As Lutherans, we don’t have ‘altar calls’ to declare or to affirm our faith. Our creeds are our declarations of faith in our church. We say them to remind ourselves of our beliefs and to declare publicly who Jesus is. Of three creeds accepted as true declarations of faith, the Apostle’s Creed is surely the most familiar. The other two creeds are the Nicene and the Athanasian. The Nicene begins, “we believe…” and the Athanasian is a much longer creed.
There are many tales about how the Apostle’s Creed was formulated. One says that each of the disciples stated one part of the creed so that Peter said, “I believe in God the Father” and then next disciple said, “creator of heaven and earth.”
The Apostles’ Creed was formed to be a short synopsis of the faith, a refute against those trying to bring down the early church. There were many groups opposing the early Christians. In the early church, the new Christians could confess along with the Jews the belief in one God. In Genesis, Jews and Christians learn that God created the heavens and the earth.
But the experience of Jesus, the resurrected one… led His followers to confess Jesus as Lord, the Son of God (Johnson p.10). While the Jews believed… and still believe in a coming messiah, confessing Jesus was the Messiah was unique. It separated the apostles from the rest of the Jews… forever.
John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” God is the creator and Jesus is the Savior. The Apostles’ Creed served three basic purposes for the early Christians:
- To catechize – to teach new believers what the Church stood for.
- To defend – to guard the faith against heresies and false doctrines.
- To evangelize – to tell the world the core of what the Church believed.
( http://goodnewsmag.org/2013/03/markers/#sthash.5xzgynrn.dpuf )
A group of 20-somethings sat around talking about faith. The question was raised, “What do you believe?” Each took a turn hem-hawing around, floundering to speak to their faith. They asked the one quiet person, “What do you believe?” She started with an “uh” and then explained… “I believe in God the Father, maker of heaven and earth…” As she finished, jaws dropped but eyes were opened. She was able to explain it.
Some say that stating the creed is some sort of dry thing we do on autopilot. Or that when we state it personally or as a part of worship, it is some sort of social obligation, a membership checklist. I pray for you that it is not those things. When you say the Apostles’ Creed, it is my fervent prayer that it is helpful language to you, borrowed to state the mysteries of faith, to state who God is and to remind you that you have faith.
We can believe that God is the Father, maker of heaven and earth, and yet still not understand how God created things. We can believe that Jesus Christ is God’s only Son, our Lord and still fully not understand. We can state that we believe and yet still have our doubts, still have our “what if…” thoughts.
When we state our belief, when we say the Apostles’ Creed, theologian James Howell says, “we step into a long, steady river of the great two-thousand-year-old story of believers, missionaries, and martyrs. When you say, “I believe in God,” you become part of something bigger than yourself…”
May we each continue to believe, to step into that river of believers; and once refreshed, to reach out to others with life-giving faith.
