Questions always arise about the Apostles’ Creed. (A creed is a short statement of what we believe. It is based on what we find in the Bible. A confession is longer than a creed, and a catechism is simply a confession in question and answer form.) What do certain of the statements mean?
1. I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth... The Apostles’ Creed is very old. It comes from a time when “Almighty” was a name commonly associated with the God of the Old Testament. To say that we believe in God the “Father Almighty” is to say that the Creator is the same as the God of the New Testament, inasmuch as the name Jesus used for God was “Father.” Whereas the sermon here at Grace is based on both an Old Testament and New Testament lesson, long ago there was a debate in which one side said that the God of the OT was a lesser deity than the God in the NT. No, says the Apostles’ Creed. They are one and the same.
2. Was crucified, dead and buried; he descended into hell, (hades in Greek, the abode of the dead without the temperature differential ). At least two things are being said by “descent into hell.” One is that Jesus actually died. Some people through the years said it only appeared like he did. No, he actually died, says the creed, and one way of emphasizing death is by this statement. Also, this is an interpretation of 1 Peter 3:18,19. While dead, Jesus, “in the spirit,” went to the people in hades/hell (“the spirits in prison”) and preached the good news so that those who died before he lived could be saved.
3. The holy catholic(universal) Church, the communion of saints (Christians). What this says is that we belong to the body of Jesus’ followers through all ages and in all places. Catholic here does not mean Roman Catholic. It means the “universal” church of all times and places. We belong to the universal church, have communion with all other Christians. Saints here is just another name for Christians. -DJ
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