Introduction
Today we
are beginning a new preaching series entitled Christianity 101. For
some of us we have been in the church our whole lives. For others,
maybe it has been the majority of your life, and yet for others, just
a brief while. Regardless of where you find yourself on that
spectrum, it is important that we are consistently examining what it
is that we believe. After all, if one is to grow in their faith, one
needs to know what that faith encompasses.
Therefore,
over the next nine weeks we are going to explore our faith using the
Apostles' Creed as our guide. We will take each affirmation one by
one, break it apart, and see what it is we are professing when we
recite this creed in worship. Today we are going to begin with an
overview of the importance of this creed, specifically why the
Apostles' Creed even matters.
History
of the Creed
Let us
begin with a few basics about this creed. The word “creed” comes
from the Latin credo, which means, “I believe.” Originally, the
Apostles’ Creed was not a formal written statement of faith like we
have today. In the earliest days of the Christian church, it started
as a baptismal formula used for new believers on Easter. The early
church asked questions like: “Do you believe in God the Father
Almighty? “Do you believe that he is the maker of Heaven and
Earth?”, “Do you believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our
Lord?”, and continued through all twelve of the affirmations. From
those questions the Creed developed into its current form over many
generations. It’s not called the Apostles’ Creed because Jesus’
disciples wrote it, but rather because it reflects the teachings of
those first disciples. Some traditions go as far as to say each
Apostle contributed one affirmation that were then brought together
to form the Apostles' Creed.
However, what we do know for sure, is that it is the oldest and most widely accepted creed and is recognized, in some form, by all branches of Christianity; Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox.
The
Need for a Creed
Let's
begin with a few simple questions. How many of you know the Apostles'
Creed? How many of you can say the Apostles' Creed from memory? More
importantly, do you know what each phrase of the Apostles' Creed
means? This creed is full of meaning, steeped in theology, and
foundational for who we are not only as Protestants, but as United
Methodists.
One
of the most important questions we all need to be able to answer is
what we believe. If we are going to be effective disciples for Jesus
Christ for the transformation of the world, if we are going to strive
to be dangerous for Jesus Christ, we need to know what we believe.
Knowing what you believe and why you believe it, and being able to
articulate that, is what takes your faith from intellectual to
personal. And it is a personal faith that will change not only your
life, but the life of others.
But
to simply be able to recite this creed is not enough. I have a friend
that was interviewing before the Board of Ordained Ministry, and they
asked her to explain her faith. She thought for a moment, and then
replied to a room full of ordained elders, “you know the Apostles'
Creed, that is what I believe.” While technically correct, that was
not good enough.
From
Words to Foundation
John Wesley understood
the importance of being able to make your faith personal and being
able to articulate it. In fact, the reason we are called Methodists
is because people were ridiculing Wesley for the strict “methods”
he followed as part of his faith practice. Wesley knew the power of
Scripture, the strength of the Apostles' Creed, would all be lost if
they are remained words on a paper. And just words on a paper would
not help in times of trial. The need for us to transition this creed
from words on paper to a foundation for our faith is best outlined in
our first Scripture lesson this morning.
Listen
again, “In
the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living
and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give
you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of
season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and
careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put
up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will
gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their
itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the
truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all
situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge
all the duties of your ministry” (II Timothy 4:1-5, NIV). Paul was
calling Timothy to build his life upon a firm foundation and he goes
on then to predict what will happen when people forget biblical
correctives and follow their own whims.
Without
a foundation, a solid foundation, we place ourselves at risk. We make
ourselves vulnerable to deception and temptation. We make ourselves a
target of fads and whims. Without this as a part of our foundation,
we could and might fall for anything.
Creedal
Foundation
Now before we go any
further, before you draw any more observations and conclusions from
my message today, I want to make one thing clear. Everything we do as
a body of believers, everything you count as truth in this life,
needs to be judged in light of this. Scripture is the basis for all
we do, it is the light for all we see, it is the foundation for how
we live. Everything we do should be done in light of this.
This creed, our Apostles'
Creed, is a statement of faith, a piece of a larger method we should
all employ in our personal walk of faith.
Conclusion
This life of faith is
something. It calls us to believe in things unseen, have faith in
things uncommon, and tells us there is strength found in community
with other believers. But this all boils down to us as individuals.
You as an individual person, I as an individual person, have to
believe. I cannot believe for you and you cannot believe for me. But
we have to believe. We have to trust.
This
creed is a start. This creed helps us to remember the basics of our
faith, puts words to our faith, light to our journey, and hopefully
comfort to our walk. It is my prayer that this series will not only
deepen your knowledge, but strengthen your faith as well.
This
creed is twelve statements that all begin with “I believe”. As we
progress through this series, I encourage you to listen with open
hearts, hear new insights as the Holy Spirit reveals them to you, and
to allow yourself to be moved by what God reveals to us along this
journey.
We
all, as individuals and as a community, have potential. And our
potential as change agents for the transformation of this world will
be enhanced by the strength of our faith, the conviction of our
beliefs. Therefore, we need to know what we believe so that we can be
about our mission, our mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ
for the transformation of the world.
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