The Apostles’ Creed (Part 1) – Introducing the Apostles’ Creed

<aside> 💡 If you wanted to travel from Blackhorse Road to Green Park, one of the easiest ways to do this is to use the Underground. And so you are given a Tube map to help. The only problem is that there is a lot of information on it. You have all 272 underground stations - the different underground lines - and then to confuse matters they add on all the overground stations too. It would be much more helpful if you were given this. Information for one tube line, the one you need, where it is easy to find the station you are starting from and the station you are going to.

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Now the Bible is a bit like the underground map.

It tells us about all the important things we need to know in life and to believe.

But there is a lot of words in it. I don't know whether you've noticed, it's a pretty big book made up of 66 books.

Wouldn't it be great if there was a way of know the main things that it teaches in say 100 words, so we know what things are most important for us to believe, in the same way information for one tube line makes it easy to know how to get from A to B?

Well there is.

It's called the Apostles' Creed.

What is the Apostles' Creed?

Well, the answer is in its title.

APOSTLE - it's not called the apostles' creed because the apostles wrote it but because it is a summary of what they taught.

CREED - because what the apostles' wrote are to be believed. Credo which is latin for "I believe" is how the Apostles' Creed begins.

Then in the hundred or so words that follow we are told what the Bible says that all Christians must believe.

Now in this part of the service each week, we are going to look together at what the things the Bible teaches are to believe.

So if you are not a Christian, over the new few months, doing this will provide an opportunity to find out what Christians believe.

If you are not sure whether you are a Christians, ask yourself, do I believe what the creed says, that the Bible teaches, is true.

And if you are a Christian, this will be a reminder of what you have already said you believe.

Next time we're going to look at the four words the creed begins with - "I believe in God."