Part 4 of Sermon Series on Apostolic Creed, "I believe in the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting"

1. Continuing the series on THE APOSTLES' CREED...
Sunday, Dec 22, 2013

3. A QUICK RECAP
•HISTORY OF THE APOSTLES CREED
•WHY IT WAS NECESSARY TO HAVE SUCH
A STATEMENT OF FAITH
•VARYING VERSIONS EXIST
•MOST COMMON & ACCEPTABLE VERSION

4. I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's 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;
On the third day he rose again; he ascended into
heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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 the life everlasting.
AMEN

5. • not WRITTEN by the apostles themselves
• a brief summary of their teachings
• their doctrine "in sublime simplicity,
• in unsurpassable brevity,
• in beautiful order,
• and with liturgical solemnity.
• In its present form it is dated no later than 4th century.
• may justly be called an ecumenical symbol of faith.

6. I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's 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;
On the third day he rose again; he ascended into
heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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 the life everlasting.
AMEN

7. 1918 - 2013
1918 - 2013

8. the forgiveness of sins,
"SIN" = TRANSGRESSION OF THE LAW OF GOD
ORIGINAL SIN
In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of sins,
in accordance with the riches of God’s grace
Eph 1:7

9. the forgiveness of sins,
we need more than FORGIVENESS
WE NEED ACCEPTANCE
JUSTIFICATION - where do we stand before God?
effects of sin reversed --relationship restored

11. WHY DO WE NEED FORGIVENESS ?
If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you
Psalm 130: 3-4
WHAT HOPE DO WE HAVE OF FORGIVENESS ?
He is eager to forgive.
He is ready to forgive.
He wants to forgive you.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE ARE FORGIVEN ?
The only way to deal with Satan’s accusations is
go back to the character of God....
Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the
transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. Micah 7:18

12. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE ARE FORGIVEN ?
God blots out our sins as a thick cloud (Isaiah 44:22).
God forgets our sins and remembers them no more (Jeremiah 31:34)
God puts our sins behind his back (Isaiah 38:17)
God buries our sins in the depths of the sea (Micah 7:19)
God removes our sins as far as the east is from the west
(Psalm 103:12).

13. the resurrection of the body,
1 Cor 15:35-58
35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of
body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come
to life unless it dies. 37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that
will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But
God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he
gives its own body.
39 Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals
have another, birds another and fish another. 40 There are also
heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the
heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is
another. 41 The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and
the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown
is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is
raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is
sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural
body, there is also a spiritual body.

14. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the
last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but
the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust
of the earth; the second man is of heaven. 48 As was the earthly man,
so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also
are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the image
of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
50 I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot
inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the
imperishable.
51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be
changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and
we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the
imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable
has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with
immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has
been swallowed up in victory.”

15. 55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing
move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord,
because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

16. the resurrection of the body,
1. The Number: “We will all be changed”
2. The Result: “We will all be changed”
3. The Time: “At the last trump”
4. The Speed: “In a flash, in the twinkling of an eye”
5. The Chronology / Sequence:
A. Trumpet sounds
B. Dead raised
C. Living transformed

18. the resurrection of the body,
1) The resurrection of Jesus Christ -- foundational truth of
Christianity. NON-NEGOTIABLE !
2) Our resurrection depends entirely on His.
3) Our resurrection bodies will be radically different from
our present bodies yet intimately related to them.

19. the resurrection of the body,
4) When Christ returns, both living and dead Christians will
receive their resurrection bodies
5) These truths ought to encourage us to stand firm and
serve God joyfully, knowing that our labor is not in vain in
the Lord.

20. the life everlasting, AMEN
"Life everlasting" is a present possession
and a future possession
"Life everlasting" is a present possession
and a progressive possession
This is the land of the dying, but we are going to the
land of the living where ...
"death shall be no more, neither sorrow nor crying,
neither shall there be any more pain. For the former
things are passed away" (Revelation 21:4).

21. "life everlasting" - make every moment count
(Psa 91:12)
"resurrection of the body" - stand firm,
labour not in vain, keep your eye on the prize
"forgiveness of sins"- God has forgiven you.
Do you harbour bitterness / unforgiveness in
your heart ?