou. Divers similitudes He
bears; at times He seems as a consuming fire that burns Unsated; now like
water, then again In sable folds of darkness shrouds Himself. Nay, even the
very beasts of earth reflect His sacred image; whilst the wind, clouds, rain,
The roll of thunder and the lightning flash, Reveal to men their great and
sovereign Lord. Before Him sea and rocks, with every fount, And all the water
floods, in reverence bend; And as they gaze upon His awful face, Mountains and
earth, with the profoundest depths Of ocean, and the highest peaks of hills,
Tremble: for He is Lord Omnipotent; And this the glory is of God Most High.”
But he was not the only man initiated in the knowledge of God; for Sophocles
also thus describes the nature of the only Creator of all things, the One God:—
“There is one God, in truth
there is but one, Who made the heavens and the broad earth beneath, The
glancing waves of ocean, and the winds; But many of us mortals err in heart,
And set up, for a solace in our woes, Images of the gods in stone and brass, Or
figures carved in gold or ivory; And, furnishing for these, our handiworks,
Both sacrifice and rite magnificent, We think that thus we do a pious work.”
And Philemon also, who published many explanations of ancient customs, shares
in the knowledge of the truth; and thus he writes:—
“Tell me what thoughts of
God we should conceive? One, all things seeing, yet Himself unseen.” Even
Orpheus, too, who introduces three hundred and sixty gods, will bear testimony
in my favour from the tract called Diathecæ, in which he appears to repent of
his error by writing the following:—
“I’ll speak to those who
lawfully may hear; All others, ye profane, now close the doors! And, O Musæus,
hearken thou to me, Who offspring art of the light-bringing moon. The words I
tell thee now are true indeed, And if thou former thoughts of mine hast seen,
Let them not rob thee of the blessed life; But rather turn the depths of thine
own heart Unto that place where light and knowledge dwell. Take thou the word
divine to guide thy steps; And walking well in the straight certain path, Look
to the one and universal King, One, self-begotten, and the only One Of whom all
things, and we ourselves, are sprung. All things are open to His piercing gaze,
While He Himself is still invisible; Present in all His works, though still
unseen, He gives to mortals evil out of good, Sending both chilling wars and
tearful griefs; And other than the Great King there is none. The clouds for
ever settle round His throne; And mortal eyeballs in mere mortal eyes Are weak
to see Jove, reigning over all. He sits established in the brazen heavens Upon
His throne; and underneath His feet He treads the earth, and stretches His
right hand To all the ends of ocean, and around Tremble the mountain ranges,
and the streams, The depths, too, of the blue and hoary sea.” He speaks indeed
as if he had been an eyewitness of God’s greatness. And Pythagoras[2599] agrees
with him when he writes:—
“Should one in boldness say,
Lo, I am God! Besides the One—Eternal—Infinite, Then let him from the throne he
has usurped Put forth his power and form another globe, Such as we dwell in,
saying, This is mine. Nor only so, but in this new domain For ever let him
dwell. If this he can, Then verily he is a god proclaimed.”[1]
From these sources he shows that the great thinkers among
the Greeks were aware that there really was one true God, and all should acknowledge
and bow before him. He also shows that the Greeks understood that there will be
a final judgement, a reckoning that man will have to make:
“Chapter III.—Testimonies
to a future judgment.
Then further concerning Him,
that He alone is powerful, both to institute judgment on the deeds performed in
life, and on the ignorance of the Deity [displayed by men], I can adduce
witnesses from your own ranks; and first Sophocles,[2600] who speaks as follows:—
“That time of times shall
come, shall surely come, When from the golden ether down shall fall Fire’s
teeming treasure, and in burning flames All things of earth and heaven shall be
consumed; And then, when all creation is dissolved, The sea’s last wave shall
die upon the shore, The bald earth stript of trees, the burning air No winged
thing upon its breast shall bear. There are two roads to Hades, well we
know;[2601] By this the righteous, and by that the bad, On to their separate
fates shall tend; and He, Who all things had destroyed, shall all things save.”
And Philemon[2602] again:—
“Think’st thou, Nicostratus,
the dead, who here Enjoyed whate’er of good life often man, Escape the notice
of Divinity, As if they might forgotten be of Him? Nay, there’s an eye of
Justice watching all; For if the good and bad find the same end, Then go thou,
rob, steal, plunder, at thy will, Do all the evil that to thee seems good. Yet
be not thou deceived; for underneath There is a throne and place of judgment
set, Which God the Lord of all shall occupy; Whose name is terrible, nor shall
I dare To breathe it forth in feeble human speech.” And Euripides:[2603]—
“Not grudgingly he gives a
lease of life, That we the holders may be fairly judged; And if a mortal man
doth think to hide His daily guilt from the keen eye of God, It is an evil
thought; so if perchance He meets with leisure-taking Justice, she Demands him
as her lawful prisoner: But many of you hastily commit A twofold sin, and say
there is no God. But, ah! there is; there is. Then see that he Who, being
wicked, prospers, may redeem The time so precious, else hereafter waits For him
the due reward of punishment.”[2]
The Greeks knew that there was a God and that there
would be a judgement. They also knew that they would have to give an account of
their actions and that could not just buy their way out of judgement
with possessions and money,
“Chapter IV.— God desires
not sacrifices, but righteousness.
And that God is not appeased
by the libations and incense of evil-doers, but awards vengeance in
righteousness to each one, Philemon[2604] again shall bear testimony to me:—
“If any one should dream, O
Pamphilus, By sacrifice of bulls or goats—nay, then, By Jupiter—of any such
like things; Or by presenting gold or purple robes, Or images of ivory and
gems; If thus he thinks he may propitiate God, He errs, and shows himself a
silly one. But let him rather useful be, and good, Committing neither theft nor
lustful deeds, Nor murder foul, for earthly riches’ sake. Let him of no man
covet wife or child, His splendid house, his wide-spread property, His maiden,
or his slave born ill his house, His horses, or his cattle, or his beeves, Nay,
covet not a pin, O Pamphilus, For God, close by you, sees whate’er you do. He
ever with the wicked man is wroth, But in the righteous takes a pleasure still,
Permitting him to reap fruit of his toil, And to enjoy the bread his sweat has
won. But being righteous, see thou pay thy vows, And unto God the giver offer
gifts. Place thy adorning not in outward shows, But in an inward purity of
heart; Hearing the thunder then, thou shall not fear, Nor shall thou flee, O
master, at its voice, For thou art conscious of no evil deed, And God, close by
you, sees whate’er you do.” Again, Plato, in Timæus,[2605] says: “But if any
one on consideration should actually institute a rigid inquiry, he would be
ignorant of the distinction between the human and the divine nature; because
God mingles many[2606] things up into one, [and again is able to dissolve one
into many things,] seeing that He is endued with knowledge and power; but no
man either is, or ever shall be, able to perform any of these.”[3]
These insights from these Greek philosophers show that
James was right when he said, “For from ancient generations Moses has had in
every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the
synagogues” (Acts 15:21). But they also show that there is a common sense in
humanity that there is a God, that he is one and above all, that there will be
a judgement, and this judgement will be based on equity not financial success
and bribery. This God will judge the living and the dead according to what they
have done.
Justin is here showing how these needs in the hearts of
man for a way to assuage this divine power point to the truth of the scriptures.
What culture has not believed in encouraging sacrifice to escape judgement? Even
our modern culture continually preaches that we are facing Armageddon for our
unrighteous use of our resources and environment. Humanity just expects to be
judged, even if it is just by nature itself. Something inside of all human
beings shows that we are both sinners and deserving of punishment. Something in
us also causes us to look for a way to escape this punishment. The gospel
present us with that way; Jesus Christ. It is only by faith in him that we can
escape that judgement.
Justin here shows us how to do apologetics. He shows us
that speaking to the common experiences and ideas of humanity that the Bible
reflects is a way to provoke their minds to look to the God of the scriptures.
Humans have a sense of justice, why? Because we are created by a just God.
Humans hate when things are unfair, why? Because we are created by an equitable
God. Humans hate being in debt and want their debts forgiven. Why? Because we
are created by the God of freedom, who wants us to live free of unrighteous
burdens. Humans know that love is more important than gaining possessions. Why?
Because we are created by a God of love.
I think Justin shows us that it is as important to speak
to a person’s heart as to their head in our evangelism, because God has created
us both with a mind to think about him, but also an inbuilt sense that he is
there. As Paul says in Acts,
“26 And he made from one man
every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined
allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they
should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet
he is actually not far from each one of us,…” (Acts 17:26-27, emphasis added).
Justin shows us that a powerful method of apologetics is
showing people how some of their common ideas gel with the truth of the word of
God, and that the word of God fills in the gaps they were searching for. It is
an intriguing thought. Modern apologetics is often incredibly dry and fact based, and facts are
important, because they are what make up truth that can be known. But humans
are not merely rational creatures, we are emotional creatures, we are creatures
who sense things as well as think about them. Provoking that sense of being credible
is as important as simply presenting rational facts. Showing that those things
that some great thinkers have latched onto find their fullest revelation in
Jesus Christ is a powerful method of reaching people. This is probably
something the evangelical church overlooks today.
List of References
[1] Horn,
Thomas; Roberts, Alexander; Donaldson, James. The Researcher’s Library of
Ancient Texts VOLUME II: The Apostolic Fathers: Includes Clement of Rome,
Mathetes, Polycarp, Ignatius, Barnabas, Papias, Justin ... Library of Ancient
Texts Book 2) . Defense Publishing. Kindle Edition.
