By: Henry Knapp
Sometimes its your friends who drive you the most nuts. In a strategy/planning forum, a fellow evangelical pastor made an articulate argument for a change he was seeking. I thought the plan had serious flaws, both practical and theological, and expressed my disagreement. He proceeded, then, to compliment me, agree that I was right, admitted the accuracy of my assessment in contrast with his, and then, inexplicitly, affirm both positions! It seems that he was comfortable both affirming and denying the same thing at the same time. Hey! who cares about consistency anyways?
Well, I do. And, as a worshipping body, when we affirm what we believe following the Scripture and sermon—either through a statement of faith, a song, or reciting the Apostles’ Creed—then we too are expressing that we stand on one side and not another.
· An important part of our worship is the affirmation of what we believe. At Hebron, we do this rather formally when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper together. On these Sundays, we recite together the Apostles’ Creed. The Creed (like most faith affirmations) was written during a time of turmoil when different beliefs were struggling for acceptance. When the authors of the Creed—probably not the apostles, though that’s a nice, romantic thought—confessed their faith, they were not only explicitly affirming what they believed, they were also (and perhaps even more importantly) implicitly rejecting other beliefs.
· Did God make this world, or is it part of the eternal struggle between good and evil? “I believe in God the Father, maker of heaven and earth.”
· Does death forever free us from our sinful material flesh, or are our bodies a necessary part of what it means to be human? “I believe in the resurrection of the body.”
· Does every church congregation stand on its own or are they all mystically connected in God’s plan? “I believe in the holy catholic Church.”
· Is this life all there is, and we must make the best of it, or is there something else that this life is part of? “I believe in the life everlasting.”
Every statement is both an affirmation of belief and a rejection of the alternatives. The authors intended, not only to claim some beliefs as their own, but to oppose others as well.
And so it is with you. If during worship you recite the Apostles’ Creed with us, you are both affirming your beliefs and standing in opposition to the alternatives. Unlike my conflicted pastor friend, you cannot have your cake and eat it too—You cannot both affirm one belief and accept it’s opposite as well.
Of course, we do this with humility, not pride or arrogance. We do this with grace, recognizing the power of sin in our own lives and in others. We do this with charity, knowing that others may see things differently. But, we do so, for in our profession of faith, we honor and love our Lord.
This year, as we gather as a congregation together, we encourage you to think through your beliefs—Do they make sense? Are they consistent, one with another? And if so, are you living accordingly?