HE ROSE, IS REIGNING, AND WILL RETURN (Acts 2:29-33) INTRODUCTION: The Apostles Creed is a rich summary of the essentials of what Christians believe about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is called The Apostles Creed not because they wrote it, but because it summarizes their teaching. It collects the main points of doctrine which are critical to believe for our salvation. We have the fuller teaching of the Apostles in the New Testament writings. This middle section in the Creed about the Lord Jesus Christ is the longest portion, so the core of the Creed is a witness to the past, present and future of Jesus Christ. What He has done; what He is doing; and what He will do. He arose, is reigning, and will return. Today we will look at the final group of statements about Jesus. We will look at his resurrection, ascension, reign, and return to earth. the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from whence he shall come to judge the living and the dead; HE ROSE AGAIN The third day he rose again from the dead. This clearly is the teaching of Scriptures -- I Corinthians 15:3,4 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, When the creed states the third day it is speaking inclusively. Christ was crucified on Friday and was raised on Sunday morning, therefore three days are inclusive. The resurrection of Christ was a real event in history and it is central to our faith. Dr. Billy Graham once told Time magazine, If I were an enemy of Christianity, I would aim right at the Resurrection, because that is the heart of Christianity. July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 1
The founder of the Jesus seminar, Dr. Robert Funk, offers a perfect example of what Billy Graham was talking about. Dr. Robert Funk founded the Jesus Seminar, where between 150 to 200 scholars met to decide what was historical about the man Jesus. This is how Dr. Funk explains what happened to Jesus body after his crucifixion: The tales of entombment and resurrection were latter-day wishful thinking. Instead, Jesus corpse went the way of all abandoned criminals bodies: it was probably barely covered with dirt, vulnerable to the wild dogs that roamed the wasteland of the execution grounds. Just how important is it that Jesus rose again from the dead? It is very important. First, Paul says that our faith is in vain and that we are still in our sins if Jesus resurrection wasn t real. (I Cor 15:17). Secondly, there is no hope for our resurrection after death, if Jesus hadn t rose again. Thirdly, we would not be able to have fellowship with the living Christ, if Jesus was still dead. Therefore belief in the resurrection of Christ is essential for our hope as Christians. No wonder Paul said that to be saved we are to believe in our hearts that God has raised Him from the dead. (Romans 10:9-10) We believe in the resurrection of Christ and therefore we confess that the third day he rose again from the dead; HE HAS ASCENDED AND IS REIGNING Next the confession says: he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty After forty days on the earth the Scriptures records that Jesus ascended into heaven. Acts 1:9-11 July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 2
"Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven." Heaven here is not just the sky above. The heaven Jesus ascended to was the dwelling place of God s manifest glory. It is the place where angels and men share in the life of God. Where this heaven is located is not the real question, for God is everywhere, but the locality of His throne is in a dimension not seen by the natural eye, but is a real place. The significance of the ascension means that Jesus earthly work is done. He completed all that the Father sent Him to do and now He returns to the Father. As someone has said, When Jesus left, his desk was cleared. It is God the Father s Well done my faithful servant to His Son Jesus. The significance of the ascension also means that Jesus is our forerunner, going before us into the very presence of God to be with Him for all eternity. His ascension is the guarantee that we will go there also because Jesus is there now and Jesus promised that where I am you shall be also. We believe that Jesus ascended into heaven, so we confess it in the Apostles Creed.. We also confess that Jesus sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. What are we saying that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God? The seating of Christ at the right hand of God the Father Almighty is a biblical word picture. It is derived from the practice that when a king is enthroned, he sits on the throne. And the one who is at the right hand of a king is the one who is given the position of pre-eminence and rule and honor. And so, the heavenly seating of Christ at the right hand of God the Father Almighty is a biblical word picture designed to enable us to appreciate Jesus present heavenly rule. It's a Bible way of telling you that Jesus is in charge; that Jesus is on the throne; that Jesus is ruling the world. How is Jesus presently ruling the world? It is through the work of the Spirit and the Word. Because Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father he fulfilled his promise to send the Holy Spirit to be with us and indwell us. He sent the Holy Spirit to teach us, guide us, and empower us. The Spirit teaches us, guides us and empowers us through helping us to obey the Word of God. So Jesus is ruling from His throne in heaven by His Spirit and by His Word July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 3
Jesus is doing others things at the right hand of the Father also. He is our High Priest making intercession for us. This is the chief message of the book of Hebrews: Hebrews 7:25-26 NIV Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. (26) Such a high priest truly meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. He also is our Advocate when we sin. He is defending us from all the accusations of Satan. 1 John 2:1 NIV My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. Jesus at the right hand of the Father means that He is very active in His heavenly life on our behalf. Don't think of Jesus resting at the right hand. Don't think of Jesus in semi-retirement at the right hand. Don't think of Jesus as inactive at the right hand. Oh no, the New Testament makes it clear. When He is at the right hand, He is there, He is active, and He is working for you. It is critical for our faith to believe that Jesus ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of the Father Almighty. Therefore we confess this through the Apostles Creed. HE WILL RETURN Finally in this section of the Creed we confess that from thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead. We are confessing his second coming. The 2 nd coming of Christ is a central theme in the New Testament. It's called the blessed hope in Titus 2:14-15. It is mentioned over 300 times in the New Testament, so it was definitely on the minds of early Christians. It was central to their hope in this hostile world. And it is central to our hope today. Some may doubt the Lord Jesus coming in our own time, but the New Testament itself ends expressing what is the proper Christian attitude and prayer, Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 4
It wasn t that long ago that in the American church the 2nd Coming of Christ was preached more consistently and fervently than it is today. Why is there not as much emphasis on the 2nd Coming as there have been in the past? One reason may be that there have been over-zealous preachers on the 2nd Coming who have gone so far to set dates and then be wrong that there is a reaction against this. But this is not a reason to jettison our blessed hope. Don t throw the baby out with the bath water. Jesus is coming again! I believe that the main reason for losing interest in the 2 nd Coming is because of our ever increasing worldly-mindedness. We are caught up in the affairs of this world, even in the good things of this world, to the point that we fail to seek the better things. The good things that we enjoy here and now, the pace of our lives, squeeze out our desires for the better things, the best things, and keep us from meditating on, hoping in, and looking for the best things for God, for the coming of Christ, for fellowship with Him. But the constant refrain of the New Testament is, Christian, Be ready. Be prepared. Be alert. Live in light of His coming. He is coming again. Be ready when he comes. Another reason is we don t want to think about what Jesus is going to do when He come. He is coming to judge the living and the dead. I kind of like the old way the creed puts it, the quick and the dead. The quick here is not talking about fast moving people, but people living in the day of his coming. The word quick use to mean living. We need to be reminded that there is a judgment coming. When Jesus returns all will stand before Him as Judge. There are many passages of Scriptures that remind us of this. I ll point to one. One that Jesus himself gives us is. John 5:26-29 NIV For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. (27) And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. (28) "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice (29) and come out-- those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. We will all stand before Jesus as our Judge. What will we say when we stand before Him? Will we point to some of our good deeds and hope that they will get us in good standing with Him? Will we plead ignorance? Will we just plead for mercy? We need to plead for mercy, but more than that we need to plead the Blood of Christ which paid the penalty of our sins and has washed us clean as snow. We will need to plead the promise of Jesus in John 5:24 July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 5
John 5:24 KJV Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Jesus is coming again. It is our blessed hope for then we will see Jesus as He really is and will be changed into his likeness. It is also a time of judgment. All mankind will stand before Him. God s justice will be administered to all mankind for all the godless deeds they have done. Only those who are trusting in Jesus as their Lord and Savior will pass through the judgment into eternal life. Be ready for the Lord is returning to judge the quick and the dead.. CONCLUSION: The church has been confessing the reality of the resurrection, ascension, the reign and coming of Christ for centuries through the Apostles Creed. We dare not stop confessing and believing it now. We dare not try to change this doctrine, water it down, or ignore it, because it is essential to our faith, to our hope of eternal life, to our daily walk with the living Christ. We need to confess it and believe it and live in the light of these truths. Amen? Amen I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from whence He shall 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. July 16, 2017 Corntassel CP Church Page 6