Rome

1. Rome

2. St. Peter’s squareOr “The Vatican”

3. The Capital and Largest City • 2.7 million in city 3.7 million in metro area • Located on the Tiber river • One of the founding cities of western civilization • It was the centre of the Roman Empire, which dominated Europe,North Africa and the Middle East for four hundred years from the 1st Century BC till the 4th Century AD.

4. History • According to Roman tradition, the city was founded by the twins Romulus and Remus on 21st of April 753 BC • The original settlement developed into the capital of the Roman Kingdom (ruled by a succession of seven kings, according to tradition), and then the Roman Republic (from 510 BC, governed by the Senate), and finally the Roman Empire (from 27 BC, ruled by an Emperor).

5. Rome As A Religious Center • To the world - Rome has a significant place in Christianity and is the present day home of the Roman Catholic Church and the site of the Vatican City, an independent city-state run by the Catholic Church as an enclave of Rome. • For almost a thousand years, Rome was the most politically important, richest, and largest city in the Western World

6. With the reign of Constantine I the Bishopof Rome gained political as well as religious importance, eventually becoming known as the Pope and establishing Rome as the centre of the Catholic Church After the Sack of Rome in 410AD by Alaric I and the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD, Rome alternated between Byzantine and Germanic control. Its population declined to a mere 20,000 during the Early Middle Ages, reducing the sprawling city to groups of inhabited buildings interspersed among large areas of ruins and vegetation. Rome remained nominally part of the Byzantine Empire until 751 AD • In 756, Pepin the Short gave the Pope temporal jurisdiction over Rome and surrounding areas, thus creating the Papal States.

7. First talked about in the Bible • Dan 2:31-35 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. • 32 This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, • 33 His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. • 34 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. • 35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

8. The Empires Daniel 2: 31-45 • Gold – Babylonian Empire Nebuchadnezzar the ruler • The breast and arms of silver signified the monarchy of the Medes (Darius) and Persians (Cyrus) • The belly and thighs of brass signified the monarchy of the Grecians, founded by Alexander the Great • The legs and feet of iron signified the Roman monarchy which in later days grew week as clay

9. Something would break this into pieces Daniel 2:31-45 • The stone cut out without hands represented the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which should be set up in the world in the time of the Roman empire, and upon the ruins of Satan's kingdom in the kingdoms of the world. This is the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, for it should be neither raised nor supported by human power or policy; no visible hand should act in the setting of it up, but it should be done invisibly the Spirit of the Lord of hosts. This was the stone which the builders refused, because it was not cut out by their hands, but it has now become the head-stone of the corner.

10. The gospel-church is a kingdom, which Christ is the sole and sovereign monarch of, in which he rules by his word and Spirit, to which he gives protection and law, and from which he receives homage and tribute. It is a kingdom not of this world, and yet set up in it; it is the kingdom of God among men. • The God of heaven was to set up this kingdom, to give authority to Christ to execute judgment, to set him as King upon his holy hill of Zion, and to bring into obedience to him a willing people. Being set up by the God of heaven, it is often in the New Testament called the kingdom of heaven, for its origin is from above and its tendency is upwards. • It was to be set up in the days of these kings, the kings of the fourth monarchy, of which particular notice is taken (Luke 2:1), That Christ was born when, by the decree of the emperor of Rome, all the world was taxed, which was a plain indication that that empire had become as universal as any earthly empire ever was.

11. Things changed in 31BC • 31 B.C. when Caesar Augustus became the first emperor, He developed Rome into a beautiful and stately city. • During the reign of Augustus as emperor in Rome, Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea. At that time and during the entire New Testament period, Judea was under Roman rule. Roman influence penetrated the entire Jewish community and continued to be felt in the life and mission of the New Testament church. • During the reign of Tiberius, successor to Augustus, Jesus' public ministry occurred. And the great missionary endeavors of the apostle Paul took place during the reign of Claudius. • Under Nero, the city of Rome was burned, Christians were persecuted, and the apostle Paul was thought to be martyred.

12. Paul's first known connection with Rome • Acts 18:2-4 And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them.3 And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers. 4 And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.

13. Aquila & Priscilla influence Paul • They had left Rome when Claudius expelled all the Jews from the city. Some few years after meeting Aquila and Priscilla, Paul decided that he "must also see Rome" • Acts 19:21 After these things were ended, Paul purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome.

14. Paul had plans…. • When he wrote his letter to the Christians at Rome, his plan was to visit friends in the city on his way to Spain • Rom 15:24 Whensoever I take my journey into Spain, I will come to you: for I trust to see you in my journey, and to be brought on my way thitherward by you, if first I be somewhat filled with your company.

15. Paul’s plan changes … • However, Paul actually went to Rome under very different conditions than he had originally planned. To keep from being killed by hostile Jews in Jerusalem, Paul appealed to Caesar. The binding effect of that appeal ultimately brought him to the capital city as a prisoner. Here he waited for his trial. The Book of Acts closes at this point, and one must rely on secular history and references in the other Epistles for the rest of the story. Tradition holds that Paul was ultimately martyred by Nero during the emperor's persecution of Christians.

16. Seven Mountian’s in Revelations • Rev 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

17. Seven Mountian’s in Revelations • Rev 17:6-8 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

18. Who Was This Harlot ? • Rev 17:9-14 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. 14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. • The City of Rome and the Roman Catholic Church