In 29 C.E., with his baptism, Jesus began forming the Christian congregation, with him as the "chief cornerstone."(Matt 21:42; Isa 28:16) About 2 years later, Jesus gave several illustrations regarding the "kingdom", telling his genuine disciples: "To you it is granted to understand the sacred secrets of the kingdom of the heavens, but to those people (false disciples) it is not granted."(Matt 13:11)
Jesus then points out that most who listen to him (such as many who call themselves "Christian") would be unable to "mentally put the pieces together".(meaning of the Greek word syniemi that Jesus used 6 times in Matt 13) He says: "This is why I speak to them in illustrations, because, looking, they look in vain, and hearing, they hear in vain, neither do they get the sense of it."("get the sense of it", Greek syniemi)
He now gives an illustration concerning the "kingdom", in which the true religion he established would become apostate: "The kingdom of the heavens has become like a man that sowed fine seed in his field. While men were sleeping (or after the death of the apostles), his enemies came and oversowed weeds in among the wheat, and left."(Matt 13:24, 25)
Jesus explains that he is the "man" who is the "sower of fine seed" (Matt 13:37), that the "field is the world", the "wheat" are "the sons of the kingdom", the "weeds are the sons of the wicked one", and that the ' enemy' is "the Devil". He further said: "When the blade sprouted and produced fruit, then the weeds appeared also."(Matt 13:27)
The slaves of the master wondered how weeds came to be mixed in with the wheat, asking if they should try and separate the "wheat" from the "weeds", with the "master" telling them not to, "that by no chance while collecting the weeds, you uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow until the harvest; and in the harvest season I will tell the reapers " to "first collect the weeds and bind them in bundles" then gather the "wheat into my storehouse."(Matt 13:30)
Now, what does this all mean ? That the one true religion that Jesus established would apostasize, giving advance notice that it would "fall away." Less than 20 years after Jesus death, the apostle Paul said that efforts of Satan to cause division and turn individuals away from the true faith was "already at work."(2 Thess 2:7)
Some 2 years earlier in 49 C.E., the governing body noted: "We have heard that some from among us have caused you trouble with speeches, trying to subvert your souls, although we did not give them any instructions."(Acts 15:24) Some within the congregation were vocal about their opposing viewpoint concerning circumcision.
Later, about 10 years after the apostle John's death in 100 C.E., Ignatius, "bishop" of Antioch, advocated that the "overseers" (Greek episkopos) should have greater authority than the "older men" (Greek presbyteros), thus laying the beginnings of a clergy-laity class, though "overseers" were the same as "older men", just different expressions. He wrote of a three-grade hierarchy of bishops, presbyters (priests) and deacons.
Almost 150 years later, Cyprian (200-258 C.E.) "bishop" of Carthage, North Africa, outlined a seven-grade hierarchy, with the "bishop" as the supreme one. Later, an eight-grade was added in the Western, Latin, or Roman church, whereas the Eastern or Greek Orthodox church settled for a five-grade hierarchy. A clergy-laity class was now becoming fully formed, and fulfilling what Jesus said about "weeds" or pseudo-Christians overtaking the "wheat" or genuine Christians.
Augustus Neander, in his book The History of the Christian Religion and Church, During the Three First Centuries, explains: “In the second century . . . , the standing office of president of the presbyters must have been formed, to whom, inasmuch as he had especially the oversight of every thing, was the name of [e·pi´sko·pos] given, and he was thereby distinguished from the rest of the presbyters.”
A clergy class was settling in, and within a period of less than 300 years after Jesus death, the "wheat" field of Christianity had been overrun with the "weeds" of apostate "Christians" (antichrists) to the point where wicked Constantine the Great (himself incriminated in the murder of no less than seven close friends and relatives) figured in events that led to the development of a state religion disguised as "Christianity" during the reign of Roman Emperor Theodosius I (reigned 379-95 C.E.).
