Today we continue on in our series on the Apostle’s Creed. We need to ensure our faith is built on the Rock - Jesus, the Word of God, otherwise we will be tossed by every wind of doctrine that sweeps across the Earth in these dangerous times we live in. By the time we’ve finished, you will know the Apostle’s Creed by heart. This week we affirm that Jesus is the only (begotten) Son of God. Feel free to join in...
- I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
- I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
- who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.
- Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
- He descended into Hell. On the third day he rose again from the dead.
- He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
- From there He will come to judge the living and the dead.
- I believe in the Holy Spirit,
- the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
- the forgiveness of sins,
- the resurrection of the body,
- and life everlasting.
Amen
As we read in Genesis and in the first statement of the Creed, right from the beginning it is established that there is ONE true God.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5
In the Old Testament, God was separated from the people because of his holiness. God had given the law to Moses at the top of Mt Sinai and then Moses went down and gave it to the people.
But then something amazing happened !
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ” And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
John 1:14-17
Remember John was born first so to say « he was before me » is to indicate that Jesus is eternal, divine.
But to say he is begotten of the Father is to also say that the ONE true God became the Father of a man in the same way that the Bible says Abraham begot Isaac. God became flesh.
So Jesus is fully man and fully God.
We are adopted sons and daughters of God but Jesus is the ONLY begotten Son of God.
In the New Testament, he is Emmanuel - God with us. What amazing love we see that the Father sent his only dearly loved Son to save the World knowing what was going to happen echoing what He had told Abraham to do back in
Genesis 22:2
Then He said, “Take now your son, your only Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.
Once upon a time I was just Robert. Then I became a father and that changed my life. You can’t imagine the instant love you feel for your child the moment they are born. It changes your World. Surely then any parent can relate to the concern they feel when their child grows up and goes out into this dark and dangerous World. God the Father knew the murder plot would begin the moment his dearly loved Son started preaching Truth to this wicked World.
In his famous first recorded Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was up the Mountain with the people giving the law to them directly instead of indirectly like through Moses. And he gives them the Law, the Truth;
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:17-19
By saying this Jesus was teaching what Moses taught but able to relate to the congregation like a pastor does not unseen in a thick cloud as on Mount Sinai when he spoke to Moses alone;
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
No other leader of a major religion has claimed to be Lord ! Going further, Jesus said people will say to him “Lord, Lord”.
Lord means 1 : one having power and authority over others: a : a ruler by hereditary right or preeminence to whom service and obedience are due.
Putting the 2 together and saying “Lord, Lord” is like saying Lord God or Lord of Lords.
Jesus disassociates himself from those who practice lawlessness and says he doesn’t even know these people. Grace is meaningless without the law. That is the error of our government. They throw out the law to give grace to all but instead they encourage lawlessness and prepare the way for the Antichrist.
Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:
and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Matthew 7:13-29
No wonder the people were astonished at his teaching !
Think about what Jesus is saying here. Now Jesus is saying those who obey his teaching are building their life on solid rock. That’s a massive claim.
Jesus talks about obeying his teaching and doing the will of his Father. He thereby claims to be the Son of God.
Follow any other religion and you are following a false prophet, building your life on the sand. Read about Mohammed, Buddha, Joseph Smith, and many other false prophets, these were not men who even qualified as teachers according to Scripture. For example, someone is not qualified for the position of Pastor or Elder unless they have one wife, are not known to be a drinker nor a lover of money. That rules out Mohammed & Joseph Smith who had multiple wives - at the same time !
Did you know that there are no moral absolutes in Buddhism so the 10 Commandments do not apply to a Buddhist. They are above the law. That is the bad fruit of Buddhism.
Jesus said he is the only one who can get us to Heaven;
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
John 14:6
Jesus said he is the only way to Heaven.
And in the New Testament, this theme of ONE is repeated.
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, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
Ephesians 4:4-6
Is it even logical that there are many ways to God, that « all roads lead to Rome » ?
If you accept that there is a Heaven;
- There must be a Spiritual Realm
- There must be an invisible you, your soul
Then is it logical that all religions are basically the same since that would mean;
- Heaven cannot be a perfect place (otherwise you wouldn’t be there)
- Heaven would be a place for everyone no matter the heinous life they lived.
- Hell would not exist
- God would not be Holy or would not exist
- No one would « own » and take care of Heaven
The argument breaks down. It does not make any sense that unrepentant wicked sinners will go to Heaven. Their destination is Hell.
But just as there is One Lord, One Christ there is also One Antichrist Spirit speaking lies through many false prophets
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
1 John 4:1-3
We will cover this point in more depth another time when we look at the different religions and cults and what they teach about Jesus Christ. Some are very deceptive in what they teach but all deny that Jesus came as God in the Flesh. This is the main thing to be on guard against especially within the Church. They sneak in, watch out !
Remember again the Sermon on the Mount;
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves."
Matthew 7:15
Kyrios: "Lord" — Today Daily Devotional - Kurt Selles
« The most common name for God used in the Greek is kyrios, which means “Lord.” Combining its use in the Old Testament (when translated from Hebrew to Greek) and the New Testament (written in Greek), the word kyrios for “Lord” appears more than 6,000 times!
The word kyrios originally meant “power” or “might,” but over time it came to mean “lord” or “master.” When the Old Testament was translated from Hebrew to Greek, it used kyrios for “Lord” wherever the words YHWH or Adonai occurred in the Hebrew text.
The Jewish writers of the New Testament, who were likely raised reading Scripture in both Hebrew and Greek, similarly used kyrios whenever they referred to Yahweh and Adonai. Further, they used kyrios in a radically new way, declaring that Jesus also is Lord.
Now we’re going to solve an algebraic equation. Something that I learned this week is that in Joel in the Old Testament it originally states;
“Everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved.”
Joel 2:32
Yahweh was translated into Greek to say kyrios and then into English as Lord
So when Paul says;
that 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.
Romans 10:9
And then goes on to say;
For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Romans 10:13
Paul is using kyrios in this passage to refer to both Jesus and Yahweh as Lord, declaring that both are the one true God. This is why the Creed states this foundational truth calling on the name of Jesus
Jesus is Yahweh is Lord!
Therefore;
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
Bow to him today and worship him! Jesus is your Lord and your God!
Lord God, we worship you with wonder for your mysterious and majestic plan of salvation. In our amazement and awe, help us to trust you and to call on your precious name.
Amen.
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