2 Tim 2:15 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
Calendar
SEXTUS JULIUS AFRICANUS
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29
Acts 13:16-26
Colossians 1:15-18
“For by him were all things created,
that are in heaven,
and that are in earth…”
SEXTUS JULIUS AFRICANUS
Sextus Julius Africanus was the first Christian historian known to produce a universal chronology. Born around AD 170, he once referred to Jerusalem as his birthplace. In his youth, he served in the army, but his education must have been extensive, for he mastered Greek, Latin, Hebrew and Aramaic. A true polymath, he represented a new type of Christian intellectual, one who sought to harness the best of Greek and Roman philosophy as well as science in service of the faith.
He emerged in church history toward the end of the second century AD, a time when Christianity faced sharp intellectual attacks. Writers like Celsus mocked Christ with false claims, portraying Him as illegitimate and accusing Him of sorcery. Against such criticisms, Africanus stood as a defender of the faith.
His greatest work was the “Chronographiai,” a five-volume treatise covering sacred and secular history from Creation (which he dated to 5499 BC) to AD 221. Using Scripture as the foundation, he synchronised Egyptian and Chaldaean chronologies, Greek mythology and Jewish history with Christianity. In doing so, he elevated the prestige of the Christian faith by placing it firmly within the broader historical context of the world. He also wrote a critical study on the genealogies of Christ in Matthew and Luke, seeking to reconcile apparent differences.
Africanus reminds us that intellectual gifts are meant to glorify God. Too often, scholars and scientists pursue knowledge for their own fame, forgetting the Creator who is the source of all wisdom. True science and true scholarship point back to Christ, the One through whom all things were made.
THOUGHT: Do I truly believe that Jesus Christ is the Creator of all things, and acknowledge Him in all knowledge?
PRAYER: Father, may I acknowledge that nothing in this world is new, but all unfolds according to Thy plans and purposes. May my mind and talents be used to glorify Thee, the Creator of all things.