The Epistle to Diognetus

Today I had the incredible experience and blessing of reading the short "Epistle to Diognetus," the earliest example of Christian apologetics.  The only thing we know about the author is that he claims to be "a disciple of the Apostles."  It was written to Diognetus, a Gentile interested in the claims of these strange Christians he had heard about.  It was probably written in the early 2nd century-- somewhere between 100 and 160 AD.  That makes it one of the earliest extra-biblical Christian writings we have.

What I love about this epistle is its presentation of the gospel.  I was so encouraged to see that the gospel of substitutionary atonement and justification by faith we preach today is the same one being heralded 1,900 years ago.  I've copied chapter 9 of the epistle below.  By the time I was done with it, I was practically weeping.  It's definitely worth taking a few minutes to read:



Having planned everything already in His mind with His Son, He permitted us during the former time to be borne along by disorderly impulses as we desired, led astray by pleasures and lusts, not at all because He took delight in our sins, but because He bore with us.

And He bore with us not because He approved of the past season of iniquity, but because He was creating the present season of righteousness, so that, being convicted in the past time by our own deeds as unworthy of life, we might now be made deserving by the goodness of God, and having made clear our inability to enter into the kingdom of God of ourselves, might be enabled by the ability of God.

And when our iniquity had been fully accomplished, and it had been made perfectly manifest that punishment and death were expected as its recompense, and the season came which God had ordained, when from that time on He should manifest His goodness and power (O the exceeding great kindness and love of God!), He did not hate us, neither rejected us, nor bore us malice, but was long-suffering and patient, and in pity for us took upon Himself our sins, and Himself parted with His own Son as a ransom for us, the holy for the lawless, the guileless for the evil, the just for the unjust, the incorruptible for the corruptible, the immortal for the mortal.

For what else but His righteousness would have covered our sins? In whom was it possible for us lawless and ungodly men to have been justified, save only in the Son of God? O the sweet exchange, O the inscrutable creation, O the unexpected benefits; that the iniquity of many should be concealed in One Righteous Man, and the righteousness of One should justify many that are iniquitous!

Having then in the former time demonstrated the inability of our nature to obtain life, and having now revealed a Savior able to save even creatures which have no ability, He willed that for both reasons we should believe in His goodness and should regard Him as nourisher, father, teacher, counselor, physician, mind, light, honor, glory, strength and life.