Rusty Benson

AFA Journal associate editor

February 2012 – 

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God,
the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, 
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried;*
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.

*Some traditions include “He descended into hell.”

____________________

You don’t have to be a sports fan to appreciate the basketball wizardry of the late “Pistol” Pete Maravich. But it does help if you watch the old game footage in slow motion. Otherwise, all you can see is that, at one moment Maravich is dribbling down the court, then almost magically the ball is transported into the basket or to a teammate 25 feet away. And all you can say as your mouth drops open is, “What happened?”

Among players and fans, Maravich is arguably the greatest ball-handler/scorer/trickster the game has ever known. Many of his records stand some 35 years later. 

But despite a career of astonishing personal performances, his teams were often losers. In fact, Maravich never appeared in a championship game.

Later Michael Jordan, another basketball great who himself had to learn the value of unity, would offer this wisdom: “Talent wins games, but teamwork … wins championships.”

Team sports are not the only endeavor that depends on unity for success. Political parties do. Armies do. Businesses do. Even ministries like AFA count on activists working together to influence change.

So why does the entity that should be supremely unified – Christ’s church – often seem so divided? Why can’t those who have the most profound beliefs in common find a way to “be one” as Jesus prayed in John 17:21?

The answers to those questions and more are found in hundreds of sermons, books and articles that address the issue of promoting unity among believers without compromising the purity of biblical doctrine. Many teachers point to the need to distinguish the core beliefs that define Christianity from the other important, but secondary, convictions. This motto credited to Lutheran theologian Rupert Meldenius (1582-1651), is often cited as a touchstone of unity: “In essentials unity, in nonessentials liberty, in all things charity.” One aid to the church in moving closer to Christian unity, Dr. Ray Pritchard says, is an ancient 107-word document that clearly outlines those essentials.

Pritchard is the author of 27 books, a conference speaker and the former pastor of churches in Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago. He now serves as president of Keep Believing Ministries (www.keepbelieving.com). In a recent interview with AFA Journal, Pritchard responded to questions about his conviction that the thoughtful use of the the Apostles’ Creed can strengthen Christian unity as believers assent to the succinct statements that describe the irreducible minimum of the Christian faith.

AFA Journal: What brought you to such a deep appreciation of the Apostles’ Creed?
Ray Pritchard: For 16 years I pastored an interdenominational evangelical church in Chicago. Because it was an urban church we were drawing 1,300-1,400 people from many denominations. The church was also very racially and ethnically mixed. That meant that people were bringing all sorts of beliefs with them. So to bring a basic Christian unity to that diversity, I preached through the Apostles’ Creed, the oldest statement of faith outside the New Testament. 

In its earliest form, the creed dates back to about A.D. 125, not as a creed, but likely as something used in baptisms. As the early church was baptizing new converts they would say things like: “Do you believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of Heaven and Earth? And, do you believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son?” From those questions the church developed kind of a catechism, that is teaching in the form of questions and answers. It took about 200 years for it to develop into a creed. Over the history of the church, it has become the most broadly accepted statement of faith in all branches of the Christian Church.

But here is the paradox: We who are evangelicals, particularly those in the independent church movement, rarely use the creed, although we believe everything in it, properly understood. So, the people who believe it the most, say it the least. The people who believe it the least – many of the liberal churches – say it the most. 

So, I was trying to recapture for my very diverse Chicago congregation this valuable document that helps articulate what Christians have always believed. 

AFAJ: What is its value in building unity?
RP: We Christians fight over all kinds of things – eternal security; baptism; the Lord's Supper; who’s going to heaven and who’s going to hell; is Jesus coming before, during or after the tribulation – all of that. 

What if we flipped it around and asked what have all Christians everywhere always believed? The answer is found in the Apostles’ Creed to the point that we can honestly say, if you do not believe truly from the heart what the Apostles’ Creed says, you have placed yourself outside the boundaries of orthodox Christianity. 

In fact, in some churches like good evangelical Presbyterian churches, the pastor will ask from the pulpit: “Christians, what do you believe?” Then the congregation will answer by reciting the creed. It is a superb use of the creed. 

AFAJ: Some Christians believe that doctrine divides. As you preached through the creed, did you find that the doctrine taught in it had the intended goal of unifying? 
RP: I grew up in a church that did not use the Apostles’ Creed. All I knew about it was that the Methodists down the street recited it. In the church in Chicago we had recited it as a congregation only a few times before I preached that sermon series. But then we started saying it regularly. Sometimes the choir would sing it. Other times we would say it antiphonally. I preached 19 sermons beginning with one titled “I believe” and ending with an exposition of the word amen. Without any pressure you could see the people saying with their expressions, “Yes, this is what we believe.” It joined together all these disparate members of our congregation. 

AFAJ: So, you are saying that rather than dividing, doctrine can unite?
RP: Yes. I taught my congregation that although we certainly believe far more than is in the creed, we don’t believe less. Methodists believe more than what the creed says and so do Presbyterians, Baptists and Pentecostals. But scriptural Christians do not believe less.

On the flip side, the creed allows us to lovingly say to the unbelieving world, if you believe less than this, we’ll still be friends and good neighbors. But, we are also going to understand that you have placed yourself outside the circle of the orthodox Christian faith. And therein is our justification for proclaiming to them the saving grace of the gospel, and encouraging them to enter the community of those who are joined together by their shared faith in Jesus Christ.   

Excerpt from Credo 
Our ultimate source of authority is the written Word of God. Because the Bible is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16), the Word is true in all its parts and is entirely trustworthy. No creed can make that claim for itself. Think of it this way: First there is God who gives us His Word. Then from the Word come the creeds and confessions of the church. The church believes the creeds and confessions because they reflect what God has said in his Word. This doesn't mean that everything found in every creed or confession is correct. But it does mean that creeds and confessions of faith are helpful as long as they reflect what the Word of God says. 

Credo is available for purchase at www.keepbelieving.com.