The Apostles' Creed is the oldest, most beautiful succinct summary of Christian beliefs. Though often recited in unison during worship services, the creed begins with the phrase "I believe," making it a deeply personal profession of faith. But when was the last time you examined it closely? In Affirming the Apostles' Creed , an excerpt from Growing in Christ , noted Bible scholar and author J. I. Packer explains the meaning and implications of each phrase of this great creed. Each concise chapter serves as an invitation to dive further into the creed-and as a result, into the essentials of the Christian faith-by concluding with discussion questions and Bible passages for further study. J. I. Packer (1926–2020) served as the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College. He authored numerous books, including the classic bestseller Knowing God . Packer also served as general editor for the English Standard Version Bible and as theological editor for the ESV Study Bible . Board of Governors' Professor of Theology, Regent College Affirming the Apostles' Creed By J. I. Packer Good News Publishers Copyright © 2008 J. I. Packer All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4335-0210-1 Contents PREFACE, INTRODUCTION, 1 I BELIEVE IN GOD, 2 THE GOD I BELIEVE IN, 3 THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, 4 ALMIGHTY, 5 MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, 6 AND IN JESUS CHRIST, 7 HIS ONLY SON, 8 BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY, 9 SUFFERED UNDER PONTIUS PILATE, 10 HE DESCENDED INTO HELL, 11 THE THIRD DAY, 12 HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, 13 HE SHALL COME, 14 I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT, 15 THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH, 16 FORGIVENESS OF SINS, 17 RESURRECTION OF THE BODY, 18 THE LIFE EVERLASTING, CHAPTER 1 I Believe in God When people are asked what they believe in, they give not merely different answers, but different sorts of answers. Someone might say, "I believe in UFOs" — that means, "I think UFOs are real." "I believe in democracy"— that means, "I think democratic principles are just and beneficial." But what does it mean when Christian congregations stand and say, "I believe in God"? Far more than when the object of belief is UFOs or democracy. I can believe in UFOs without ever looking for one and in democracy without ever voting. In cases like these, belief is a matter of the intellect only. But the Creed's opening words, "I believe in God," render a Greek phrase coined by the writers of the New Testament, meaning literally: "I am believing into God." That is to say, over and above believing certain truths about God, I am living in a relation of commitment to God in trust and union. When I say "I believe in God," I am professing my conviction that God has invited me to this commitment and declaring that I have accepted his invitation. FAITH The word faith, which is English for a Greek noun ( pistis ) formed from the verb in the phrase "believe into" ( pisteuo ), gets the idea of trustful commitment and reliance better than belief does. Whereas belief suggests bare opinion, faith, whether in a car, a patent medicine, a protégé, a doctor, a marriage partner, or what have you, is a matter of treating the person or thing as trustworthy and committing yourself accordingly. The same is true of faith in God, and in a more far-reaching way. It is the offer and demand of the object that determines in each case what a faith-commitment involves. Thus, I show faith in my car by relying on it to get me places, and in my doctor by submitting to his treatment. And I show faith in God by bowing to his claim to rule and manage me; by receiving Jesus Christ, his Son, as my own Lord and Savior; and by relying on his promise to bless me here and hereafter. This is the meaning of response to the offer and demand of the God of the Creed. Christian faith only begins when we attend to God's self-disclosure in Christ and in Scripture, where we meet him as the Creator who "commands all people everywhere to repent" and to "believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ." Sometimes faith is equated with that awareness of "one above" (or "beyond" or "at the heart of things") that from time to time, through the impact of nature, conscience, great art, being in love, or whatever, touches the hearts of the hardest-boiled. (Whether they take it seriously is another question, but it comes to all — God sees to that.) But Christian faith only begins when we attend to God's self-disclosure in Christ and in Scripture, where we meet him as the Creator who "commands all people everywhere to repent" and to "believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ ... as he has commanded us" (Acts 17:30; 1 John 3:23; cf. John 6:28ff.). Christian faith means hearing, noting, and doing what God says. DOUBT I write as if God's revelation in the Bible has self-evident truth and authority, and I think that in the last analysis it has; but I know, as you do, that uncriticized preconceptions and prejudices create problems for us all, and