Jesus Christ Changed the World

Transforming Time
Jesus Christ changed the world forever. When He was born, He transformed the very way we measure time. He turned aside the river of the ages and lifted the centuries off their hinges. His birthday, His Incarnation, touched and transformed time. Now the whole world counts time as Before Christ (BC) and AD (Anno Domoni - in the year of our Lord). Jesus Christ is the central figure of history. More books have been written about Jesus Christ than any other person in history.
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Saving Lives
The world before Christ was a world without hospitals, a world without charity, a world without respect for the sanctity of life. Hospitals were an innovation of Christianity. Hence the healing symbol of a cross represents hospitals. The nursing profession was founded by Christians such as Florence Nightingale out of devotion for Christ. One of history’s greatest humanitarian movements, the International Red Cross, was founded by Christians in response to the Scriptural injunctions to care for the sick and the suffering. Christians such as Dr. Louis Pasteur have fuelled some of the greatest practical advances in medicine. Pasteur has probably saved more lives than any other individual in history through his inventions.

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Caring for the Poor
The whole concept of charity was a Christian innovation. Benevolence to strangers was unknown before Christ. The teachings and example of Jesus Christ have inspired the greatest acts of generosity, hospitality, self-sacrifice and service for the poor, sick and needy over two thousand years.

Setting the Captives Free
Before the advent of Christianity every culture-practised slavery and human sacrifice - even the highly esteemed Greek and Roman civilisations. Child sacrifice was common among the pagan religions. The Aztec Empire in Mexico and Inca Empire in Peru engaged in slavery, ritual rapes and mass human sacrifice. Suttee, the burning of widows on the funeral pyres of their husbands, was common practice in Hindu India before the missionary William Carey arrived. Slavery was eradicated as a result of tireless efforts of Christians such as William Wilberforce and David Livingstone. Respect for life and liberty is a fruit of Christianity. Those promoting abortion, euthanasia and pornography are not offering us progress, but only a return to pre-Christian paganism.

Blessing the Nations
The positive impact of Jesus Christ on the world cannot be overstated. Everything from education to human rights, from public health to economic liberty - the things we cherish most and many of the blessings we take for granted - all can be traced to the spiritual and the cultural revolution begun by Jesus Christ

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The Scientific Revolution
The irrefutable fact is that Christianity gave birth to modern science. The scientific revolution began with the Protestant Reformation and the Bible played a vital part in the development of scientific discovery. Every major branch of science was developed by a Bible believing Christian. The Bible essentially created science. When we get into a car, start the engine, turn on the lights, drive to a hospital, receive an anaesthetic before an operation, and have an effective operation done in a germ-free environment, we need to remember that we owe it all to Jesus Christ. 

Education for   All
"Every school you see - public or private, religious or secular - is a visible reminder of the religion of Jesus Christ. So is every college and university." Dr. James Kennedy.

There is no doubt that Jesus Christ was the greatest Teacher the world has ever known. When He spoke,

"They were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority…" 
Mark 1:22.

The life, teachings and example of Jesus Christ have profoundly influenced the whole development of education worldwide. The Great Commission of our Lord Jesus was to

"make disciples of all nations…teaching them…" 
Matthew 28:19-20

From the very beginning Christians were establishing schools. Amongst the many innovations in Christian Education was that these Christian schools taught everybody, including girls and women. Formally educating both sexes was a Christian innovation. The Greeks and Romans before the birth of Christ did not formally educate girls. Only boys from the privileged classes obtained an education. Christianity revolutionised education by making it available to all classes and both genders. Saint Augustine observed that Christian women were better educated than the pagan male philosophers.

The phenomenon of education for the masses has its roots in Christianity. The pursuit of the knowledge of God in a systematic, philosophical and in-depth way gave rise to the phenomenon of universities all around the world. It was the Christian faith that gave rise to the idea of higher learning. The greatest invention in the field of learning, the printing press, by Johannes Gutenberg, was also a fruit of the Christian faith. The first book to be printed was the Bible.

Most of the languages of the world were first set to writing by Christian missionaries. The first book in most languages of the world has been the Bible. Christianity has been the greatest force for promoting literacy worldwide throughout history.

The Christian missionary movement in the 19th Century pioneered tens of thousands of schools throughout Africa, Asia and the Pacific Islands - providing education for countless millions, even in the remotest jungles, giving the gift of literacy to tribes which had never before had a written language.

Every branch and level of education was pioneered by Bible believing Christians. The concept of graded levels of education was first introduced by a German Lutheran, Johan Sturm in the 16th Century. Another Lutheran, Frederick Froebel introduced kindergartens. Education for the deaf was also pioneered by Christians.

Sunday schools were begun by Robert Raikes in 1780, to provide boys and girls from the poorest homes with the gift of literacy and the riches of the Scriptures

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One Truth
The very name "university" testifies to its Christian origins. University means "One Truth". The first universities grew out of the monastic missionary centres, which had discipled Europe. The first university lecturers were the missionary monks who had collected books, accumulated libraries, copied manuscripts and were uniquely equipped for advanced academic study. Most universities began as Christian schools. Isn’t it time that teachers, lecturers and professors took an in depth look at the greatest Teacher the world has ever known, the greatest Book ever produced and the Faith with inspired and pioneered every major branch of education and science?.

Compassion for the Blind
Before Jesus Christ, human life in the Greek and Roman world was extremely cheap. Infants born with physical defects such as blindness, were commonly abandoned to. However, Jesus Christ showed particular compassion for the blind, healing many blind individuals during His ministry on earth. When the Roman persecution of the Church ended, in the 4th Century, Christians established asylums for the blind. In the 19th Century, Louis Braille, a dedicated Christian who lost his eyesight at age three, developed the worlds first alphabet that enabled blind people to read with their fingers.

The Rule of Law
The Bible, particularly the Ten Commandments, laid the framework and legal foundations of Western civilisation. The very first statute, the first written restriction on the powers of government was the Magna Carta of 1215. It was written by a pastor and thoroughly saturated with Scriptural principles.

Inspirational
The life and teachings of Jesus Christ have inspired the greatest literature, the greatest art, the greatest examples of architecture, the age of exploration, world missions, the rule of law, the separation of powers, checks and balances, representative government, the sanctity of life, compassion for the poor, blind and needy and so much more that we take for granted.

Christianity has been the most powerful agent in transforming society for the better across 2000 years. No other religion, philosophy, teaching, nation, or movement has changed the world for the better as Christianity has done.

The Bible is the greatest Book ever written. Jesus Christ is the greatest Man who has ever lived.

Wise men still seek Him.

He became like us – that we might become like Him.
He was rejected – that we might be accepted.
He was condemned – that we might be forgiven.
He was punished – that we might be pardoned.
He suffered – that we might be strengthened.
He was whipped – that we might be healed.
He was hated – that we might be loved.
He was crucified – that we might be justified.
He was tortured – that we might be comforted.
He died – that we might live.
He went to hell – that we might go to Heaven.
He endured what we deserve – that we might enjoy what only He deserves.

Dr. Peter Hammond

Livingstone Fellowship
P.O. Box 74
Newlands 7725
Cape Town
South Africa
Tel: 021-689-4480
Email: mission@frontline.org.za
Email: info@ReformationSA.org

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