SERMON: THE NICENE CREED #3: THE SON OF GOD

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- as we begin this morning, I would like to invite you to recite with me the Nicene Creed, which is found on page 880 of your hymnal or you can follow along on the printed handout I gave you

 

The Nicene Creed

 

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

 

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven,

was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary

and became truly human.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory

to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

 

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,

who with the Father and the Son

is worshiped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic* and apostolic church.

We acknowledge one baptism

for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

 

            -- this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series on the Nicene Creed, the statement of faith that all Christians everywhere affirm from east to west – from Catholic to Protestant – even those who claim to be noncreedal churches

            -- last week, we talked about the first statement of faith proclaimed in the creed – our belief in one God, the Father Almighty – this morning, we’re moving forward to the second great statement of faith in the creed, which addresses the second person of the Trinity – the Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God

            -- if you remember what we talked about in the introduction to this series, creeds and statements of faith are written for a purpose – they define who we are and what we believe – they give us a list of standards, by which we live our lives – and they unite us together as one church and one body on earth, whether we are Protestant, Catholic, or Eastern Orthodox

            -- the Nicene Creed is no different – and this morning, we are going to look at the main reason why the early bishops in the New Testament Church met to formulate this particular statement of faith

 

            -- it all began in 325 AD, seventeen-hundred years ago, when the ecumenical Council of Nicaea met under Emperor Constantine to discuss the preparation of a unifying statement of faith to counter the various heresies and false teachings that were being spread throughout the empire

            -- in the days of the Apostles, the main heresy the church had to combat was Gnosticism – the teaching that Jesus did not come in the flesh, but only came in a spiritual form – and that all matter, including the physical body, was evil and corrupt

            -- you’ll see reference to that throughout the New Testament epistles, especially in the letters of John – 1, 2, and 3 John

            -- now, in 325 AD, the issue is not Gnosticism, but a new heresy put forth by the priest Arius and widely taught and accepted by some in the church

            -- Arius taught that Jesus was not God – He was not deity, but He was a created, divine being who came to earth to show us the way to the Father – so, according to Arius, Jesus had not always existed and Jesus was always subservient to the Father – they were not equal – they were not one

            -- controversy about this teaching raged throughout the Roman Empire – so, Emperor Constantine called together the council of bishops in Nicaea in 325 to address this question – now understand, Constantine’s interest was not theological – he was simply trying to unify his empire so there would be no division, even religious division – but for the Bishops who gathered under Constantine to discuss this issue, this was a fundamental threat to their understanding of salvation and who Jesus was

            -- so, the council met to discuss two main questions raised by Arius’ teaching:

 

-- Has the Son always existed eternally with the Father, or was the Son begotten at a certain time in the past?

-- Is the Son equal to the Father or subordinate to the Father?

 

-- remember those questions – remember the main points that the bishops were discussing in the meeting – because you can see how the Nicene Creed was carefully worded to affirm the traditional orthodox view of Jesus as the second person of the Trinity

-- with that said, let’s turn in our Bibles to John 1:1-3 and read that passage together

 

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

 

II. Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son of God

            -- in the opening words of John’s gospel, he gives us several theological statements that are the basis for our understanding of who Jesus is and when Jesus came into being

            -- in verse 1, John opens with the statement, “In the beginning” – the same words that our Bibles open with in Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth”

            -- what does John mean by “the beginning?” – he means the beginning of time and creation as we understand it – that is the moment that our brains can comprehend and understand – that, at some point in eternity and infinity, God brought about His creation and time began

            -- but the thing that both John and the writer of Genesis point out here is that before the beginning – before anything else existed – there was God

– God has always been here – He was here before the beginning – He was here in the beginning -- because He is the One who brought about the beginning of all creation and time – as it says in Genesis 1:1, “in the beginning, God…”

            -- and John begins his gospel by echoing Genesis 1:1 and telling us, “In the beginning was the Word” – what do we learn there about the Word? – since the Word was there in the beginning, that tells us that the Word was present before the beginning of creation, just like God the Father – this means that the Word has always existed and has always been present – throughout all eternity

            -- and, beyond that, John goes on to tell us that not only was the Word present in the beginning, but that the Word was God Himself – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”

            -- plain as day – the Word has always existed – He was not created -- the Word was with God throughout eternity and infinity and was there at the creation of the world – not only that, but the Word was God – that makes Him co-equal with God the Father

 

            -- and who is this mysterious Word that John speaks of here? – look at verse 14

 

John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

 

            -- the Word is the One who became flesh and made His dwelling among us – who is that? – who does the Bible say became flesh – God incarnate – God with us?

-- it’s Jesus – Jesus is the Word who was there in the beginning – who was with God – and who was God

-- John describes the Word here as the “one and only Son” of the Father – or, as the KJV puts it, “the only begotten of the Father” -- who came to us full of grace and truth and as the only source of salvation, redemption, and reconciliation to the Father

 

            -- I know this is basic – Christianity 101 – but this is foundational and non-debatable – men and women have died over this truth – empires and countries have risen and fallen over this truth – and it is vital that we don’t just dismiss it out of hand

            -- we need to know and to believe with all our hearts and minds and soul and strength that Jesus was the Word – He was with God in the beginning – and He was God

            -- that’s the very thing that the Council of Nicaea met to discuss and to affirm in the face of Arius’ heresy

            -- like I said, Arius taught that Jesus was not eternal – He was not coequal with God – but that He was a created being – that there was a moment before time began that Jesus did not exist – that there was a time when Jesus was not present

            -- so, that’s why the wording in this section of the Nicene Creed was so carefully put together

            -- look at the Nicene Creed with me now, beginning with the words, “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ” – look at what it says – it says Jesus is the only Son of God – “eternally begotten of the Father” – eternally – that means Jesus was always present with the Father – He was there eternally – throughout eternity – throughout infinity

            -- the creed goes on to declare that Jesus is “God from God – Light from Light – true God from true God – begotten, not made”

            -- do you see the foundational truth that the Council was trying to put across here? – contrary to what Arius taught, Jesus was not a created being – He was “begotten, not made” – He was with God eternally – and He was God

– as John puts it here in verses 1 and 2 -- Jesus was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God – He was with God in the beginning

 

-- you’d think this would be plain as day, but even now, in our community, we have people and groups that do not agree with the clear teaching of Scripture but who still hold firm to the teaching of Arius – the Jehovah Witnesses, for instance, do not believe that Jesus was God and that Jesus has always existed with the Father, even before the beginning of time and all creation

-- the Jehovah Witnesses teach that Jesus was a created being – in fact, they teach that Jesus was the archangel Michael, who God sent to earth to assume the form and person that we know as Jesus – they believe him to be a lesser, although mighty, god – but not God and not equal with God the Father

-- and the Mormons – the Latter Day Saints – while they do not teach that Jesus is a created being, they teach that he is the literal son of God through procreation – that there was a time when Jesus did not exist – and that he is the offspring of the eternal Father and the eternal Mother – and that God the Father was a human who became exalted and became God by following the Law

-- so, this is important – it is vitally important for us to get into our heads who Jesus is and who the Bible says He is – He is the eternal Word – the begotten Son of the Father – who was and is and always will be -- God from God – Light from Light – true God from true God

-- and it’s important for us to know that when other people and other groups talk about Jesus, they may not be referring to the Jesus that we know – the Jesus the Bible proclaims – and the Jesus that the Nicene Creed affirms as the one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God

-- remember – it was because of false teachings such as this that the Council of Nicaea was called and the reason for the writing of the Nicene Creed as the church’s unifying statement of faith

-- so, when the Jehovah Witnesses knock on your door, pull out your Bible, turn to John 1, and keep the Nicene Creed in your thoughts

-- please don’t follow the example of Santa Claus – St. Nicholas – who was there at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD – when the Council allowed Arius to stand and present his teachings before the group and the Emperor, Nicholas listened and got more and more agitated at the heresy that Arius was putting forth

-- he got up from his seat – went and stood right in front of Arius as he was teaching – and, all of sudden, hauled off and whacked Arius in the head – the emperor had to have Nicholas taken from the hall by the guards

-- so, when people show up at your door and try to spread false teachings about Jesus to you, don’t hit them in the head – instead, use your words and the Scriptures to share the truth of the gospel and the truth of who Jesus is to them

 

-- look back at verse 3

 

John 1:3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

 

-- not to belabor the point, but notice what John tells us here about Jesus as the Word, who was with God in the beginning – John says that all things were made through Him – all things were made through Jesus – without Him, nothing was made that has been made

-- in other words, Jesus – as the Word of God – present with God and present as God in the beginning – was the source of creation and the Creator

-- going back to Genesis 1, we see the repeated phrase, “And God said” – God spoke, and creation was brought into existence – God spoke, and His Word went forth, creating all things

-- so, as John says here, all things were made through the proclaimed Word of God – and without the Word, nothing was made that has been made

-- that is why Jesus Himself declares in Revelation 1:8, “I am the Alpha and the Omega – the beginning and the end”

-- the Word is the source of our Creation – and all creation springs from Him

 

-- the reason this is brought out in Scripture and the reason the writers of the Nicene Creed made sure and included this truth in their statement, “through Him all things were made,” was to counter the false claim that Jesus Himself was created

-- if Jesus was created, then all things were not created through Him – if Jesus was created, then there would be something that was made that He did not create – Himself

-- that is what Arius was teaching – that is what the Jehovah Witnesses teach – that Jesus was created by the Father – but the word of God is clear, and the Nicene Creed affirms that truth for us, as well

 

-- there’s another major point in the creed that was affirmed in opposition to Arius’ teaching that Jesus was a created being – and that is His relationship to God, the Father Almighty

-- the Bible tells us that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God – what does that mean?

 

-- the key word here is “begotten” – it’s a word that we don’t use in our normal, everyday conversations – but it is an important word

-- thinking about our use of “begotten” reminds me of what President Trump said about the word, “groceries,” in an interview -- “It is an old word – an old-fashioned sound – but a pretty accurate term”

-- the same is true for begotten – it’s an old word – an old-fashioned sound – but it’s a pretty accurate term for what the Holy Spirit was impressing on the writers of Scripture and what the authors of the Nicene Creed were trying to get across

 

-- in the KJV, John 1:14, we read, “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”

-- in John 1:18 it says, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him”

-- and, of course, in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life”

 

-- what does the Bible mean by “begotten” and what point is the Nicene Creed trying to make when it affirms that Jesus was “begotten, not made?”

-- the term literally means “to bring into existence,” and when we use it to describe parents bringing forth children, we mean that they were begotten or made or brought into existence by the parents

-- think for a moment about children – today is Father’s day – so, when children are born to a father, what is their relationship – what exactly is going on in regards to their being and existence? – in a very real literal sense, children are created in the essence and substance of their fathers and mothers – in other words, a child’s DNA and being comes from their parents – so, their essence – their substance – comes from their parents – everybody understanding that?

-- that’s why we can say when we see a baby, “they’ve got the mother’s eyes” – or “they’ve got their father’s smile” – it’s because the DNA – the essence – the substance – of the parents is passed on to the children and they are one with the parents in that way

 

-- the Bible uses the term begotten in a similar way – in this case, the Bible uses the term to speak of who Jesus is in relation to the Father – as the only begotten Son of the Father, Jesus is of the same substance or essence of the Father – are you with me?

-- Jesus has the same divine nature of the Father – that is why He could tell Philip in John 14:9, “Don’t you know Me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? – Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.”

-- Jesus and the Father are one and the same – Jesus and the Father are of the same divine essence – of the same divine substance – that is why John told us in John 1:1 that the Word was with God and the Word was God – Jesus and the Father share the same substance because they are both God – they just exist in two separate persons, as part of the trinity and the Godhead

-- the technical term for this is consubstantial – it means that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is of the same substance, essence, or nature as God the Father -- He is not a lesser deity or a different kind of being, but shares in the same divine essence as the Father

-- so, the Father is God – Jesus is God – and, as we’ll talk about in a couple of weeks, the Holy Spirit is God – they are all God and all share the same divine essence, nature, and substance

-- for that reason, the Bible says that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God to make it clear that Jesus is God

 

-- now, that truth flies in the face of Arius’ teaching that Jesus was a created being and was not God – this is the main critique of his heresy and the main critique of those cults like the Jehovah Witnesses and the Mormons who exist around us

-- Arius claimed Jesus was created and was not God – but the Bible clearly says that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God – the Word made flesh

-- it is critical for us to know this and to understand this and to not get blown away by false teachings that say otherwise

-- that’s why the wording in the Nicene Creed is so specific here – this section of the creed says, “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father”

-- it goes on to say what “begotten” means – “God from God – Light from Light – true God from true God – begotten, not made, of one being with the Father”

-- do you see what the authors of the creed were trying to say?

-- Jesus is begotten because He is of the same divine substance as the Father – that makes Him one with the Father – and that makes Him God

-- this is foundational – this is non-debatable – this is critical that we get this and understand this

-- Jesus is God – no if’s, and’s, or but’s – God in the flesh – God incarnate – Emmanuel – God with us

 

            -- next week, we’ll go on to discuss the theological understanding of Jesus as fully man and fully God – and what that means for us – the heart of the gospel and of the truth of God’s word and salvation for us today

 

III.  Closing

            -- on January 12, 2007, the world-renowned violinist Joshua Bell was visiting Washington, D.C. and riding on the D.C. Metro – when his train stopped, Bell got off and positioned himself against a wall next to a trash can – most of the people there saw him, and didn’t give him another glance – by most measures, Bell was nondescript – a young white man wearing jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt, and a Washington Nationals baseball cap

            -- he opened his case and removed his violin – he put the open case at his feet, threw in a few dollars and pocket change as seed money, and began to play – for the next 45 minutes, people streamed past Bell as he expertly played classical music, such as Mozart and Schubert – a few stopped to listen – a few added a little cash to his case – but most just walked on by without sparing a glance

            -- if they had paid attention, they might have recognized Bell as the world-renowned violinist he is – they might have noticed that the violin he was playing wasn’t just an ordinary violin, but a rare Stradivarius, worth over $3 million dollars

             -- just a few days earlier, Bell had sold out the Boston Symphony Hall, with ordinary seats going for $100 – but today, people passed by without stopping – they heard him – they looked at him – but they didn’t recognize him [Modified from Gene Weingarten, "Pearls Before Breakfast," The Washington Post (4-10-07)]

 

 

            -- the same was true for Jesus – even His own disciples did not fully recognize Jesus as God or know Him for who He was until after His death and resurrection – they missed God in their midst because they were not looking for Him

            -- Arius did the same thing – he missed who Jesus was and assumed that Jesus was a created being who was sent to earth by the Father

            -- but the Bible makes it clear to us just who this Jesus is – He is the Word made flesh – the only begotten Son of God – God from God – Light from Light – true God from true God – of one being with the Father

            -- and, so, if we have seen Jesus – if we have known Jesus – we have known the Father – for they are One

 

            -- as we close this morning, let us remember who Jesus is – and let us affirm with the universal church the deity of Christ – and let us share the good news that Jesus is God and Jesus has come with all that we meet this week

            -- let us pray

 

 

 

SERMON: THE NICENE CREED #2: GOD THE FATHER ALMIGHTY

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Jeremiah 10:10-16

 

Jeremiah 10:10-16

New International Version

 

10 But the Lord is the true God;

    he is the living God, the eternal King.

When he is angry, the earth trembles;

    the nations cannot endure his wrath.

 

11 “Tell them this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’”

 

12 But God made the earth by his power;

    he founded the world by his wisdom

    and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.

13 When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;

    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.

He sends lightning with the rain

    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.

 

14 Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;

    every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.

The images he makes are a fraud;

    they have no breath in them.

15 They are worthless, the objects of mockery;

    when their judgment comes, they will perish.

16 He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,

    for he is the Maker of all things,

including Israel, the people of his inheritance—

    the Lord Almighty is his name.

 

            -- one day, this mother was walking through her living room and noticed her little girl intently engaged in drawing a picture on the floor -- she asked her what she was drawing -- the little girl said, "I'm drawing a picture of God" -- the mother said, "Honey, no one knows what God looks like" -- and the girl responded, "They will when I get done"

 

            -- this morning, we're continuing in our sermon series on the Nicene Creed – a synoptic look at who God is and what we believe as the people called by His name

 

            -- last week we talked about creeds -- about these statements of faith that the early church established for several purposes -- let me remind you what these major purposes were

            -- first, the creeds were definitive – creeds served to define who is a believer and who is not – by providing a concise statement of truths that the faith community agreed in, the creeds defined who and what the early church believed and stood for

            -- secondly, the creeds were confessional – by affirming that they believed the tenets of these creeds, the creeds became the standard of faith that all Christians and the church believed and adhered to -- these creeds provided the basic foundation of the church's faith and were unifying documents to confirm that all who belonged to that church believed in the same God and the same truths from Scripture

            -- and, finally, the creeds were normative -- they provided a framework for life -- One, it defines the faith by including what Christians believe and excluding what they do not -- Two, it establishes boundaries for conduct – giving individual Christians a reference and a standard, based on the Bible, that they could use to determine how they would live their lives in the midst of the pagan culture they found themselves in

            -- but, if you were to sum up these three purposes, the main reason these creeds were developed was for the same reason that little girl drew her picture -- the church wanted to show the world what God really looked like and to make sure they were not following the false gods presented by other religions or false teachers

 

            -- so, this morning, we’re going to look at the first section of the Nicene Creed – I printed it for you, so if you would follow along as I read that first section:

 

I believe in one God,

the Father almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all things visible and invisible.

 

II.  God the Father Almighty

            -- if you'll notice, this creed that defines who we are and what we believe begins with God – we see in this opening section the echo of the Shema, that we looked at last week and that we find in both the Old Testament and the New Testament – “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.”

            -- any statement of faith must start where this one does – as Rick Warren wrote in his book, "The Purpose-Driven Life," -- "It All Starts with God" -- and the very first line of the book says, "It's not about you” – it’s about Him

            -- “For Christians there is one God, but the one God is made up of three distinct Persons.  Through Jesus Christ, the oneness of God is revealed differently than in Judaism and Islam.  God’s oneness has a three-ness about it.”¹

            -- so, the Nicene Creed begins with a definitive statement – “I believe in one God” – and then goes on to expound on our belief in a triune God – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit

 

            -- you know, a lot of times, our churches tend to be more than Jesus-centric -- they become Jesus-exclusive -- Jesus becomes the only One we talk about and sing about and preach about -- I have friends who never read the Old Testament and who never preach from the Old Testament because they think it is not relevant – a few years ago, Andy Stanley, the nationally known pastor from Atlanta, was criticized for saying just that and focusing only on the New Testament

            -- people who focus solely on Jesus to the exclusion of the Father and the Spirit will proclaim, "We're New Testament Christians -- We're just all about Jesus"

            -- and while Jesus is our redeemer and our Savior, we should never forget that God is Trinity -- three persons in one Godhead -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- and we need all three persons of the Godhead -- all three members of the Trinity -- in our lives today

            -- the thing I want you to remember this morning is that the Trinity was not an invention of the early church – the Trinity was and has always been God – the Trinity was there in the beginning and will be there throughout all eternity

            -- in fact, if you look at the Creation story in Genesis 1, you can see all three members of the Godhead present – the writer of Genesis recognized that – and for that reason, we see God referred to in the Old Testament in many places as Elohim, which is a plural form used to refer to the Godhead and the entirety of the Divinity

            -- the Jews may not have fully understood the Trinity as we do today, but their concept of God was larger than we give them credit for – and I believe they recognized the presence of God in multiple persons based on their descriptions of Him in the Old Testament Scriptures

             

            -- so, the creed begins with “I Believe in One God” and goes on to affirm that we believe in the “Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth, of all things visible and invisible” – in affirming this statement of belief in the creed, the Council of Nicaea was trying to convey to the church the need to worship and praise the Trinity, beginning with God the Father Almighty

-- as the Catholic Catechism teaches, “By calling God ‘Father,’ two main things are indicated:” that God is the first origin of everything and transcendent authority; and that he is at the same time goodness and loving care for all his children.”

-- so, He is our Father because He is our Creator and He is our Father because He loves us and cares for us and protects us

-- Jesus taught us to call God, “Our Father,” in the Lord’s prayer and He referred to God as His Father many times in the Scriptures – Jesus’ use of the term, “Father,” for God was not biological, but relational – He was not the Son because God was His biological Father – He was the Son in relation to God the Father Almighty in position

-- the Father is not older than the Son, for the Son was with God in the beginning and the Godhead has existed as three persons in One from infinity – so, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are relational terms that express how the Trinitarian Godhead exists and functions in relation to each other and to us

-- we’ll expand on this further in this study, when we get to the main reason why the Nicene Creed was formulated, which goes back to the Arian controversy I mentioned last week

 

            -- while we are certainly familiar with the concept of God the Father Almighty from Scripture, let's begin our study of the Nicene Creed by turning to this passage from Jeremiah where we read of the Father Almighty and His relationship to Israel and all Creation

-- just to give you the background of this passage, Jeremiah was a prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah right before it was taken into captivity to Babylon

            -- he began his ministry under the reign of King Josiah, the last good king of Judah -- and he watched as the nation began to backslide from the worship of One True God to the worship of idols

            -- the prophet Jeremiah came from a priestly line -- his father was actually Hilkiah, a High Priest -- but even though he came from this priestly line, God called Jeremiah to condemn the priests and the people of Judah because they had quit worshiping God with all their hearts and minds and soul and strength and were just giving Him lip-service – in fact, they had begun worshiping and putting their faith in idols more so than the God who created them and called them to be His chosen people

            -- so, God called Jeremiah to remind the people of Judah of who He was -- to remind them that He was their God -- their Father -- and their Creator – and that these idols they worshiped were nothing

 

            -- look back at verse 10-11

 

Jeremiah 10:10 But the Lord is the true God;

    he is the living God, the eternal King.

When he is angry, the earth trembles;

    the nations cannot endure his wrath.

 

11 “Tell them this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’”

 

 

            -- basically, what these verses are saying is “There is one true God – Yahweh – He is the living God – He is the eternal King – He is the Creator and Father of us all – He is the One and only God you should believe in”  

            -- ever since the death of King Josiah, the nation of Judah had started making and worshiping idols -- they had built altars to Baal throughout the land and on the high places -- and they had even gone so far as to sacrifice their children to these false Gods

            -- so, God is calling out to them through the prophet Jeremiah -- He is reminding them of who He is and warning them to come back to Him

            -- if you’ll notice, the word, “Lord,” in verse 10 is in all caps – that means that God is referring to Himself here as Yahweh, using the sacred name of God that He gave to Moses for the nation of Israel – so that, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt and into the Promised Land, they would know Him as their God and Father, and would worship Him as the One True God of Israel  

            -- He tells the people through Jeremiah, “I Am Yahweh, and these gods – these idols -- that you worship today are not real gods -- they didn't make the heavens and the earth -- they didn't bring you out of the land of Egypt with power -- they didn't make you into a great nation -- they will perish from the earth, but I will remain"

            -- He tells them that they have provoked His anger, for He is a jealous God who will not abide by anyone or anything taking the praise and glory and worship He deserves

            -- that is why Jeremiah mentions in the second part of verse 10 that when God is angry, the earth trembles – the nations cannot endure His wrath – as the Bible says, “it is fearsome thing to fall in the hands of the living God”

            -- the people in Israel had forgotten their most basic commandment – they had forgotten the Shema – they had forgotten God – and now He is reminding them of their unfaithfulness towards Him

 

            -- notice in verse 10 that it says that God is the true God -- Jesus said the same thing in the New Testament when He said, "I am the truth" -- if something is true, that means that it is fact -- it is the standard or ideal -- it is what all other things are measured against -- the opposite of truth is falsehood

            -- when God reminds the nation of Judah that He is the true God, He is reminding them that the idols that they have turned to and are worshiping are not real -- they are false -- they are the complete opposite of God and they can do nothing for the people

 

            -- this verse goes on to say that God is the living God -- He is alive -- He is not dead like the idols -- He wasn't made out of wood or hammered gold -- He is alive and the source of life -- as it says in Acts 17:28, "For in Him we live and move and have our being"

            -- finally, it says that He is the eternal King -- every single idol that was ever made has passed away -- every single idol that was ever made was made with perishable materials -- but God is not like an idol -- He was and is and ever shall be -- He was before time itself and has always existed and will always exist -- He is the true and living and eternal God – the Lord God Almighty

            -- with these verses, Jeremiah is calling the nation of Judah to come back to their faith -- Jeremiah says, "I believe in God" -- and calls them to do the same

 

            -- that is the purpose of the first clause of the Nicene Creed – to remind us of who God is and to lead us to affirm with the rest of the people of God that we believe in the One True God – the Father Almighty – Maker of Heaven and Earth

 

            -- verse 12

 

Jeremiah 10:12 But God made the earth by his power;

    he founded the world by his wisdom

    and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.

 

            -- skip down to verse 16 [read vs. 16]

 

Jeremiah 10:16 He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,

    for he is the Maker of all things,

including Israel, the people of his inheritance—

    the Lord Almighty is his name.

 

            -- God's relationship to the people of Israel was unlike any relationship that the pagan nations around them had with their so-called gods -- for Israel, God wasn't just an impersonal god who resided in heaven and told them what to do and what not to do – a god who had to be placated and bargained with so it would work on their behalf and do good things for them and not send bad things their way

– that was not the God of Israel – that was not Yahweh – that was not how the nation of Israel knew Him – they knew God as their Father

 

            -- in 2 Samuel 7, God reminded David of this relationship that He planned for the nation of Israel -- "I will be his father, and he will be my son"

            -- and in Psalm 103 we read, "As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust"

            -- when we call God our Father, it is a reminder that God created us and loves us in a special way -- it is a reminder that we have a relationship with Him like no one else

            -- we owe Him our life and our love and our allegiance -- and He guides us and protects us and cares for us as an earthly father does the same for his children

 

            -- look back at verse 13-16

 

Jeremiah 10:13 When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;

    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.

He sends lightning with the rain

    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.

 

14 Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;

    every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.

The images he makes are a fraud;

    they have no breath in them.

15 They are worthless, the objects of mockery;

    when their judgment comes, they will perish.

16 He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,

    for he is the Maker of all things,

including Israel, the people of his inheritance—

    the Lord Almighty is his name.

 

            -- when we affirm that we believe in the Father Almighty, our use of the descriptor, “Almighty,” refers to the power and majesty of God – literally, "Almighty," means "all powerful" -- and it is a reminder that not only is God true and living and eternal -- not only is He our Father -- but He is all powerful -- there is nothing that God cannot do -- and there is nothing that He will not do for us because we are His children

            -- speaking of God's almighty power here, Jeremiah uses the image of a thunderstorm -- the thunder and the lightning -- the rain and the clouds

-- if you've ever been caught out in a thunderstorm, you understand why Jeremiah used this picture to convey the awesome power of God the Father Almighty -- there is nothing more powerful and more frightening than an uncontrolled storm

 

            -- I remember one time when I was hunting in central Florida and an afternoon thunderstorm caught me unaware -- I was sitting in a metal tree stand about 15 feet off the ground, when all of a sudden, I saw a flash of light and thunder rolled through the trees -- lightning was popping all around me and the thunder was deafening and the sky got as dark as night

            -- and I remember thinking to myself -- if I don't get out of here, I'm going to get killed -- I shimmied down that tree as fast as I could and beat a path for the truck -- all the way the lightning was just hitting around me and the thunder was just rolling and I was in fear for my life

 

            -- that's what Jeremiah is reminding us of here – God’s power is like that of an uncontrolled storm – He is all powerful -- He is great and greatly to be feared -- He is not like those idols that are senseless and without knowledge or power

-- He is not worthless like them, but He is worthy of our praise and our worship for He is Creator -- He is our Father -- He is our God -- and He is all powerful -- the Lord God Almighty

            -- the creed says, "I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of Heaven and Earth" -- it was by God's great power that He made heaven and earth -- when God spoke, the world was formed -- when God spoke, light was created -- when God spoke, the seas rolled away and the land was formed -- when God spoke, life came into existence

            -- Jeremiah is reminding the people of Judah what they are doing by worshiping idols -- your idols have no power, he says -- they are worthless and useless and inanimate – they are senseless and without knowledge – they are objects of mockery, so why do you worship them?

-- Our God is the Father Almighty -- our God is all powerful -- He has the power to create and the power to judge -- and if you refuse to turn back to Him, He will pour out His wrath and judgment on you – when judgment comes, you will perish along with these worthless idols you worship

 

-- our God is not like these idols, for He is the Maker of all things – He made Israel – the people of His inheritance – and the Lord Almighty is His name

 

-- and this is what we affirm when we proclaim together the first clause in the Nicene Creed:

 

I believe in one God,

the Father almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all things visible and invisible.

 

III.  Closing

            -- I once heard a story about this man who always fell asleep during the preacher’s sermon -- well, his wife had had enough of this – so on this particular Sunday morning, she was going to make sure that he stayed awake

            -- when she went to church, she took a large hair pin with her and put it in her Bible with the idea that if her husband nodded off, she was going to stick him with it and wake him up

            -- and sure enough, right in the middle of the sermon, the man nodded off -- It was just at the time that the preacher was trying to make a point in his message -- he asked the congregation, "Now who was it that made the heavens and the earth?"

            -- and as soon as he said it, the woman jabbed her husband with the hairpin -- He jumped up out of the pew and screamed, "GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY" -- The pastor said, "That’s right, Brother, that’s right"

 

            -- that is the take-home message from this passage in Jeremiah and of the first section of the Nicene Creed – there is one God and one God alone – He is a good God -- He is our Lord -- our Father -- our Creator and our Maker -- He is almighty -- all powerful -- and a loving and good Father to us all

            -- sometimes we need a poke in the side to remind us of this – whether that’s from an angry wife or from a prophet like Jeremiah -- and sometimes we just need to sit down and remind ourselves of why we are here and of what we proclaim to believe as followers of Jesus

            -- I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth -- and I hope that you do, too

            -- let us pray

----------------------------------

1 The Faith For Beginners : Understanding the Creeds, by Stephen k. Ray and R. Dennis Walters, Catholic Answers

SERMON: THE NICENE CREED #1: COURAGEOUS RESOLUTIONS

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Deuteronomy 6:4-9

 

Deuteronomy 6:4 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 on 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.

 

            -- as we discussed last week, we are starting a new sermon series on the Nicene Creed – this year marks the 1700^th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD, where the foundations of this creed were discussed and affirmed by the bishops of the early church

            -- this creed is the universal, accepted statement of faith by all Christians – it is accepted by the western churches, to include the Roman Catholic Church and the various Protestant churches, and by the eastern churches – the orthodox churches of Greece and Russia and areas east of Turkey

            -- and that is an amazing statement to make – although there are theological differences between the western and eastern churches and between the Catholics and the Protestant churches on various subjects – all of us agree that the Nicene Creed succinctly and correctly outlines what is the basis of our faith as Christians – whether we are Catholics, Protestants, or Eastern Orthodox

            -- in other words, we all agree that belief in the tenets of this creed define whether you are a true believer of Christ or not and whether your church or denomination are within the fold of the faith

            -- every true Christian – from North America to South America – across Europe and Asia and the other continents – all agree that the Nicene Creed is the true and valid statement of our faith – and this has been the case for 1700 years

            -- the Nicene Creed has been in its current form since 489 AD, with the only difference between the western and eastern churches being two words which were added in 489 AD, which the eastern church did not agree with but which does not change the basic statement of faith and which we’ll talk about later

            -- the point is that this creed defines for us who is a Christian and who is not based on immutable – unchanging – facts about the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and their relationship to us

 

II.  Giving Credibility to Creeds

            -- let’s begin this sermon series by talking about creeds – what are they and what do they mean

 

            -- so, what is a creed? – how do we define that term?

            -- a creed is simply a formal statement of beliefs – a set of beliefs or goals or standards that guide someone’s actions or faith

            -- a concise, written statement of beliefs that outlines what a particular community or faith group believes in and uses to direct their theology, their worship, and their activities

            -- it is the foundation on which that church or that Christian life is built

            -- usually, as in the case of the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds, these statements of faith are written to clarify what is true and what is not true in order to push back against false teachings or heresies in the church

            -- in the case of the Nicene Creed, it was specifically written to counter a heresy being taught by a Bishop named Arius – he taught that Christ was not God from the beginning, but that Jesus was created by God the Father and exalted because of His obedience to the Father – this heresy is called Arianism, and the Council of Nicaea was originally called together to discuss this false teaching and to develop a statement of faith for the church that outlined what was true and biblical and what was not

            -- so, the creeds became the standard by which teachings and teachers could be measured – if what was being taught did not line up with the statement of faith in the creeds, then that teaching was condemned as a false teaching

  

            -- now with that said – even though I have told you that the entire Christian world accepts the tenets of the Nicene Creed as true and foundational statement of faith – you need to know that there are a lot of churches and denominations in our area who go to great lengths to say that they do not accept creeds – the Southern Baptist Church is one of those

-- as Chuck Warnock, a Southern Baptist pastor and blogger put it, "Baptists don’t believe in creeds.  We give no cred to the creed.  When it comes to the Apostles’ or the Nicene or any other creed, we just say, ‘No.’"

            -- and, as I mentioned last week, I have seen participants at the Walk to Emmaus or Chrysalis retreats refuse to say the Apostles’ Creed, which is recited as part of an early morning devotional service

-- and, as best as I can understand it, this is the reason why they take such a hard stance against creeds and against reciting them in their churches – it all goes back to the foundation of the Reformation movement by Luther in 1517 – as Luther pushed back against non-biblical teachings in the Roman Catholic Church, he stood on the doctrine of Sola Scriptura – Scripture Alone – the statement that the Bible is the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith, doctrine, and Christian living – and he called out the Catholic Church for introducing doctrines and teachings that were contrary to the Scriptures

-- we agree with the doctrine of Sola Scriptura – absolutely – without a doubt – the Bible is the supreme and final authority for our faiths – we stand on the Bible as the written word of God – and we affirm the truths that God reveals to us in His scriptures – that is foundational – that is something that all Protestant churches would agree with

-- so, the Baptists reject creeds like the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed because they are not found in the Bible – we can’t turn to a particular book or chapter or set of verses and find either the Apostles’ Creed or the Nicene Creed – they’re not in there in that form

-- and, since they’re not written in the Bible, the Baptists cry out, “Sola Scriptura – we reject these creeds and will not recite them or use them in our worship services”

-- however, they miss the point – they are right – these creeds are not Scripture – but they synopsize and summarize for us Scriptural truths – the foundational elements of our faith – they put together for us all the statements of faith and belief in one concise document – it basically summarizes the truth of Scripture into a small saying that someone can memorize and keep with them always

-- and that’s another reason why these creeds were written – remember that most people in the early days of the church were illiterate – they could not read or write – and there was limited access to the Scriptures – so, most people didn’t have a Bible of their own – and, even if they did, they wouldn’t have been able to read it

-- but these creeds were simple and short sayings that the people could learn and use as the basis of their faith – these statements were just short summaries of the truth that everyone could carry with them

-- and if they happened on someone preaching to them and heard someone like Arius making the statement that Jesus was created, they could remember the creed and say, “That’s not right” – that’s the purpose of the creed – and that’s why, for 1700 years, the entire Christian community from east to west has affirmed the tenets and truth of the Nicene Creed

-- and I’ll tell you this – even though Baptists may not say the creed – there is nothing in that creed that they disagree with – they believe just as we do – and the truths about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the Apostles’ and Nicene creeds are something that we all agree with and believe in – whether we recite these creeds in our churches or not

 

III.  Biblical Creeds -- An Example

            -- before we dive into our study of the different foundational truths in the Nicene Creed, I wanted to take a moment and look at several other creeds and statements of faith that we do find in the Bible and that predate both the Apostles’ and the Nicene Creeds

 

            -- one of the earliest statements of faith on record is from Deuteronomy chapter 6 – look back at this passage with me – verse 4-5

 

Deuteronomy 6:4 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.

 

-- this is what is known as the Shema – it is Israel’s basic creed – their foundational statement of faith – dating all the way back to the days of Moses and still recited today during the Jewish morning prayers – we even read of Jesus saying the Shema in the New Testament

 

            -- how do we know this is a creed? – remember, I told you that the major purposes of a creed or statement of faith are:

 

            1.  to define who you are -- in other words, who does this creed apply to?

            2.  to outline what you believe -- to give the basic foundations of your faith

            3.  to direct how you will live and the things that you will do because of the truths in the creed

 

            -- we see all three of those purposes met here in the Shema

 

            -- first, it defines who they are -- "Hear O Israel" -- this is the statement of belief for the nation of Israel -- this is what makes them a nation -- this is what binds them together as a people -- this statement of faith is hinged around the belief that God had called Abraham to come out of the nation of Ur so that God could establish a great nation through him that would bless the whole world

            -- when this creed starts off with, "Hear O Israel," what it's saying is, "if you claim to be an Israelite -- if you want to live in Israel -- then you have to agree to this statement of faith"

 

            -- secondly, it outlines what they believe -- "Hear O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one."

            -- the Hebrew word that we translate as "LORD" -- all in capital letters -- in this verse is the divine name of God -- "Yahweh"

            -- there are other names in the Old Testament used for God such as Elohim and Adonai -- but the reason Yahweh is used in this creed is because this is the name that God gave Moses at the burning bush when Moses asked Him what His name was -- this is the name by which God is known to the nation of Israel    

            -- He gave this name to them alone and it signified the divine relationship that Israel had with their creator -- it defined Him as their "Father" -- and as the LORD their God

            -- next, this creed makes it clear that He is God alone -- it says, "The LORD is one" or "The LORD alone" -- this stood in vast contrast to all of the other nations around them -- no other nation had just one God

            -- all of the other nations -- the Egyptians -- the Canaanites -- the Edomites -- all of them worshiped a plurality of gods -- they worshiped many different gods

            -- but, here, Israel is making it known in this creed that they worship one God -- the true God -- the only God -- He is God alone -- and all of the other gods that the nations worship are nothing more than idols or false representations

            -- only Israel had a relationship with the one true God -- and He was Yahweh -- He was their Father and He was God alone

 

            -- finally, it implies a resolution of action -- while this statement does not say, "this is what you will do if you believe that the LORD is our God and the LORD is one," it does imply that this belief requires a change in thought, deed, and action

            -- verse 5 outlines the actions that an Israelite will do if they affirm the truth of that the Lord our God is One – they will love the LORD their God with all their heart and with all their soul and with all their strength" -- and then the passage goes on to reiterate all of the commands of God given to the nation of Israel to separate them from the world and to make them holy in God's eyes

            -- basically, when an Israelite stood up and recited this creed – the Shema -- in their worship, "Hear O Israel, the LORD is our God, the LORD is one" -- he was, in essence, also saying, "and because I believe this to be true, I will love Him with all my heart and soul and strength"

 

            -- verse 6-9

 

Deuteronomy 6:6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on 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.

 

            -- every Jew was taught the Shema – it was to become a part of them – they were to take it into their heart – to impress it on their children – to pass it on to the next generation – to talk about this truth and this great God and what He has done as they sit a home or walk along the road or when they get up

            -- they were to post the Shema on their doorframes and the gates to their houses – and they were to carry these words with them, wherever they went

            -- the Jews would take this Shema – this short scripture from here in Deuteronomy 6 and write it on a piece of paper – and then they would put that paper in a box called a phylactery that they would tie to their wrist or they would tie to their forehead – so they always carried this creed and this truth and this faith with them, wherever they went

 

            -- the Shema is one of the earliest creeds that we find in the Bible – but there are many more in both the Old Testament and the New Testament

            -- flip over to 1 Corinthians 15 and we’ll finish up by looking at a creed – a statement of faith -- for the New Testament church that we find in Paul's writings

           

            -- look with me at 1 Corinthians 15:1-2

 

1 Corinthians 15:1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

 

            -- Paul begins this statement of faith by reminding the Corinthians up front about what it means -- he tells them, "this is the gospel -- this is the good news -- this is what I preached to you"

            -- he says that this message is where they have taken their stand and that they  must hold firmly to these truths and not let them go -- in other words, Paul is saying that this is their foundation -- this is the basis of their entire faith -- without this, their faith fails -- take away any part of this message, and their walls of faith crumble and they are lost

 

            -- verse 3a

 

1 Corinthians 15:3a For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance

 

-- once again he says this is the foundation – this is of first importance -- the basis of our faith -- everything else may be debated, but this gospel and this statement of faith cannot be debated – it must be accepted as true, or you are not a Christian

            -- there’s a lot of things in the church that we disagree about – it was a difference of opinion on theological issues that led the eastern and western churches to split – and it was difference in theological issues that led the Protestants to separate from the Roman Catholic Church

-- and one reason why we have a lot of different denominations and individual churches within the Protestant church today is because we think differently over various issues and matters in the church

-- most of these are debatable issues – they don’t matter in terms of our eternal salvation and what Christ did for us on the cross and in the resurrection – but they are areas where we disagree on lesser things and so we can debate those

-- does baptism have to be by immersion or can it be conducted in another form? – does the Bible say that God will only accept those who are immersed? – no – that’s a debatable issue that has caused separation among churches

-- right now, there are a lot of churches divided over the issue and role of women in ministry – once again, does the Bible specifically say that women can’t serve as pastors? – some churches think so, and so they separate from those who disagree

-- but those are debatable issues – they’re not foundational beliefs – and that is what Paul is getting at here in verse 3

-- these truths that I have given you are of first importance – these are non-debatable – you have to believe in these or you can’t be a Christian – that’s what makes this a creed and a foundational statement of faith

            -- years ago, Clay Crosse had a song out that said, "It all comes down to a Man dying on the cross and rising from the dead" -- and that's really all that matters

            -- and that’s what Paul is saying here -- "you can argue about many things -- but you can't argue about this -- if you are going to be a Christian, then you have to believe this"

 

            -- look at verse 3 again

 

1 Corinthians 15:3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures

 

            -- this is it -- the foundation of our faith given to us in a simple creed -- in a statement of faith that we must agree with and abide by if we are to be Christians

            -- the early Christians may not have had the Scriptures available – they may not have been able to read or write – but they could remember what Paul says here: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, He was buried, and He was raised on the third day”

            -- a short, succinct, and true foundational statement that everyone had to believe in if they were to call themselves a follower of Jesus

            -- look at how this short creed breaks down the doctrinal truths we find in the Bible:

 

            -- first, Paul makes it clear that Jesus was not just a man but that He was the Christ -- the Messiah -- the Anointed One of God who was sent to redeem the world from the curse of Adam and to bring forgiveness of sins and eternal life

 

            -- second, Paul says that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures -- in other words, man didn't make this up -- this isn't something that Paul and the other Apostles dreamed up after the fact -- this was preordained, predestined, prophesied in the Old Testament scriptures and fulfilled by Jesus on the cross of Calvary

            -- Paul is saying, "The Christ came to die for our sins" -- and if you don't believe it, look it up -- it's there in the Scriptures

 

            -- third, Jesus was buried and was resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures -- once again, Paul is making it clear -- this is not something that we made up -- this happened and it was all part of God's plan from the very beginning -- Jesus died and He rose to bring forgiveness of sins, to redeem our souls, and to bring eternal life to all who would believe

 

            -- skip down to verse 11

 

1 Corinthians 15:11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

 

            -- Boom! – there it is – Paul says, “This is the truth – this is the gospel – this is the message that all the Apostles preach and teach – and this is what you are to believe”

            -- you don’t have to know every little intricacy of Scripture – you don’t have to understand the entire Old and New Testament to be saved – you only have to know and believe in this and put your faith in Jesus as the Christ who saves us

            -- that is what Paul is saying here – and that is the reason he gave the people this creed to learn and to know and to believe with all their heart – for in this creed, they find the truth of the gospel and the source of eternal life through Christ

 

IV.  Closing

            -- this week, we read in the news that the state of Texas has sent a bill to Governor Abbott for final signature that requires the posting of the Ten Commandments in every public elementary and secondary school in Texas

            -- but let me ask you this – why? – why did the legislators in Texas feel that the posting of the Ten Commandments was so important that they needed a law to make it happen? – what was the reason?

            -- Supporters argue that school kids need to see and know the Ten Commandments because they are core to U.S. history, along with other Christian teachings – as Robert Tuttle, a professor of Religion and Law at George Washington University, said, the intent of posting the Ten Commandments is to tell kids, “these are things you should read and obey”

            -- in a very real sense, then, the state of Texas is looking at the Ten Commandments as a creed that they want all their school children to know and follow throughout their adult lives

 

            -- and while we can debate the politics of posting the Ten Commandments or other creeds in our schools, the fact remains that creeds are important – for they teach us the foundational truths of our faith through a concise statement that is easy to understand, to memorize, and to share with others

            -- the Nicene Creed is but one of many creeds found in Christianity, but it is significant for the fact that it has stood the test of time and is still accepted today by Christians around the world and on every continent

            -- the basic foundations of Christianity that we read of in this creed remain the same today as they have throughout all recorded history

            -- this is our faith -- this is our belief -- this is our creed

 

            -- it defines who we are as a people -- we are Christians saved by grace and redeemed by the blood of Christ

            -- it outlines what we believe and stand on -- Christ has come, Christ has died, Christ has rose again

            -- and it implies an action on our part -- a resolve to not only live differently, but to be different -- to be new creations, filled with the Holy Spirit, and empowered to live our lives for Christ in this world as part of His Kingdom

 

            -- that is the purpose of a creed -- and so, for the next several weeks, we are going to study and examine the components of the Nicene Creed so that we are familiar with it – so that we know what it is that we believe as Christians and as the church of Christ on earth today

            -- with that, we’ll close in prayer and look forward in anticipation to this study of the foundational beliefs of our faith

 

            -- let's pray