The Spirit and the Church (6th Article of the Creed)

Confessing our Faith

We believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.

We believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried;

He descended to hell. On the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended to heaven, sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.

He will come to judge the living and the dead.

We believe in the Holy Spirit,

We believe in the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Let me say a brief word concerning what we “believe”

You can say you believe something all day. But until what you believe in your head has become the reality of what is in your HEART, your belief will do you no good. [PAUSE]

Acts 19:11–15 “God was performing extraordinary miracles by Paul’s hands, so that even facecloths or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, and the diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Now some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists also attempted to pronounce the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I command you by the Jesus that Paul preaches!” Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this. The evil spirit answered them, “I know Jesus, and I recognize Paul—but who are you?””

a better way of saying it might be, “This is what we’ve discovered to be TRUE about the world…This revelation is our LIVED REALITY.

The Creed = This Revelation is our Lived Reality

On the Holy Catholic Church - Starfish and the Spirit (book)

1 Peter 2:9–12 “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul. Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that when they slander you as evildoers, they will observe your good works and will glorify God on the day he visits.”

The 6th and final article begins like this: I believe in the Holy Universal Church (the church everywhere, throughout the earth.

Then…it’s followed by these statements that give us our identity:

We are a people in communion with each other and with God

We are sinners forgiven by God

We are a people of the resurrection of Jesus

We are born again into new life with Christ

Principle: To be baptized into the church is to be made into a people set apart (holy) for the work of prayer, worship, and witness, for the sake of the world.

[More on this later]

The church is a STARFISH, not a SPIDER….Based on the idea that a spider will die if you cut it’s head off…but a starfish carries its life at the core…if you cut off one arm, the starfish just grows back another arm…also, a severed arm will regenerate a new starfish…

Two Foundations for the Church

First: The Church is the reproducing body of Christ in relationship and communion with one another.

Lots of people talk about “not needing a church” because we are the church…etc…(COVID)… We need to remember it is the organized gathering together, under shepherding leadership that forms our lives (not just watching church…but connecting with and engaging the people of God).

We are a reproducing body!

There is a transfer that happens when we serve together, worship together, live in harmony together. That transfer becomes the seed of the Spirit that produces FRUIT!

Second: The Church carries in her resurrection Authority and Power to bring the Kingdom of God into the world today.

(this is the good news)…Whenever the Church is gathered in unity under the banner of Jesus Christ, no devil in hell can stop it!

Let me take it a step further…When YOU are connected to the body of Christ you can experience the strength and power to stand firm in your own trials and battles.

(This is the moment Peter gets a revelation of the church he is writing about in 1 Peter 2:9)

Matthew 16:13–18 “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

*The Greek is a play on words: Peter (petros often used to describe a stone) and Rock (petra meaning large/foundational boulder).

Principle: We (the church - ekklesia) are living stones (1 Peter 2:5) built up on the rock of Jesus Christ…Jesus and his lordship is our Foundation!

Peter had to get a revelation of his own identity first (You are PETER)

Until you can receive your new identity in Christ, you cannot stand firm in your place on the Rock of your salvation.

Say. “I am a rock!”

Then, he could see how Jesus was the rock the whole church would stand on.

Truth: If we are going to be the church for the world today, we have to know our identity as sons and daughters of God!

Being the Church in the World

You are both saved (by faith) and being saved (formed/sanctified) through the fellowship of believers.

(REPEAT) There is a transfer that happens when we serve together, worship together, live in harmony together. That transfer becomes the seed of the Spirit that produces FRUIT!

You are a Forgiven people.

You no longer live under the constant reminder of your failures!

You are dead to Sin, and Alive in Jesus!

1 Corinthians 15:31 “I face death every day…in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Remember, your citizenship is not from this world. You are reborn into the Kingdom of God.

In the coming months you are going to be tempted to get fired up, angry, cuss somebody out about the kingdoms of this world….

The best thing you can do is put Jesus in your mouth and act like one that belongs to Him!