So, it’s not a long read. Ten pages in the edition I own. The Large Catechism part of the Apostle’s Creed is profound and simple, all at the same time.
Think of the Creed as Theological Guardrails. When you really leave the road theologically, the Apostles Creed (One of three that Lutherans and most Christians confess as valid summaries of the Christian Faith) catches you.
Keeps you from going off the ledge, so to speak.
Questions about who created all that exists? Check out the first article on God the Father. Not sure if a person or group is truly Christian? Check out the content of the second article on Jesus. You’re not being mean or judgmental by asking the question of what or who is Christian. The New Testament repeatedly exhorts us to keep watch over our faith and be sure that what we are passing on to the next generation is, in fact, the faith of the Risen Christ and not some dangerous counterfeit. We are also warned to be on guard against those who would deceive and undermine our theology.
And theology matters. It can take a great deal of worry off of our minds and give us a focus that really matters.
People all around us think, for instance, that all one needs to do to be a Christian and go to Heaven is to “be a good person”. So, many people who answer yes to the survey question, “Are you a Christian?” Frequently reference this false belief. We all know, of course, that
“…For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus…”
Romans 3:20-24
In other words, no one is good.
We actually need saving.
That requires a savior.
We need God to do something for us that we cannot possibly do for ourselves. If it were true that only those who are good people get into Heaven, then without someone or something external to us making us good, we’re all doomed. Being a good person is a fruit of something only faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior can accomplish.
The creed, among other things, rescues us from the delusion of our capacity to be good in and of ourselves. And specifically, the Creed points us to the work, nature, and person of Jesus.
And that brings us to the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, the Church, unity with those who have died and gone on before us, the value of confession of sins, the hope of our eventual resurrection and life eternal.
It’s by far not all there is to say about such topics. The Creed was never intended to be that. But guardrails are typically simple and functional. They protect us from running off the cliff and into the abyss. So, join us This Sunday at 9:00 am as we unpack a little of this from the Large Catechism on the Apostle’s Creed.
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