“I Believe” (Philippians 4:5-11)

The Apostles’ Creed

Today we celebrate Trinity Sunday. We Christians believe in one God that exists as three distinct Persons – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Church has tried to make sense of for thousands of years (Ex. The Trinity is like an egg – the shell, the white, the yoke; or a shamrock – three different cloves together to make one leaf; or water – a liquid, a gas, and a solid). But none of these metaphors can fully capture everything God is. The Trinity is a holy mystery that is beyond our ability to perfectly comprehend.

This morning I am standing here to simply proclaim the mystical truth of the Trinity rather than to prove it. There is no better summary of the Christian faith centered on the Trinity than the Apostles’ Creed. The Apostles’ Creed was not actually written by the twelve Apostles, but its language is taken directly from the Scriptures. It reflects the faith of the Apostles. It contains the twelve most essential affirmations of the Christian trinitarian faith. The Apostles’ Creed can be found in the United Methodist Hymnal book on page 881-882:

1.     I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

2.     I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,

3. who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,

4. suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried;

5. he descended to the dead.

6. On the third day he rose again;

7. he ascended into heaven, is seated at the right hand of the Father,

8. and will come again to judge the l and the living and the dead.

 

9.   I believe in the Holy Spirit,

10. the holy *catholic (universal) church, the communion of saints,

11. the forgiveness of sins,

12. the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Amen.

 

God the Father

“I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.”

This is a radical statement that God is Father. If the Creed had said, “I believe in God, the Almighty, creator of heaven and earth,” it could be Islamic creed or a Jewish creed. When Jesus was asked to teach his disciples to pray, he said, “Pray like this: Our Father in heaven…” Jesus called God “Abba” (dada or daddy), and he commended us to do the same. That means, God is a person, and God wants to have a personal, loving relationship with us.

God loves us because he made us. When we open our hearts to God, we come to know and love God as Father. And we become more like him (“Like Father, like son”, “Like Father, like daughter”) – more loving, more just and generous. John Wesley calls it “Christian perfection.” It doesn’t mean sinless perfection. But it does mean perfect in love – the heart undivided in its love for God and others. Let me give you an illustration. Robert Coleman, my seminary professor, once shared his story. He was working in the garden on a hot summer day, and sweat was pouring off his body. His little son saw him working hard outside, and decided to bring him a glass of water. He went down to the kitchen, pulled up a stool, and managed to reach up to sink. He picked up a dirty glass laying in the sink, filled with lukewarm water, and brought it out to his dad. Robert commented, “The glass was dirty, and the water warm, but it was brought to me in perfect love.” Our life might be broken and stained with all kinds of sins like dirty glass, and our best efforts like lukewarm water. But when we call God “Abba Father” and bring ourselves to him with love, he takes it, and calls it “perfect love.”

 

God the Son

“I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,”

Jesus is the central figure in our Christian faith. Out of the twelve affirmations of the Apostles’ Creed, six of them are about Jesus Christ. Throughout the church history all of the major heresies have to do with who Jesus is. For instance, Jehovah’s Witness teach that Jesus is created being who doesn’t share in God’s deity. Mormons deny the uniqueness of God, teaching that all of us can become gods. But the Bible says, “The Son is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being” (Heb 1:3). Jesus is fully God and fully man.

If we go to Trafalgar Square in London, we can’t miss Nelson’s Column at the center. Horatio Nelson is the great 18^th century naval hero in British history. He defeated both the French and Spanish fleets at Trafalgar. But he was fatally wounded in the battle and died on ship soon after he heard the news of the great victory. To honor him, the people built Trafalgar Square and erected a huge column with his statue on top. But the statue is so high (169 feet, 3 inches!), visitors cannot get a glimpse of Nelson. So, the British have an exact duplicate of Nelson’s image at the ground level so that people can see him face to face[1]. The Apostles’ Creed is confessing this great mystery of the incarnation (literally meaning “in the flesh”).

God came down in Jesus Christ so we could see him face to face and see his glory. This is the Gospel in a nutshell. We (Adam) sinned against God. God says the wages of sin is death – separation from God. But God came down in Jesus to rescue us. Jesus emptied himself, conceived by the Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary in the manger. He humbled himself and died a criminal’s death on a cross. But God exalted him. On the third day Jesus was raised from the dead, ascended into heaven, now sitting at the right hand of God. And he is coming soon. If we believe in Jesus’ name, we are forgiven. We become children of God. We become Christians.

 

God the Holy Spirit

“I believe in the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force, but a person. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is the one who knocks at the door of our hearts, nudging us and reminding us that we need a savior. The Holy Spirit is the one who specifically points us to Christ as our Savior. The Holy Spirit is the one who empowers us for effective service and witness – the gifts of the Spirit (spiritual gifts). The Holy Spirit makes us holy and makes us become more and more like Jesus – the fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control, that is, the character of Christ.

Our role is to consent to the work of the Holy Spirit. It’s not about self-help or the power of positive thinking. Rather, we are opening ourselves to be shaped by the Holy Spirit, creating room for him to come and begin a new work in our lives. We can welcome the Holy Spirit every morning with this simple welcoming prayer[2]:

I consent to the work of the Holy Spirit.
I let go of my desire for security and pleasure.
I let go of my desire for affection and esteem.
I let go of my desire for power and control.

It is one thing to receive the Holy Spirit. And it is quite another thing to stay filled and overflowing in the Holy Spirit. The work of the Holy Spirit is always active in our lives. But we need to consent, saying “Yes” to the work of the Spirit.

 

I Believe

I believe in God, the Father Almighty.

I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.

I believe in the Holy Spirit.

I want to close with a story of a sculptor. There was a sculptor once, so they say, who sculpted a statue of our Lord. And people came from great distances to see it – Christ in all his strength and tenderness. They would walk all round the statue, trying to grasp its splendor, looking at it now from this angle, now from that. Yet still its grandeur eluded them, until they consulted the sculptor himself. He would invariably reply “There’s only one angle from which this statue can be truly seen. You must kneel.”[3]

From ancient times, our spiritual ancestors used the Apostles’ Creed to teach new believers before their baptism on Easter. On Easter Sunday the twelve statements were asked as questions. And the candidates replied, “Yes, this we believe.” Only then the candidates were baptized as Christians.

1.               Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth?

“Yes, this I believe.”

2.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord?

 “Yes, this I believe.”

3.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary?

“Yes, this I believe.” 

4.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, died and was buried?

“Yes, this I believe.”

5.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who descended to the dead?

“Yes, this I believe.”

6.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who rose again from the dead on the third day?

“Yes, this I believe.”

7.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty?

“Yes, this I believe.”

8.               Do you believe in Jesus Christ, who shall come to judge the living and the dead?

“Yes, this I believe." 

9.               Do you believe in the Holy Spirit?

“Yes, this I believe.”

10.            Do you believe the holy *catholic (universal) Church, the communion of saints?

“Yes, this I believe.”

11.            Do you believe the forgiveness of sins?

“Yes, this I believe.”

12.            Do you believe the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting?

“Yes, this I believe.”

 

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[1] Timothy C. Tennent, This We Believe (Seedbed Publishing: Kentucky, 2012), 17-18.

[2] Ken Shigematsu, “Become a Shadow of Your Future Self,” Christianity Today (May 26, 2023)

https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2023/may-web-only/ken-shigematsu-christian-identity-holiness-manifesting.html

[3] John Stott, The Incomparable Christ (p. 236). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.