THE LIFE WE CLAIM
THE LIFE
WE CLAIM
THE APOSTLES' CREED
FOR PREACHING
TEACHING
AND WORSHIP
JAMES C. HOWELL
ABINGDON PRESS / Nashville
THE LIFE WE CLAIM
THE APOSTLES' CREED FOR PREACHING, TEACHING, AND WORSHIP
Copyright © 2005 by Abingdon Press
All rights reserved.
No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission can be addressed to Abingdon Press, P.O. Box 801, 201 Eighth Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37202-0801; or e-mailed to permissions@ abingdonpress.com.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Howell, James C., 1955-
The life we claim : the Apostles' Creed for preaching, teaching, and worship / James C. Howell.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-687-49353-6 (alk. paper)
1. Apostles' Creed. I. Title.
BT993.3.H69 2005
238'.11—dc22
2005016444
All Scripture quotations, unless noted otherwise, are taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1946, 1952, 1971 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of Amercia. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations noted AP are the author's paraphrase.
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MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
PREFACE
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Many Christians have stood on cue in worship to repeat the Apostles' Creed, words they learned years ago, but have never thought much about them. Many churches have decided that the words of the Creed do not appeal to modern consumers and may even repel some of the very people we hope to reel in. Many so-called seekers have poked their heads into the Church, unsure what exactly would be offered: a satisfying experience? Intellectual content? Something old? Something fresh?
The Apostles' Creed is spoken, in unison, perhaps thoughtlessly, or perhaps with the solid substance that is manifest when a couple parts in the morning with a kiss that is little bit perfunctory but bears witness to something deep and large. To reflect upon the depth of the repeated kiss is a good idea, and we may be sure that a close examination of the historic Apostles' Creed will more than repay the effort. We want to know what we really believe, and why. We need to know if there is anything substantive to hang on to in the Church. We need to ask questions, and to be asked questions, to test our minds and souls, to grow in a kind of spirituality that is not just freefloating, but coming from someplace, and going to someplace that is significant.
Our time with the Apostles' Creed is richer if we explore these matters together, in worship, in classes, in common study and prayer. Originally, the Creed was designed for worship, and that is where the Creed is most frequently experienced today. A church family can discover a shared identity, and grow into a more zealous mission together by working through the Creed. This book unfolds into a roadmap for Christians to think carefully, pray diligently, and live faithfully around the Creed. It can be read solo, but it can also function as a book for common study; it offers suggested sermons (deeper reflections) and worship resources, which could be used in many settings, but with particular benefit in the actual worship life of the congregation.
Two Challenges
Should you as an individual or your church as a body delve into this series, you must know that a pair of dissonant melodies will be playing in the background. Many walk in the door with in an anticreedal mood: "I do not trust ancient, established authorities. I want to believe on my own. I am the one who will decide for myself." This mood is not random, but has fermented because established authorities have let us down quite a few times. We will need to help the skeptics see that the Creed was not birthed in a bullying, dictatorial way. The Creed was the focused, worshipful expression of people whose lives had been totally transformed by the Bible and by the risen Jesus Christ. The Creed's words are not windows with the shutters pulled down tightly, but windows thrown open into the very heart of life with God.
Others walk in the door in a pro-creedal mood, but misconstruing the Creed as some sort of litmus test to be rigidly applied: "If you do not give assent to every word of our dogma, if you raise even faint questions, you are not worthy of the Kingdom of God." But the Creed was not designed as a massive stone wall to keep out unbelievers. In fact, there is a "blessed spareness"1in the Creed, pushing no theory of sin, no theory of the meaning of Jesus' death, no prescription for how the Church should be structured. There is room in the Creed for many kinds of Christians, and there is room in the Creed for questions.
About This Book
How will we explore the Creed and its questions? This book provides brief, digestible lessons of roughly six hundred words each. You may simply read the lessons, or you may wish to use them in classes. You could print them in the church newsletter or bulletin— and in this modern, technological era, you would be wise to e-mail these to the congregation through the week in preparation for the coming Sunday. More and more churches are not just throwing up Web sites, but gifting people's e-mail boxes with inspirational, educational lessons. You'll have to collect addresses and promise the recipients you will not ask for anything except a little time and interest. The lessons must be personal, emanating from the senior pastor herself, or the teaching pastor himself.
In the appendix, you will find detailed suggestions for music to use in worship. Remember: the Creed was sung in worship before it was analyzed and dissected in the classroom! We cannot believe in God or think about God somehow prior to worship; if we have faith or think faithfully, it is because we have met God in regular worship.2 A worship series on the Apostles' Creed could extend
