Apostasy of the Early Christian Church

Apostasy (the falling away from the faith) is a word used commonly among the LDS people. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that the early Christian church went into an apostasy, when they fell away from the teachings of the apostles. When the Apostles were killed because of persecutions, the members and leaders of the churches began to teach different traditions instead of the doctrines they had been taught. This caused the one church to splinter into many different churches according to their doctrinal differences.

Because of the apostasy, the church of Christ had to be restored to earth once again as it had been. The critics of the Mormon Church refuse to believe in an apostasy for two main reasons. First: They believe that the Church as given to the apostles was going to endure forever without an apostasy! Next: They also believe that once someone has received Christ they cannot personally fall away. So to cover both of these topics fairly I have decided to break the apostasy into two parts. This first part will be on the apostasy of the Church, and the next post will be on the apostasy of individuals! 

According to the critic, Matt 16:18 shows why the church could not fall into apostasy, "I will build my church: and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." The critic claims that if there was an apostasy then the gates of hell would prevail against the church, thus there is no apostasy. As members of the LDS church we know that the gates of hell will not prevail in the war against Christ’s church, but we know that Satan can win certain battles against Christ’s church!

But what do the Scriptures say about an Apostasy! 

Paul warned Timothy, the first bishop of the Ephesians, "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables"(2 Tim 4:2-4).  Again, in 1 Tim 1: 3-4 Paul says, "As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightiest charge some that they teach no other doctrine, Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith." Paul foretold that this body of saints would not hold to the doctrines that they had received.  He informed Timothy that they would teach other doctrines and turn from the truth of God unto Fables. This is a clear indication that the apostasy was already beginning among the church!

In Titus 1:9-11 Paul warns of those who would lead large groups into apostasy, "Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake." Many of the new converts to the church came from the Jewish sects. The book of Acts is full of stories of these Jewish converts teaching the Gentile converts doctrines that lead people away from the gospel of the Apostles (Examples: Acts 11:1-4, Acts 15:1-6, Acts 18:24-28-19:1-6, Acts 21:18-26).

We can see that the saints were instructed that certain men would creep in among their numbers who would turn the doctrines of Christ into something completely different, even unto the denying of who Christ was! Just look at the example in Jude 1:3-4, "Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ." 

Paul echoes Jude's warning in Col 2:8 "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." And in Heb 13:9 Paul says "Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines." From these scriptures you can see the saints in the church began to teach one another different doctrines than what the Apostles were teaching. Throughout the Scriptures the Apostles have warned against those in the church who were leading the saints into apostasy!

For example, in Acts 20:28-30, "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them." 

  Paul later informs Timothy by revelation what will happen to the saints, 1 Tim 4:1-3 "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." We can see this is exactly what happened.

In the following scriptures we can see the apostasy had already started in the church Gal 1:6-7 "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ." Or 2 Cor 11:3-4 "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him." In both these scriptures it shows the willingness of the saints to embrace another gospel when the Apostles weren't present.

Peter tell us why it was so easy for the saints to embrace these other versions of the gospel, 2 Pet 2:1-3 "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you:" 

What were some of these “false teachers’” teaching that was so wrong?  1 Cor 15:1-2,12 Paul says “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?” These saints in Corinth were teaching that there was no resurrection even though they had been taught the resurrection by Paul. Here again is another sign that once the apostles were killed off, the church would be left to their own devices!

The early saints were watching for the return of Christ in their day. In response to a question about when Christ shall come again, Paul informs the Thessalonians, "Now we beseech you, brethren by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition."(2 Thes 2:1-3) 

Paul prophecies that before Christ returns to the earth the second time, that the falling away of the church would happen first! But with this falling away, God has promised that he would restore his church. In Acts 3:20-21 Peter prophesies of the return of Christ after the restoration of all things, "And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you. Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."

After the apostles were killed, the church lost its oracles of truth. The church then went through the "Dark Ages," in which many doctrines crept into the church. During the 1800's, a boy (Joseph Smith) was seeking to know which church to join. Believing James 1:5, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God," Joseph went to some woods near his house and did just that. In answer to his prayer, God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him. When Joseph asked his question, which church he should join, they answered him as follows, "I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personages who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof."(JSH 1:19)

After these events God opened the way for his Church to be restored on the earth again. It was once again to have apostles and prophets who could receive instruction from the Lord so that the doctrines of Christ could once again be taught. This is what the LDS people mean when we say that an apostasy has occurred. And this clearly explains why there are so many different Christian churches! Because if all the Christian churches believed the same doctrines they would all be one church, but they do not believe the same. So a good question to ask is "which one of them is right"? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has the answer!