I Believe

History of the Apostles’ Creed

This morning we begin a new series regarding the Apostle’s Creed. The Apostles’ Creed, while not literally written by the apostles, is a compilation of beliefs that were held by the apostles. I need to note that while there is no specific reference to the authority of scripture, every single aspect of it is supported by the bible. Each line points back to the Word of God.

There are lots of theories as to how the Apostles’ Creed came about but of those theories is one that I find to be extremely helpful. In the early church, it was often used as a catechism to walk through with those who came to faith, teaching them the core doctrines of Christianity. The goal was to orient these young followers to what was taught by the scriptures and upheld by the church. Then, when the time to baptize them came, they were asked line by line if they held to the beliefs in the creed. After answering yes to each question, they made their public profession of faith by obeying the scriptures and being baptized.

With some of the history of the creed established, I now want to discuss why I’ve decided to go this route in preaching through the Apostles' Creed.

Why a Series on the Apostles’ Creed

There are three things I hope this study will do for us, both as a congregation as well as individuals.

The Apostles’ Creed will provide Alignment

I have often talked about the importance of a church pulling in the same direction. It is easy, with all of the sort of information that is available because of the internet and social media, to be bombarded by various Christian doctrines. A study through the Apostles’ Creed helps to establish a comprehensive direction for our whole congregation on what we find to be the most important aspects of the Christian faith. Next,

The Apostles’ Creed will provide Balance

There is a tendency, which is seen throughout history, to hone in on a particular aspect of God or doctrinal category. For instance, there tends to be an emphasis in some traditions on what heaven will be like and the end times that lead to eternity while failing to think on the creation of God. If I look at the history of Free Will Baptists, there has been an emphasis on God the Father and God the Son while the Holy Spirit has been neglected in some ways.

The Apostle’s Creed gives a well-balanced mention of various aspects of God while also giving clarity on certain items which leads us to the final thing I hope this series will do for us.

The Apostles’ Creed will provide Clarity

When a person says that they believe in God, there are some questions that I would generally ask them following such a profession. What God? What do you believe about Him? Was Jesus Christ just a teacher or was He God incarnate. Is He eternal just as the Father is? What about church? Do you attend and understand that value of church or are you content with reading your bible once in a while.

These sorts of clarifications are important when a person says that they believe something because it helps us to better understand what they actually believe. For each of us, the Apostle’s Creed helps to better understand the persons of the trinity, the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross, and the resurrection of the body!

_____

Now that we’ve covered what I hope to accomplish, I want to look at belief as a concept when it comes to the things of God. There are three aspects in what it means to believe found in Acts 8.

Read Acts 8:4-13

Aspects for Belief in God

These verses lay in the midst of Philip’s preaching tour throughout Samaria. Following the stoning of Stephen in chapter 7, we find that the church is scattered but is still faithfully preaching the gospel. This is where we see the first aspect of belief

The Gospel is Presented

It is noteworthy that Philip is preaching Christ in verse 5. He gained the attention of the people that were present. They hear the gospel proclaimed and there are signs of the gospel changing the lives of those who hear. Then there is an introduction to a man Simon, a magician, who also had the ear of the people and had them convinced that he possessed the power of God. This is an important aspect to this text.

Such a situation is relevant for us today. There are so many competing ideas to the ways of Christ in the world and many are following along with this rather than the things of God because they are impressed. A surface understanding of Christianity does not come across as impressive until a person has a fuller grasp on what Christ actually came to do. Because we know that Philip was preaching Christ, we see the next point.

The People Believe

Verse 12 tells us that the people believed Philip when he preached the good news. I want that statement to sink in with you for a moment. The people believed the good news.

This formula is seen throughout the book of Acts.

Acts 15:7

This was the expectation of Peter at the Jerusalem Council about the issue of circumcision.

Acts 16:30-34

Acts 17:10-12

Acts 18:8

We are not given a manuscript of what was preached in this case but I would imagine it sounded similar to what was preached by Peter in Acts 3:12-26.

The gospel was clearly presented to those who were there. That God sent Christ to suffer on the cross and die for their sins and the sins of the world. Without such a beautiful fact given to them, there was no reason for them to believe. There was no reason for the people to repent because there would have been nothing for them to repent of. But they did.

When the gospel is presented, there are two responses. Either belief or unbelief. Often, in the moments of belief, there is still work to be done to bolster the belief. That’s why there are multiple aspects to the Apostles’ Creed! The word of God demands a response each and every time. For the followers of Christ, sometimes that response is thankfulness and other times it is repentance! And speaking of repentance, we see the final point this morning.

The People Take New Action

In verse twelve, the people believe and are baptized. While we know that baptism is not required for salvation, it is required for obedience to the Lord because of the frequency of this practice but it’s also commanded in Acts 2:38.

There is a discernable difference in the life of a person who has believed in the gospel. The Lord changes our desires. In the case of those who Philip was preaching to, they were once following Simon the magician and then are believing in another greater power. We even see here that Simon himself believes and is baptized.

While we don’t have time to get into the verses that follow, it is clear that there is still work to be done by the Lord following this belief but what is clear is that there is an initial obedience.

As we look at our own lives, I always want to ask whether or not we have seen change in our own lives. If that hasn’t taken place or you’ve never believed, my prayer today is that you would believe and that you would be obedient!

_____