Revisiting the Lutheran Confessions Session IV: The Creed (Part I)

The Creed “As the head of the family should teach it in a simple way to his household…” Article I I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. Article II 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; He descended into hell; the third day He rose 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. Article III 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.

The Trinity in Unity “There is one Divine Essence which is called and which is God: eternal, without body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible; and yet there are three Persons, of the same essence and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.” (AC I, 2-3) Read Psalm 53:1. To begin, the chief purpose of the creed is to affirm in the heart and mind of the Christian that there is indeed a “God.”

Unity of the Trinity “The catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; Neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the Substance. For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost is all one: the glory equal, the majesty coeternal…” (Athanasian Creed) This is to say, we believe, teach and confess there to be one true God, in three distinct persons. Because this teaching is, to our human sensibilities, utterly incomprehensible, we refer to it as the divine “mystery” of the Holy Trinity.

Charting the Mystery Throughout the Scriptures, God makes Himself known to us through a variety of attributes, described succinctly as the “persons” of the Trinity: Father, Son & Spirit. Yet, God is not three gods, but absolutely one because He is the only being who must, of His own volition, exist, and because there are not many gods (polytheism). He is not just one chief god (henotheism), nor merely the good god along with an evil god (Manichaeism).

Communicating the Divine Attributes “That it may be most easily and clearly understood as it is to be taught to children, we shall briefly sum up the entire Creed in three chief articles, according to the three persons in the Godhead, to whom everything that we believe is related, so that the First Article, of God the Father, explains Creation, the Second Article, of the Son, Redemption, and the Third, of the Holy Ghost, Sanctification. Just as though the Creed were briefly comprehended in so many words: I believe in God the Father, who has created me; I believe in God the Son, who has redeemed me; I believe in the Holy Ghost, who sanctifies me. One God and one faith, but three persons, therefore also three articles or confessions.” (LC II, 6-7)

Attributes of the Father “God the Father has not only given us all that we have and see before our eyes, but daily preserves and defends us against all evil and misfortune, averts all sorts of danger and calamity; and that He does all this out of pure love and goodness, without our merit, as a benevolent Father, who cares for us that no evil befall us.” (LC II, 17) Read Isaiah 64:8 Malachi 2:10 Luke 10:21-22 John 14:9-11 James 1:17 What does each verse communicate to us concerning God the Father?

Attributes of the Son “The little word ‘Lord’ signifies simply as much as ‘Redeemer…’ …i.e., He who has brought us from Satan to God, from death to life, from sin to righteousness, and who preserves us in the same.”(LC II, 31) Read John 1:1-3, 14 1 John 4:10 Acts 2:22-24 2 Peter 1:17 John 5:19 Romans 8:34 Matthew 16:27 What do each of these verses communicate about God the Son?

Attributes of the Holy Spirit “There are, besides, many kinds of spirits mentioned in the Holy Scriptures, as, the spirit of man, heavenly spirits, and evil spirits. But the Spirit of God alone is called Holy Ghost, that is, He who has sanctified and still sanctifies us. For as the Father is called Creator, the Son Redeemer, so the Holy Ghost, from His work, must be called Sanctifier, or One that makes holy.” (LC II, 36) Read John 14:26 Acts 2:38 Matthew 12:31-33 Romans 8:26 Galatians 5:22-23 What does each verse communicate to us about the Holy Spirit?

Closing Prayer Next Week: The Creed (Part 2) Jesus Christ