I wasn't the first to say it, but my mouth has formed the words plenty of times: Some people wouldn't be happy if they didn't have something to complain about.
And yes, I realize that's a complaint in itself.
If it's not the weather, it's the economy. If it's not the crowds, it's being lonely. Traffic's too slow, that guy's driving too fast, this food is bland, or salty, or cold...
Standing in stark contrast to that, I'd like to thank Natalie Layne for her song, "Grateful For":
It's not always easy to see the good
When it doesn't look the way I think it should
I know, I know what it feels like
When a smile don't feel right
But even the stress of a million cares
Can't cover the blessings you put everywhere
It don't take rose-colored glasses
To see the gold in the madness
I just gotta take time, slow down
Take a moment to see it now
The little things are what it's all about
What it's all about
I'll take a look around
There's something to be grateful
Something to be grateful for
It's waiting to be found
Underneath the surface
Everything I'm searching for
Couldn't find it in me, but I found it in you
I'm learning to see 'cause you're teaching me to
Take a look around
There's something to be grateful
Something to be grateful for
For your mercy, the morning light
For all of the ways that love has changed my life
I know you're behind all the goodness
Don't let me forget it
When the sun don't shine in the dead of night
If the tears keep rolling from my eyes
I know you're always by my side
That's how I know I'm gonna be alright
I'll take a look around
There's something to be grateful
Something to be grateful for
It's waiting to be found
Underneath the surface
Everything I'm searching for
Couldn't find it in me, but I found it in you
I'm learning to see 'cause you're teaching me to
Take a look around
There's something to be grateful
Something to be grateful for
In the morning, I'll be grateful
In the evening, I'll be grateful
'Cause I know that you are faithful
In the good times, I'll be grateful
In the hard nights, I'll be grateful
'Cause I know that you are faithful
I'll take a look around
There's something to be grateful for
* * * * * * *
Truth is...As humans, we tend to notice what we're looking for. The attitude we have as we view the world has the same effect on what we see as the color of our sunglasses.
Take time. Slow down. Take a look around. There's something to be grateful for.
I didn't know I was going to have a four-part series of posts about Letters to the Church by Francis Chan, and yet, here we are.
I held back on posting a summary of each chapter because that wouldn't do Chan's thoughts justice. It would be far better for everyone to actually read the book. (And you should!) But a single sentence in the final chapter jumped off the page and demanded to be featured here.
In fear that some critics of the Church would take the chapters of this book that spell out how we've strayed from the biblical imperatives about being the Church and march into their pastor's office to berate them to a pulp, Chan closes the book with what he calls "A Leader's Guide to Loving the Arrogant." (He wanted to write the chapter to the arrogant and self-righteous, but realized they probably wouldn't recognize themselves anyway.)
That single sentence that stopped me in my tracks?
[God's] desire is for us to view church leaders as God's gifts to the Church since He sees them that way.
Here's the context:
God wants the Church to be the one institution that loves authority. He wants us to be different, a strange group of people who actually love having a King and are grateful for His commands. His desire is for us to view church leaders as God's gifts to the Church since He sees them that way.
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-12)
God "gave" these leaders to the Church in order to bring her to maturity. When's the last time you heard someone refer to leaders as gifts?
* * * * * * *
Truth is...not every pastor is the kind of Scripture-soaked, Spirit-led servant-leader Yahweh wants them to be. All of us are works in progress. But still, when's the last time you've encouraged yours?
Last week (Click Here), I quoted quite a bit from Francis Chan's book, Letters to the Church. It was from a chapter contrasting the closeness and camaraderie involved in being a gang member to how an awful lot of people (and I do mean awful) think about being a church member as if it were a gym membership.
Here's last week's closing thought:
Truth is...Don't you long at least a little bit for that sense of belonging and mutual commitment to each other? Isn't there something within each of us that can't be satisfied by GOING to church instead of BEING THE CHURCH?
Not two days after having written that post, a guy I follow on The-Social-Networking-Site-Formerly-Known-As-Twitter posted the following:
A well-motivated attempt to give God some glory, to be sure, but great googily-moogily! Not only is it acceptable/normal to categorize my Christian experience as "going to church," but I can now be perfectly content to merely watch church?
There is no need for me to be a participant, apparently. I am an observer. An audience member. A consumer of content.
The more I get into Letters to the Church by Francis Chan, the more I just want to reprint the whole thing so everyone will read it (as if "everyone" reads this blog!).
Chapter 4 is titled "The Gang" and contrasts the idea of "going to church" with the concept of being part of a group committed to each other...like a gang.
We live in a time when people go to a building on Sunday mornings, attend an hour-long service, and call themselves members of the Church. ... But have you ever read the New Testament? Do you find anything in Scripture that is even remotely close to the pattern we have created? Do you find anyone who "went" to church?
Try to imagine Paul and Peter speaking like we do today: "Hey, Peter, where do you go to church now?"
"I go to The River. They have great music and I love the kids' program."
"Cool. Can I check out your church next Sunday? I'm not getting much out of mine."
"Totally. I'm not going to be there next Sunday because little Matthew has soccer. But how about the week after?"
"Sounds good. Hey, do they have a singles' group?"
It's comical to think of Paul and Peter speaking like this. Yet that's a normal conversation among Christians today.
* * * * * * *
Chan then introduces us to an elder of his church, Rob, who spent most of his life in gangs but who met Jesus while in prison.
Rob tells me stories of gang life and the fear he felt when he left his gang to join the body of Christ. ... It wasn't just the physical torture or death he feared; he dreaded the rejection by those he loved. The gang was his family. These were loyal and dear friends who looked out for him 24 hours a day. There was love and camaraderie from being in a gang that he enjoyed since childhood. Now he would lose those relationships and be hated by them all.
When Rob describes gang life much of it sounds like what the Church was meant to be. Obviously, there are major differences (drugs, murder - you know, little details like that), but the idea of "being a family" is central to both gang life and God's design for the Church. ... Could you ever imagine gang life being reduced to a weekly one-hour gathering? No group would meet briefly once a week and call that a gang. Imagine one gang member walking up to another one and saying, "Yo, how was gang? I had to miss this week because life has been crazy!"
We all know enough about gangs to know that's ridiculous. Yet every week we hear Christians asking each other, "How was church?" Something that God has designed to function as a family has been reduced to an optional weekly meeting."
* * * * * * *
Truth is...Don't you long at least a little bit for that sense of belonging and mutual commitment to each other? Isn't there something within each of us that can't be satisfied by going to church instead of being the Church?
In 2018, Francis Chan published a book titled Letters to the Church. In 2024, I borrowed that book from the library and started reading it. In just the second chapter, I began to feel excited, and perhaps a little chastised, by what I was reading.
Having explained, in Chapter One, why he left the megachurch he helped establish, Chan bursts out of the starting gate of Chapter Two with a Scriptural examination of just how amazing and sacred the church is meant to be...and how all the modern emphasis on church growth and bringing in people with professionally-produced worship services is missing the mark.
"Through the cross, people of every nation and tongue become members of one body? Amazing! God Himself is joining His creation and allowing them to be a part of His body? Unbelievable!"
Chan talks about how "the modern church" has failed to see itself as the sacred organism it is and has sunken to using business models and entertainment models instead of the Spirit's guidance.
"I can't help but see our own lameness in failing to see the beauty in God's design for the Church. Heavenly beings are shocked by God's Church, while many on earth yawn. The early church didn't need the energetic music, great videos, attractive leaders, or elaborate lighting to be excited about being a part of God's body. The pure gospel was enough to put them in a place of awe.
Aren't you at least a little embarrassed that you have needed the extra stuff? It's not all your fault. For decades church leaders like myself have lost sight of the powerful mystery inherent in the Church and have instead run to other methods to keep people interested. In all honesty, we have trained you to become addicted to lesser things. We have cheapened something sacred, and we must repent."
* * * * * * *
Truth is...There's nothing inherently wrong with being a megachurch. But filling huge auditoriums is not a guaranteed sign that the Spirit is moving within. The WWF and the NFL can fill thousands of seats as people observe their events. And if a congregation is attracting people to a great show instead of a great savior...is it really a church?
Have you ever felt like, even though you want to think of yourself as a unique individual with a special set of abilities and experiences, there's nothing about you that really stands out?
John Koenig, in The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, has a term for that:
the standard blues - n. the dispiriting awareness that the twists and turns of your life feel new and profound but are not unique - marked by the same coming-of-age struggles as millions of others, the same career setbacks, the same family strife, the same learning curve of parenting - which makes even your toughest challenges feel harmless and predictable, just another remake of the same old story. [A riff on blues standards, the catalog of the most popular songs in the blues genre, which is itself famous for chord progressions that cycle through variations on a theme.]
Paul put it this way in 1st Corinthians 10:13 (CSB): "No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity." But then he adds this bit of encouragement: "But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it."
* * * * * * *
Truth is...This reminds me of the words of Jesus in John 16:33 (NIV): "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world"
Serving as an excellent bad example yet again, Bill Waterson's Calvin seems to think he has complete control over a small group of flowers.
Then, just as he really gets wound up with his self-importance, God steps in.
Truth is...By the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one. (Romans 12:3 CSV)
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.
I John 2:1
Here's the picture John draws: It's the courtroom at the end of all time; the final judgment. Lucifer serves as the prosecuting attorney. His table is piled high with affidavits and depositions and enough physical evidence to fill a storage unit.
On the opposite side is the space reserved for the defendant. That would be me...or you, if you're inclined to put yourself in the scenario. The counsel for the defense is Yeshua Barjoseph; commonly called Jesus Christ. The table where we sit is empty. No notes. No file folders. Not even a briefcase.
Behind the judge's bench, gavel in hand, is the lord of all creation, El Shaddai, Yahweh, the Almighty.
Even with this foreboding setup, I'm pretty sure it will be the shortest trial in the history of litigation.
LUCIFER: Your honor, you must find him guilty!
JESUS: Ah, but Father, look at the defendant. He is clothed in my righteousness.
YAHWEH: Not guilty! Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share your master's happiness.
* * * * * * *
Truth is...Maybe there actually will be a guilty verdict, but it will be found that the sentence for my crimes has already been served. "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." II Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)
I recently read Why I Am Still Surprised by the Voice of God by Jack Deere. Because I was raised in a church tradition that operated under the assumption that all direct communication from God ceased once the original apostles died off, I couldn't help but be a little wary of the book's testimonies of "how God speaks today through prophecies, dreams, and visions."
And yet, the humility with which Deere wrote and the Scriptures he pointed out and the personal testimony of my own son have all worked together to leave me open to the possibility of hearing and being led by God's "still, small voice."
And then, in today's reading from THE IMITATION OF CHRIST: Classic Devotions in Today's Language, by Thomas à Kempis (Compiled and Edited by James N. Watkins), I was directed to consider the words of Jesus in John 16:13-14...
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard...He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.
...and also the words of Thomas à Kempis...
Truly blessed are the ears that listen -- not to the sounds surrounding them -- but to the voice of Truth inside. Blessed are the eyes that are closed to outward things, but are focused on things within. Blessed are they who search inward things and study to prepare themselves by daily exercises for the receiving of heavenly mysteries. Blessed are they who long to have time for God and free themselves from every time-waster in the world. Think on these things, O my soul. Shut the doors of your selfish and sinful desires so you may hear what the Lord God will say within you.
* * * * * * *
Truth is...I am practically a slave to time-wasters and cultural noise, but I believe the lord of the universe is able to deliver me from evil and bring his kingdom to life within me here and now...on earth as it is in heaven.
The following quote about the mighty warships of the 1700s (from The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder by David Grann) set my mind to thinking.
“Most of the wood was hard oak, but it was still susceptible to the pulverizing elements of storm and sea. Teredo navalis--a reddish shipworm, which can grow longer than a foot--ate through hulls. (Columbus lost two ships to these creatures during his fourth voyage to the West Indies.) Termites also bored through decks and masts and cabin doors, as did deathwatch beetles. A species of fungus further devoured the ship's wooden core. In 1684, Samuel Pepys, a secretary to the Admiralty, was stunned to discover that many new warships under construction were already so rotten they were ‘in danger of sinking at their very moorings.’
“The average man-of-war was estimated by a leading shipwright to last only fourteen years. And to survive that long, a ship had to be virtually remade after each extensive voyage, with new masts and sheathing and rigging. Otherwise, it risked disaster. In 1782, while the 180-foot Royal George--for a time the largest warship in the world--was anchored near Portsmouth, with a full crew onboard, water began flooding its hull. It sank. The cause has been disputed, but an investigation blamed the ‘general state of decay of her timbers.’ An estimated nine hundred people drowned.”
* * * * * * *
Truth is...I am reminded of the words of Jesus about building our houses on sand or rock (Matthew 7:24-27) and Paul's words about reaping what we sow (Galatians 6:7). Whatever a person entrusts their physical or spiritual well-being to had better be trustworthy. And guard yourself against what you think are just little things...but could eat away at your integrity until you're sunk.
A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band ends the way it began...with Rich Mullins contemplating his earthly existence, God's sovereignty over it, and mankind's need for redemption.
And the coal trucks come a-runnin'
With their bellies full of coal
And their big wheels a-hummin'
Down this road that lies open like the soul of a woman
Who hid the spies who were lookin'
For the land of the milk and the honey
And this road she is a woman
She was made from a rib
Cut from the sides of these mountains
Oh these great sleeping Adams
Who are lonely even here in paradise
Lonely for somebody to kiss them
and I'll sing my song, and I'll sing my song
In the land of my sojourn
And the lady in the harbor
She still holds her torch out
To those huddled masses who are
Yearning for a freedom that still eludes them
The immigrant's children see their brightest dreams shattered
Here on the New Jersey shoreline in the
Greed and the glitter of those high-tech casinos
But some mendicants wander off into a cathedral
And they stoop in the silence
And there their prayers are still whispered
And I'll sing their song, and I'll sing their song
In the land of my sojourn
Nobody tells you when you get born here
How much you'll come to love it
And how you'll never belong here
So I call you my country
And I'll be lonely for my home
And I wish that I could take you there with me
And down the brown brick spine of some dirty blind alley
All those drain pipes are drippin' out the last Sons Of Thunder
These rundown stables like the one that Christ was born in
When the old world started dying
And the new world started coming on
And I'll sing His song, and I'll sing His song
In the land of my sojourn
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc. 1993 - Kid Brothers of St. Frank Publishing
* * * * * * *
Truth is..."I call you my country and I'll be lonely for my home and I wish that I could take you there with me" applies not just to living in America but to occupying Planet Earth. As Paul says in the New Living Translation of Romans 8:22 and 23, "We know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us."
The penultimate song on A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band is the hardest bit of rocking that Rich Mullins ever did...and it probably packs the hardest punch in terms of grief over how humans have steered so far away from God's ideal for them...all in the name of self-actualization.
Strong man strangle universe
He drown the stars
Blinded by the mission of a thousand wars
He fit and dominant
Not wonder why
He heed the battle cry
Strong man is survivor
He live to pound
Little wooden crosses in the bloody ground
He fit and dominant
He stand a chance
He not bound to circumstance
And the world keep on turning
And the sun keep on burning
And the children keep learning
How to grow up big and strong
How to grow up big and strong
Strong man take no prisoner
Favor no plea
He leave no gold in teeth of enemy
He fit and dominant
He rise above
He not have the word that mean love
And the world keep on turning
And the sun keep on burning
And the children keep learning
How to grow up big and strong
How to grow up big and strong
Strong man beat the plowshare
He forges sword
He take the flower and he curse the thorn
He crush the serpent
He bite the fruit
His hand is absolute
And the world keep on turning
And the sun keep on burning
And the children keep learning
How to grow up big and strong
How to grow up big and strong
1987 - Ideola Music
* * * * * * *
Truth is...This song was written by another CCM artist, Mark Heard, but it brings to mind a quote by Rich: "If your life is motivated by your ambition to leave a legacy, what you'll probably leave as a legacy is ambition."
With the 10th song on A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band, Rich Mullins has perfectly captured the anticipation and excitement that filled our hearts as children who just could NOT sleep in on December 25th.
I thought Christmas Day would never come
But it's here at last, so mom and dad,
the waiting's finally done
And you gotta get up, you gotta get up,
you gotta get up
It's Christmas morning
Last night I heard reindeers on my roof
Well you may think I'm exaggerating
but I swear I'm tellin' you the truth
And you gotta get up, you gotta get up,
you gotta get up
It's Christmas morning
Did my sister get a baby doll?
Did my brother get his bike?
Did I get that red wagon, the kind that makes you fly?
Oh, I hope there'll be peace on earth
I know there's good will toward men
On account of that Baby born in Bethlehem
Mom and Daddy stayed up too late last night
Oh, I guess they got carried away in the Christmas candlelight
And you gotta get up, you gotta get up,
you gotta get up
It's Christmas morning
And you gotta get up, you gotta get up,
you gotta get up
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc.
* * * * * * *
Truth is...Even as commercial and secularized as the celebration of Christmas has become, there will always be the reminder of that baby born in Bethlehem. Sure, Jesus probably wasn't actually born on December 25th, but that's not the point. The miracle of the Incarnation, God taking on human flesh to carry out his mission of sacrificial love, is worth celebrating 365 days a year.
On Rich Mullins' album, A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band, a fitting follow-up for the admission that being like Jesus is hard is this next song that expresses a determination to keep on keeping on.
Momma, I've got two strong hands.
And they're fine as far as hands go
I can shoulder the future, I can face the wind
For the dream that I must follow
It's a dream that can kill with its beauty
It's a hurt that can heal with its pain
And with all of these miles that lie before me
I may never get home again
But I'll carry the songs I learned when we were kids
I'll carry the scars of generations gone by
I'll pray for you always, and I promise you this
I'll carry on, I'll carry on
I kissed the earth on my daddy's grave
Said goodbye to my brave young companions
But when they hoist that sail I know my heart will break
As bright and as fine as the morning
I don't know where this road will take me
But they say there's a place there for a man
And I'm only afraid that my dreams may betray me
And I'll never get home again
But I'll carry the songs I learned when we were kids
And I'll carry the scars of generations gone by
I'll pray for you always, and I promise you this
I'll carry on, I'll carry on
And oh, I can shoulder the future, I can brave the wind
Oh, we go on, we go on, but we never get home again
So I'll carry the songs I learned when we were kids
I'll carry the scars of generations gone by
I'll pray for you always, and I promise you this
I'll carry on, I'll carry on
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc. 1993 - Kid Brothers of St. Frank Publishing
* * * * * * *
Truth is..."Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14
After the instrumental piece, "78 Eatonwood Green," the "legacy" half of A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band kicks off with a semi-peppy prayer of introspection and truthful confession.
Well, I am a good Midwestern boy
I give an honest day's work if I can get it
I don't cheat on my taxes, I don't cheat on my girl
I've got values that would make the White House jealous
Well, I do get a little much over-impressed
'Til I think of Peter and Paul and the apostles
I don't stack up too well against them I guess
But by the standards 'round here I ain't doing that awful
Lord, it's hard to turn the other cheek
Hard to bless when others curse you
Oh Lord, it's hard to be a man of peace
Lord, it's hard, oh it's hard,
You know it's hard to be like Jesus
Don't you know it's hard, oh it's hard,
Oh Lord, it's hard to be like Jesus
And it's hard to step out on them waves
Hard to walk beyond your vision
Oh Lord, it's hard to be a man of faith
Lord, it's hard, Lord, it's hard,
Oh Lord, it's hard to be like Jesus
Don't you know it's hard, oh it's hard,
Oh Lord, it's hard to be like Jesus
Well, His eye is on the sparrow
And the lilies of the field I've heard
And He will watch over you and He will watch over me
So we can dress like flowers and eat like birds
And it's hard when your soul has been stripped bare
Hard to lift your eyes toward Heaven
Oh Lord, it's hard to be a man of prayer
Lord, it's hard, oh it's hard,
You know it's hard to be like Jesus
Lord, it's hard to be a man of peace
But it's hard, ain't it hard,
You know it's hard to be like Jesus
Don't you know it's hard, and it's hard
To be a man of peace
But it's hard to be like Jesus
Well, I am a good Midwestern boy
I give an honest day's work if I can get it
I don't cheat on my taxes, I don't cheat on my girl
I've got values that would make the White House jealous
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc.
* * * * * * *
Truth is...As much as I like to talk about following Jesus and how that's a purposeful life to live, it's not all that easy. It IS hard to bless when others curse you. After all, in Luke 9:23, Jesus said that following him was going to be like carrying your own cross to Calvary every day.
The sixth song on Rich Mullins' 1993 album, A Liturgy, a Legacy, and a Ragamuffin Band, helps to emphasize one of the many facets of the Lord's Supper or Eucharist: the sharing of the ritual of remembrance with one's church family.
Though it's true the Lord's Supper can be a time of personal reflection and repentance, Paul calls us to be aware of our spiritual brothers and sisters as well. Consider First Corinthians 11:20-22, 27-29: "When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk. Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter! ... So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves."
Though we're strangers, still I love you
I love you more than your mask
And you know you have to trust this to be true
And I know that's much to ask
But lay down your fears, come and join this feast
He has called us here, you and me
And may peace rain down from Heaven
Like little pieces of the sky
Little keepers of the promise
Falling on these souls
This drought has dried
In His Blood and in His Body
In this Bread and in this Wine
Peace to you
Peace of Christ to you
And though I love you, still we're strangers
Prisoners in these lonely hearts
And though our blindness separates us
Still His light shines in the dark
And His outstretched arms are still strong enough to reach
Behind these prison bars to set us free
So may peace rain down from Heaven
Like little pieces of the sky
Little keepers of the promise
Falling on these souls the drought has dried
In His Blood and in His Body
In this Bread and in this Wine
Peace to you
Peace of Christ to you
And may peace rain down from Heaven
Like little pieces of the sky
Like those little keepers of the promise
Falling on these souls the drought has dried
In His Blood and in His Body
In this Bread and in this Wine
Peace to you
Peace of Christ to you
Peace to you
Peace of Christ to you
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc.
* * * * * * *
Truth is...I love the interplay between the first phrases of the two verses: "Though we're strangers, still I love you" and "Though I love you, still we're strangers." It is an appropriate reflection on being part of a church body that is by no means perfect but by all means striving to follow the Lord's lead.
Neither Rich Mullins nor I grew up in a church tradition that placed any emphasis on the Nicene Creed or the Apostles' Creed...or Apollo Creed, for that matter.
We did, however, grow up in churches that place plenty of emphasis on the Bible and on living as united as possible on "the essentials of the faith." And really, what better condensation of truth is there to uphold than one that has Scriptural foundations (see the series I posted on the Nicene Creed and its Scripture references) and has been revered since 325 AD?
I believe in God the Father
Almighty Maker of Heaven and Maker of Earth
And in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son, our Lord
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
Born of the virgin Mary
Suffered under Pontius Pilate
He was crucified and dead and buried
And I believe what I believe
is what makes me what I am
I did not make it, no it is making me
It is the very truth of God
and not the invention of any man
I believe that He who suffered
was crucified, buried, and dead
He descended into hell and on the third day, rose again
He ascended into Heaven
where He sits at God's mighty right hand
I believe that He's returning
To judge the quick and the dead of the sons of men
And I believe what I believe
is what makes me what I am
I did not make it, no it is making me
It is the very truth of God and not the invention of any man
I believe it, I believe it
I believe in God the Father
Almighty Maker of Heaven and Maker of Earth
And in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son, our Lord
I believe in the Holy Spirit
One Holy Church
The communion of Saints
The forgiveness of sin
I believe in the resurrection
I believe in a life that never ends
And I believe what I believe
is what makes me what I am
I did not make it, no it is making me
I did not make it, no it is making me
I said I did not make it, no it is making me
It is the very truth of God and not the invention of any man
I believe it, I believe it
1993 - Edward Grant, Inc. 1993 - Kid Brothers of St. Frank Publishing
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Truth is...First Corinthians 15:1-6 says it well. "Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time."
