When Christianity was in the early stages, it was called the Way; the non-believers thought it was a cult. Christianity was once considered a cult back then.
Even today, when someone or a group starts a new and different religious movement, some people will call it a cult because it is unique and different from other religious groups.
Some people believe that if it is called a cult, it has to be against Christianity, but most of the time, that is not the case.
When they were first started, most religions differed slightly from other religions. Since people had not heard religion discussed in that manner, they called it a cult.
When the followers of Islam first started, that was considered a cult since their beliefs were considerably different from most religions at that time.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes called “the Mormon Church,” was considered a cult when it first started. While I am writing about religions that were called a cult when they first started, let’s not forget about the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Christianity, or ‘the Way ‘, emerged in the Middle East many years ago. At that time, the predominant religion in Israel, particularly in Jerusalem, was the Jewish faith.
This faith, rooted in the laws of Moses, had been established long before the birth of Jesus, and thus, their religious texts contained limited information about him.
Additionally, some followers of the Jewish faith had begun to worship other deities, leading to a divergence in religious beliefs.
Christianity (The Way) began after Jesus was born in Israel. However, most people living in Israel had the Jewish faith as their religion, not Christianity (The Way). Most Jewish people did not like this new Christian belief system.
As the Christian belief system started to spread, the people of the Jewish faith became increasingly hostile, resorting to extreme measures such as imprisonment and even murder to suppress it.
In the face of such persecution, Saul, a Jewish citizen whose name was later changed to Paul, obtained Roman citizenship and decided to stop the Christian belief (Cult) system from spreading.
This resilience in the face of adversity is a testament to the courage and conviction of the early Christians.
Acts 9:1-6 NIV Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples.
He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus so that if he found any who belonged to the Cult, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
Following this divine encounter, Saul experienced a profound transformation. He lost his sight, a physical manifestation of his spiritual blindness.
Simultaneously, a follower of ‘the Way’ named Ananias, residing in Damascus, received a vision from Jesus instructing him to visit Saul. Despite his initial reluctance due to Saul’s reputation as a persecutor of ‘the Way ‘, Ananias obeyed.
He laid his hands on Saul, and through this act, Saul’s sight was restored, symbolizing his newfound spiritual insight and his acceptance into the early Christian community.
Ananias was reluctant to go because he had heard how Saul persecuted believers of the Cult. But Jesus said to Ananias, “This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles, their kings, and the people of Israel.
After that incident, Saul became a devoted believer in the Way and started preaching the message of the Way all through the Middle East.
The Riot in Ephesus
Acts 19:23-27 NIV About that time, there arose a great disturbance about the Way.
24 A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there.
25 He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: “You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business.
26 And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray many people here in Ephesus and Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all.
27 There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.”
Demetrius did not like Paul’s message, so he gathered a group of Ephesians to destroy Paul and the followers of the Way. However, they did not have enough evidence to prove that Paul or the disciples had broken any of their laws.
Acts 19:35-39 NIV The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: “Fellow Ephesians, doesn’t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven?
36 Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you should calm down and not do anything rash. 37 You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess.
38 If Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open, and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. 39 If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly.
Acts 20:1 NIV When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said goodbye and set out for Macedonia.
by: Staff
Christian Briefs 