ABSTRACT
Even before the church’s beginning, followers of Jesus—eventually called Christians—faced great difficulty and persecution. The forerunner of Christ, John the Baptist, was imprisoned and beheaded. Jesus of Nazareth himself was crucified. Stephen was stoned to death after his witness before the Sanhedrin (Acts 6–8). Herod Agrippa killed James the brother of John (Acts 12:12), which led to the departure of the rest of the Twelve from Jerusalem. This persecution was not simply brought on by the missionary work of Paul, but the preaching of the first apostles regarding the Messiahship and Lordship of the risen Jesus.
