In A.D. 64 A great fire broke out in Rome. Spreading quickly, it enveloped much of Rome. As most Roman's lived in wooden houses the Fire was not containable. One historian claims it burned for 6 days and 7 nights. After the fire Nero, the Emperor at the time seized a large section of the land for building a palace. This did not help public opinion of him and he was blamed for setting the fire.
Fearing for his life, Nero looked for someone to blame for the destruction. An obvious target was the Christians. Rome did not mind many other religions but they could not tolerate the Christians. It was publicly announced that the Christians were the arsonists. Rome demanded Justice.
Thus began a time of trials and persecutions for the Christians. They were arrested and martyred in horrible ways. One of them was to be brought to the Colosseum. There they were given a chance to renounce Christ. If they didn't they were released into the arena and were torn apart by wild beasts. Another way they were martyred was to be tied to a cross and burned as lights.
Under this persecution you would think Christianity suffered, however, Christianity spread all over the globe! Why? Because of the Persecution in Rome, many Christians escaped to Greece and the rest of Europe. There they spread the gospel and many churches were established. Beside this, it was an era of true faith. Would someone who didn't truly believe the gospel risk being tortured for it? No, of course not. Christians who have true faith will go to any length to share the gospel. Persecution actually, instead of diminishing Christianity spread it! God has a purpose in everything, even when we can't see it.
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