THE APOSTLES' CREED

 

THE APOSTLES’ CREED 

I believe in God the Father Almighty,

Maker of heaven and earth;

and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,

which 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 arose again from the dead;

He ascended into heaven,

and sitteth on 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;

the holy catholic church;

the communion of saints;

the forgiveness of sins;

the resurrection of the body;

 and the life everlasting. Amen.

The word ‘Creed’ comes from the Latin ‘credo’ which simply means ‘I believe.’ All words have meanings and histories. Like everything else, as far as words are concerned, context is most important. Therefore, the words of the Apostles’ Creed ought to be read in their proper context.

The historical context is not that the Apostles’ formulated this creed, but rather that the early Church Fathers formulated it in accordance with the teaching of the Apostles as recorded in Scripture. Therefore, the Apostles’ Creed is a brief statement of what the Bible says about God, Christ, the redemption He provided, and redemption’s access and application.

The Apostles’ Creed or Symbolum Apostolicum, is, as to its form, not the production of the Apostles, as was formerly believed, but an admirable popular summary of the Apostolic teaching, and in full harmony with the spirit and even the letter of the New Testament.[1]

Christianity is not subjective, but rather is objective. Christianity is based on truth, propositional truth, communicated by God through men and recorded in Scripture (i.e., the sixty-six books of the Holy Bible). Unlike Materialist belief-systems (e.g. neo-Darwinism), beginning with God, Christianity is solidly scientific.

To believe in something is to hold to the truthfulness of the object in which one believes. Therefore, those subscribing to the Apostles’ Creed are stating that the object of their belief is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – i.e., the three Persons who are one God, His actions, the redemption He has provided, what this means and to whom it applies. All of this is according to God’s Word, the Scriptures.

Christianity therefore is based on objective truth. Whereas the Atheistic presupposition is that the Father Almighty is not the Maker of heaven and earth, Christianity's touchstone is the presupposition that the sixty-six books of the Bible is the Father Almighty’s (written) revelation to fallen man.

 

The Apostles’ Creed … sums up in a few words the main points of our redemption, and thus may serve as a tablet for us upon which we see distinctly and point by point the things in Christ that we ought to heed … The whole history of our faith is summed up in it succinctly and in definite order, and it … contains nothing that is not vouched for by genuine testimonies of Scripture.[2]     

The external object of the Christian system of belief is the Triune God as revealed in Scripture, and His plan and execution of redemption revealed from Genesis to Revelation. Therefore, the Bible is redemptive-historical and God’s revelation therein is progressive.

Generally speaking, the Old Testament predicts Christ’s work of redemption. The Gospels record the events of Christ’s redemption. The Epistles explain what it all means and how we ought to live in light of redemption. The final book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation, by much use of symbols, illustrates the success of Christ’s work of redemption and the certainty of the (future) new heavens and the new earth, in which all sin, evil and its effects are banished, and in which only righteousness dwells. The renewed earth is the Heaven in which the redeemed and resurrected will live forever with Christ. Those not redeemed will be resurrected but will be in hellish-torment forever. ‘Those who believe do not come into judgment (John 5:24); those who do not believe are already condemned and remain under God’s wrath (John 3:18, 36).’[3] 

Though brief descriptions of the Father and the Son are given in the Creed, the Holy Spirit is mentioned without detail. The Heidelberg Catechism dealing with articles of The Apostles’ Creed, under the heading “The Holy Trinity Lord’s Day 24” says,

24. How are these articles divided?

Into three parts: the first is of God the Father and our creation; the second, of God the Son and our redemption; the third of God the Holy Spirit and our sanctification. (1 Peter 1:2)

The object aimed at in the Apostles’ Creed is to state belief in:

a) The Triune God – as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

b) The Father – as Maker of Heaven and Earth.

c) The Son – as Redeemer, bringing redemption as Jesus Christ:

i. God’s only Son our Lord Jesus Christ.

ii. His conception by the work of the Holy Spirit.

iii. His being born of the Virgin Mary.

iv. His suffering under Pontius Pilate.

v. His being crucified, dead, and buried.

vi. His descending into Hell.

vii. His rising from the dead the third day.

viii. His ascendance into Heaven.

ix. His reigning with God in Heaven.

x. His coming from Heaven to judge the living and the dead.

d) The Holy Spirit.

e) The Holy Catholic Church.

f) The Communion of Saints.

g) The Forgiveness of Sins.

h) The Resurrection of the Body.

i) The Life Everlasting.

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[1] Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom, Volume 1, Baker Book House, Reprinted 1996, 14.

[2] John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 2:16:18, Battles Translation, Westminster Press, 1960.

[3] Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics – Holy Spirit, Church, and New Creation, Baker Academic, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2008, 700.