This summer marks the anniversary of an important event in the history of the Christian Church. 1,700 years ago, right now, in the summer of 325 A.D., Christian leaders from all over, were meeting in the ancient city of Nicaea (in what is now Turkey), to settle some differences in theology. They put what they decided on into some words that became known as the Nicene Creed. This creed, along with the earlier Apostle’s Creed, and the later Athanasian Creed, have defined ever since what Christians believe about God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
In 325 the whole Christian Church on earth was still united. Therefore, at that Council of Nicaea, all Christians from everywhere, were represented. Think about that. There are now 45,000 Christian denominations, and we have many, many differences. In 325, there was one denomination, the church was unified, and they could all still get together to talk over what they did not agree on; and then, what’s more, even settle it. It’s not that there wasn’t as much diversity back then. There was perhaps even more. The church had spread throughout the entire Roman empire and beyond. There was no internet and not even the printing press. All documents were written by hand and delivered by hand. Communication was a slow process, making it impossible to keep everyone on the same page. Many strange beliefs were creeping in, and there was a need to define what it meant to be a Christian. They already had the Apostles’ Creed, but more was needed. Seventeen centuries ago, right now, they all agreed on the Nicene Creed. It was an incredible accomplishment. Vast differences remained on many things, but the Nicene Creed was the anchor that kept it all together.
That anchor is still holding. Throughout those 45,000 denominations in our now divided church, the vast majority of them still hold to those three ancient creeds. Our own denomination, the LCMC, in their official statement of beliefs, says this: “We accept the Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds as true declarations of the scriptural faith we believe, teach, and confess.” Even before that, the statement says that the Bible is most important, of course, calling the Bible “the sole authoritative source and norm of our proclamation, faith, and life.” The creeds are accepted as accurate interpretations of the Bible to guide us. All major Christian church bodies have similar statements.
The main issue that made the creeds necessary was the question of who was Jesus. That’s an easy one, you might say. He was the Son of God, Savior and Lord of the world, second person of the Holy Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What’s so difficult about that? Well, that wasn’t an easy one in the first century. The Jews were expecting a political Messiah, a savior king like David. They were not expecting a visit from God Himself, born in a barn and executed on a cross. So, people thought Jesus was great; teaching wonderful things, healing the sick, controlling the weather, raising the dead, and more. So far, so good.
But then Jesus starting talking like he was God himself, forgiving sins, saying he was around even before Abraham (who lived 1800 years earlier), and telling everyone he and the Heavenly Father were one. This was too much for many people. It was the false, pagan religions that had many gods. The Jews always held fast to one God. Their basic Creed from the Old Testament was the Shema: “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God. The Lord is One.” One. Not two. So, Jesus was believed in by many, and was rejected by many.
Even those who believed in Jesus, continued to struggle with what this meant. As the church grew and expanded into more locations, some Christians began saying he only ‘appeared’ to be a man. Some said he was only a man, a man with divine powers, maybe, but still, second fiddle to the Father. And many, of course, were saying He was somehow, both God and a man. These were big differences, and some local churches were getting into strange and almost unrecognizable beliefs and practices.
This had to be settled, and so it was, in the very early Apostles’ Creed, and then further clarified in the Nicene Creed. I won’t go into all the details, but Jesus had also said some pretty specific things about the Holy Spirit. So, what was finally decided upon is what we now know of as the Holy Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One God, as they always believed, in three persons, which was very new.
Critics often accuse the early church of inventing this new doctrine. But this is not the sort of thing you would invent. From a marketing standpoint, it was not a good move. It was difficult to understand and it made for a much harder sell. But it was the revealed truth. It was what Christians came to believe after the miracle of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But that whole story is another topic for another time. (continued…)
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Deuteronomy 6:4-9 — Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
John 20:30-31 — Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
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