Understanding The Power Of The Apostles Creed

Last Updated on February 5, 2020 by Pastor Ikechukwu Chinedum

Growing up as kids our parents always make us recite a prayer every morning. They called it the Apostles Creed. We always recited it after our morning devotion or sometimes at night before we go to bed. We recited the apostle’s creed so often that by the time we were teenagers, we have mastered the creed word for word.

Our parents worshipped with the Anglican church, and in the Anglican church, you are required to master the apostle’s creed and other prayers before you can be baptized. Many of us recited this powerful creed without understanding what it meant and the power behind it. To most of us it was just a mere recitation and routine prayers that we prayed every time in church.

Today by the grace of Jesus Christ and the leading of the Holy Spirit, I shall be sharing with us about understanding the power of the apostle’s creed. In this article, we shall be learning the following: The meaning of the apostles creed, the revelation behind the apostles creed, the Nicene creed, and the apostles creed prayer. I encourage you to open your heart as you read this article today, the light of God shall shine in your heart and you shall be blessed by the revelation you will discover in this article today. 

 What Is The Apostles Creed ?

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He 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.

The Apostles creed is one of the oldest creed in the body of Christ today. This creed was not written by the Apostles, but it is based on the core foundations of the Christian faith. The apostles creed have existed as far back as 140AD and it is widely used by many churches and denominations all over the world for different purposes.

The apostles creed is not just an ordinary creed, the core foundation of the Christian faith is highlighted in the creed. The apostles creed is loaded with many revelations, the understanding of these revelations will help our spiritual understanding of these creed. It is one thing to recite the apostles creed like a poem, and it is another thing to recite the apostles creed with deep spiritual understanding.

A lot of believers just chant the apostles creed in there various denominations religiously, without understanding the meaning of the creed. Many of them do not know the spiritual significance of the apostles creed. The apostles creed was written by our fathers, based on the deep revelation and spiritual understanding they have about the God head, That is God the Father, Christ The Son and God The Holy Spirit. Our fathers in the faith who wrote these creed were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write it. Therefore it takes a believer that is spiritual to understand the revelation behind the apostles creed. Now let us look at the meaning of the apostles creed.

What Is The Meaning Of The Apostles Creed ?

What is the meaning of the Apostles creed? A lot of us know the recitations, but what is the spiritual significance of the apostles creed ? Jesus made us to understand in the book of John 6:63 that the word of God is Spirit, these means that every word of God must be spiritually understood for it to be maximized. Anybody can recite the creed, but only those with spiritual understanding can be imparted and truly blessed by the apostles creed.

The Apostles creed is divided into three major parts, God The Father, Christ The Son and The Holy Spirit.Also it is a declaration of Faith, therefore your faith must be intact for you to be blessed by these creed. Now let us look at them one after the other.

1. Faith In The God The Father:

Hebrews 11:6 King James Version (KJV)

⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Your Christian life starts from your faith in God almighty, the maker of the heavens and the earth. Our God is the unseen God that sees every thing. He is the invisible and all powerful God. Our fathers in the faith who compiled the apostles creed had deep revelation about God and they heard faith in Him. Unfortunately today many people go to church and recite the apostles creed without knowing God or having a personal relationship with him. Merely reciting the apostles creed alone cannot help you, the words there are powerful, but you must first believe in God and develop your faith in God before your prayers must be answered. Salvation is the first step in knowing God. You are not qualified to recite the apostles creed unless you genuinely believe in God.

2. Faith In Jesus Christ:

Acts 16:31 King James Version (KJV)

³¹ And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Believing in God is the first step, but believing in Jesus Christ is what establishes you as a child of God. Reciting the apostles creed without believing that Jesus Christ is your Lord and savior is a waste of time. You are merely playing religion and the love of God is not in you. Who is Jesus Christ ?

A. Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God. He came from God, He is God .

B. Jesus Christ is our salvation. Our faith in Jesus Christ is what establishes our right standing with God. We are saved because we believe in Jesus Christ our Lord. He paid the price for our salvation by His death on the cross. He died that we might live, and He was raised from the dead for our Justification. No one can be saved out side Jesus Christ.

C. Jesus Christ Went To Hell For Us. Christ did not just die for us, He went to hel in our place, the destination of every sinner is hell, and since Jesus took the place of sinners, he went to hell on our behalf. In Hell, Jesus conquered death and the grave, he conquered all the forces of darkness and made a public show of them all, Colossians 2:15, Revelation 1:18. Therefore, if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and personal savior, death and hell has no power over your life.

D. Jesus Christ Is Alive. Jesus Christ is alive, He rose from the dead after three days and he is alive forever, Revelation 1:18. We are not serving a dead God,our God is alive and He is still changing lives and doing wonders on a daily basis through his children on earth today, halleluyah.

3. Faith In The Holy Spirit.

Acts 1:8 King James Version (KJV)

⁸ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the God head, The Holy Spirit is the carrier of God’s presence, the Holy Spirit is God himself. After Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to us, to help us fulfill our mandate on the earth. The church of Jesus Christ was given birth to by the Holy Spirit in Acts 2. The Holy Spirit is the life force of the church of God universal.

In the apostles creed, the holy catholic church there does not mean the Roman Catholic church, it simply means the entire body of Christ, the communion of the saints all over the world. The Holy Spirit is what keeps the church active and productive.

Therefore, if you are reciting the apostles creed, you must ask yourself the following, question, do I believe in the Holy Ghost?, is the power of God at work in me? Our founding fathers didn’t just write the creed in the flesh, the were filled with the Holy Spirit of God, the anointing of God’s Spirit was at work in them, that is why the creed is still relevant today as it was in there days. You need the Holy Spirit to understand the power behind the apostles creed. To know more about the Holy Spirit, CLICK HERE.

                     What About The Nicene Creed?

The Nicene creed is a much later creed, created in Nicaea in ancient turkey, by the council of Nicaea in 325AD, The Nicene creed is similar to the Apostles creed, it is also a declaration of faith, but it is primarily centered on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. While the apostles creed summarizes the faith of the first century Apostles, the nicene creed focuses on the death of Christ, that is why the Nicene creed is usually used during Easter seasons. Below is the Nicene creed :

The Nicene Creed

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the begotten of God the Father, the Only-begotten, that is of the essence of the Father.

God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten and not made; of the very same nature of the Father, by Whom all things came into being, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.

Who for us humanity and for our salvation came down from heaven, was incarnate, was made human, was born perfectly of the holy virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit.

By whom He took body, soul, and mind, and everything that is in man, truly and not in semblance.

He suffered, was crucified, was buried, rose again on the third day, ascended into heaven with the same body, [and] sat at the right hand of the Father.

He is to come with the same body and with the glory of the Father, to judge the living and the dead; of His kingdom there is no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, in the uncreated and the perfect; Who spoke through the Law, prophets, and Gospels; Who came down upon the Jordan, preached through the apostles, and lived in the saints.

We believe also in only One, Universal, Apostolic, and [Holy] Church; in one baptism in repentance, for the remission, and forgiveness of sins; and in the resurrection of the dead, in the everlasting judgement of souls and bodies, and the Kingdom of Heaven and in the everlasting life

The Apostles Creed Prayer

These are the major foundation that you must have in your life as a believer in order to maximise the apostles creed. Like I said earlier, just reciting the creed without a sound spiritual foundation cannot help you, if you don’t believe in God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, then the apostles creed can never be a blessing to you. In order to help you, I have carefully compiled some powerful prayers that I call, the apostles creed prayer. This prayers are based on the foundation of the faith of the Apostles. They are faith filled confession prayers. Romans 10:10, tells us that we believe from our hearts, and verse 17 of the same chapter tells us that faith comes by hearing the word of God. As you engage in these faith filled declaration prayers, your faith will come alive, and your spiritual foundation will be established. Even if you are not born again, this apostles creed prayers will reconnect you back to God and keep you established in Him.

Prayers

1. Father, I thank you for you are the creator of heaven and earth.

2. come to your throne of grace today and I receive mercy and forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ name

3.I believe in You my God as the creator of the heavens and the earth, in Jesus Christ name

4. I believe that you are my Heavenly Father, and the One and only True God. in Jesus Christ name

5. I believe the you are the Alpha and the Omega, the one who created the beginning and has no ending, in Jesus Christ name

6. I believe that you are the unshakable, unmovable and ever dependable God, in Jesus Christ name

7.I believe that you are the merciful God, Compassionate God and the ever forgiving God.

8. I believe that you are the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of the Living and not the dead.

9. I believe that you sent your only begotten Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins.

10. I believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and personal Saviour.

11. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins.

12. I believe He was raised from the dead for my justification

13. I believe that I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, because of my faith in in Jesus Christ name

14. I believe Jesus Christ, sent the Holy Spirit to help me in my Christian walk.

15. I believe the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God

16. I believe the Holy Spirit is my helper in life

17. I believe the Holy Spirit is The my teacher and my defender

18. I believe in The Church Of God Universal

19. I believe the church of God is the pillar of truth

20. I believe that Jesus Christ is the head of the Church.