Creed Week 2

Welcome to Free Life Travel, where we help you discover and live the free life in Christ. My name is Bria, and I want to invite you to come check us out in person. I am so glad that you're tuning in to this online message, but it gets even better when we connect face to face. If you're ever in the central Florida area, come check us out. I also want to encourage you to check out our website, freelifetravel.org, to learn more about who we are, what we do, and how you can be a part. Now, let's get into what you've been waiting for. Check out this message. We're in a series this month called Creed, where we are addressing the Apostles' Creed. Now, if you may have never heard of the Apostles' Creed, it's all good, but I promise you there's a few folks in the room that have. If you're in the room today and you were raised on the Apostles' Creed based on the church you attended, you learned it, you memorized it, or it was a part of the liturgy, would you just please wave your hand at me? Where are the folks? Look at that. Everywhere. Okay. I should have asked who has not. That would have been better, because that was a lot of hands. I talked to so many this week, said, I grew up, I had that memorized, I could say it in my sleep. All of that. It's a powerful, powerful declaration, a powerful statement, doctrine of faith, and I'll tell you more about that in a minute, but I want us to all read it together. Let's just kick all this off today by reading it together. Would you join me? Just read it off the screen. That would be great.

Here's what it says. I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and 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 to the dead. On the third day, he rose again. He ascended into heaven, is seated at the right hand of the Father, and will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of the saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting, amen, amen, amen. Thank you. I love hearing the church read and declare that in concert because you may not understand this, not know this, but you literally just declared the foundational doctrinal beliefs of what it means to be a Christ follower. That's it. If you're looking for a new tat to cover your entire back, that's it. Back in the day, there was this game show called To Tell the Truth. Anybody remember this game show called To Tell the Truth? Okay, well, let me just kind of help you. It started back in the 1950s, all right, in the 1950s. That was really sexy, all right? That was a sexy look in the 50s, 1950s. Bud Collier, some of you all might remember Bud Collier back in the day, 1950s. And then it last aired, multiple versions, it last aired in 2022. Anthony Anderson was the host of the program then. It continued to go off the air, then come back on, go off the air and come back on, go off the air and come back on. It was an interesting concept because there would be a panel, usually of celebrities, and the panel would be there, and they're faced off with three other people that they don't know.

And each of these people were impostors telling a story. Well, two of them were. One was the real deal. One would say, I'm an astronaut. The other two would say, yeah, we're astronauts also. And then the panel could ask questions of these people, and then based on what these questions derived to, the panel had to put their vote in who was the real and who was the imposter. It was an interesting show. I watched it a few times, not in the fifties, but I did watch it a few times. It was really interesting. But here's what's interesting about it. There were three people telling the same story. Two were impostors. One was real. In other words, there was twice as many lies being told as there was truth. And here's what's interesting. They were all similar. They were all convincing. They were stating facts, and they were close to real. This is exactly why the Apostles' Creed was written. Written as we talked about last week. You go back and listen to last week's podcast, written, formulated, the early parts of this creed put together about 150 AD, 150 years after Jesus died. And then it continued to grow from there and around 400, 300 AD is when we see the Apostles Creed coming on. There's different dates as it continued to grow. But I want you to understand the reason that it was written was because the early church fathers realized we need a set, a statement that will identify who we are and it will identify who we're not.

Because there are a lot of imposters that are out there and they wrote this creed in order to refute heresy. People were coming up with their own versions of Christianity and they were running crazy with it. Today, we have the same thing happening. I've told you there's over 45,000 versions of Christianity. 45,000. How many of you know all of them can't be right? There's 45,000 versions. And today, we have a lot that's running in our culture that's the sexy movement. One is called the deconstruction or the reconstruction of the Bible. The reconstructionists, they qualify, they look to the cultural shifts. What is it that's sexy and popular in culture that my heart agrees with culture in this? And now they start questioning the Bible based on what they feel in culture. Now they're actually in the place, we're doubting, we're changing the Bible, we're going to reinterpret it. And many of them as they are deconstructing their Christian faith are actually leaving the faith because they feel like that they have found so many flaws in it. They are the brainiacs that did what the last 2,000 years of scholars could not do. Then you've got this syncretic mindset that is running today in culture, which it just means it's a fusion of several faiths together. I like that one. I like that one. I like that. Let's put Buddha with Confucius, and then we're going to add a little bit of Lutheran to it. And they make their own version and they spit it out. And this is another mess that is going on today everywhere, and it's labeled under Christianity. You better be careful. Just because it's got a steeple on it don't mean it's church.

Then there's this progressive, a progressive doctrine, a progressive movement. And again, it's in this cultural influence, this lean heart and they're looking at things that are very fluid and very liberal and how they want to just take the scriptures and they want to roll it, flip it, twist it, reinterpret it, and then say it's Christian beliefs. I saw a podcast this week where there was two prominent national pastors sitting on a panel talking about there was nothing wrong with sex with anybody you want to. You just can't have sex outside of marriage or with a prostitute. But with anybody else, it's fine. Like single, married, it doesn't matter. By the way, it's not truth. I just want to make sure everyone understands. I'm playing with Pastor George today. It's considered progressive and there's people that are going, amen, and they're singing songs about Jesus while they're then preaching this mess. Completely violating scripture, TikTok, Facebook, everything else you're looking for. It's all right here. Today, living today, there are eight people on the globe that are confessing they are Jesus Christ. And there are people following them. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm not saying you're going to go pick up a strip following one of these eight people, but you and I have got to know what we believe so that we can reject what is heresy and what is out of order. And you need to know what you believe because if not, you might find yourself picking the imposter on the lineup instead of actually living for the truth. Because here's what I want you to know. All thoughts are not truth, and all influencers are not theologians, and all podcasters are not pastors. You've got to be really careful what you're listening to and what you're hearing today. That's why the Bible tells us, leads us into our foundational verse, Proverbs 22, 28.

Don't move a boundary marker set up by your ancestors. Don't move it. Leave it in place. Keep it anchored. There's going to be a lot of things that are going to try to text it and move it and shift it. And God's word says, leave it alone. Leave the foundations of this truth alone. Don't move them. Live up to them. Let them anchor your life. Don't start shifting and doing whatever is popular, whatever is sexy, whatever seems to be the new thing going on. Culture doesn't dictate to the Bible. Bible the Bible stands on its own and we've got to have it as a foundation for our family Mom and dad grandparents you need to be talking to your kids about this Because what you don't say others will you don't fill in the blanks somebody else is and they're being taught stuff I promise you that is completely foreign and outside of anything you would stand for you and I've got to have a voice today And that's why it's important that we have a tool like the Apostles Creed to show us. What do I need to address? What do I need to speak to and what does it even mean today? I want to address for you the section the segment that talks specifically about Jesus It says this and 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 was buried He descended to the dead on the third day. He rose again He ascended into heaven is seated at the right hand of the Father and will come again to judge the living and the dead. I Want to address this today? because this whole section of the Apostles Creed the founding fathers of our faith said it's Important that we know who Jesus is why he is God with us And you need to know what you believe on this

These are the tenants if you are a Christ follower, this is what you believe and nothing outside of this this is what we believe and I want to take it and break it down because every phrase is loaded with Anchors to hold us and expose lies in our culture. So let's go here first Peter chapter 3 verse 15 Gives us the impetus as to why it's important that we study this today Because it says this read this with me read this with me be ready at all times To answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you You got to know the real so you don't believe the lie, but listen listen what the word says you don't just believe it you explain it and You defend it I'm not your hired professional Christian that takes care of this for you. This is on you This there's a day coming that we will face Jesus one-on-one and We'll give account for how we stood as Christ Followers in addressing this and the word was very clear. You better know what you know and when Deception or the lie pops up you lovingly respectfully, I Just I'm sorry. I disagree with that and You keep truth alive in the market. Isn't it amazing? It's when the Christian raises their voice to speak truth that the cancel culture wants to jump out Anybody else is allowed to have an opinion But it's when the Christian stands for a value for a standard for something that is biblical and all of a sudden We are bigots and we're judgmental and we're the problem in culture today Ladies and gentlemen, God's Word is not the problem. God's Word is the answer for our culture. I promise you that right now The Better a person is as a Christian the better a person is in our culture We need a standard so let's break these down what what does this creed mean? Well, it starts off with Jesus Jesus let me just kind of bring some understanding because many of you might have memorized this and didn't really understand how impactful this is Jesus his name means salvation

By the way, the Bible says in John 14 Jesus said I am the way the truth the life Do you know what that makes Jesus? He made an exclusive claim. There is no other way. Every other faith is a lie. I Am the only way yeah, they don't get wiggle in because they're good Well, they give a lot of charity that doesn't have in I'll address that in a minute Jesus said I am the way the truth the life. Nobody comes to the Father except through me good people I've got a lot of friends that don't believe that but the only way they will find themselves Eternally in heaven is if they put their faith in Jesus, that is it Don't try to work it out and make another way for people to be okay with God God loves everybody, of course, but in order to have eternal eternal life You've got to go through Jesus, but it's not just Jesus as Jesus Christ. That's what he's called in the creed here Jesus Christ Christ is not his last name Christ is a title that means appointed one or a Messiah Why is it important that we believe he's Jesus Christ? Because that means we believe he's the Messiah telling us that the 300-plus prophecies in the Old Testament all apply to Jesus They are speaking of his coming and will identify who he is He is the Messiah the Savior of the world Who was planned from the beginning from the foundations of the world the Lamb was slain according to my Bible We don't just believe he's Jesus, but Jesus Christ the Messiah the anointed one That's what we believe but but it goes on because it says God's only son That shows that he has Relationship with God that he's not this standalone oddball figure. No, he's very much relational Jesus is distinct and Divine at the same time and the fact that he is the only son is really important because just as our Mormon friends Mormon friends believe that Jesus and Satan are brothers Ladies and gentlemen, God has one son His name is Jesus Immediately when I talk with my Mormon friends, I tell them we have a major dis disconnect. I love you I'm for you but we disconnect on this point because if I Violate and step outside of what God's Word says I have to completely throw my faith in Christ away

It's either all right, or it's all wrong Hold on hold on it gets worse He Says Jesus Christ our Lord That's not Savior Our Lord that means he's now God and master Now he's the dictator the controller of my life. He's the one that I submit to what he says I do I don't have a different opinion outside of his and whatever his opinion is I read his word and I Search it to study what he wants to do with my life how he wants to run my relationships how to handle my money How to use my my voice my language my attitude repent fix a marriage raise children I've got to do it his way if he's Lord and According to the Apostles Creed which are the standards the attributes the dogma that we stand on He has to be the Lord of our life This is what they're declaring, but they also go under to highlight these conceived by the Holy Spirit This is a powerful powerful powerful statement here because this is the work of God not man Has to be conceived by Holy Spirit why because if Jesus were conceived by a man then he could no longer be Savior Why is that because biologically biologically the man the father is the one that determines the blood type of the child and So by God being the father instead of Joseph being the father That means Jesus's blood was pure and he was not a part of the sin curse from Adam from the beginning He had to be born of a virgin If not, then he was just another another human sinful human with a sinful nature But he was not he was born to a mother. I'll get there in a minute, but his father was Heavenly which makes his blood perfect and allows him to be the sacrifice that would pay for your sin and my sin Born of a virgin Mary born of the Virgin Mary This is this is what's called hypostatic unionist

He was a hundred percent God and a hundred percent man all at the same time And if you and I reject the virgin birth of Jesus which many today There's many versions that are many many religions that are trying to discount it and throw it away and explain it away If you throw away the virgin birth, you have just canceled Jesus We can't play with the word Because if if she wasn't a virgin then that means the Bible's wrong he had a human father He's no longer sinless and he can't save anybody But instead he comes as a hundred percent man and a hundred percent God Watch this as a man he carried our sin and suffered the penalty in your place in my place as God He was the perfect sacrifice who could then forgive sin and release us from our penalty He was both Daniel Webster he was a US political figure back in the late 1700s early 1800s a very strong outspoken believer and here's what Daniel Webster said He was he was asked around a restaurant one day as a Christian and educated man How can you believe in Jesus as God and man? Daniel Webster immediately responded. I can't if I could he would be no greater than myself and I feel that I need a superhuman Savior. In other words there's some things beyond your understanding that's going to, it's not rational, that you can't rationalize that exactly makes him God. If you and I can fit God and fully understand every aspect of him inside of a finite brain that would not make him infinite anymore. I can't reduce him down to make all the corners tucked in. I like the fact that he's bigger than I am, thinks higher thoughts than I do, is greater in his reach, has a plan stronger than what I can understand. He's God. This creed reminds us that he suffered under Pilate. Do we have to mention Pontius Pilate like seriously in the whole creed? Did you have to bring him up? Well yeah, because all of a sudden it gave some

evidence of Jesus. It nailed down a time in history when Jesus would be crucified which happens to be, by the way, there is historical evidence that Pilate actually ruled on behalf of Rome between AD 26 and AD 37. Jesus died under his care. That was the historical record. And he crucified, died, and buried. Human sacrifice for you and I took our place. Understand this, the price Jesus paid which was heinous, where they beat the flesh, the muscle off of his back. He was, the Bible says in Isaiah chapter 53 that he was inhumane. You wouldn't even recognize him because he took such a beating. Understand this, that the price that he paid reveals the depth of our depravity. You and I deserved that but he took our place. The Bible says before you even looked to him, thought about him, loved him, he died for you and me. Is anybody glad, grateful that Jesus took our place and died on our behalf? Yes, I am too. This statement opposes the death deniers because there's a lot. Islam. Islam says that Jesus was a great prophet, he was a great man, but there was no cross and he didn't really die. This is what Islam teaches. It goes on to state that he descended to the dead, Jesus descended to the dead, descended into hell. Old Testament believers before Jesus, before Jesus came and made a way to heaven, there was a holding place that when they died there was a partition of hell that was not hell as you're thinking but it was a holding place, a separate compartment and when the many scholars write and believe that when Jesus died that he went to the grave but in the grave he went down and those Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ruth, Daniel, Esther, they were able to meet Jesus, the one that they were actually serving in the Old Testament before he ever arrived for Jesus then to take them and make way for them to go to heaven. This is what is going on during that time but here's the reality, even though there's been some some question back and forth on was it actually hell he went to, there's scholars will battle on that, here's what it does do, it tells us that hell is real. It identifies that there is hell. There is a place of eternal damnation and I'm glad to tell you you don't have to go, I'm not going. If you've lived through one summer day in Florida you can say I ain't going to hell, I am NOT doing that, like immediately you know. He does not

gonna make hell, hell. The absence of God's presence and his love is what's going to make a place hell. The Bible and the Apostles Creed goes on to say this, the third day he rose, he came back to life, defeated death, again resurrection, deniers are everywhere, Jehovah's Witness, they deny this. Precious people, I've got Jehovah's Witness friends and I've talked with them, I've lovingly debated them on this issue but Jehovah's Witness, Islam, Judaism, they do not believe that Jesus rose from the dead but the historical record, what do you do with the fact that Jesus rose from the dead and then walked the earth for 40 days, was handled by people, talked to people, 500 back from the dead with him and it's a matter of record, what do you do with that? The evidence is irrefutable. So here comes the question, so what's Jesus doing now? Back from the dead, now what? Well, the Apostles Creed reminds us he ascended to heaven and he's seated at the right hand of the Father. That means he went all the way back to His former authority he came from heaven to earth wrapped in flesh Flesh is what made him legal in the earth He had to be wrapped in flesh only that when he resurrected he resurrected with a glorified body and then ascended back to heaven Is anybody excited about your glorified body one day when we get to heaven like it's gonna be no more aches. No more pains No, bursitis. Yeah, I mean all that right? I'm asking for him to take about 15 pounds off of my glorified body. I'm working like this is this is what it's saying Romans chapter 8 verse 34. Listen to this who then is the one who condemns? No one Christ Jesus who died more than that who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also Interceding for us. This is what Jesus is doing right now for you Right now for me, I I love the fact that you pray for me I Get people that will send a little text or they send me a direct message pastor. Just think about you praying for you I love that. I need that. Thank you. Please keep that coming. But ladies and gentlemen, I gotta tell you I get a big smile on my face and peace of my heart when I read something like this and think and Jesus is praying for me right now as well that he's for me and he's talking to his father about Me and Holy Spirit is working in me because of the intercession of Jesus

In fact, listen this verse in Romans 8 says that he is seated at the beside the father why is the word seated used because seated was actually what happened when the high priest had finished making all the Sacrifices and all sin had been forgiven. The priest was not allowed to sit down until it is Finished that that that one word right there is telling us Jesus as our high priest He has finished it once and for all no other Sacrifice needs to be made. He did it and he's seated where at the right hand. What is it about the right hand? That's the strength of God. That's the power. That's the authority of God Jesus is sitting with authority and power and strength and it says he's Interceding Interceding sometimes we think that he's praying for us to come back to him, but that's not what interceding means Interceding means that he is praying for strength in you from mundane He's praying for strength to push back on the temptation Strengthen you to keep believing strength in you to not quit to not shut down to keep coming back that's what intercession is and then he's also called an Advocate and an advocate is where he is there pulling to restore us when we do mess up when we do fail He's the one that is anchoring and reaching and pulling. He's not rejecting you. It started off. Who is the one that's condemning? Nobody's condemning. You're not under condemnation anymore. In fact, Jesus is your advocate in heaven. He's going daddy I know this screwed up bad, but I died for that and now we're gonna help we're gonna help him I want to reach I want to pick them up. We're not gonna throw elbows. We're gonna throw some love. That's what he does That's what he's doing right now You're not under condemnation You're under a ton of love and He will come again to judge the living and the dead this this whole passage Jesus is coming back to judge. Oh, there is a judgment coming. Yes, there is yes, there is and Let me just help you with that because as believers we have no reason to fear the judgment because listen Christ followers are going to be judged Based on the finished work of Jesus on the cross

When it comes time to call out what's out of order in Scott's life I'm going to step up and Jesus gonna say wait a minute. He's mine I Paid the price for that Scott. Welcome. Come on in That's the promise of heaven Those who reject Jesus Are going to be judged based on their actions in life. I Was a good person. I Gave a lot of charity But I helped people I was nice. I Volunteered Your actions are never going to be good enough to make you righteous All of us have a sin nature that's alive and well inside of us the easiest thing you and I do is sin No, not till everybody says amen right there because that's how I was talking to everybody Yeah, that's good. Amen right there All of us, I need the one Jesus who knew no sin but became my sin and gave me his righteousness. I need him to be the one that sets that. Acts 17 verse 31 actually tells us this, the judgment day is already set. It's on the calendar. God has a day where it's going to be leveraged, ladies and gentlemen. And on that day, for those who have their faith in Christ, it is going to be a celebration. It's going to be a day of victory and breakthrough when you know him personally. And here's why I love the idea that there's a judgment day already scheduled, because it reminds us that divine justice will be served in this earth. Nobody is getting away with anything. Whether it's a politician, whether it's a government leader, whether it's a neighbor, somebody who hurt, who maimed, who attacked, who abused a child, nobody will ever get away with it. Everything that has been done has been recorded and there will be a day of divine justice

before God. There will be a payday. I take comfort in that. That's why God said, vengeance is mine, Scott. Leave it up to me. I know you want to see it done right now. Trust me, Scott. I saw it. It's recorded. I'm going to deal with this, Scott, but trust me. This is what the apostles' creed is declaring to us. The pillars of our faith that we hold and build our faith. You and I need to know these so that we stand on them and we hold them tight so that when Somebody tries to mess with one aspect of these pillars, they're trying to erode the entire foundation. And ladies and gentlemen, you better know in 2025 what you stand for and what you don't stand for. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. You gotta know this. You gotta know this. I, I, I can't know it enough for my son. I can't know it enough for my grandkids. My son has to know it. He's gotta teach it to his kids. We've got to raise up the next generation and raising up the next generation, ladies and gentlemen, it is work, but it is a righteous work. We've got to speak it. We've got to live it. We've got to model it. We've got to learn it.

We've got to study it. We've got to go after it so that we have an ability to give an answer for the hope that we say we have. Somebody asked you, the Bible does not say, take him to your pastor on Sunday and let him answer all their questions. He says, you give them. You tell them. Some of y'all are going to be going back and listening to this podcast going, well, shucks, I guess I need to listen to that again. Yeah, oh, you sure do. We need to rehearse this over and over. Educate your Christian faith so you can identify the lies in culture and you can anchor your hope in Jesus. Would you please stand to your feet? Ooh, I threw a lot of broccoli and spinach and kale at you today. I know, I know it wasn't cheesy French fries and all that kind of stuff. I get all that. There's great time to enjoy the pizza, but sometimes I just need to buckle down and just eat this piece of liver. Yes, I do. I need to, it's just, it's just, it's just going to be good. I need the, I need the nutrition and ladies and gentlemen, I'm just here to tell you right now, this is not a pet. This is my, this is the basis of my job description in the Bible. I have to bring this to you. I am required to bring you foundational elements of our faith, not just to make us feel good and just, Ooh, it's going to be all right. No, no, no, no. We need to, we need to know ourselves. We need to understand what I'm standing on.

If you're going to claim Christ, you've ever to be able to defend him and know what his word says. I want free life to be a healthy place. I want free life to be a place where you are spiritually equipped and nourish and you're learning. Why do we believe what we believe and where does the Bible say, how do we stand and live it out and do it with fun the entire time, but let's get something that we can hold onto that actually will hold onto us when life is going crazy. That's, that's the unseen benefit behind all this ladies and gentlemen, is that everything that you and I are putting our hands to will actually put its hands on us when we need it the most. And when you get that locked inside of you and you hit a rough season in life and we've all been there. I have found that I just went back to what I've known instead of what I felt. And what I've known got me through that season in life. You got to know what you know It will change everything don't move the ancient boundary markers They'll protect you father today We thank you for your word That has a standard You put guardrails beside us to show us the right path You put stop signs up to keep us from going down certain roads And you remind us that there is one way and his name is Jesus Today God I pray a righteous conviction would grip our hearts and that we would stand and have a Passion a hunger for the truth of God's Word that especially in a day where everything is said to be okay God We understand that it's deception. It's lies and that what's being spewed today God If it doesn't line up with your word God, it must be pushed back on today Protect us protect our mind protect our heart protect our family

Protect our my business as I do all of this in glory and honor of you Let it be standing standing on something greater the foundation. That's unshakable unmovable God I always want to know that you who you are in me and who I am in you because You're the same yesterday today and forever. You don't change so I won't play with your word. I'll let it stand strong I'll let it speak to me. And since Jesus you're not just my Savior. You're also my Lord I'll obey and follow what you said to do today God, I pray That you would let something rise inside of all of us at Freelife Chapel That would desire to know you greater to stand on your word And to speak truth in love We honor you love you and worship you in Jesus name and everybody said Amen, amen, if you'll receive the word today, would you put those hands together? We really hope this message encouraged you for more encouraging messages. Feel free to check out our website Freelifechapel.org I hope you have a fantastic day