I BELIEVE --- IN GOD THE FATHER

I Believe in God The Father

Deuteronomy 6:4-12 & Hebrews 11:1-3; 32-40

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

Hebrews 11:1

Today we begin our Summer Series called “I BELIEVE.” Our series is based upon the Apostles’ Creed. Before we turn our reading from Deuteronomy and Hebrews. Let us say the Apostles’ Creed together.

Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth

And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord

Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary

Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried; He descended into hell

The third day he rose again from the dead

He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty

From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead

I believe in the Holy Ghost

I believe a holy catholic church; the communion of saints

The forgiveness of sins

The resurrection of the body

And the life everlasting. Amen.[i]

When I was in Seminary, we had to memorize certain passages from the Bible in the original Hebrew or Greek language. One of those passages I memorized was Deuteronomy 6:4-5, called the Shema because the first word in Hebrew is “shema” which means “hear or obey.” For the Hebrew people, to hear was to obey.

“Shema Israel Adoni Elohanu Adoni Hagad Vahata Eight Adoni Elohica Bacoal Lavaca Ufcoal Nofsheca Ufcoal Maodeca.”

These words were given to the people of Israel by Moses. The Israelites had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. They are about to enter into the Promise Land, and they are given these words to encourage them and to help them keep their faith. The Shema from the Old Testament is equivalent to the Lord’s Prayer in the New Testament. The Hebrew people would recite this prayer and teach it to their children so they would remember God and place their faith in Him. Listen to these powerful words.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Shema

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. 10 When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, 12 be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.[ii]

Our New Testament reading for today comes from the book of Hebrews. Chapter 11 is often called the Hall of Faith. Our reading will tell us what faith is. The word “faith” is used 23 times. I encourage you to take and read Hebrews 11 this week. By faith Abel, by faith Enoch, by faith Noah, by faith Abraham, by faith Sarah, by faith Isaac, by faith Jacob, by faith Joseph, by faith Rahab, and by faith Moses. By faith people passed through the Red Sea, by faith walls fell, by faith women received back their dead and by faith they lived. What more can we say --- by faith?

Hebrews 11:1-3; 32-40

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.[iii]

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison.37 They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.[iv]

I BELIEVE

The Apostles Creed gets its name from the Apostles who followed Jesus --- Peter, Andrew, James & John, Matthew, Thomas and the rest. One tradition has it that each disciple was responsible for one line in the Creed, however, most scholars do not believe that. The earliest reference of the Apostle’s Creed is found around the middle of the 2nd century --- around 140 A.D.--roughly a little over hundred years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The earliest written form of this creed is found in a letter that Marcellus of Ancyra wrote in Greek to Julius, the bishop of Rome, about 341. Fifty years later, Tyrannius Rufinus wrote a commentary on this creed in Latin.[v]

You have in your hands the writings of a document that is at least 1,879 years old! Stop and ponder the millions of people who have recited this creed throughout those years. When we say the Apostles’ Creed, we are not just expressing our own faith or what we believe. We are joining our voices with the great cloud of witnesses from across the centuries—people from every tribe and nation.

Over the past few years, there has been a catch phrase that is used repeatedly in our political debate, discourse and discussion: “the rule of law.” For the early church, the Apostles’ Creed was known as “The Rule of Truth” or “The Rule of Faith” --- “rugula fidei” in the Latin or Roman world at the time. This Rule of Faith was not to replace Scripture or supersede Scripture in any way but was used to corroborate, verify, validate and teach the Scriptures.

Honestly, what would happen in our world today if we went back to teaching “The Rule of Truth or The Rule of Faith?” Like the guy in the movie THE PRINCESS BRIDE, “Inconceivable.”

The Latin word for “creed” is Credo and it literally means “I BELIEVE.”

Our so what question comes early today: So What do you believe? Who do you believe? Why do you believe? How do you believe? It is my prayer as we go through this series this summer that we will come to know what we believe and why we believe what we believe.

The truth is that we all believe in something. The Atheist who says there is no God is stating their belief--no god. The Buddhist believes in Budda, the Hindu believes in Carma, the Muslim believe in Allah. Every man-made religion has its own beliefs and practices. The word “believe is used 253 times in the New Testament and another 30 times in the Old Testament. “Faith” is another word for believe and it is used over 420 times in the Bible. Just in the Hall of Faith chapter 11 of Hebrews, the word “faith’ is used 23 times.

Faith means assent; faith is believing that certain things are true. Faith means trust. When we say that there once was a man called Jesus who lived, died and rose again, we are affirming our belief or our trust in Jesus. As Christians and followers of Jesus, we don’t just believe in something. We believe in someone! Faith is not about believing that God exists, it is anchoring ourselves, our lives, and all that we have in God.

When I turned 40, I left a 20-year career with a nice paying job. I had two company cars, free insurance, and a fair salary. We owned a house and our three children didn’t seem to lack much. Did I mention that I was a self-made man? For many years, I got by not trusting in anyone or anything but myself. And then God called me into seminary. Those three years in seminary I learned my Greek, my Hebrew, church history, ethics, church polity and pastoral care. But the main lesson that God taught me during seminary was not found in any textbook. God taught me one simple word --- trust.

To

Rest

Under

Salvation’s

Tree

I had to learn to trust God for my daily bread. I had to learn to trust God for my finances. I had to learn to trust God with my family. I had to learn to trust God with everything that I had held so tightly to. I had to let go and let God fill my hands. When I left my job in 1994, I no longer had two, free, no maintenance vehicles. I no longer had free insurance. I no longer had much of a salary. I was a full-time seminary student, and I had to learn to trust God—for everything. We had one child in college and two in high school. “TRUST ME, DAVE,” was my mantra for those three years.

Here’s some history: The early creed was developed as a baptismal confession. In the early church, we’re going back to 140 A.D., the disciples of Jesus were taught this creed over a period of time. They had to memorize each word and the meaning of this trinitarian statement about God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. On their baptismal, every person had to say the Apostles’ Creed.

So What?

On the day of their baptism, each person waded out into the water and the pastor asked them if they believed and they were to respond --- I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. They would then be immersed under the water and come back up. The pastor would ask them a second time, what do you believe, and they would respond --- And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried; He descended into hell The third day he rose again from the dead He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. They would be immersed back under the water for a second time. The pastor would ask them a third time what do you believe, they would respond --- I believe in the Holy Ghost, I believe in a holy catholic church; the communion of saints The forgiveness of sins, The resurrection of the body And the life everlasting. Amen They would then be immersed the third time…finally to come up again out of the depths of the water into a new life of faith in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Kind of cool, isn’t it? (If you ever want to be baptized this way, I’m all for it!)

Back in 2005, I was with mission team that went to Peru to build a church. We built a lovely church and the people were so very thankful. I even got to preach in that little church—four walls, no screens on the windows. After the church was completed, our team went up to tour a town in the Andes Mountains called Canta. That Sunday morning, we went out to the river on the edge of town. We were at 10,000 feet above sea level. The river was running swiftly, and it was freezing cold. It was baptismal day! The Peruvians in Canta dress up in white robes by the riverbank and walked out into the freezing water one by one. Each of the pastors took turns with the baptisms. We would ask them their name. Then we would ask them why they wanted to be baptized. One by one, the person would turn to members of their families, and the church, and there they declared and recited why they believed. I will never forget that experience. I will never forget the joy, excitement, and the new lives that were proclaimed by professing what they believed.

Today we begin to study The Apostles’ Creed—from 140 AD to 2019! I thought it was fitting that the first line is: I believe in GOD THE FATHER, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth—on FATHER’S DAY!

I happen to be married to a woman whose father is her hero and my hero. I’ve known Andy for 47 years. I’ve never seen him lose his temper—although he gets worked up over politics—I’ve never seen him throw anything or hit anything. For 47 years, I’ve listened to my wife call her father, “Daddy oh!” “Hi, Daddy oh!” or just “Daddy.” You know what he calls my almost 65 year-old wife? “Baby doll” or “Baby” or “Sweetheart.” Just yesterday, I was talking to my wife and I was sharing with her about how lucky and blessed she is to have father like she does. Her answer, “I wish everyone could have a father like mine.”

You know what? WE DO. Our Father…is the creator of heaven and earth. Our father is the almighty. Do you know what “almighty” means? ABSOLUTE POWER OVERALL. So whether your dad is your hero…or whether he’s not…if you believe…your Heavenly Father…is your hero. He is creator of heaven and earth and has absolute power over everything.

Your closing “SO WHAT?” Imagine…we are standing by your favorite river, lake, ocean spot, waterfall. And it’s time for you to be baptized. You are in a white robe. Your family and your church family is there with you. And now you say, “I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.”

And down you go, for the first time, under your favorite body of water. I have three words for you: HAPPY FATHER’S DAY.

The Seed Christian Fellowship

Rancho Cucamonga, California 91701

www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

Father’s Day --- June 16, 2019

Pastor Dave Peters

[i] Historic Creeds and Confessions. (1997). (electronic ed.). Oak Harbor: Lexham Press.

[ii] The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1984). (Dt 6:4–12). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

[iii] The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1984). (Heb 11:1–3). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

[iv] The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1984). (Heb 11:32–40). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

[v] Ritzema, E., & Barry, J. D. (2016). Apostles’ Creed. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.