In this series of audio lectures we take a look at a few of the battles that have taken place in church history. Today we don’t like to fight – we would rather tolerate all kinds of different views. But over the centuries there have been those who realized that if we don’t fight for the truth, then the consequences will be disastrous. In this series we look at some of the heroes of the faith who were prepared to take a stand. The freedom we enjoy today is built on the foundation that such people were willing to pay a great price to lay.

There are some significant differences that cannot be ignored in our desire for unity. These are the battles that we shall be looking at and the heroes who defended the truth:

1. One iota’s worth of difference
Athanasius fights for the truth of the divinity of Christ in the 4th century. His opponent was Arius.

2. The difference between healthy and dead
Augustine fights to maintain the Biblical truth concerning the fallen-ness of man and our sinful nature. He was withstanding the views of Pelagius in 5th century

3. The difference between a scam and a special offer
Luther fights for the truth of justification by grace through faith in the 16th century. One man who brought the matter to a head for him was Tetzel who was selling indulgences, offering salvation for money.

4. The difference between honour and obey
There were seven bishops who wanted to honour the king but could not obey his proclamations that violated their conscience and religious freedom. This classic confrontation between church and state took place in the reign of King James II in 17th century England

5. The difference between unity and compromise
Charles Spurgeon’s final words to his friend as he left London for the last time were “The fight is killing me.” Three months later he was dead. His 19th century battle was with liberalism in “The Down-Grade Controversy”.