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The Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible, is still the religion of
Protestants:
and
the
self-same
truth
which
moved
the
lips
of
Chrysostom,
the
old
doctrine
that
ravished
the
heart
of
Augustine,
the
old
faith
which
Athanasius
declared,
the
good
old
doctrine
that
Calvin
preached,
is
our
gospel
now,
and
God
helping
us,
we
will
stand
by
it
till
we
die.
-
C.
H.
Spurgeon,
May
27,
1855
there
lived
an
African
man
from
Alexandria,
Egypt,
named
Athanasius.
Athanasius
is
a
very
important
figure
in
church
history
because
he
took
a
stand
for
the
truth
of
who
Jesus
is
-
the
Word
incarnate.
Amongst
the
list
of
accomplishments
Athanasius
was
the
Bishop
of
Alexandria
for
over
40
years,
he
stood
before
governors
and
heretics
proclaiming
the
truth,
he
was
exiled
6
times,
and
he
wrote
several
notable
books
and
letters
that
are
recorded
in
history.
Athanasius
was
born
between
295-299
AD
and
died
on
the
2nd
of
May,
373
AD.
Ethnically
he
was
Coptic,
meaning
Egyptian,
but
lived
culturally
as
a
Greek.
It
is
said
that
he
was
raised
in
wealthy
Christian
family
and
was
passionate
about
the
inerrant
and
holy
scriptures
growing
up.
It
is
also
believed
he
went
to
a
famous
Alexandrian
school
influenced
by
Origen
and
earlier
church
fathers.
He
studied
the
Greek
philosophers
Plato
and
Aristotle,
he
was
fluent
in
Greek,
but
he
was
unlearned
in
the
Hebrew
language.
In 325 AD, three hundred overseers and deacons gathered together in Nicea
where
the
empire
Constantine
had
called
a
meeting
concerning
Arius
and
the
division
in
the
church.
The
Nicene
council
tested
Arius
doctrine
against
scripture
and
in
deliberating
found
Arius
to
be
theologically
wrong.
Eusebius
of
Cesarea
proposed
a
creed,
taken
from
his
own
church,
and
it
was
reformatted
by
the
leaders
to
become
what
is
known
in
church
history
as
the
Nicean
Creed.
The
Nicene
Creed
essentially
affirmed
that
there
is
One
God,
that
Jesus
is
God,
the
only
begotten
of
the
Father,
not
made
or
created,
and
of
the
same
substance,
homoousian,
as
the
Father
and
the
Holy
Spirit.
In
the
end,
all
but
two
church
leaders
signed
the
creed
condemning
the
Arian
heresy.
The
emperor
Constantine
approved
the
creed
and
ordered
the
banishment
of
Arius.
By
this
time
Athanasius
was
in
his
late
20s
and
serving
as
a
Deacon
under
Alexander.
He
had
already
written
two
notable
works
Against
the
Heathen,
and
On
the
Incarnation
affirming
the
deity
of
Christ.
A
short
time
later
Alexander
died
and
Athanasius
became
the
new
Bishop.
Historians
record
that
while
on
his
deathbed
Alexander
called
for
Athanasius
saying,
You
think
to
escape,
but
it
cannot
be
(earlychurch.org).
Athanasius
had
been
away
from
Alexandria
at
that
time
and
it
is
believed
that
Athanasius
didnt
want
the
position
of
Bishop.
The
leaders
and
people
of
the
Alexandrian
church
insisted
that
Athanasius
take
up
the
mantle.
Athanasius
as
Bishop
Athanasius
began
his
episcopate
in
328
AD
and
with
the
exception
of
his
time
in
exile
and
the
attempts
of
Roman
government
to
replace
him,
he
ended
his
ministry
as
Bishop
of
Alexandria
in
366
AD.
As
Bishop,
one
part
of
his
job
was
to
write
a
letter
each
year
to
announce
the
date
of
Easter.
This
is
known
as
the
Festal
letters
and
his
39th
letter
in
367
AD
he
records
all
27
books
of
the
New
Testament
canon
of
scripture
referring
to
them
as
the
fountains
of
salvation
(earlychurch.org).
In
this
amazing
letter
he
lists
all
the
39
books
of
the
Old
Testament
and
refers
to
the
Apocrypha
as
not
being
part
of
the
canon
of
scripture.
He
affirms
the
New
Testament
books
as
divinely
inspired
and
concludes
that
though
there
were
other
books
read
to
the
congregation
for
instruction
and
wisdom,
the
New
Testament
books
were
to
be
regarded
as
holy
scripture.
This
letter
is
the
first
and
earliest
document
we
have
in
church
history
that
lists
all
the
books
of
the
New
Testament,
adding
to
the
validity
and
historical
credibility
of
the
Bible.
Over
the
course
of
his
ministry
Athanasius
had
periods
of
peace,
and
then
periods
of
turmoil.
Much
like
the
Christian
life,
we
have
wonderful
seasons
of
mountains
tops,
but
then
times
of
valleys
where
death
and
tribulation
afflict
the
soul.
During
Athanasius
first
seven
years
as
Bishop
it
was
a
relatively
peaceful
time.
However,
Arians
like
Eusebius
of
Nicodemia
and
Meletius
were
conspiring
in
the
background.
Their
goal
was
to
bring
Arius
back
to
fellowship
in
Alexandria,
and
oust
Athanasius.
Three
Meletian
Bishops
had
made
accusations
against
Athanasius
saying
he
used
violence
and
magic,
consequently
resulting
in
him
being
summoned
by
Constantine.
He
was
momentarily
cleared
of
all
charges.
Constantine
had
mandated
that
all
who
desire
it
should
be
admitted
back
in
to
fellowship
with
the
Church.
Athanasius
strongly
opposed
bringing
back
Arius
into
fellowship,
or
any
heretical
teaching
into
the
church.
In
the
time
following
Athanasius
had
two
more
cases
of
false
accusations
made
against
him.
Ischyras
and
Arsenius
being
amongst
the
perpetrators,
their
plot
secretly
fostered
by
John
Arcaph
the
new
Meltian
leader.
where
more
accusations
were
made
against
Athanasius
similar
to
before.
The
case
came
before
Constantine
along
with
an
accusation
against
Athanasius
purporting
that
he
was
stopping
grain
to
Constantines
capitol.
The
emperor
seeking
to
quiet
any
noise
in
the
land
banished
Athanasius
to
the
city
of
Trevari
in
336
AD.
During
this
time
Arius
died
suddenly,
just
prior
to
being
restored
to
fellowship
with
the
Church.
Some
believed
it
was
Gods
judgment,
others
just
an
unfortunate
circumstance.
Shortly
after
the
emperor
Constantine
died
his
son,
Constantius,
took
his
place.
After
a
year
Athanasius
was
restored
as
Bishop
of
Alexandria
by
Constantius.
This
was
a
second
peaceful
period
for
Athanasius
until
339
AD
when
more
accusations
prevailed
against
him
led
by
the
Eusebians,
followers
of
the
Arian
8
months
later
under
the
emperor
Valens.
In
365
AD
Valens
ordered
that
all
the
Bishops
who
had
been
previously
banished
under
Constantius,
be
re-banished.
Athanasius
would
later
return
to
Alexandria
as
Bishop
for
the
last
time
where
he
chose
a
presbyter
named
Peter
as
his
successor.
It
is
important
to
note
that
during
all
of
his
time
in
exile
Athanasius
still
wrote
his
Easter
letters
to
the
congregation
in
Alexandria.
He
never
let
diversion
or
opposition
stop
him
from
ministry.
During
the
last
years
of
his
life
from
366-373
AD
he
established
a
memorial
church
and
at
the
age
of
75,
after
46
years
of
his
episcopate,
Athanasius
died.
Theology
of
Athanasius
Athanasius
believed
and
preached
Christ
as
Lord.
The
emphasis
of
his
teaching
can
clearly
be
seen
in
his
literature.
He
wrote
about
the
truth
of
Creation
and
the
divinity
of
the
Holy
Spirit.
In
writing
about
creation,
ex-nihilo,
he
argues
for
the
truth
that
world
was
created
and
there
was
a
Mind
behind
it,
not
something
from
Greek
and
Roman
mythology
that
believed
that
all
matter
was
eternal.
His
notable
works
include
De
Incarnatione
(On
the
Incarnation,
326-328
AD)
Four
orations
against
the
Arians
(337-345),
Letters
concerning
the
decrees
of
the
counsel
of
Nicea
(350-356),
and
Life
of
Antony
(356-362),
which
is
a
biography
of
the
famous
4th
century
monk
who
is
known
for
his
faith
in
Christ.
Some
of
his
other
works
include
the
Festal
Letters,
Contra
Gentes
(Against
the
Heathen),
First
Letters
to
Serapion,
and
On
the
Holy
Spirit.
In
On
the
Incarnation
Athanasius
writes
There
were
thus
two
things
which
the
Savior
did
for
us
by
becoming
Man.
He
banished
death
from
us
and
made
us
anew;
and,
invisible
and
imperceptible
as
in
Himself
He
is,
He
became
visible
through
His
works
and
revealed
Himself
as
the
Word
of
the
Father,
the
Ruler
and
King
of
the
whole
creation
(earlychurch.org).
Athanasius
wrote
this
letter
to
a
presbyter
named
Macarius
expounding
on
the
deity
of
Christ
and
affirming
the
triune
Godhead.
C.
S.
Lewis
comments
by
saying
When
I
first
opened
his
De
Incarnatione
I
soon
discovered
by
a
very
simple
test
that
I
was
reading
a
masterpiece
(Spurgeon.org).
Athanasius
belabored
the
point
that
God
had
a
dilemma
in
the
case
of
His
own
creation
sinning
and
being
separated
from
Him.
He
emphasizes
that
Jesus
becoming
Man
was
the
only
solution
and
God
would
not
let
man
die
in
this
world
without
knowing
Him
which
is
the
purpose
for
mans
existence.
In
chapter
one
of
On
the
Incarnation
Athanasius
points
out
the
need
for
the
Word
to
become
Man
because
of
mankinds
transgression
in
the
garden.
He
writes,
it
was
our
sorry
case
that
caused
the
Word
to
come
down,
our
transgression
that
called
out
His
love
for
us,
so
that
He
made
haste
to
help
us
and
to
appear
among
us
(earlychurch.org).
He
goes
on
in
chapters
two
and
three
to
explain
in
depth
how
Jesus
needed
to
take
on
a
human
body
and
die
so
that
all
could
be
saved.
Athanasius
quotes
again
and
again
from
scripture,
he
uses
2
Corinthians
5:14,
and
1
Corinthians
15:21
to
point
out
the
new
life
in
Christ,
and
mentions
Paul
the
Apostle
by
name
regarding
him
as
that
true
servant
of
Christ.
He
also
quotes
from
Hebrew
2:9,
and
ends
chapter
2
by
stating
For
by
the
sacrifice
of
His
own
body
He
did
two
things:
He
put
an
end
to
the
law
of
death
which
barred
our
way;
and
He
made
a
new
beginning
of
life
for
us,
by
giving
us
the
hope
of
resurrection.
Athanasius had tremendous influence not only in the Church through out
history,
but
on
those
who
succeeded
him
like
the
Cappadocian
Bishops
such
as
Basil
of
Cesarea,
Gregory
of
Nazianzus,
and
Gregory
of
Nyssa.
Athanasius
was
not
only
an
amazing
writer
and
communicator,
he
is
known
in
church
history
as
being
a
pillar
for
the
truth.
There
is
a
plethora
of
historical
writings
and
letters
that
he
wrote
during
his
life,
exhorting
the
leaders
of
the
Church
to
stand
fast
in
the
truth
of
the
scriptures.
One
historian
says
There
is
no
passage
in
his
writings
which
recognises
tradition
as
supplementing
Scripture,
i.e.,
as
sanctioning
articles
of
faith
not
contained
in
Scripture
(earlychurch.org).
Sir
Robert
Anderson,
while
discussing
the
vitality
of
the
Deity
of
Christ
and
the
opposition
to
that
truth,
mentions
Athanasius
by
quoting
Dr.
Moule,It
was
an
insight
into
that
vitality
which
made
Athanasius
strong
contra
mundum.
He
saw
that
no
compromise
was
possible.
His
opponents
were
prepared
to
say
practically
anything
of
the
greatness
of
the
Christ
short
of
this
that
without
reserve,
without
compromise,
sans
phrase,
He
is
GOD
(The
Word
software).
Athanasius
insisted
that
if
Jesus
were
not
God,
then
He
could
not
be
our
Savior.
In
one
translation
of
On
the
Incarnation
by
Sister
Penelope
Lawson,
C.
S.
Lewis
comments
on
Athanasius.
In
the
introduction
Lewis
writes
He
stood
for
the
Trinitarian
doctrine,
"whole
and
undefiled,"
when
it
looked
as
if
all
the
civilised
world
was
slipping
back
from
Christianity
into
the
religion
of
Ariusinto
one
of
those
"sensible"
synthetic
religions
which
are
so
strongly
recommended
today
and
which,
then
as
now,
included
among
their
devotees
many
highly
cultivated
clergymen.
It
is
his
glory
that
he
did
not
move
with
the
times;
it
is
his
reward
that
he
now
remains
when
those
times,
as
all
times
do,
have
moved
away.
Many
people
today
carry
on
in
the
heretical
sprit
of
Arius
rejecting
the
truth
about
God
and
clinging
to
lies.
Thank
God
for
Athanasius
and
those
who
through
the
halls
of
church
history
have
stood
for
the
truth
that
is
found
in
Christ.
Once
more,
then,
it
was
the
Word
of
God,
Who
sees
all
that
is
in
man
and
moves
all
things
in
creation,
Who
alone
could
meet
the
needs
of
the
situation.
It
was
His
part
and
His
alone,
Whose
ordering
of
the
universe
reveals
the
FatherAthanasius
writes
concerning
Jesus
sacrifice
for
us
in
On
the
Incarnation.
Personal
Reflection
There
is
so
much
to
be
applied
from
Athanasiuss
writings,
his
life,
his
ministry,
and
what
God
did
with
him
and
through
him.
God
had
a
calling
on
Athanasius
life
from
his
youth.
I
too,
have
had
a
call
on
my
life
since
I
was
15
years
old.
But
as
Athanasius
was
hesitant
to
be
the
Bishop
of
Alexandria,
I
too
have
dodged
my
calling
for
too
long.
For
many
years
I
was
like
Jonah
running
in
the
opposite
direction,
but
in
recent
years
have
become
serious
about
the
call
of
God.
Who is Jesus? This is the paramount question to every person on this planet.
C.S.
Lewis
writes
in
Mere
Christianity
that
Jesus
was
a
lunatic,
a
liar,
or
Lord.
Jesus
is
God,
He
is
Word
made
flesh,
the
third
person
of
the
trinity,
equal
with
the
Father
and
the
Holy
Spirit,
and
it
is
only
in
His
name
that
a
person
can
be
saved.
There
is
no
other
way.
Athanasius
stood
for
this
truth.
In
a
world
where
the
Arian
heresy
still
flows
through
the
veins
of
false
religions
and
blasphemous
doctrine,
will
I
stand
for
Jesus
Christ?
Athanasius
was
influenced
by
the
Lord
Jesus
Christ,
by
the
scriptures,
by
the
Apostles,
and
by
Bishop
Alexander.
He
then
influenced
the
Church
and
other
leaders
in
history.
The
question
I
now
ask
myself
is
who
am
I
influencing?
Do
I
have
a
Timothy
like
Paul
did?
Am
I
taking
a
stand
for
Christ
and
if
so,
will
others
be
impacted
and
encouraged
to
do
the
same?
Jesus
could
come
back
today
or
in
30
years
and
by
then
will
my
life
have
been
for
something.
God
has
called
me
to
minister
to
Him
by
ministering
to
others.
Pastor
Chuck
Smith
often
said
Soon
this
life
will
be
past,
only
what
Ive
done
for
Christ
will
last.
But
everything
depends
upon
the
Deity
of
Christ:
and,
therefore
as
Athanasius
said
long
ago,
in
contending
for
that
great
truth
we
are
contending
for
our
all.
-Sir
Robert
Anderson
References
Paul
Jones,
Timothy.
Christian
History
Made
Easy.
Rose
Publishing,
2009
Athanasius
of
Alexandria,
retrieved
on
9/24/15
from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athanasian_Creed
Athanasius:
On
the
Incarnation,
retrieved
on
9/24/15
from
http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/history/ath-inc.htm
Early
Church
History,
Chadwick
Henry
Fourth
Century
Christianity,
retrieved
from
http://www.fourthcentury.com/athanasius-chart/
The
Eternal
Name
(Spurgeons
Sermons
Volume
1:
1855)
retrieved
from
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version
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Controversies
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the
Church,
Larry
Powers,
CCGS
Bible
College/Lesson
7,
09/21/2015
Author,
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Works
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Sir
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Anderson,
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The
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Ministry
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Athanasius:
On
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Incarnation,
http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/history/ath-inc.htm
The
Popular
Encyclopedia
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Apologetics.
Hindson,
Ed,
Caner,
Ergun,
published
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Harvest
House
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2008
Athanasius,
someone
from
nothing,
Paul
Henderson,
2013,
Ebook
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Christian
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Library,
Philip
Schaff,
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