My youth/adult Sunday School class recently finished a 20 week study of church history. Looking back, here are a few thoughts:

• The giants of church history were yet sinners saved by grace. Time and again as we looked at various heroes of the church, we saw not only great godly achievements, but also sinful failure. How could such a great man or woman of God do that? But God uses sinful people to accomplish his purposes so that we might glory not in the people but in their God. All have sinned and need a Savior.
• God is still at work in his world. God wasn’t just active in Bible times, as it is easy to conclude when we ignore the last 2000 years. He has been at work in his church and world during the last two millennium, and he is still at work today.
• The church today needs to study church history. It is important for us to know where we came from. It is essential for us to understand how the church came to understand Biblical truths so we can better discern truth from error today. It is helpful for us to look at life through the eyes of those who have gone before so that we might overcome some of the blind spots of our times. And it is a great benefit for us to learn from and be encouraged by the lives and writings of those who have gone before us.

If you have never studied church history, I encourage you to jump in!