Tantine, Roman Emperor

Constantine, Roman Emperor

March 7. Emperor Constantine I. Of all the emperors Rome ever had, only Constantine I was called “The Great.” He unified and strengthened the empire, built a new capital, and was the first Christian emperor of Rome. He gave Christianity the social and political respectability it had previously lacked. On this date in 321, Constantine decreed that—throughout the Roman empire—Sunday would be a day of rest.

Not everyone was pleased with Constantine at the helm and trouble followed. Today’s story is about one of the troubles.

A man’s strength can make him confident, but victory comes from God.

The news was not good.

Constantine prepared to invade Italy and take over the western Roman Empire. But he had learned that his enemy Maxentius had him vastly outnumbered. Worse, Maxentius had been using sorcery and divination to win the favor of the Roman gods.

Going into battle was difficult enough, but having all the gods of Rome against him, too? What chance did he have? He was battling heaven and earth.

Maxentius was a cruel tyrant, who murdered innocents on a whim. He had to be stopped.

But with such a small army, Constantine didn’t have the strength to win on his own. And as for the Roman gods, many generals before had sought the favor of their gods—they had all met a terrible end with their so-called gods nowhere in sight.

But Constantine remembered his parents. His father, despite being high up in the Roman hierarchy, didn’t worship the gods his friends did. In fact, he only worshipped one—the God of the Christians. But Christians were always being persecuted in the Empire.

Could the Christian God help him? Was this God more powerful than the gods of Rome?

Constantine prayed to see if the Christian God would reveal himself and help with the battle to come. As Constantine was praying, and the sun was beginning to lower during the mid-day, he suddenly saw what looked like a cross of light in the sky, just above the sun, with words written there: “Conquer by this.”

Constantine was awestruck. His army suddenly stopped their work and saw the same thing, and he wondered what the miracle meant.

That night in a dream, Constantine saw Christ. The same sign he had seen earlier now stood beside the God he had prayed to. Christ told Constantine to make a standard like the sign he made, and use it during his battles to protect him.

When Constantine awoke at dawn, he immediately set out to work. He would join the Christian God and seek His protection, despite the persecutions that had threatened the Christians for centuries. He described the sign to some friends who were to make the standard, which was given the name labarum, and on it was a spear, with a crown decorated in gold and precious stones.

On the crown was the letter P [Rho], and intersected at the center was an X[Chi]. These letters were the two that indicated the name of Christ. The piece that crossed the spear was a streamer of purple, covered with precious stones and laced with gold.

But the standard was not enough. Before he went into battle, Constantine wanted to know who God was, so he asked about the Christian God and learned about the Christian faith. He decided to join the Christians and made priests his counselors. After all this, he was ready for battle, and despite the odds against him, Constantine went on to defeat Maxentius and become the first Christian Emperor of Rome.

“The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the LORD” (Proverbs 21:31 NIV).

We all face battles in our lives. Do you have everything you need to face overwhelming odds? A man’s strength can make him confident, but victory comes from God.

Freeman, Charles. Egypt, Greece, and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. Matyszak, Philip. “Constantine the Great: The Emperor Who Created Europe.” History Extra. Accessed August 17, 2020. https://www.historyextra.com/period/roman/constantine-great-life-facts-christian-roman-emperor- europe/. Firth, John B. Constantine the Great. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1905. Internet Archive. Accessed May 18, 2019. https://archive.org/details/constantinegrea01firtgoog/page/n14/mode/2up. Pamphilus, Eusebius. The Life of the Blessed Emperor Constantine, in Four Books, From 306 to 337 A.D. London: Samuel Bagster and Sons, 1845. Internet Archive. Accessed May 18, 2019. https://books.google.com/books?id=S09FAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad= 0#v=onepage&q&f=false.

Story read by Blake Mattocks