History of the Christian Church Author:George Park Fisher Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. THE FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH. The major part of the Jewish people were pining for deliverance from Roman tyranny. A few yearned for a more spirit... more »ual blessing John the —for pe'"5e of conscience and purity of heart, which the Bai.ttat Messiah would bring to them. In this state of things there occurred a new and grand outburst of the spirit of prophecy, the final epoch in the progress of divine revelation. A great excitement was kindled by the preaching of John the Baptist, a prophet who in his stern and fearless spirit, as well as in his rough garb and austere mode of life, brought to mind his precursor, the ancient Elijah. In the wild and thinly settled region west of the Jordan he proclaimed to the awe-struck multitude, who flocked to hear him, the speedy advent of the Lord, and exhorted them to repentance. One of those who presented themselves for baptism was Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary, whose husband was Joseph. John would fain have declined to baptize him, and pointed him out as the predicted Messiah. Some of the disciples of the Baptist Ministry ot attached themselves to Jesus. Beginning at that time, Jarai- the ministry of Christ continued for three and a half years, partly in Galilee, and in part, especially towards the end, in Jerusalem and its neighborhood. The common people were deeply moved by his teaching, for he spoke as one having authority, out of a deep well of spiritual intuition, and as one in intimate communion with Ood, by whom he declared himself to be sent . They were startled and impressed by his miracles of healing, and by other manifestations of supernatural power and of tender sympathy with human distress. But when he refused to countenance their longing for a violent revolution and for a temporal kingdom, they were easily persuad...« less