Old Testament Reading: Genesis 15:1-6
New Testament Reading: Hebrews 11:1-40
In Search of the Old Paths
“I Believe”
Wayne J. Edwards, Pastor
For more than 1700 years, the Apostle’s Creed was one of the tools most local churches used to teach their members about the essential doctrines of the Christian faith.
- In the 19th century, Baptists moved away from using formal creeds and other liturgies in their worship services, to affirm the Bible as the only infallible rule of faith.
- They determined that such creeds bound every believer to a formula of faith; preferring to allow each believer the liberty to be led by the Holy Spirit to formulate their own biblical convictions. “No Creed by Christ and the Bible,” they proclaimed.
- However, as we see the the lack of depth of the fundamental theological tenets upon which the Christian faith was built, and a lack of understanding of the basic doctrines of the Christian faith on the part of contemporary Christians, it appears that our forefathers removed the guardrails of what Jude declared as “the faith” which was handed down to us from the Apostles.
In Ephesians 4:1-6, the Apostle Paul said the priority of the church was to:
- “Keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, for there is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, and in you all.” That is settled doctrine, which cannot be changed, altered, or adapted in any way without diminishing the foundation of the Christian faith.
Then in Ephesians 4:11-16, the Apostle said the Lord gave the church:
- “Apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, and evangelists, to equip the saints, to edify the body of Christ, until we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, that we should not be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, but building the body up in faith and love.”
- Churches do not die because they are faithful to Scripture.
- Churches die because they are built on something other than the Holy Scriptures, such as church growth strategies, music preferences, clever advertising schemes, novel age-group ministries, or demographic targeting.
- According to a report from the Christian Post, those in the Gen Z crowd are rejecting the fads of faith that have failed, and they are looking for “the old paths,” including the classics which were written by the Reformers and the Puritans, and for those churches that will encourage them in their spiritual journey.
The word “credo” comes from Latin, meaning “I believe,” and refers to a statement or system of beliefs, principles, or guiding values for an individual or group, such as the Apostles’ Creeds.
- In John 6:28-29, the crowd that saw Jesus feed the 5,000 by multiplying a little boy’s lunch asked Him: “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
- In John 6:40, Jesus said to them a second time, “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life.”
- In John 9:35-38, Jesus asked the man whom He had healed from his blindness, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him.
1. What it means to believe – John 6:40 – “The will of God is that everyone who believes in Him may have everlasting life.” (paraphrase)
The word “believe” is translated from two Hebrew words:
- “’aman” – which is what we say at the end of our prayers: “In Jesus name, Amen.”
- “Pisteuo” – which is the Greek translation of ‘aman,” which means to be so convinced that something is true, we act upon that truth, even though we cannot see how God will do it.
- To “believe” means more than a mental agreement with the historical facts of Jesus birth, life, ministry, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and promise to return.
- To “believe” requires us to trust Him with our lives, as well as for our eternal life.
- The first evidence that we truly believe in God, and, therefore, in Jesus Christ, as our Savior and Lord, is that we recognize their “deity,” and we worship them.
- Our worship begins with “obeisance,” which is to bow before them, and it follows with our “obedience,” which is to yield our lives unto His divine will.
- The deeper our theology, i.e., which is our knowledge of God, the greater our doxology, which is our praise unto God, and if there is no doxology in our soul, how can there be any theology in our heart?
2. What it means to believe with your heart – Romans 10:9-10 – “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart, one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
The writer of Proverbs said, “Out of the heart flows the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4:23)
- The term “heart” does not refer to the physical organ that is pumping blood to the rest of our body, but to the core of who we are as persons, for who we are as persons will affect every facet of our lives.
- The first work of the Holy Spirit is to convict our hearts of our sin, our need for a Savior, and, in time, Jesus as the Savior we need.
- The Holy Spirit creates within us a deep hunger for the true meaning and purpose to life, and while we may try to fill that void with the things of the world, by design, God is showing us that nothing will satisfy that emptiness apart from a personal, intimate relationship with Him, through our expressed faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.
- When He leads us to that discovery, our hearts explode with joy as we have never experienced it before. Then, out of our heart flows the issues of life, and the fullness of Christ invades every thought of our mind, every desire of our heart, every decision of life, and that’s what it means to believe in Jesus with all of our heart.
- Many people have a faith in God in their minds and they think that faith will be sufficient for their eternal salvation.
- They know the doctrines in their mind, but they do not know the Lord Jesus in their hearts; i.e., they are not devoted to the Lord with all of their heart, all of their soul, all of their mind and all of their might, which is why they have so little love for their fellowman, and so little desire to truly worship God.
- Do you have the same excitement and enthusiasm for the Lord as you had on that day you received Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord? If not, either you have left your first love, and you need to repent of your sins and return to the daily disciplines of discipleship that you did back then.
- However, perhaps you were not saved at all, and here is the ultimate test: What is your testimony today?
- If you truly believe in Jesus with all of your heart, other than your attendance at church, where is the convincing evidence of your faith in the Lord Jesus as your Savior and Lord?
