In speaking with the young people in the confirmation class, we learned about creeds. A creed is simply a statement of what you believe about any topic. We have heard the classical creeds like the Apostles’ Creed or the Nicene Creed. Yet, there were creeds that predated even those. A creed was and is said in worship either in church or devotionally to clarify what someone believes about God. Paul’s letter to the Philippian Church has a creed in chapter 2:5-11. It goes:

⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, ⁷but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, ⁸he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.⁹Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

In the letter to the church of Colossae, there is another scriptural creed. It is in Colossians 1:15-20. It says,

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; ¹⁶for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. ¹⁹For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

The anonymous author of Hebrews wrote to a mostly Jewish audience who firmly understood the Jewish ways and Law. It reads like a sermonic letter to the church and opens with a statement of faith, or creed. And that is our text this morning, Hebrews 1:1-4. Written some thirty years after Jesus’ death, Hebrews reflects on the supremacy of Christ and how Jesus is the culmination and fulfillment of the Jewish Law. Hear the good news from Hebrews 1:1-4.

Hebrews 1:1-4

^1.1 Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, ²but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. ³He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,⁴having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.^[1]

Let us unpack what this credo is declaring. It begins by saying that God has been trying to call us for a very long time. This effort has been ongoing for as long as history can remember. God has sent prophets to speak to us. God set aside the Jewish nation to talk with us. God performed wonders and miracles to get our attention. Yet, there seems to be a problem. We humans do not listen nor take to heart those divine messages. Gratefully, the Source of all things is persistent.

The second declaration of this creed is that we are hard of hearing by implication. We do not respond to the prophets, the Law, or divine acts. So, God takes matters into God’s own hands. God pierces the barrier between heaven and earth and becomes a flesh and blood human being like you and me. Furthermore, this Son of God was there at the creation of all there is. Indeed, he took part in the creating process! The Son of God is not some Johnny-Come-Lately who arrives late on the scene. Instead, he was present before our human understanding of time began.

The Preacher of Hebrews continues to drill down on this point. This Son of God comes from outside of our understanding of time. Our creed also tells us the Son of God was really quite the character! Verse three says the Son of God is the reflected brightness of God’s very presence. He is the exact character and representation of God’s being. God’s essence is living among us. I love how Peterson’s paraphrase The Message says it in John 1:14: The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish. 

So, Creator God entered time, became a human being, and lived a life like we live ours, but the Son of God’s life had a specific purpose. We read he made purification for our sins. What does that mean? The word in the ancient language from our text is the word we get our word catharsis. A catharsis is a cleansing, a purging of infection. In the Son of God’s case, the cleansing involved the septic illness of sin. It also addressed the brokenness of people’s relationship with God. 

Think of it like this. Imagine a piece of cloth that has been torn in half. The Son of Man acts like a needle and thread. It pierces the cloth and punches through the other half of the cloth. It separates God, who lives outside of time in what we call eternity, from our time-bound lives. The needle is then reattached to the other piece of fabric, rejoining eternity with our time-bound lives. The Son of God moving into our neighborhood wasn’t enough. He had to return home to pull the fabric back together. 

Beloved, what is a creed you would write to share with another person or church? Seriously, I am not just preaching! Think about the basics of what you believe about God and the Son of God. Let us say you are tasked to write a statement of faith to encourage another congregation. What do you include? What do you leave out? Why? Your homework this week is to write a personal credo on what you believe just like our confirmation students!

This morning, we celebrate Worldwide Communion Sunday. Churches around the globe from all types of Christian traditions celebrate the Lord’s Supper. This highlights our mutual faith and our love of and for Jesus Christ. It is a celebration that since we did not listen, the Son of God, Jesus, entered our history and time. God wants to guarantee His message is heard correctly. He comes in the person of Jesus to make sure we get it right. 

But we do not. We are a stubborn people and killed the Son of God. But we do not know that in doing so, Jesus returns to eternity. He rebinds us with the Source of All Love and Beauty. Jesus, knowing we would forget, left us a reminder of this passionate act of love. The disciples did not fully understand it at the time.

You see, on the night he was betrayed, he took bread. He broke it and gave it to his friends. He told them to eat. He then took the cup. After saying a prayer, he passed it among his beloved. He told them, “This is the cup of my blood, shed for you. It marks the new covenant and promise that I will come back and take you to be with me where I am. For I go and prepare a place for you so that we be together in eternity.”

Friends, the Beloved Quilter of Time and Space, of Love and Light bids us to come to the table. Let us pray.

© 2024 by Patrick H. Wrisley, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Glens Falls, 400 Glen Street, Glens Falls, NY 12801.  Sermon manuscripts are available for the edification of members and friends of First Presbyterian Church Glens Falls. They shall not be altered, re-purposed, published, or preached without permission. All rights reserved.

^[1] New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.