APC-03 Jesus Christ

For the past two millennia, billions of people have worshiped, followed and proclaimed the gospel of Jesus of Nazareth. No other figure in history has been as widely admired or had as much impact on society. Artists, musicians and authors have made him the subject of their art. Whole nations and cultures have been built around his teachings. In many parts of the world, even the calendar is counted from the time of his birth.

But as well-known as Jesus is, he is still the subject of intense scrutiny. Scholars of every kind research him. Skeptics try to discredit him. And his followers study him in every way imaginable. And the fact is that learning about Jesus is important for everyone, because one day we will all have to answer the question “Who is Jesus Christ?” For Christians, the answer should be familiar, because we have been reciting it for centuries in the Apostles’ Creed.

This is the third lesson in our series The Apostles’ Creed, and we have entitled it “Jesus Christ.” In this lesson, we will turn our attention to the articles of faith that affirm belief in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity. These articles read as follows:

And born of the Virgin Mary.

He descended into hell.

The third day he rose again from the dead.

And is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.

From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

While there are many ways to summarize what the creed says about Jesus, we will focus on three themes that have been common focal points throughout the history of theology. First, we will speak of the divinity of Jesus Christ, looking at things like the nature of his divinity, and his relationship to the other members of the Trinity. Second, we will look at his humanity, and discuss the relationship between his divine and human natures. And third, we will talk about his work, not only during his earthly ministry, but also after it. Let’s start with the way the divinity of Jesus Christ is addressed in the Apostles’ Creed.

When we talk about the divinity of Christ, or even more properly, the deity of Christ — the fact that he is fully God — we are talking about the central claim of the New Testament concerning who Christ is. What we are told is that Jesus is fully God and fully man. The moment we back off of either of those, we no longer have Jesus. The only way we can explain Jesus in terms of his deity is exactly as the Bible declares him. We are told that he is the Son of the living God… This is the most fundamental fact preached by the early church. And what we have, for instance, from the Apostle Paul — what he writes in Colossians — our assurance is that actually he [Jesus] is the great power over all things. In him all things are created. He has all powers under his feet. That can be said only of God. You take that out, we have no gospel, we have no Jesus, and we have no Christianity.