While the genuineness of the Roman Emperor Constantine’s faith is a source of endless debate, his impact (both positively and negatively) on Church history is enormous. His rise to power began well before he became ruler of the western share of the Empire in AD 306. After assuming this position, he gradually gained military superiority over the other partial rulers until seizing control of the entire Roman Empire in AD 324.

With his power well-established in 313, however, Constantine instigated one of the most important political agreements in church history: the ‘Edict of Milan.’ This agreement between he and Licinius, another partial ruler of the Empire, included a provision to end the persecution of Christians and return their churches, cemeteries, and other properties to them.

For the first time in the nearly 300-year history of the church, Christians garnered official protection from the government. This agreement brought positive and negative changes that affected the world’s political scene and the Church immediately and for centuries.

Following the enforcement of this edict, the Church set aside an emphasis on the Kingdom of God as they lost the hope of martyrdom. During the early years of the 4^th century the Church faced some of the most cruel persecution in history, which pointed them toward the future reign of Christ and the hope of escaping persecution by dying for their faith. Now living in relative safety and security, the Church began her descent toward complacency.

Doesn’t that church sound familiar? A group of relatively safe and secure individuals who have no vision or concern for God’s eternal Kingdom and certainly no hope of dying for their faith.

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*Again, I’m in debt to Justo L. Gonzalez’s fine work in The Story of Christianity, vol. 1, pp. 113-135.