Africa Study Bible Sampler - Flipbook - Page 92
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A N A R R AT I V E T I M E L I N E O F
GOD’S WORK IN AFRICA
God’s Work in Africa
God has been at work in Africa since the moment he created the continent. Records of
God’s work in Africa date back to some of the earliest recorded history. Biblical history
focuses on God’s people in Israel. Yet, Africa is mentioned often in the Bible because Israel’s
land connected Africa, Asia, and Europe. Some of the very first churches outside Jerusalem
were established in Africa. And many of the most prominent voices that defended the
faith as the church matured in organization and doctrine were African. Even when Africa’s
Christian history has been ignored or overlooked, God’s eyes have always been on Africa.
He watched as empires rose and fell, churches prospered and declined, and people
struggled for freedom and justice. In the last two hundred years, God’s Spirit has been
moving powerfully in Africa to make it one of the global centres of Christianity.
There is not enough space here to describe all the important events in God’s work in
African history. We can only highlight some of the major events from Abram to the twentyfirst century. This narrative will inspire you as you understand that God has always been at
work in Africa and he will not stop! We are grateful for the expert church historians, biblical
scholars, and The Center for Early African Christianity (CEAC) who contributed to this
timeline.
A Comment about Dates
Every effort has been made to ensure the dates in this timeline are accurate, but some
events are very difficult to know with certainty. For instance, we know Solomon reigned
from 970–931 bc, but we do not know when the Queen of Sheba visited him. Another
problem is information for very old dates is incomplete. Because of this, we provide a
range of dates in some cases.
One of the most difficult Old Testament dates to determine is the Exodus. Many scholars
believe the Exodus occurred in 1446 bc based on 1 Kings 6:1 and Judges 11:26. However,
based on archaeology and Egyptian records, other scholars believe the Exodus occurred
around 1280 bc. This is important because the date of the Exodus affects other dates. For
instance, the “History in Africa from the Patriarchs to the Promised Land” extends to when
the Israel entered the Promised Land, which was 40 years after the Exodus. That date would
be either 1406 bc or 1240 bc, depending on whether the Exodus was 1446 bc or 1280 bc.
Because of this, we provide both dates. Additionally, some dates are approximated due to
lack of clear records and are noted with an asterisk (*).