2. Athanasius Against the World (300s)

After Emperor Constantine granted favored status to Christianity, persecution tapered off. Instead, the church began to face division from within. A popular teaching called Arianism held that Jesus was a created being, not the eternal Son of God. One pastor/bishop named Athanasius from Alexandria, Egypt, did much to defend the truth. The Ecumenical Councils of Nicaea in 325 and Constantinople in 381 gave us the Nicene Creed. In this period, the church continued to clarify important doctrines like the Trinity and the divine-human natures of Christ.

Scripture: John 1:1-18

People and events: Athanasius of Alexandria (c. 296-373), Council of Nicaea (325), Augustine of Hippo (354-430)

“We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only-begotten Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,

was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,

and was made man.”

-From the Nicene Creed

“The results of the incarnation of the Savior are such and so many, that anyone attempting to enumerate them should be compared to a person looking upon the vastness of the sea and attempting to count its waves.”[1] -Athanasius of Alexandria

“For you made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”[2] – Augustine of Hippo

Application:

Consider what an awesome Savior you have in Jesus. What modern heretical teachings diminish his person or work?

[1] Athanasius, On the Incarnation. Ch. 54. Available at <https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2802.htm> Accessed 5/27/25.

[2]Augustine, Confessions. 1.1