What do you believe?

If you call yourself a Christ follower, how do you know? What are the essentials? What

are the things that you have to agree to in order to call yourself a Christian? Are there gray

areas? Are there things that can be debated? What about all of the things that no one truly

knows?

Have you ever asked yourself any of these kinds of questions?

Whether you have or not, it’s important to understand what it really means to say you are

a Christian. It’s important to take a step back and understand that the faith that we have is a

historical one. That for thousands of years there have been people just like you asking

questions, seeking truth, and trying to change.

This is powerful. Because it means that if we look back at the history, it can empower us

to find a way forward.

This is part one of an article series that we are calling “Handed Down.” We’re going to do

our best to walk line by line through something that’s called the Apostles Creed. Let’s read it

together…

I believe in God the Father Almighty;

and in Christ Jesus His only Son, our Lord,

who was born from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,

who under Pontius Pilate was crucified and buried,

on the third day rose again from the dead,

ascended into heaven,

sits at the right hand of the Father,

from there He will come to judge the living and the dead.

And in the Holy Spirit,

the holy church,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the flesh.

Following the time of Jesus, the first followers of Him decided to create a centralizing

creed. Something to unify the early church on what mattered most. In their day and age theywere already facing issues, fights, and church splits and it became a nonnegotiable to sit down

and figure out what they were saying when they said they believed in the God of the Bible.

So the Apostles Creed came about. A simplified version of what belief in God really looks

like. These are the things that we have to adhere to if we claim to follow Jesus. These are the

things that have been handed down from generation to generation, right to us.

Are you ready to evaluate your faith? To take a look behind the curtain at the doctrines

that have to be held very tightly no matter what the world might throw our way? To look back at

history in order to go forward into your own life?

We are going to try to do just that in this article series.

And here’s why this all matters… because right believing leads to right living. It isn’t

enough to sit around and act like you know everything, and even to win every argument, but it

has to translate into a way of life. Into actions that reflect Jesus and His love (and truth) to those

around us. That is why it is absolutely paramount to grasp these essentials, and stand by them

no mater what may come.

I love the way that Paul describes the importance of belief in Ephesians 4…

14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here

and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their

deceitful scheming.

Ephesians 4:14

Where do you stand? Are you an infant in your faith? Maybe a toddler on the best of

days? Stumbling around and getting tossed left and right by whatever the day may hold? We

believe by understanding and internalizing the creed, you can begin to stand firm in what God

says to and about you!

Oh and also… the word “Creed” means “I believe.” So that’s pretty cool, isn’t it?